Amax for hunting?

[WildRose]

Honest question, if the animal was down in 30 yards from the first trigger pull with minimal penetration and none penetrating, what was the cause of death? For an animal running full tilt, that's pretty much DRT.

Another important point is "Amax" is not "Amax". For years on this board and others, I've seen discussions lumping branded bullets together when really you need to look individually at each bullet.

The cause of death is the same whether the animal dies instantaneously or finally dies four days later after suffering terribly.

In both cases the cause of death is a gunshot wound.

Like their other bullets the Amax is designed with specific purposes in mind. The design is the same whether you are talking about a 55gr .224 or a 178gr .30 cal. The heavier bullets stay together better that the high speed light weight, small diameter bullets but they are still a non bonded cup and core highly frangible bullet.

The biggest difference is that even if you only end up with 30% retained weight on the 178 or even 750gr .50cal it's more total weight than some of the .22's even if they retained 100% of their weight.

The design characteristics of the bullet remain the same no matter what caliber or weight.

Mind you I'm not knocking Hornady in any way, shape, manner, or form but an Amax is an Amax no matter what the weight or caliber. Amax is not a brand it is a design and the design is the same for all of them with the exception of the lead tip of the .50cal vs the plastic tip of the rest of the line.

 

[gunlover05]

My brother just shot a decent 6 pointer at only 10 yards with my 6.5 Creedmoor using 140gr Amax, probably hit at solid 2720fps. This was my first real experience using this bullet on game, but it shot so accurately in the gun I couldn't resist. it turned vitals to mush and destroyed far side shoulder so didn't exit. deer only went 20 yards. I wouldn't hesitate to use it again on deer-sized game.

 

[Buck Buster]

The Amax 178 & 168 gr. bullets shoot more accurately than the same weight bullets in the ELD-X in my 300 win. mag. & my 308 Norma mag.. Shot an 8 point and a doe this year with the 300 Win. and the 168 gr. Amax, both went down in their tracks. The buck didn't have a large hole in it but the doe was shot through some brush and I believe the bullet opened up before it hit the doe; results softball size hole in the loin area, hit her high, both shots were about 70 - 80 yards. This can happen with a lot of different bullets. I will keep using the Amax because of the accuracy , I don't mind a pound or two of wasted meat as long as the deer is D.O.A. of the Amax bullet. Good luck hunting and be safe.

 

[WildRose]

My brother just shot a decent 6 pointer at only 10 yards with my 6.5 Creedmoor using 140gr Amax, probably hit at solid 2720fps. This was my first real experience using this bullet on game, but it shot so accurately in the gun I couldn't resist. it turned vitals to mush and destroyed far side shoulder so didn't exit. deer only went 20 yards. I wouldn't hesitate to use it again on deer-sized game.

Why would you want to rely on a bullet that wastes so much meat when there are a long list of choices of far less frangible bullets available that will shoot equally as well or better?

 

[Buck Buster]

I you want a harder bullet go with Sierra. I shot a buck the last day one year over 550 yards using a 30-06 with 190 gr. hollow point Match King, it never even began to open up. I now its a long ways for the 06 its slowing down big time, but a hollow point I would have thought would have opened up some. Good luck hunting and be safe.

 

[flowhnun63]

https://www.longrangehunting.com/threads/hornady-a-max-bullets-any-good-for-hunting.76455/

 

[Creedmoor shooter]

We've used the A-5max for years in out 6.5s. Now that it's been discontinued we went to the eld-match. I took a mature Nh buck with a 162 eld-match @ 3115. The buck was 50 yards at the point of impact. I had a good ball sized hole on the entry side of the rib cage with no exit. Hardly any meat damage. Same results with the 140 amax in our 6.5s. Complete destruction of the vitals with not alot of meat damage. The only Amax I had that gave alotnof meat damage was the 8 point my wife shot out of my 7mm. What a mess. My dad tried the 130 berger hunting old at 3000fps this year. Deer was 40 yards and that had alot of meat damage. No more bergers for us even though it did it's job

 

[257Tony]

Here is a good sized Muley Buck shot with a 6.5 CM, 123 Amax @ 200 yards, impact velocity 2600 fps. No exit, no excessive blood shot meat either. Good shot placement right behind the shoulder. Pardon my excitement, this is a friend of mines 70 year old father going on his last Deer hunt.

 

[CA48]

I have had good results with the 75 gr amax in my .223, muzzle velocity 2550fps. Shot a few pigs and deer from 100-300 yards. Most were lung shots that dropped the animals where they stood and always made full pass throughs.

Here is the entrance on a doe at 260 yards.

 

[CA48]

Exit side

 

[TexSavage]

Over the last 35 plus years I have used 2 rifles for white tail hunting here in Texas. The first a 1989 Savage 110 in 22-250 using Sierra 55gr BTHP. In using that rig for whitetails and also turkey for the first 22 years Every deer shot with the exception of 1 was dry. The one that was not ran just under 20 yards and laid DRT. Ver few exit wounds, complete obliteration of heart and lungs. Most of those shots were 75 to 150 yards.

Second is my Savage model 12 in 300WSM. I have been practicing and learning to shoot long range with it and switched up deer leases. Current lease most shots are between 200 and 400 yards on average with extremely rocky, thorns, fangs and horns everywhere. I have used the 190 JLK, the 178 AMAX, the 190 Berger, and now the 215 Berger hybrid. As far a s game killing, the JLK's might just be the most devastating, even though they are "target" bullets and that was before i moved to the yellow boxes. After about 10 deer I can tell you they were impressive. Next was the 178 AMAX, once again, impressive in the devastation realm. It was used on the only deer I have ever shot that I could not find, but it was not the bullets fault. It was mine, trying to show off on a neck shot that the deer appeared to be DRT, for over 30 minutes. As I made my 300 yard trek to the place I shot him, no deer. Just blood and meat all over the place. Spent almost 8 hours trying to find that deer. Bad shot choice by me, 100% my fault.

The Berger's have become my goto. The first was the 190 Berger, dang, devastating from 100 to 365 yards. Much like the devastating 22-250 I was shooting. Then after reading a post by Broz, I started messing with the 215 Hybrids. Wow, I just thought I could not be impressed. Last 4 deer all 250-270 yards one shot DRT. No lungs, no heart, no diaphragm, minimal meat loss unless I line up wrong. The one common thing with all of these, if I do my part and I aim, squeeze and follow through it's DRT. The 215's have almost 200 fps more velocity at 1,000 yards over the 190's. I have personally shot half MOA or better at 700 and 800 yards with the 215.

The AMAX is a real good choice. My 2 cents worth.

 

[Tikkashooter]

Here is a good sized Muley Buck shot with a 6.5 CM, 123 Amax @ 200 yards, impact velocity 2600 fps. No exit, no excessive blood shot meat either. Good shot placement right behind the shoulder. Pardon my excitement, this is a friend of mines 70 year old father going on his last Deer hunt.

Tony, no shame in getting excited when they drop!! I usually let out a similar yell, almost like one of the sand people from star wars.

 

[Tikkashooter]

and yes as it has been said a million times over, Amax/EldM are great hunting bullets within a certain window. If you get the right windows of sectional density, velocity and game size in the right proportions its one of the best bullets for hunting on the planet

 

[ejd049]

Use the 178 AMax with good results