Anyone use SST's for deer? I used 150gr sst in my 308 which i was very happy with, but my mate shot 2 Fallow does ( 1 neck shot and 1 chest shot) with 129gr 6.5 sst and the damage was huge! big exit wound and lots of very bad meat damage( almost like Vmax) anyone else found this with these bullet?

I found the 150gr SST in 30-06 to perform almost like a varmint bullet at 2980fps. Blew up pretty good on broadside double lung shot whitetail doe. Exit hole as big as a grapefruit. I don't use them anymore.

Use them in the same application as a NBT. They are very soft, expand to almost double in size but also shallow penetratation. Also the 7mm/154 I bought aren't even close to the accuracy potential of the NAB or the std. Hornady IL in my 7mm bores.

I haven't seen this with my rifle. I've shot whiteails at 50 yards with my 300 win mag and 165 gr SST. I get complete penetration and a 2" exit hole. I dont eat the ribs so there no meat damage.

I shot a deer in the shoulder with one last year and that was a little ugly, but for the most part they've worked really well for me.

Check this thread in medium bores

I like lots of damage. The more the better. I don't eat the ribs or lungs.

Fast expanding bullets drop deer faster.

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Fast expanding bullets drop deer faster.

Generally true....but when they don't I sure like exit holes so I can trail them easier.

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Originally posted by onefunzr2:
I found the 150gr SST in 30-06 to perform almost like a varmint bullet at 2980fps. Blew up pretty good on broadside double lung shot whitetail doe. Exit hole as big as a grapefruit. I don't use them anymore.

sounds like your complaining about a good kill. i bet she didnt last long. personally id rather the bullet minced the insides up and blew a good sized hole out the other side rather than a neat little hole punched through the animal.

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Originally posted by vapodog:

quote:

Fast expanding bullets drop deer faster.

Generally true....but when they don't I sure like exit holes so I can trail them easier.

When they are big they do both!

Shot a 7 point whitetail a week ago with a 150sst out of a 30-06. Great bullet performance. 25 yard shot I got around a 1.5" exit hole, lungs pulped very little meat damaged.

308mate,

I used them for a few years and found them to be terrible for deer sized game. They fail to exit about as much as they do exit. I've seen them fail to exit on lung shots and gut shots. We were pushing these bullets too fast (2950&3200) in two rifles. I load them for a friend that shoots a 308 and they do much better at the lower velocity. I'd say that if you keep them below 2800 you will get ok performance but, they are sort of a gamble.

I've found the NBTs to hold together much better as well as the ABs.

Good Luck

Reloader

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Originally posted by Paul from nz:

quote:

Originally posted by onefunzr2:
I found the 150gr SST in 30-06 to perform almost like a varmint bullet at 2980fps. Blew up pretty good on broadside double lung shot whitetail doe. Exit hole as big as a grapefruit. I don't use them anymore.

sounds like your complaining about a good kill. i bet she didnt last long. personally id rather the bullet minced the insides up and blew a good sized hole out the other side rather than a neat little hole punched through the animal.

Yes, this kill worked out just fine. But I worried about all the fine meat that would be wasted if, on the next animal, I didn't get the classic broadside shot? I bought them on a lark when they first came out. I thought the red plastic tip would look good with a nickel case.

thanks guys for your comments.
I was very happy with 150gr sst in my 308 was using 46gr of vit n140 this was the most accurite load i had (3/4" at 200m) I had only shot 3 deer with them (head and neck shots). I have only just started loading for my new 6.5x55 and because the sst were so good i picked them for my new toy. but after seeing the damage done on two Fallow deer my mate shot on Saturday with his 6.5 ( using the same load as me 46gr of vit n160 and a 129gr sst)I might change my mind! dont know what speed the bullet is doing but going by my Lee manuel it should be about 2900fps, mayby too fast?? mayby a 140gr bullet would be better????

I read 2800fps or less elsewhere and I have found that to be true. I have killed a deer and several pronghorns w/139's out of my 7-08 w/very good results. I load them to 2856fps w/4064, but my pronghorn shots are mostly 200+yrds so velocity has dropped by then.

Deke.

I just took two whitetail deer with the 139gr SST out of a 7-08. Both deer dropped right where I shot them. One was a about a 150lb buck at about 25 yards. The other was a doe that weighed around 80lb at 55 or 60 yards.I was pleased with the performance of this bullet. This was the first game I had taken with it. The velocity from my rifle seems to be a little slow compared to what I have been reading. My rifle, a Rem 700 Mtn Rifle, was most accurate at around 2400 or 2500fps.
The meat damage was very minimal.

Our camp killed 4 Deer this year with 130 gr SST's in the 270 Win. All were excelent one shot kills, and no Deer went more than 20 yards.

I've got a friend who hated the explosiveness.....and I've got a buddy that loves the "shotgun" effect on impact and doesn't mind big holes. KInda like the responses above.......that's what makes the world go around......choices choices choices!!

I use them in my .308 Win for deer every year for four years now. Don't get the "explosive" problem some talk about, and the meat damage was similar to the Interlock bullets I used to use.