Hornady NTX

[MVP.204]

I am looking at the Hornady NTX 24gr bullets in .204 Ruger.
Any of you guys have experience with these?
I should also mention that my barrel is a 1:12 twist.

Any recipes would also be appreciated.

 

[RegionRat]

I had to try the 24NTX since it is one of the few non-tox bullets I can run if I hunt the 204 in CA. I mostly hunt far away from CA so I tend to use mostly 40 VMax and Sierra 39, but I developed loads for 24 NTX in case I want to run them in CA.

I did well with RL-10, RL-15, but then also decided to try H335 and CFE223. Those did well too and were easy to mass produce with thrown charges.

I tried the Rem 7 1/2 and the Russian KVB primers and both did fine. I did loads for both a bolt gun and an AR.

I found 204 to be easy to live with and all the powders that worked for the 40 VMax and Sierra 39 also worked for the 24 NTX.

 

[Varmint Shooter]

The Hornady 24gr NTX is an excellent bullet. I have excellent results with them in my 20 Tac, 20 VT's and
20SCC. Actually I prefer them over the lead bullets and I don't have to use them here in Colorado. They
have done a job on hundreds of p-dogs.
P.S. AA2200 partners well with them.

 

[searcher]

I did very extensive testing on all the available lead-free bullets a number of years back. Contrary to what a lot of people were saying about them back then - my results were, for the most part, very favorable. The .20 caliber NTX didn't come out on top in any of the .20 caliber tubes I shot them in, though they are plenty accurate and explosive. I was shooting them in .20 Practical guns. I tried every powder listed, along with several that weren't. I found that, with the 24 NTX, it is more like shooting a .17 HMR with that light bullet. Huge difference from a 39 or 40 leaded bullet, for sure. It was very explosive, though effective range for me was around 300 yards. Beyond that, performance really began to suffer. I like the 32 LFBT out to closer to 450+. Much past that, I'll reach for my .223 with heavier 50 grain bullets like 50 LFBT or 50 Varmint Grenade. I found the best powders to be Accurate LT-32 and Military Surplus WW844 powder, hands down. The best lead-free combo we found for all of the rifles when loaded for ground squirrels are Nosler lead Free Ballistic Tips and either of the two powders mentioned. The Barnes Varmint Grenades worked really well in all rifles too. My choice would be 32 LFBT, 26 Varmint Grenade, then 24 NTX. I rate them in this order not only due to accuracy, but ability to shoot well in all rifles tested and terminal performance. That all said - they are good bullets. As Varmint Shooter said above, I too prefer the lead-free bullets over leaded in a few of my guns. If you shoot mostly within 250 yards - the 24 NTX will do you as good as anything if your rifle likes it.

 

[jpx2rk]

Searcher;
What twist rate did you have on your 20P when using the 24 gr NTX?

 

[searcher]

I use Hart 24" 1-12" tw heavy contour. I shoot a lot of 32, 39 and 40 grain pills with the same tube.

 

[jpx2rk]

I've got a 10twist 20P, and I've shot a few 26g I got in a bullet deal that shot decent, so was just wondering. Thanks

 

[scoop]

I did very extensive testing on all the available lead-free bullets a number of years back. Contrary to what a lot of people were saying about them back then - my results were, for the most part, very favorable. The .20 caliber NTX didn't come out on top in any of the .20 caliber tubes I shot them in, though they are plenty accurate and explosive. I was shooting them in .20 Practical guns. I tried every powder listed, along with several that weren't. I found that, with the 24 NTX, it is more like shooting a .17 HMR with that light bullet. Huge difference from a 39 or 40 leaded bullet, for sure. It was very explosive, though effective range for me was around 300 yards. Beyond that, performance really began to suffer. I like the 32 LFBT out to closer to 450+. Much past that, I'll reach for my .223 with heavier 50 grain bullets like 50 LFBT or 50 Varmint Grenade. I found the best powders to be Accurate LT-32 and Military Surplus WW844 powder, hands down. The best lead-free combo we found for all of the rifles when loaded for ground squirrels are Nosler lead Free Ballistic Tips and either of the two powders mentioned. The Barnes Varmint Grenades worked really well in all rifles too. My choice would be 32 LFBT, 26 Varmint Grenade, then 24 NTX. I rate them in this order not only due to accuracy, but ability to shoot well in all rifles tested and terminal performance. That all said - they are good bullets. As Varmint Shooter said above, I too prefer the lead-free bullets over leaded in a few of my guns. If you shoot mostly within 250 yards - the 24 NTX will do you as good as anything if your rifle likes it.

