Fragmentation may be a good thing.

[ultratec00]

Happened to be watching a hunting show on versus and they were using a new kind of rifle bullet that fragmented on impact. Reminded me of the old glaser safety slugs you could buy for handguns. BBs floating in teflon, which acts like a shotgun on impact. This bullet basically did the same, except manufactured different. Idea was to expend all the bullet energy into the animal, which doesn't happen with a bullet that over-penetrates. Downside is that there is no exit wound. Upside is that the animal's vitals are shredded.

Sounds like this may have some applicability with MLs. Bullet would have to be redesigned to fragment at the slower speeds, but concept would be the same. Wish I could remember the name of the ammo, just saw it on the tube last night.

 

[Nutt189]

That is along the same lines of the varmit bullet I use in my 22-250 for does in our late rifle season. There is nothing left of the vitals and you will never find any part of the bullet with no exit. I have shot deer out to 300yds with this and never had one go over 50yds, most of them drop fast enough you think you missed them.

 

[elkstalkr]

That works great until you hit a bull elk in the shoulder and he laughs at you and WALKS OFF.

GIVE ME PENETRATION.

I would hate to hit a 250lb Nebraska buck in the shoulder with a bullet that fragments on impact, got a funny feeling I would never see that animal again.

Fragmenting bullets are great for varmints and saving pelts. Leave them at home for big game. The animal absorbs plenty of energy on good penetrating round. Enough to liquify lungs, why would I want anymore energy expended inside the animal?

Just my opinion though. I am a little biased, I hunt elk, where penetration means A LOT.

 

[choc-dog]

The first "BB's" floating load was developed by I believe by Federal for the then new Sky Marshal program under President Reagan.

The BB's were incased in a thin copper jacket so they would not penetrate
aircraft skins.

Your description is a new theme on a older concept.


Chocdog

 

[Ron S]

The T/C Shock Wave,basically dose this. It's more like an oversized "varmit bullet" than anything else. The blood trail is a mixed thing. The buck I shot this year left a trail a blind man could follow. The next one may not,but I've never had a deer go very far,after being shot by one. Ron

 

[ultratec00]

All the deer I've shot w/ shockwaves have been complete pass-throiughs. Keep in mind I'm shooting the 200 gr shockwaves, which are traveling a bit faster than the 250s. I'm sure they expanded a little, but not much. None of the deer went over 50 yards, all were good shots. I've yet to knock a deer on it's butt as I used to do with the old 240 gr hornady pistol bullet and 100 gr of pyrodex. The ballistic tip is great for aerodynamics and long range shooting, but have my doubts if they really great expanders. There's something to say for flat nosed/hollow point bullets and expansion on impact.

 

[Cajun]

Fragmentation bullets work good out of hand guns for personal protection rounds under the perfect conditions. Even in those situtations, the conditions are not always perfect. You won't get proper penetration on a person wearing thick heavy cloths. They are good in a home gun because they won't penetrate more then two walls in most cases. They need to be kept for aircraft use which they were designed for as someone mentioned earlier. I don't think they have a use in the field for big game.

 

[sabotloader]

ultratec00

First off, I should tell you I am not a fan of the theory that a bullet should loose all of its' energy in the animal - to many varibles; range, thickness id skin, size of animal, & etc. Second, I do not like a bullet that blows up?? comes apart, of fragments...

I want a bullet to perform well, by that I do want a pass through a majority of the time, I want it to pass through skin, bone, organs, bone and skin... I do not think it has to expand to "double" its' size on the way through or the way out. What it needs to do is expand and cause major shock and trama on the way through.

For that reason I have and still do shoot Nosler partitions, although I am finding that the bonded Speer Gold Dots are becoming very quickly my "poorman's" Nosler.

Nosler's do pass through in most cases, they make a very nice .45" hole on the way in and 3/4" hole on the way out, but what they do in between is devastating. A shot in the vitals area with a Nosler usually results in the destruction of all the vital organs - turns them to dark red jello. This event does "fatally shock" the animal. There are a group of people that say that "Hydrostatic shock" can not occur, but I have witnessed it on many occasions and I totally disagree... If it is not "hydrostatic shock" as the learned people call it - it is "hydraulic shock" as I used to call it because of the fluids involved...

Here is a pic array of a Nosler collected from a tree behind the animal after it had passed through. This was only a 75 yard shot.

 

[smong2000]

My limited experience with 'explosive' bullets was not good

I was fortunate enough to get a nice 9 pt 168 lb buck this season with my .308. I was using Amax 155 gr bullets slowed down to around 2550 fps so I thought they would perform well. My shot was strong quartering away 150 yds walking and I hit behind the ribs. I liquified the gut and liver but barely penetrated the diaphragm and just touched lung (maybe 14-15 inches). There were lots of lead and copper fragments but nothing that looked like a bullet left. Knocked him down but I couldn't see him and thought it was a miss. I waited a good 20 mins before I followed up on the shot and when I did he got up and ran. I tracked him 400-500 yds and put him down for good with another shot. IF I had been using a Nosler or bonded bullet there is no doubt that I would have hit lung and heart and prevented some suffering. Did it perform well - sort of, for a target/sniper bullet. I will always opt for a strong, penetrating bullet from now on when hunting anything with fur over 100lbs.