Separation Anxiety

[doigottaregister?]

:!: Not complaining. :!:

My friends at the Campfire sent me over here to the Nosler experts-

165 gr .308 Partition
3000 fps muzzle
Doe, 40 yards
Found jacket only, alongside femur (but with no damage to the bone) in the nearside ham (does that make about 4 inches deep?), with no evidence that any lead made it in; certainly none made it out.
The bottom crimp is still all there but the base is out of its .308 round to .302 X .315.
There are no dents in the shaft of the jacket.
Halfway between us was a single row of wild plum or young cottonwood trees. (I was unable to closely inspect for sign of tree impact.) (The doe had been injured, else I wouldn't have been shooting through the trees.)
I'd aimed behind the shoulder.

So, what happened? Did I hit some wood, losing both cores and getting some of the front jacket ripped off, while the jacket continued, hitting my target two feet to the right of aim and penetrating only partway?

(Another shot put her down.)

 

[Guest]

I would say you definitely hit some wood. The jacket showes some tipping to one side and the base is slightly oblong, this indicates the bullet was tumbling on impact. Additionaly, hitting 2 foot from POA tells us the bullet was deflected. Thankfully you were able to collect the deer. :grin:

 

[Paul Barnard]

Nosler 1: Losing the front and rear core seems unusual to me. I am sure you guys have subjected the partitions to some torture testing. Have you been able to get one to shed both cores like that in lab testing? My experience with partitions suggests this is an anamoly, but it has me curious.

Paul

 

[squirrelsniper]

Did you examine the wound for any sign of a destabilized/tumbling bullet?

My theory is basically the same as NOSLER1's. You got wood which damaged the nose portion, destabilized the bullet and resulted in the rear core getting squirted out due to the bullet not hitting straight on. The slightly out of round base supports the theory that the bullet hit somewhat sideways. Of course that's just a theory, but it sounds as likely as anything else I can come up with :grin: