Explain This Please

[LRNut]

I watched the video a few times and here are my comments:

1. The hit was at the very top of the antelope; I can't see how any of you think it hit below the spine. The fact it crouched low tells me it was a high grazing shot.
2. If it did hit below the spine in no man's land, it would have dropped like a sack of potatoes but then jumped to his feet with a minute or so. This has happened to me twice: once on a kudu in (PH said "stop shooting - he's dead"). Did not recover that animal. Happened on a moose in AK at 325 yards; I was shooting a .375 HH and had only taken a few practice shots at 300, thinking I would be shooting it close after calling it in. That moose dropped instantly, but after about 2 minutes got up. Follow up killed it.
3. Any sound from the bullet hitting? i would think a gut shot would make an audible "thwap" - or even a shot in no man's land.
4. I shot an antelope last year with a 300 Berger at 140 or so yards. Put a 2.5 inch exit hole right thru the lungs. Still ran about 150 yards.

Question Bozoben: how often do you shoot at 800 yards? A 500 yard shot is so much easier than 800 yards it isn't funny. And for the guys who say antelope are dunk shot at 1000 yards plus, I say ********. The wind alone will change enough in the TOF to cause a miss.

 

[Raudy707]

@sp6x6 That is a cool experiment. It punched clean thru the big ball joint but shattered the backside and entire femur? 338 packs a wallop!! Impressive.

 

[dogz]

Bozeben, the first pic the still pic was that before the shot or after?

 

[bozoben]

Guys correct me if I'm wrong but can't we see the bullet strike here about an inch or so above where the white meets the tan

Yes. That is what you are seeing there, confirmed by a better resolution video than you are able to see through the upload.

 

[CHAGA50]

View attachment 303682This is an antelope that I shot at the other day. The shot was 800 yards on the button. I am shooting a 338 rum pushing 300 grain Berger EH's. This is the first antelope I have shot at with this setup. I was expecting different results to say the least.

I made the shot and he took off. Initially I thought I missed. After reviewing the video I realized I put a pretty decent hit on him. He ran over the back side of the ridge so I figured he would be toast just out of sight. I walked over to retrieve him and as I crested the ridge he was on, I saw him on the next ridge back, over 1k yards away, with the same 3 does. I got a look at the exit side and there was a good stream of blood all down his Left side to confirm the hit and placement. He went up and over and I figured I would leave him for the night.

The next morning at daylight i was back with a buddy to recover him, as I was sure he would be toast. After a bit of hiking around sure enough there he was, running down a ridge a couple hundred yards away. Into a draw and up and over another ridge. Then up and over another. I could see blood stains all down his entry side which confirmed he was the same one.
I did not get an opportunity for another shot. I continued hiking in the direction he went and hiked and glasses for the next couple hours with no luck finding him. At that point he was alive and appeared to be doing just fine. Neither one of us were able to locate him again.

I have attached a link to a video as well as a screenshot of the impact frame.



From the more experienced guys, whats the consensus here? Too far back? Too high? Bullet did not perform properly? Antelope did not have enough mass to instigate terminal performance? Ex-con goat who was just downright tough as nails?

I must say I was expecting more of a bang flop type of scenario on an antelope with this rifle.

I would like to know where I went wrong.

Buddy you found yourself one of them there Arnold Goats !
They are a genetic highbred that bullets cant kill !
Your only option is a 40mm grenade launcher

 

[dogz]

So that pic was taken post shot and that is where the bullet entered correct?

 

[bozoben]

Bozeben, the first pic the still pic was that before the shot or after?

The still pic is a frame out of the video as the bullet is impacting. The dark mark you see just above the horizontal white/tan line is the bullet impacting the animal. This is a fact, not a speculation. He video I have is significantly better resolution than what you are able to see through the uploaded video.
Unfortunately I don't know how to get you all a better res video.

 

[dogz]

Gotcha thanks best of luck on your cow hunt. Lots of places have plenty of white out there already...

 

[JAYgs8163]

Well it sounds like you are sure where you hit him , so it was a complete pass through about 6" behind the shoulder and 8" below his spine and he's okay. The bullet missed the ribs, all vitals, blew a bunch of fur out his backside. All I can say is that's one tough goat if that's what happened. I see it differently but oh well. I've watched the video numerous times and don't see the bullet trace anywhere near that spot. Also at the 2 second and 1 second freeze there is no sign of that spot but that doesn't surprise me either. It's all a guess at this point.

 

[orkan]

Interesting. My experience not aligned with this though I already have some guesses as to why…in my experience on whitetail deer the 270 kills notably faster than the .243, but my .300 win mag definitely has a real world benefit over the .270. I know individual animals do have different amounts of "will to live" as well but it's still been my experience that the sub .30 cals are more likely to "reveal" these tenacious examples of a given species haha. Maybe I've just been lucky with my .300 and unlucky with my .270 but I've never had one go more than 40 yards with the big .30 and have had more than one go beyond 400 yards with the 270 (and that's not including the story I shared earlier, these were solidly hit animals, one of them had a hole in its heart we discovered upon field dressing!). I don't get it when I hear people (usually older hunters which makes this even more confusing to me) say that the cartridge doesn't even matter, it's all about shot placement. Obviously shot placement is the most important thing, but with conventional chest shots I really have observed that as a rule the more horsepower the quicker the death. I suppose the older hunters I know that say this are also men who have often used exactly one centerfire cartridge for all their hunting career (and it's almost always a .308 or a .30-06). Bullet construction matters too no doubt, and I agree with you absolutely that a 300 grain 338 on a pronghorn very well may just poke a hole and not upset at all, but that bit about 7mm and under doing better just hasn't been my experience at all. Note as well I'm definitely not arguing your experience, just sharing mine.

