Monthly Archives: June 2021

Monolithic Expanding Alloy Bullets Great for Hunting

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For those of us who love experimenting, the monolithic alloy hunting bullets made by Nosler and Hornady are great choices for hunting short range or long because the bullets maintain up to 95% of their weight and leave no lead behind. 

I resist shooting soft all copper bullets as they tend to create copper fouling that is hard to remove. 

Nosler’s Expansion Tip aka the E-Tip is a copper alloy bullet that is harder than all copper bullets and leaves your barrel fouled as normal gilding copper jacketed bullets do. I like that because having hard to remove heavy deposits of soft copper can create confidence issues when I test a bullet for group. Was it the bullet, the powder, seating depth or the copper fouling I can’t get out of my barrel from shooting soft copper? 

Nosler offers the E- Tip for many calibers. I have experience taking a 300 pound boar with its thick shield  and the 30 caliber E-Tip devastated the boar.

The exit wound below!

 

The Hornady GMX (Game Expanding) bullet is another fine spitzer style bullet that has a polymer tip to initiate expansion like the Nosler E-Tip.  They offer a vimeo that I can’t show you here unless you go their website.

Quote they state:

“Featuring a long, sleek profile with cannelures, the design reduces overall bearing surface and drag, while achieving some of the highest ballistic coefficients from monolithic, non-traditional bullets. Initiating expansion upon impact, the hard polymer tip drives into the hollow cavity at the front of the bullet, creating a mushroom-style projectile as it travels through the animal. Fully California compatible and appropriate for use in areas requiring the use of non-traditional bullets, GMX® is ideal for any sized game, from antelope to moose.”

https://www.hornady.com/bullets/rifle/30-cal-308-180-gr-gmx#!/

 

I have not tested the GMX on game yet but it is reported to be highly successful in expansion critical to delivering tremendous energy inside game as its petals expand just like the Nosler’s.

Check them out!

©Copyright 2021 Game Images.

 

 

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Hunter Value of Hornady 6.5mm 160 grain InterLock Round Nose Loads in Forest Terrain

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This 6.5mm InterLock® Round Nose was designed for shorter ranges say under 150 yards in forest terrain on deer, bear and even moose. This round nose, maximizes delivered energy (like a hammer) more so than a spitzer for the same distances.  With some luck,  I did find some bullets on-line and made a purchase. One of the outstanding attributes of heavy 6.5mm bullets is that the Sectional Density (SD) of say 160 grain 6.5mm bullet is about 0.328. It translates to bullet penetration, in spades. Couple that wallop of penetration at the get-go with a round nose and you get a huge mushrooming bullet that acts like a plow that resists deflection and exits leaving a significant wound channel and blood trail that is easy to see.

I endeavored to find an accurate load for the Hornady 160 grain for my 6.5 Creedmoor rifle. I worked up and hand loaded 43 grains of WIN 760 powder per the 8th Edition Hornady Manual. and achieved a one inch group at 100 yards delivering over 2635 fps. This powder produces one of the fastest and accurate loads.  This is slow compared to say a 130 grain spitzer traveling at 2900 fps but the slower, heavier 160 grain has far more penetration on larger big game. The Swede’s use it on their moose in the 6.5×55 Mauser cartridge that is very similar to the 6.5 Creedmoor! Just keep your shots short to say 150 yards.

This bullet fills a niche for shorter range big game and I hope it stays. It is a great New England round in the northern spruce of New Hampshire or Maine for those who hand load the 6.5, like myself.

I have found that Hodgdon has a helpful on line load listing for Pistol, Rifle, and Shotgun by going to the reloading data center at https://imrpowder.com/

Below is an article I have written on Flat Nose and Round nose bullets that adds to your understanding.

Flat Nose and Round Nose Bullets for Big Game

There are new powders to try too. Have fun!

Good Shooting!

©Copyright 2021

 

 

Favorite Youth Deer Rifles and 6.5 Creedmoor

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My ideal youth rifle in deer hunting calibers begin with a rifle that fits the shooter, otherwise known as Length of Pull, aka LOP. Most bolt action deer rifles are not adjustable, but there are some manufacturers that offer that feature. Mossberg offers a bargain priced adjustable stock rifle for youth or small stature hunters called the PATRIOT Youth Scoped for around $360 dollars. Wow! https://www.mossberg.com/category/series/mossberg-patriot/mossberg-patriot-bantam/

So does Savage Arms, it’s called AccuFit and is more expensive than the Mossberg but has comb rise features that Mossberg does not have. 

I like them both but for a starter deer rifle for a budget minded parent, The Mossberg has it over the Savage. There are other LOP adjust rifles out there but these stand out in my mind. 

Now, what caliber to choose depends on whether you hand load or buy off-the-shelf ammo. Lets assume off-the-shelf ammo. Does your youngster shoot now? Lets assume yes. What caliber does he shoot? Ok he shoots a .22LR and your .223 AR on occasion. Great! This is a normal progression but has little recoil. Next is to determine recoil sensitivity.

If sensitive, think 243 Winchester at less than 10 lbs in recoil, but in 2 or 3 years this caliber and rifle will see less action as recoil sensitivity diminishes. I’d jump to 6.5 Creedmoor. Why the 6.5 Creedmoor? Bullets range from light recoiling 95 grains for varmint like the .243 Win. all the way to long range 140/142 grain for big game and even higher up to 160 grain for hand loading. Personally, I’d jump past the .243 and go for the 6.5. The 6.5 Creedmoor, in smart hunting circles, is known for lighter recoil thus better accuracy and maximum penetration on deer, elk and black bear up to moose. I have written extensively on the 6.5 Creedmoor caliber so check out my articles, like:

 

Why the 6.5 Caliber Resurgence?

or

6.5 Creedmoor – 16 Reasons to hunt with one! By Ed Hale

Now if you hand load the 6.5 can be loaded down easily and equally loaded up for bigger game. The 6.5 is a one big game rifle for youth, adults and seniors that delivers the accuracy, punch, and penetration for big game and easy on recoil. And the 6.5 Creedmoor, shoots flat, excels at long distance hunting too. A Nosler 142 grain AccuBond Long Range bullet -ABLR traveling at 2700 fps can achieve deer killing distances as far as 600 yards if the shooter practices at that range. Or an elk at 350 yards! Wow!

