Best Mono Bullet for Hunting/Effective Kills

[Macintosh]

Off topic….mostly. ^^perhaps thats true, but this punishes the voters that ARE on your side and rewards the voters who are making it hard for your company with exactly what they wanted. If theres a legit risk that a maker of an inert chunk of copper—an unloaded bullet, and a non-toxic one at that—will get sued or has to jump thru expensive hoops to do business in that state, I get it…but 99% of the time when I hear of this sort of thing its pure ignorance and “cutting your own nose off to spite your face” kind of logic. I know several states prohibit loaded ammo from shipping in to an individual, maybe something there applies? I know my brother in NY gets bullets shipped to him even though he cant get loaded ammo shipped to him. Maybe there is some legality around shipping those projectiles that applies to their construction but not other bullets?Outside the firearms business—and unloaded bullets questionably doesnt even fit into that category—California is a royal pain to do business with via ecommerce in general, but its far easier than colorado from where I sit. I agree its some first-class ignorance on DRT’s part until theres a legit explanation for why they cant ship unloaded bullets into california.

 

[SDHNTR]

Off topic….mostly. ^^perhaps thats true, but this punishes the voters that ARE on your side and rewards the voters who are making it hard for your company with exactly what they wanted. If theres a legit risk that a maker of an inert chunk of copper—an unloaded bullet, and a non-toxic one at that—will get sued or has to jump thru expensive hoops to do business in that state, I get it…but 99% of the time when I hear of this sort of thing its pure ignorance and “cutting your own nose off to spite your face” kind of logic. I know several states prohibit loaded ammo from shipping in to an individual, maybe something there applies? I know my brother in NY gets bullets shipped to him even though he cant get loaded ammo shipped to him. Maybe there is some legality around shipping those projectiles that applies to their construction but not other bullets?Outside the firearms business—and unloaded bullets questionably doesnt even fit into that category—California is a royal pain to do business with via ecommerce in general, but its far easier than colorado from where I sit. I agree its some first-class ignorance on DRT’s part until theres a legit explanation for why they cant ship unloaded bullets into california.

Exactly. It’s just pure ignorance and or laziness/unwillingness to educate themselves on the law.

 

[DagOtto]

Good info- I didnt know that there was variability in minimum recommended impact velocity between different calibers of the same bullet! That makes it even harder for a consumer to make wise decisions about caliber, velocity and distance! Thanks for this info.

Why? There’s absolutely no law prohibiting direct shipping of bullets to CA. Everyone else does it without issue. Their policy is pure ignorance.

It seems to me that their business is not focused on retail or hunting. Others on this forum have reported that they focus on the military / law enforcement world and that business keeps them busy.

I do find myself wishing someone would license this same technology and make a "real" run at manufacturing a line of hunting bullets aimed at maximizing wound channel creation on big game with non-lead.. I get it though, it would be an uphill battle to educate the hunting consumer just as others have said about ELD-M as a hunting bullet etc.

 

[z987k]

I do find myself wishing someone would license this same technology and make a "real" run at manufacturing a line of hunting bullets aimed at maximizing wound channel creation on big game with non-lead.. I get it though, it would be an uphill battle to educate the hunting consumer just as others have said about ELD-M as a hunting bullet etc.

I was just thinking this the other day. Something like the federal terminal ascent mixed with the drt tech in a tipped higher bc line would be awesome.

 

[bmart2622]

Why? There’s absolutely no law prohibiting direct shipping of bullets to CA. Everyone else does it without issue. Their policy is pure ignorance.

Wait.. you're a CA resident??

 

[SDHNTR]

It seems to me that their business is not focused on retail or hunting. Others on this forum have reported that they focus on the military / law enforcement world and that business keeps them busy.

I do find myself wishing someone would license this same technology and make a "real" run at manufacturing a line of hunting bullets aimed at maximizing wound channel creation on big game with non-lead.. I get it though, it would be an uphill battle to educate the hunting consumer just as others have said about ELD-M as a hunting bullet etc.

Interesting. Another strike against them. I want to do biz with companies that know and embrace hunting and hunters.

 

[DagOtto]

@DagOtto Your list didn't mention G9 Defense. Their Long Range Hunter series sheds brass petals. In my experience on two sheep last year, the terminal performance was awesome. The only reason I am not using them this year as I have moved from 6.5 down to 6 & 223, which they do not make a bullet in.

6.5 Creedmoor 113gr Long Range Hunter

G9 Defense | Innovation in Ammunition. Whether for hunting, self-defense, or duty, our patented designs ensure you are prepared for the most critical moments. Discover our External Hollow Point, Woodsman, and lead-free hunting lines, designed for superior performance and reliability. Trust G9...

g9defense.com

I hadnt heard of this bullet. Thanks for the add. I will edit my list

 

[jzeblaz]

DRT pisses me off. The biggest non-lead market in the country is of course California. Yet they won’t ship their bullets here. Just dumb.

That's not exactly true, they will send them to an FFL. My FFL didn't even charge me for the service of receiving them and handing them to me (I was buying a rifle anyway). I reached out to DRT to get clarity on their policy and they said the DOJ doesn't explicitly say they can ship projectiles to CA. I contacted the DOJ and they are as vague as you'd expect, also not confirming that they can be shipped. DRT are concerned about being fined. A more valid concern is so much of their product is out-of-stock on their site.

