Hornady ELD-X

[labrador103]

ELDx 162 have worked fine from my 7mm mag. Everything I have shot at has DRT. Seems to be working fo me.

 

[ndbwhunter]

Hmmm 2 shots, 2,dead animals exactly what's the problem with the eld x????
LOL don't understand how guys can claim
Bullet failure when the animal dies and you recover it
But I guess it's easier to blame everything else instead of admitting we either made a bad shot/
Or we should have waited for a better opportunity

I'm not saying the ELD-X is a bad bullet. It shot great, but I wasn't a fan of the way the bullet fragmented. My experience may differ from some, but I found tiny slivers of the bullet all over both animals that I shot.

 

[KineKilla]

We see this all the time on forums.

If a certain bullet doesn't kill the animal on the spot, quarter it, season it, cook it and serve it to you hot...it's a poor performer.

LOL



Obviously I say that in jest. Most of us have a certain expectation or desire for how we want a bullet to perform. I've seen the exact same bullet and load perform radically different in different scenarios. It only takes one event to create mistrust and doubt.

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[Dcoryn]

Devastating damage on a bighorn sheep ewe from a 162 grain ELD-X from a 7mm (shot was 160 yards). I was really confused by the amount of damage, I have shot several other animals (muleys, elk, whitetails) with this same bullet and didn't have anything like this happen. This shot seemed to hit the sheeps legbone and explode, but there was an exit on the offside, so I really dont know what happened. I didn't find any bullet fragments and there were very few bone fragments. It looked like I tucked a grenade under her hide though... I have shot an antelope buck and a bull elk with bullets from the same box this fall and the damage was normal...

 

[KurtR]

Killed a bull elk at a fair distance in Idaho a few days ago and the 143 eldx performed great for me.

 

[Brightwhite]

Devastating damage on a bighorn sheep ewe from a 162 grain ELD-X from a 7mm (shot was 160 yards). I was really confused by the amount of damage, I have shot several other animals (muleys, elk, whitetails) with this same bullet and didn't have anything like this happen. This shot seemed to hit the sheeps legbone and explode, but there was an exit on the offside, so I really dont know what happened. I didn't find any bullet fragments and there were very few bone fragments. It looked like I tucked a grenade under her hide though... I have shot an antelope buck and a bull elk with bullets from the same box this fall and the damage was normal...

Holy crap! That doesn't look right. I just counted up, but I have shot 11 animals with the ELDX and have never had one do that! crazy.

 

[Brightwhite]

On elk I have shot 2 with a 200gr 30 cal and a cow with the 143g 6.5 cal. All 3 were 1 shot's and Dead within a few feet. I have had really good luck with it. I did have a 7mm-08 in the Hornady Precision hunter 150g shred a little on a deer, found more shrapnel than usual, but that was I think 4 or maybe 5 seasons ago and have not had that happen again.

 

[wyosam]

Hmmm 2 shots, 2,dead animals exactly what's the problem with the eld x????
LOL don't understand how guys can claim
Bullet failure when the animal dies and you recover it
But I guess it's easier to blame everything else instead of admitting we either made a bad shot/
Or we should have waited for a better opportunity

If I was guessing, I would imagine the bullet fragments found throughout the animals. I wouldn’t call it a failure, more like an expected outcome of the ELDx, especially if its moving very fast.


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[z987k]

I shot a caribou and moose this fall with the 143gr eld-x out of a short barrel doing 2525fps at the muzzle. Both dropped where they stood. Bou at 220 yards, moose was at 80. Moose took a minute or so to die, whereas the caribou was dead before it hit the ground. Both CNS shots in the neck.

 

[bsnedeker]

I've killed 2 deer, an antelope, and an elk so far this year with 200 grain eldx out of my 300 win mag. The deer were both perfect broadside shots that dropped them on the spot...passthroughs at 200 and 275 yards, golf ball sized exit wounds.

The elk was a quick off hand shot at 80 yards, went in just under the heart and destroyed her brisket. She went about 600 yards (i bumped her out of her bed after 200 yards) and died at the end of the best blood trail I've ever seen.

The antelope.... oh boy. It was extremely windy, 300 yards. Shooting off sticks while I sit... horrible shot, hit her in the back ham. She dropped there but was moving so I ran up and finished her with a head shot. There was a football sized exit wound in that ham...no exaggeration. Hit her right in the femur and it just exploded.

That's my personal experience. Works great when I do my job. Gets it done when I screw up.

