Shocking power: fact or fiction

aacollectible

aacollectible

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Is there such thing as actual "shock" transmitted to an animal when it's shot with a powerfull cartridge?

Classic "exagerated" movie example, guy flies backwards when shot with a .44 by "Dirty Harry".

This topic was once discussed extensively quite a while ago.

What do you think?
 
Guy flying back is momentum transfered from the bullet.
Hydraulic shock ruptures blood vessels and stuff out of direct path of bullet.
 
If by "shock" you mean "energy" the answer is yes. The travelling bullet has energy [its mass(weight) X its speed (velocity)]. That energy is transmitted to the target struck by the bullet. That energy is dissipated as heat and tissue motion. Tissue motion can be a combination of whole-body motion, soft tissue disruption and/or bone fractures.
 
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Take a hammer, and hit yourself, and then find out if it hurts you more when you use a heavier hammer at higher velocity :)
 
They did this test on mythbusters on their ballistics dummy and seemed to find very little to no movement on the dummy after being shot. They say in order for that to happen the shooter of the gun would have to move just as far as the target. For every action there is an opposite and equal reaction. I'm not pretending I know anything, but it sorta makes sense.
 
I shot a standing whitetail once with a 130gr Hornady SP out of my .270 . It was a shoulder shot that hit lots of bone, and it rolled him over. He was a small buck, and this could have been attributed to quite a few things.
 
You can shoot a guy who is wearing a bullet proof vest and balancing on one foot and the impact of a 44 magnum doesn't even knock him off balance. The phenomenon must relate mostly to a nervous reaction, and little to momentum. Except of course when I shot a gopher with a 30-06, that was a transfer of momentum.
 
Another example that shoots the hollywood depiction down is to fire at a jug of water with a high power rifle. There is massive damage to the jug but it doesn't travel very far. A tin can shot with a .22 will move much further if you hit the rim.
 
I believe in "explosive force" that is the explosion of bullet and even bone inside the body cavity. You can clearly see and hear it on game sometimes.

I don't necessarily believe it will drop game quicker every time but do think it looks and sounds cool.
 
No to the dude flying backwards but yes to shock.
When something as sharp as your thumb penetrate your whole body there is alot more damage than the little bullet wound you see.
It's kind of the opposite with archery when a razor sharp broadhead hits (with arrow weighs in around 400 grains) occasionally the animal doesn't even realize it has been hit! There is little to no "shock".

When a bullet hits it actually stretches the skin and tears through muscle and bone there is lots of trauma and shockwaves travel through the body (so I have been told) I have also hears that under highspeed photography you can see a wound open up to the size of a fist upon impact.
 
Mythbusters did a show on this. They hung a pig carcas from a cable that was lightly hooked to a cross member. They hit it with a 30 cal, shotgun and I believe a 50 BMG. The pig carcas barely moved enough to dislodge the cable.
When an animal reacts to the shot, it must be a spasm or nervous shock that causes the reaction.
 
When you see hide of a game animal "ripple" (ive seen this on a Moose getting hit with 338WM at short range) you know you have transfered some serious energy and delivered some shock. As for stuff flying backwards, I havent witnessed it, you will have to Ask Clint how he does it.
 
Pathfinder said:
When you see hide of a game animal "ripple" (ive seen this on a Moose getting hit with 338WM at short range) you know you have transfered some serious energy and delivered some shock. As for stuff flying backwards, I havent witnessed it, you will have to Ask Clint how he does it.
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I saw it with a crow and a 22-250 at 30 ft, mind you the shock wave soming back out of the frozen ground is probably what "blew him away"
 
carefully empty a 30lb. propane cylinder of propane then carefully unscrew the fill valve, best done under water, to prevent sparks. then completely fill cylinder with water and reinstal fill valve-- back off 100 yds and put a good deer round into it and you'll understand hydraulic pressure caused by hunting rounds. As for holliwood theatrics most veterans say their mates usually just slumped and dropped and if it wasn't fatal the pain was delayed don't forget some of these soldiers fought thru several sevear wounds before they could get aid. I knew a veteran-- bomber command who lost part of one hand two thru and thrus in his lower legs and a busted shoulder 20mm. night fighter canon fire over Holland, he had to stick it out to finish the mission as they figured it was safer to stay in the stream rather than be a lone duck.
 
the flying backwards is all hollywood.

if it did make a deer sized or bigger animal fly when hit. it would likely knock you over. each force has an equal and opposite force. so the force required to push a buller big enough an hard enough to knock a deer over would require a blast big enough to knock the shooter over.

if you mean shock that destroys internal organs, then all it akes is a bullet moving fast enough with a surface big enough to make a shockwave inside the body.
 
People do not fly backwards after being shot. As a matter of fact, most dont even look like they have been hit.

People fly backwards when they get hit by cars tho.....
 
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