Hornady markets its Precision Hunter 110-grain load for medium game. It uses Hornady's ELD-X, a polymer-tipped hunting bullet rated at a G1 BC of .465, and leaves the muzzle at 3,140 fps. Zeroed at 100 yards, it drops about 41 inches at 500 yards.

Compared with Nosler's 115-grain Ballistic Tip, another polymer-tipped spitzer, the Precision Hunter starts 140 fps faster and drifts a little less. At 500 yards, a steady 10 mph wind blowing straight across the line of fire pushes the 110 about 17 inches sideways and the Nosler about 19. Compared with Hornady's 117-grain American Whitetail, a conventional soft point with a boat tail, the gap is wider. The same wind pushes the American Whitetail about 23 inches at 500 yards, and from the same 100-yard zero it drops about 50. It also kicks about 7 percent harder in the same rifle.

Buy the Precision Hunter if you hunt medium game and expect shots out to 400 or 500 yards, where its speed and lower drift matter most. Pick the Nosler Ballistic Tip if you want a slightly heavier polymer-tipped bullet and can accept a little more wind drift. Pick the American Whitetail if your shots stay inside 300 yards, where the two Hornady loads land close together. Pick HSM's 115-grain Trophy Gold if you want Berger's VLD Hunting bullet instead; it kicks about 4 percent more in the same rifle.