Winchester Extreme Point Copper Impact lead-free ammunition - Serious Expansion

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The quest for some reasonably priced and effective lead-free factory ammunition continues and today we look at the Winchester Extreme Point Copper Impact in .243 and .308 Win.
Lead-free factory ammo is so expensive when compared to the lead core equivalents, and it can make your eyes water every time you pull the trigger, especially when testing rifles. These new Winchester loads use a monolithic bullet made of copper that also features a very large frontal plastic tip to the Meplat to achieve a consistent airstream profile and increased expansion down range. The .243 version weighs 85-grains whilst the .308 round weighs 150-grains, so both are pretty standard weights for their calibre, and they retail for £40 and £47 respectively (street price), so not bad in comparison to some.
So, let’s see what makes them tick and how they perform when it comes to accuracy and expansion in ballistic media.

The finer details
The Extreme Point Copper Impact rounds are very similar to Winchester’s Extreme Point lead-cored ammunition, with the only difference being a monolithic copper construction. You still have the large diameter polymer tip, in red, to initiate fast expansion on impact, with less likelihood of tip/meplat damage on loading, resulting in more consistent accuracy. Within the bullet, you also have a hollow point beneath the polymer tip, which optimises expansion, even at extended ranges.
Being a monolithic bullet, you have nearly 100% weight retention after shooting, with limited fragmentation, depending on the calibre. This results in deeper penetration, something the Yanks are obsessed with, but as we know this is not always a good thing when it comes to our smaller British deer species. In fact, Winchester recommends this type of ammunition “for hunting medium and very large game”. It does, however, allow a lead-free factory round to be used in areas where lead ammunition is restricted.

.243 Winchester
First up are the .243 rounds. These use an 85-grain projectile that makes them OK for all types of deer, except large species in Scotland, where a 100-grain minimum applies.
Factory ballistics state a muzzle velocity of 3261 fps and 2007 ft/lbs of energy, with 2372 fps |1062 ft/lbs remaining at 300 yards. The bullet itself weighs exactly 85-grains, which is a good start, as not all bullets weigh what they are advertised. Copper bullets are longer than lead-cored ones, with these Winchesters measuring 1.1305” compared to 0.9200”. The diameter measured 0.2420” not 0.2430. So, although these bullets will stabilise in a barrel with a 1:10” twist rate, a 1:8” would be better in my opinion. The overall cartridge length is 2.6520”, meaning they will easily fit into a 2.8” small actioned rifle and magazine system.
You have a boat tail design for better aerodynamics and down-range ballistics, with a single cannelure set at 0.5175” from the base. The factory ammunition is crimped just at the base of this cannelure, with the copper portion of the bullet measuring 0.9035” in length. This leaves a polymer tip measuring 0.227” in length, with a diameter of 0.1600” where it meets the copper portion of the bullet, on the ogive. When you remove the tip, you can see the cavity beneath, which starts and continues the expansion of this copper projectile.

.308 Winchester
The .308 bullet has all the same traits as the .243 but will stabilise in a barrel with a 1:12” twist rate, so no problems. The factory figures are 2808 fps and 2627 ft/lbs, with 2079 fps |1440 ft/lbs remaining at 300 yards.
The bullet diameter, compared to the .243, is bang on 0.3080”, and the weight measured 150.4-grains. Each projectile measures 1.3345” in length. Again, a boat tail design with a single cannelure 0.5400” from the base. The red tip is 0.3380” in length and 0.2285” in diameter.

Results
I shot the .243 Win version in a Tikka Custom with a 22” barrel and 1:10” twist rate, achieving an average muzzle velocity of 3204 fps, which equates to 1938 ft/lbs of energy. Not bad at all and feeding and ejection were no issue, with no hard extraction from the non-lead factory loads, which can be a bit stiff.
Next, I worked out the true ballistic coefficient (0.2566 G1) value of this bullet by using additional velocities down range. (See .243 Ammo Table)
The .308 ammo managed 2836 fps from my Tikka LSA 55 with a 1:11” twist rate. Again, no issues with feeding or tough extraction at all, and it shot very much like any other round. I worked out the BC which was 0.2807 G1. (See .308 Ammo Table).

Accuracy
Accuracy was interesting, as lead-free always throws up some issues with stability and liking or disliking certain barrels. The Tikka .243 would not shoot less than 1.5-1.75” groups, so maybe the 1:10” twist rate was not fast enough. However, the bullets were not tumbling and there were often two rounds close together and one way off. The Howa Contractor SP was better at around 1 MOA at 100 yards but again, the odd flier would happen. For comparison, the Fierce Rival shot 3162 fps | 1886 ft/lbs and printed 1.45” groups.
The .308 ammo was more accurate, with the old Tikka LSA 55 shooting some MOA groups, whilst the Lithgow 102 shot 1” groups. The Beretta BRX1 disapproved with 2” groups, as did the Unique Alpine Nordland.
Quite often, I have noticed that if you switch from conventional lead-cored ammunition to lead-free bullets, it is best to completely clean the barrel and then ‘shoot it in’ or condition the barrel for lead-free. Fouling, higher pressures, and differing barrel harmonics are often the cause of the odd flier.

Terminal performance
Looking at the ballistic media table, it is worth noting that a lead-cored 85-grain .243 bullet usually penetrates 7.0”, with a wound channel volume of 75 mls, while a .308 150-grain Ballistic Tip penetrates 9.0” and creates a 120 ml wound channel. This means that the results were not too bad for the lead-free bullets, considering they are a lot harder than the lead-cored equivalents. It’s clear that the polymer tip is expanding the monolithic bullet well. The 85-grain .243 was only 15 mls short of the normal 85-grain Sierra Spitzer, whilst the .308 Extreme Point was 35 mls different from the equivalent lead bullet. Still better than I had expected. All wound channels were clean with a clear spiral rotation from the twist rate imparted by the rifling.
Both bullets created the classic mushroom profile, with four petals to each bullet type, although, one petal was torn off from the lighter 85-grain .243 bullet. Both nearly retained all their initial weight, too. What was interesting about both bullets was instead of a large initial wound channel followed by a much smaller bullet path through the ballistic media (all the energy dumped in the first portion of media), these Extreme Points continued their paths with almost the same wound channel width for their entire travel! I prefer the instant ‘dump of energy’ that lead-cored bullets provide but these lead-free ones may have advantages on bigger deer species.

Conclusion
As with all these bullet tests, accuracy is really determined by an individual’s rifle, as we know guns can be very fickle about what diet they like. I had varying degrees of accuracy from the test guns, and in fact, the older models shot them better! The .308 rounds were more consistently accurate, but both calibres actually surprised me with their relatively good terminal ballistics in the test media. They are cheaper than most lead-free factory options so buy a box and give them a try.

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Watch it here!