Black Hills' 110-grain load suits a shooter who wants light recoil and a bullet made without lead. It uses the TAC-TX, a copper bullet with no lead core. It leaves the muzzle at 2,250 fps with 1,237 ft-lbs of energy, and Black Hills measures that speed in a 16-inch barrel. In the same rifle it kicks less than any of the loads it is compared with.

Compared with Ammo Inc's 110-grain Spitzer, a bullet of the same weight, the Black Hills load starts 150 fps slower and kicks about 6 percent less in the same rifle. Compared with Hornady's Custom 135-grain FTX, it leaves the muzzle 165 fps faster, but the heavier Hornady bullet starts with 66 ft-lbs more energy and kicks noticeably harder. Hornady markets the 135 for hunting medium and large game.

Buy the Black Hills load if light recoil and a copper bullet matter most to you. Pick Ammo Inc's 110-grain Spitzer if you want the most speed at the muzzle. Pick Hornady's Custom 135-grain FTX if you want the heavier bullet Hornady markets for medium and large game. Pick Federal's Power-Shok 150-grain if you hunt the big game Federal markets it for and can take more recoil; it kicks about 58 percent harder than the Black Hills load in the same rifle.