Hunting "Autopsy Pics" thread

[Bigslug]

OPENING DISCLAIMER: This thread may not be for the squeamish.

I wanted to kick this off in the hopes that we can start collecting and presenting some useful, real-world information on what our hunting bullets actually DO. We get A LOT of questions about what to use in terms of caliber and bullet design theory - my goal is to start presenting some visuals on our answers.

With this being a casting forum, I expect that most of what we end up with will be from cast bullets, but I want to keep it open to anything we hunt with, since that will be useful for comparison. If you hunt with jacketed, monometal copper, or even arrows, it's all good here.

We should keep in mind that every "animal down" situation presents challenges that may keep us from getting all the data, but what I'd generally like to see assembled is:

Data on the ammo: bullet type, alloy used, muzzle and estimated impact velocity.
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact (broadside, quartering, etc...).
Type and approximate size of the animal
Entrance and exit wounds
Affected organs
Recovered bullet or fragments if applicable, along with some idea of how much critter it took to stop it.
Behavior of animal before the shot (calm, agitated, running, etc...), and after (bang-flop, took about _____ yards to fall, needed a second round, etc...)

And hey - it's science, not an ego trip, so if you had something that emphatically DIDN'T work (lost animal or your buddy had to finish it off), let's get some discussion on the specifics of that as well.

Good luck all!

[missionary5155]

I guess I need to go out and thwap something.

[ChristopherO]

Bigslug, OK, I'm game.
This year and a half old buck was taken within 10 minutes of legal light the morning of 2021's deer gun season opener. Marlin 1895 CB, Skinner Alaskan sights, Accurate 405 grain WFN (420 grains with gas check and 2500+ WLL) cast of rather soft range scrap at 110 yards. Aimed intentionally high to bust both scapula and caught the CNS in the process. Buck fell over stiff legged DRT.

Entry:


Exit:


From inside chest cavity:


Scapula:


Top of Lungs:


Mold was purchased about 7 years ago from Accurate.

It has stamped on the mold 46-405C BUT that is NOT what you will see in the current Accurate online catalogue as the C now has a smaller Meplat. My boolit looks like Accurate 46-405T.

[ChristopherO]

No autopsy photos but this 54 caliber patched round ball (PRB) struck a large doe spine at 96 long steps and lodged there. The high shot was an accident but there was very little meat loss due to the the projectile weighing half the heft of the 45/70 slug.

[Tripplebeards]

Lyman devastator cast of straight COWW loaded around 1800 fps out of my Ruger 77/44. A rabbit at 135 yards.




Here is a deer with gun with a 15.4 BH alloy and a Lyman devastator.



This one is impressive with my 35 Rem…

https://castboolits.gunloads.com/sho...n-HP-group-buy!


Here is the complete story with the Lyman devastator and 3 deer…

https://castboolits.gunloads.com/sho...my-devastators!!!

[Bigslug]

Guess I'd better contribute to my own thread. Being in CA, it's all copper here:



San Bernardino Mountains mulie/blacktail 175 yards, facing me for a quartering shot inside of the left leg with a .308 Barnes 130gr TTSX. Muzzle velocity of 3,000fps - estimated impact speed between 2600-2700 fps.

Entry:



Destroyed the heart:



Exit behind the right shoulder:



He had moseyed in with his smaller brothers doing his morning routine. Alert, but not agitated. Fell in his tracks and I came out of recoil to the sight of kicking feet. Probably about a hundred pounds on the hoof - 73 pounds on the butcher's hook with no head, hide, legs, or innards.

[megasupermagnum]

I don't think this needs to be a thread. This should be the expectation every time someone posts in this section with a kill. Why else post here?

[versa-06]

I feel there will be a learning curve for some or most after the varied results are viewed. WFN, RN, HP, soft alloy, hard alloy, medium alloy, etc. Thanks for all input.

[Coopaloop86]

I think this is awesome, if only because my morbid curiosity loves to see how projectiles actually perform in a true bone and tissue environment. Ballistic gel is cool but nothing beats real world data.

[lar45]

I don't have autopsy pics of my cast bullet kill this year, but it was a 480 Ruger Bisley with 355gn hp loaded to around 1350fps. Impact was just behind the shoulder, double lung, bullet exited and blew lung chunks about 15' down the lane. Tracking was very easy with frothy pink stuff coming out both sides.

[ChristopherO]

I don't have autopsy pics of my cast bullet kill this year, but it was a 480 Ruger Bisley with 355gn hp loaded to around 1350fps. Impact was just behind the shoulder, double lung, bullet exited and blew lung chunks about 15' down the lane. Tracking was very easy with frothy pink stuff coming out both sides.

WOW! That is more wallop than my 50 caliber muzzleloaders shooting 355 grain lead conical boollits. They don't fly that fast out of a longer barrel.

[35 Whelen]

I love threads like these and I love field autopsies on game I shoot. I'll keep all cast bullets because by now I think we all know what an expanding jacketed bullet striking an animal at 2000-3000 fps is going to do. Here we go...

