At what point in the death of this deer did my bullet fail?

ninepointer

ninepointer

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I've been shooting green box Remingtom ammo (130 grain pointed soft point cor-lokt) out of my .270 for as long as I can remember. Most kills were bang-flops and I can't recall many pass-thrus. This deer from last fall succumbed to one shot at 70 yards neatly behind the shoulder. The deer ran a little farther than I'm used to, necessitating a tracking job, albeit an easy one due to a steady blood trail. The deer was found with 2 tiny holes in it, one one each side; the bullet passed through with no indication of expansion. Skinning revealed that my bullet had slipped in and out between ribs; it hit no bone whatsoever. That leaves me wondering: should my bullet have expanded, despite the fact that it hit only soft tissue (hide, lungs, hide)?

(In case you're wondering, I still swear by my green box Remingtons on deer ;))
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probably a combination of not hitting any bone whatsoever and could've been an anomoly..slightly thicker jacket? who knows.....i like core-lokt myself and hey you still got him so no worries.
 
In my experience with .303 British Core-Lokt projectiles, unless they smack bone they don't really fully expand. IMO they're designed for amazingly hard surface impact (counting on at least a glancing blow to the ribs or bones in the shoulder) and they don't really puff out much unless they get it.

Especially with a hide-lung-hide shot, I wouldn't expect much expansion out of a 130gr PSP.

-M
 
Ribs and lung dont give much to expand against. Deer still down, not much if any meat damage, looks ok to me. Two holes and steady blood trail, Id say Mr Remington did his job!

LSB
 
If that bullet cost less than $3, I'd say to give a closer check to make sure that deer is really dead. Possibly it just coincidentally perished of old age at the same time the bullet failed. It's impossible to say, really. If you maybe used a barnes tripleshok, or similarly expensive bullet, that deer would be a lot more dead.



Just in case anyone thought I was serious I'll add this :p
 
The deer is dead, the shot was good, and it was about as quick and humane a shot as a hunter can be expected to deliver (heart/lung/liver) ..... Stop losing sleep over it, soft tissue and hard metal rarely mix together in the sort of perfect blend that you see in the movies.
 
If a lungs is holed, then it should cease to function PDQ. So you don't need a lot of expansion on lung. And lung is mostly air, so it won't provide the resistance of muscle to deform the bullet.
I think :).
 
by fail, you mean why did it not produce a "bang-flop"?
As you said, the bullet passed through the animal without hitting any bone. The bullet created a different ( yet similar) injury to the animal, but there was enough of a difference in the shot placement that it created a different internal injury. Fatal none the less.

In all the times you have harvested an animal with that bullet, you have never seen this before right? An I'll bet you have never had a shot through the ribs that did not strike bone as well.

The answers to your question are in regards to the shutdown of the ciculatory system of this animal. The answers to your questions lay in biology and physics.

what you have noticed is different wound characteristics, not bullet failure.

I would suggest that you continue shooting that bullet with confidence.

cheers.
 
On a hijack note, I sure wish it were permissible to track downed animals with dogs here in AB. It would sure increase the odds of recovery in many cases.

As for the bullet, as stated, lungs and skin don't make much resistance, even for an expander like the PSPCL. You still have a tasty deer, and a good hunt memory. Don't sweat it!
 
As most of you already know, I posted this thread somewhat tongue-in-cheek because of course my bullet did its job and got me my deer.

Hoochie got it when he said, "In all the times you have harvested an animal with that bullet, you have never seen this before right? An I'll bet you have never had a shot through the ribs that did not strike bone as well."

I have every intention of sticking with my PSP Cor-lokts.

But, on the other hand, those premium rounds sound pretty appealling. I hear that not only will they kill deer deader than dead, but with the right shot placment they just might skin, butcher and package your venison for you!;)
 
ninepointer said:
But, on the other hand, those premium rounds sound pretty appealling. I hear that not only will they kill deer deader than dead, but with the right shot placment they just might skin, butcher and package your venison for you!;)
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If you were to also upgrade to a real man's caliber (a magnum), they'd BBQ the steaks for you as well.
 
A large enough calibre with the premium bullet will, with proper shot placement, skin and gut your animal, but it will not butcher and package it. Come on guys, get real here.
 
If you are going 338 diameter, perhaps you should go 338 Ultra Mag. That way you can spend the extra bucks on super-premium bullets so they work properly on deer sized game. I hear that the deer are starting to develop armor plating in the heart/lung area, so an upgrade might be a good idea now.
You realize that unless it burns 95+ grains of powder and spits out bullets at 3500+ it is barely adequate for rabbits, let alone deer!! ;) ;) :D :rolleyes: Regards, Eagleye.
 
One thing I've learned is that the hole in the hide really does't match bullet diameter. The fact you had lots of blood shows to me the bullet expanded as usual. The hide can stretch before it gives and the bullet passes through leaving a hole not the same diameter as the bullet. If there is a rib behind the hide at bullet entry it supports the hide and makes a different size hole than if there was no rib supporting it. Likewise on exit, if there is no rib adding to the mass exiting then again a different size hole as opposed to a bullet plus bone fragments exiting. My thoughts anyway.
 
deer are amazing animals i've had a couple that should of never taken another step but took off for a hundred yards or so.sometimes they just don't know to fall down
 
If deer are grazing peacefully a well placed shot will usually drop them on the spot. If they're aware of you and tensed and ready to run with a behind the shoulder shot they often bolt and run 100 yards or so.

I've seen several deer and moose shot with a between the ribs shot both sides and the exit hole is barely larger then the entrance hole.
 
Eagleye said:
If you are going 338 diameter, perhaps you should go 338 Ultra Mag. That way you can spend the extra bucks on super-premium bullets so they work properly on deer sized game. I hear that the deer are starting to develop armor plating in the heart/lung area, so an upgrade might be a good idea now.
You realize that unless it burns 95+ grains of powder and spits out bullets at 3500+ it is barely adequate for rabbits, let alone deer!! ;) ;) :D :rolleyes: Regards, Eagleye.
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Well go big or go home. Every man knows the only way to hunt deer is with 20mm Vulcan.
 
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