Berger close up on game performance

[Jeffrey Van Zandt]

I'm going to make sure this doesn't start out the wrong way, so lets be clear, I shot an cow elk on Saturday from 200 yards with a berger bullet, she is very dead and died quickly. My family will enjoy the meat!

Now, the details: Im shooting a 7mm Mag with 180 Berger Hybrids at 2990 fps. I've shot 2 cow elk, 1 deer, 1 bear, and 1 antelope with this load but most those were 500+ yard shots. This shot was 200 yards broadside and I put it about 1/3 up and 4" behind the crease, perfect double lung. After the shot she immediately went behind a ridge out of sight and piled up about 100 yards out, furthest I've seen one go with this bullet. What really surprised me was there wasn't even a scratch on the offside ribcage from the bullet, it completely blew up inside the lungs, not sure how she even made it 100 yards. It was very cold and windy so I didn't stick around looing for fragments but I confirmed it liquidated the lungs. The bullet isn't near as explosive at longer range in my experience, but is this pretty normal for shots 300 yards and in?

I did a bull moose this fall at 140 yards with a 215gr berger hybrid moving at 3028 out the muzzle high shoulder he went down in his track not a movement round went apart just last 1/3 left in tack but fragments went in to spin ect and what was left was in the hide on the off side of the moose. I have taken 9 moose with this berger Hybrid and non has went more then 15 feet some as far out as 775 yards love my bergers

 

[CUTTER1]

In the last 5 years I've shot lots of game, mostly elk and some antelope withe Burgers. Most were similar dead in a few feet with hammered chest contents except recent large bull at 409y with 300gr hybrid out of 338AI at 2990. Both hits were significant entry wounds with essentially very little damage within the chest! The 300 elites out of a 338 RUM were
Very dependable. That and they new 156gr 6.5 and 195gr 7mm have been amazing!

 

[EyeDoc2020]

I had the same experience on a bull elk with 195s in my 28 Nosler at 200 yards. Perfect shot placement and he did the tippy toe dance and died a few yards from where I shot. No exit hole, but the vitals were soup. In my opinion the bullet did its job.

I think we can all agree that there are times when you shoot an animal with perfect shot placement and perfect bullet performance, but they can still run. Doesn't mean there is any issues with the bullet, its just a wild animal doped on adrenaline.

But everyone is going to side with the bullet they like. Its like saying a Ford/Chevy/Ram/GMC is better than the other brand truck. Whatever gets the job done.

 

[Double Dropper]

Shot some absolute hogs up in Canada and have used a variety of bullets. SST's, Ballistic tips, Accubonds, Partitions etc, most have died almost in there tracks but bullet performance under 250 yards was obvious, most are not tough enough to go all the way through if you hit some resistance. Any decently constructed bullet should not be held up by a couple of ribs. I am trying Berger 190 VLDs this hunting season on Moose Elk and whitetails. Blowing up inside the lungs is not an acceptable performance.

 

[bdyal1972]

SOUNDS PERFECT!!!

EXCEPT

for a bear head on

Texas heart shot

I would love that bullet at 3/4 moa or better and not change a thing

 

[Allen Kitts]

I have been shooting Berger's for years in my 7mm LRM and in a 7mm STW before that. I think that what you got was exactly what they were designed for, as much internal hemorrhaging as possible. Elk are amazing animals. I shot a very large bodied bull a few years back at 250 yards quartering away. I put the crosshairs on the third rib back which gave me the path to the offside shoulder and pulled the trigger. You could hear the whack and the bull slightly hunched at the report but just stood there. I knew he was hit but when I shot the first time he turned facing straight away so there was no place for a follow up shot. He was in the open so I was not worried about him getting away. After about thirty seconds he starting wobbling and then fell over. When I gutted him out the lungs were just mush and I had taken out the top of the heart, lungs totally gelled but not a scratch on the offside. I have no idea how he stood there that long but it just goes to the fortitude of game animals. Congrats on your success.

 

[GERDES G]

A

 

[SidecarFlip]

I'm going to make sure this doesn't start out the wrong way, so lets be clear, I shot an cow elk on Saturday from 200 yards with a berger bullet, she is very dead and died quickly. My family will enjoy the meat!

