Hornady American Whitetail Ammo

[Ol' Split Toe]

Does anybody else use it? Thoughts? I have shot 2 deer and a pig with it this year in a .308 with questionable results. Both deer ran a considerable distance before expiring. One was due to poor shot placement (gut shot) but the other was hit well enough that it shouldn't ran as far as it did. The pig, a big boar that I shot this afternoon, I have yet to find. I shot it square in the shoulder at an angle that should have passed through the vitals with any penetration. The blood trail, much like the gut shot deer, didn't start for 20 yards or so, but then picked up to be a pretty good one until it stopped about 100 yds into tracking him. Any thoughts or better ammo for a .308?

 

[Buzzard Breath]

I've shot at and killed two animals in the past two years with the Hornady American Whitetail ammo. Both were shot with a .308 using the 150 grain bullets.

The first was an antelope shot at 186 yards. It was dead upon bullet impact. It took 10 steps backwards and fell over stiff. The shot was a hard quartering away shot. The bullet entered just behind the last rib and it destroyed the far shoulder. I found the bullet just under the skin on the far side.

Sorry for the recycled photos.




The second was from a mule deer from this October. It was shot at 219 yards, bedded. The angle was slightly quartered towards me with the bullet entering just in front of the onside shoulder and exiting just behind the far side shoulder. The deer flopped once and twitched twice. You can see the entire extent of the blood trail in he picture, all 10 feet of it.



I've been extremely pleased with them. Both animals were ranged before shooting, so the yardage is +/- 1 yard.

Edit, After looking at both pictures, I'm starting to think I have found my new lucky shirt. And just to think that I've been wasting all this time trying to find a lucky hat.

 

[Ol' Split Toe]

I too am shooting the 150 grain ones. Your antelope shot was very similar to one of the aforementioned deer that I shot. Hard quartering away, bullet entered just behind the last rib and grazed the back side of the shoulder upon exit. It ran 80-100 yards and prolly would have gone further if not for a ditch crossing and a steep bluff that slowed it down.

 

[Deerhunter]

I use the 150s in my new Savage 308win. Shot a big bodied doe broadside about 30 yards. Went straight down, but no exit after hitting both shoulders.

The American Whitetail line is just the classic Interlock that Hornady has been selling for years.

 

[Ol' Split Toe]

Sounds like I just need to make better shots lol. The pig this evenin is throwing me off more than the two deer. It was only a 30 yard shot and evidently had minimum penetration through the shoulder.

 

[ImThere]

I shot 6 deer with them last year and am not shooting them this year. They are accurate but they fragment much more than corlokt and I was not happy with them.

 

[stringtalker]

Im wondering how this ammo can perform so differently to different people. May be the caliber or grain of bullet. I used them this year in my 7mm-08 and was thinking about switchn to them. My nephew killed a hog with my gun at about 40 yards and dropped him in his tracks, lung shot complete pass thru. I shot a doe yesterday at around 90-100 yards, lung shot, she ran maybe 35 yards with a blood trail a blind man could follow. The exit wound was the size of a baseball!!!

 

[Buzzard Breath]

IMO, and I don't want you to take this the wrong way. Basically, I don't want to be critical about something someone posted online, especially when they are asking for advise to improve themselves. But, you are shooting your animals too far back. One was a gut shot; even with premium bullets, who knows if you would ever recover it. The next grazed the back side of the far side shoulder (still too far back); I would have shot for the bullet to exit just in front of the far side shoulder.

My thinking when I aim at a deer is that its heart is directly between its front legs. The top of the heart is nothing but major veins and arteries; and I want to take this out. If I can send something (bullet/arrow) through this and cut off as many of those blood pumpers as possible, that deer drops dead sooner. The farther forwards I can shoot a deer the better.

Again, please don't take this post as criticism. Your doing more than most by just asking for help and opinions.

 

[AllOutdoors]

^^^ This and the interlock performs well in weights suitable for that caliber. Remember hogs are tough. I've seen one kill a dog after a shot to shoulder with a 12 gauge slug. That plate is tough to penetrate.

Sent from this smart thingamajig using tapatalk.

 

[Buzzard Breath]

If you do decide to try a different load, I would recommend the 165 grain Federal Fusions. I've killed more animals with this load out of my .308 than all others combined. It also shoots more accurately that the 150 grain Hornady loads. I just couldn't find any last year before my hunt and have a pile of the American Whitetail loads leftover. :shock:

 

[Ol' Split Toe]

Well I shot two deer with the fusions last year and dropped them but like you said it was better shot placement due to a cleaner shot lane. And no I don't take it wrong at all, I know they weren't great shots, they were tough shots (100 yds give or take through a tiny window of clearing in dense hardwoods). But one, even though it was far back, caught lung and some vitals, hitting the far shoulder. Should have dropped sooner than it did from previous experiences, but it was like the bullet did minimum damage, I mean the exit hole was near nothing. The other (gut shot) was just a really tough angle and I had to make a quick decision. Luckily i found both of em, the better hit doe first and just happened to stumble upon the gut shot deer's blood trail.....turned out to be an 11 pt. instead of an 8 like i originally thought......whole different story though. BB, judging from your last post, it sounds like you might prefer the fusions.....am I right?

 

[ImThere]

Don't get me wrong I found all 6 deer they didn't go far but I am digging copper petals out of meat like the bullet exploded on impact. Never had to do that with corlokt like I do these all I shoot is 150 grains out of my 308

 

[Buccaneer]

Nothing but Federal Fusion 165 grain projectiles for my .308. Everything I have shot has been dead within 20 yards if not in their tracks.

 

[wsm]

I have had good luck with this ammo and all Hornady ammo I have used.

 

[tasaman]

Don't get me wrong I found all 6 deer they didn't go far but I am digging copper petals out of meat like the bullet exploded on impact. Never had to do that with corlokt like I do these all I shoot is 150 grains out of my 308

That's cause the corelokt is likely moving 200 fps slower. That and shot placement are going to be the biggest factors. Last comment would be dead is dead. Berger bullets are designed to do just that....penetrate then expand and expend energy. One of my favorite quotes about hunting..."exactly at what point during the deer dying did the bullet fail?"

I can only add 1 deer to the American Whitetail test. 125 yards and was a pass through and she went 20 yards and piled up. I did shoot a buck with one but it was a neck shot and did not hit spine so nearly any bullet would have did what it did. These are also wicked accurate out of my gun. I shoot a 25-06.