Performance: 7mm 120 gr. BT

[roysclockgun]

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I had previously reported on a 7mm 140gr. Nos. AB, retrieved from a boar, after crashing through the left side ribs and shattering the right shoulder and lodging in the armored frontal hide of the boar. That bullet retained 70% of it's original weight. The range was right at 90 yds.
On Sunday evening past, I harvested a doe for my daughter and her family.
The doe stepped into the sand track in SE Ga., at 86 yards. It was 5:30 P.M., so I knew I had to anchor her, as the foliage on either side of the track was waist to chest high. So, I wanted to break her shoulders. I had a near perfect side shot. The bullet did shatter her right shoulder, then having expanded and probably pushing bone on through, broke two ribs on the right side and another two ribs on the left side, before cutting the upper leg bone, on the left side, in half. I found the bullet under the hide on the left side and it is shown here.
The bullet weighed 47.4 gr. or 39.5% of it's original 120 gr.
My conclusion is that I need to find a bonded bullet in 120 gr. as on a bigger animal at longer range, the 120 may not get the job done, given the same shot presented.
Both bullets were chronied 10 ft. from the muzzle at around 3150 fps.
What do you think/
Steven L. Ashe

 

[DrMike]

Very impressive, Steven. Excellent report of fine performance.

 

[JD338]

That is excellent performance for a bullet that is not designed to bust shoulders.

JD338

 

[lefty315]

I think you will find at longer ranges you may be more impressed. Sounds like it did a number on that deer. Let the bullet slow down even more and I think you'll be impressed with the results.

 

[SJB358]

I think you will find at longer ranges you may be more impressed. Sounds like it did a number on that deer. Let the bullet slow down even more and I think you'll be impressed with the results.

I am with Lefty here, that bullet further out is going to look even better. I have heard too much great stuff about that bullet to say a bad word, especially from a 280.. It is one of them I have to try myself one of these days.. Way to go. Glad you put some more meat in the freezer for your family.

 

[roysclockgun]

Thanks for the responses. Luckily, I have another 300 of those bullets.
Oddly enough, when I went out to hunt on Sun. Morning, all the others in camp went home. "It is going to rain!", they told me. A hard rain had fallen all night. I was convinced that like deer everywhere, these deer must move to eat sometime. At 8:15 A.M. Sun. morning, as I was scoping two deer feeding 500 yards down the track, seven more came up out of the swamp in the bottom and crossed the sand track in front of me at 450 yds. No antlers!! Regardless, it was lots of fun to have two deer feeding and another seven crossing on a morning when my pards were convinced that "no deer will move". While the hard rain had slacked off, the light, drenching rain was still falling and I had my action, in terms of the thrill of watching a number of deer.
Steven

 

[SJB358]

Very cool! Glad your able to get on them. Only a matter of time.

 

[DrMike]

When I quit because of weather, it is because I didn't want to spend time in the inclement conditions. It is not because the animals won't move--some will move on occasion and all will move eventually.