The 6.5 Strikes Back!!! Norma Bondstrike that is!

[@johnstewart2011]

Very informative. I especially liked the demonstration of the actual wound damage that most people are too squeamish to usually show.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Honestly, we spent much of the last week going over the pros and cons of showing the results. We understand that the YT overlords will definitely not like it, and there are even members of our own community that don’t like facing the reality of what we do. At the end of the day, I want everyone to know what we do and why we do it. We’re not sponsored or paid by anyone so we should not be afraid to tell the truth and show the truth. Hopefully we don’t get banned, 😂😂😂

[@gibrigg]

When I saw the slomo of the video, I knew you had hit the heart. That shot was extraordinary! Nice job.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you!

[@PaulNirschl]

Been using bond strikes in 30/06, 270 win and 6.5 prc for a few years and love them

[@Tommysg88]

Harvested a smaller bull (5x5) at 300 in AZ last weekend using this round. It was absolutely devastating on the bull. Shot him in the bread basket and the bullet dumped all of its energy on impact. Entry hole was tiny, no exit wound, but the lugs exploded on impact. Can confirm the quarter moa at 100 with a Seekins Havok Element, rugged Alaska TI, NF NX8.

[@mattchilders3123]

I just learned about these Bondstrikes and the accuracy out of my 6.5 Tikka CTR is the best I've every had.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

They are incredible on game as well!

[@LBZOverlander]

Congrats on your animal. I just got back doing the same thing. This year was a really tough hunt, they get spooked from a distance and poof....gone. Thanks for the damage footage and the retrieved bullet. Helps me compare it to my own.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you! These elk were spooky as well. That’s why I couldn’t get a closer shot. Good luck with the rest of your season!

[@VintageForagerBun1]

This is a great video. KZbin needs more of this! Im glad you found a round that works. I switched from hornady precision hunter to winchester power point and got my whitetail after it went 15 yards this year. Norma bond strike seems absolutely solid too.Happy hunting!

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you for the feedback! I’m hoping the YT overlords don’t shut us down for it 😂 Happy hunting!

[@lycheeznuts]

Eldx is a way better bullet than the bondstrike

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Not based on my results. In the 6.5 PRC, the ELDx failed to expand in 7 deer and one elk. That’s why I went on this journey of finding a better projectile

[@lycheeznuts]

@mountaintacticalcompany what do you mean it failed to expand in 7 deer and 1 elk?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Exactly that. They penciled right through hearts and lungs. Became a tracking nightmare. Lots of buddies and customers have experienced the same thing when the ELDx is loaded into these hotter cartridges. They work great at lower velocities like the 6.5CM, 30-06, 308, etc. but they fail to perform in magnums. Most guys who are running magnums and Hornady ammo run the ELDm. That’s what got me thinking about this rifle. A friend of mine helps out at a moose camp in Alaska. He told me they slay moose with the 6.5PRC and the ELDm. I told him about my experience with the ELDx and why I that rifle has been collecting dust. His team experienced the same thing until they switched bullets. So I made that video a month ago asking the KZbin community what was working for them in their 6.5PRCs. And that’s how we got where we are today 😁

[@johnfitzgerald6510]

Jason, they were not Bondstrike but when I was in Germany in the early 70's the only ammo I could get was Norma at the rod and gun club. I got really comfortable with 1/2 to 3/4 inch grouping with the 100 gr loads. Long story short is when I got back to the US I couldn't find Norma ammo anywhere and was disappointed to find that the US ammo was 1 to 1 1/2 inch in that rifle. Norma is fine ammo.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

The 70s through the 2000s were not a great time in American firearm manufacturing. Luckily, this has changed. I’m completely sold on Norma. Cheers!

[@stevenbarnes5220]

@@mountaintacticalcompany What is the cartridge bullet weight?

