Anyone used this on really big mule deer? I wanted some reassurance that my all round load is up to the mark for the bigger end of my deer scale - lowland red stags up to 350/400lb live weight.

Exits and bullet recovery after hitting relatively small shoulder bones on small deer make me think it's too fragile which surprises me greatly MV 2,800fps, Hornady interlock, 139gr would seem to be a perfect recipe to me.

Hello 94 , I use the Hornady 139 SP flat base with great success from Roe to Red Deer and Boar never recovered a bullet on broadside shots caliber 7 x 57 velocity 2900 fps ( 53 grains of IMR4350 ) ,now not available here in Spain it�s replaced by the SST , but only one deer shot with it , if you are careful to pick up your shots it�s a good all around bullet.

Daniel

That bullet will be just fine. I don't shoot Boat Tail bullets in my 7 x57 but the Plan 139gr Hornaday works just fine on Mule Deer and white Tails for that matter. Your red deer are about the same as Mule size wise. Most Mulies I seen would just top out at around 300 lbs. It depends on where you are

I shoot mostly 140 gr Nosler Partitions in my 7 x57's with the exception of a 600 ZKK that rifle likes the 175 gr Nosler, so I shoot that. That 139 gr Hornaday 7mm bullet is a good one. About as perfect a deer bullet as you can get.

I've shot 2-3 whitetail deer with the 139 hornady bullet from a 7-08. Deer size was 150# and under. My son has accounted for a couple of mulies with a 7-08 (18" barrel) using 145gr speer grand slams. One was 300# + and was shot at 287 longs steps. I don't know that the grand slam did anything the 139gr hornady couldn't in that case.

1894

This year an Idaho friend of mine killed a 4 year old bison (American Buffalo) with a lung shot at 200 yds. with a .280.

My 7-08 with 150 Partitions at that range and animal age blew through the entire animal. A shoulder/quartering shot on a second bull did not exit.

For buffalo a larger diameter bullet would be much better. For a large deer the bullet should be great.

1894,

I poorly wrote the post. Sorry.

The .280/buffalo was done with a 139 gr.

1894

As much as I hate to say it, I think that the 139 is not up to the task unless a broadside shot is presented.

Somewhere here, there is a topic that I started about a bear that was shot by my buddy with the 139 from a 7X57.

If you are shooting at less than 300 yards, why not use a heavier or better constructed bullet.

A broadside shot won't be a problem with whatever you use, but shoulders and other shots can be different..

For a plain soft point 7mm bullet that will penetrate pretty well , try the Speer 160 gr hot core .........

[ 06-15-2003, 07:19: Message edited by: sdgunslinger ]

Well let me tell you my story....I took these with me to africa to shoot spring buck. I have never felt so bad in all my life. The damage these do to the animals we love to hunt is shocking. The animals had gastly wounds: legs blown off, animals nearly shot in half, animals gutted from the bullets expolding on impact. Please consider another bullet type. These are fine for targets but not worthy of hunting. They may be fine at lower speeds..but not when pushed to upper limits. I had to switch to a .223 after I killed four as discribed above.

Urdubob

[ 06-14-2003, 18:13: Message edited by: urdubob ]

Hornadys are SOFT softs... in deer, they work okay... but i still think nearly everyone one I've shot was a bullet failure, in the shreds of lead and jacket I've recovered from animals... and even whole (LOL... 40% weight is jacket and recovered chucnks) bullets from time to time... in 100-150# hogs.

In my 708 pistol, at 2700, they seem to hold together better than in a 708 rifle or 7mag.

just my experience.
jeffe

This is an interesting thread.
Many VERY experienced posters here LOVE the Hornady, yet you fellas are having bad luck with it.

The plot will thicken, I suppose.

I've used the 139 Gr. Hornady Interlok FB and BT in my .280 Remington, several times on Mule deer, and antelope, longest range being about 275 yards, shortest at about 80 yards. 56 Grs. IMR 4350, chrono'd @ 2,991 FPS.

I have never had them "blowup" on those animals, and have had exemplary performance with that bullet.

Of course, I must confess, I don't shoot at legs, nor at the guts of animals. If the only shot I have is at an animal's legs, or at his guts, then I just don't pull the trigger, therefore I don't shoot off their legs, nor blow them in half.

