155 VLD 30cal

[jimq1]

Been really impressed with their accuracy and performance in my 308 5R. 6 kills on does out to 250 yards with all being neck shots. Am a little worried about their expansion on a lung shot though. Anyone had any issues with a shot in that area? Thanks for your input!

 

[snowpro440]

I gotta say I am also impressed with the 155vld . I rebarreled my savage 10 FP H-S in .308 and I tried those bullets and they just shoot great , 2" group @400 yds on paper and every deer I shot was one and done heart or lung shot . The bullet hit ribs either in or out and fell over within 20 -40 yards, most shots were 70-130yds away. Good expansion it seems for a target bullet , I guess I gotta go with what works here.

 

[tomt]

I have a box but have not tried them yet, guess it's time. What powder are you using?

 

[jimq1]

I am running 43.5 grains of Varget. OAL 2.825

 

[Speck]

Cant tell you much for the 155 VLD but i shoot whitetails with the 168 VLD in my 22 inch barrel 308 at 2650 ftps and it flat out hammers em. Lung shot, shoulder shot, neck or head it doesn't matter. I see no reason the 155s wouldn't do the same thing. Never had a problem with expansion, the insides look like soup and big exit wounds. The only buck I didn't have a exit wound with this season was a big bodied cull buck that I shot head on from about 80 yards in the chest and he was dead before he hit the ground.

43.5 sounds like a light load with a 155. What's your velocity?

 

[tomt]

Ran some numbers thru Quickload, 43.5 grains of Varget has a 101.6% filing ratio, with about 50,600 psi chamber pressure and 2700 MV. Substituting IMR 8208 XBR and you get 98.3% FR, 57,500 psi and 2800 fps MV. If 43.5 is killing the deer, they probally won't notice an extra 100 fps. I'm going to try jimq1 recipe in my 5R. Thanks

P.S. I'm going to work up a load with 8208 and see what happens.

 

[O6DODGE]

I have used the 155 Berger vlds out of my 308 and my 300wm and killed many deer and hogs with them. I also use the 105 vlds out of my 6-284 lapua and will be shooting the 300 grain hybrids out of my 338 edge. I have not had one animal go more then 10 yards after being hit by one an most of them are dead in there tracks with no tracking involved. If that round hits any type of hard muscle or bone it's devastating. But you gotta remember when using a target bullet shot placement is everything. I am a high shoulder or neck kinda guy. If you gut shot a deer it really doesn't matter what bullet you are using the animal will run.