Tested The FX Hybrid 30 cal. for Expansion

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AirgunBill

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Nov 2, 2015
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Maryland, United States
Recently got the FX Hybrid 30 cal. to test for accuracy and expansion. Today it was about expansion testing and comparing their performance to the Varmint Knocker 30 cal. 50 grain slugs which offer decent expansion. With my 30 caliber when I am shooting slugs the main pest are groundhogs. My goal was to find a 30 cal. slug that would expand enough to allow me to take out groundhogs with body shots. We all know groundhogs are super tough and even with centerfire rifles a groundhog won't at times go down right away. Last year most of the groundhogs I shot with my air rifles were with head shots before I started trying out the 30 calibers slugs. I did take out a handful with the Varmint Knockers and they did well. Anyway I hope to have more chances this year but I worked over the groundhog population with my air rifles and centerfire rifles pretty good.

Today as usual I did a video to capture the results of the testing. My videos are not well recorded and edited as I don't like to take the time involved. Sorry for the wind noise too. I wish I could say the FX Hybrid 30 cal. slugs expanded like crazy but they did not. For the premium price they cost they better perform in all aspects and they don't. Bill

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_VA8Ds65JA&ab_channel=GunPowder%26AirPower
 
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Thanks for sharing. I too have just bought two guns in 30 cal. For hunting groundhogs , a FX Maverick compact and the EdGun Leshiy 2 with 450mm barrel. Being both have shorter barrels I’m not going to get the velocities you are running , thus not as much expansion. I’m disappointed in your results with the FX slug. It is shooting really well in my Leshiy at 850 FPS. Still potent power but I would have liked to see more expansion like the .22 slug does. I will have to try the Varmint Knockers next and there are some other makes claiming very good expansion due to their design. 
 
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If you want slugs that expand and fragment try Griffin slugs.

They are some of the most expensive slugs I've tried.

Screenshot_20210312-212224_eBay.1615605798.jpg


I have only shot the .25 caliber Griffin LDC slugs but I imagine the 30 caliber would expand as well.

I am going to try the .30 caliber 50 gr. LDC for prairie dogs. 
 
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If you used Clear Ballstics Gel for your test the bullet industry has found that their inorganic compound (silicon?) lacks any type of moisture content found in true Alphabet org Ordnance Gel.

This leads to no moisture available (like there would be when impacting an organic target) in the meplat to help initiate tip expansion. Sometimes the meplat can be folded inward due to the springy/spongy properties of the Clear Ballistics block.

This was pointed out to me during ballistic testing of various 5.56 rounds shot out of a SBR (home defense suitability testing of various 5.56 ammo to be used in a Short Barrel Rifle).

To get a truly accurate gauge of expansion either mix a batch of ordnance gel to specification and follow temp protocols, etc...

or you can place a couple of paper towels soaked in water over the face of the block prior to shooting it to help introduce moisture into the tip at impact.

The things the industry learns over time 🧐

Clear Ballistics blocks are awesome for checking consistency of penetration but are lacking when measuring true expansion/terminal performance of a projectile in an organic target.



Mike
 
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If you used Clear Ballstics Gel for your test the bullet industry has found that their inorganic compound (silicon?) lacks any type of moisture content found in true Alphabet org Ordnance Gel.

This leads to no moisture available (like there would be when impacting an organic target) in the meplat to help initiate tip expansion. Sometimes the meplat can be folded inward due to the springy/spongy properties of the Clear Ballistics block.

This was pointed out to me during ballistic testing of various 5.56 rounds shot out of a SBR (home defense suitability testing of various 5.56 ammo to be used in a Short Barrel Rifle).

To get a truly accurate gauge of expansion either mix a batch of ordnance gel to specification and follow temp protocols, etc...

or you can place a couple of paper towels soaked in water over the face of the block prior to shooting it to help introduce moisture into the tip at impact.

The things the industry learns over time 🧐

Clear Ballistics blocks are awesome for checking consistency of penetration but are lacking when measuring true expansion/terminal performance of a projectile in an organic target.



Mike
Click to expand...

Very interesting information Mike, thanks for sharing. I will try your suggestions and see the results. Bill
 
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AirgunBill said:
Recently got the FX Hybrid 30 cal. to test for accuracy and expansion. Today it was about expansion testing and comparing their performance to the Varmint Knocker 30 cal. 50 grain slugs which offer decent expansion. With my 30 caliber when I am shooting slugs the main pest are groundhogs. My goal was to find a 30 cal. slug that would expand enough to allow me to take out groundhogs with body shots. We all know groundhogs are super tough and even with centerfire rifles a groundhog won't at times go down right away. Last year most of the groundhogs I shot with my air rifles were with head shots before I started trying out the 30 calibers slugs. I did take out a handful with the Varmint Knockers and they did well. Anyway I hope to have more chances this year but I worked over the groundhog population with my air rifles and centerfire rifles pretty good.

Today as usual I did a video to capture the results of the testing. My videos are not well recorded and edited as I don't like to take the time involved. Sorry for the wind noise too. I wish I could say the FX Hybrid 30 cal. slugs expanded like crazy but they did not. For the premium price they cost they better perform in all aspects and they don't. Bill

Click to expand...

Just wondering if you used the standard mags or the slug mags for the hybrids? What's the most devastating ammo youve found to work well with the L2 in 30 cal? Not many options it would seem with the standard mags which is what I have
 
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The FX Hybrid Slugs really do expand a significant amount. Here is a .30cal
lesh said:
Just wondering if you used the standard mags or the slug mags for the hybrids? What's the most devastating ammo youve found to work well with the L2 in 30 cal? Not many options it would seem with the standard mags which is what I have
Click to expand...

slug recovered after a full passthrough at ~60 yards.

Adobe_20240501_204235.png
 
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lesh said:
Wow that looks impressive - I bet it makes a mess ! Do they fit standard mags or do I need slug mags? What sort of speed and barrel length were you running for these?
Click to expand...
I shoot these out of my FX Maverick VP with a 600mm barrel. With my tune at the time of this shot, I was getting 930fps. These fit no problem in standard magazines. Here is the video of the shot, and this was instrumental in the recovery of the slug.

 
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