Hey searcher. I'm looking into the 32, 26, and 24 gr rounds you mention. My question is, can you speak to the animal or pelt damage of each of these, or how they compared to heaver grain lead loads?

 

[ohlongarmisle]

I am looking at the Hornady NTX 24gr bullets in .204 Ruger.
Any of you guys have experience with these?
I should also mention that my barrel is a 1:12 twist.

Any recipes would also be appreciated.

Fantastic round ,I run mine in a 1/10 twist Thompson ,at 400 yards only a foot drop, and still enough steam for gh's and even coyotes, 90% of my 204 shots are with that round.On nuisance control deer permits I was dropping them like flies at 200 plus yards ,head and neck shots never lost one drt.A couple dozen, mine runs a Liberty titanium suppressor on it because it is a blaster.

 

[searcher]

Hey searcher. I'm looking into the 32, 26, and 24 gr rounds you mention. My question is, can you speak to the animal or pelt damage of each of these, or how they compared to heaver grain lead loads?

from my experience, the best bullets for one wanting to save pelts is one that doesn't exit. The lead-free Ballistic Tips and Barnes Varmint Grenades work great. That 'sintered' material they put in the bullet jacket fragments far better than a regular copper/lead bullet. Go with the heaviest one you can shoot, though. Try to avoid shooting very close, if you can, as they can sometimes exit on really close shots. Also try to avoid shoulder shots as they might blow up on the bone and damage the pelt a bit. All said though, I'd still use them over traditional varmint bullets. The 32 LF Ballistic tip works great, though I've lost a few coyotes when shot placement was less than perfect. Guess it depends on what you are shooting. For coyotes, go with the heavy bullets. For foxes and such - any of them will do great.

 

[searcher]

Searcher;
What twist rate did you have on your 20P when using the 24 gr NTX?

1-12"

 

[searcher]

Hey searcher. I'm looking into the 32, 26, and 24 gr rounds you mention. My question is, can you speak to the animal or pelt damage of each of these, or how they compared to heaver grain lead loads?

I shoot mostly ground squirrels and the smaller "sage rats" with my .20's. All of those 3 bullets will just plain blow them up. On larger critters, like coyotes, I'd not use anything smaller than the 39 and 40 grain bullets unless the coyote is willing to stand still for that good shot. I've had several run away after shooting with the 32 with good body hits. I never bothered using the smaller bullets on the coyotes - as I assumed if the 32's weren't enough - those would work no better. For foxes, I think all of them would be great. As for pelt damage, that is kind of dicey. The best would be one of the smaller lead-free as they are frangible and pretty much dump everything inside the critter with no exit hole. The 32 Lead Free Ballistic Tip probably best. The 39 Blitz King and 40 V-Max are best for coyotes and, unless shot very close, tend to not leave an exit wound. But if hit on shoulder, can ruin the pelt as they can blow open a large hole in the pelt. But the small frangible bullets will do that too. If I were wanting the best .20 bullet for saving fur, I'd probably go with that 32 LF Ballistic Tip and aim very carefully. I wish Barnes made a heavier .20 bullet. Their 50 Varmint Grenades in .223 stop coyotes with great authority (and seldom leave exit holes unless shot very close).

 

[DiRTY DOG]

There is no such thing a a perfect fox/coyote gun/bullet for fur. One is too much, the other too little.

I would not call the 204 24gr NTX fur friendly on foxes. It's maybe 50/50. Sometimes it splits them wide open or blows out the shoulder. Sometimes it's great.

It's very similar to the 17Rem 25gr HP, or 223Rem 35gr NTX, or 223Rem 40gr Vmax on foxes. Somewhere around 50/50 just depends on perfect shot placement, distance, and shot angle. They are all "too much gun" if you're actually trying to save fox fur for real. I've done and seen lots of foxes taken with those bullets.

I use a 17HMR w/17gr NTX for foxes, works great!

I've also seen many coyotes run off with a 204 24gr NTX in them (my buddy's calling rifle).