Your Experience Taking Deer!

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JasonYuke

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There has been many posts lately about bullet performance, Bullet constuction, and Cartidge selection.
Over the years I have the opertunity to harvest deer with many types of cartidges and bullet construction, and I have seen my share of bullets performing great one time and poor the next.
Managed to harvest deer with many cartridges 6.5s, 270s, 7mms, 30s, 338s, 350s, and right up to a 375, and have been very suprized in some of my results with relatively good placed shots.
2 that come to mind as mentioned before and was not expecting the result found, was a 7mm Rum (hot loaded) and accurate pusheing a 140 g Barnes X bullet at close to 3500 fps, side shot in a tree stand with a good rest drove the animal about 2" behind the front shoulder, and it ran away! It was my first High velocity rifle i used for deer sized game, but i found no energy or shock, was noticed on the deer? he ran about 100 yards across the field stopped looked back and ran about 100 yards into the woods.
I looked at that rifle and the big 404 case and just wondered what happened?
Punched both lungs and it was a good shot!
The second that really did opposite from what i thought was a 338 WM and a 250 gr Hornady SP, loaded right up to max, a nice young buck walked out 30 mins before sun down leagal time i decided being the second last evening at camp he would fit the bill, I sqeezed it off at 75 yards with the cross hairs lined up right behind the front shoulder, just catching a bit of meat but no bane, after the dust settled from that dammed muzzle breaK! I seen the deer running from th efield into the bush tail up? I though unless someone screwed with my scope, theres no way i pulled that shot, and that gun shoots well with that load, however I convinced myself i must have missed and shaking my head in disbelief? I missed i guess and being a 338 wm with 250 soft piont!should have rolled him are flattend him with that soft bullet and cooking speeds??. Well i followed that little buck into the bush about 30 yards , 100 y away from where i touched off the shot, and with no sign of blood (convinced i still missed but knew there was no way i could have) i called in the troops to lend a hand, 150 yards in you could not see the trees for the red spray,and found a hole about a quarter sized passing through the lungs, i was happy to find him and when he bled out it was impressive could not loos that trail if you tried. However i looked at that combo that i loaded shrugged my shoulder and said I thought it should have done better , at least nocked himdown?
Just 2 shots that i wont forget?? Thought I would share that, has anyone ever experienced the same type of performance with combos that you thought should work better?
 
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I've found that the bigger heavy bullets like those often used in the 338win don't open well if at all on deer and just poke holes in them. The deer then runs off quite some distance before bleeding out. What I've found that does anchor deer is 120gr to 140gr bullets in the 6.5x55 or 150gr bullets in the 308win.
 
That's the trouble with ballistics interacting with live game ...... there's not always the consistency you would expect.

Sometimes it works and sometimes it works differently. Too many variables.
 
A deer shot with anything can run away. Heart shot deer have a tendancy to run as well as one that has its adrenaline up.

I have found that a bullet that looses 80 to 100g of lead inside the body cavity with the bullet retaining enough to still pass out the far side to be the best at putting dear down fast.

But everyone else on this forum wants minimal damage and 100% weight retension, probably due to the fact they keep shooting the meat.:rolleyes:
 
he ran about 100 yards across the field stopped looked back and ran about 100 yards into the woods.
Click to expand...

Punched both lungs and it was a good shot!
Click to expand...

Was the deer recovered?If the deer was not recovered,there is no way to know for sure exactly where the bullet struck and what path it took through the animal.I have seen several instances where the person was very sure of a good hit ,yet once the animal was finally recovered,the bullet wound was not where the shooter thought that it was.Secondly,I find it strange that the deer ran 100 yards and looked back after being hit.I have shot many deer and that is not behavior that I have seen from a well hit deer.
 
Some things you cant explain, but I guess theres someone that will always ask?
I Dont know why he did that, but i thought i would share it?
Yes I did recover that deer and he was hit well with a dime sized hole slipped through the boiler, and if not for the blood trickel you would not see the exit hole! Just one of those wierd hunting situations. I somehow slipped it though his rib cage and out the other side just touching a rib but it never shattered it.
You could litteraly cut a perfect hole around the exit hole. Was like an arrow that passed right through.
I wondered if the deer knew he was hit at first?
If its a fair staightment all the energy of that load, seemed like it got depostited in the ground on the other side of the animal
 
All the data and firepower in the world will not make up for lack of common sense. I have had well hit deer go far as well. One little buck took my 300gr XTP right through the boiler room and went flat down. As we approached he got up and took off. 2 miles later we found him and had to give him another to finish it. The first shot was good and took out both lungs but he still went.
When you shoot be aware that this can happen and know the terrain, conditions, etc. ahead of time so you can properly track if this should happen. Another time I went and got a friends dog to find the deer. I've never lost a hit animal yet. Most went down fast but if you hunt long enough you will run into these situations. Bullet types cannot compensate for a poor shot or the lack of planning. Know what,where, how, and why before you pull the trigger
 
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"...338 WM and a 250 gr Hornady SP, loaded right up to max...at 75 yards..." Likely went right through. Too much gun is as bad as too little.
 
As mentioned earlier, too much gun is as bad as too little, and also anything hit in the lungs can run a long way! I hunt with a 338 and it's probably the best all around north american cardridge, but you've got to remember that with a hit like you explained, that 250 grain bullet will just zip on through the deer with little deforming of the bullet and even less transfer of energy. My first moose I shot with my 338 was a 150 yard shot, broadside, straight through the heart, and I though I though I missed at first. He never even flinched, just walked calmly into the thick brush. I never hit major bone (only ribs in and out) and so there was no "knockdown". If you want to use a 338 on deer sized game, I would go with a very light, rapid expansion bullet. Or...if you want something to fall down RIGHT NOW, like you sort of suggested, shoot it straight through both front shoulders with those 250's of yours. You lose about 5 pounds of meat (on a moose), but the animal goes down on the spot every time. Run up and finish it with a head shot right away and start your field dressing...
 
I'm not sure about this "too much gun" stuff...

I have shot 2 small problem bears with 300 gr Nosler Partitions in .375 caliber, certainly a tougher bullet than a 250gr Hornady spire point.

Both bears (which were smaller than many mule deer in body size) went down like a sack of hammers. Guys routinely flatten bears and deer with 45-70's. Etc.


I have witnessed 2 deer hit on the shoulder with 7mm 150gr Ballistic Tip bullets, and in both cases the bullet blew up, barely penetrating and leaving a big surface wound. In this case a bullet that probably woudl have been fine at 300 yards failed at the sub 100 yard ranges.
 
Ihave found that when I am hunting deer with magnum calibres, I tend to use controlled expansion bullets such as TSX or Accubond and the results are less spectacular than with more traditional bullets. I now use those bullets and calibres when hunting moxed bag(when I also have a moose tag etc), but the most spectacular deer kills of mine have been with 260 rem and 125 gr partitions, 30-06 and 165 gr speer hotcores and 308 with 165 ballistic tips. The deer just kind of melt, but when hit well with the tougher bullets they run for a while, I always have found them, just 100 or so yards away. I don;t really care that much if I shoot up a bit of shoulder meat, but I can't bring myself to launch a bomb bullet (lighter weight BTIP)at a deer at 3200 fps form my 300 win mag.
 
My most dramatic kills on deer have been with the 140gr ballistic tip launched at 3500fps out of my 7mmstw.The deer either drop at the shot or within a few steps.Out of over two dozen deer taken with this combination,not one deer has covered 50 yards after being hit.On the other hand deer hit with the 140gr partition launched at the same velocity often run after the shot with a few exceeding 100 yards,and one exceeding 200 yards.
 
According to the techs from barnes, the barnes x bullet really isn't intended to impact at speeds in excess of 3000 fps. That means if your gun is shooting 3500 fps, and you light into one at relatively close ranges, you CAN pull off the petals and get a pencil. That same load might give you devistating results at 300 tho, where the bullet has slowed down a touch.

I think when you get into some of these very high performance guns, you really have to do a little bit extra homework when picking a bullet. A 30-06 is going to be very, very forgiving at 2800 fps. A cartridge cooking along at 3500 fps is not.
 
There have been 3 deer that I shot that went down in their tracks.

A whitetail buck that I shot at pointblank distance of about 20 yards. I was hunting in the timber and the buck was walking towards me trailing a doe. It never knew I was there and I hit it hit through the spine. Straight down and just "shivered" when it hit the snow. That was the Hornady 165gr BTSP from my .30-06.

Second was a mule deer buck I shot at a measured 225 paces with the same 165gr Hornady BTSP from my .30-06. It absolutely went down in it's tracks and never moved; the shot was a perfect broadside shot, center of the lungs and went right through.

The other buck was the whitetail I shot last November. That deer was standing looking at me on a quartering angle at about 200 yards. I hit it in the left front shoulder with a 200gr Nosler Accubond (.300H&H) and the bullet travelled the length of the body and exited through the left hip. Deer simply collapsed and slid down the hill it had been standing on... never twitched...

Pretty much every other deer I have ever shot has either run a short distance or at least attempted to get back to it's feet.

I agree with the concept of bullets that expand widely and have the energy to punch right through.

The least impressive bullet performance I have seen on a deer was the buck I shot 2 years ago with my .270. I had it loaded with 140gr Nosler Accubonds and the combination of bonded bullet, plus small caliber made awfully small holes through the deer. Two bullets both went right through the deer; both were broadside double lung shots at right about 200 yards. I remain amazed to this day, at how small those .277 cal holes were.

In terms of impressive wound channel it is pretty hard to beat those 165gr .30cal Hornady BTSP's. Ideal deer bullet.
 
I was surprised a few times this past year

First was with 140 gr accubonds from a model 7 7mm SAUM, finishing shot on a Mountain Goat at about 25 feet and the bullet didn't exit, but the same bullet tears right through deer at 50-300 yards.

