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Using Target Bullets on Game....

pertnear

pertnear

As a hunter, I've learned that bullet placement is always king. But recently I was reading a long thread on another forum about using target bullets on game. The back & forth was lively & heated. I have no practical experience, so did not throw in my 2-cents. But it did get me to wondering...

Has there ever been any testing done shooting popular target bullets into gel blocks to see performance?
 
I don't think you ever know with bullets unless you try them. I used to hunt where the longest shot on whitetails would be 200 and I sometimes used a 6.5. I like neck shooting and I pass if that is not possible. So, I bought some Brand A 100gr varmint bullets and some Brand B 90gr bullets. I don't shoot trophies so I figured something devastating on the neck would be appropriate and effective. I chose the 90's first. I shot two deer with them and it was amazing. You had to really look to find the entrance hole and there was no exit. Now, most of us would think it expanded and stayed inside doing it's work. But both deer were still living, eyes open and one was able to protest being loaded in the truck a little to the point it got a .22lr in the ear. That performance was completely unexpected and disappointing.

However, the 100gr's worked just as expected - awesome devastation, and instant death.
 
Knotwild said:
I don't think you ever know with bullets unless you try them. I used to hunt where the longest shot on whitetails would be 200 and I sometimes used a 6.5. I like neck shooting and I pass if that is not possible. So, I bought some Brand A 100gr varmint bullets and some Brand B 90gr bullets. I don't shoot trophies so I figured something devastating on the neck would be appropriate and effective. I chose the 90's first. I shot two deer with them and it was amazing. You had to really look to find the entrance hole and there was no exit. Now, most of us would think it expanded and stayed inside doing it's work. But both deer were still living, eyes open and one was able to protest being loaded in the truck a little to the point it got a .22lr in the ear. That performance was completely unexpected and disappointing.

However, the 100gr's worked just as expected - awesome devastation, and instant death.
Click to expand...
Thanks Knotwild for commenting on your experience. That is why I asked about shooting into ballistic gel just to see what is going on post-impact. I wonder if mfg's do this?
 
Yes! Barbour creek YouTube has many long range gel tests. There are others i have seen.

I personally have used a berger 208 long range target on a doe at 578 yards and it performed fine. Maybe not quite as good as the hunting vld’s ive used however. Also used a 185 juggernaut that did not fragment or open, just penciled thru. But dead dear in 50-60 yrds.

Brother shot a nice buck at 125 yrds with a 308 and 168 matchking. Did fantastic. Came apart and had good exit hole.

Shot a doe with a 180 hybrid 7mm berger from my 28 nosler at 360 ish yards. Devastating

I dont hesitate to use them but for under 300 yrds i typically prefer a more conventional hunting bullet
 
Hogs and a mouflon with 166 atips from a 284 at 2775. 5 animals for 4 shots fired and no tracking as of yet. I keep my ranges real and use good shot placement.

One mature axis buck with an 88ELD from a 22BRI. perfect shot placement at 250 yards. Made about 10 yards and piled up. Insides were a mess with pass through.
 
pertnear said:
Thanks Knotwild for commenting on your experience. That is why I asked about shooting into ballistic gel just to see what is going on post-impact. I wonder if mfg's do this?
Click to expand...
I doubt they test bullets intended for paper on ballistic gel. Ballistic gel is fairly expensive considering how much use you get out of it. So, it's not economically sensible. I took a look on youtube to see what might be available. I found this:

Berger Hunting Bullets VS Target Bullets
Shooting Holes in Wound Ballistics Theories
The Mechanics of Terminal Ballistics

I imagine if you do an internet search you will find at least some info. Some of the above looks very interesting, but I don't think it really answers your question.
 
My question is why use target bullets to kill when they make bullets specifically designed to kill? I use Nosler BT's and Partitions and they have never let me down. Head shot, neck shot, shoulder shot. It never mattered much. But then again I'm a firm believer in the Ruark school of "Use Enough Gun". A 5.56 is a great varmint round (for thin-skinned 4 legged and 2 legged varmints) but for deer I would recommend 6mm (.243) or larger. ;)
 
Not all target bullets act the same on game. I've shot a couple of deer with the Hornady 162 eldm and they worked great. Both deer were at just over 100 yards and had pass throughs with plenty of blood. I'm going to try the berger 175 elite hunter this year. The Hornadys worked but I can't leave well enough alone.
 
Long range hunting group on YouTube has a bunch of videos gel testing different bullets. If you agree with him or not the test are interesting.
 
I have shot 4 javelina with 108 eld-m from a 6mm creedmoor and all have falled down within 3 seconds. I dont think its the right bullet but does the job. I think its not right only to the fact i think the cartridge is too much. But i keep taking it just in case a long shot happens. This passed February it was 197 yards. Last few years been 20 yards to 150 yards. I think it depends on several things. Distance, speed, hide thickness or bone shot. Hell i had a 35gr berger in my 204 go straight through a bobcat at 175 yards.
 
Just about every deer I have killed has been with a match bullet of some sort, out to some pretty incredible ranges. Shot placement is key but there are two lines of thinking when it comes to bullet performance. The first is like a bow hunter, poke a hole and follow a blood trail. The second is deliver as much energy into the animal as possible. Both work fine just depends what you are after. I personally subscribe to the the second option because I want to knock the deer down, not chase it up over and down nasty canyons full of thorny brush and loose rocks.
 
My friends and I have shot quite a few deer with 140gr, 162gr and 178gr AMAX's ranging from 200-600+ yards.never had to track one of them, all died at or very close to where they were hit.
I'm sure the ELDM's would have similar results.
 
I’ve never seen one of these threads produce much of anything but arguments!…target bullets are not designed to be hunting bullets , they have thin jackets and come apart! Will the kill?…. Of course!… Nosler partitions are hunting bullets and work as they should but would you use them at 1000 yards?… then we get into what is ethical ….. next thing you know it’s a all out war on the key board!…I have killed and wounded game with both types bullets. I have used a lot of Berger hunting bullets but when you get right down to it there not really what I think is a true hunting bullet.
I think maybe the best of both worlds would be a Nosler Accubond .
Wayne
 
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