Unleashing the Full Potential of Lever Guns: A Deep Dive into Hornady FTX Rifle Bullets

For generations, lever-action rifles have been a cornerstone of American hunting and sport shooting, celebrated for their robust design, rapid follow-up shots, and classic aesthetic. However, their full ballistic potential was often limited by traditional ammunition designs, primarily due to the safety concerns associated with pointed bullets in tubular magazines. Enter the Hornady FTX Rifle bullet – a revolutionary innovation engineered to transform the performance of these beloved firearms. Specifically, the Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain Flex Tip eXpanding bullet, identified by UPC 090255351057, stands as a testament to this advancement, offering hunters and shooters unprecedented accuracy, extended range, and devastating terminal performance.

Revolutionizing Lever Gun Ballistics: Why FTX Matters

What makes Hornady FTX bullets a game-changer for lever-action rifles, particularly for popular calibers like the .35 Remington, .358 Winchester, and others utilizing a .358 bullet diameter? The answer lies in Hornady's patented Flex Tip technology. Traditional spire-point or pointed bullets, when loaded nose-to-tail in a tubular magazine, pose a significant safety risk: the tip of one bullet can detonate the primer of the cartridge in front of it under recoil, leading to a catastrophic chain reaction. This inherent danger necessitated the use of flat-nose or round-nose bullets, which, while safe, were inherently less aerodynamic and suffered from poor ballistic coefficients (BCs). This limited the effective range and energy retention of lever guns, making them primarily short-range brush guns.

The Hornady FTX bullet, with its innovative polymer Flex Tip, elegantly solves this dilemma. This flexible, pointed tip is safe to use in tubular magazines, eliminating the risk of accidental primer detonation. Yet, it maintains a true pointed, aerodynamic profile, fundamentally reshaping the ballistic capabilities of lever-action rifles. This breakthrough means hunters can now achieve significantly flatter trajectories, retain more energy downrange, and extend the practical hunting range of their lever guns without compromising safety. It's a true marriage of classic firearm design with modern ballistic science, unlocking performance levels previously unimaginable for these iconic firearms.

Dissecting the Technology: What Makes the FTX Bullet Perform?

The exceptional performance of the Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) is not solely attributed to its Flex Tip. It's a synergistic combination of several proprietary Hornady technologies, each contributing to its overall effectiveness.

The Patented Flex Tip: Safety Meets Aerodynamics

• Safety in Tubular Magazines: When loaded in a tubular magazine, the soft polymer tip safely deforms upon recoil, preventing it from striking the primer of the cartridge ahead. This critical safety feature allows for the use of pointed bullets in lever guns for the first time.
• Enhanced Ballistics: Unlike traditional flat or round-nose bullets, the Flex Tip maintains a sharply pointed profile in flight. This aerodynamic shape dramatically reduces drag, resulting in a much higher ballistic coefficient (BC). A higher BC means the bullet flies faster, flatter, and retains more energy over longer distances.

Secant Ogive Design: Precision and Efficiency

The bullet's secant ogive design is another cornerstone of its aerodynamic efficiency. An ogive is the curved, pointed part of the bullet. A secant ogive is a specific curve that is more gradual than a tangent ogive, allowing for a longer, more streamlined bullet profile. This design minimizes air resistance, further contributing to the bullet's impressive ballistic coefficient of .300. This aerodynamic efficiency translates directly into:

• Flatter Trajectories: Less bullet drop over distance, simplifying aiming.
• Increased Velocity Retention: The bullet maintains more speed downrange, delivering more kinetic energy on target.
• Reduced Wind Drift: A more stable flight path in crosswinds, leading to greater accuracy.

High Antimony Lead Core: Controlled Expansion and Deep Penetration

Beneath the copper jacket lies a high antimony lead core. Antimony is an alloy added to lead to increase its hardness. This harder core provides several advantages:

• Controlled Expansion: When the Flex Tip initiates expansion upon impact, the high antimony core resists over-expansion, ensuring the bullet mushrooms reliably but doesn't fragment excessively. This leads to a wider wound channel without sacrificing penetration.
• Weight Retention: The robust core, combined with the InterLock ring, helps the bullet retain a significant portion of its original weight, which is crucial for achieving deep penetration through hide, bone, and tissue.

