Quote:
Originally Posted by Cowtown guy
I shoot a .257 Roberts and a 7MM Rem mag. The 7 is pushing 140 grain pills at 3200 fps. The 1/4 bore is pushing 100 grain pills at 3000ish fps. The 7 obviously has way more energy and in theory a bigger shock wave. Why is it that almost all of the deer I shoot with the bigger gun go farther than the little gun?
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I dont want anybody to take this as gospel truth, but from what I understand now I can give you a reasonable hypothesis. The shockwave theory, and its remote wounding capability is evident and proven. The ability to cause damage with every projectile in every situation is not possible. Using the same bullet design as you stated, but with two obvious differences of caliber and therefore energy at the target this is what I think happens. As stated in the studies I read, the factor that determines predominantly the ability to create a hydraulic shock wave is the deformation of the bullet, and therefore transfer of the stored kinetic energy to the target. The energy released has to be released In a magnitude such that its peak pressure wave is high enough to cause remote wounding. Make sense? Like pulling a string, slowly it stands up better than if you shock load it. The transfer depends on frontal area of the projectile, and its related drag coefficient throughout its expansion and deceleration, which is nearly impossible to predict. It can be summarized by dividing kinetic energy by depth of penetration. So, the smaller bullet, in its design is better suited in the size of game to release its energy in a way to create a higher peak pressure wave. Bullets that fragment on the surface, as in the original post of stopping at a vest do not apply because the transfer does not happen internally. The shock wave does not travel efficiently through the solid mass of tissues, but rather through the large liquid filled veins and arteries. As I said before many good and bad ideas in the same breath. The human body is a great shock absorber, but at the same time, has weak points where it is not. I hope this shed some light on the question you asked.