Second was on a whitetail buck with my 375 H&H shooting 260 gr hornady interlocks, now I know its not a bonded bullet but I thought since its a big bullet and big caliber that it would be built solid enought for deer?????

The shot was rangefinded at 325 yds, only bone hit were a couple ribs, the bullet blew up and made a massive exit hole, hair and chunks of lung/ other misc organs all over the ground, great blood trail for the 30 yards he went. Here I thought at that distance the 375 would have minimal expansion, put him down in a hurry though.

Third was another whitetail buck with my 30-06 mountain rifle shooting 168 gr winchester supreme ballistic tips, these bullets are the nosler ones and I have read mixed reviews about there performance, some saying the drop game like Thors hammer and some say that they won't penetrate wet tissue.

The shot was downhill at about 125 yards, snagged the bottom of the spine, deer dropped instantly of course, bullet exited with a normal sized hole, hardly any damage to surrounding tissue but really messed up the spine, very impressed, will use them again.

More distant memories include,

A whitetail buck I shot with 140 gr hornady interlocks handloaded for my 270, the shot was 25 yards, beautiful lung/heart shot and the bullet totally separated, not leaving one speck of blood, didn't know if I hit him but he was digging real hard and there was snow on the ground so I was determined to follow him, found him about 50 yards away on the other side of a creek, not a spot of blood. In dis-belief I thought I just was too exited and overlooked the blood since I was following his tire tracks so I went back the next day and looked again, nope, no blood.

My first bear I shot with my 270, shooting 150 gr roundnose federal classic bulk pack ammo. The shot was about 70 yards, the bear was facing straight on. After the shot he ran like a scalded dog, brother said he was hit good, went up to where he was standing and there was a 1" diameter alder cut in half by the bullet, found the bear laying less than 30 yards away, the entrance hole was so big I could put my fist through it, the bullet tore up the lungs broke 3 ribs and exited:eek:

I try and learn something from each encounter, always interesting to hear about others experiences in detail.
 
Only thing harder to anchor than a deer is a coyote...
The ability of whitetail to run a long distance while they are dead is amazing.
Heart shots in most cases bleed very little or not at all... often all cardiopulmonary function ceases when you damage/destroy the heart. This can also happen with lung shots when a lot of energy hammers the heart into submission! The deer just runs on until the brain succumbs to lack of oxygen and it falls over. I have seen them go 400 yards with no heart left in them and no blood trail in the fresh snow!!!
The lack of blood trail is due to two major factors... firstly the heart and lungs are not functioning so there is no internal pressure to make the blood flow. Secondly as soon as they start moving after the shot the shoulders move and the outer holes in the skin get pulled out of alignment with the inner membranes sealing them off. There is no way for the blood to leak out and it just pools in the lower cavity.
A perfect broadside shot on the heart that is very close to the legs is notorious for lack of blood trail, due to this sealing off effect.
Bear Hunters know all too well the ability of well hit bears to leave a sparse or no blood trail, due to the heavy fat and loose skin.

I know that many deer, bears and other big game animals are lost each year because of inexperienced hunters not being able to find the animal. I know for a fact that some hunters assume they missed if they do not see any blood immediately.... so they don't bother looking.
I have had guys bring firearms in that they said were not sighted or something else was wrong because they lost an animal at very close yardage. "I held right behind the shoulder and it just ran away!":rolleyes:
After checking the gun or rifle it was found to be sighted perfectly... :bangHead:
 
We had some "out of towners" come to town with a cow elk draw, this draws only access is through private property and they got permission, so the guy and his wife sit in an opening and wait for the elk to show up, they were shooting a 243, first elk walks out and "bang" the elk runs away, gee I guess you missed honey, but wait, there's another elk "bang" wow I don't know why your missing????? Finally after 2 or 3 animals running into the bush they finally drop one in its tracks, load it up and go home. Couple days later the landowner sees ravens and goes and finds the dead elk in the bush, had to get the CO's and a front end loader to bury the animals. I believe the man and wife got a visit and a slap on the wrist for it???

Some people are just screwed in the head right from birth....:kickInTheNuts:
 
I am interested in seeing what my new .257 Weatherby will do with the 120 grain Nosler Partitions it shoots so accurately.

I have never hunted game with anything smaller or faster than a .270 Last year i took three deer with a .270 and a .30-06 In years previous, .308, .30-06 and .38-55 Some ran for a bit some dropped on the spot.

I look at this .25 cal and even though it shoots very accurately i am not sold on it. I just wanted something different. Layne Simpson in writing about the .257 Weatherby, proclaims "From mice to moose!!" But me being a .30 cal guy at heart isn't so sure. Time will tell i guess.
 
My 257wby did a good job on all deer sized game using the 100gr partition,but the deer did tend to run a bit after being hit.I also took an elk and a mountain goat with the same load.However when I used the 100gr ballistic tips for deer and pronghorns, the kills were more dramatic with several deer dropping at the shot.
 
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