[bdbrown66]

" Only run 50-100 yards".....That's not a killing shot.........That's a possible lost deer shot(with no blood trail).......I won't chance it.

Pick any shot location, and you can find someone who has shot a deer there and had it get away. It happens. Bullets don't always perform as intended. A rib or bone can deflect a shot. The deer can move at the right instant and throw your shot off. None is perfect. As far as what I said, if someone can't track a deer for 50 yards or so, they probably should find another hobby. Good grief...walk in the direction the deer went, and then start circling if need be. At least, that holds true in the terrain where I hunt. In the swamps or something, that may be a different story.

 

[bdbrown66]

" Only run 50-100 yards".....That's not a killing shot.........That's a possible lost deer shot(with no blood trail).......I won't chance it.

This is the heart from a doe I shot a few years ago with my 45 Colt rifle, 250gr Hornady XTP. Slight quartering away at about 60 yards. Bullet passed directly thru the heart, and she still ran over 50 yards. You're going to say that's not a killing shot?

 

[44 Hunter]

I wonder if you could use the 180 gr Hornaday XTP like in the 357 Maximum rifles and load them to 2100-2200 fps. They work very well on deer in the 357 Max.

 

[bdbrown66]

I wonder if you could use the 180 gr Hornaday XTP like in the 357 Maximum rifles and load them to 2100-2200 fps. They work very well on deer in the 357 Max.

Something to think about.

 

[Pereira]

I took a buck this season with one of my 35s using a 200 gr cast.
He was walking and evidently a tad faster than I estimated.
About 70 so yds, was trying for the shoulder, but hit slightly behind.
Was a nice double lung, and he went roughly a 125 yds.

I would think that even if that 180gr didn't expand at your stated distance that it should've plowed completely through.
I have never lost a deer shot with a 35 caliber bullet and only this one this year and one other that ever ran more than 25 yds.

RP

 

[pamtnman]

Shot my 2023 buck at 75 yards with 7x57R low and right behind his shoulder, taking out the top of his heart and the lower lungs. He ran 100 yards, including straight up a hill. I would like to see us all avoid this version of the "I am Daniel Boone reincarnated and all of my shots hit precisely where I aim them and all the critters drop dead right there and anyone else who doesn't achieve the same results as I am telling you is not a good hunter, is a poor shot, has poor judgment, and either needs more range time or should just get out of the woods altogether." Think about the websites where this kind of posturing goes on and you will immediately think of websites you prefer not to visit because of it.

 

[mam444]

So, I thought I would pop back in here to report my results from using my new .360BH and my reloads for deer season this fall. As some may remember, I had settled on the 180gr Speer JSP as my bullet of choice, using Accurate 1680 powder, at about 2300fps.

To cut straight to the chase, the results were extremely disappointing. I connected on both a buck and a doe, at distances of less than 100 yards. In both cases, the deer mule-kicked and ran off, leaving a relatively minor blood trail. Shot placement for both was my typical behind-the-front-leg shot, which usually results in a short run but avoids meat loss. Indeed, the same shot placement dropped two deer during our muzzleloader season. In the case of the .360BH, neither deer was recovered, despite hours of searching. We followed the doe's trail as she circled the hillside opposite me, and the blood petered out and we could not determine where she had gone. In the case of the buck, we followed his trail down into a bottom and up the hill on the opposite side, until it was approaching the property boundary. In both cases, it was evident that both deer were still moving quite well after being shot, and neither showed any inclination to bedding down.

In almost 50 years of deer hunting, I have never had two wounded deer run off and not be recovered, in the same season. That, to me, is extremely disappointing and I only hope that they both recovered from the wound. I hate the thought of a slow death.

In a previous post, @35remington warned me about slow velocities with the Speer 180's, and at 2300 fps I would think that would be enough. But based on the results, I believe that in both cases the bullet just penciled right thru without doing much damage.

https://www.marlinowners.com/threads/360-buckhammer-first-hand-loads.658596/post-8786810

So, I'm now going back to the drawing board. Some bullet tests are in order, and I'm going to do some experimenting with 200gr cast GCHP as a possible replacement for the Speers. Maybe look at the Hornady 200gr RN, as well.

I would be interested to hear thoughts, suggestions, or results that anyone else had with the .360BH this fall.

