Hornady markets its Superformance 162-grain SST for large game, and its selling point is speed. The SST is a polymer-tipped hunting bullet with a lead core, rated at a G1 BC of .55, and Superformance sends it out of the muzzle at 3,030 fps. That is a quick start for a bullet this heavy, and it keeps the path flat at ordinary hunting distances.

Compared with Hornady's Precision Hunter 162-grain ELD-X, the SST starts 90 fps faster and shoots a little flatter, but the ELD-X handles wind better. Zeroed at 100 yards, the SST drops about 43 inches at 500 and the ELD-X about 44. At the same distance, a steady 10 mph wind blowing across the range pushes the SST about 15 inches sideways and the ELD-X about 13. The SST also kicks about 4 percent harder in the same rifle. Compared with Federal's Nosler Partition 160, the SST is 80 fps faster at the muzzle and drifts less: the same wind pushes the Partition about 18 inches at 500 yards.

Buy the SST if you hunt large game at ordinary distances and care more about speed at the muzzle than about wind. Pick the Precision Hunter 162-grain ELD-X if your shots run long and wind is the bigger problem. Pick the Nosler Partition 160 if you want the bullet Federal markets for "all big game at close to mid-ranges." Pick Federal's Vital-Shok Trophy Bonded Tip 160 if you want a bonded bullet with less recoil; it kicks about 6 percent less in the same rifle.