I'll be using the same 139 Horn. bullet this fall for Mule and Whitetail deer. Will also use it if I'm lucky enough to be drawn for an Idaho antelope permit.

Just my experiences.

L.W.

The recovered bullet was shot into a muntjac weighing some 35lbs or so at 100yards. Good mushroom but well down the shank. Retained weight 49gr or 35%. Penetration 12-13"

I've got 45 left which'll take me through the fallow season after which time I'll review. The requirement is not for stem to stern but to exit a double shoulder and reliably kill on a quartering shoulder shot.

I don't like to change sights or loads so a good 140gr would be perfect for me.

[ 06-16-2003, 16:14: Message edited by: 1894 ]

Thank you Leanwolf:

From your post we all know you are a superior hunter.
We all have much to learn from you..you have changed my life. Now go and look back in your history and see if you ever made a mistake. I think my mistake was pushing the bullets faster than they were ment to be shot. The second mistake was telling the truth. I guess some hunters have selective memory. When you shoot alot things go wrong from time to time.

have a great day,

urdubob

How fast were you pushing them Urdubob??

Mv?
Impact velocity?

I believe the performance envelop for this bullet is likely about 2300 to 2800 FPS.

1894, What if you simply switched to the Hornady 139 gr FLATBASE???

This alone may give you vastly improved results.

MV was 3400+/- FPS

urdubob

[ 06-16-2003, 17:54: Message edited by: urdubob ]

The key to success is velocity... for the most part. The nicest deer I've ever taken, fell to the subject bullet out of a 7 WBY mag at 80 yards. In theory that is a bit fast for that bullet to hold up.
The animal ran about 100 yards or so ( a double lung shot, I was careful to avoid the shoulder, hence my preference for premium bullets but that's another story The exit wound was rather dramatic, suggesting violent expansion and the lungs were devastated. So, my answer is a qualified YES, just watch the velocity. jorge

Well, Urdubob, I certainly appreciate the compliment you made about my being such a superior hunter, and that I'd improved your life with my erudite post. I always like to help out a fellow hunter. But, I must say, being a very modest person by nature, I've never made the claim that I was a "superior hunter", although I've done a bit of hunting, and shooting.

(Killed my first deer at the age of 14 with my uncle's old Win. 94 .30-30, and that was 51 years ago, while growing up in North Arkansas. Been hunting, shooting, and sometimes killing, ever since. Never have been lucky enough to always come home with game, but always enjoyed the hunt.)

Here's what gave me some raised eyebrows, re your original post. You wrote, "Please consider another bullet type. These (139 Gr. Hornadys) are fine for targets but not worthy of hunting.", because you used them to blow the legs off, and the guts out of anmals, and actually cut them in two. Now, that specific indictment just didn't make a lot of sense to me, given my experiences with these same 7mm 139 gr. Hornaday Interloks, on a fair amount of game, in my two .280 Remingtons.

Afterall, suppose you'd been using an equivalent 140 gr. Nosler Partition, or Barnes X 140 gr., or Speer 145 gr. bullet, or just good 140 gr. factory ammo?? Would you have got any different results on legs and guts?? I daresay you wouldn't.

As for making mistakes, I did as you suggested and reviewed my hunting history to remember that I've made more than a couple of mistakes ... but one I've not made is taking a shot when all I can see is a leg or a patch of hair/fur leading into the guts of an animal.

So, for 1894's benefit, I say, use the 139 gr. Hornady Interlok, and remember, accuracy is nearly everything, but the target should be an animal's "kill" area, not its "wound" area.

Good hunting to you, Urdubob. Fall will be upon us soon.

L.W.

I have shot and seen shot a lot of mule deer with the 156 gr. Hornadys in my 7x57 Brno and it always worked just fine, never a hitch...Shot a couple of elk with the 156 gr. RN and it didn't do them any good either, one shot each.

I have allways had good luck with Hornadys in the smaller calibers, not so in the larger calibers, where they seem too soft for my likeing.

Urdobob,
Thanks for your honesty. I believe you are correct
in that you pushed these PARTICULAR bullets too fast. From my understanding, the Hornady is a fine performer UNDER 2800 fps MV.

You may have been better suited to a TBBC at that velocity. But I think it is important to note that while the Hornady's did NOT serve YOU well, they were used at a a velocity beyond their capabilities.

Good hunting.

[ 06-17-2003, 16:05: Message edited by: Johnny Ringo ]