Shot a bull at just under 100 yards with the ELDX out of a 6.5 PRC. Put it right behind the shoulder, missing the large shoulder bone. He went another 100-150 yards before piling up at the bottom of the next hill. There was fresh snow on the ground...not a drop of blood until he started to go down, about 5 yards from where he died. Shot was perfect, double lung. Glad I didn't hit the shoulder on the way in since the jacket had completely separated from the lead core. I found the jacket just under the offside hide.
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No number of "Bang-flops" or DRT's really make up for what we see from these photos. I'm glad that so many of you did get instant kills because if you hadn't--what we see in these photos doesn't bode well for finding game that keep running.
Many say "If he drops on the spot, then there's no tracking to do" and they seem to think that's an acceptable trade for having no blood trail. I love Bang-flop as much as anyone, but I always want an exit hole or at very least, a whole bunch of penetration and/or bone piercing just in case he doesn't go flop on the shot.
I know soft explosive expansion often renders instant death. I know guys who love Bergers get a kick out of it. I've had my share with Nosler BT's and Hornady SST's and even Sierra Gameking SPBT. But I much prefer to have less scrambled innards and more smoking exit holes. True, they may not go down as quickly, but with a tougher controlled expansion there's no jacket loss and usually a blood trail to find your game. I won't trade finding my prey for finding them sooner. This is coming from a man who has recovered every single animal he's shot with a rifle over many years. Have found them all and God willing, hope to never let one go unrecovered.
The photos above look like an advertisement for the very reason Nosler first invented the Partition. And we have many better bonded bullets today; even some that are designed to expand at long range and still not shed their jacket. The ELD-X may kill a bunch of critters hit just right and that speaks well for the well-placed shots, but as far as terminal performance goes, it looks to be a step backwards.
God forbid that I make a poor shot, but if I do, I don't want to find no blood to follow--not where I hunt. It ain't no wide open place like Montana.