Now, the details: Im shooting a 7mm Mag with 180 Berger Hybrids at 2990 fps. I've shot 2 cow elk, 1 deer, 1 bear, and 1 antelope with this load but most those were 500+ yard shots. This shot was 200 yards broadside and I put it about 1/3 up and 4" behind the crease, perfect double lung. After the shot she immediately went behind a ridge out of sight and piled up about 100 yards out, furthest I've seen one go with this bullet. What really surprised me was there wasn't even a scratch on the offside ribcage from the bullet, it completely blew up inside the lungs, not sure how she even made it 100 yards. It was very cold and windy so I didn't stick around looing for fragments but I confirmed it liquidated the lungs. The bullet isn't near as explosive at longer range in my experience, but is this pretty normal for shots 300 yards and in?

I use Berger VLD's at all ranges and have for years (with proper bullet prep, making sure the Meplat hole is open and not deformed at all by either using a Whidden bullet pointing die or 'reaming' the hole with a small drill with the pill chucked in a collet in one of my precision lathes. By ranges, I mean from 100 yards to 500 yards with my 308 which is my preferred rifle anyway. For the longer stuff, a 338 Lapua with prepped VLD's as well but for anything close in (under 100 yards) I use my 460 scoped S&W revolver with Hornady 452, 280 grain FMJHP's (where permissible). Never had an expansion issue in 30 years.

 

[GERDES G]

This guy took two 156 grain Bergers at 50 yards on Saturday. Liquified lungs and peppered offside rib cage but nothing broke through muscle on offside. He went 10 yards maybe and that was from sliding. Lungs poured out the rib cage holes when I was removing rib meat.
View attachment 155384

Did you shoot him while he was playing with friends in a mud-puddle!?!? That is just mean! Haha.
I really just wanted to say "that is a pretty gun you got there!"

 

[new forest]

Has anyone used either accidentally or on purpose Berger hunting bullets as they are meant to be tougher than the hunting bullets and what results did you achieve?

 

[Ronald W Schaefer]

So, I still prefer bonded or solid coppers just because I haven't quite decided I like the "blow up bullets" yet and I always try for the heart shot...I changed that to my preferred shot at the advice of German Foresters guiding me on red stag hunts a few years in Germany. Also less meat loss...always. That said, I did harvest a nice big bodied 5X6 at 500 yds, one shot kill DRT with a 180 gr Berger and 7mm RM in northern New Mexico few years back. Shot was little high and went between heart and lungs.

 

[morepowder]

Yes, Berger 180 gr Hybrids explode on impact at anything less than 300 yards when shooting 2900fps MV or more. I personally do not use Berger any longer do to this problem. Had a British Columbia hunt and had to shoot a Billy Goat 4 times at 110 yards to kill it. During gutting found just small pieces of the copper jackets that basically disintegration upon impact. Started using the Barnes 168 gr LRX in my 28 Nosler and these hit like a freight train and close to 100 percent weight retention at any distance out to 800 yards.

 

[GERDES G]

I know this is a different bullet and also 2 different animals but I had the same experience a couple years ago.
28 Nosler 140gr Nosler E-Tips
Antelope at 250 yards blew lungs up and half of heart was gone. But I did have an exit wound.
1 week later, Bull Elk 470 yards just behind the left shoulder (actually got into it about 1-1/2 — 2") bullet stopped at the skin just in front of right shoulder (got about 1/4" of that shoulder). After I got home and cleaned all the gunk from the bullet it weighed 134gr. There was considerable damage to the lungs but not blown to pink soupy goo.
So I think the bullet did what it was supposed to on both animals, at both velocities and ranges.
I am no keyboard expert. I am no expert right outside my back door of my house to my range. But I have shot a lot. I agree with a lot of people. I think your bullet did what it was supposed to at that range and speed.
Congrats on your success!!

 

[GERDES G]

Has anyone used either accidentally or on purpose Berger hunting bullets as they are meant to be tougher than the hunting bullets and what results did you achieve?

Did you mean target bullets? Or some other bullet?