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Long Path · November 6, 1999, 03:00 PM

DB: It sounds to me like you've answered your own question: <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>"At the spot of the shot I found blood and meat and for the first 40-50 yards a decent blood trail. [/quote]

If you found "meat," you got enough performance out of your bullet. Did you find fur/hide? How about a fan of blood? How long after the shot did you go to look?

DB, as sad as it is to lose a deer, every once in a while, they can keep running, no matter the fine performance of the projectile.

I myself hit two doe last year just behind the shoulder with a .300 Win Mag, and watched them both run into the brush. I wasn't worried in either case; both were hit well with a great bullet (180g Sierra GameKing), but was surprised that they could make it 40 and 45 yards into the dense scrub near where they were shot. Did the bullet work? Sure! Exit holes the size of nickles. They just wanted to leave, and I hadn't broken the shoulder. I really feel the greatest thing about the Nosler Partition is that you can send your bullet through the shoulder without any fear of it breaking up. Meat damage? How much meat do you REALLY get out of the shoulder of a deer in your area? It's covered with white sheathing tissue, and is chewy, and if you've got more than 2 lbs of good meat in your deer's shoulder, you've got some monsters in your area! More important to anchor them, in my opinion. This, the Partition is made to do.

I have never heard of terminal ballistic failure in a Partition. The only complaint that I've ever heard with regard to Partitions is one of hair-splitting accuracy. The fact of the matter is, you've got 2 lead cores inline in a Partition, and thus have a high likelyhood of having their centers of mass being slightly out of synch. This may well open your 1" groups out to 1.5". (Though not always, and some loads and rifles seem to correct this a lot...) But once the bullet hits your game, the book is: you've got a damned good bullet.

Now, that said, I happen to virtually always hunt with Sierra GameKings in my L.R. rifle loads.

Ankeny: Nosler is sorta squirmy about admitting that their B.T.'s aren't really hard enough for elk. They're quick to point out that they've hardened them up over the original Ballistic Tips, and that's true. They're superb for deer, but I think they're a tad over-expansive for elk. (Of course, it's awfully hard to argue with your success, huh?

) Better to use the Partitions. Fear not with your .30-338.

I'm with Art (as usual): why mess with success? The 180 Game King is possibly the most accurate hunting bullet on the market (the 1000 yd Wimbledon Match was won with this bullet), and is a very hard bullet, though it expands even on thin-skinned S. TX whitetailed deer.

Without recovering the game or the bullet, DB's anecdote provides us with little evidence of the bullet's performance.

Sorry about the deer, though.

[This message has been edited by Long Path (edited November 06, 1999).]

November 6, 1999, 03:00 PM	#7
Long Path Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 1999 Location: N. Texas Posts: 5,899	DB: It sounds to me like you've answered your own question: <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>"At the spot of the shot I found blood and meat and for the first 40-50 yards a decent blood trail. [/quote] If you found "meat," you got enough performance out of your bullet. Did you find fur/hide? How about a fan of blood? How long after the shot did you go to look? DB, as sad as it is to lose a deer, every once in a while, they can keep running, no matter the fine performance of the projectile. I myself hit two doe last year just behind the shoulder with a .300 Win Mag, and watched them both run into the brush. I wasn't worried in either case; both were hit well with a great bullet (180g Sierra GameKing), but was surprised that they could make it 40 and 45 yards into the dense scrub near where they were shot. Did the bullet work? Sure! Exit holes the size of nickles. They just wanted to leave, and I hadn't broken the shoulder. I really feel the greatest thing about the Nosler Partition is that you can send your bullet through the shoulder without any fear of it breaking up. Meat damage? How much meat do you REALLY get out of the shoulder of a deer in your area? It's covered with white sheathing tissue, and is chewy, and if you've got more than 2 lbs of good meat in your deer's shoulder, you've got some monsters in your area! More important to anchor them, in my opinion. This, the Partition is made to do. I have never heard of terminal ballistic failure in a Partition. The only complaint that I've ever heard with regard to Partitions is one of hair-splitting accuracy. The fact of the matter is, you've got 2 lead cores inline in a Partition, and thus have a high likelyhood of having their centers of mass being slightly out of synch. This may well open your 1" groups out to 1.5". (Though not always, and some loads and rifles seem to correct this a lot...) But once the bullet hits your game, the book is: you've got a damned good bullet. Now, that said, I happen to virtually always hunt with Sierra GameKings in my L.R. rifle loads. Ankeny: Nosler is sorta squirmy about admitting that their B.T.'s aren't really hard enough for elk. They're quick to point out that they've hardened them up over the original Ballistic Tips, and that's true. They're superb for deer, but I think they're a tad over-expansive for elk. (Of course, it's awfully hard to argue with your success, huh? ) Better to use the Partitions. Fear not with your .30-338. I'm with Art (as usual): why mess with success? The 180 Game King is possibly the most accurate hunting bullet on the market (the 1000 yd Wimbledon Match was won with this bullet), and is a very hard bullet, though it expands even on thin-skinned S. TX whitetailed deer. Without recovering the game or the bullet, DB's anecdote provides us with little evidence of the bullet's performance. Sorry about the deer, though. [This message has been edited by Long Path (edited November 06, 1999).]