Cheers,
Brian

It's possible that the deer expired, went down and you just missed seeing it when you were tracking it. All depends on how good your tracking skills are. Just saying. When I track an animal, I not only use blood signs. If very little to no blood is evident then I also look at the tracks/hoofs. You can tell a lot by looking at the ground imprints left behind by any animal, especially hoofed animals.

 

[cmj8591]

Sometimes you need to do a little soul searching. If that 200 grain bullet hits a shoulder, that deer will do a little back flip and die right there. I'm thinking you hit low and behind. A deer that has been hit in the lungs will run a little ways and lay down and die soon after. If they are moving around, they will bleed in the body cavity and leave very little blood trail to follow. It's a hard thing to do but whenever I've shot a deer and it ran off, I waited a good hour before starting to track. Sometimes no matter how well you set up your shot, it can still go wrong. Ethically, we try the best we can to get our proficiency to the point that we make our kills as humanely as possible but things still go wrong. I don't think your ammo is the problem and I wouldn't abandon it if it were me. I think the laws of averages just caught up with you.

 

[Ret_Eng]

This garden raider was DRT at 85 yards with a max LVR loading and a Hornady 200 gr RN Interlock bullet using my 1964 Sears Model 45 in 35 Rem (store brand Marlin). I typically use a high shoulder shot which always produces a DRT deer in my hunting experience. At my age with my old Army injuries, I don't need to track deer for hundreds of yards anymore. The Hornady bullet has worked for me every time for the past 5-6 years since Speer/Sierra/Remington bullets can't regularly be found in my LGSs.

 

[44 Hunter]

This garden raider was DRT at 85 yards with a max LVR loading and a Hornady 200 gr RN Interlock bullet using my 1964 Sears Model 45 in 35 Rem (store brand Marlin). I typically use a high shoulder shot which always produces a DRT deer in my hunting experience. At my age with my old Army injuries, I don't need to track deer for hundreds of yards anymore. The Hornady bullet has worked for me every time for the past 5-6 years since Speer/Sierra/Remington bullets can't regularly be found in my LGSs.
View attachment 952536

I switched to high shoulder shots years ago as I too hate tracking/dragging.

 

[71Rcode]

Hornady 200g always TCB.

 

[bdbrown66]

It's possible that the deer expired, went down and you just missed seeing it when you were tracking it. All depends on how good your tracking skills are. Just saying. When I track an animal, I not only use blood signs. If very little to no blood is evident then I also look at the tracks/hoofs. You can tell a lot by looking at the ground imprints left behind by any animal, especially hoofed animals.

Given the area where the action occurred, that is not likely. On the doe, the blood trail just came to an end along the hillside, and we couldn't find it again. On the buck, we were following a blood trail until it neared the property boundary. In neither case did the deer show any inclination to laying down from the injury. But this property is hard to track on. It's nothing but ridges, hollows, and runoffs all over. Leaves, lots of leaves, cover the ground everywhere. Two inches of snow would do wonders for tracking in this area, but we usually don't have it available.

 

[bdbrown66]

Sometimes you need to do a little soul searching. If that 200 grain bullet hits a shoulder, that deer will do a little back flip and die right there. I'm thinking you hit low and behind. A deer that has been hit in the lungs will run a little ways and lay down and die soon after. If they are moving around, they will bleed in the body cavity and leave very little blood trail to follow. It's a hard thing to do but whenever I've shot a deer and it ran off, I waited a good hour before starting to track. Sometimes no matter how well you set up your shot, it can still go wrong. Ethically, we try the best we can to get our proficiency to the point that we make our kills as humanely as possible but things still go wrong. I don't think your ammo is the problem and I wouldn't abandon it if it were me. I think the laws of averages just caught up with you.

I get what you are saying, and don't disagree. I'm hoping that my bullet tests will help to determine if it was my fault or not, or if there is a better bullet option.

 

[cmj8591]

This garden raider was DRT at 85 yards with a max LVR loading with a Hornady 200 gr RN Interlock bullet using my 1964 Sears Model 45 in 35 Rem (store brand Marlin). I typically use a high shoulder shot which always produces a DRT deer in my hunting experience. At my age with my old Army injuries, I don't need to track deer for hundreds of yards anymore. The Hornady bullet has worked for me every time for the past 5-6 years since Speer/Sierra/Remington bullets can't regularly be found in my LGSs.
View attachment 952536

Whenever possible the high shoulder shot is the only way to go. I have never had a deer hit that way take more than one step. There is also a bit more room for error.

