Let me start off with it was still a one shot one kill, no the doe did not run off and dropped in place. However, I am upset because of bullet performance. This is the second "bad" kill I have had using these 150 grain silver tips in .308, factory loads. I am generally a Barns guy but I thought I would give these a try and they group better than the barns factory. 80yard shot deer was presenting a walking 3/4 away target and shot placement was key and intended to shoot through the ribs through heart/lungs and out right side of front neck. However on impact the round disintegrated and never penetrated the ribs, left leg was separated through the muscle group and no bone fragments, the kill was due to a small wound channel that severed the main artery and esophagus and out the front left of the neck. Exit wound size looked like the size of a .22 or .223. Entrance wound looks like and exit wound. There is however a small line to where the pill did scrape the hide before entrance. Am I the only one having this issue with silver tips, I hear nothing but good things from other people.
Hunting & Fishing Upset with silvertips performance.
- Thread starter still_N_29palms
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I had a similar experience a few years ago using 300wsm 150 silvertips. I had a slight quartering to shot on a Mule Deer at about 200 yards. Shot went in the chest right shoulder area. Penetration was good and the bullet did its job but it blew up inside with bullet fragments everywhere. There was only one small pencil sized exit hole from a bullet fragment. Deer fell immediately due to the blown up shoulder so I don't look at it as a bullet failure. I just think these bullets are less than ideal for a shoulder/bone impact.
First, I'm glad to hear you recovered the deer without issue.
Second, I'm not sure from reading the description if you have a bullet issue or (I cringe to say it) a hunter issue.
The shot was known to be a shallow angle into a shoulder/rib area from very short range. The 150's from a 308 are probably approaching 2900fps and at 80yd they're still screaming along.
The silvertips aren't a great bullet, but they're really not terrible either. They aren't, however, meant for impact speeds so high and on hard items in the animal.
It looks like you placed the shot where you needed to, however the bullet/caliber choice for the hunter taking that shot was wrong and that's not a slam on the bullet. They are nothing new, their performance and behavior is easy to find out about. The good part here is the deer is in your freezer and you know now that the bullet is not reliable at short distance into a stack of ribs, you should probably use a monolithic bullet of some type instead if you're going to be shooting deer in that type of situation regularly.
I've taken the same shot with the same bullet from a 30-30 and the bullet worked fine, however the MV was around 2320fps and impact velocity was probably around 2150 or so. I suspect your impact velocity was 600+fps faster and that's why the bullet came apart so violently.
Second, I'm not sure from reading the description if you have a bullet issue or (I cringe to say it) a hunter issue.
The shot was known to be a shallow angle into a shoulder/rib area from very short range. The 150's from a 308 are probably approaching 2900fps and at 80yd they're still screaming along.
The silvertips aren't a great bullet, but they're really not terrible either. They aren't, however, meant for impact speeds so high and on hard items in the animal.
It looks like you placed the shot where you needed to, however the bullet/caliber choice for the hunter taking that shot was wrong and that's not a slam on the bullet. They are nothing new, their performance and behavior is easy to find out about. The good part here is the deer is in your freezer and you know now that the bullet is not reliable at short distance into a stack of ribs, you should probably use a monolithic bullet of some type instead if you're going to be shooting deer in that type of situation regularly.
I've taken the same shot with the same bullet from a 30-30 and the bullet worked fine, however the MV was around 2320fps and impact velocity was probably around 2150 or so. I suspect your impact velocity was 600+fps faster and that's why the bullet came apart so violently.
What? Premium hunting bullets can fail? No way! Rhunter will be along shortly to call you a liar and say thats photoshopped and it didn't happen because hunting bullets never fail and don't damage an ounce of meat.
In the mean time here is a pic of the exact same shot I took on a deer Friday morning just the opposite side. This was with a 185gr Berger Juggernaut "match" bullet. Entered behind the right shoulder exiting the chest and turn the vitals into mush. The only meat damaged was the thing layer on the chest which IMO isn't fit for a dog to eat.
Just something to consider. Match bullets work great on game.
In the mean time here is a pic of the exact same shot I took on a deer Friday morning just the opposite side. This was with a 185gr Berger Juggernaut "match" bullet. Entered behind the right shoulder exiting the chest and turn the vitals into mush. The only meat damaged was the thing layer on the chest which IMO isn't fit for a dog to eat.
Just something to consider. Match bullets work great on game.
Do not get me wrong, I know the bullet and its limitations, I understand that it is ballistic tipped and its inherent characteristics. I am upset that the bullet did not make it to the ribs. That it began and ended its "rapid expansion" and "disintegration" at "impact". The ribs and meat immediately surrounding the ribs was undamaged/ touched. The separation happened on impact with the skin not the bone, no bone damage on either shoulder or ribs, no penetration, I wish I would have taken picks of the deer during cleaning and wound channel explorations. Next time I will, however, it will not be with this bullet as this was the last time it goes on a hunt. The last failure was to a trotting and broadside shot to a yote at 200 yrds. That was a bone impact, that I understand, and yet it still killed the coyote however it was painful for her. I just think I will stay with the Gameking and Barns copper.
I'll echo what bohem and bmxer have said. its all about the conditions of each shot. There are plenty of expensive hunting bullets that would have done the same thing possibly. There are plenty of options, and as long as you keep hitting em right, you'll do fine.
Ain't that the truth. I've had a few and seen many more pass throughs with Barnes bullets, and partitions where the entrance and exit wound were little tiny holes and the exits showed no signs of expansion.
I hit a 250lb feral hog square in the shoulder at 50 yards with a 150gr Silvertip in .308 last weekend. I just skinned it and took the backstraps, shoulders and hams without ever opening up the body cavity, so I don't know how it looked inside. However, there was a clean entrance hole through the shoulder, with absolutely no meat damage, and I found a couple of bullet fragments in the offside shoulder. I was happy with the bullet's performance as it dropped that hog dead in its tracks and didn't screw up any meat. What more could I ask for?
I 2nd that.
Took a mature doe for the freezer this weekend with a .224 70grTSX @ 3510 mv. 50yd shot, hard quartering, similar to OP. Behind the shoulder entrance, broke a rib, clipped top of the heart, small exit forward of offside shoulder joint. No heavy bone encountered, and even at ~3400fps impact speed, the little TSX pencilled through. Blood trail was like a lawn sprinkler and dead deer was laying in 40yds.
Point being, that is exactly what I hoped would happen...
I can attest to the effectiveness of the silvertip in 30.06. I harvested a small whitetail on the last day of the season a few years ago at about 10 yards. I was unable to recover the bullet though, or the off side shoulder. I can only assume it expanded.
In my opinion, looks more like the angle of entry than bullet design.
More of my useless opinion, I believe hunters are way over horsepowered. I never tipped over a whitetail but my choice would be 22.250 or 243, I understand they are thin skinned and boned with not much mass so I would want a bullet to match so it would have something to mushroom against but again, I could be wrong. Others will disagree but its my experience, Partitions never failed from just inside 100 to 425 yards in my pop guns.
Not sure what a bad kill is, did the beast tip over and you are home eating it? All that matters!
More of my useless opinion, I believe hunters are way over horsepowered. I never tipped over a whitetail but my choice would be 22.250 or 243, I understand they are thin skinned and boned with not much mass so I would want a bullet to match so it would have something to mushroom against but again, I could be wrong. Others will disagree but its my experience, Partitions never failed from just inside 100 to 425 yards in my pop guns.
Not sure what a bad kill is, did the beast tip over and you are home eating it? All that matters!
