Tell me again what it takes to kill a mulie?

[Blammer]

brewer-

I have a 30-06 load I developed for my rifle with 226gr bullet traveling 1850 or so fps. I shot a doe with it about 160 yds away, through the leg bone and through the heart. She did the 80 yd dash and died. Bullet gave complete penetration, entrance and exit.

Your cast load will work fine, I would aim for bone to break them down so they don't run so far. Shoulder coming or going, will work.

Where your short coming will be, is in determining distance to the target, so you can get an excellent shot. A pocket range finder for $100 is your best friend. With the cast velocity being lower, it will drop quickly at distance. Know your drop, practice at distance and go get one.

[brewer12345]

Have a range finder and unless the target were obviously within 100 yards (such as a deer stepping out from a stand of trees I had already ranged) I do not take shots without checking. The rifle range I have access to is a 100 yard one, so that is all I can do. I know from the ballistic calculator that the drop should not make a difference out to 150 yards. By 200 I need to be aiming at the spine or a bit over.

[brass410]

location and luck is pretty much all you need, oh yeah a firearm bigger probably better than little, cause if you cant hit it at least you have a shot at scaring it to death. I usually kill mine with the truck on my way home at night, not the best way but certainly easier than most and I almost never have to track it (they're usually wedged between the headlites and the bumper)

[Texas by God]

location and luck is pretty much all you need, oh yeah a firearm bigger probably better than little, cause if you cant hit it at least you have a shot at scaring it to death. I usually kill mine with the truck on my way home at night, not the best way but certainly easier than most and I almost never have to track it (they're usually wedged between the headlites and the bumper)

I used a 100 lb. Six point whitetail buck to kill a 2005 Chevy Silverado. One shot @ 70mph. I hate the taste and smell of airbags.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[TCLouis]

I think measured distance and only computer generated POI will be limiting.
Empirical test would be best and will give you practical real world boolit drop information.
This is of course post hunt as you either went last weekend, or will be going this weekend.

[brewer12345]

I think measured distance and only computer generated POI will be limiting.
Empirical test would be best and will give you practical real world boolit drop information.
This is of course post hunt as you either went last weekend, or will be going this weekend.

Going the coming weekend. I played around with a ballistic calculator and tried varying the initial speed a bit to see how far I could be off. Out to 150 yards it does not make a meaningful difference. I also have some additional fudge factor due to elevation as the range is 5000 feet and the area I will be hunting is more like 8000.

[dverna]

I would select the bullet and load that is the most effective. In this case, I see no advantage to using a cast bullet...but of course there is the pride factor....alas...one of the deadly sins we are cautioned to avoid.

You WILL kick yourself if you miss the shot or wound and lose your deer. Chose wisely.

BTW, if your post is to confirm that your choice of a cast bullet is supported by others, you have received affirmation. If you had any serious doubt, that doubt will remain, and will haunt you if you need to make a 200 yd shot.

If you stay with the cast load, you must test it at range or you will have doubts. Do not underestimate the power of confidence and knowledge.

[brewer12345]

Understood, Don. I have shot this load at 100 yards many times and will likely not take a shot over 150 yards with it, so no worries. I was mostly wanting confirmation that this combination would kill deer. For elk next month I will be using Partitions because the shots are generally 200+ yards.

[brewer12345]

Well, I can say for sure that my load will kill a mulie no problem. 20 minutes before the end of legal shooting hours I made an 80 yard shot on a big doe quartering toward me. I missed the front shoulder bone, but it went in through the meat, destroyed the heart, hit both lungs, clipped the digestive tract, and exited the rib cage on the opposite side. She did not make it 25 yards, and based on the blood pattern/spray it looked like she ran 15 yards, did a donut and fell over. If anything, this load was too destructive. The spot where the big meplat made contact with her left bloodshot meat that reminds me of what jacketed stuff does. What was interesting is that most of the damage was done up front near the impact site. The exit was just a slightly bigger hole.

Can't complain at all. I got my first deer with my own cast load, managed to field dress her in the dark (head lamps are wonderful), and she was even thoughtful enough to keel over at the top of the ridge right above the truck. My buddy dropped by to help me skin her and get the carcass quartered. Tomorrow I will figure out how to cut quarters into steaks, roasts and the like. Now I just have to hope that she tests free of CWD.

