WY Pronghorn

The applied Ballistics application on my phone. It's what I use for my shot drop calculations. My phone is in a waterproof case and I put it in airplane mode while hunting, and the battery will last for about 6 days. It accounts for barometric pressure, temperature, gps location, and target heading for Coriolis (If you are shooting far enough for it to matter) and is extremely accurate and a great tool for comparing loads and bullets.

So cool to see this data and it accurately shows something I could only refer to as "there's something about downrange mass," at about 375-425 yards where conservation of energy seems to take over. I first noted this with a 338wm when shooting 210gn loads. Great stuff.
 
Makes no difference what bullet I'm shooting I aim for the lower third of the chest in the crease right behind the shoulder. I have lived and hunted in the rocky mountain west for over 50 years now. Doesn't matter whether I'm shooting deer, antelope, or elk I have the same aim point. Not only does it eliminate any meat loss but it also is the most effective shot placement. A little low and you hit the heart, a little high and you punch through both lungs, perfect and you get some of both. I have personally killed or been there with someone else over 50 elk (bulls & cows) and never had one go more than 100 yards when shot through the lungs. That aimpoint also gives you the greatest margin for error like wind call, etc..

In the last several years I have killed quite a few elk and antelope from 100 yards to 725 yards with the 215. Never had one not exit including the bull in my avatar. They don't blow up. They do shed some fragments but the main body of the bullet exits. There is a several years long thread on here started by Broz with tons of detail of on game performance with the 215 for everything from Yukon moose to bear, elk, deer, and antelope. All the details on terminal performance you could ever want. I suggest you search for that thread on the 215 Berger started by Broz and spend several hours reading through the 60+ pages with pictures.

I will look that up now! The BC on 215 gr berger is really high.
 
Makes no difference what bullet I'm shooting I aim for the lower third of the chest in the crease right behind the shoulder. I have lived and hunted in the rocky mountain west for over 50 years now. Doesn't matter whether I'm shooting deer, antelope, or elk I have the same aim point. Not only does it eliminate any meat loss but it also is the most effective shot placement. A little low and you hit the heart, a little high and you punch through both lungs, perfect and you get some of both. I have personally killed or been there with someone else over 50 elk (bulls & cows) and never had one go more than 100 yards when shot through the lungs. That aimpoint also gives you the greatest margin for error like wind call, etc..

In the last several years I have killed quite a few elk and antelope from 100 yards to 725 yards with the 215. Never had one not exit including the bull in my avatar. They don't blow up. They do shed some fragments but the main body of the bullet exits. There is a several years long thread on here started by Broz with tons of detail of on game performance with the 215 for everything from Yukon moose to bear, elk, deer, and antelope. All the details on terminal performance you could ever want. I suggest you search for that thread on the 215 Berger started by Broz and spend several hours reading through the 60+ pages with pictures.

Is the forum you are thinking of?
https://www.longrangehunting.com/th...-210-vld-to-the-215-hybrid.88657/#post-628442
 
I don't think you got any bad advice from all the folks. And I concur that the 165 is a good round. My 300 RUM shoot it well and the Nosler Ballistic Tip shoots great in my gun and puts them down. I do have some meat loss but I don't lose the animal nor chase it. I did have an issue with a 180 going thru a antelope a few years ago. Good placement, but didn't hit a bone going in or out. Just poked a hole thru the lungs.

You are on track with all the advice above. Have a great hunt in WY. It's a great place.
 
While this particular post is pertaining to antelope....if the opportunity to hunt other game is ever an option, there are many things to consider pertaining to bullet selection.

Obviously great BC's "trump" poor BC's when shooting longer distances. But, don't let the high BC hype dictate your selection of bullets. The game animal,shot angle, terrain, and potential shot distance, must be taken into consideration. Do not be "fooled" by all of the DRT (spine shots) shots seen on YouTube and television....they don't show the ones that got up and walked away, nor do they show how long the animal lives paralyzed (waiting for the hunters arrival) with a shot "not" taking out the vitals. Just my usual "unsought" opinion! memtb
 
Yep, that's it. Read and enjoy lots of expert examples.

