110gr Lehigh for Deer ?

[Six5x39]

Hi ,

I only do coyote hunt in high desert of California. Recently my friend invited me to go deer hunting . So I purchased tag ( I didn't know it was that easy .. I always assumed I have to get picked from draw ) anyway .. since it's only 2 weeks away . I loaded up some 110gr Lehigh chaos using members load data from LRRF52 , TEXkitch and gave a go . My average FPS is 2606 put of 16 " . I want to know if that's doable for deer . I really don't know much about hunting deers . From what I've heard is that cali deers aren't that big as other states ? I remember calling them mule deer . I asked my buddy about it and he doesn't know much about grendel cartridge . And this is the only rifle I would like to take . Rest are just way heavy ( ar10 platform )

[grayfox]

The theory behind them is they were developed to fragment into 3-4 pcs after entry; typically from what I've read you do not get an exit, so shot placement will be key (btw as it always is...). At MV of 2600, at 225 yds you still have 2150 ft/s and 1197 ft-lb of energy so it has the juice. It's supposed to open up down to 1600 ft/s IIRC... I was going to give them a try (2570 ft/s) but did not see any deer last year. this yr my LF will be a 100 gr barnes ttsx. Hope you're successful.

[Bigs28]

Ive used them and won't again. I hit a deer at about 10 yards right in the vitals. He ran off. No blood trail at all. Just some hair from entrance wound and nothing else. Never found the deer. Shot a hog. He didn't run far but again no exit wound, no blood trail at all. No blood on the ground at the hog. If your hunting thick woods and don't drop them where they stand then good luck.

[Six5x39]

Ty grayfox
Big28 , yea the area we scout today to see all roads are open and I got see how the layout is and pretty dense . Not a good sign if ur deer just ran . Oh boy . I better tell my buddy to follow up with his 270 just incase

[Bigs28]

I would aim for the neck if i HAD to use then again. They shot great out of my rifle and i have about 400 of them.

[Six5x39]

Ok . I would pass on to my friend anything over 250yards . Thank all

[ricsmall]

Skip the neck shot and go for a high shoulder shot. It will drop them every time. A 10 yard shot is gonna be hard to get a pass thru on a light, relatively fast bullet.
Bigs, what color was the hair you found? At that range, if not compensated for, your bullet would be way lower than point of aim. Not saying you didn’t compensate for that, just thought it worth mentioning.

[Bigs28]

My buddy and i both witnessed the impact right behind the shoulder through dead center of vitals. Hair mostly brown, small amount of gray, no white

[grayfox]

Skip the neck shot and go for a high shoulder shot. It will drop them every time. A 10 yard shot is gonna be hard to get a pass thru on a light, relatively fast bullet.
Bigs, what color was the hair you found? At that range, if not compensated for, your bullet would be way lower than point of aim. Not saying you didn’t compensate for that, just thought it worth mentioning.

Not to hijack, but I could use a brief tutorial on what the high shoulder shot is, where to aim, etc.......... if anyone is interested.

[Six5x39]

I guessing high shoulder area would be a long shot ?

[JASmith]

Take look at the Barnes TTSX — more folks seem comfortable with it: https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010414157?pid=712331

[Six5x39]

I do have some barnes in hand . But 10gr lighter though . I figured heavier the better . Not by much@the end though .

[JASmith]

The 100 gr lead core bullets work fine as deer harvesters in the 243 Win and one sees a 35-40 percent gain in effectiveness with lead free. That means your 100 gr Barnes will act like a 130-140 gr lead core bullet in terms of harvesting the animal.

The trick is knowing the minimum expansion velocity and keep shots within the range where your velocity is higher.

PS there is a nice discussion about bullet choices for hunting in the 6.5 Grendel Reloading Manual Volume 2. Volume 1 focuses on the cartridge itself and is very useful too.

[grayfox]

The published minimum for the ttsx is 1800 ft/s, which is lower than the tsx (2000), the stated reason is the plastic tip to initiate expansion, plus the tip-cavity was redesigned, both give the ttsx a better velocity envelope. Better BC too.
For my planning I want to stay above maybe low-2100's to ensure expansion.
Even so, with a MV of the 2650-2700 you've got 225-250 yds give or take before reaching that velocity.

[Bigs28]

This year i plan on using the 110g maker trex.

[ported45]

Not to hijack, but I could use a brief tutorial on what the high shoulder shot is, where to aim, etc.......... if anyone is interested.

On a broadside shot, if you hold to hit the center of the "paddle" of the shoulderblade you are also passing through the spine as it curves back up to its horizontal position at the back to the tailbone.

The shot should break at least one of the shoulders (if not both) as well as severe or shock the spine so that the deer is instantly immobilized.

Hit line of the nerves in the center of the spine where they intersect the center of the scapula in this pic: https://www.google.com/search?q=deer+hig...hWGieLhOM:

Pic has arrow and crosshairs pointed to traditional "vitals" shot tight behind the front leg.

[ricsmall]

^^this^^

Sorry I missed that post grayfox. Out of all replies since my post, I’ve only gotten one email update on that thread!! ����*♂️

[grayfox]

Ported/ ric, thanks for the info! this shows me what we're talking about...