168 Grain Vld for elk?

[C.Smith]

Would any of you guys ho after spike elk with 168 Vld loaded in a 30-06 and feel comfortable with it?

Corey

 

[JD338]

Myself, I would use a game bullet. Nosler AB or PT.

JD338

 

[DrMike]

With the scientific assessments available for premium hunting bullets and the ready availability of such bullets, it is difficult to justify any other bullet if the shot will challenge velocity limits. Quality tells. You won't have a problem of failure using a quality hunting bullet such as AB or PT.

 

[str8meat]

yes i would i have seen how beregers perform on spike bulls. .284 168's in fact at 556 yards. he's in the freezer.

 

[jmad_81]

In a word, NO! But I have not used them yet either. I have read a bunch about it, and I'm just not convinced that they will take a elk up close of you hit the shoulder. I'm a big fan of retaining weight and having two holes to bleed out of.

 

[SJB358]

With the scientific assessments available for premium hunting bullets and the ready availability of such bullets, it is difficult to justify any other bullet if the shot will challenge velocity limits. Quality tells. You won't have a problem of failure using a quality hunting bullet such as AB or PT.

I would stick to the AB or PT's Corey. Why mess with something you know works excellent. Although the VLD is a great bullet to alot of people, what do you want your bullet to do, penetrate deep and offer an exit, or expand violently and probably not get an exit. I will take the animal moving a little bit, but with blood on the ground to follow. I am sure the VLD's are great, but I tend to think on an off angle shot (not talking a butt shot, just quartering) the AB or PT offers me insurance. I am sure this will get argued a ton, but those are my thoughts. Scotty

 

[C.Smith]

Well thanks for the replies. I have a 30-06 I was thinking of trying to bloody this fall and I have close to 200 of the 168 Bergers. I suppose I should listen to my concous self and not use them for hunting but for practise and use a different bullet.

Corey

 

[Guest]

Corey,
I have only shot Berger 168 VLD's at target in my 30-06. I would use them for Whitetail Deer, but never Elk. I have seen the videos like everyone else. I typically like to see two holes with blood for trailing. An Elk has a tough hide with lots of thick hair. It takes a quality premium bullet to take on the job. Nosler Partitions and Accubonds get my vote. If Bergers were to fail for any reason and the animal runs off, how could you trail it for follow up? Choosing Nosler Bullets eliminates that risk. One I'm not willing to gamble with.

Don

 

[filmjunkie4ever]

As they say my friend, you could take a moped from Sarasota to San Francisco but there are better ways to travel. I am sure you would kill and elk with the VLD in the 30-06 as it is not known for blowing up bullets by going too fast. My favorite rifle is a Winchester Model 70 30-06 and I have tried nearly every bullet under the sun in it and never had a failure. Partially this is because of good shot placement and the rest is from good bullet performance. I personally recommend the 165 grain AB's and PT's as they both shoot excellent at 2800-2850 in my 24'' tube and have sufficient integrity to do a great job on elk. I have never lost any animal with that rifle. But I tend to lean towards the two holes bleed out faster than one crowd. And VLD's are not designed for that. They are a match bullet from what I hear though honestly I have never fired one in any caliber.

 

[remingtonman_25_06]

I would use a heavier VLD (190 or 210) if that was the bullet I was going to use to give some added insurance for a closer up shot. The 168 is way to fragile and I wouldn't trust it up close unless you had a broadside shot behind the shoulder.

At 30-06 speeds, the 168g NBT or 180g NBT are both good bullets for spike elk. We have used the 180s in 300 Win Mags for the last 10 years or so with a lot of great success on spike elk from about 75-800 yards.

 

[Guy Miner]

I've had good success from the Berger VLD bullets, but that was the 115 gr VLD from my .25-06 on mule deer. Three of them from 175 - 400 yards. All dropped instantly.

Yes, I'd hunt elk with the 168 VLD's from a .30-06, but like most of the other guys, I'd really prefer a well proven 180 grain Nosler Partition or AccuBond from the same rifle. Just in case.

Regards, Guy

 

[C.Smith]

Well I will just load up the 199 that I have and use them for practise. I still have not really found a great load, like I have with my 7 mag, for this rifle. But I have a 165 AccuBond load that shoots sufficiently for now, until I find something better. I was actually thinking of moving up to a 189 grain bullet and leaning towards the Partition.

Corey

 

[corbin9191]

I can say that I have used the 168 vld on my deer last year at 650 yards and I was very impressed. The bullet was not recovered and very little meat damage (double lung shot). But using it on an elk is a different story. I am not saying that I would not use it on an elk, but I would stick with a bonded bullet.