The Sierra game kings worked great for me the few times I used them, but admittedly I have only used them a couple of seasons, and the blood trail was almost nil with one buck that ran a little ways. Pass through was complete, and the internal devastation was impressive, but little blood trail. It didn't matter in the end, and I don't know whether or not to blame the bullet for the lack of a blood trail. Who knows?
Ballistic tips are hit or miss with most guys. I've had very good results with them, 100% of the time, if memory serves me right, but I've heard a few complaints over the years. My uncle was a big believer in them. He used the Core Lokt ballistic tips with great success. I've used them also, though it was years ago, and I also had nothing but good success with them. They were extremely accurate in my rifles. Another cheap, simple round that simply works. In recent years I've heard a lot of complaints about Remington ammo. I cannot chime in because I haven't used them in years, but when QC was good, the Core Lokt, as old of a design as it is, is a great design for lethality. A brilliant design, IMO, for the time period it was invented, and still as legit as anything in my book.
Much of it depends on the terrain we are hunting. Peanut fields and central/north Ga hardwoods are way different.
Like you, I've been nothing less than impressed with all of the solid copper alloy bullets I've seen. I have seen all lead bullets that are very accurate, but probably not quite so good as the solid copper alloys. At 50 yards in the deer woods, not a big deal. At 400 yards in the peanuts, it could be a game changer, and the internal damage I've seen from these rounds, like Barnes copper alloys, is a definite plus when shooting at a lifetime buck. There are some great bullet designs out there...
Guys spend so much time talking about the guns, and calibers, but relatively less time talking about the ammunition. It is as important as anything, IMO. I'm convinced that some of the hype over premium ammunition is exactly that; hype. Not always, but much of the time. And I'll be the first to say that blue box Federal soft points, for whatever reason, shoot more accurately than 90% of any other ammunition out of my rifles than other brands. So many disclaimers..so much long windedness...but I want to be honest...The blue box Federal has performed extremely well for me, and is extremely accurate for a cheap brand, but again, I have experienced a couple instances where blood trails were almost nil, and two instances where the bullet entered the shoulder and ended up high in the neck. Twice out of probably 30 deer. No complete pass through, no blood trail, and somehow ended up high in the neck. Weird...One of these was a 10 point that was one of the best bucks I've ever taken. But still, I got him.
Sorry, I'm rambling. When it comes to deer hunting I've had good luck with all types of ammo when the shots were well placed. Out to around 350 yards. Sometimes the cheap stuff shoots more accurately out of my rifles. I recommend whatever ammo shoots the most accurately out of your rifle, and especially if it shoots very well and is inexpensive.