InterLock Ring: Unwavering Integrity

The Hornady InterLock ring is a raised ring inside the jacket that is mechanically locked into the bullet's lead core. This proprietary feature is critical for:

• Core-Jacket Unification: It prevents the core and jacket from separating upon impact, even at high velocities. This ensures maximum energy transfer and prevents fragmentation, leading to more reliable, predictable terminal performance.
• Consistent Expansion: By keeping the core and jacket together, the InterLock ring promotes uniform, controlled expansion, ensuring the bullet performs as designed every time. This translates to humane, ethical kills on game animals.

Performance Unleashed: What to Expect in the Field

Hunters and shooters who choose the Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) can expect a significant upgrade in their lever gun's field performance.

Exceptional Terminal Performance on Game

The primary purpose of any hunting bullet is reliable terminal performance. The FTX bullet excels in this regard due to its carefully engineered expansion and penetration characteristics.

• Rapid, Controlled Expansion: The Flex Tip, upon striking tissue, is driven back into the bullet, initiating rapid and wide expansion. This creates a large temporary and permanent wound cavity, leading to quick and humane incapacitation of game animals.
• Deep Penetration: Despite its excellent expansion, the high antimony core and InterLock ring ensure the bullet penetrates deeply, often achieving pass-throughs on medium to large game. This is critical for reaching vital organs and ensuring a clean kill, even on tough angles.
• High Retained Weight: The bullet's design promotes excellent weight retention (often over 90%), maximizing the energy transferred to the animal and contributing to its deep penetration capabilities.

Unparalleled Accuracy for Lever Actions

While lever guns are renowned for their handling and speed, they aren't always associated with benchrest accuracy. However, the aerodynamic design and consistent manufacturing of the FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) help maximize the inherent accuracy of these firearms. The consistent bullet diameter of .358 inches, combined with the stable flight profile, contributes to tighter groups downrange. For hunters, this means greater confidence in shot placement and the ability to make more precise shots in the field.

Extending the Effective Range of Your Lever Gun

One of the most significant advantages of the Hornady FTX bullet is its ability to extend the ethical hunting range of lever-action rifles. Historically, calibers like the .35 Remington were considered 150-yard cartridges at best. With the improved ballistic coefficient and flatter trajectory offered by the FTX, shooters can confidently engage targets further out while retaining sufficient energy for a clean kill. This opens up new hunting scenarios and makes lever guns more versatile than ever before. For example, a .35 Remington loaded with a 200 gr FTX bullet can maintain effective energy for deer out to 200-250 yards, a substantial improvement.

Ideal Applications: Who Benefits Most from FTX Bullets?

The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) is ideally suited for a range of hunting and shooting activities.

Medium to Large Game Hunting

This bullet's design makes it an excellent choice for hunting a variety of game animals, including:

• Deer: White-tailed deer, mule deer, and blacktail deer are prime targets. The bullet offers ample energy and reliable expansion for quick, ethical kills.
• Hogs: Wild hogs, known for their toughness, require a bullet with good penetration and consistent expansion. The FTX delivers on both fronts.
• Black Bear: For hunters pursuing black bears, especially in denser environments, the 200-grain weight and robust construction of the FTX provide confidence.
• Elk and Moose (at closer ranges and with proper shot placement): While not typically considered a primary elk or moose cartridge, some calibers utilizing the .358 bullet (like .35 Whelen or .358 Winchester) can be effective at closer ranges with this bullet, given its deep penetration capabilities.

Lever-Action Rifle Enthusiasts

If you own a lever-action rifle chambered in a caliber that uses a .358 diameter bullet – most notably the popular .35 Remington, but also the more potent .35 Whelen or .358 Winchester – the FTX bullet is designed specifically for you. It allows you to maximize the performance of your firearm while maintaining its classic functionality.

Reloaders Seeking Optimized Performance

For the avid reloader, the Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) offers a fantastic component to craft custom ammunition. Reloading allows for fine-tuning loads to your specific rifle, potentially achieving even greater accuracy and optimizing velocities within safe limits. Hornady provides extensive reloading data for various calibers, making it easy for reloaders to get started with FTX components.

Hunters in Dense Cover or "Brush Guns"

Lever guns are often favored as "brush guns" due to their compact nature and quick handling in thick vegetation. The improved ballistics of the FTX allow these rifles to perform better in open areas, but their inherent strengths in dense cover remain. The reliable expansion and deep penetration of the 200 gr FTX make it an ideal choice for quick, close-range encounters where every shot counts.

