Specific Hornady ELD-X Performance

[trailerdon]

I have had my share of trouble with hornady bullets disintegrating "total fragmentation"
and no longer use them for hunting, with the exception of the GMX bullet. I do not want to start the lead vs copper controversy, but this bullet fly's true, hits hard and always gets a pass through. I am 6 for 6 on DRT's using a 120gr GMX in my 6.5 cm.
Although my Creedmoor does shoot a little better long range with the heavier bullets, it still shoots a .3 group a 100 yards with the lighter GMX.
I used a 140 Swift A-frame this season for the time and had excellent results, 2 for 2 drt.

 

[RH300UM]

Shot placement, Shot placement, Shot placement
555 yards 180 ELD- M
Complete pass through

 

[rharfo]

so.... do I continue to use the 175 ELDX in my 7 Dakota or switch to the 180ELDM for Elk/bear?
Killed a whitetail at short range this year with the ELDX , it died in its tracks, might have been from the muzzle blast.. 50 yards

 

[Kooz7]

Are you using the plain Accubond or ABLR?
I've heard a lot of reports about the ABLR being exolosive[/QUOTE]

I am using the plain Accubond

 

[bigngreen]

I bow hunt also and have very good luck taking the same shot with my rifle I would with my bow, in fact it works every time!
If you watch YouTube you see guys hammering elk in the shoulder, they shoot high and go over the spine, shoot low and smake the heaviest bon in an entire elk, then FINALLY they put one behind the shoulder and like magic they stummble and dies. It's like the YouTube elk killing theme!!
Elk can take a hit and be tough IF you try shooting through the heaviest bone on them. I saw a beautiful 320 class bull absalutly destroyed by a young girl with a 243 and shot placement through the slats. I've watched my own bonded and mono bullets from a 300 WBY leave an elk with a broken shoulder on multiple elk till I got it through my thick skull in 30 cal and below it simply does not matter what's stamped on your barrel or brand of bullet you put in YOUR shot placement is all that makes it an elk killing machine.

 

[twister]

i put 2 7mm eld x 162 through a good mule deer they didn't expand much at 360 yards and just over 200. The deer was shot 4" behind the the close leg exiting through the offside leg and appearing to get the top of the heart. the offside leg shattered and was hanging by a shred. the deer didn't react to the shot much seemed like i missed but as he walked could see the offside dragging waited over 5 minutes for an opportunity to put the second one through him and he folded up.


next day put one through a 80" antelope at 420 yards and it did give a good result for heart lung shot. took 8 slow steps and fell over. maybe 2" exit.

so i don't know what to make of this one bad and one good experience. Going to try some 180 bergers or stick with the 6.5x284

 

[WalksLikeADeer]

7mm Rem Mag, 168VLD-Hunting, 3030fps

It was 405 yards, and he had us pinned down. He froze, slightly quartering to me. I must have hugged too far into the crease...he hunched up on the first shot. I bolted the next one in, and when I shot the guy with me said it looked good.

Found a little blood that night, but backed out until morning. The next day we followed the blood trail, but it ran out quickly. Three weeks later I was texted a PhoneSkope video of the bull...he was up feeding and wouldn't put his left foot on the ground. His left shoulder looked very swollen and completely blown up.

I never got the bull, so all I can do is speculate based on the info I have (which is a little dangerous). It appeared from the video I was sent I hit the shoulder too far forward and the bullets didn't get enough penetration and stopped in the shoulder.

Wow! That's a tough one. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Bob Wright]

So, for those who have been fortunate enough to drill a heart shot on any animal ( me included) at any distance, according to this shot placement graphic, there is no room for error if one targets just a heart shot. Isn't the entire lung cavity (including the heart) truly the center-mass zone in which we hope to place a shot and not targeting only the heart? In this case, the heart is a low hit, in the kill zone and effective. Notice the bone structure below and forward. Sure, many of us have hit heart shots but it's not something I focus on. It's the hydraulic shock that dismantles lungs, arteries. That's what I rely on. I can miss center of mass of this kill zone by quite a bit, but not the heart which occupies only the lower right 1/4th of this zone. Lower or more forward of the heart is just an injured animal. I won't do a heart shot on purpose. I called my last one, "lucky" after a sigh of relief he went down quickly and I found the heart destroyed.

 

[DavidleeCole]

My experience with Berger's out if my .300 weatherby mag has been a libe hate relationship. First I have shot 3 whitetail deer one doe and two bucks all broad side at sub 120 yard shots with 185gr Berger classic hunter around 3135 fps. Only one buck recovered the other a year after found his rack 3/4 mile from where he was shot 700 yards from last blood spot when he doubled back (bad story). Needless to say all great the hits heavy blood and even bone fragments on the trail. Seems that the bullets did not stay together at close range just fraged after striking bone. Another buck I won't count same shot placement I took down with my 357 mag when he ran by but I knew that was going to happen when I shot him. This year I went to the 185 juggernaut (I know a match bullet) and took a buck at 487 yards head shot in between eyes and had minimal damage to back side of cranial and his doe at 519 yards with a neck shot much better on the soft tissue grievous damage to the neck. I shoot many deer with 180 grain accubond and PowerPoint never made it past 20 yards of even left their tracks. Trying the 210 accubond LR this year in 2019. Lot to be said with terminal ballistics speed, range, tissue or bone and target weight versus bullet weight.

