.223 for bear, mountain goat, deer, elk, and moose.

[bcmntgoathunter.]

I was in there yesterday... I didn't see those or they wouldn't have been there.
Pretty sure Jack ordered those at my request a few months ago lol

I was just in there their supplier just got 23 boxes in..... I ordered 5 thinking about ordering another 5 just so I have 1000 of them. I also have 500 of the 75 eldm 500 75 vlds and 500 80.5 berger fullbores. If my tikka 223 like them more than the 75 eldm I'll definitely get more 77s and call it a day were you the guy who ordered the 80.5 bergers lol I bought all of them for my 22 creedmore I might try im in my 223 as well but once i get a rifle set up with a bullet I rarely change it

 

[KHntr]

You didn't snag any of the 88 ELD m's I left sitting on the shelf?!? There were 4 or 5 boxes sitting there I think still. Might not be after tomorrow though...........

 

[bcmntgoathunter.]

I got nothing to shoot them in atm my 223 is a 1-8" and my 22 creedmore isn't done yet and will prob stick with the 80.5 or 75 vlds.

 

[KHntr]

I won’t feel bad tomorrow then when I snag what they have in stock. (Not that I woulda felt bad probably, but you never know lol)

 

[Veloci_Wrench]

Congrats on the kill! Was the shoulder the entry or the exit? What's the meat look like under the hide, thoughts on what kept it from taking out both lungs?

I'm still trying to wrap my mind and arms around the fragmenting smaller caliber bullets. I started using monos 30 years ago so I'm capable of bucking tradition when others say it can't work... Apologies for asking if it's too much.

Pics of the meat damage, per your request.

I normally dress, and quarter deer right away, and age everything in a fridge. This was my first time aging whole deer, with skin on. Both shoulders were bloodshot. Entry shoulder was devastated, and exit shoulder might have had some salvageable meat, but there was a lot of bloodshot behind the fascia.

You can't see it, but on the exit side, blood was trapped behind outer fascia, all the way up the scapula, with some bloodshot touching the tip of backstrap. Maybe if I had quartered right away, I could have saved more meat?

Moral of the story, shoulder shots with the 77 TMK are completely devastating, and you will have meat loss. In my case, though, totally worth it, as I couldn't risk this deer running far.

 

[JGRaider]

Uhhh.......no thanks on that bullet performance. I prefer the meat packer to make hamburger, not my bullets.

 

[Veloci_Wrench]

Uhhh.......no thanks on that bullet performance. I prefer the meat packer to make hamburger, not my bullets.

Well, like I said, it's possible I could have reduced the bloodshot from spreading by skinning and quartering immediately, but I don't know. Also, this wouldn't have happened if I shot behind shoulder.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Thanks @Veloci_Wrench for sharing those pics. Bummer the meat destruction was so high at 300+ yards with the 77 TMK. I gather you were aiming behind the shoulder but it didn't work out that way?

I wouldn't personally use a bullet of any size that has potential to do that much damage to the meat with the other options available, but as you guys know that's what I've always said.

 

[Veloci_Wrench]

Thanks @Veloci_Wrench for sharing those pics. Bummer the meat destruction was so high at 300+ yards with the 77 TMK. I gather you were aiming behind the shoulder but it didn't work out that way?

I wouldn't personally use a bullet of any size that has potential to do that much damage to the meat with the other options available, but as you guys know that's what I've always said.

No, I was aiming dead on shoulder. I needed him down quickly and visibly, as I was losing daylight quick on the north-facing slope, and he was in very steep, brushy terrain. I'd rather have a blown up shoulder, than a lost deer.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Gotcha.