[richhodg66]

Great going! I had no doubts your load would work. Except for the occasional arrow, I haven't killed a deer with a jacketed bullet since 2009 and I average two a year. They work. Anybody can do it with a jacketed bullet, but the truth is, it's not that hard with cast either.

[brewer12345]

The annoying part of this is that it has taken three years to get a decent tag in Colorado. Probably will be 2 or 3 years before I get another chance at a tag in this area. Oh well, I will start trying to alternate deer tags with pronghorn tags. Not sure pronghorn is a great choice for cast given the likely range limitations, but I will have plenty of time to think about it.

[richhodg66]

Wow, don't have that problem here with white tails, plenty to go around.

A pronghorn with cast would be a worthy goal. I think you should start preparing for it.

[brewer12345]

A pronghorn with cast would be a worthy goal. I think you should start preparing for it.

While my buddy and I were out looking for jackrabbits a couple weeks ago a small herd of pronghorns came within 50 yards of us while we were eating lunch. Somehow I suspect I would not be that lucky during open season. I have zero experience hunting pronghorns, but sneaking up close looks like quite a challenge in relatively flat terrain. Getting within 100 yards and hitting a boiler room that is considerably smaller than that of a deer seems like quite a challenge. I need to fool around with different cast loads and get used to pretty much crawling among the sagebrush. Probably not enough bullet, but the Lee soup can load I have worked up is easily accurate enough to make the hit.

[richhodg66]

I have zero experience with pronghorns, however, I'm betting there are guys out there who consistently kill them every year with archery equipment. It can be done.

[brewer12345]

True, there are plenty of successful archers. Let's just say that I am extremely humble when estimating my hunting skills...

[dk17hmr]

Beside roundball kills the only big game animal I have killed with cast was an antelope. I’d say go for it.

[brewer12345]

Almost forgot the picture!

[10x]

Having used a M10 Ross 303 with the 313299 (14.5 grains Unique and 1450 fps) on many, many, mule deer doe.
A 313299 from wheel weights will not expand on soft tissue. A Texas heart shot (At the root of the tail of a deer facing away from you) will travel the entire length of the spine and not expand at all - breaking every rib on the way to stop just under the hide in the neck.

Expect your hard cast bullet to act like a full metal Jacket. A shot through the lungs that does not hit the heart, or bone will give you a wounded deer.
While hunting with a cast bullet I take the time to make sure I am aiming for a vital spot with heart, head, or bone. I have yet to lose a deer, and at 1450 fps even if a bone is hit, there is minimal loss of meat along the wound channel. If I can't make a humane shot, I don't pull the trigger.
BTW: most mule deer I have harvested have been under 50 yards - they are easy to stalk.

Locally to hunt mule deer, camo, don't worry about scent. 30 years of sitting on stumps downwind, upwind, and crosswind watching mule deer feed have taught me that scent either dissipates with the wind or rises from your body heat within 10 -12 yards. I have been directly upwind - very light breeze- and mule deer doe have grazed (down wind from me) to within 5 yards before they scented me and startled. They have no idea of what a human smells like and if they do, they don't associate human scent with danger. A deer that has scented many joggers and hikers has learned to ignore humans as not dangerous. The town Mule deer here have a fear distance of about 3 to 10 yards before they get uncomfortable and move off.

Doe in heat attractants??? Sometimes a buck will go to a scent patch , usually they ignore it.

In a moment of weakness I put up a deer decoy in my yard with doe in heat scent on it. The tracks in the snow indicated that all the deer simply ignored it when it had scent on it.

[kenyerian]

congratulations on a successful hunt!! Well done.

[missionary5155]

Good morning
Well done !! Congratulations for sticking with the plan. Lead will still feed the family.
I chuckle eat time I read the next hyper add about lures and scents. Why anyone wants to smell like stuff the body expels ??
Try rubbing apples on your gear and boots. I get the free apples (half rotten) from the local "open air market" or the windfall apples the yellow jackets have not taken over. I have never met a corn cruncher that did not like an apple snack. My car smells like apples... not like some bus station toilet that was not flushed for two well used days.