fyrfyter43
Member
- Joined
- Jul 8, 2009
- Messages
- 83
A round ball is an adequate projectile for the largest game on the planet. The only caveat is that you must use a large enough caliber. Elephants have been killed with an adequately-sized RB.
That said, many thousands of whitetails have been killed with a .490 round ball. In fact, many have been killed with an even smaller ball. And 80 grains is more than enough powder to drive that RB.
Penetration on a piece of lumber has nothing to do with a projectile's ability to kill a deer. A fast, lightweight bullet that passes through and imparts relatively little of its energy to the organs and tissues really isn't very effective. Even though a roundball often doesn't pass through, it imparts every bit of its energy to the organs and tissues of the animal, causing significant damage. Remember, a rifle's projectile kills by shock damage, not by causing hemorrhaging like a broadheaded arrow.
Last December, I killed a buck at 35 yards with a single .32 cal. RB, travelling at MAYBE 1100 fps. (It was a single 00 buckshot pellet out of a 12 ga. 2-3/4" shell). The pellet stopped just under the hide on the far side. The buck literally dropped in his tracks.
That said, many thousands of whitetails have been killed with a .490 round ball. In fact, many have been killed with an even smaller ball. And 80 grains is more than enough powder to drive that RB.
Penetration on a piece of lumber has nothing to do with a projectile's ability to kill a deer. A fast, lightweight bullet that passes through and imparts relatively little of its energy to the organs and tissues really isn't very effective. Even though a roundball often doesn't pass through, it imparts every bit of its energy to the organs and tissues of the animal, causing significant damage. Remember, a rifle's projectile kills by shock damage, not by causing hemorrhaging like a broadheaded arrow.
Last December, I killed a buck at 35 yards with a single .32 cal. RB, travelling at MAYBE 1100 fps. (It was a single 00 buckshot pellet out of a 12 ga. 2-3/4" shell). The pellet stopped just under the hide on the far side. The buck literally dropped in his tracks.
