Winchester Ammunition has introduced a new series of ammunition designed for big game hunters.

From Winchester Ammunition:

When Africa calls, so does the need for being equipped with the proper ammunition to take down the game on your hunting list-and being prepared for game that may not be. Winchester’s new Safari Ammunition line was engineered to not only tackle the toughest game in Africa and the rest of the continents with supreme confidence, but to provide performance and versatility in virtually any situation.

Offered in the venerable .375 H&H Magnum, .416 Rigby and .458 Winchester Magnum, as well as the .416 Remington Magnum cartridge, the new Winchester® Safari line makes the most of these popular and proven African cartridges by pairing them with the finest bullet choices available-Nosler® Partition® and the new Nosler Solid^TM.

Nosler Partition bullets-with copper alloy jackets and lead-alloy cores-have long been favored around the world for accuracy and terminal performance on game. The new Nosler Solids-featuring a unique design and homogenous lead-free alloy construction-provide spectacular penetration and an impressively straight wound channel on large, thick-skinned game.

According to Glen Weeks, Winchester Centerfire Product Manager, “The Safari line was developed to meet the most demanding hunting needs. Each of the cartridges in the line provides the energy and knockdown power needed for the largest and most dangerous game. The Partition offerings are ideal for dangerous, or large thinner skin game, while the Solids will offer maximum penetration on the toughest hide and bone.”

Winchester Safari Ammunition features nickel-plated cartridge cases and is packaged in reusable 20-round plastic boxes with labels featuring recently discovered vintage Winchester artwork. The line will be available summer 2008.

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Winchester Ammunition introduced a new .22 Long rimfire cartridge desgined for accuracy and low noise. The SUPER-X CB-match .22 Long round pushes a 29 grain bullet at 770 fps.

From Winchester Ammunition:

New for 2008, Winchester® offers a highly accurate rimfire load designed to feed and function in single shot rifles chambered for the vintage .22 Long (L) and .22 Long Rifle (LR) cartridges.

The low-noise Winchester SUPER-X® CB-match with a lightweight 29-grain conical lead bullet is well suited for practice and ideal for discreet outdoor pest control.

The new CB-match grade round is engineered for pinpoint accuracy and a quiet report, producing a muzzle velocity of 770 feet per second (fps) and 38 foot-pounds of muzzle energy. This new 22 CB load feeds smoothly from conventional magazines and ejects reliably in .22 L and .22 LR chambered bolt-action rifles and single shots, but is not recommended for semi-autos. This round joins Winchester’s wide selection of rimfire products designed for precision target shooting, silhouettes, plinking, small-game hunting and pest control.

The new Super-X .22 Long CB-match features:

• 29-grain conical ball lead round nose bullet
• Low noise and discreet pest control
• Chambers in rifles designed for 22 Long and 22 Long Rifle cartridges (not recommended for semi-autos)
• Muzzle velocity of 770 fps
• Muzzle energy of 38 foot-pounds

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Designed to take larger North American game, Winchester Ammunition introduced the XP3 bullet in a .325 WSM cartridge. The heavy 200 grain bullet promises “deep penetration through thick, tough skin, heavy muscle tissue and bone” and a “high retained weight.”

Winchester has not yet published any ballistics information on this cartridge.

From Winchester Ammunition:

For 2008, Winchester® has turned up the performance even further on its highly popular, field-proven .325 WSM cartridge with the addition of XP3^TM bullet technology. Ideal for everything from big mule deer and whitetail to moose and brown bear, the .325 WSM Supreme Elite® cartridge features a new 200-grain XP3, Winchester’s flagship hunting bullet design.

The new .325 caliber, 200-grain XP3 bullet utilizes Winchester’s advanced 2-Stage Expansion^TM technology, which combines a solid copper alloy jacket with deep expansion chamber at the front of the bullet and bonded lead core at the rear. Upon impact, the jacket curls back in four uniform petals for a large frontal area – delivering massive shock and tissue damage – while the rear body of the bullet expands to support the front mushroom for deep penetration and high weight retention.

According to Glen Weeks, Winchester Centerfire Product Manager, “The real beauty of the XP3 is that along with extreme effectiveness on animals, it is one of the most accurate big game bullets in the world. The boattail design and polycarbonate tip provide precision accuracy and long range ballistic performance, while the Lubalox® black oxide coating reduces barrel fouling.” The XP³ design combines all the best-known technology features into one bullet to deliver precision accuracy, awesome knock-down power and deep penetration.

The XP3 .325 WSM features:

• 2-Stage expansion
• Less perceived recoil than .338 Win. Mag.
• High weight retention
• Precision accuracy
• Deep penetration
• Massive knock-down power
• Lubalox coating for reduced barrel fouling
• 20-round box or 200-round case
• Heavy 200-grain XP³ bullet

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Winchester Ammunition introduced a new lead-free bullet called the E-Tip.

From Winchester Ammunition:

The E-Tip^TM lead-free bullet from Winchester® Ammunition is one of the latest new products developed for big-game hunters and it also complies with current state non-toxic regulations.

This bullet was co-developed with Nosler® and features an E2^TM energy expansion cavity, which promotes consistent upset at a variety of impact ranges. The bullet is made up of gilding metal instead of pure copper, which helps prevent barrel fouling and provides for a high performance sporting bullet that is lead-free.

