Thank you for the reply. I'm well acclimated to hunting and killing deer, elk and bears with different tools........arrows, rifles, pistols and ML. You are correct, they sometimes appear as if they can defy death. Lived in the mountains most of my life including out west. Not fun to try to pack a critter out for sure. Some places can be rough.
Ya know, I've read many reports and watched many a hunting videos of kills with different ML setups. The interesting aspect of that is, I am amazed at how far many of the animals go after being hit. Doesn't seem to matter if its with a round ball, sabot or bore size bullet. I've killed my fair share over the years with my old sidelock shooting my hard cast Maxi Balls and the farthest one ever went was maybe 20 yards. That includes elk. Those hard cast do not expand at all. Go figure!
Went back to the range today for a short time. I only shot 3 of the 240 grain XTP with 80 grains of 777 loose powder. This time from 100 yards. I did not get the accuracy I was looking for but I did not change the powder charge either as those were the last of them. The group was 3.25" measured. Not good enough for this ole boy.
Next and JFG I shot 3 more of the PowerBelt 395 grain hollow points. Only this time it was with 80 grains of loose 777. It provided a measured 4" group. That too, is not acceptable and again I did not shoot any more to vary the charge.
So indeed more testing to do.
Not sure on what bullet I will settle on for him but I do know that I want it to be a pass through as much as possible. Considering the steep terrain he is faced with, and considering all the research that has shown how far many deer go after being hit with various ML bullets, the least I can do for him is to try to find him a bullet that most likely will pass through for ease of tracking.
At this point I'm considering the Bore Driver 290 grain.