First off I should "clear the deck" as they say, and mention that I am in no way a ballistics expert. In fact, though I have shot over 100 deer with my bow I have never killed one with a muzzleloader.I have not even risen to the "novice" level yet.

That said I do love to play with my toys, (in this case my son's) so I took a 250 grain shockwave and did some experimenting. Keep in mind I am not touting nor am I criticizing the performance ofthe shockwave as a projectile. With no experience I wouldn't have anything to compare it to; but I will say the results were interesting, anyway to my little pea brain they were...


What do you suppose a 250 grain Shockwave would look like after sitting on 100 grains of powder (777pellets)and then shot out of a T/C Encore into a 75 pound bale of alfalfa (lenght wise) 100 yards away?

Now what would a 250 grain Shockwave look like shot from the same gun with 100 grains (This time it was American Pioneer 3F loose) into the 75 pound hay bale after first penetrating one inch of styrofoam, and 7/16" of press board? Again the target is 100 yards downrange.

Finally, with the same bullet and powder charge, same distance, same media with the exception of adding a gallon jug of water between the styrofoam and the press board. Would there be any difference compared to the results of the first two scenarios?

I wish I could have used the same powder for each of the shots but the first scenario described above was done on a different day. It was only after I recovered the bullet from that hay balethat I thought about penetrating other media.

I will see if I can't post some picturesof the results later today.

Any thoughts?.....

Dang...we don't even have an alfalfa season here!!!

I need a little more info...were they bailed with a Deere??? Or a Ford/New Holland??? What gear did you bale in??? And what was your PTO speed???

I know what a Shockwave will to to a whitetail...It will mess up his day...
We have killed about 15 with that bullet in the last few years...getting full penetration with both 100grs Triple 7 and 90 grs Pyrodex R-S...I killed one last year at 143 yards...went through both shoulders and he dropped...

Actually I find it best to test my bullets on the real thing...With any projectile...In your tests I would assume that the last bullet would upset/mushroom the most..and the first the least...But...I would also suggest that the test isn't real valid as it pertains to critters and the velocity (using 777) was probably different than the other two shots...So
it may actually affect the outcome...

When I started muzzleloading in the 70s...I would drive a 2x4 in the ground...if my ball would penetrate, I knew if would kill deer...

I, too, like to play around with bullet testing. There is a guy who has taken this testing bullets in various expansion mediums thing to a whole new level - do a google search on "box o' truth" . . . really interesting stuff.

When it comes to the 250 Shockwave, however, I have seen what this bullet did toelk on five different occasions. It works. Great combination of penetration and expansion. I don't think bales, unless they are really wet, are going to give you much insight. Phone books soaked in water for 24 hours are similar to muscle tissue. Ballistic geletin is also a good medium for conducting "apples to apples" tests between projectiles. But the bottom line is that the real life critter test is all that really matters. And the 250 Shockwave has already passed this test with flying colors.

The shockwave has sent centerfire mfg back to the drawing board to see how they can make a better projectile as well.

It ain't your daddy's m/l anymore.

Actually I wasn't attempting any kind of a test. I just wanted to "catch" a projectile that had been fired from the gun and the penetration issue was a by product. I was trying to see how much mushrooming I would get.

check out exhibit one, the bullet that was shot into the bale only....



Essentially it is the "pristine" bullet but without the controversy. I could shoot this one over; essentially no damage though it travelled at least 3/4 of the way through a three foot (or so) heavy alfalfabale...

Exhibit no. 2. Styrofoam, pressboard, bale...




Though the photos are less than desirable you can see that the petals are starting to open, some of the lead interior is exposed, but the plastic tip is very much in tact, even after travelling the entire length of the bale and sticking side ways in the wood backstop.


Exhibit no. 3. Styrofoam, gallon jug of water, pressboard, and then the bale....




Basically a flat piece of lead with the copper jacket peeled almost all the way back. It now weighs in at 170 grains. The photo isn't very good because the right side is really exposed lead and is grey but you almost need an imagination to see it in the photo because of the blurr and reflected light.

After seeing these results I can see where that is a real probability...

Thanks for the pics, Antler Eater - I'm wondering what it would have been like if it hadpassed through just the jug and not the pressboard. My guess is that it wouldn't be that much different. Good idea using a bale of hay to catch the bullet, though - especially now that you know the hay isn't going to change the shape of the bullet. If you get the chance, how about one through just the jug of water, and another through wet phone books?

jaybe

Very interesting, that bale trick catching the bullet while limiting deformation,now when we come up with some other answers like what really compares to a deer or boars body. I do believe I will buy some bales and place them in certain locations around my feeders now if the deer co-operate. Lee