Poly mags or crow mags?

[GecoGuy]

Which do you prefer/shoot and why?

If both, please compare...

I myself shoot the polymags only because I can get them at my local sporting goods store, but I love that open look the crow mags have and would shoot them if the store carried em.

[Nomadic Pirate]

The Baracuda Hunter Hollowpoints fly and open up way better than the Crow Mags









compared to Crow Mags

[rsterne]

The Crow Mags have a pretty poor BC compared to the Hunters and Predators.... so they lose a lot more velocity and energy on the way to the target.... However, in most calibers, they are quite a bit lighter than the Hunters, so will work better in a lower powered gun.... The Preds are generally similar in weight to a Crow Mag....

If a low-medium powered gun at relatively close range, Crow Mags....
To stretch the range out, try the Preds....
If a higher powered gun, and at longer ranges, Hunters....

Bob

[Nomadic Pirate]

yeah those Hunters fly like lazers out of my Sumatra (not full power)

[Dick Tracey]

How about the new hunter Extreme's.  They have good accuracy in my m-rod and Walther Falcon Hunter .25 Cal?  Don't know about the spreading.

DT

[Nomadic Pirate]

I have a tin in .25 I might do a testing compared to the Predators for expansion, don't have any Baracuda Hunters in .25, if someone wants to send me a few I can do a side by side comparison, I think I still have a few Crow Magnums in .25,.......no I don't just checked, dang I have 4 tins of the Hunter Extreme, didn't know that 

[Bryan Heimann]

I like the Barracuda Hunter Extremes, too. Dick Tracey sent me a few to try, and they really open up in the duct seal.  I haven't had a chance to stretch the range out with them, but I can only imagine they hit pretty hard. 

[Ribbonstone]

Depends on the gun....which aways has the final say-so on what pellet it will shoot well.

Several 5mm's will shoot Poly Mags better than any other expanding pellet...so I use them.

One .22 shoots the RWS H-Points...which do tend to shed their head section, but tear things up well.  Is a low BC pellet, so not for long range...but the Poly mags and Crow Mags shoot so poorly, they aren't for long range in that gun either.

My only .25 shows a liking for Crow Mags, so they get used in that gun.


NOrmally I won't use expanding pellets unless it's a smaller sized critter.  Want the penetration of non-expanding pellets on full sized critters.

[rkr]

The Crow Mags have a pretty poor BC compared to the Hunters and Predators.... so they lose a lot more velocity and energy on the way to the target.... However, in most calibers, they are quite a bit lighter than the Hunters, so will work better in a lower powered gun.... The Preds are generally similar in weight to a Crow Mag....

If a low-medium powered gun at relatively close range, Crow Mags....
To stretch the range out, try the Preds....
If a higher powered gun, and at longer ranges, Hunters....

Bob

A good summary, here are some expansion tests at different power levels:
http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/message/1358808320/Has+the+infamous+Polymag+pellet+met+its+match-+...+Ballistic+Matrix+tests+continue

It's worth noting that the tip in those predators is sometimes tilted causing poor accuracy. Personally I use crow mags up to 25-30 yards and normal JSBs or H&N FTTs beyond that.

[GecoGuy]

Thanks for the link! Very interesting.

Can someone post a pic of some hunter extremes expanded, I just saw them for the first time and they look very interesting!

[Ribbonstone]

Maybe you'd have better luck.

Tested the .25's and was rather unimpressed.  Pretty soft test media (soaking wet news print), but one I've used before and is good for comparison. If they will expand in wet news print, they will show expansion in critters.  Can force expansion by shooting into stiffer/denser media.


Rifle set to shoot at 46 foot pounds, so at 20 yards should still be moving decently fast.   



Yeah...the Crow Mags are not as accurate.  Are accurate enough for shorter range use (which seems OK by me, as once they slow down they are jus another flat faced pellet).

But just don’t expand. Soaking wet news print, almost a “mush” at the same 20 yards as the targets.

Crow Mag to the left/ Hunter Extream to the right:



Sorry guys, ran out of Predators and had none for this mini-test.

Get a lot of grief about CrowMags, but occasionally will find a gun that shoots them well enough for at least shorter range shooting. 

Oh well…at least the "Phillips Head" pellets shoot well and won’t perform any WORSE on game than the round nosed, so they’ll get used.

[Mark Mowrey]

Here is a photo of .22 Crow Magnum retrieved from a biological target.  The shot was about 30 yards from (to the best of my knowledge as I am the third owner) an untuned Marauder.  Pellet entered the bushy tailed recipient at the shoulder and stopped just under the skin on the opposite side slightly to the rear of the entry point.  You don't seem to get the picture perfect expansion in real life.  I need to get some of the Baracuda Hunters to try.

[rsterne]

Here is some info on expansion and penetration testing I did recently.... http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=42959.

Bob

[bowhunt]

I prefer the polymags because none of my rifles shoot the crow mags well.

[blind dog]

The problem with shooting soap and duct seal and things like that is that everything expands as the pellet stops in an inch or two of depth,

Try here for soft clay and calibrated gelatin covered with simulated hide and/or bone:

http://m.airgunone.com/forums/showthread.php?p=44521

My 2 cents worth.

[jaytime25]

polymags for the win

[Bryan Heimann]

Here is a photo of .22 Crow Magnum retrieved from a biological target.  The shot was about 30 yards from (to the best of my knowledge as I am the third owner) an untuned Marauder.  Pellet entered the bushy tailed recipient at the shoulder and stopped just under the skin on the opposite side slightly to the rear of the entry point.  You don't seem to get the picture perfect expansion in real life.  I need to get some of the Baracuda Hunters to try.

That is still some pretty good expansion for a pellet.  Inside 30 yards, I imagine a domed pellet from a .22 Mrod would penetrate clean through a squirrel, so the fact that the pellet remained inside the quarry tells me something right there. 

[rsterne]

The melt-and-pour soap is pretty realistic.... a .22 LR bullet penetrated over a foot.... some pellets about 6".... and some hollowpoint pellets about 3"....

Bob

[Paul68]

Been liking the Crow Mags out of my Jet 29 fpe. Did the below to a rabbit at about 45 yards. Hole big enough for my thumb to fit into, and the pellet channel went about 3 inches down into the vitals and made a mess of everything on the way. Rabbit dropped like a rock. I get very nice groups with em, but yeah they open up past 35 yards. The Barracudas do much better at range, but I find hold becomes more important (heavier pellet staying in barrel longer?). Got a rabbit recently with the Barracuda Match, and at 30 yards pushing 29 fpe it sounded like hitting a rug with a stick. Dropped on the spot of course. The Hunters have yet to work for me.

http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=38789.msg361091#msg361091

[mtsheron70]

Sometimes a plain ole decent domed pellet will have a bigger effect.  That said I have some of those fancy dancy cross hatch Baracuda Extremes and wonder just what they will do!