Larry in SD
Handloader
- Nov 8, 2004
- 426
- 1
This year I am hunting with a new Contender Handgun Barrel. Back this summer I picked up a new Stainless-Steel Super 14 7-30 Waters Contender Barrel to add to the collection. Now I have hunted with a 7-30 Waters before but it was a 10" Contender.
At any rate I necked down 100 new Remington .30-30 Winchester cases to 7mm and fireformed them via the Cream of Wheat method. After all the cases were fireformed I neck sized them in a Redding 7-30 Waters neck sizer die and set out to work up a load with 120gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips with H-4895 Powder. I ended up with a load that is averaging slightly under 1" groups at 100 yards from the bench at 2436 FPS.
Throughout the summer and fall I have been practicing with this new Barrel getting ready for Deer Season.
Saturday our Deer Season opened and we hunted the weekend without even putting a Deer in the crosshairs. Well today the wife and I had to baby sit out grandkids (6 year old Alex and 8 year old MacKenzie), so if we were going hunting we had to take the grandkids along.
We headed south of the US Dam Road down into the Mud Lake Bottom to one of my favorite spots. We ended up south of a patch of willows (the willows are about 50 yards north to south and a quarter mile east to west). South of the willows about 100 yards or so are a bunch of scrub trees scattered through the meadow. We took up a position about 50 yards south of the willows on the west side next to a scrub tree. I told the wife we'd sit in the Blazer with the grandkids and if something showed we'd figure out a stalk to get a shot.
We had sat there about a half hour when I spotted a nice Doe (both the wife and I drew Antlerless Tags this year) coming across the east side of the meadow on a line that would bring her out of the trees and into the open directly south of us. We snuck out of the Blazer and I got the wife into a shooting position. I whispered to the wife when the Deer comes out of the trees directly to the south of us for her to put the crosshairs midway top to bottom right behind the front shoulder.
I no sooner whispered that to the wife when I realized the wind was blowing on the back of my head. I was about to tell the wife that as soon as we saw the deer she'd have to shoot or the doe would wind us when I saw the doe running back to the east towards the L shape of the willows.
Rats, we blew that one. We got back in the Blazer, talked to the kids a little and I told the wife we needed to move. We ventured over by a tree on the souteast corner of the scrub trees so as to not have the wind mess us up again.
We had sat there about a half hour when I spotted the same doe emerge from the northeast corner of the willows. The doe was feeding along a 2 track trail through the meadow and didn't even know we were there. I snuck out of the Blazer and crawled on my hands and knees to get into a shooting position. When everything looked right I thumbed back the hammer on the G2 Contender, aligned the crosshairs and squeezed the trigger only to have a misfire.
The doe snapped to attention and I slowly recocked the hammer. When the doe stopped I was ready and this time the 7-30 Waters came to life. I heard the resounding THWACK of the bullet finding it's mark and the doe fell at the shot, only to get back up. She turned back to the east and went about 20 yards or so. I was trying to reload the Contender when I realized I only had the one round with me (the rest were in the Blazer). ABout that time the doe turned going straight north towards the willows, but never made it as she collapsed a couple yards from the trial.
When I got to the Doe she was done for. The bullet entered exactly where I had the crosshairs, entered the checst between two ribs, destroyed the lungs, struck a rib on exit leaving an exit hole about the size of a 25 cent piece. The range was lasered at 193 yards.
To say I was a happy Handgunner would be an understatement. I am always nervous the first time I take an animal with a new Barrel and Load, but I shouldn't have worried as the Nosler Ballistic Tip performed just as I have come to expect them to.
Thanks for reading.
Larry
At any rate I necked down 100 new Remington .30-30 Winchester cases to 7mm and fireformed them via the Cream of Wheat method. After all the cases were fireformed I neck sized them in a Redding 7-30 Waters neck sizer die and set out to work up a load with 120gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips with H-4895 Powder. I ended up with a load that is averaging slightly under 1" groups at 100 yards from the bench at 2436 FPS.
Throughout the summer and fall I have been practicing with this new Barrel getting ready for Deer Season.
Saturday our Deer Season opened and we hunted the weekend without even putting a Deer in the crosshairs. Well today the wife and I had to baby sit out grandkids (6 year old Alex and 8 year old MacKenzie), so if we were going hunting we had to take the grandkids along.
We headed south of the US Dam Road down into the Mud Lake Bottom to one of my favorite spots. We ended up south of a patch of willows (the willows are about 50 yards north to south and a quarter mile east to west). South of the willows about 100 yards or so are a bunch of scrub trees scattered through the meadow. We took up a position about 50 yards south of the willows on the west side next to a scrub tree. I told the wife we'd sit in the Blazer with the grandkids and if something showed we'd figure out a stalk to get a shot.
We had sat there about a half hour when I spotted a nice Doe (both the wife and I drew Antlerless Tags this year) coming across the east side of the meadow on a line that would bring her out of the trees and into the open directly south of us. We snuck out of the Blazer and I got the wife into a shooting position. I whispered to the wife when the Deer comes out of the trees directly to the south of us for her to put the crosshairs midway top to bottom right behind the front shoulder.
I no sooner whispered that to the wife when I realized the wind was blowing on the back of my head. I was about to tell the wife that as soon as we saw the deer she'd have to shoot or the doe would wind us when I saw the doe running back to the east towards the L shape of the willows.
Rats, we blew that one. We got back in the Blazer, talked to the kids a little and I told the wife we needed to move. We ventured over by a tree on the souteast corner of the scrub trees so as to not have the wind mess us up again.
We had sat there about a half hour when I spotted the same doe emerge from the northeast corner of the willows. The doe was feeding along a 2 track trail through the meadow and didn't even know we were there. I snuck out of the Blazer and crawled on my hands and knees to get into a shooting position. When everything looked right I thumbed back the hammer on the G2 Contender, aligned the crosshairs and squeezed the trigger only to have a misfire.
The doe snapped to attention and I slowly recocked the hammer. When the doe stopped I was ready and this time the 7-30 Waters came to life. I heard the resounding THWACK of the bullet finding it's mark and the doe fell at the shot, only to get back up. She turned back to the east and went about 20 yards or so. I was trying to reload the Contender when I realized I only had the one round with me (the rest were in the Blazer). ABout that time the doe turned going straight north towards the willows, but never made it as she collapsed a couple yards from the trial.
When I got to the Doe she was done for. The bullet entered exactly where I had the crosshairs, entered the checst between two ribs, destroyed the lungs, struck a rib on exit leaving an exit hole about the size of a 25 cent piece. The range was lasered at 193 yards.
To say I was a happy Handgunner would be an understatement. I am always nervous the first time I take an animal with a new Barrel and Load, but I shouldn't have worried as the Nosler Ballistic Tip performed just as I have come to expect them to.
Thanks for reading.
Larry
Stupid politicians :x