Why Choose Hornady FTX Bullets? Unique Value Propositions

When evaluating ammunition components, discerning hunters and shooters look for specific benefits. The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) offers compelling advantages:

• Safety Without Compromise: The unique Flex Tip allows for pointed, aerodynamic bullets in tubular magazines, eliminating the trade-off between safety and ballistic performance.
• Proven Hornady Quality: Hornady is a globally recognized leader in ammunition and bullet manufacturing, known for its precision engineering, rigorous quality control, and commitment to innovation. Choosing Hornady means choosing a brand trusted by serious hunters and competitive shooters worldwide.
• Enhanced Downrange Energy: By retaining velocity and having a high ballistic coefficient, these bullets deliver more energy to the target, ensuring more effective and humane kills.
• Versatility: While optimized for lever guns, the .358 diameter and 200-grain weight make it suitable for a variety of .35 caliber applications where controlled expansion and penetration are desired.
• Ethical Hunting: The consistent, reliable expansion and deep penetration capabilities of the FTX bullet promote clean, ethical harvests, minimizing animal suffering.

Common Questions Answered: Navigating Your Ammunition Choices

• What are the best bullets for hunting deer with a .35 Remington lever action?
  The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX Flex Tip eXpanding bullet (UPC 090255351057) is widely considered one of the absolute best choices for .35 Remington lever actions. Its design specifically addresses the limitations of traditional lever gun ammunition, providing superior ballistics, energy retention, and terminal performance on deer and similar-sized game.
• How do I choose the right bullet for my lever gun?
  When selecting a bullet for your lever gun, consider the caliber, the type of game you'll be hunting, and the expected range. For tubular magazine lever guns, ensure the bullet is safe (like the FTX with its flexible tip). For medium to large game, a 200-grain bullet like the Hornady FTX provides an excellent balance of weight, energy, and penetration.
• Can I reload with Hornady FTX bullets?
  Absolutely. The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX bullet (UPC 090255351057) is available as a component for reloaders. Reloading allows for customization of loads to achieve optimal performance from your specific firearm and personal preferences. Consult reliable reloading manuals for appropriate powder charges and seating depths.
• What makes Hornady FTX different from other hunting bullets?
  The primary distinguishing feature of Hornady FTX bullets is their patented Flex Tip, which safely allows for pointed, aerodynamic bullet designs in tubular magazine firearms. This unique innovation sets them apart from traditional flat-nose lever gun bullets and provides a significant ballistic advantage for these rifle platforms.

Availability and Where to Purchase

The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain FTX Flex Tip eXpanding bullets, with UPC 090255351057 and Hornady part number 35105, are a premium component for hunters and reloaders seeking to elevate the performance of their .35 caliber rifles. These exceptional bullets, packaged conveniently in boxes of 100, are readily available at DEGuns.com. DEGuns is a trusted retailer dedicated to providing a comprehensive selection of firearms, ammunition, and shooting accessories, ensuring you have access to the highest quality components for your hunting and shooting needs.

Conclusion: Elevate Your Lever Gun Performance

The Hornady 35 Cal .358 200 grain Flex Tip eXpanding bullet (UPC 090255351057) represents a pinnacle in hunting bullet technology, specifically tailored to unlock the true ballistic potential of lever-action rifles. By safely introducing an aerodynamic, pointed bullet design to these classic firearms, Hornady has extended their effective range, enhanced their accuracy, and ensured devastatingly effective terminal performance on medium to large game. Whether you're a seasoned hunter looking to revitalize your favorite lever gun or a reloader striving for precision, the FTX bullet offers an unmatched combination of innovation, safety, and proven field results. Invest in Hornady FTX and experience the next level of lever gun performance.

Product Specifications and Details

Feature	Detail
Brand	Hornady
Model	FTX Rifle
Caliber	.35 Caliber (.358")
Weight	200 grains (gr)
Bullet Type	Flex Tip eXpanding (FTX)
Bullet Material	Lead Core, Copper Jacket
Tip Material	Polymer
Cannelure	Yes
Ballistic Coeff.	.300
Sectional Density	.223
Application	Medium-Large Game Hunting
Quantity	100 Rounds Per Box
UPC	090255351057
SKU / MPN	56802 / 35105