Phone book testing bullets

[CPerkins]

I have read something on here about testing terminal performance of bullets using phone books. I looked and saw where there were several methods that are used. Here are a few questions that I also have?

What method(s) are the most like deer sized game?

How many phone books will I need to stop a 300 mag using 168 gr SMK and a 284 win with 140 gr. tsx?

Most methods involve a box filled with phone books/ plywood exc....
Will each set up only be good to test one round?

Thanks in advance for the help.

[Charles A]

Shooting phone books, while maybe fun, does not replicate live tissue.

[meichele]

+1

A better simulation is to line up 1 gallon water jugs and shoot them. Eventually one of the jugs will stop your bullet. This will give you a decent indication as to your bullet's performance when hitting soft tissue such as a rib cage of a deer. While not an exact replica, it is a very close replica since mamals are made up of such a high percentage of water.

[davewilson]

i like to put a phone book or a couple magazines in between every milk jug. this way you can get an idea of the diameter of the bullet at the distance it has penetrated. i did this again last weekend, let a 15 year old shoot a couple jugs with my gun at 600 yards. then i let him plow the jugs and magazines. he's never shot more than 300 yards. he said it was a dream come true!

i've shot quite a few 338/250SMK's into jugs now and i've never seen one not open up.

one thing you might do when shooting jugs of water is to put a number on each one so you'll know where it was before impact. most of the time you might be able to tell which jug was first but the rest will be a "best guesstiment" unless they're numbered.