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[RMajors]

I'm with you on the noslers. I hunted with hornady bullets one time, a brand new 25-06 i didn't have time to load for, and their 117 grain sst factory load was what i could find. I shot a whitetail spike and a doe with behind shoulder shots and they did fine. The next morning I killed two small hogs with behind shoulder shots and they also did fine. That afternoon we went and checked game cams and bumped into more pigs. I shot one at close range running, about 100 lbs right in the center of shoulder and I saw a baseball size chunk of meat come out, but leave no blood trail. Not impressive, I've shot pigs up to 300 lbs with 140 Nosler bt's out of a 7mm rm through both shoulders and had them exit. I now shoot barnes bullets for hunting, but if I was going to shoot lead, they would be noslers

 

[TNhuntsman]

Shot a smaller bull at 90 yards with a 6.5 creedmoor 143 eld-x, bullet impacted at about 2500 fps and had no pass through. Bull stood for a second, then dropped and expired. Lungs were toast and 2 blood spots on the far side ribs, happy it didn't run cause it was 10 yards from the dark timber which was the backside of the ridge I was hunting.

 

[Cordellh]

Half the equation is accuracy and the other half is fragmentation, I suppose it comes down to what half you believe in more?

 

[Tradchef]

I just shot this bull monday evening with a 110 grain eld-x out of my 25-06 at 250 yards. I shot him twice with both holes basically touching behind the right shoulder. I got complete pass throughs with both. He never took a step after the first shot. Took heart and both lungs out. I'm not sure how they would preform on bone.

 

[TNKnoxville]

I had great luck this year with my setup, 300 Win Mag, 220 grain ELDX at 2795 fps, handloads. Elk was at 505 yards, sitting with a tripod, first shot heart/lung, started falling forward, second shot hit a tree!, at the third shot he was falling forward. I hit him in the spine and it passed thru and blew out his front shoulder. Both were pass thru's.

Mule deer at 100 yards, double lung, bucked backward and fell over, pass thru.

Very impressed with my first time shooting these.

 

[TNKnoxville]

Forgot the pics

 

[NYbuck]

Had a very similar experience last year on a nice bull elk in Montana. 7mm rem mag 162gr eldx. Bull was 125yards, perfect broadside shot. Let the first round go, bull just stood there. Convinced I missed I chambered another round and shoot a second time. Bull starts walking, I can see he’s bleeding, hit him with a 3rd round. At this point I can tell he’s hurting but he is still walking. Reload the gun and let #4 go, this time he goes down. Start walking towards the bull and he starts getting up, almost back on his feet. At this point he’s in some thick brush and all I had was a neck shot. Upon inspection, there were no misses. 4 shots right behind the shoulder, no exit wounds, one in the neck. This past weekend, took a whitetail at about 100yards. Bullet completely blew up, little penetration just a mess of bone fragments when I processed it. I’ll be switching bullets, not impressed by this bullet at all.

 

[ktm450]

Shooting 162’s ELD-X at 3050FPS out of 7mm RM. 3 elk all broadside. All elk dropped within 20 yards in 20 seconds or less.

384 yards bullet came apart and looked like it had been shot twice. One fragment went into the guts in an abrupt left turn and the other half “acted normal”. No bone was hit.

274 yards bullet was perfect mushroom found on opposite side. Slurred the heart/lungs.

190 yards perfect wound no recovery

I am not super impressed with the bullets, (compared to interbonds) but they are very accurate in my handloads it’s tough to switch. it is also impossible to find components these days, so like many of you I am sticking with what I have in my home inventory.

 

[kcm2]

I have a 6mm Creedmoor. I have used the 103 gr ELDX for hunting, just pronghorn so far. The round is quite accurate in mine. The first pronghorn I shot with it, perfect bullet performance at 350 yds. Looked like a partition shot, coring an apple. No. 2, hit at 100 yds, and witnessed, dropped, got up after maybe 20 seconds, spun around like a top and took off in the brush. No blood trial, looked for over an hour with 2 friends. Shot was right behind the shoulder about 2/3 of the way up according to my friend. 3rd antelope shot at 275, Ran 100 yds and dropped. Lung hit, slightly quartering toward. If that bullet penetrated 4", I'd be surprised. I've seen better penetration with 55 grain Varmageddon bullets on pronghorn. No more ELDX for me......

Hornady makes good stuff. I love the GMX on elk. But the ELDX, at least in 6mm, is too erratic for my hunts.

 

[SilentTree]

Have had similar luck with the ELD-X trying the SSTs right now