[@shampton911]

Great video - I have been sold on Norma This last year - shooting there golden target, bond strike and eco strike I have had nothing but impressive results. Glad to see I’m not the only one.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

That's awesome! I must have been living under a rock because I never realized they offered so many centerfire solutions. I am talking to the VP of Sales next week to see if we can do an educational series with Norma. Fingers crossed!

[@shampton911]

@ I will be following this for sure

[@phild9813]

Congratulations on the elk, always an accomplishment to bring home the bacon with those things! Glad to hear the Normas are working well. If I wasn’t a copper guy, I’d look into them. I’ve had Norma whitetail produce some unbelievably, annoyingly good groups, but never shot game with them.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you! If the Norma didn’t work, I was planning on trying some Hammer Bullets. I’ve been testing them in my 284 Winchester and the accuracy is excellent. What coppers are you running?

[@phild9813]

For elk, I’ve only used factory loaded 140 grain TSXs in 270wsm. I bought a pile of it when they used to do rebates and it’s slow, but works well. Probably will rebarrel and reload for the 155 LRXs when I run out. I’ve also used LRXs, GMXs, CXs, TSXs, TTSXs, TAC-TXs, and Sellier and Bellot TXRGs in 223/5.56, 300blk, 6.5 creed, 30-06, 270win, and 308 to kill deer, pronghorn, moose, hogs, javelina, coyote, etc. I am hesitant to use non Barnes/Hornady coppers, but I’ve heard great things about the Hammers and may need to try them. We used the TXRGs for the first time this year on pronghorn because they were the only copper I could get to shoot well out of my wife’s new Wby. They seemed to work well, although I still haven’t developed trust in them completely.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I think you’ve run more coppers than anyone I’ve ever talked to. Very cool! I ran the 140 TSXs in my 270WSM for years until I found the 165 Matrix Ballistics had better terminal performance at distance. I didn’t realize my bullets were slowing down to the point they would not open reliably. The theory behind the Hammers seems solid. I love the idea of a fragging monolithic to avoid lead contamination in the meat.

[@matthewpeavler9107]

Heck yeah. Bondstrike for the win

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I can’t believe I had never heard about the Bondstrike. It’s incredible!

[@d.l.jenkins9889]

Nice shot Jason. Enjoy the great meat.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you! Her back straps are so tender…

[@benjaminhamm3957]

Nice shot

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

@@benjaminhamm3957 thank you!

[@Accuracy1st]

Glad you tried the Norma Bondstrike. Turns out it shoots half MOA in the two 6.5PRCs my son and I are shooting opening day in 2 weeks. Tikka Roughtechs, tan, with Zeiss scopes. Left hand for me, right hand for my son. The ammo is shooting 2857 for me and 2902 for my son. Plenty for whitetail. We can shoot to around 640 yards on my dad's place. By the way, I got about 600 of the 143 Bondstrikes to handload also. I'm sure I can get another 50-100fps with a few different powders.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Keep me posted on your hand loads. Tikka barrels are slower because of the manufacturing process. The great thing odd I bet you’ll pick up at least 100fps hand loading. I want to try the 7mm Bondstrike as well

[@Accuracy1st]