 

[amassi]

That's not exactly true, they will send them to an FFL. My FFL didn't even charge me for the service of receiving them and handing them to me (I was buying a rifle anyway). I reached out to DRT to get clarity on their policy and they said the DOJ doesn't explicitly say they can ship projectiles to CA. I contacted the DOJ and they are as vague as you'd expect, also not confirming that they can be shipped. DRT are concerned about being fined. A more valid concern is so much of their product is out-of-stock on their site.

What a crock
They also don’t explicitly say you cant ship projectiles.
They very explicitly say Ammunition( which is defined in the law) must be sent to a FFL. Projectiles aren’t ammunition under California law nor anyone’s interpretation of ammunition.


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[JFK]

DRT is the only entity that takes this approach to shipping component bullets into CA. The rules are not vague, nor is DRT stepping into any legal gray area by shipping to people’s door. When the likes of Midway, Bass Pro, etc will ship bullets to your door you can be damn sure that a lawyer has confirmed what the law is and isn’t. Pretty odd business practice to self impose a rule that stops you from selling to the single biggest retail consumer.

I’ve tried calling DRT and emailed them several times and never heard back.

Then again, the readily available monos work just fine.

 

[fuzzymarindave]

DRT is the only entity that takes this approach to shipping component bullets into CA. The rules are not vague, nor is DRT stepping into any legal gray area by shipping to people’s door. When the likes of Midway, Bass Pro, etc will ship bullets to your door you can be damn sure that a lawyer has confirmed what the law is and isn’t. Pretty odd business practice to self impose a rule that stops you from selling to the single biggest retail consumer.

I’ve tried calling DRT and emailed them several times and never heard back.

Then again, the readily available monos work just fine.

Getting great results with Barnes and Hammer bullets. Shipped right to doorstep without issue.

 

[SDHNTR]

What a crock
They also don’t explicitly say you cant ship projectiles.
They very explicitly say Ammunition( which is defined in the law) must be sent to a FFL. Projectiles aren’t ammunition under California law nor anyone’s interpretation of ammunition.


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Exactly. I can buy directly from Hammer. Or any of the retail outlets online and they’ll ship me any bullet I want. DRT is copping out. Their loss.

 

[SDHNTR]

DRT is the only entity that takes this approach to shipping component bullets into CA. The rules are not vague, nor is DRT stepping into any legal gray area by shipping to people’s door. When the likes of Midway, Bass Pro, etc will ship bullets to your door you can be damn sure that a lawyer has confirmed what the law is and isn’t. Pretty odd business practice to self impose a rule that stops you from selling to the single biggest retail consumer.

I’ve tried calling DRT and emailed them several times and never heard back.

Then again, the readily available monos work just fine.

Precisely!

 

[JFK]

Getting great results with Barnes and Hammer bullets. Shipped right to doorstep without issue.

Same.

 

[SDHNTR]

Same.

Same x2

 

[Leaf Litter]

If dropping an animal in its tracks is your only metric for success, then any copper bullet will work with a brain/spine/high shoulder shot. I don't consider an animal moving after the shot to be a failure unless the damage done is insufficient to kill it in a short time period.

My 2024 elk dropped in its tracks with a high-shoulder shot from my 141 HHT, but after seeing bullet performance, I'm confident it would have killed it with a conventional heart or lung shot, it just may have ran first.

 

[cubdriver84d]

Yesterday I shot another animal with my 6.5 Creedmore and non-lead ammo. This time it was the 135 Grain DRT bullet, shooting their factory load. Muzzle velocity of @2600 FPS.

White tail doe presented herself right at dusk. Shot was 165 yards. Once again, I'm not super proud of my shooting as my shot was forward and high @ 6". I shot sitting/unsupported though, so understandable.
Impact velocity calcs to right around 2350.

Bullet entered in the left scapula, and exited right scapula leaving a 2.5" dia exit wound on the way out. It was a bang flop with the damage to spine and CNS devastating. Heart was intact and lungs appeared pretty good as well although it was getting dark so I wasn't super thorough in my necropsy.

I think the notable take-away from this less than ideal shot placement is the size of the wound channel that was created in such a thin part of the animal. Clearly, the bullet expands drastically.

DO

There’s a thread going on drt terminal performance. Maybe add this report there if you don’t mind.

DRT Terminal shock results on game

Is anyone shooting DRT Terminal Shock on game and does anyone have any first hand knowledge of how the performed? Pictures? Testimonials etc….??

rokslide.com

 

[35WhelenAI]

It’s probably only a matter of time before we’re all forced to shoot mono’s. I don’t mind - they work pretty good in a fast stepping cartridge, but the hole isn’t huge so I’ve always felt a step up in caliber isnt a bad idea.

You just hit on something about caliber, albeit I didn't see the post until now... I've used the X, TSX, TTSX as they evolved for the past 30 years. My go to deer/elk round is the 35 Whelen AI for the past 22 of those 30 yrs. The few expanded bullets recovered were .735" across the petals.

My experience is mostly from a mid-bore .358 bullet, but a decent number of deer, elk, pronghorn have been taken with a 270 Win, 280 Rem , 30-06 and 300 Win as well with a wide range of bullet weights, but typically going "light for caliber" on weight.

The Whelen does have more visible effect at impact, which one would expect with any bullet choice, IMO. But the simple idea to not only go lighter in weight (speed) but additionally step up a caliber makes sense in the context of this discussion.