It'll do great on a deer, as long as that deer is a superimposed photo taped to a cardboard box! Hornady does NOT recommend these bullets be used for hunting. They are great target bullets, let's leave it at that and not start another Matchking-type discussion please. Put a 165 gr. Ballistic Tip in that .300 WSM and hang on cause it'll drop the deer in it's tracks or damn near if you do your part. If you insist on using Hornady's, use a interlock or SST, I've heard good things about them, but I'm a die-hard Nosler, I have yet to have one fail me. Yardbird
I almost believe that one of the reasons Hornady developed their SST (besides competing with Nosler) was to dissuade people from using A-Max's as game bullets.
A-Max's have proved very frangible in my limited non-paper experiments. They will readily expand on woodchuck sized animals.
Redial
Posts: 1121 | Location: Florence, MT USA | Registered: 30 April 2002
I called Hornady a few years ago on this and asked them if the A-Max was suitable for deer sized game.Their answer?"Oh,quite certainly!"
What's this thing about having a frangible bullet being a BAD thing in a deer gun?Unless you're shooting big 200+ pound deer,you WANT those suckers to open up a lot.
The two best cartridges I've ever used or witnessed used on our small blacktails was the 22/250 loaded with the Speer 52 grain HP "water bucket" and the 7mm Remington Magnum loaded with a Siearra 160 grain BTSP,both of which literaly explode once in the chest cavity.Deer drop like struct by chain lightning.
Just MHO,but I think the A-Max will work fine on deer sized game.Heck,Big Stick has wacked deer with a .25 caliber 75 grain V-Max and was happy with the results,so I'm sure a 155 grain A-Max out of a 300 WSM will kill them cleanly as long as you do your part.
You're probably right Brian that an A-Max will flatten a deer. I worry about less than optimum scenarios where a bullet may have to penetrate 22 feet of armored gristle, ribs and a pine tree ....
I'm sure I'll never find out because there are other bullets that I believe are better suited for the task. I know - that wasn't hkr's question and I surely don't want to start another Matchking debacle either. Given my druthers, I'd choose something else is all. Hornady's response has me scratching my head too. Weird.
Redial
Posts: 1121 | Location: Florence, MT USA | Registered: 30 April 2002
Redial, Amen to everything you said,for the most part.I can't see shooting Nosler Partitions,on 85 pound deer.I don't like to shoot them in the ass so no worrys about that.
"7mm Remington Magnum loaded with a Siearra 160 grain BTSP,both of which literaly explode once in the chest cavity.Deer drop like struct by chain lightning".
Brian, I think you answered your own question. I still can't figure out why hunters like to use bullets that "explode" on any big game animal. There is absolutely no room for any error in shot placement (& you will have an error eventually), especially w/ smaller calibers. I'll stay w/ partitions or heavy for caliber standard bullets.
Posts: 7752 | Location: kalif.,usa | Registered: 08 March 2001
About a year ago, I asked Hornady about using the 7mm A-max on deer. They recommended using it on nothing larger than coyotes due to the fragile nature of the A-max.
quote:Originally posted by fredj338: Brian, I think you answered your own question. I still can't figure out why hunters like to use bullets that "explode" on any big game animal. There is absolutely no room for any error in shot placement (& you will have an error eventually), especially w/ smaller calibers. I'll stay w/ partitions or heavy for caliber standard bullets.
Fred, Really??'Cause I coulda sworn that about 3 seasons ago I hit a buck dead center between the hams with that load at about 100 yards and he went about 50 yards.Of course,he rolled down hill those 50 yards,and when I reached him all of about a minute later,he was deader than a door nail.
BTW,I didn't intentionaly shoot him in the rear end.It was right at daylight and he ran into the shawdows on a steep hillside across from me,offering a full length shot at his back.Through the shawdows,I thought I was aiming between his shoulder blades,though as it turns out I wasn't.Didn't loose but 2-3 pounds of meat though-I cleaned it up on the spot.
That highly-explosive bullet still exits on broadside shots (about 50 cent peice exit wounds),and will nearly shoot through all of our little deer.What more do you want???Shoot one of our little deer with a controlled expansion bullet and you'll be looking for him the rest of the day unless you hit bone.Gotta remember,a little 90 pound blacktail ain't but about 6 inches wide across the shoulders.Even a 22-250 with 52s or 55s will punch through them broadside.
Killed my buck this year with a 218 Bee loaded with a Siearra 45 grain semi-spitzer.Good thing I didn't tell the buck that I shot him with such an inferior cartridge AND an inferior bullet,'cause he might just jump right out of the freezer and take off.
I'm not judging anyones personal choice, but why use a bullet for a purpose it was not intended for when there are so many good bullets that are DESIGNED for your use. There isn't a shot I could think of on a deer that could not be made with one of the Excellent hunting bullets out there, and please nobody tell me they need match bullets at the ranges they hunt. Targets are motionless, animals are moving to some small degree, the wind is not perfectly still and the range is not perfectly known (even if you laser it,because who knows their 467 yard zero).
Posts: 1540 | Location: NC | Registered: 10 June 2002
Kevin, The pickup-bed trailer I use to haul my firewood was never designed with that purpose in mind,or even with the purpose in mind to have it made into a trailer instead of attached to a truck.BUT,it still gets me there.
Who cares if the designer didn't INTEND a specific use for a product?If it works good,use it.
Who's to say a Hornady A-Max is not an exellent deer hunting bullet?Or my little 45 grain Siearra?They've both killed deer cleanly,so what did they do wrong?If you screw up big time,you'll need all the luck you can get to retrieve your game,regardless of what bullet you use.Gut shot game don't know if they were gut shot with a Nosler Partition or an A-Max.
First, the 300 WSM is not my rifle. The A-Max was not my choice in bullets. Our deer season opens this monday, and I was trying to help a friend who was way behind on his reloading get ready. He has another buddy who shoots them in a 30-06 and swears they kill very good. I dont know, never tried it, probably never will. Although, I let him read all of your posts yesterday before we started working on his loads and he had a box of 150gr. ballistic tips and decided to start with them. With very little work we got a .92 5-shot group at 100yds. He thought that was good enough to be only four days away from deer season. So for all of you that were against the A-Max on game, pat your self on the back, you changed his mind. That is the cool thing about this forum, if you throw it up, you will get an "answer".
Brian, it sounds like you have had good results w/ your target bullets. I will yield you that, but maybe it's just your choice of the word "explodes". To me that sounds like a bullet that won't penetrate, but you have seen complete penetration, so it would be tough to argue that. I still choose to hunt big game animals w/ bullets designed for that purpose. You of course are free to hunt w/ whatever you like.
Posts: 7752 | Location: kalif.,usa | Registered: 08 March 2001
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