Well That Was Overkill - 6.5 PRC and Whitetail

[Lando]

Barnes 6.5 PRC Ammo - Tested - Guns and Ammo

Made to match standards and loaded with the accurate, tough and deep-penetrating 127-grain LRX bullet, Barnes's new 6.5 PRC load is outstanding for all game. For hunters, this new 6.5 PRC cartridge is truly adequate for elk.

www.gunsandammo.com

 

[KineKilla]

Woah that’s a heck of an exit. I used the 7mm Rem Mag with a 162gr ELD-X on my first buck at 198yds. It sure didn’t look anything like that. Granted I didn’t hit the shoulder, it was a lung & heart shot but the bullet was found in the hide on the offside.

I would expect a 162gr from a 7mm @ 198yds to exit and barely slow down. Seems like these long range bullets (eld-x, lr-x, ablr) all grenade on impact if the speed is still considerable. That is what I would expect from a soft pointed projectile designed to open at lower velocities.

I will stick with my accubonds, partitions and barnes tsx and just keep my shots at reasonable distances.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

We’ve shot 4 whitetail deer with the 6.5 PRC so far. None of them had any more egregious entry or exit wounds than any of the cartridges we’ve used for decades on deer. For whitetail and the PRC, closest shot was 125 yards. Furthest shot was 350.

Basing your view of the cartridge on one bullet /example and one ill-placed shot doesn’t make sense to me at all.

 

[Kotaman]

I don't care what bullet you shoot at 10 yards pushing 3000 fps, you're gonna have "exit hole issues". The energy is gonna blow anything in it's path out that exit hole. That bullet is actually a great whitetail bullet. I've killed a bunch of game with that bullet from deer at 100 yards to stone sheep at 450 yards to caribou at 605 yards all with similar results. small entry, quarter sized exit...

Also note, I'm a HUGE fan of the 127 gr. LRX out of a 6.5 PRC.

 

[badkneesbro]

Think you used enough dynamite there Butch? Sorry...couldn't help myself.

 

[Bezamaelee]

The deer is dead, and the meat from hams, back straps, inner loins, one shoulder, ribs and neck are in the freezer. I wouldn’t worry about it too much. If i pull the trigger i want the deer to die super quickly. I have a buddy that will only take neck shots because he doesn’t want to “mess up the meat”. He also hypothesizes that a missed neck shot is a clean miss. To each his own, but the ethical approach to hunting is to make sure the shot is a quick kill first, than second to make sure as much of the animal can be processed for eating.

If you hunt long enough, you are going to have a shot that destroys some meat unintentionally. We do the best in the moment and situation, having trained, tested our equipment and prepared for that moment.

 

[mzurovec]

I was planning on using the 143 ELD-X in my PRC for an elk this year. Pictures like this make me wonder if it's the best choice. Very tempted after seeing this, and many other threads, to switch to a partition...
MZ

 

[amassi]

I was planning on using the 143 ELD-X in my PRC for an elk this year. Pictures like this make me wonder if it's the best choice. Very tempted after seeing this, and many other threads, to switch to a partition...
MZ

If your "too close" shoot them In the vitals
Dont wreck a shoulder with a cup n core

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

 

[mzurovec]

If your "too close" shoot them In the vitals
Dont wreck a shoulder with a cup n core

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

Agreed, I just want to make sure in the instance of an errant shot that things go my way. Seeing things like this make it hard not to consider a bonded bullet.

 

[Tbone58]

That’s impressive. Have you had a chance to shoot anything else with it? I’ve been seeing and hearing more about the caliber. Kinda debating on it for my son when he gets older.

 

[Block]

The caliber is less factor than shot placement.. hit major bone and you are usually guna have a blow out... Iv shot bobcats with a 270 and pin holed them,, literally couldn’t find the hole til you pick them up and blood comes out... then blown a hole the size of a fist in the same size cat with a 17hmr just cuz it hit bone,,,

 

[WCB]

Pretty much any bullet exiting the shoulder would provide the same result.

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Yeah...how about no. I have shot a ton of deer through the shoulder and a ton of deer in general...I have never had an exit look like that ever. Everything from fawns, yearlings, to big bodied bucks. I've put 7mm rem 160gr of a few different bullet variations along with other calibers and grains dead center through shoulder breaking both sides under 100 yards and have never had anything like that.

 

[AugustWest]

Whoa

 

[Fivex475]

Went on a hunt for whitetail in the Texas Hill Country, and got caught by a thunderstorm rolling in. More meat for the freezer is always nice and the opportunity to harvest this doe presented itself before it started to storm. Shot at 110 yards with a 6.5 PRC - 24” barrel and factory Hornady 143 eld-x.

6.5 PRC is a bit much I think - especially for a shoulder shot.

Yea I’m hoping more factory ammo is announced at SHOT Show. I did find that Barnes has a factory loading coming out with a 127gr LRX.

I am looking forward to trying the 127 also. In the mean time I have been using the ELDMs on hogs with good results

 

[Davidson51]

Barnes Vortx (copper) exiting through a boar's shoulder with a similar result...

 

[manitou1]

It does. But it was the only ethical shot I had under the present conditions and constraints.

I really like this rifle, but likely won’t be taking it along on any more whitetail hunts in this area. It’s not needed.

I’ve shot 3 whitetail this year with 3 different calibers: .25-06, 6.5CM, and 6.5 PRC. I’ll stick with the .25-06 or .30-30 for this thick brush hunting.

It's not your cartridge, it is your bullet construction.
Use a different bullet.
These posts crack me up.
"This cartridge is too much for this animal" or "this didn't expand enough".
Plus, stay off the shoulder... or expect the carnage.

 

[browning2480]

I bet she didn’t run and died quick. Looks like perfect shot placement to me. Not much meat up there on those shoulders anyway.

 

[rene291]

Went on a hunt for whitetail in the Texas Hill Country, and got caught by a thunderstorm rolling in. More meat for the freezer is always nice and the opportunity to harvest this doe presented itself before it started to storm. Shot at 110 yards with a 6.5 PRC - 24” barrel and factory Hornady 143 eld-x.

6.5 PRC is a bit much I think - especially for a shoulder shot.

i will have to remember when I get my S20 in 6.5 PRC

 

[Desert Dan]

I have to agree with not abandoning the cartridge. As mentioned already, a lot can happen with just about any big game round if the shot doesn’t quite land where you want it. Guys take little coues deer down here with 7mm Rem Mag and 300 winmag with no more issues than the .243 and in the Midwest one of the most popular calibers when I was growing up was the 30-06. My dad took more deer than I could count with that round and never had that happen.
The 6.5 PRC is as good a round for deer as anything. If you already have the rifle there’s no reason to abandon it after only one less than perfect shot.

 

[WDE]

Bullet change