hunting bullet report

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interlock

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I suppose this could go into the reloading section but it is a hunting load.

rifle remmy model 7 in 7mm08
bullet sierra prohunter 120gr spitzer
powder 45.5 gr H4895
primer cci large rifle
brass remmy full lengthed and trimmed
not sure of the oal but it is half a turn of the seating die off the lands.

Superbly accurate, sub 1 inch groups.

i shot 9 deer all but one DRT and that only ran 25 yards. all but one chest shot. only one bullet recovered, expansion was good and mushroom like. No evidence of any fragmentation.

a good bullet

interlock
 
I've killed four deer this year that ranged from 115 to a little over 150 pounds (as per my scale). All were shot with .30-06 Federal Hi Shoks, and I've recovered two bullets. Both mushroomed well, but after being weighed I learned they retained only half their original weight. Is there a standard, or typical for weight retension? This sounds low to me. Don't mean to hijack your thread, I think this is related, thanks.
 
Good to know. That's the bullet my son is using this year but it hasn't been tested on a deer yet. We'll get a chance with all the does in our area but he's holding out for a nice buck for now. It is also sub MOA and around 2900 fps out of his Savage 7mm-08 over 44g of Varget with CCI primers.
 
Of the dozens and dozens of deer I have killed mostly with a .30-30 I have yet to recover a bullet.

What's ya'lls secret?

I have recovered .45acp bullets from hogs and a few .308 silvertips from hogs too.
 
I expect to find more bullets than I do, suspect some fall out with the guts. On this deer, I extracted the bullet before I ever gutted him. When I flipped him over in the woods to see if the bullet exited, I could see it was just under his hide. Pulled out my pocket knife, made a 1/2 inch cut, and it popped into my hand. I try to look for them when cleaning the deer, but do not find them too often...
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I butcher my own, and actually found a spent bullet in the crockpot once. It was buryed in a ham, at least most of it.

From what I remember, it was a 308, 150 grain Hornady Interlock, shot quartering toward, at about 70 yards.

I didnt weigh it for retained weight, as Im not a big believer in that theory. The mushroom was not pretty. Obviously it did the trick, however.
 
The last two deer I shot with Hornady 6mm 95gr SST I recovered the bullet well mushroomed just under the hide on the back side of the deer. These are the only two bullets I've recovered but have only recently started using these loads, before I used Remington core loks.
I've also recovered two polymer tips from two hogs I shot with .30-30 LeverEvolution rounds. Not the bullet though!
 
FROM MY LOGS...

Opening day of WV, 2006...

Shot [the largest submitted buck taken in West Virginia that year according to DNR, Im proud] at approximatly 70 yards with a .270 Ruger 77 Tang.

The buck was quartered towards me, about 45 degrees. I placed my handload through his right shoulder, penetrated and destroyed the lugs, diaphram, placed a nice golf ball sized hole in the liver (dammit) coming to rest against the hide just ahead of his left hip. The deer dropped like a house fell on him, legs folded up under him as if he were sleeping.

The load?

60.0 grains H4831 (Jack O'Connor's load) CCI 200, Winchester Brass topped off with the Nosler 130 grain Ballistic Tip.

Proof positive that the Ballistic Tip does not desinigrate, even at high velocity [load chrono's at 3006 fps avg] at short range, even after hitting bone. In my eye, and from my experience, the ballistic tip (hunting type) is the quessential deer bullet.
 
Funny, I used them in my old Model Seven!
The only problem with the last deer was he ran about 30-40 yards but looped around where I could not see him, so it took me awhile to find him. There was absolutely no blood trail at all, not even any blood on the ground where he fell. I shot him at about 60-70 yards. The other deer I shot with that load was a doe at 160 yards and she fell right where I shot her.
 
Surprised someone named interlock is touting Sierra bullets, not Hornady.

