Your photos look like you hit this deer with a bazooka pal!!!

My Buddy bought a TC Triumph, it came with the SST's, we sighted in His ML and He was Dead on, 2" High at 50yds, that Baby could shoot. Last Late ML Season He shot at 4 different Deer, each time there was mabey a Spot or Two of Blood and some Hair, we did'nt find any of the Deer and we live and breath Deer hunting and can Track a Deer no matter what the conditions, but we could'nt find any of His Deer. I blame it on the SST's, His Triumph came with a sample Pack of them so that's what he figured was the Best as TC put them in with it. I think they Stink! Im gonna try My Best this comming Season to get Him to try something else, He has lost all confidence in a ML and it's not the MLers fault............

I must have the exception to the rule. My Knight Extreme LOVES the 250 SST's and 100grn of T7.
I just shot a doe this past Sunday of our Il gun season to hit her from right hip, out and back in the ribs, through the right shoulder to exit the front of the right shoulder near the brisket. Hole the size of a 50 cent piece. Never took a step. This is around the 20th deer I have shot with them and have never looked back. I have yet to recover one for they all blow the heck out of the insides and then exit.
My partner began using them in the 300grn and they were too sturdy to expand and then dropped to the 250's and is doing fine.
Good job on the buck recovery and it may be just one of those Chit happens things that make ya go humph.

i blame your Buddy for not putting the bullet in the right place. Anyone who shoots four deer and loses all of them is doing something very wrong. i've killed about 20 deer and many dozens of wild hogs with the 250 grain SST bullet. When that bullet went in the right place the animal died within 100 yards; 75 percent or more of those kills were bang flops.

I hunt close ranges (75yds-) almost all the time now so I started using some of the cheaper TC semi-jacketed hollow points. I shot my 9 pointer and they worked great out of my Omega .50 with 100gr. of 777 (2-50gr. pellets). Made a hell of a nasty entry and exit wound. Good stopping power & good accuracy at the closer ranges I've been hunting. If I needed to get out there to 125yards+ I would probably use something else though.

maybe the deer are getting armor plated carriers

If you are hitting the animal high you will have little blood no matter which bullet you are using. The description of the wound you describe is evident of that. The reason you started to get blood later is that the chest/lungs began filling up and it was blowing out his nose/mouth. I would guarantee that if you put that SST in the lower 1/3 of the body behind the shoulder(broadside), if the animal doesn't drop right there, he won't go far and you will have a blood trail.
You report is good in that it tells me there is nothing wrong with the SST bullets but more an 'error' in shot placement. Sorry, I don't mean to put you down. And I congratulate you on your success and hope your luck continues. But do yourself a favor a aim a bit lower.

I had similar experience with the SSt's--very accurate but NO exit holes or blood trails.
Me and my sons went to the 250 gr XTP's and problem solved!
The XTP's give excellent terminal velocity,exit wounds & blood trails.
My son's shoot TC guns and use MMP short black sabots. They load tough (tight) but give good accuracy/results.
This load with 110 gr BH209 has accounted for 8 deer---NONE have gone over 10 yds after shot. Yardage is from 40-140 yds.

Mark

I am sure I will get plenty of disagreement on this.
It is my belief that the yellow tip Shock Wave was designed for target and the SST is a copy of them: the Bonded Shock Wave is designed as a hunting bullet and works quite well. I do know that with my rifles they shot the same POI. I use the yellow tips for some years and when I tried the Blue tip Bonded Shock Wave I was impressed with the difference. I will say that I never lost a deer with either but the difference in the exit hole is considerable and that makes a major difference in the blood trail. But none of the deer I ever shot through the lungs went so far as to be really hard to find, I used hard cast bullets in a sabot at one time probably the dumbest thing I ever did but even so the deer never went over a 150 yds when shot in the right place, if you blow holes through the heart or lungs they can only go as far as a single breath can take them.

Yep, i had trouble with the 250 grain SST/Shockwave bullet when it went in the wrong place: That was my fault. The vast majority of deer and wild hogs i have killed died within eyesight; no blood trail needed.