 

[Mike SC Hunter]

Disagree. 100yards or less is within their last rites of a deer to run. Entirely up to them. Be it .223 55gr or "elk rifles"
Unless someone hits CNS or the mechanical ability of an animal to run, like shoulder, they have reserve oxygenation in their blood to keep them moving.
100yds in deer speed = 30 seconds or less in real time.

In summary, 50-100yds of running does and can be just as much of a killing shot as as a 20 yard run.

Speer produces bullets that work. I don't believe the bullet mechanics should be doubted, despite my personal love for all copper bullets by Maker, which I feel are the Nosler Partitions of the copper world.

The real conclusion is one of two things. Bad shots that didn't hit where expected. Or poor tracking.

Thankfully only once have I had a poor shot on a doe. Took a pause on tracking that evening as temps were dropping way below freezing. Thankfully also had 3 others helping with tracking. Marked last spot. Resumed next day. The other 3 people couldn't find any more spots. I kept finding and trailing for the next 3-400 yards, even found where bedded down the night, had a blood pool about size of coke can diameter, fresh, warm, no frost on that spot, and my approach caused it to jump again. Ultimately, I wasn't able to recover, and ceremoniously "tagged" the animal even though I didn't harvest. This revealed out of group of 4, only 1 routinely was locating blood spots. And the other 3 were fully capable. In summary, people aren't that good at blood tracking - solution pick bullets that punch holes and gives us blood. This deer was a big influence on my switching over to Maker Bullets, which expands to 3x. But it still requires I do my part and hit where I'm aiming, can't gear solve that [and I likely didn't on this doe].

Not in some places I hunt. Swamp thickets with mud, water, briars and vines/young pines with briars and broomsedge..........100 yards IS NOT a kill shot,,,,,You may kill the deer..........You may never find it.

 

[buckeyeshooter]

I switched to high shoulder shots years ago as I too hate tracking/dragging.

I use shoulder shots and try to break both because my stand has 280 yards from left to right of clear shooting range, then they jump the fence into a mess. The hills have not been cleared of vegetation from 1965 on. It is very, very thick with wrist thick trees 6 inches apart, rose bushes and briars. Game could go in there 20 feet and lay down behind one of the trees that has fallen down and you would never find it without a dog. Dogs are not legal to use, so that limits options. My solution is to down it before it jumps the fence.

 

[bdbrown66]

I use shoulder shots and try to break both because my stand has 280 yards from left to right of clear shooting range, then they jump the fence into a mess. The hills have not been cleared of vegetation from 1965 on. It is very, very thick with wrist thick trees 6 inches apart, rose bushes and briars. Game could go in there 20 feet and lay down behind one of the trees that has fallen down and you would never find it without a dog. Dogs are not legal to use, so that limits options. My solution is to down it before it jumps the fence.

What county? I grew up in Jefferson County, south of Steubenville.

 

[buckeyeshooter]

What county? I grew up in Jefferson County, south of Steubenville.

Greenup County in Kentucky. My grandfathers farm, been in my family over 100 years. The deer my friends daughter shot was in Delaware County. The farm I was raised on was in Franklin County about 1/2 mile from the Licking County line.

 

[bdbrown66]

Greenup County in Kentucky. My grandfathers farm, been in my family over 100 years. The deer my friends daughter shot was in Delaware County. The farm I was raised on was in Franklin County about 1/2 mile from the Licking County line.

I'm in Nelson County, KY now. Moved here 20 years ago. Very familiar with the places you mentioned in Ohio.

 

[GreenRidgeBandit]

I was shooting the 180gr Speer hot Cor in my 336a 35 Remington… Bullet was traveling around 2000+fps… I had a decent 7pt following a doe by my stand at about 65 yards…All shots were pretty much broadside… I shot deer just stood there… I shot again and the deer started to walk off and stopped after about 10 yards or so… I shot again and he took 2 steps and fell over… When I walked up on deer I realized I hit him all 3 times… One shot was in the neck not a lethal hit and one was in the brisket really not a lethal hit and the third shot was through the lungs… Very poor shooting on my part to sat the least… In my defense I was shooting excited and off hand… but all the bullets just penciled through the deer… I prob won’t shoot those bullets anymore unless I kick them up a couple hundred fps faster… So if I had the BH and was reloading for it I’d use the 200gr RN bullets by hornady or Sierra