If you are defining the "Failure" term to be performance you didn't want, some of the failures I've had were w/ Remington CLs out of a 7mm RM and a 30-06 (150s in both). I killed several deer w/ CLs where the bullet splintered at impact making a huge entrance wound and no exit. I've also seen way too many Failsafes and NPTs pencil on whitetails.

Now I shoot NBTs and get good expansion & pass thrus every time .

Good Luck!

Reloader

Rick,

I have good luck w/ the 150 RNCLs @ 2300 in my 30-30 but, I couldn't get the 150 PSPCLs to hold together at the higher velocities of the 7 RM and the 30-06.

I bet the 180s are great, I've never tried em'. Did you get those elk w/ the 180 grners?

Good Luck!

Reloader

Them corelokts are kinda funny in that everyone seems to have different experiences with them. Considering more deer are shot with them than any other bullet and the small number that post about their failing the sucess percentage must be awesome. The only corelokt's I have recovered were on the far side of dead elk, never found one in a deer except from my 6MM Remington and that one broke the far shoulder, looked like the perfect picturebook mushroom.

I've only had three failure or what I consider failures. Two were 7mm Rem mag with Nosler 150 BT.One with my 6mm Rem with 95 gr BT.Lost the deer with the 6 mm.The two with the 7mm were huge entrance holes without exit.Luck was with me as the second shot killed both.

My experience is like Rick's. I've recovered two 100gr. out of a 243(handloads). Using 165gr. CLs out of a 30-06 at 308 velocities they go right on through leaving a nickel sized exit wound.

I've never had a bullet failure but have had bullet performance that I wasn't happy with. After some research and stuff, the bullets performed as designed so I can't fault them. I think that bullet mis-application is the biggest culprit of bullet "failure". That's just my opinion though.

So, you agree with me then on the 'shock' issue.

I agree with you on the 'bad meat issue.'

However, I will qualify one thing. I have killed deer with archery equip. in the early season on very hot days (like Africa) and waited some time to gut a couple (like 3 hours...my brother had my knife), and I must admit, even my family said there was something different about the meat. Keep in mind, it doesn't get cold during the nights here as in Africa so in the early seasons here, if you happen to find a kill after it has been out all night, I don't think some of the meat is a tasty.

I killed a big doe right before I left for Wyoming in an urban area. I couldn't find her...she piled up 3 feet from a lady's front porch behind some burning bushes. But it was 30 degrees all night. That doe tasted fine and wasn't gutted til 13 hours later.

Doc,
When an animal is shot, it is my understanding based on what the experts tell me that animals go into some kind of shock and I believe this to be true as I have observed many animals being eaten alive and not seem to be in pain..I have seen Moose graze after taking several body shots, I have a Buffalo try to breed a cow when shot through the shoulders, now that was an interresting sight and I kindly killed him in the act...I never hesitate to take a Texas heart shot and I always pick a bullet the will fully penitrate the game animal that I am hunting, if not then I only take a broadside shot, such as when I hunt with my 25-35, then I take only broadside shots and keep range under 200 yards....

As to the Texas heart shoot, it is deadly on any animal and its quick...It does make a mess inside but so does any bullet on broadside shots, you just clean them and I usually get to some water pretty quick and wash them out...

By the same token, after watching some of the buffalo and plainsgame that are gutted by black Africans and eaten by clients, PHs etc. and how long some animals go before being gutted in Africa, things like that have just proved to me all this game care stuff we are exposed to in the USA is so much gun scribe bunk, that we have accepted without question..Africans laugh at us...and I can honestly say I have never eaten a bad tasting piece of meat in Africa..I am omitting the fact that some species are better than others..

Although I still practice it in the states, I know in my heart its all foolishness...