Data on the ammo: FR-8 Mauser Scout Rifle, 308 Win. 311291 173 gr. HP, 7/1 WW/lead 1853 fps MV, ~1700 fps impact velocity
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 40 yds. Slight quartering to angle
Type and approximate size of the animal 1 1/2 year old whitetail buck
Entrance and exit wounds Yes....?
Affected organs Lungs
Recovered bullet Passed through
Behavior of animal before the shot calm, browsing, After Ran off into the mesquites, not sure how far (it was almost dark) Dolly the Border Collie found the buck



Data on the ammo: Uberti 1873 Lever .44 Magnum .430" 255 gr. SWC from RCBS 44-250KT mold ACWW, MV ~1300 fps ~1100 impact velocity
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 110 yds. steep quartering away angle
Type and approximate size of the animal Mature whitetail buck
Entrance and exit wounds Yes and no
Affected organs Lungs
Recovered bullet Entered behind last rib on the left, travelled the length of the buck stopping under the skin at the juncture of the neck and shoulder
Behavior of animal before the shot Looking back at me After Ran off into the mesquites, 50-75 yds.



Data on the ammo: Uberti Bisley 5 1/2" 45 Colt 260-ish gr. cast SWCHP around 10 Bhn; MV ~1020 fps, Impact velocity ~975 fps
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 48 yds. broadside
Type and approximate size of the animal Younge whitetail buck
Entrance and exit wounds Yes and no
Affected organs Lungs and spine
Recovered bullet Entered high, just below the spine, took out part of a vertebrae and stopped under the hide on the far side
Behavior of animal before the shot Eating After Dropped and never moved.




I have lots more, but will have to return to do those later.

35W

[Bigslug]

35W - that's FANTASTIC and exactly in line with what I'm after. I think the recovered bullet posts are going to be extremely valuable as we'll begin to get a good idea of what is going to stop in an animal of ____ size. That's apt to be VERY helpful in the selection process for a lot of folks.

And three cheers for Dolly the Border Collie!

[versa-06]

35 Whelen; Good write up with plenty of descriptive info.!!! Thanks for taking the time. versa-06

[35 Whelen]

I'll try to knock out a couple more before I leave town in the morning.

Data on the ammo: Uberti 1873 Single Action .44 Special .430" 252 gr. 429421-style SWCHP, 9.5 Bhn from Miha mold, MV ~940 fps ~910 impact velocity
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 45 yds. broadside
Type and approximate size of the animalButton buck
Entrance and exit wounds Yes and yes
Affected organs Heart
Recovered bullet Entered low in left shoulder missed the bone, creased the heart then exited behind the right shoulder. No recovery.
Behavior of animal before the shot Grazing, after the shot it ran over a small rise and expired 40 or so yds. away.



Sorry about the crappy pictures. All I had back then was a flip phone.

Data on the ammo: Uberti 1873 Single Action .44 Special .430" 252 gr. 429421-style SWCHP, 9.5 Bhn, from Miha mold, MV ~940 fps ~910 impact velocity
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 44 yds. broadside
Type and approximate size of the animalMature sow
Entrance and exit wounds Yes and no
Affected organs Unsure, probably the lungs
Recovered bullet Bullet entered the center of left shoulder breaking the scapula and continued on into the chest, did not exit. Without cutting her open I dug around trying to find the bullet but gave up.
Behavior of animal before the shot Grazing with another sow and a dozen or so young 'uns. I could only stalk to within about 44 yds. and due to the tall broomweed had to take the shot offhand. When hit, she fell without taking a step. I put another in her head as she was still breathing.



Data on the ammo: Uberti 1873 Single Action Flat Top Target .44 Special; .430" 250 gr. 429421-style gas checked SWCHP, 8.5 Bhn from Miha mold, MV ~1105 fps ~1050 fps impact velocity
Approximate range to target and angle of the impact 38 yds. facing left and quartering slightly away
Type and approximate size of the animal1 1/2-year-old buck
Entrance and exit wounds Yes and no
Affected organs Lungs
Recovered bullet Bullet entered the left shoulder breaking a rib, passed through the chest through the off shoulder and came to rest under the hide.
Behavior of animal before the shot Calm, dropped at the shot.



More later.

35W

[ChristopherO]

Excellent write up with photos, 35 W. Thanks for providing these posts to fill this thread out in such a helpful manner.

[versa-06]

Very good write ups & photo's. Thanks for your efforts! -06

[GooseGestapo]

I’ve seen every photo in this thread.

I’ve yet to see an “autopsy” depicted.
Lots of NECROPSY, but no deer cutting up a deer! No bear eating a bear!
A human cutting up a human is an “autopsy”. ( or cannibalism).

Words have meaning! Let’s use the correct ones!

Sorry for the soap box, but I spent 4 LONG years getting my degree in Wildlife Management (zoology), so a “Necropsy” is meaningful”. With 25yrs in Natural Resources law enforcement, I’ve attended several “Autopsy’s”, and performed hundreds of “Necropsies”....

And, killed at least 50 deer and pigs with a variety of my cast “boolits”.. Ranging from 50gr .224” to .573” Lee REAL from my Savage M220 20ga.

[versa-06]

I would be willing to bet that you didn't have a knowledge & or a complete understanding of the difference before you went to school & got educated. I for one have not had that training & am pretty confident that not many have had the courses that you have. So sometimes ignorance comes from not needing to know the difference. Nobody else seemed to be bothered by it.

[DGV]

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