So is it safe to say that “bang flop” and “DRT” is like saying “MOA all day”
Sure, it happens, but it’s not the norm, and to claim that its every time with X gun or Y caliber might be stretching the truth a bit?
There are ways to inflict instant comma and with the type of game and weight of the animal plus angles and other factors the shock
factor gets more complicated exponentially.
It seems to me based on your deer harvested that you know what you are doing very well so probably could not add much but anyway, I have been
devoting to this "lethality" business some serous thought through the years as well as ballistics and forensic analysis and concluded on
a set of directives, most pretty familiar to experienced hunters.
We could talk for days about terminal design and specific properties in any single use including hand
gun usage but for the sake of simplicity and to see if we can answer some very fundamental questions
lets see if we can define a set of rules to assist with this process.
I keep a log of my shooting including hunts and also follow a few hunting forums to discuss some of
these but at the same time I see in other forums how people are following a completely different
set of directives so I wonder what other factors could be at play here.
My approach might seem pretty simplistic but I try to make sure we use some of the tools and knowledge base that
is already there. In some ways this should not be a lot different than checking ballistics data and values when reloading.
Of course there is no substitute for carefully studying the bullets and the game animals one is targeting, practicing with that ammo
for external ballistics and accuracy and ultimately knowing when to say no to make sure we don't hurt an animal unnecessarily.
When researching killing potential and in order to assure fast killing I move with a very simple set of dimensions:
A) Placement
B) Wounding Potential
C) Shock / CNS disruption potential
There is a strict relationship between these three dimensions that define terminal performance.
In addition, and in order to determine the potential of a given projectile, I look at the animal type, the type of bullet and try to match the
bullet to the body weight and animal type.
I consider five attributes to play a fundamental role in order to determine the killing potential and effectivness/speed of killing a round might have:
1) Caliber / Frontal section
2) Weight of the bullet
3) Speed at the target
4) The above determine sectional density and momentum
5) Finally and very important, terminal design / bullet construction. Understanding how that bullet works for that animal at different impact speeds.
Then by using tracking tables and/or popular software I will determine what type of value I need at the estimated hunting distances for the intended
game and heaviest possible weight.
I have been trying to devise a simple formula that can be corroborated with other tools and tables that sometimes are not prescriptive in nature.
Wild animals are tougher than most people think. Some they are hard to kill even with proven cartridges. It might take a small error or calculation
to mess up. With that said for the typical hunt in the typical conditions there are many bullets that will work really well and many know that so
there is no need to do a masters on this subject to get decent results.
We can talk more but initially let me give you some general observations.
Soft skin animals like white tail can be killed with popular rounds and bullets given good placement that is the first thing and key.
Once you get into larger deer and hogs you might need more momentum and bullets that can help derail the animal along with larger and deeper wounding.
Solid bullets work best at high impact speeds and since they are stout in nature they work well in both deer and hogs w/o fragmentation in most cases
even after hitting heavy joints.
Some bonded are very good at this too and also a great choice specially in the presence of bone so we can prevent unpredictable fragmentation.
Also with solid bullets one can afford less sectional density in exchange for speed at impact that is what makes these bullets to work best and transfer
energy faster.
Once we get to certain weight, bullets that activate faster and impact at high speeds might induce hydrostatic shock.
This is not always necessary but important understanding if that is desired but then one might have to consider anatomy and angle of the shot
to make sure this effect is produced in the plexus area. This is a shot that in a deer might ruin more meat but if needed for whatever the reason
can anchor the animal.
This is hard to do with compact calibers where people tend to be optimistic and works best with impact speeds above 2100fps or so depending
on caliber and other factors but as we drop form there we have to rely more on the wounding potential and we loose more of the shock potential.
Also many people produce a rather simplistic formula that is 1000ft-lbs for deer that might say something but might also not say much because
momentum and speed at impact might be more important than anything else and even shots with lots of energy but low speed and sd might lead
to pin hole wounding, that is why speed is key too.
That is why a 270 winchester or a 7mm/08 with bullets between 120gr-140gr are so effective in medium game with 3000+ fps loads. Also small
magnums like the 257 or 270 weatherby. While bullets might be modest weight they lean on speed that with predictable activation and terminal
behavior make them pretty consistent killers.
Then as caliber goes up, lets say 35, 375 and above so it does killing potential because section grows and even with modest still sectional density
and even lower speeds we see an increase in wounding because normally we get into heavier grain and more section.
As the bores get wider even flat metplats have the capability to displace a lot of water and create substantial cavities that is why
large bore calibers are so deadly at moderate ranges.
It is a matter of finding the right trade off between external ballistics needed (better for longer ranges) and the momentum, grain and section.
Ballistics is always a world of trade-offs of some sort.
BTW the 358 winchester and that BLR are proven meat factories.
...sorry for the long post... I hope I don't become boring.
This is what happens to a 154sst after hitting heavy bone...