 

[bigngreen]

I wish Berger would publish a chambering recommendation, a 180 class bullet belong in a 30-06 for best result, a 300 WBY is extremely lethal with a 215 or a 230 Berger but not even remotely the best choice for the 180.
With a bullet like a Berger let the BC do the work, you really don't need or want to drive them fast, a few of the Bergers will tolerate speed in the higher ranges but it's not the best answer over all till you know the characteristics of the bullet.

 

[73driver]

one doe and two bucks all broad side at sub 120 yard shots with 185gr Berger classic hunter around 3135 fps. Only one buck recovered

Flabergasted that a 30Cal 185gr going that fast is not knocking a whitetail *** over kettle that close. Had a buddy take a whitetail with a 300WTHBY at 40 yards. Buck never flinched and took half dozen steps then flopped over. I also took my first whitetail at 50 yards with 150GR sierra out of 06. That bullet hit shoulder blade at a quarter on facing and bullet fragmented and blew bone and lead through lungs and internals behind diaphragm. I saw feet in my scope as the buck flipped over and sucker landed dead. Wow 185 that close and buck not dead??? Thats enough mass of lead and energy to cause havoc on the internals. Me wonders if a broad side hit just on edge of vitals???

 

[DavidleeCole]

I gotta heavy blood trail for 200 yards and a small hand full of bone fragments he laid down then I did not listen to my buddy to sit n wait dude to the amount of blood. And pushed him up and got him moving again that's when we trailed then lost him I had a very good shoulder shot so very comfortable it hit his sholder bone. I don't shoot for that shot any longer just place the same like a bow shot. The 165 sst I shot a buck at 45 yards and her ran 90 yards into the brush bullet did not go clean through so no blood trail but did massage damage inside of the chest. The accubond and power point have always made pass through shots and dropped the deer quick. I wonder if bullet weight, construction and body weight has a big factor in the terminal performance of the round. To heavey a bullet on light animal and thick jacket at high speed does not dump its energy effectively or light bullet on heavy animal an thin jacket fast speed just blows up. I am not sure but I see things like this.

 

[zcarglen]

I have shot elk, antelope and mulies with the Berger 168 and 180 Vld hunting from 2 different 7MM RM rifles. They all expired quickly with massive frag wounding. They are just not good for breaking down heavy shoulder bones and passing thru vitals on its path. Broadside chest shots behind the shoulder are reliable from 40 yards out. My longest shot was 300, broadside on antelope. No pass thru but DRT. If all my animals are broadside, it works fine but they don't line up like that at my request. Quartering shots are where the Bergers start having terminal performance issues i.m.o. I switched to Accubonds, but haven't been able to hit something yet to report. Hornady eld's sounds like similar issues to Bergers in this thread.
The old Remington core locked bullets in factory cartridges always smashed any critter I took with them, at any angle, but I went with and chased accuracy and speed with the latest offerings. Maybe older designs, worked in the shorter range shots and we have super accurate trade offs to make when using the latest and greatest accuracy at long distance and, terminal performance issues are falling to second place in some offerings. My head is swimming with the tradeoffs we have to consider today. I want my critters down fast. I want to punch paper at long distance. Maybe that is the best approach, hunting or punching paper, different loads for each. No easy answer.

You have summed up my own thoughts exactly! At the risk of making this thread into an Accubond commercial, I'm switching also. I look forward to your results, bro.

 

[sharprs]

I had a bad experience with a 7mm and Berger 168 on an elk. He was slightly quartering toward me, and I put two into him. Based off sightings on private a few weeks later, it appeared I hugged too far forward and they didn't get past the shoulder...

I had a 30 Nosler built for other reasons, but that elk was in the back of my mind. I am currently using 212 ELD-X with great accuracy at about 3070. I took three antelope and a mule deer this year with great results, I want other's experience.

What have you seen with the 212 or other ELD-X on larger game like elk or bigger?

I had a bad experience with a 7mm and Berger 168 on an elk. He was slightly quartering toward me, and I put two into him. Based off sightings on private a few weeks later, it appeared I hugged too far forward and they didn't get past the shoulder...

I had a 30 Nosler built for other reasons, but that elk was in the back of my mind. I am currently using 212 ELD-X with great accuracy at about 3070. I took three antelope and a mule deer this year with great results, I want other's experience.

What have you seen with the 212 or other ELD-X on larger game like elk or bigger?

I have been using the elf x in 162 in my 7mm having very good luck with them shot my elk two years ago at 350 through both shoulders this year shot my elk at 600 never took a step also very accurate to a 1000 yards on stick rifle begoing out to hopefully 1500 this summer really like the bullet