Not surprised that an internet hunter had 7 out of 8 chest chests (87.5%) fall dead right there - nevermind that H&H hunter, who is more experienced than any 20 of us on here, has clearly stated the truth for us that we all know (those of us who hunt), that only about 10% of chest shots on game result in them DRT. :rolleyes:

stiab, that's a *really* nice buck! :eek:
 
I'm not surprised by 7 of 8 DRT. Just sounds like good shooting to me. I thought they were supposed to fall. Maybe I'm just lucky too.
~z
 
PremiumSauces...

I am not surprised at the 8-9 DRT count. That is not the result of hunting prowess, but shooting skill and proper bullet performance. I have been hunting deer with a rifle for 17 years now (God. :what::(:barf:) and to my recollection, I have had to track ONE deer more than a few yards.

The firearms was a cut-down Swedish Mauser shooting 6.5x55 and 140 grain Sierra GameKings (if I remember correctly, this was in 1997 or 98.) I made a horrible shot a little too far back, and ended up trailing the buck (a small half-rack) for several HUNDRED yards before catching up with him and putting one through his neck, causing a DRT. I trailed that deer so far, that for a portion of time, I wasnt even following blood or guts, but instead his tracks.

Of course, I cant say the same with bowhunting, I have only caused one DRT with a bow, and that was a straight down spine shot last year.
 
.... internet hunter

premium sauces stated


"Not surprised that an internet hunter had 7 out of 8 chest chests (87.5%) fall dead right there - nevermind that H&H hunter, who is more experienced than any 20 of us on here, has clearly stated the truth for us that we all know (those of us who hunt), that only about 10% of chest shots on game result in them DRT."

The implication is that i have lied and that i am an internet hunter, not a real hunter.

Not true.

How can you make a decision like that having never met me and hunted with me?

I also culled 2 x roe deer at the weekend just gone and they both were drt..... or did i make that up aswell?

I choose appropriatte calibre and bullet choices for what i shoot, i shoot at reasonable ranges and place my shots. I practise my shooting quite regularly.

Don't make internet judgements, i don't make internet shots.

(i use interlock in my .243 win sierra in my 7mm08 and sierra in my .30-06)

interlock aka uk roe hunter
 
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I'm sorry, but I do not feel that I can budge on this point. I can make that decision because you cannot break the laws of physics and physiology; you can only break yourself against them. If you were really really really really really lucky, and had a really really really reallly really good shot every time, *maybe* 20% or even up to one-third possibly would drop "dead right there" as you said. There is a 0.000000000000000000001% chance that 87.5% of them did. You can take out the entire heart of an animal and it still has plenty of oxygen left in it's body to run a pretty good ways.

Do you watch hunting shows? Why is it that our own H&H hunter, who has hunted on multiple continents, pretty much every conceivable game known to man says about 10%, and the professional hunters on teevee hunting shows get about 10%, and *I* and my friends all get about 10%, but it's just you and other internet hunters who get 87.5%? I sure would like to hear you and ~z try to explain that.

Yes, to call me skeptical would be an understatement. I don't have to know you to know that animals RUN when they are hit in the heart/lungs, the vast majority of the time (even if only a few yards), and I don't care if they're hit with a .50 BMG or whatever magnumbuttstomper you have. Do roe deer have some magically-different physiological property which causes all blood in their body to violently expel from their body, taking the red blood cells and oxygen with them when, instantaneously when their skin is pierced? If the animal has oxygen to feed the muscle tissue, it will run most of the time until the oxygen runs out or it feels safe enough to stop/lie down (whichever comes first), except in the somewhat rare circumstance when the stars line up.


and to my recollection, I have had to track ONE deer more than a few yards.

That I believe. BUT, "A few yards"

IS NOT

"DEAD RIGHT THERE".