The one thing you need to do before hunting with either the 215 or 230 OTM Hybrids is check the tips to ensure the hollow point is open with a wire drill bit. Here's a link for it. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BQU3XC/?tag=lrhmag19-20

Do that and then use the lower third of chest and crease behind the shoulder as aim point and you will have lots of great meat!
 
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I bought a used mark V Stainless in 300 weatherby magnum today-- should be here next week. I am still new to hunting and look on this forum often for good information.

I will be hunting pronghorn and whitetail with it this fall. That being said, what would be an ideal cartridge for my first WY pronghorn hunt? I do not reload, but am willing to get custom ammunition until I have reloading equipment/supplies. I do not know enough about ammunition to make an informed decision. I would like a round that retains most of it's weight so meat loss isn't extreme. I've never hunted pronghorn, but I assume it'll be 100-600 yard ranges. I have some heavier gr rounds (180-210) but would that be overkill for antelope and whitetails?

I was looking at:

125 gr nosler accubond (3500 fps)

150 gr nosler accubond (3400 fps)

165 gr nosler accubond (3300 fps)

or

Swift Scirocco II in 150 gr or 165 gr

Open to any other ideas, but I do not have anything to reload my own yet-- so I need to be able to purchase the ammunition.
The 300 weatherby is in my opinion beause I used one for years, well too much rifle for antelope ! They are a small animal and fairly easy to kill k! I would use a 140 grain bullet at the most ! You can use a .224 caliber or similar and it will work very well on these animals !
 
The 300 weatherby is in my opinion beause I used one for years, well too much rifle for antelope ! They are a small animal and fairly easy to kill k! I would use a 140 grain bullet at the most ! You can use a .224 caliber or similar and it will work very well on these animals !
Why is it "Too Big"? Dead is dead and there is no down side to using a larger caliber unless you don't like the recoil or can't shoot it as well as a lighter rifle./
 
He means an all copper bullet, so being that you are limited to factory ammunition, you likely choice would be something loaded with a barnes bullet.

The 165 accubond or 165 scirroco is what I would go with of those choices, if you want to save meat then extreme velocity is not your friend, the high velocity of the lighter bullets will cause more blood shot and more meat loss. Also, hunting pronghorn here in Wyoming often times means shooting in high wind, so the heavier bullets will have a higher ballistic coefficient and cut the wind better even with their lower velocity, giving you slightly more room for error. However, if your shooting at that distance you will need good accuracy too, so what you end up hunting with may be dictated by what the rifle shoots best.

As far as ideal cartridge for a pronghorn/whitetail hunt, a 300 weatherby is not exactly what I would call ideal from what I know of your situation. Don't get me wrong, it's a good round, especially if elk is on the menu, but if your new to hunting you may also be new to shooting, and IF that is the case, the heavy recoil and expensive cost of the 300 weatherby is simply not a good choice to learn long range with. Even with a good muzzle brake taming the recoil (not the inefficient radial brake that comes on them) the percussion can cause a new shooter some problems. Something more along the lines of a 7mm-08, .260 remington, 6.5 creed, 6.5x284, or even up to a .264 win mag and possibly 7mm rem mag is better for a new shooter, though a light 7mm mag can have significant recoil as well. These rounds allow more shooting due to less shooter fatigue from recoil, more affordable shooting because of cheaper ammunition, give good trajectories, and still have enough power to hunt big game, especially if your intended targets are only white tail and pronghorn.

A 300 weatherby (while expensive) is certainly a good long range hunting cartridge, especially when handloaded with 200-230 grain bullets, but my concern would be more the ability of a new shooter to hold the necessary 5"-6" groups or less at the max 600 yard range you listed with a larger magnum cartridge in what is likely a relatively light rifle (sub 10 lbs). Pronghorn are not very big critters, so you need to be able to hold good groups at the range, because things certainly are not easier in the field.

