ELD-M at Close Range Thin Skinned Game

[General RE LEE]

I know a lot of people hunt thin skinned game like pronghorn or whitetail with the 147 grain ELD-M. A lot of the positive results are long shots.

I hunt large agriculture fields but I also hunt the woods. My Tikka pushes the 147 grain at 2650 FPS. How would the ELD-M hold up on a 150 lb whitetail at 20 yards shot from a treestand?

 

[tankgijohn72]

would definately kill it. I shot a large doe in that weight range a couple of years ago with a 140 Nos Ballistic tip and normal size entry 3/4" exit hole at similar speeds. She went 20 yards. Buddy shot one with a 168 amax similar results to mine. At 2650 it isn't going to be explosive. Let it eat

 

[MachV]

No experience at less than 260 yards but at that yardages a doe antelope, mulie buck and raghorn elk couldnt get to the ground fast enough out of my Tikka in 6.5sweede a little faster than that.
If you hit the lungs no problem but you can ruin a lot of meat if you aint carefull!

 

[DJ Fergus]

I know a lot of people hunt thin skinned game like pronghorn or whitetail with the 147 grain ELD-M. A lot of the positive results are long shots.

I hunt large agriculture fields but I also hunt the woods. My Tikka pushes the 147 grain at 2650 FPS. How would the ELD-M hold up on a 150 lb whitetail at 20 yards shot from a treestand?

I have took deer out to 465yds mv of 2950fps with the 147 and it mushroomed perfect and held together good. No close shots. My son took a deer from about 20 yards with a .277 150 sst Hornady @ 3200 fps mv and it mushroomed & passed through. The sst is like a ballistic tip, so is the eld m. I wouldn't hesitate to take game with the147 @ 20 yards with the muzzle velocity you stated.

 

[usp45ss]

It will be fine. My 6.5prc throws the 147 at 2990. According to hornady 4dof, it's doing 2660 at 300 yards. It has done very well for me. Closest animal I've shot was an axis deer at 65 yards. It dumped it and the a big piece of jacket stopped in the offside shoulder.

 

[coop2564]

Go look at you tube lots of videos.

 

[ontarget7]

We think to much. When we don't recover an animal it's always the equipments fault and we are the last to blame.

They will kill just fine at close range.

 

[QuietTexan]

I think you'll be fine, if it blows up it'll be inside the animal and will shred the vitals. Can't be worse than an SST.

If you're worried about it, buy a box of Partitions. You'll find a 20 yard tree stand load the first time you load up a set of cases. I have a fast 143 ELD-X load in my 6.5 CM hunting rifle, I also have a slow 140 Partition load. No changes in the scope because the slow load is shot so up-close the ballistic differences don't matter.

I got it backwards last year, killed a buck a with the slow load at further than I anticipated, and darn near decapitated a injured fawn (awful situation) with a neck shot from the fast load up close, but both were quick, clean, humane kills.

Also a good excuse for a new tree-stand rifle? Because specialization haha.

 

[Thomas Culver]

I dumped the mule deer in my avatar with a 143ELDX at 125 yards, which is an impact speed around 2750 according to Applied Ballistics. Complete pass through and dropped him like a stone. I'll be using the ELDX again this year, but debating on whether my son with his 6.5CM should use the ELDX or the 123 ELDM for a little less recoil this year. I think either will do the trick on whitetails under 200 yards. I've got some of both loaded for him to try.

 

[Rosebud]

ELD M are in effect a AMax with a better tip for the most part. Friend uses it in 30-06 for everything. At close range expect lots of tissue damage and comes apart, but seriously big holes. At distance it performs well and mushrooms out nicely. He killed a buck several years ago that wheeled at the shot and the bullet impacted the last rib on the left side taking out the following ribs until it managed to enter the left lung. Nastiest wound I've seen on a animal. But still went about75 yards.

 

[JuddL]

Looks like I'll be that guy. ELD's (not amax) have been unpredictable inside 200y for me. They pencil and I've seen it more than once with more than one caliber.

Over 200y they have been very predictable and devastating. When I asked some guides that see several hundred deer, auodad, axis, fallow and occasional elk die each year, they agreed and had seen the same with their customers.

I've decided, there are better bullets out there and I'm done with them.

Good luck.

 

[jbenevides89]

I switched to Berger 156's this year, I was having the pencil issue when it just went through soft tissue. I have yet to see the result of them this year but I am hopeful.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

To the OP,..
For that, CLOSE of, Range ( 20-25 Yards ) use, the "tougher",.. ELD-X
Or, an AccuBond,...
IF, you like to Eat,.. Deer Meat !

 

[xsn10s]

I know a lot of people hunt thin skinned game like pronghorn or whitetail with the 147 grain ELD-M. A lot of the positive results are long shots.

I hunt large agriculture fields but I also hunt the woods. My Tikka pushes the 147 grain at 2650 FPS. How would the ELD-M hold up on a 150 lb whitetail at 20 yards shot from a treestand?

I haven't used them but from what I've read they ELDM's in general fragment pretty well at 2600 fps. Maybe see if you can load them for under 2600 fps MV if you're going to shoot that close.