Now as to my theory as to why our experiences don't match…I live in northern Saskatchewan (well geographically about the middle of it haha). Do you thing the possibly larger body mass of the deer here, but more so the ultra thick layer of fur and fat they have on by late November in preparation for harsh winters, changes the game when it comes to larger than 7mms performing as well, or better, than smaller calibers?

I'm not sure. You're not that far north of me. I'm in South Dakota. This is a land of 250-300lb mule deer as well. Plenty cold here and they've got plenty of fur by deer season. I remember back in 2012 punching 3 separate 338LM holes through a mule deer that is now on my wall. Two shots landed within an inch of its heart at 945yds... The 3rd shot finally dropped it in its tracks. That was when I gave up on 30 and 338cal for deer. Been light-switching animals with 7mm ever since and I'm one happy dude.

You can kill deer with a 22lr. You can kill deer with a 460 weatherby magnum. However, I do tend to think there are "right" tools for each job.

 

[257 wea]

The bullet traced and dropped right at the top middle of the back just missing the spine. Probably just under the skin and between the vertebrate An inch or 2 lower and would have broke his back and dropped him right there

I have seen antelope with a hole the size of a fist blown through them- high and just behind the lungs- that had to be tracked a long ways before being found- even though most people think they are easy to kill- in my experience they can take a lot of punishment.

 

[MountainShotz]

View attachment 303682This is an antelope that I shot at the other day. The shot was 800 yards on the button. I am shooting a 338 rum pushing 300 grain Berger EH's. This is the first antelope I have shot at with this setup. I was expecting different results to say the least.

I made the shot and he took off. Initially I thought I missed. After reviewing the video I realized I put a pretty decent hit on him. He ran over the back side of the ridge so I figured he would be toast just out of sight. I walked over to retrieve him and as I crested the ridge he was on, I saw him on the next ridge back, over 1k yards away, with the same 3 does. I got a look at the exit side and there was a good stream of blood all down his Left side to confirm the hit and placement. He went up and over and I figured I would leave him for the night.

The next morning at daylight i was back with a buddy to recover him, as I was sure he would be toast. After a bit of hiking around sure enough there he was, running down a ridge a couple hundred yards away. Into a draw and up and over another ridge. Then up and over another. I could see blood stains all down his entry side which confirmed he was the same one.
I did not get an opportunity for another shot. I continued hiking in the direction he went and hiked and glasses for the next couple hours with no luck finding him. At that point he was alive and appeared to be doing just fine. Neither one of us were able to locate him again.

I have attached a link to a video as well as a screenshot of the impact frame.



From the more experienced guys, whats the consensus here? Too far back? Too high? Bullet did not perform properly? Antelope did not have enough mass to instigate terminal performance? Ex-con goat who was just downright tough as nails?

I must say I was expecting more of a bang flop type of scenario on an antelope with this rifle.

I would like to know where I went wrong.

Saw the same thing. Looks like a high skim shot right at the top of his back.

 

[longgun505]

View attachment 303682This is an antelope that I shot at the other day. The shot was 800 yards on the button. I am shooting a 338 rum pushing 300 grain Berger EH's. This is the first antelope I have shot at with this setup. I was expecting different results to say the least.

I made the shot and he took off. Initially I thought I missed. After reviewing the video I realized I put a pretty decent hit on him. He ran over the back side of the ridge so I figured he would be toast just out of sight. I walked over to retrieve him and as I crested the ridge he was on, I saw him on the next ridge back, over 1k yards away, with the same 3 does. I got a look at the exit side and there was a good stream of blood all down his Left side to confirm the hit and placement. He went up and over and I figured I would leave him for the night.

The next morning at daylight i was back with a buddy to recover him, as I was sure he would be toast. After a bit of hiking around sure enough there he was, running down a ridge a couple hundred yards away. Into a draw and up and over another ridge. Then up and over another. I could see blood stains all down his entry side which confirmed he was the same one.
I did not get an opportunity for another shot. I continued hiking in the direction he went and hiked and glasses for the next couple hours with no luck finding him. At that point he was alive and appeared to be doing just fine. Neither one of us were able to locate him again.

I have attached a link to a video as well as a screenshot of the impact frame.



From the more experienced guys, whats the consensus here? Too far back? Too high? Bullet did not perform properly? Antelope did not have enough mass to instigate terminal performance? Ex-con goat who was just downright tough as nails?

I must say I was expecting more of a bang flop type of scenario on an antelope with this rifle.

I would like to know where I went wrong.

Basically all of the above…As a wise man once said 'It Happens'. Every once in awhile a thru&thru happens.

 

[62Highlander]

A bit high; and that 300gr. bullet never expanded would be my guess.