Disappointed with the Berger 156 grain EOL

Jeremy R Snyder said:
Just had the same experience with Berger. I took a coyote with a 22-250 at 190 yards using the VLD Hunting 55 grain. Perfect shot on the dog, hit right behind the shoulder. Dog was quartering away so projectile should have went straight out the brisket or hit the opposite shoulder. Projectile hit and came out by guts on opposite side. Dog ran almost 300 yards, luckily we had snow or it would have never been recovered. Worst part about this, part of the jacket was found right at the impact site!! Never have I seen this before and although they shoot dimes I don't think I will be using them for hunting anymore. Should also mention load used was 38 grains of H380 and these run 3520fps out of my Rem so no where's near pushing them too fast imo.
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I just read this article and it may explain what happened to you, its possible that was a fragment that exited the other side.

"High velocity is not however a sole factor to be worshipped and held above other factors. For example, if velocity is increased too far without increasing bullet weight, the surface tension of water within the animal can cause so much resistance as to overcome the energy of the bullet. Ultra-high velocities can then also lead to shallow penetration"

If you haven't read this article I highly suggest it.

Effective Game Killing

Effective game killing- How bullets kill and where to aim to ensure a fast clean kill.
www.ballisticstudies.com
 
longleaf_sandhills said:
I just read this article and it may explain what happened to you, its possible that was a fragment that exited the other side.

"High velocity is not however a sole factor to be worshipped and held above other factors. For example, if velocity is increased too far without increasing bullet weight, the surface tension of water within the animal can cause so much resistance as to overcome the energy of the bullet. Ultra-high velocities can then also lead to shallow penetration"

If you haven't read this article I highly suggest it.

Effective Game Killing

Effective game killing- How bullets kill and where to aim to ensure a fast clean kill.
www.ballisticstudies.com
Click to expand...
I'd argue that bullet weight has far less to do with that equation than bullet construction but overall that's a really good article.
 
longleaf_sandhills said:
I just read this article and it may explain what happened to you, its possible that was a fragment that exited the other side.

"High velocity is not however a sole factor to be worshipped and held above other factors. For example, if velocity is increased too far without increasing bullet weight, the surface tension of water within the animal can cause so much resistance as to overcome the energy of the bullet. Ultra-high velocities can then also lead to shallow penetration"

If you haven't read this article I highly suggest it.

Effective Game Killing

Effective game killing- How bullets kill and where to aim to ensure a fast clean kill.
www.ballisticstudies.com
Click to expand...
Oh no, not another of Nathan's articles. :cool:
:p:D
 
longleaf_sandhills said:
"High velocity is not however a sole factor to be worshipped and held above other factors. For example, if velocity is increased too far without increasing bullet weight, the surface tension of water within the animal can cause so much resistance as to overcome the energy of the bullet. Ultra-high velocities can then also lead to shallow penetration"
Click to expand...
Brace yourself!😇
 
DJ Fergus said:
I think the chances of you not being able to find a deer after a good shot with the 156 are small but not impossible. I do fully understand your concern. Try a 147 eld. You may like it. I've been satisfied with them. You probably won't have as many instantaneous kills with the 147 as a Berger @ 2860mv. I do think the 147 eldm will give you just a small amount more penetration. They certainly won't penetrate like a mono or bonded.
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Your chances are greater than you think. I'm not sure what good the 156 is. As a very high BC bullet it bucks the wind better and was supposedly designed for long range hunting. My experience with them is limited to a 6.5PRC at 2900ish. Shooting coues deer and smaller bodied mule deer they are devastating under 300 yards
Much meat ruined , big exits and dead animals. 300 to 600ish they work perfect. Beyond 600 they do NOT expand and punch right through. I have shot a lot of stuff with my 6.5-284 using various 140 grain bullets that had good performance to 800 yards.

What is the niche for the 156? It isn't good for hunting even as far as the 140 Berger or 143 ELD-X
It is overly destructive at close range. Why would you choose this bullet? I have had good luck with the 143 ELD-X at 200 yards on big bull elk. The BC is lower but it has infinitely better terminal performance.

I have killed and seen killed way too many animals with Berger bullets to ever claim they're not good hunting bullets. The 156, however, is a very poor hunting bullet.
 
dennisinaz said:
Your chances are greater than you think. I'm not sure what good the 156 is. As a very high BC bullet it bucks the wind better and was supposedly designed for long range hunting. My experience with them is limited to a 6.5PRC at 2900ish. Shooting coues deer and smaller bodied mule deer they are devastating under 300 yards
Much meat ruined , big exits and dead animals. 300 to 600ish they work perfect. Beyond 600 they do NOT expand and punch right through. I have shot a lot of stuff with my 6.5-284 using various 140 grain bullets that had good performance to 800 yards.

What is the niche for the 156? It isn't good for hunting even as far as the 140 Berger or 143 ELD-X
It is overly destructive at close range. Why would you choose this bullet? I have had good luck with the 143 ELD-X at 200 yards on big bull elk. The BC is lower but it has infinitely better terminal performance.

I have killed and seen killed way too many animals with Berger bullets to ever claim they're not good hunting bullets. The 156, however, is a very poor hunting bullet.
Click to expand...
I shoot the 147 eld. It has performed well for me on deer. I get good accuracy with it as well. There are definitely some anti Hornady bullet folks on this site but I'm not one of them.
 
FEENIX said:
Asking for a friend, does the tip increases the BC or not?

View attachment 338509



Check out starting at the 50-minute mark.
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Brother Ed…. I have a bunch in 7mm 115 gr raptors. They are yours if you wish to give them a try. On skinny lanky sheep and goats I've used them on, they just blow right through. I've since switched to Nosler 120gr ballistic tips and have perfect results. Aloha brother
 
B-LOT Banga said:
Brother Ed…. I have a bunch in 7mm 115 gr raptors. They are yours if you wish to give them a try. On skinny lanky sheep and goats I've used them on, they just blow right through. I've since switched to Nosler 120gr ballistic tips and have perfect results. Aloha brother
Click to expand...
I second your comment on the Nosler ballistic tips, except in 180 gr.
 

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