I've only poked 1 VLD into a whitetail. It was a 105VLD from my 243AI and was probably a worse case scenario for that bullet. The shot was under 100yds on a buck that was quartering towards me. I put it in the front of the near shoulder and the buck just folded up, never made twitch. I just knew that it would be a mess when I cut him up, but it wasn't. The bullet punched through about 2-3" and then did its thing. I'm not worried in the least that they'll work as the range gets long and some velocity is scrubbed off. This year I'm going to give them an honest try in 3 rifles. 2-243AI's and the 25-06AI. Gonna start with them in Wyoming this fall on a DIY Antelope hunt (barring we're drawn for buck tags, if not it'll be just does (grin)). Also gonna run them here for deer season and our doe tags are pretty liberal so we do get some shooting in. Give them a try and see how they work for you.