Need help from you reloaders please

[savagewsm]

I just returned from a hunt and my reloads performed very strangely. The gun shot and hit where it was aimed but the bullets had very poor penetration and the deer needed second shots. The two shots were at 90 and 150 yards. Skinning out each of the animals found a bullet fully mushroomed but with very little penetration.

The load was in a 308

150 gr hornady interloks
44 gr IMR 4064
winchester primer
Norma brass


Any and all advice appreciated as I am stumped. These loads shot very well out to 300 yards at the range.

[black45]

you have a good load for a 308, the bullet performed the way it should.
You have a perfect combination, keep shooting and enjoy.

[KegRiver]

My information has that load with a velocity of about 2700 fps. That and the fact that the bullet mushroomed perfectly makes me wonder where you were hitting those Deer.
And just why did you think they needed a follow up shot?

If you shot them through the ribs, IE Lung or heart shot, and they ran, a follow up shot may have been a wise choice even though it may not have been totally necessary.

If that were the case I would say you did well and so did the load.

If however, it really was necessary, then I would look at where they were hit with the first shot. A shot in the back leg for instance, would most likely cause the sort of mushrooming you describe, but would most definitely call for a follow up shot.
Not saying this is what you did, only offering a possible scenario where a solid hit would absolutely require a follow up shot.

[savagewsm]

A bit more detail. The initial shot for both deer was a front quartering shot. Each was hit in the shoulder. Deer one had some tissue and a bit of bone damage on that shot but not even close to the penetration it should of. It just laid down and allowed me to to get close enough for a head shot. Deer two the bullet just penetrated the skin and about an inch of tissue. It ran out to about 150 yards and a second shot in the chest dropped it.

This is strange and I can't figure out what is going on. I'll switch guns for the rest of the season and do some testing work after the season but I was wondering if anyone might have some insight on possible component issues.

[berjerkin]

chrony your loads to verify your velocity.

[KegRiver]

The first deer sounds like normal performance for a 308.
After all, it is not a magnum cartridge.

The second Deer shot penetration doesn't sound right. If it didn't hit a big bone it should have gone a lot deeper then you describe.

I would follow berjerkin's advice and beg, borrow or, well no, don't steal a Chrony, beg or borrow. Find out for sure what those loads are doing.

You need to know what the true velocity is, and what is the deviation/ variation over a ten shot group. It is possible that you got a bad batch of powder or that some of those loads had a bit of oil in them. Or any of a number of other variables.

[OKIE2]

You are shooting 4 grains below max for that powder which is
48.0 grains for 2920 fps.
try a max load of AA2520 48.0 grains for 3106 fps.
maybe you should use Nosler partition's or accubonds or use Hornady interbond not the interlocks even Speer Grand Slams would be a better choice.

[sbtennex]

At that distance deer 2 should have suffered a lot more than skin penetration - a .22 Mag will do that. Maybe a light charge? But yeah, 2700 fps though a bit slow for a 150 should be fine and I'd do as suggested above - go to a premium bullet. I'd include the TSX if penetration is what you're after - few bullets penetrate like a Barnes, if your rifle likes them.

[ecellitti]

It looks like it should have performed better than that. The load that you are using isnt a bad combo. Its similar to what I use in my 06. I use 51.5 grains of IMR 4064 with the 150 grain SST and get 2975 fps verfied through my chrono. Have you verified your loads?

[Traps]

Originally Posted by savagewsm

I just returned from a hunt and my reloads performed very strangely. The gun shot and hit where it was aimed but the bullets had very poor penetration and the deer needed second shots. The two shots were at 90 and 150 yards. Skinning out each of the animals found a bullet fully mushroomed but with very little penetration.

The load was in a 308

150 gr hornady interloks
44 gr IMR 4064
winchester primer
Norma brass


Any and all advice appreciated as I am stumped. These loads shot very well out to 300 yards at the range.

Go to a Barnes, GMX, A-frame, Partition, etc.

That's some seriously weird mojo going on there. It takes a fair amount of velocity to make an Interloc mushroom so it makes no sense that penetration was only a few inches. Bionic deer perhaps? That's a true mystery.

[savagewsm]

It has me beyond perplexed. The only other time I have seen something close to this was many many years ago when I shot a mulie buck. It went down but my partner felt it needed another shot. He hit it in the shoulder and the bullet just balled up and did not go through the shoulder blade.( he had a 300 win mag)

I'm going to really test the remaining ammo at the range for speed and penetration just to satisfy my curiosity.

[elkhunter11]

If the velocity was abnormally low,the bullet would not likely have mushroomed like it did.The result of reduced expansion, is usually more penetration,not less.

[338ultra]

You killed the animal, I'd say you and the bullet performed fine.

[mudbug]

I don't reload yet but one thing to consider is that sometimes a critter just doesn't want to go down even if you hit them right. Adrenaline or just plain stubborn sometimes can cause an animal to keep on going

[savagewsm]

It is funny how some are so tough. For some reason it has always been mulie does that have shown themselves to be so tough. I recall one doe that was hit with a muzzle loader square in the boiler room. She easily ran over half a mile before hiding behind a rock pile. She was still alive when we got and we had to cut the neck. On examination her chest cavity was a total mess and the muzzle loader had done its job but how the hell can you run that far with no lungs and a hole in the heart.

[Chukar Hunter]

My .2 cents:

When the temps are cold, you almost always need magnum primers for complete combustion. Also, empty a couple of your reloads and remeasure the charge.

Good luck,

CH

[elkhunter11]

When the temps are cold, you almost always need magnum primers for complete combustion.

I haven't had any problems at all with the 243win, 7mm08, 308win,or with my 280AI cartridges,and I use only Fed 210 primers in those cartridges.I do use Fed 215s in my magnum cartridges.