Best bullet for minimal meat damage??

Meat Damage

Thank you guys for all the info. I have a lot to think about and will keep you updated on what happened in the field. I agree with the shot placement. To go for the head over 150yards is just not the way to go. Too many things can go wrong. Back in Africa we shot springbuck for export to European markets and the abattoir doesn't except a carcass with a body wound, so we were aiming for the head only, as a lot of you guys said correctly, don't try it. It was during these hunts that I saw too many springbucks that lost a jaw, and it is not a pretty site. Anyhow, thanks for the replies all. I appreciate it.
 
G day Riannr, firstly what deer are you hunting. Sambar, Reds, Fellow, hog, chital or rusa. I have a .300 win mag great gun its not overkill if using on sambar or reds. The caliber is a little overkill on the smaller deer.

Its all about shot placement, try the Woodleigh 180gr Weldcore. Its Australian made and very well priced. Be sure to get the bullet for the .300 win mag. There are ones for the .300 win mag, and other various .308 cals.

I have seen their work on sambar deer. Bullet usually exits but i have recovered a few and around 90% weight is retained. Damage to meat is less than the ballistics tips, soft points, hollow points, accubond and so on.

But as the other members said it's all about shot placement. These quick expanding bullets dont make up for bad shot placement.

Good luck
 
well, for almost no meat damage, the full metal jacket is hard to beat. the problem with them (other than being ilegal) is that is it like sticking the animal with a bow and arrow with a feild point. you have to wait for it to bleed out. the amount of meat damage that you are going to get with a proper soft point is probably going to be less than 2% of the meat on the animal. if you loose the animal using a fmj, you have 0% of the meat. 2% does not sound all that bad to me considering you actually get the meat!
 
+ 1 for the Remington Managed Recoil loads
Click to expand...

I used some of those for deer. Usually a reduced load in a big case doesn't shoot very well. But, those were close to 1 MOA, in my rifle anyway.
 
Double lung shot with 300WM with any wt bullet you want to use and within reasonable distance (400yds) and they drop in their tracks. Well, once I had one go about 10 yards.
 
The one that does the least amount of meat damage is the one that misses.

For the one's that hit, I like 180 gr Speer Grand Slams for the .30 cal cartridges. Penetrates well, expands sufficiently for a quick kill, and doesn't destroy extra meat.

Daryl
 
I believe in accuracy and shot placement. I get that with managed loads, meaning I do not go for maximum loads but for the most accurate loads. When we are talking 165+gr bullets at 2800+ FPS, ONLY a chrono is going to settle any arguments. I would say load your loads down, with a lower pressure powder such as some of the Hodgdons/ADI powders. Lower pressures give less recoil and more accuracy. I load Hornady 165 gr BTSP's at about 2850. I use H4350SC powder and it gives a very nice shooting load that is extremely accurate--the bullets expand as intended, and I dont get a handful of damaged meat. Depending on the shot--I go for either the neck just in front of the shoulder, or a low lung/heart shot just behind the elbow. Close behind the elbow, just miss the leg bone. Also, I pass on shots over 350 yards. Even tho I have the TRS-1 mildot scope, and I am confident in my rifle, loads and shooting abilities, I set that as my limit unless I am looking at something really huge that demands to be taken out of the herd. In that case, its one in the boiler room, a shoulder shot intended to break that front leg and destroy the lungs. I agree with 7mm about the 165 to 180 bullets, and would restate, dont push them to max. They do what they are supposed to do just fine at mid speeds. If you are going to be really reaching out on the distance such as 300 to 400 yards, then you need to take them out to max obviously, but know that if you shoot something in close, its gonna blow a hole. It is just simple math.
 
So summing up, what I have read...

then in my following rifles;

M70, .308 using hand loaded 165 BTSP, @2500 fps (muzzle), I should have little problem with whitetail & elk here in the Cascades?

Will be reloading for a 7mmMag, using Hornady 162gr SST's, and reloader 19 powder, so I should consider max velicity around 2900fps???

This is a GREAT thread! Thanks for info.
 
Va Fisher is correct. Dont worry about it to much. If it is the only rifle you have, just use the bullet you feel will be the most accurate. Double lung not bad. Stay off the shoulders if you can.
 
About all that neck meat is good for is chili, so I never worried about ruining meat with a neck shot. Didn't matter what bullet I used.
 
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