For many more years than I care to count, I used the plain old cup and core Sierra 150 gr. Pro-hunters in my 30-06. I can remember when they were not even called that. I shot and deer died. Used then in the .308 for a while as I was not hunting in very high mountains and as I was a heavy smoker at the time, that almost 10 pound 1903 Springfield shorter was a tad too heavy.
I just did not like the way the 150 gr. PH mangled up good eating meat on less than perfect shots so went to the 165 gr. Speer Hot-Core for the .308 and 180 gr. Sierra Pro-hunter for the 30-06. In 1978, while still living in Nevada, I shot the biggest and heaviest bodied Mule Deer I have ever seen. I hit it twice using my 06 and the 180 gr. Nobler Partition. Shots were at roughly 30 to 45 feet. Deer was apparently unfazed so shot #3 was used to break it's neck. Upon opening up the deer, the shot I believe was first had cut a groove in the top of the heart without opening the organ. Shot #2 punched through both lungs in a pencil sized hole. No sign of any expansion. I stayed away from premium bullets after that and only went to a 225 gr. Barnes TSX for hunting elk with my .35 Whelen. Took my elk this year with a 30-06 and 165 gr. Nosler Accubond.
Paul B.
I just did not like the way the 150 gr. PH mangled up good eating meat on less than perfect shots so went to the 165 gr. Speer Hot-Core for the .308 and 180 gr. Sierra Pro-hunter for the 30-06. In 1978, while still living in Nevada, I shot the biggest and heaviest bodied Mule Deer I have ever seen. I hit it twice using my 06 and the 180 gr. Nobler Partition. Shots were at roughly 30 to 45 feet. Deer was apparently unfazed so shot #3 was used to break it's neck. Upon opening up the deer, the shot I believe was first had cut a groove in the top of the heart without opening the organ. Shot #2 punched through both lungs in a pencil sized hole. No sign of any expansion. I stayed away from premium bullets after that and only went to a 225 gr. Barnes TSX for hunting elk with my .35 Whelen. Took my elk this year with a 30-06 and 165 gr. Nosler Accubond.
Paul B.