Where did my .270 win go wrong

[athompson4]

So I shot a medium size whitetail buck with my .270 Win at about 40 yards. I was shooting the 140 grain hornady sst's going just over 3000 fps. My bullet entered one side of the deer, ricocheted of the rib on the other side, and exited about 6 inches back from the entrance wound. Is this a bullet failing to expand or just a freak incident?

 

[theflyonthewall]

Depends on a lot of things. Sounds like an individual bullet problem and not a rifle or caliber problem to me. You could have witnessed a jacket separation failure, a tumbling failure (although unlikely unless your rifle has a really slow twist rate for 150's out of a .270), or any number of things.

I doubt it's a failure to expand though. If it were, you'd have seen a caliber-size hole for an entrance wound, and a caliber size hole for an exit wound. That's usually the first signs of a non-expanding bullet.

I'm assuming you weren't able to retrieve the bullet, huh?

 

[athompson4]

I was unable to retrieve the bullet. It exited with a hole about the same size as the entrance hole but farther back on the animal. I was shooting a ruger m77 mk II, and i believe it has a 1 in 10" twist rate
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[theflyonthewall]

I'd be 99% sure it was indeed a bullet failure. It happens from time to time.....fortunately, those times are usually few and far between though.

 

[kc]

I agree with (theflyonthewall) 100%. I have had the SST blow a hole the size of a Baseball on the other side @200 yards. I lost no meat but it stoped the Deer real fast.
and I know of some people who have had the same experience. But they still use the SST's and love the accuracy. I have also had exit holes that were the same size as the enterance holes,
but the Deer went a few steps and that all it could go.

 

[royinidaho]

It wasn't the cartridge or the caliber.

It was that durn'd SST.

If ya stick with the 140 BTSP for the distances you appear to be shooting you'll never go wrong.....

Not as sexy but tried and true......

 

[athompson4]

I chose the sst's because i can group them well at 200 yards, and in the area I hunt, its possible to be taking shots from 20 yards out to 300 yards. Have to try the BTSP's and make my own judgement I guess.

 

[Catahoula]

I agree with royinidaho. The SST's are accurate but not as good a game bullet as spire points. I have had really great results from the Sierra BT's in all the different weights.
Kirk

 

[Reddog30cal]

My ranges where I am hunting now(here in Central Ga) are about the same as yours. I haven't had the ability to reload and shoot a 30-06 for most of my deer hunting. I picked up a box of the reasonably priced($21.99) Winchester PowerMax Bonded 150-gr. So far, I am impressed. Shot a 145# doe at 65-yds and hit broadside through the Rt shoulder and exited just behind the lft shoulder. Perfectly straight-line penetration. The exit was the size of a quarter. Upon field dressing the deer, all the lungs and heart ventricles were destroyed. The bullet did what they said that it would. It expanded really quick(hydrostatic shock) and the bullet held together by all indications(no fragmentation found). Deer went 10-yds and there was good blood for those 10-yds.

I was told by a friend, that has been using these for 2-yrs in a .270 Win. He generally uses the 150-gr for his deer hunting. He has been using the 130's in the PowerMax Bonded and has yet to recover a bullet. All but one out of 10-deer, have been dead right there. The 1 that ran only went 15-yds with good blood on the ground.

Accuracy has been really suprising at just under an inch @ 100-yds. I shot mine at 200-yds and had an inch group. For $21.99, I cannot ask for better.

 

[82ndreddevil]

Im glad to see some people are having good luck with that SST round. My Sendero in 300 win mag and BDL in 300 win mag cant group worth a darn with those things! Funny thing is both those rifles do best with the Federal Fusions or any other 180 grain bullet that travels less than 3000 fps. I was a little dissapointed because that SST sure shows impressive numbers, I just cant get them to work on paper. If your rifle likes that round I would stick with it and just call your incident a freak accident.

 

[gonewest]

I'm not a big fan of SST's on deer. I would much rather have a 130 gr Hornady interlock bullet. But for accuracy my gun shoots Nosler Accubonds very well and they are a very tough bullet.

 

[BEEMAN]

I to have not had great luck with the SST. Shot a 160" whitetail last year from a tree stand, at 30 yards. No hair or blood, and he ran 150 yds. Had all 8 guys in my hunting crew help me find him. While field dressing him I noticed there was no exit hole but I could not find the bullet. I had been shooting the 154 gr SST in my 7mm mag. I have however had good luck with them in 117 gr in my 25-06 AI. This year I switched to Berger and I'll see if they are any good.

 

[gonewest]

Beeman I had that exact experience twice. No blood on exit hole. We found both deer but it was after a real had search. I will never use again. There are alot better bullets out there. I cringe when I hear people say they use Ballistic tips or SST's. Not me I hunt a variety of woods swamp farmland and river bottoms. I have to have a bullet that will leave a exit hole with a blood trail.