@@mountaintacticalcompany I sure will but it will be awhile now because the season opens the 23rd and I won't be testing any more handloads until probably late January or early Feb. I did find out fairly quickly that Tikka barrels are definitely slow but they do shine with handloads and I can get some much better velocities. Frankly I can load up the factory Tikka rifles hotter than any American made I have. My son's Tikka 270 is shooting 60.0 grains of H4831SC and a 150 Accubond at 2960fps. That's not average either. That's the slowest. Here's something else I've experienced. The Norma Bondstrike is literally about as perfect a bullet as you can get right up there with the Terminal ascent. But where the Bondstrike shines is it's cheaper and, to some degree, easier to get to shoot more accurately. I just found out about them a year or 2 ago and the characteristics that make it SOOOO GOOD are it's bonded but still soft. That sucker expands up close and at distance and frankly I've never given a hoot about how much a bullet weighs, or if it went in and out or only went in and I found it. None of that matters to me. What does matter is when I shoot it, is everything it hits going to die and die fast. I agree and enjoy discussing the topic and watching the videos but when a hunter has his or her gutting knife out and are standing over your kill, I get a chuckle at people who still opine "the bullet failed" because they are so entrenched on the preciseness of what they think the bullet should have done better or it had more fragmentation than anticipated and on and on when all the while they are looking at their future pot of deer or elk or caribou or moose chili. I got lucky and purchased about 1200 Bondstrike bullets to load - the 6.5mm and the 30 cal. to date, I've not been so lucky as to find the 7mm 165s. So instead I bought 2 cases of the factory Norma ammo in 7RemMag. And guess what? Naturally it shoots as good as most people can handload in my two left hand T3x, stainless lites, my right hand T3x blued/synthetic stock, my T3 blued Hunter Deluxe, my right hand stainless T3x superlite, and my custom 7RemMag with a Krieger barrel. Lucky me.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I agree with your performance philosophy. The 6.5PRC was the second cartridge I had terminal ballistic issues with. The first was my 270WSM that got me hooked on Tikkas to begin with. The 130 ballistic tips penciled through animals as well. I’m not a fan of a slow death. So I learned to hand load and ran 165 Matrix Ballistics until the barrel burned up. Bang flop! As long as the animal dies quickly without suffering, I could care less about how the bullet did its job because it did do its job.

[@Accuracy1st]

@@mountaintacticalcompany That's really interesting you observed a 130 Ballistic Tip doing that. For 35 years the stories I heard was how they blow up. The 270 Weatherby was one of Dan Lilja's favorites. He loaded the 130 ballistic tip for it and killed a pronghorn at around 1200 yards. If I recall correctly he had a 30" barrel. No clue what the speed was. I've been loading 270 Win longer than anything and the 130, 140, 150 ballistic tips w/o failure of any kind on deer and bears and pronghorn. I have 4 more barrels to get chambered with my 270-7PRC reamer. Two Benchmarks, and 2 Brux. One of the Benchmarks is in factory Tikka contour and I have a 300WM T3 donor for that. The other 3 are for my Terminus action. I have been loading for the 2 K&P barrels so far and one is quite a bit faster than the other even though the barrels are identical. So for the slower barrel I'm going with lighter wt bullets like the 150 accubond, 150 ABLR, 155 LRX and maybe a 160 class Hammer. I'll resume all of that when deer season is over.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

In the comment section of my first video on this rifle, someone suggested that temperature could play a role in bullets not expanding. It would be an interesting theory to test. Bullets are insanely hot when they leave the barrel, but if the transition from extreme heat to extreme cold changes the temper of the metal, it would definitely have a negative effect. We used to work with a silhouette shooter that sent us a recipe on how to bake bullets so they would not deform on impact. He did this for all his competition bullets so they would transfer the energy that would have gone into deformation into the steel. I wonder if something similar is happening here…

[@Kai-ge6hn]

More videos of 6.5 Bondstrike?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Definitely!

[@mftoutdoors7483]

Great video. Will get a tika

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

You won’t regret it!

[@geoffholmes7006]

Great shot and performance at distance. Did you have to make any adjustments to the published bc?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I ran the published G7 BC of .313 through GeoBallistics with the measured velocity. It has been spot on to 1,000 yards.

