I shot an elk this year with the 6.5mm 120 HBC.
My intent is to use the Hammer bullets on antelope and meat hunts - pretty much any scenario where minimizing meat damage is a priority over a quick death. The Hammer HBC point of impact is within the zero cone of 156 Bergers, but I had to true the BC dramatically over the stated BC value. I trued at 600 yards.
On the elk, muzzle velocity was 3,000 fps and the range was around 400 yards.
I aimed just behind the shoulder and watched the impact. The elk stayed on his feet but clearly had that “sick” look. I racked a follow-up round (156 Berger) and watched through the scope waiting for it to drop. After nearly 1 minute of the elk standing in place, it took one step and I put a 156 Berger in it. The elk laid down, threw its head back, and died within seconds.
It’s difficult to assess exactly what the HBC did since I made a follow-up shot with the 156, I didn’t adjust my elevation adjustment so the 156 impacted higher, as expected. It appears the HBC fragmented as designed, but the main shank of the bullet curved while inside the chest cavity and exited the offside just above the brisket without touching the vitals enough for a reasonably quick death. I was able to recover a petal from the HBC in the offside ribs pretty much in line with my shot placement. So I’m not sure what to think. I did hit slightly lower than expected, but it also appears the bullet did not track in line with the flight path of the bullet. The same shot placement with a Berger or eld-m would have been deadly.