I may be way off base, and you may be a very experienced long range shooter that has just never hunted (which is perfectly fine) but if that is not the case, and you are relatively new to shooting and long range, I would be cautious of getting too much gun, which will simply end up teaching you bad habits and poor form. All too often people new to the sport fall into this "You have to have a magnum to kill" mentality, when in reality you need an accurate shootable rifle and time behind your gun getting comfortable and accurate with it.

I don't intend to stand on a soap box, just want to make sure someone new to the sport is getting a good start!!
I agree w/ Cody. Don't get too much gun to start hunting with. A 300 Wby is a lot of gun and 600 yd shots are a long way off.
 
Best shooter makes sense. I have 180 AB and 210 gr ABLR already. Ill pick up a box of 165 gr for fun so I can compare the 3 rounds. The comments about wind and heavy rounds higher BC was something I did not take into consideration. I have also read somewhere .30 cal rifles prefer 180 gr as a general rule.

True that most 30's will do okay with a 180 matched to the velocity and pressure it produces, but don't overlook the 150's and 165's for deer and antelope. The extra velocity and flatter trajectory can and often does give you a bit of an advantage when getting exact range estimates in a hurry just doesn't happen. In many cases that'll also mean slightly less recoil, which translates into faster recovery if a second shot is required. The trade-off is less ability to buck a crosswind, and any experienced pronghorn hunter will tell you - yep, plan on it being breezy in antelope country.

So, perhaps think first in terms of finding factory ammo that features a bullet suited to the target species? Neither pronghorn nor deer require a super-tough bullet, so that means a lot of good options. Second consideration - whatever your particular rifle shoots best is a winner. Good chance that if you try 2-4 types/brands of mid-grade factory ammo you can find something that performs well enough in your launcher. Focus on accuracy and "how it feels" when shooting it from your rifle, and don't get hung up on exact velocities until you pick a winner. You'll work through that when you start gathering your data for sighting in your scope and testing the preferred load at various distances.

BTW - 300 Weatherby is a pretty decent cartridge to handload for...one where you can up the performance level and still save money over comparable factory loads. Might be a bit much to start with as a new handloader, so try to find someone who can teach you the ropes BEFORE you get into playing with hot loads in this cartridge! CODYADAMS said it best - be careful not to start out with too much gun! Just like hunting and shooting, handloading requires us to learn good habits and avoid bad ones. So, a thought - when you do start handloading, avoid the lure of chasing max velocities and concentrate on producing consistent, accurate rounds first. Even mid-range loads in this cartridge are faster than a 30-06 top-end load, so you'll have plenty of horsepower. As you gain experience loading you'll find it a lot easier to get those barn-burner velocities AND accuracy together.
 
I agree w/ Cody. Don't get too much gun to start hunting with. A 300 Wby is a lot of gun and 600 yd shots are a long way off.
The OP did not say he was a novice, brand new hunter. He said he has experience hunting.

"I have grown up around guns and shooting and have shot many 300 win mag and wby mag rounds. I always shot my dads guns or someone else's and I have never had a problem with noise or recoil. I just never had an opportunity to invest in my own firearms or hunt due to school/grad school taking up time and $$$. I went elk hunting last year, but unfortunately did not get an opportunity to harvest an animal."
 
A lite for cartridge bullet is not the way to save on meat damage. A heavier bullet typically has a heavier construction and therefore doesn't expand as much or as rapidly on impact on smaller game. The Weatherby has plenty of power to shoot the bigger and biggest 30 caliber bullets. I would look to the 200gr and up choices and have a round that will fill all your North American hunting needs. Down the road if you want or find the need for lighter bullets a smaller cartridge may be a good reason for another rifle. I'm always trying to find a reason for a new gun doesn't even need to be a good one. Good luck on the speed goats they are tasty.
 
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