ORIGINAL: popeye
I read your description, a couple of time,of what happens after the shot, the problem wasn't the bullet rather it was poor bullet placement. Even if the bullet did not exit, if the shot had been a true lung hit, as claimed,the doe would have died from enternal bleeding well before the 2-3 hours claimed in this story. The guys story is just that, a story...to make up for poor shooting.
I've been shooting the BT for deer hunting for so long now, I don't remember when I first started using them, never had one fail. Not saying they can't, it's just never happened to me or anyone that I know.
I have had similar experiences with the Ballistic Tip bullet. Lots of good success. But I do have a few misgivings about it.
First of all, I shoot the vast majority of my deer with a 7mm08. The 7-08 is a fantastic deer round, but its not the fastest rabbit in the race. I have NEVER
not had a Ballistic Tip bullet out of a 7-08 exit a deer. NEVER! However, I have had one fired out of a .243 not pass through. This leads me to believe a few things. The Ballistic Tip bullet will stay together better at lower speeds. This makes it a great bullet for slower rounds, and longer distances, which is, in fact, exactly what it was designed to do. That or at higher speeds, be a very explosive varmint bullet. I have also had very reputable sources, in the forms of my hunting buddies (the few I have that I trust) report not having pass throughs with, ironically, .270s and ballistic tip bullets. So do I believe that at higher speeds and closer ranges a ballistic tip will crater and not go through a deer....absolutely, I have seen it happen.
With regards to a better bullet for the job; where I hunt in the south, most of my shots are inside 100 yards. There are a few as far as 200, but the average is about 75. I am now shooting the Barnes TSXB exclusively in every caliber I shoot. I am really sold on it. It shoots great with my handloads, expands reliably, passes through cleanly, and leaves an excellent blood trail (although I have learned to shoot through the scapula and take out the spine, which eliminates the problem of tracking.... they just pile up where they stood).
A Nosler Ballistic tip is little more than a hollow point bullet, with a plastic cone on top to help its accuracy and aerodynamics. Its thinnly jacketed, so at higher speeds (like out of a .270, .30-06, .243, or any other light grain bullet at higher speeds) itmay/will crater. It is best left for varmint shooters, or folks who are taking longer shots. For those shots out to and beyond 250 yards, its bad medicine for just about anything. But in close, it will crater and/or cause excessive damage.