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I've made many successful neck shot kills on Texas whitetail with handloaded Hornady 129 SST...
Is the Berger 115 HPBT suitable for neck shots or should I stick with the heart/lung shot?
(I'm not really sure of the impact behavior of this Berger bullet compared to their VLD hunting rounds - most everything I've read about the VLDs is they work great on heart/lung shots as they are "explosive").
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The neck shot would be a better shot placement with any bullet if penetration is the issue. I shot a small deer in the lungs with a 250 grain 338 sierra game king.The bullet exploded and left a huge gaping wound. The deer ran for over a mile. It was still alive when I tracked it and I had to shoot it in the head. I have seen this type of wound many times before with thin jacket bullets. I now only hunt with hunting type bullets like nosler partitions. The hornady a-max works good on deer with the 6.5 Grendel. I have also used the wolf mp round with good results.
I dropped two this year was 120 grain pro hunters using TAC both neck shots at about 80 yards.
I love not having to track them.
Shoot them in the neck with a 100gr Barnes TTSX and you won't have to worry about the bullet exploding.
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BjornF16 Wrote:(I'm not really sure of the impact behavior of this Berger bullet compared to their VLD hunting rounds - most everything I've read about the VLDs is they work great on heart/lung shots as they are "explosive").
I think the Target and Hunting Berger's are the same design, but the Target version has a thicker jacket, and that's supposedly only in the rearward half of the bullet. I've read elsewhere on the 'net (perhaps longrangehunting.com?) that performance on game between Hunting and Target versions is relatively indistinguishable. I think the Berger's need ~1800 fps to expand.
How that plays into you question, I can't really say. But thought you might find the info interesting...
Drifter
I think neck shots are a lot like head shots. No spicific minimen caliber needed, no spicifiic bullet type needed. They work great until SOMTHING GOES WRONG. Say you blow the targets lower jaw off. Now you have a wounded anmial that would have been dead if you had gone for the chest. Still, if your good enough nothing wrong with head or neck shots.
I always go for heart and lung shots, where do you neck shooters aim for? anywhere on the neck? Just curious
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I've always aimed closer to the shoulders on the neck versus just behind the head...
I shoot for the heart/lung with few exceptions. If they run with one through the boiler room, it won't be far and if you get a decent exit you will have a nice blood trail if you need it.
Last deer I shot was with a 35 Rem. 200gn SP, out of a 12" Contender, double lung shot, went through without hitting any bone. Exit hole wasn't much bigger than the entrance hole, very little blood, ran 80yds in thick woods. Luckily we had snow for tracking otherwise would have never found it. That's was my main reason for building a Grendel, accuracy is what I wanted. I hate it when they run away, so for me no question, neck shot.
neck shots would be fine, just as long as you can place the bullet in the neck, that is a small target, best shot would probably be just forth of the shoulder, there are animals that necks shots can be a lost animal, like oryx, their spine curves down and the whole upper portion is just meat, with enough shock you may still put them down, i've taken 3 oryx here in New Mexico, all were shots in the neck just forward of the shoulder, only one did I aim for the neck area, the other two were running shots
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elkbow Wrote:neck shots would be fine, just as long as you can place the bullet in the neck, that is a small target, best shot would probably be just forth of the shoulder, there are animals that necks shots can be a lost animal, like oryx, their spine curves down and the whole upper portion is just meat, with enough shock you may still put them down, i've taken 3 oryx here in New Mexico, all were shots in the neck just forward of the shoulder, only one did I aim for the neck area, the other two were running shots
Sorry for the hijack, but I just have a quick question. In all seriousness, how do you get 3 Oryx in NM? I was under the impression that that was a once in a lifetime hunt. Not trying to start something, I'd just like to have another Oryx.
CCinClovis Wrote:Sorry for the hijack, but I just have a quick question. In all seriousness, how do you get 3 Oryx in NM? I was under the impression that that was a once in a lifetime hunt. Not trying to start something, I'd just like to have another Oryx.
only the hunt on White Sands Missile range is once in a lifetime (which was one of my hunts, luckily i drew the 3rd year i put in), we have other hunts. We have depredation hunts, a numbered hunt, so if you get drawn they call you and usually the following weekend you meet them and go hunt, the one I did was on Holloman AFB, we had 18 hunters, all of us filled out by 10:30 that morning. Then we have 'off the range hunts', currently I believe it is 60 tags per month, anywhere off the range on public land and private land of course with permission, I've drawn this twice and shot one.
Yep, the 200SP 35 Remington is a stout bullet and not hitting bone or the heart and just lung can cause problems. I try for low heart/lung with my Super 14 in 35 Rem. I've even taken neck shots out to 75 yards with great success but until I bought my Grendel AR my 35 was the most accurate firearm I owned and is capable of 3/8ths" 3 shot or 5/8ths" 5 shot groups from a bench when I do my job right, on a good day. Not bad for factory loads in a pistol.
parallax Wrote:Yep, the 200SP 35 Remington is a stout bullet and not hitting bone or the heart and just lung can cause problems. I try for low heart/lung with my Super 14 in 35 Rem. I've even taken neck shots out to 75 yards with great success but until I bought my Grendel AR my 35 was the most accurate firearm I owned and is capable of 3/8ths" 3 shot or 5/8ths" 5 shot groups from a bench when I do my job right, on a good day. Not bad for factory loads in a pistol.
Neck shot at 75yds with a pistol is above my pay grade, with a Grendel it's an honest shot.
Have you used the Hornady LeverRevolution 35 Rem. ammo? Good stuff.
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Maybe someone can explain this observed phenomenon:
With ALL neck shots I've observed on Texas whitetail (90-120lbs), the hydrostatic over pressure caused small blood vessels in the front/hind quarters to burst (seen while skinning). With body shots, I've never seen this occur. Not sure why neck shots would do this...
BjornF16 Wrote:Maybe someone can explain this observed phenomenon:
With ALL neck shots I've observed on Texas whitetail (90-120lbs), the hydrostatic over pressure caused small blood vessels in the front/hind quarters to burst (seen while skinning). With body shots, I've never seen this occur. Not sure why neck shots would do this...
Maybe since there is no rib cage to hold the tissues apart, the impact flattens arteries and veins causing an overpressure.
RR
The neck has four large blood vessels, and is mostly dense, fluid filled tissue. This transmits the shock well. The body cavity is ... a cavity. The lungs and intestines are full of air. Air doesn't transmit shock well.
Dense, fluid filled tissue also tends to withstand shock pretty well. Doesn't take much shock to shred the lungs.
"Have you used the Hornady LeverRevolution 35 Rem. ammo? Good stuff."
Not yet but I'd like to try it.
Anectodally, I have seen a few cases of small vessles rupuring in hindquarters from chest shots which involve a high velocity liver hit. I dont think there is enough emperical evidence to draw any meaningful conclusion.
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