Cast Bullets, "too powerful for deer"

[KCSO]

I had a friend stop by the shop tonight and return a box of the 220 rnfp loads that I made up for his Krag. These were loaded with 4895 and were coming out the muzzle about 1950 fps, a pretty standard hunting load for the Krag. The fellow handed the loads to me and said he wasn't going to use any more of them he was going back to a 150 gr. jacked bullet. I asked him why and he said that last year he filled his and his son's permits with one shot and that that load was just to powerfull for deer. He shot into a doe at 110 yards and the bullet went through the front shoulder of the first deer and broke the spine of the deer standing behind. He recovered the bullet and it was nicely mushroomed about 50 caliber and weighed about 180 grains. Other than a finisher for the deer shot through the shoulder that was still flopping the one bullet killed two deer. This is the same bullet I am working with in 30-06 this year.

So, warning cast bullets are too much for deer.

[dk17hmr]

Far to powerful...end of conversation...Oh but wait

What would a jacketed have done? punch through the first deer exited in fragments making the second deer bleed alot.

I dont think the bullet was the problem there.

Some guys get trigger happy and dont wait for the clear shot, happens alot, some brag about killing 2 deer with one shot some think there gun is to powerful.

I personally wait for a clean shot...one of the rules you teach a kid before letting them shoot, know what your target is know what is behind your target.

[waksupi]

Jim, what was the hardness, and meplate size? Sounds like they work just fine, as long as you don't line up a bunch of critters in a row. I'll bet a 405 gr. out of a Sharps would really get multiple penetrations!

[KCSO]

Bullet was cast from straight wheel weight material and meplat is just a hair over 3/16th. It was most interesting to me as I have killed a number of deer with the bullet and this is the first one recovered. As to the multiple kill the second deer was back in the brush and he could not see it from his position. And yes if he were shooting jacketed slugs he probably would have only wounded it, but he wouldn't have found it so he would have never known.

Waksupi-Or a 62 from a trade gun!

[nighthunter]

Years ago a friend of mine tagged a secondary kill of mine. I shot a doe at about 75 yards with a 160 gr jacketed bullet from a 7mm Mag. She dropped on the spot. When I went to retrieve her there was a second doe about 10 yards behind her that was unseen to me at the time of the shot. My friend butchers for himself and when I ran into him a couple of weeks later he asked me what the hell I was shooting that made an 8 inch hole going in. Small bore bullets at high velocities are very destructive. For the last 10 or 12 years I have been doing my deer hunting with cast in 44 Mag and 45-70. The deer are just as dead and the meat damage is a whole lot less. I have not had a secondary kill since that one time because I know now to make sure of what is behind the first target.
Nighthunter

[catboat]

The other way to look at it is that the first deer was evidently too small.

[SharpsShooter]

I use 520gr boolits out of my Sharps............now if I can just get the deer to cooperate................Heh! Heh!

SS

[KCSO]

We have to be darn carefull of that stuff here, one tag one deer no exceptions and damages of $750 each on deer.

[6pt-sika]

I don't agree with the knocking of the jacketed bullets.

I was toatally by accident shot a 150 grain 7mm Nosler Partition thru a 3" diameter sapling and killed the buck that was standing 10 yards behind it .

In my defense it was early in the morning at first light and I did not notice the sapling . But that bullet went thru the tree and the deer . And said deer dropped on the spot .

I for one hunt with cast and jacketed .
Although cast are generally loaded in levers and older rifles .And jacketed have become relegated to the bolt actions and speed demons . However if I'm going somewhere I haven't been or know the shots can be over 200 yards I hunt with jacketed .

[Beerd]

I got a "two fer" once with my 30 Herrett Contender.
Don't remember exactly, but I was shooting a 110 gr jacketed boolit at about 2400 ft/sec.
Took about a 50 yard shot on a buck antelope and 2 dropped.
The boolit came apart in the first animal with the jacket exiting at an angle that hit a doe 10 or 15 feet to the right of my intended target (or was it to the left? Don't matter, the point is they were not lined up).
Good thing I had two tags so I was legal.
Stopped using that boolit to hunt with.