[@Accuracy1st]

By the way, for Ss and Gs, let us know if you decide to try any other premium bonded ammo like the new FEDERAL TIPPED FUSION 6.5PRC or Nosler ABLR ammo with their 140 class bullet

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

The only reason I didn’t try Federal is because of the brass quality. I’ve heard nothing but good things about the projectile. The ABLR was on my short list as well as the 156 EOL. I’ve been playing Hammers in my 284 Win. I have a feeling I am really going to like the Hammers…

[@Accuracy1st]

@@mountaintacticalcompany Interesting. I've been loading Federal brass since the 80s without issue. In one of my 7PRCs I settled on the nickel brass from Federal after burning up some factory Federal ELDX ammo since it performed so well. Typically I'm not a fan of using nickel brass for handloads but this batch worked out extremely well. The Federal Tipped Fusion is regular brass.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I just got spoiled with Lapua, Norma, and ADG. Nothing wrong with Federal. But after playing the brass sorting and neck turning game (because I’m sick in the head), I just go with the devil I know.

[@Accuracy1st]

@@mountaintacticalcompany Oh I agree. I'm loving my Lapua, Norma, ADG, and Peterson brass and I prefer it

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I have a pile of Peterson brass for my 28 Nosler I need to break into. It’s been sitting in the shelf too long.

[@jaredconrad7075]

My Tikka 308 was picky with factory loads but it absolutely does well with bond strikes. My only gripe is that the gun loving 180 gr factory loads kinda defeated the purpose of going 308. Working on recipe for 130 ttsx to make up for it.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

The 130 ttsx is a beast! I am curious though, how does the gun loving 180s defeat the purpose of the .308?

[@jaredconrad7075]

@mountaintacticalcompany a better wording would have been it defeated my purpose of getting a 308 because it was supposed to be my easy on the shoulder deer rifle. It's still lighter than 7mag or 338win that are in the stable but when my goal was lighter recoil in a lightweight rifle it's ironic that it likes top end of bullet weight and thus top end of recoil for the cartridge. But I'll deal with the irony for the performance in groups and sample size of 3 blacktail thus far.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Ah that makes sense! That’s the same reason I wanted this little PRC to perform. My 28 Nosler is amazing, but I don’t like shooting it as much. That 130 TTSX is going to hammer those black tails! Cheers!

[@Accuracy1st]

50.0 TAC, 3200fps, 24" barrel, 130 TTSX

[@jaredconrad7075]

@@Accuracy1st I haven't done a ton of work with it yet but so far it has not liked any of the TAC loads but was a BIG fan of around 48gr of varget. For what I'm doing if I can be close to 3100 that's perfect. More would be better I just only recently was able to acquire varget. We've had a heck of a time getting reloading supplies where I live so I picked a pretty silly time to try to pick up the hobby hahaha

[@Timberdam]

So why does the rifle like one ammo over another has a lot to do with a barrel is a tuning fork that vibrates and oscillates and that Ammo hit the sweet spot. And there’s other videos about bond strike, and terminal performance. Excellent Ammo. Nice shot

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

My issue with the previous ammo was never accuracy. It was actually more accurate than the Bondstrike. Check out the previous video about this rifle for specifics. The issue came down to terminal ballistics. I didn’t trust this rifle not because it wasn’t accurate, it was the fact the ammo performed terribly on game.

[@JMJProductions-fh8vq]

What was the bullet that didn’t perform?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Check out the "I don't trust this rifle video" All the details are in there!

[@stevenbarnes5220]

Norma Bondstrike grain you used? Ballistic info would help?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

It should be in the video. It’s the only 6.5PRC Bondstrike ammo they make.

[@jamesmooney5348]

Yeah, if I was you, I would've taken that shot too! But i like .284 cal and north of 160 grains with muzzle velocity of 3100,vif possible. Bond Strikes are soft and open up wide. Great job! That was a big cow. Live weight was what? 600-700lbs?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Live weight of 550-600 I bet. I’m terrible at estimating that though. Normally I use my 28 Nosler with a 175 ABLR running 3100. But I really wanted to get this rifle out of mothballs and you guys helped me a ton so I wanted to pass on my thanks!

