Bullet Speed/Hydrostatic Shock – Bullet Shape Mushroom – Penetration – Impact Location and often exit wound all play a part in a swift ethical game harvest. Below, soft lead bonded spitzer mushroom left, solid copper with broken mushroom, right.
Ballistic Gel Test
Below a Ballistic Gel Test I did in 2001 Hammer Hunter copper vs Nosler Accubond Long Range
Ballistic Gel 6.5 Creedmoor Test Nosler 129g ABLR vs Hammer Hunter Copper 124g
Copper hollow point bullets do mushroom as much or more than the lead core. I find cleaning my barrel with soft pure copper is not fun. Newer copper bullets made on a lath are better as tolerances are much tighter.
A Master bear guide recently told me that one of his hunters always brought a .375 H&H Magnum on black bear bait hunts. The hunter was getting full penetration and a small exit wound at 50 yards but the exit wound exhibited little or no blood to trail. Shots were to the heart lung area too.
The hunter was shooting a spitzer shape pointed bullet we commonly purchase on store shelves. I do not know the brand or type.
Spitzers in the past have been designed ideally for longer shots often past 200 to 300 yards. Some recent spitzer designs do open/mushroom faster than others.
Accordingly, use a bullet type for the kind of game you will hunt. A round or flat nose bullet is already in a partial mushroom shape and shot at short range, you will get a better mushroom at the start or shoot a soft nose spitzer which mushrooms quickly. Except most round nose are not loaded in a cartridge, instead manufacturers try to design spitzers for close range too and may mushroom better, like bonded bullets
But you know, experience is the tell all. I am a Nosler fan!
Good Hunting!
