A couple of weeks ago, Barnes Bullets announced a new line of loaded ammunition called the Barnes VOR-TX. I obviously missed the announcement, and I’m quite the fan of Barnes Bullets (even a member of their Club-X). Another page on the VOR-TX here. Apparently it will be available on August 1, 2010.

While I’m starting to lean towards 6.8 SPC for hunting, I still can’t get away from .308 Win as my go-to caliber. Barnes will be offering this VOR-TX in both 150 and 168 grain TTSX (for .308 Win). That’s what intrigues me about this round: factory ammo with a 168 grain TTSX. No one offers factory ammo with a 168 TTSX; International Cartridge Co offers 150 grain TSX and TTSX, and DoubleTap Ammunition offers a 150 grain TTSX. But again, no one does 168 grain TTSX.

I’m still not doing a lot of rifle ammo reloading, so for now I still have to look to factory ammo for my hunting rounds. I’ve been using Federal’s P308H, which is a 165 grain TSX bullet and an overall fine round. Everything I’ve taken from hogs to deer to that water buffalo was taken with that round. But again, it’s a TSX bullet.

The Tipped TSX bullet (TTSX) is the evolution of the TSX. That polymer tip improves the ballistic coefficient. A .30 caliber 168 grain TSX BT (cat# 30844) is listed as having a B.C of .404  & S.D. .253 (the 165 grain TSX is B.C. .398 & S.D. .248) (source). A .30 caliber 168 grain TTSX BT (cat# 30878) is listed with a B.C. of .470 & S.D. .253 (source). That’s a nice improvement. Of course, the reality is the distances that I’ll be hunting with this? an improved B.C. won’t have a huge impact (but every bit is welcome). So what then? Well, that polymer tip greatly aids in getting the bullet to expand. Useful that.

Granted, to use the TSX vs. the TTSX isn’t a no-brainer as there are still advantages and application situations to one over the other. Nevertheless, to see the 168 grain TTSX offered in a factory load is welcome. Who knows… I may buy a box and see how it fares. Or, if I know what’s good for me, I’ll ignore all of this and get my butt to working on 6.8 SPC hunting loads instead. That .277″ 95 grain TTSX is panning out to be “the” bullet for 6.8 SPC.