[@jamesmooney5348]

@mountaintacticalcompany Looks heavier

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I ended up with just under 300# of juicy elk meat. It’s so good! 😊

[@mr.mr.3301]

Funny how different things are out west. We don’t Have 600 yards unless it’s man made in the southeast.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I grew up in TX shooting no more than 100 yards. Moving to the PNW opened my eyes to a whole new world of hunting conditions and the training requirements to successfully hunt in these conditions.

[@mr.mr.3301]

@ for sure. I’ve said this before but the caliber and bullet that is best for the east is totally different than out west. Give me a short barrel 308 with a suppressor and federal fusion and I’m good.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

It’s not quite the East, but that’s the exact set up I plan to run chasing WI and KS whitetail. .308 is never a bad choice.

[@kurtissmith4555]

What was the original ammo you were having issues with?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

It was the Hornady Precision Hunter. Check out my previous video on this rifle. I explain what was going on. Cheers!

[@kurtissmith4555]

I knew in my gut that’s what it was !! Haha , just watched ur first video , I’ll tell u my experience it’s similar to yours , built a custom along the same lines , all expensive parts , first few boxes of 175 7mm shot super tight 0.3 moa ish then all the sudden the next couple boxes I hand loaded groups opened up huge , throwing all sorts of flyers , started doing some digging …seems 6.5 and 7mm in the eldx are so popular and being pumped out of the factory so fast , their quality control has gone to shit on all the new lots , I started measuring and weighing bullets , just to much variation in all the new stuff

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Oh man…. That sounds like a nightmare! I bought into the marketing hook line and sinker…. Lessons learned I guess! What are you running now?

[@kurtissmith4555]

⁠ I will say this , the eldx 212gr in my 300 prc shoot really nice and have dropped animals in there tracks , but Iv heard the consistency is vstill good on those cause they don’t move off the shelves as quick , in my 7prc iv moved to Berger 175 elite hunters and 195 EOL

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

How do you like the 195 EOL? I’m thinking of trying that in my 28 Nosler. The 175ABLRs are fantastic, but if I’m going to have a big 7, why not push big bullets?

[@clayp520]

Why am I surprised that it lost so much weight at that range?

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

I’m not since it passed through bone. I should have mentioned that in the video.

[@loganmorton9304]

You yanks love turning light rifles into monstrosities lol

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Yes we do! I actually touched on that in our video a couple weeks ago about stock inlet problems. I decided to build a nice light hunting rifle and the stock inlet was messed up.

[@loganmorton9304]

@ I must check it out 😂. I’m a kiwi we like em pretty light, and while I do own a tac a1 it doesn’t get carried. My do it all is a suppressed 18 inch 308 carbon everywhere topped with a March and tricked out with some atlasworx goodies a touch over 8lb. Keep up the good no bs content. 👍🏼

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Thank you! I give a sneak peek at my bush pig build that our NZ customers inspired me to put together. That was the rifle I planned to take on the hunt instead of my 6.5PRC. But the stock was inlet incorrectly. One of our NZ customers gave me a B- grade on it though 😂😂😂

[@flashgross]

Called you 3 times trying to get an answer on bottom Metal fitment and the lady (who is very nice and helpful) did not know and apparently couldn't get in contact with anyone who would know. I guess the owner is toooooo busy to take phone calls. I like your company but good Lord it's frustrating to do business with you.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Now let’s be honest shall we? Chelseea is freaking awesome. She sent you all four videos that address the issue you are having. Since the rifle worked well last year, something else changed this year. We have a huge repository of information so we can efficiently assist Tikka shooters. The videos say everything that Chelseea said to you. If you have an issue with Starlink, do you call Elon Musk? Of course not. You call the people who can actually assist you. All successful business owners spend their time working on projects that help that largest number of customers possible and hire people to help one on one customer relations. You have been given the answers to your issues. What else can we do?

[@gregb.6682]

I have no respect for Impossible to please impatient people. Using the informative video posting to act a fool says a lot about the complainer. Always enjoy your videos.

[@mountaintacticalcompany]

Amen and thank you!