"Dead. Right. There" means not taking a single solitary step. DRT means sack of potatoes. No wonder the exxageration gets perpetuated, with everyone taking serious liberties with the English language. :( :cuss: :rolleyes:
 
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Agree to differ

"Do you watch hunting shows? Why is it that our own H&H hunter, who has hunted on multiple continents, pretty much every conceivable game known to man says about 10%, and the professional hunters on teevee hunting shows get about 10%, and *I* and my friends all get about 10%, but it's just you and other internet hunters who get 87.5%? I sure would like to hear you and ~z try to explain that."


WE WILL HAVE TO AGREE TO DIFFER. WE ARE ON DIFFERENT CONTINENTS AND UNLIKELY TO EVER MEET UP TO HUNT TOGETHER. I WAS THERE, I PULLED THE TRIGGER, I PICKED UP THE CARCASSES, I KNOW WAHT HAPPENNED. BUT YOU CLEARLY KNOW SO MUCH BETTER THAN ME ON THIS THAT YOU CAN TELL ME THAT I AM WRONG DESPITE THE FACT YOU ARE 3000 MILES AWAY.
:mad:
 
As for me...Sorry I have no explanation to offer. On average I shoot about 10-20 deer a year; most from a distance where they are not aware of my presence. I can not guarantee that all expired at the moment of impact, suffice to say they went down and did not run off. When shooting from a distance, I can take my time and do not rush the shot, I choose the time and I choose the shot. I almost always (>90%) take a high shoulder shot. This tends to anchor them in place.
I don’t doubt there are many people in this world and on this site that have more experience than I do. I can only report on my experiences, suffice to say I do not appreciate what you seem to be implying. Maybe interlock and I are just extremely lucky fellers.
~z
 
OK, agree to differ - maybe I'm wrong (to a small extent, but probably not to a large extent). But let's say I'm wrong for purposes of going forward amicably. :p :)

But get the Outdoor Channel and Versus.com or come hunting with me or anyone I know with a video camera, if you want to see video proof - you can set your VCRs for the shows - I don't think that they take all the DRT shots and eliminate them from the scenes shown (in fact, I know they don't because a few of them ARE shown)... But maybe those hunters are using plastic bullets to maximize poor performance because the running after the shot helps to up their ratings.... yeah, that's it! :)

But sorry if I offended - if I did, I apologize.
 
I think I spend enough time in the field and have enough experience to draw from that I dont need to watch someone else do it on TV. What if I learn from them and all my deer start running off? That would be rather unfortunate.
I have never understood the heart shot, to me that would be similar to intentionally trying to destroy the tenders with the shot. Heart is #2 on my list of the 3 tastiest parts of a deer.
My luck could have something to do with shot placement and the fact that I am generally shooting at very calm unspooked deer, not critters all pumped up with adrenaline and ready to cut out like a tightly coiled spring. Also most of my deer are 100lb does, not rut crazed bucks.
Again I can not verify they were dead at the moment of impact, but I can attest to the fact that they generally go straight down and are dead when I get there. Sorry, I have no proof to offer other than pictures and my word.
What part of the world are you hunting in Sauce and how many do you generally get a year?
~z
 
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Shawnee, I think you slipped off the "other" thread and ended up here. This one started innocently enough as a “hunting bullet report” for Sierra ProHunters, not the DRT Poll where CNS is not considered “vitals”. And yes, you are exactly right; it does seem to interrupt something. I very rarely notice any “obvious” trauma (bullet or bone fragments) to the spine but can only assume the hydrostatic shock/word of the day for “expansive impact pressure” must do something to disrupt the CNS. It works well if you want to anchor them and like a tasty snack of pan fried heart.
~z
 
yopu can keep it

"maybe I'm wrong (to a small extent, but probably not to a large extent). But let's say I'm wrong for purposes of going forward amicably. "


3000 posts or not, the concieted arrogance of the man takes some believing.
 
Maybe just stirring the pot now, but… You know, UK/interlock, it does take some gall for someone to start jumping on strangers and calling them “internet hunters” when that someone has racked up almost 3.5K posts in a year…irony!
~z
 
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