180 gr. AB on mule deer (bad shot)

Wow- now that is a touch of meat damage. Not sure if it would have mattered if it would've been a 180 out of a 300 mag. I need to load some of the 180 ABs in my 338. Supposed to be 3250 or so. I imagine they would be pretty awesome in the jugs.

Glad you were able to get the deer. At least you were able to recover him.
 
A heavier, slower bullet might be a better option with less meat damage.
Take a look at the 200 gr AB.

JD338
 
I'd have to say that a dead animal hanging on the meat pole is a good indicator of at least acceptable bullet performance.

That said, I'd add that if I were shooting a 338WinMag, I'd be looking at a bigger bullet more toward the heavier end of the bullet weight spectrum, such as the 225-250gr stuff. Why? Well, what you see there in the hind quarter and up the body of that deer, plain and simple. A heavier bullet, of stout construction, will not do as much meat damage as that little 180, if only because it's going to be moving several hundred feet per second slower.

Curious as to why this shot was chosen/taken? Seems like a loss of plenty of good meat. Not dogging you, Rhoden, just wondering about the circumstances.
 
Lack of talent I guess.....Poor follow through at some what close distance!

Rhoden101
 
Well, considering it penetrated from one end to the other, I'd call it good performance.

Kind of a bummer to waste that whole rump though.
 
Rhoden, no worries on the shot. I'm assuming it was a running deer and from your last post, at short range. I totally missed the last running deer I shot at, for sure (she was headed off into the next county without a scratch the last time I saw her...) so I understand. It's hard to judge lead on a deer. Again, wasn't dogging you. In your case, this wasn't "the shot" as you envisioned it. I take issue with folks who take shots like that when it's the only one presented. We've all had shots not go exactly as planned. The good news is, you still recovered the deer and piled up some venison in the freezer.
 
I am with the others, rather lose some meat than the whole thing. With todays tough bonded bullets, the 180's aren't a bad choice in my mind for the 338's. It is hard to let go of the old heavy for caliber mantra's, but the little bonded/mono pills are pretty danged tough. If my boy was to hunt elk, I couldn't think of much I wouldn't let him shoot with a 180 at 3200...

I have ruined my share of quarters with misplaced shots. Running/moving deer are tough. The 358 225 PT's and the 35 Rem 200 CLRN's worked well. Shots were more off than I wanted, but those big bullets still hammer deer. Would have been better with perfect shot placement, but I am not usually that good! :shock:
 
Rhoden 101 that can and does happen to all of us at some point in time. We all have done it at least once, whether on purpose or not. :oops: You smacked him pretty good in the rear shoulders there and you did not lose the animal. It is simply amazing how much damage a bullet can do. I shot a spike bull perfectly one time at about 200 yards with a 165 gr. Nosler solidbase boattail out of my 30-06 right behind the front shoulder. The bullet mushroomed nicely and exited out behind the opposite side shoulder with an appropriate sized exit hole. The bull ran about 70 yards and went down. When I skinned him, both sides of the rib cage was a complete bloodshot mess, clear up behind his shoulders. I lost a lot of the "front" shoulders let alone the rib meat on that bull.

David
 
"pretty good in the rear shoulders" :grin: I like that!

If that's what a hunter has to do, to bring down his animal, so be it. It's not the shot we'd strive for, but if need be, I'd take it too.

The damage looks pretty typical for a shorter range shot with a high velocity cartridge. That's a sure fire formula for creating a LOT of damage. I think any expanding bullet at only 80 yards, from such a powerful rifle, would inflict major damage. Damage isn't all bad, it brings down game!

Yeah, there won't be as much in the freezer when this one is cut up. OK. At least it's hanging, and the tag is filled. Next year might be one right through the ribs with virtually no meat damage. Stuff happens when we're hunting, not every shot is a perfect broadside shot at a still game animal.

Guy
 
Guy Miner":1zhxe1y2 said:
Yeah, there won't be as much in the freezer when this one is cut up. OK. At least it's hanging, and the tag is filled. Next year might be one right through the ribs with virtually no meat damage. Stuff happens when we're hunting, not every shot is a perfect broadside shot at a still game animal.

Guy
Click to expand...

Holy smokes! It is nice to see other folks write that. Seems I am stoked to have that perfect shot, but I would come home empty handed if I waited for the "perfect shot" most of the time...

I don't think any bullet would have much of a different outcome with that placement. In that case, I say it was a score. Big bullet, blasted through muscle and bone and knocked it down! I like it!
 
Thanks for the input guys. I just wanted to hear a few other peoples opinion of the outcome. You guys are right it is still dead a in my freezer!

Rhoden101
 
I fully agree and understand on shots like this happening sometimes. (See my earlier posts in this thread.) And I don't think Rhoden was out to shoot this deer in the rump. We've covered that.

But I'll argue a little about the utility of the "Texas Heart Shot" as a routine occurrence. I'm not a fan of this shot at all. Too few rifles/bullet/shooter combinations can make a decent shot in this manner, and far too many game escape wounded, only to die a nasty death over a few weeks time. I lump most head shots into this same category, for the same reason, but that's another story entirely.

There's no shame in coming home empty handed because the only shot you were offered was the arse of a deer sprinting away at high speed. I like perfect broadside shots as much as the next guy, but I also realize they don't always present that way. In the past couple of seasons I've shot three deer. Only one was broadside. The other two were quartering. I passed on several deer that did not present a clear shot. One may have been a very big buck. I can only say it was a huge pair of hams. It wasn't a shot I wanted to take, so he bounded away. To each his own, for certain, but there is no denying the risk involved in purposefully taking the "rear shoulder" shot.
 
SJB358":ry96wogu said:
Guy Miner":ry96wogu said:
Yeah, there won't be as much in the freezer when this one is cut up. OK. At least it's hanging, and the tag is filled. Next year might be one right through the ribs with virtually no meat damage. Stuff happens when we're hunting, not every shot is a perfect broadside shot at a still game animal.

Guy
Click to expand...

Holy smokes! It is nice to see other folks write that. Seems I am stoked to have that perfect shot, but I would come home empty handed if I waited for the "perfect shot" most of the time...

I don't think any bullet would have much of a different outcome with that placement. In that case, I say it was a score. Big bullet, blasted through muscle and bone and knocked it down! I like it!
Click to expand...


+ ONE INDEED!!!
 
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