First and probably last cast bullet deer

[Iwsbull]

Was really disappointed in the results I had. They are great to practice with and I suppose if I need to shoot through a large heavy animal but for deer not so much. 30 yards in one shoulder out behind the other shoulder or a drop of blood in the 120-150 yards it ran. 5 hours of searching not any blood. Even the last few yards to its final test nada.
I will either go j bullet or maybe try a hollow point. The swc with a .32 meplate (44 mag at 1260fps) just didn’t preform as I hoped.

[DougGuy]

I'll get the popcorn started...

[John McCorkle]

I'll get the popcorn started...

Haha que the circus music

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk

[Larry Gibson]

Little more info on handgun, bullet used [mould], alloy and load would be appreciated.

Perhaps (?) you've discovered why many of us prefer softer alloys and properly HP'd bullets at top end velocity for more effective terminal performance.

I like popcorn too......

[cwtebay]

Dang! I'm sorry to hear that. I am looking forward to hearing from members on the way to remedy this!
Would you mind sharing your load data?

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[Texas by God]

At 30 yards a neck shot might have sufficed.

[megasupermagnum]

Don't give up on cast. Some guys like the nearly unlimited penetration a solid bullet provides. Me, I like a hollow point, they create a much larger wound.

[Iwsbull]

Ruger SRH 7 1/2” straight clip on and powder coated 43-258j very accurate bullet 13.5 grains hs-6 average mv 1264. Should have softened up some in the cook for the powdercoat. Head and neck were already behind the brush, narrow shooting lane. Love the load for targets but am going to look for a hp mold and start the work up again.
I might should have said last non hp deer instead.

[megasupermagnum]

If that shot good for you, try this one from NOE http://noebulletmolds.com/NV/product...lnkpag2a0dkt51

I found my accuracy load in my redhawk was with 13 grains Bluedot, and I cast them with the large hollow point and 20:1 alloy. I have not shot that particular load at a deer, but similar rounds have proven quite impressive.

[Don1357]

To paraphrase Yoda: one shot a trend does not make.

A bullet of a given hardness will mushroom at a given speed. Your speed/hardness combo seem to have been off. If I were to guess go softer or hollow point the bullet.

Or the stupid deer got lucky and it didn't damage anything that adrenaline could not overcome. It happens.

[DHDeal]

The bullet zipped right on through. I believe you did find the deer?

A MP hollowpoint mold with the big pin and 20/1 might be your ticket.

[Iwsbull]

Yep Loads of bacon tested them and it would appear that around 1100 FPS is the magic number for the large hp in the 44 to open and hold together in his test. It didn’t seem to matter whether it was 8.7 or 10.4 bhn.

[cwtebay]

I am sorry to hear about that experience! I have seen a bull elk shot 3 times with a 300 RUM with Berger 210gr at 475 yards with ZERO expansion, a whitetail buck shot at 15 yards with a 405 Winchester and a 300 grain Hornady - same result, and a cow elk shot with a 32 Special at 70 yards with cast that drilled straight through. My 2 pence is they all had something to do with suboptimal shot placement (high thorax on all) combined with poor bullet performance in each given scenario. The bull I killed this year survived a 30 caliber bullet in the high chest at least a year ago (passed from left, full mushroomed bullet found in right rib), as well as mechanical broadhead just above the sternum sometime in his past. Some critters are just tough sons of bucks![IMG]

[Conditor22]

When you get a new scope, you put it on the rifle, aim, and shoot. IF it misses the mark, do you throw it away? Same with cast boolits. What do you think they killed all the buffalo with?

[Wheelguns 1961]

Cwtebay, that is one heck of a bull! Wow!

[Iwsbull]

Cwtebay I am in awe of your elk. Awesome kill congratulations on it.

[mebudman63]

Well I hog hunt here in Texas about twice a month. Most shots are within 60 yards and I usually take a head shot. i shoot a 450 Bushmaster with a RCBS 45-300-FN sized down to .452 on WW`s. This year for the 1st time in 25 years I deer hunted. Got 2 deer the same day. The doe was 104' and dropped on the spot. The buck was 124' and ran 10 feet and dropped. Both shots where thru and thru. There was blood splatter everywhere on both shots.

[Iwsbull]

I found hair and a piece of meat and hair about the size of the end of my pinky finger at the shot location then nothing maybe the extra velocity of the rifle made the difference.
Like I said I think a hp mold is in my future.

[dverna]

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010865576?pid=224132

For $100 you can 400 of get these as they are currently on sale. Bullets that will work well on deer without any effort. It might take you 50-70 rounds to find an accurate load, leaving you with over 300 bullets to hunt with. This is the practical approach to killing deer and putting meat on the table. It is not "fun", if you define fun as buying molds, casting or drilling different HP's and testing them, and then testing different alloys that expand but do not lead.

Use cast loads to practice and plink with. Use you "fun" time working up a load that shoots to the same POI as the jacketed bullet you select. And, unless you enjoy pain, you will have more fun practicing with lower recoil cast loads instead of hunting loads.

BTW, I understand your frustration. You made a good shot and nearly lost the animal. You did your job but the bullet failed. I suspect there are quite a few people who have done the same...we just do not hear about it much. There is an interesting current thread on a gentleman who is doing ballistic gel testing on .38/.357 loads. It is enlightening to see how much velocity will impact cast bullet performance. It is a good read. Pay specific attention to a comment from Larry Gibson relating to using a binary alloy.

Lastly, not even every "good shot" will keep a deer anchored. I put a 165 gr .308 GameKing into the boiler room of a large doe. Got a great blood trial but the deer still ran over 50 yards. Stuff happens.

[Bloodman14]

I am wondering if the boolit had time to expand at all, given the short range and high velocity. A lower velocity would have sufficed, I am thinking, for a non-hollowpoint projectile.