This is not going to be popular but I hunt upland game birds and squirrel exclusively with steel or copper bullets. In fact, I shot my most recent deer with copper 7.62x39.
That said, everybody here is correct that the performance is not as good. However, there have been some pretty revealing studies recently that the amount of led in wild game from shooting it is actually pretty unhealthy. This is a pretty big deal for those of us who pretty much hunt all year round and have a diet subsisting pretty largely of wild game.
Most of the people I talk to about this either start off on this Elmer Fudd "HURR WULL PEOPLE HAVE BEEN EATIN' IT FER YEARS AND THEY'RE FINE" type of nonsense, but you can get the heavy metals in your blood tested. Odds are, it's probably already higher than average just as an active sportsman. From breathing gun smoke to handling bullets, your body takes a decent amount of that lead into your bloodstream. This results in health issues down the road.
Here's a link to a report on a study in deer: https://www.ehn.org/lead-ammunition-in-meat-2645108170/a-lack-of-lead-inspection-in-donated-venison
Cliff notes to those of you who don't feel like reading the whole thing (and a link to the primary source):
In 2008, a study analyzed nearly 200 packages of venison from food pantries in Wisconsin, but it is unknown how many packages contained meat that was hunted with firearms. Lead was detected in 15 percent of packages; the average level in lead-contaminated meat was 160 ppm. At this concentration of lead, the study predicted 81 percent of children who consumed just two meals of venison per month would experience blood-lead levels above 10 ug/dL.
That said, everybody here is correct that the performance is not as good. However, there have been some pretty revealing studies recently that the amount of led in wild game from shooting it is actually pretty unhealthy. This is a pretty big deal for those of us who pretty much hunt all year round and have a diet subsisting pretty largely of wild game.
Most of the people I talk to about this either start off on this Elmer Fudd "HURR WULL PEOPLE HAVE BEEN EATIN' IT FER YEARS AND THEY'RE FINE" type of nonsense, but you can get the heavy metals in your blood tested. Odds are, it's probably already higher than average just as an active sportsman. From breathing gun smoke to handling bullets, your body takes a decent amount of that lead into your bloodstream. This results in health issues down the road.
Here's a link to a report on a study in deer: https://www.ehn.org/lead-ammunition-in-meat-2645108170/a-lack-of-lead-inspection-in-donated-venison
Cliff notes to those of you who don't feel like reading the whole thing (and a link to the primary source):
In 2008, a study analyzed nearly 200 packages of venison from food pantries in Wisconsin, but it is unknown how many packages contained meat that was hunted with firearms. Lead was detected in 15 percent of packages; the average level in lead-contaminated meat was 160 ppm. At this concentration of lead, the study predicted 81 percent of children who consumed just two meals of venison per month would experience blood-lead levels above 10 ug/dL.