The polycarbonate tip, like that featured on XP³^TM Accubond-CT® and Ballistic Silvertip® bullets, prevents deformation in the magazine, boosts aerodynamic efficiency and initiates expansion. The new E-Tip’s high quality and consistent performance provides unsurpassed penetration and weight retention.

Key features of the Winchester E-Tip bullet include:

• E2 Cavity promotes expansion at long and short ranges and improves accuracy
• Gilding metal lead-free design provides near 100 percent weight retention and helps prevent barrel fouling compared to pure copper bullets
• Polycarbonate Tip resists deformation, improves down-range ballistics
• Boat-tail Design reduces drag and provides a more efficient flight profile for higher retained energy at long range

Lubalox® Coating helps prevent barrel foulingE-Tip is loaded exclusively by Winchester and will be initially available in the following calibers:.30-06 SPRINGFIELD
.300 WSM.
.300 WIN-MAG
.308 WINCHESTER

Ideal for big game hunting or recreational shooting, the E-Tip is a step above today’s “pure copper” bullets. The E-Tip’s alloy provides less fouling, while exhibiting superior accuracy and consistent performance over traditional pure copper designs.

To view Winchester Ammunition’s E-Tip products and prices visit www.winchester.com/products/catalog/cfrlist.aspx?bn=5&type=71.

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Winchester Ammunition has brought out a reduced recoil loading for the .460 S&W Magnum cartridge. Winchester claims an almost 50% reduction in recoil, but still throws a 250 grain JHP at 1450 fps. As way of comparison, Winchester’s .44 Magnum cartridge launches a 250 grain JHP at only(!) 1230 fps.

From Winchester Ammunition:

For 2008, Winchester® Ammunition offers a reduced recoil load for the .460 S&W Magnum, allowing shooters more pleasurable target sessions and hunting options. A proven big bore hunting caliber, the .460 S&W provides excellent energy transfer and deep penetration. The new Winchester Super-X® .460 S&W Reduced Recoil round features a 250-grain jacketed hollow point bullet, a muzzle velocity of 1,450 feet per second (fps) and an impressive 1,167 foot-pounds of muzzle energy.

Engineered to offer nearly 50 percent reduction in recoil compared to full power loads, while still retaining enough energy for hunting at normal handgun distances, the new .460 S&W Reduced Recoil load is an ideal choice for deer-sized game, predators and target shooting. The more manageable recoil also allows hunters the benefit of quicker follow-up shots.

Long recognized as the leader in big bore handgun products, Winchester continues its dedication to offering shooters a wide array of options to better match their load with their chosen sport or hunt. The new Reduced Recoil load joins the Winchester Supreme® .460 S&W 260-grain Partition Gold® full power load introduced in 2007, as well as a full complement of other big bore handgun cartridge loads.

The new .460 Super-X S&W Reduced Recoil features:

• 250-grain jacketed hollow point bullet
• More manageable recoil for quicker follow-up shots
• Muzzle velocity of 1,450 fps
• Muzzle energy of 1,157 foot-pounds
• Suited for deer-sized game, predators and target shooting

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Winchester Ammunition has introduced a 3″ version of their Supreme Elite® XP³ slugs. In a nutshell, you have a lead-free, 300-grain sabot moving along at a snappy 2100 fps.

From Winchester Ammunition:

Hot on the heels of its highly successful launch of the Winchester® Supreme Elite® XP³^TM 2-3/4-inch Slug in 2007, the renowned ammunition maker is following it up with a new 3-inch variation for even more knockdown power at near-centerfire rifle distances. The Supreme Elite XP³ 3-inch Slug features a patented, one-piece, 300-grain sabot designed to deliver high energy and deep penetration on big game. Winchester developed the highly accurate lead-free-alloy projectile to extend consistent, ethical and lethal big game hunting ranges beyond 175 yards in 12-gauge rifled barrel slug guns.

“Hunters will be extremely impressed with the increased performance of the new 12-gauge 3-inch XP³ Slug,” said Winchester Shotshell Product Manager Brad Criner. “This is a consistent and innovative product, one that pushes long-range accuracy, penetration and stopping power to the extreme.”

The new Supreme Elite XP³ 3-inch Slug features:

• One-piece, lead-free alloy, 300-grain, tipped sabot
• Plastic tip for improved down-range ballistics
• High velocity at an incredible 2,100 feet per second
• Deeper penetration at longer ranges
• Tin core – lead free

For more information about Winchester Ammunition and its complete line of products visit www.winchester.com.

Blame it on the weakened dollar, the worldwide demand on metals, the demand on existing stocks of ammo, or all of the above. The fact is ammunition is getting much more expensive.

How much more expensive? Well, I pulled out one company’s catalogs and looked at the numbers. Here is what I found:

As you can see the prices have gone up significantly across the board. What you may also notice is the price increases are not done yet. The Sellier and Bellot ammo showed a noticable increase in cost from the March to April catalogs.

The price increases match what I have seen in the local gun stores, other catalogs, and even at the local Walmart.

The bottom line is you should buy what you can now, because prices are not going to be dropping in the near future.

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**** UPDATE ****
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Check out the November 2008 update to this article.