For those who are veteran hunters and not recoil sensitive there are many larger calibers we have learned to love over the years but the 6.5 is here to stay in my hunting safe. Love it! My rifle of choice is the Weatherby Vanguard Weatherguard in 6.5 Creedmoor for under $700 but the stock is not adjustable. 

Good Shooting!

©Copyright 2021

Campfire Deer Hunter Fodder: Shoot the Autonomic Plexus?

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There are some websites that say shooting deer with a rifle in the Autonomic Plexus drops them fast. Say What? But it is not where the center mass of heart and lungs are exactly. Really? Ok so what is the autonomic plexus? 

It is a point just forward of the front leg where there is a nerve and artery junction entering the lungs. I have learned that it is sometimes called the hilar zone.                   

image taken from www.ballisticstudies.com

So why am I telling you this? Honestly, after 50+ years of hunting deer, I have never used this point of aim on a whitetail or an ungulate with rifle or bow. Too much chance to miss vitals, I think. I aim rearward three or four inches of the above crosshairs striking the upper heart arteries and lungs. Below, this 50 cal muzzleloader shot was two inches high but he will never tell. He collapsed on the shot.

                              

There are slightly differing point of aim for bow vs rifle.

Where shooting with bow slightly behind the front leg on a broadside shot to clip the heart and center punch the lungs. On rifle, there are many other professionals that teach to shoot on the front shoulder or just behind it on the lower 3rd of the body if on the ground. Or about three inches higher if shooting from a 15 ft high tree stand.

The truth is, if the angle of the deer changes, so should your aim point as the deer quarters toward or away.

 

Visualizing the 3D anatomy of heart and lungs are essential to strike them with bullet or arrow. Thus the use of the autonomic plexus as an aim point is, in my estimation, a poor common aim point as it is seen best when broadside and requires precision shot placement. 

Bowhunter education, for example,  drives home the concept of visualizing the heart and lungs at different angles so your arrow may find them. Rifle hunting is much the same but is, at times, not covered as well educationally as in archery. Shoot for low center lungs, on the shoulder or just behind. What looks like the shoulder above the front leg is where the scapula and leg bones make a triangle shape that has no bone.  Some anatomic charts vary a bit but you get the picture.

Good Shooting!

 

 

 

 

 

Turning Point USA says Florida Protects Citizens, and Jails Criminals: Antifa Out

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I am so pleased to have spent time fishing safely in the Florida Keys. Check out Kendall Jones of TPUSA Fishing for Lunkers below. But first check out Benny on the Block below. Antifa OUT!

Thank you Governor DeSantis!  Local town governments and police work together. This add was created by Turning Point USA (its members include hunters and fisherman) and lauds the work of Governor Ron DeSantis. Antifa is a hate group that is nurtured at the college campus level where Turning Point USA has a presence to thwart Antifa brainwashing. Check it out!

Go Ron DeSantis. First to get rid of Masks! First to warn Antifa!

Donate any amount to Turning Point USA, it is tax deductible!!!!

https://www.tpusa.com/donate

https://www.tpusa.com/join

Come On New Hampshire a little anti-Antifa Legislation at the State level like Florida gets the ball rolling for all States! 

Turning Point has the best public speakers, like Ambassador Nikki Haley, Candace Owens, Ambassador Rick Grinnell and Col. Allen West just to name a few!

https://www.tpusa.com/speakersbureau

Fishing for Lunkers is Kendall Jones of Turning Point USA

A Father’s Day Fishing with Grandkids

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Yesterday June 6,  I went Mackerel fishing out of Hampton, NH on a party boat with my son Jason and grandchildren Amelia, Thomas (fraternal twins) age 9 and Calvin age 6.

No masks! Hurray!

I had happily planned on paying for the trip for all.  As I neared the parking in Hampton,  NH, my son called my cell and said; “Just pay the $5 dollar parking fee Dad”. I’ve paid for the trip, “Happy early Father’s Day”, he said.  

I parked my truck right beside his and when I got out, the kids each greeted me with warm hugs. I love it! So long with masks on that it was very special to not have one on my face.

Jason and I were prepared for the trip with food, snacks, drinks and warmer clothing, hats, sun screen and of course fishing rods and a 5  gallon bucket for all the many  mackerel we would catch.

This was a first for the grandkids to not only fish for the first time but a first for dad and grandfather (me) to share time learning to fish in the ocean, get splashed near the bow with cool salty ocean waves, and jig with a fishing rod.

The kids took to jigging the rod under Jason’s patient tutelage, and I was right there praising him. And they were eager and happy to learn.

In the middle of all that we caught a few fish, not as  many as we expected but the inquisitive nature of the kids, each in turn picked up the fish by hand and examined them closely.

It was not mackerel madness that can sometimes happen if we ran into a big school of them, but it gave us Dad’s close loving time with the children.

We shared potato chips, watermelon, bites of my ham sub sandwich as we fished and giggled and hugged to stay warm in cool salty air up near the bow. What I caught was more than any fish, I caught the love of my son, and my loving grandkids. It was a great Father’s Day! Sometimes what you catch, can’t be measured in fish, but can be measured in love! 

Enjoy!

© Copyright 2021