Sad tale with a happy ending

[Shuz]

As some of you may know, I have been a proponent of using cast boolits for many years now. I've been lucky enuf to kill several deer, elk and moose with cast boolits. Well, this year, my son put us in for a partnership hunt on the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. We were lucky enuf to get drawn, for cows only, but the stipulations were that the ammo had to be "non-toxic" (which is kinda an oxymoron as far as the elk is concerned.) If you used toxic ammo, you had to pack out the gut pile! This morning, I downed a normal sized cow at 245 yards with a toxic j word bullet outta my .25-06. I sure hope my RCBS Pro-Melt doesn't get wind of this!

[Thumbcocker]

obviously a toxic projectile. Congratulations.

[1bluehorse]

Congratulations on a successful hunt, especially one with your son. I envy you that as my son doesn't have any desire to hunt. As far as using jacketed ammo, they have their place as well in the hunting, reloading world and with the "advent" of some of the new jacketed bullets on the market today just as well as any.

[Idaho Mule]

Good job Schuz. And once again the 25-06 is proven as an elk cartridge in proper hands. I hope you don't break a tooth on a chunk of shed copper. JW

[TXGunNut]

Congrats. I find the concept of "non-toxic" projectiles to be quite silly but I guess sometimes we gotta do what we gotta do.

[MT Gianni]

I am sure she will taste the same, Congratulations.

[missionary5155]

Greetings and Congratulations !
I hear ya ! All I shoot are lead slugs from my molds or other well known casters about.
But if my name got drawn to get to hunt elk with my son and we had to use those "j" thangs then I will load them and fire away. There always pops up bugs in the frosting.
Well done and may you have many more hunts together.
Mike in Peru

[JeffinNZ]

Needs must but let us never speak of it again.

[taco650]

Death by copper poisoning? Guess it worked LOL!

[onceabull]

hey,there, non-toxic bullets can't be all bad..! After all, solid copper bullets made millionaires out of Randy & Connie Brooks !!! Onceabull

[cherokeetracker]

Reckon, we need to get Powder Coated Bullets into the NON Toxic category?

[quilbilly]

Reckon, we need to get Powder Coated Bullets into the NON Toxic category?
Now there is a man with a plan! They should be pink to celebrate breast cancer awareness just like the NFL.
(Just making fun of political correctness, not the disease if you hadn't guessed)

[runfiverun]

I'd like to know more of the load details.
I have been working with the 25-06 for a couple of years now and the non-lead containing bullets seems to be the direction to take this caliber for better/best results.
the 90gr Hornady GMX is the one that has caught my eye as a very good option as the all around bullet for big game [antelope/deer/Elk] at the velocity's the 0-6 is capable of.

[Shuz]

I'd like to know more of the load details.
I have been working with the 25-06 for a couple of years now and the non-lead containing bullets seems to be the direction to take this caliber for better/best results.
the 90gr Hornady GMX is the one that has caught my eye as a very good option as the all around bullet for big game [antelope/deer/Elk] at the velocity's the 0-6 is capable of.

The bullet was a Speer 120g Grand Slam, loaded in front of 55g of IMR 7828 and a CCI250 mag primer. OAL is 3.205 and cases were R-P .30-06 with necks turned to .284. 3 shots went into .284" at 100 yds with a velocity of 3078fps. and that was merely to re-check zero. The rifle is a Remington 700 Mtn Rifle with a 22" bbl and composite stock that I free floated years ago. This rifle and load has been accountable for whitetail,mule deer, antelope and now elk down thru the years. I only use it when shots are gonna be 200 yards or better, otherwise I use either my .444 Marlin XLR or my .35 Whelen, both with cast boolits. Speer's latest manual shows this load to be max and I worked up to the point where I got this kinda accuracy and quit whilst I was a head

As you prolly know, the 120GS is not a non-toxic bullet, that they would like us to use on the Refuge, but the rules were if you used toxic bullets you had to pack out the guts. This bullet was obviously toxic to this elk, but when I went back the next day to survey the gut pile, there was nothing left except the greenstuff that is contained by the stomach! Even the legs and hide had been cated off, prolly by the healthy coyotes we saw on the Refuge.