300 WSM on white tail deer?

I would not go to a light bullet (ie 150gr or lighter) unless it was fairly stout (ttsx/tsx) but any 180gr soft point or ballistic tip would be fine for a deer. I run the 165gr tsx, ttsx and accubond in mine. I have gotten several deer with the 165tsx with no issues, but lately I have switched my wsm to the accubonds.
 
Dogleg said:
Welcome to the wonderful world of TSXs.That's what they do when they work. If you want deer to pile up, load some Ballistip-tips, Partitions, plain ole Hornady Interlocks or just about anything you can name and drop a weight.

When you combine the hardest expanding bullet around with the softest smallest medium game animal, this the kind of thing to expect. On the other hand, if you want to shoot through moose lengthwise you're geared up pretty good right now.

Or you can just buy A-Frames and be done with it.
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A-Frames for deer!? You cannot be serious...
 
OK, it's a bullet by Swift that is both partitioned and bonded on the front half. For slamming big things it's about as good as it gets. For smaller things its still pretty good.


Some people think that an A-frame is what a partition wants to grow up and be. Personally I doubt that a bullet is capable of rational thought.
 
Years ago I shot a white tail fawn at 100yds +- with a 300 win mag and it ran close to 100 yds. I thought I must have gotten back a bit but when I got to it was shot right through the lungs and there was an exit hole literally big enough to put my fist in. Unless you destroy the nervous system or skeleton structure there is no guarantee of putting a animal down on the spot.

What was the condition of the lungs when you clean it? Any deer I have shot with the TSX/TTSX bullets the internal organs around the wound channel have been like soup, as Gatehouse stated.

On average you will get more dramatic results with a more fragile bullet but you have to be careful with shot selection, such as trying to bust through heavy bone to get to the vitals.
 
On average you will get more dramatic results with a more fragile bullet but you have to be careful with shot selection, such as trying to bust through heavy bone to get to the vitals.
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That's where the old Nosler partition really shines. It acts like a frangible bullet, but if that doesn't work there's a flatnosed solid comeing down the same hole right behind it.


The Nosler seems to be loseing favor, as more people have adopted the curious notion that animals weigh the expanded bullet then decide if they are dead or not.
 
patrickg said:
Hi,last fall I purchased a Tikka 300 wsm for moose and deer hunting,unfortunatly I did not get to see the performance of the barnes 180g all copper bullets on Mr moose but I did shoot a 5 pts deer at 60 yrds and had to track him about 80 yards before finding it. I was expecting to see a big hole but to my suprise there was only a pencil size hole right throu the boiler room. My question is if I continue to hunt deer with this rifle what is the recommended bullet type and grain weight I should be using?
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I had a similar experience punching a hole through an antelope with a .300 WM shooting a 150gr Barnes X bullet. Went back to 150 to 165gr Partitions and Ballistic tips for deer and elk, and didn't have that problem again.
 
On the topic of deer with buffalo bullets...

Here is the entrance wound on a blacktail I shot with a 270gr TSX

11047_212073190515_526315515_4589132_6643490_n.jpg


Exit:

11047_212073920515_526315515_4589136_1952279_n.jpg


(No very big, right?)

Innards were all sloshy though. :)

He ran downhill about 2-3 good bounds then keeled over.

11047_212073745515_6210290_n.jpg


Bullet was traveling about 2600fps at impact, I guess it had slown down enough to expand. :) ;)
 
Gatehouse said:
On the topic of deer with buffalo bullets...

Here is the entrance wound on a blacktail I shot with a 270gr TSX

11047_212073190515_526315515_4589132_6643490_n.jpg


Exit:

11047_212073920515_526315515_4589136_1952279_n.jpg


(No very big, right?)

Innards were all sloshy though. :)

He ran downhill about 2-3 good bounds then keeled over.

11047_212073745515_6210290_n.jpg


Bullet was traveling about 2600fps at impact, I guess it had slown down enough to expand. :) ;)
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Helps when you shoot them through the shoulder.
 
patrickg said:
Ok...I'm lost! What are A frames?
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Dogleg said:
The angel of death.

OK, it's a bullet by Swift that is both partitioned and bonded on the front half. For slamming big things it's about as good as it gets. For smaller things its still pretty good.

Some people think that an A-frame is what a partition wants to grow up and be. Personally I doubt that a bullet is capable of rational thought.

That's where the old Nosler partition really shines. It acts like a frangible bullet, but if that doesn't work there's a flatnosed solid comeing down the same hole right behind it.

The Nosler seems to be losing favor, as more people have adopted the curious notion that animals weigh the expanded bullet then decide if they are dead or not.
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Dogleg said:
I think they are a far better do-everything bullet than a TSX, and if the OP wants to pop Bambi with a buffalo bullet it is a better compromise for a single load.

For strictly deer sized critters, a plain ole Hornady is about as good as anything.
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Dogleg, all good points except that a few people here won't know that the Nosler Partition is the original premium bullet, and the Swift A-Frame took Noslers Partition concept and supposedly 'upgraded' it.

I don't think you can beat the old reliable Hornady Interlock on deer sized critters.

As far as the Barnes, I like the Barnes Original RN. Those are bad-ass. But the X bullet is a superb bullet too. I really think they are better in larger calibers and on bigger game.


Oh yeah... nobody can afford Swift A-Frames... well, almost nobody.
 
if the few extra dollars for a-frames (or premium bullets in general) is a deal breaker for you, I really don't think this is the hobby for you. For the handful you'll shoot each year, a box will last a long time, and the increased cost isn't even a rounding error compared to the costs of fuel and tags and everything else.
 
prosper said:
if the few extra dollars for a-frames (or premium bullets in general) is a deal breaker for you, I really don't think this is the hobby for you. For the handful you'll shoot each year, a box will last a long time, and the increased cost isn't even a rounding error compared to the costs of fuel and tags and everything else.
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Although I'll agree with the price not being a big factor on the grand scheme of hunting, a higher price doesn't automatically guarantee suitability of purpose.
 
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