I see a number of WTB posts for amaxes in various flavors, and am curious if the new (cough) non-melting tip bullets are not shooting as well as the older version? Inquiring minds....
So are the Hornady ELD-x and ELD-M's not shooting like the old Amaxes?
- Thread starter DIBBS
- Start date
The 80 ELDs are terrible, keep buying those Amaxes so I can pay less for the ELDs
Many ,like myself, are buying the A-max because they are cheaper.
I picked up a box of 168gr. .30 Cal A-MAX 250ct for $31.00.
I picked up a box of 168gr. .30 Cal A-MAX 250ct for $31.00.
I think it depends on the model / caliber of the ELD series. My wife's .223 bolt gun shoots an 80gr Amax load that is surgically precise on a calm day. Once I saw that Hornady was dropping the 80gr Amax, I picked up some 80gr ELDMs to do load development for. I was eager at first due to the better BC of the new ELDM, but I could never get them to shoot near as good as the prior AMAX. Upon comparing the two bullets, the 80gr ELDM has a more secant nose shape than the older 80gr AMAX, which is probably the reason for the improved BC. It sucks that I can't get the new 80gr ELDM to shoot in her rifle. If Hornady would have just put the non-melting tips on the old 80gr AMAX, we would for sure have had a winner on our hands. The 80gr AMAX was already a top dog with BC as compared to other 80gr offerings on the market, so it really didn't need the change to a finicky secant nose profile. Hey Hornady......Are you listening to this?
On the other hand, my shooting buddy had a sweetheart 178gr AMAX load for years in his .308. He developed a load with the new 178gr ELDMs that shoots identical .25 MOA groups just like the old 178gr AMAX, with a little more fps to boot. The only physical change we could see between the two bullets is the boatail is longer on the ELDMs with a corresponding shortening of the bearing surface. The nose profile looks to have remained the same on these. I would venture to say that this is why this particular bullet is just as successful as the old 178gr AMAX load was.
On the other hand, my shooting buddy had a sweetheart 178gr AMAX load for years in his .308. He developed a load with the new 178gr ELDMs that shoots identical .25 MOA groups just like the old 178gr AMAX, with a little more fps to boot. The only physical change we could see between the two bullets is the boatail is longer on the ELDMs with a corresponding shortening of the bearing surface. The nose profile looks to have remained the same on these. I would venture to say that this is why this particular bullet is just as successful as the old 178gr AMAX load was.
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