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1-48" bullet choice for elk
- Thread starter Speedgoat44
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Late to the party but.....I like .54 and up PRB and a good shot. I also will say if you can find a Hornady great plains bullet in any caliber, including .50 your animule will go down hard. No better the PRB with a great shot, much better if you plan on (or have to) blow through some shoulder.
As for the OP comment on less than prefect hit and a 30-30.....Shot a cow thru the heart at 50 yds or so, death lurch (hunt long enough you can tell a heart shot). Turned around and walked 30 feet or so to the truck, had a cup of coffee, gathered the ropes and knifes n such and drudged back up hill. Elk should have been within 20-30 yds of where hit but she had went about 60. No biggie. BIGGIE...she got up and ran off an had I left the rifle in the truck she would have went much further, I dropped her with a ham hit and when I cleaned her the heart had a perfect black hole thru it but did not blow up as one is used to seeing. Bad bullet? Dunno but even a prefect shot on an elk is never an iron clad deal. Se would have expired but the fact she lived 10-15 min then ran???? Elk be tough. I believe a PBR would have done the extra damage to kill her DRT as we would have expected.
As for the OP comment on less than prefect hit and a 30-30.....Shot a cow thru the heart at 50 yds or so, death lurch (hunt long enough you can tell a heart shot). Turned around and walked 30 feet or so to the truck, had a cup of coffee, gathered the ropes and knifes n such and drudged back up hill. Elk should have been within 20-30 yds of where hit but she had went about 60. No biggie. BIGGIE...she got up and ran off an had I left the rifle in the truck she would have went much further, I dropped her with a ham hit and when I cleaned her the heart had a perfect black hole thru it but did not blow up as one is used to seeing. Bad bullet? Dunno but even a prefect shot on an elk is never an iron clad deal. Se would have expired but the fact she lived 10-15 min then ran???? Elk be tough. I believe a PBR would have done the extra damage to kill her DRT as we would have expected.
Speedgoat44
32 Cal
If you search for the Hornady Great Plains 385 grain ballistic coefficient, it comes up on a hornady page that I believe is not current, so you may need to try a couple of those pages - you want the bullet page with "Specs" as a click option. I just looked again and it is indeed .148 as per that sight if you want to save some time.
Thanks . Found it!
Just redid my 50 cal charts. Not significantly different, but somewhat different.
Just redid my 50 cal charts. Not significantly different, but somewhat different.
Great thread. Thank you.
Ballistic coefficient. I thought I'd read something about them...Yep. Lyman Black Powder Handbook & Loading Manual, All new 2nd Edition, Written by Sam Fadala. 2001
He lists many Projectiles and includes "Ball. Coef." for them. Different bullets, but his "Ball. Coef." numbers seem lower than talked of in this thread?? Not a right or wrong...just different.
Ballistic coefficient. I thought I'd read something about them...Yep. Lyman Black Powder Handbook & Loading Manual, All new 2nd Edition, Written by Sam Fadala. 2001
He lists many Projectiles and includes "Ball. Coef." for them. Different bullets, but his "Ball. Coef." numbers seem lower than talked of in this thread?? Not a right or wrong...just different.
I would like to get my hands on that!
Can you find the bc for a cva deerslayer (buckslayer) 54 cal 375 grain?
EDIT
I found it on Amazon for $19. It will be delivered next week.
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I don't see such a projectile in his charts. A lot of things have come and gone over the years.
He lists loads in charts with cal., barrel length, and twist.
Closest I can find is under 54 Cal., 28" barrel, and 1-48 twist.
Buffalo Ball-et 338 grain .080 BC
and Buffalo HP Conical 425 grain .180 BC
I hope the book can help you out.
He lists loads in charts with cal., barrel length, and twist.
Closest I can find is under 54 Cal., 28" barrel, and 1-48 twist.
Buffalo Ball-et 338 grain .080 BC
and Buffalo HP Conical 425 grain .180 BC
I hope the book can help you out.
longcruise
70 Cal.
Here's a spreadsheet that will calc a round ball weight, gauge and G1 BC.
longcruise
70 Cal.
Oooops, it won;t attach. If anyone wants it just pm me your email address and I'll email it to you.
Wow, how anyone goes out hunting and kills something without all this math and figures, is a miracle
Not really, just part of the sport and makes for a higher probability of a successful hunt.
Accomplish the same thing by shooting up all your supplies at targets.
longcruise
70 Cal.
I for one get a tremendous amount of entertainment out of playing with these numbers. It's not for everyone of course.
FWIW, I have no use for all these calculations for hunting. What I know from actual shooting is that a dead on sight in at 25 yards puts a ball a bit high at 50 and real close at 75. That holds for all my big game calibers.
And, we have plenty of members here who don't hunt.
flintlock75
45 Cal.
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Haven’t shot an Elk, but I have killed a dozen moose and a few caribou using a .54 rifle, the best load I have found is 110 gr of 3f, 425 gr hornady Great Plains bullets. Shots from 30feet to 125 yards. None traveled more than 50 yards after hit, several dropped in their tracks, all but one was a heart shot, have never recovered a bullet, always goes through.
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