Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 200gr Barnes XPB – Exceptional Lead Free Load

Description

The Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 200gr Barnes XPB solves two problems at once. It is a full power 44 Magnum load that does not punish the shooter, and it contains no lead at all, which matters wherever lead ammunition is restricted for hunting. A 200 grain solid copper hollow point at 1500 fps carries about 999 ft-lbs.

• Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 200gr Barnes XPB Overview
• Lead Free 44 Magnum Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 200 Grain Solid Copper Hollow Point Holds Together
• Specifications
• Guns That Take This Low Recoil Full Power Magnum Load

Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 200gr Barnes XPB Overview

Buffalo Bore item 4K is part of their Buffalo-Barnes lead free line. The 200 grain Barnes XPB runs a nominal 1500 fps for roughly 999 ft-lbs. Twenty rounds per box.

Buffalo Bore chronographed it at 1604 fps from a 5.5 inch Ruger Super Blackhawk, 1502 fps from a four inch Smith & Wesson Mountain Gun and 1869 fps from an 18 inch Marlin 1894. Those are over the counter firearms, not laboratory barrels.

Buffalo Bore describes it as a very accurate full power lead free load suitable for game up to about 350 pounds, and notes that the light bullet weight and high velocity also make it a reasonable defensive choice.

The Buffalo-Barnes line came out of a straightforward observation: hunters were being asked to give up lead, and the lead free options available at the time were not as good. Buffalo Bore loaded the best monolithic bullet on the market to their own velocities and the problem largely went away.

Lead Free 44 Magnum Ammo Ballistics

At 1500 fps a 200 grain bullet produces about 999 ft-lbs, from grains times velocity squared divided by 450437. That is right at the classic 44 Magnum figure, reached with a bullet lighter than the traditional 240 grain and therefore kinder to the hand.

From the 5.5 inch Super Blackhawk the real number is 1604 fps, worth about 1142 ft-lbs. From the 18 inch Marlin it is 1869 fps and roughly 1551 ft-lbs, which puts a 44 Magnum carbine firmly into deer rifle territory.

Even the four inch Mountain Gun makes the full nominal 1500 fps. Short barrels lose less with this load because the powder charge is tuned to burn early.

Recoil is the quiet selling point. A 200 grain bullet kicks meaningfully less than a 240, and noticeably less than the 300 grain hard cast loads, which makes this a low recoil full power magnum load in the real sense rather than a marketing one.

Why The 200 Grain Solid Copper Hollow Point Holds Together

The Barnes XPB is machined from a solid bar of copper. There is no lead core and no jacket, which means there is no joint that can come apart. On impact the hollow nose peels into four petals that stay attached to the shank.

Because it is one piece, the bullet typically retains ninety five percent or more of its weight. A conventional cup and core bullet driven to 1600 fps from a revolver can shed a third of its mass, and those fragments contribute nothing to penetration.

Copper is less dense than lead, so a 200 grain XPB is physically longer than a 200 grain lead bullet. Barnes cuts relief grooves into the shank to keep pressure and fouling under control as that extra bearing surface engraves the rifling.

The practical result is a bullet that expands wide and still drives deep, which is unusual. Most designs trade one for the other. This is why lead free hunting handgun ammunition has stopped being a compromise over the last two decades.

Accuracy tends to be very good as well. Barnes bullets are turned rather than swaged, so weight and concentricity vary less from round to round than a cast or jacketed bullet, and Buffalo Bore calls this one of their most accurate 44 Magnum loads.

All of it comes back to construction. A 200 grain solid copper hollow point has nothing inside it that can separate, and that single fact is what makes the rest of the performance possible.

Specifications

Guns That Take This Low Recoil Full Power Magnum Load

This is standard pressure 44 Magnum, so it suits any firearm chambered for the cartridge in sound working order. Buffalo Bore tested it in the Ruger Super Blackhawk, the Smith & Wesson Mountain Gun and a Marlin 1894, which covers most of what people actually shoot.

It is the obvious answer if you hunt in California or in any of the growing number of areas that restrict lead ammunition for hunting. You are not giving up performance to comply, which was not true fifteen years ago.

In a lever action the velocity gain is substantial and the recoil almost vanishes. A 200 grain Barnes bullet at 1869 fps from a carbine will take deer cleanly well past a hundred yards.

If you shoot a lightweight alloy framed 44, this load is worth trying for the recoil alone. Lead free 44 Magnum ammo at 200 grains is about as pleasant as a full power magnum gets in a 26 ounce revolver.

Lead Free Hunting Handgun Ammunition Availability

This Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 200gr Barnes XPB is in stock and ships from our Collegeville, Pennsylvania shop. MAG5 Firearms is a family owned FFL dealer, and orders of this lead free hunting handgun ammunition normally leave within one business day.

For a heavier copper bullet in the same chambering, see the Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 225gr Barnes XPB. For a conventional jacketed bullet compare the Buffalo Bore 44 Mag 240gr JHP, and for a smaller revolver the Buffalo Bore 44 Special 200gr Barnes TAC-XP. Tested velocities are published by Buffalo Bore Ammunition.