Deer tail end shot
 

So, lets say Bambi gives you a butt shot and you need to drive a cartridge all through the vitals. What loads work to plow through that much critter? (Now, if your deer only offer great broadside shots, you can skip this. :-)

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

That's commonly reffered to as a 'Texas heart shot' and I would strongly suggest against it.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

All the loads they don't loose much retention. Many out there. Failsafe, TBBC, Barnes, partitions, A-Frames, Northfork.

I don't know why in the world anyone would take this shot and get bile all over thier meat. Just doesn't sit right with me.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Bingo ! Thats disgusting ! i seen one shot from the front staright on head down, hit it at the base of the neck and spine, bullet went through the deer, going through the guts and stomach. that was a nasty cleaning job, pretty hard to keep it off the meat too.. I'll never take that shot, I will go for the back of the neck or head, if facing away.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

In all of my years of hunting, I have done that shot ONCE. Once is the key word in this answer.. Never again. Don't need a deer that bad.:D

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Did it once. Last day of season, hadn't seen a buck all season, saw a decent buck (after he saw me), we locked eyes, my rifle was leaning against the blindin front of me (out of my hands). I slowly started to reach for it, he saw my arm moving, and bolted. I grabbed the rifle, threw it up like a 20 gauge on a grouse, saw brown in the scope, and shot. He bled like a stuck pig, but I still needed to finish him when I got to him.

Long story short: 30-06, 180gr Scirroco, 50 yard shot. Entered right hip quartering away to right, bullet broke hip, blew up a major atrery, and lodged along spine under skin about halfway up back (no guts).

I got the buck, but the bullet performance was the worst I have ever seen. Bullet looked like I took pliers and just pulled the polymer tip off. I saved it , was going to send it to Remington (factory loads) but never did.[:@]

I wouldn't hesitate to take the shot again, if it was either venny in the freezer or not, but it is not prefered......

Erik

Rusty Axe Camp

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Been there done that........ on accident tried to get just the outside of its exposed ribs on the left side it was on the extreme end of a quartering shot, the angle would have been perfect to take out a lung and the heart. the shot was taken standing up shooting free hand I was wobbling pretty bad, when my crosshairs crossed over the ribs i pulled the trigger, the bullet ended up entering dead square through the tail and in the butt hole. My 168 grain Ballistic silvertip out of my 308 win from 75 yards did just fine penetrated and exited the front of its right shoulder, other then the fact it was a real mess inside looked like a jar of tomatoe sauce exploded inside, the deer didnt run at all dropped liked a ton of bricks right where it was standing. Alot of meat was destroyed, the tenderloins were totally wasted along with the right shoulder roast.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I have never made that shot, but I would if I had a monster buck in front of me that was not going to give me a better shot. I would not hesitate to make a texas heart shot with my 7x57, 30-06, or 300WSM. It would be going on the wall.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Right on Gundigest. I was going to respong to Big Country along those lines also. Seems all most seems to care about is antlers, antlers, antlers. Will the bile spoil antlers? I AM NOT an antler hunter by any means. Meat, meat and more meat. Sausages, smoled roasts, burgers and steaks. But if a high class buck presented me with a Texas heart shot, I think I'd try and whistle or something to get him in a different position.

Uncle Matt (in IL)

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

As noted, can be messy, and certainly not the preferred shot, but what works?
270Win. with 150gr. Rem. Core-Lokts.
308Win., again with 150gr. Rem. Core-Lokts.
What doesn't work? 243Win. - not enough bullet weight for proper penetration. Core/jacket seperations don't help matters either.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Tried it ONCE..it worked...but yeeeech whatta mess. Was a very nice buck opening day of 2002 gun season. I was in a tree stand so I had a rock solid rest...was bout a 80 yard shot. He was slipping straight away an about to give me the slip.He went down at the crack of the gun...but I would definitely hesitate to do it again. Was with a 270 using a 130gr Fed Classic.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Try a different lure, you aint had a bite in about a week.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

That's disgusting. Nobody NEEDS to hunt. If you did, you wouldn't care about seasons, regs against baiting, snares, or jacklighting. Since it's just for sport, only a lameassed slob would take such a shot.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I have no doubt my .30-06 firing a 150 gr.Core-Lokt would get through to the vitals, but it's not something I would want to prove in the field. Antlers are great, but I want meat in the end. What's the point of killing a deer if you get guts all over everything you'd normally eat?

As far as lesser calibers getting the job done...I have no idea what works and what doesn't. Better not to even try.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

One thing I have seen when shooting in the chest, if you hit the stomach, grass and food in there can stop the best of a bullet like a rock.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Seen that too, a "friend" shot a buck in the gut (broadside) with a 7 mag and had no exit wound, had to shoot it again and made a better shot the second time and he got his buck, but once again, what a mess.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

First off, you can shoot one from the back side and NOT hit the guts!!

Secondly, i will take ANY shot at an animial i presume is wounded!

Thirdly, i've made the shot more than a few times on animials, and there was no mess as far as guts in the meat. YouDO loose some meat at times and this bothers some more than others. Personally ilive in an area that's over run with deer, and i can "legally" pretty much shoot as many as i want. I'm NOT going to worry too much about looseing 5 or 6 pounds of meat in one of them.

I've said it before on here more than once and i'll say it again. Idon't care to carry a gun/load that won't shoot end to end of the animial i'm hunting for, and for me that means i use NP's for big game 99% of the time. If you match the weight of them to the animial, they will shoot through a deer end to end!

Drilling Man

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I know of a guy who's made such a shot, though going in the other direction. He used a .458 WM Using a reduced load with a huge cast lead bullet. Big slow and heavy zippend the deeer from end to end when he shot the deer straight on from the front.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Not meant as a "lure". Just citing it as it was once tried, and did not work well with the 243Win. Never did find the jacket, but the
bullet core was found in the paunch. After the antelope turned a little, a second shot in the lungs finished it off.
Another time, involving a spike buck mule deer at a range of approx. 125yds., the jacket/core again seperated. This involved a head-on/facing shot. The shot was about perfectly placed into the
neck, and one lung was hit/destroyed. As the buck was approached it attempted to stand up, and it was finished off with several shots from my S&W Mod.57 (41mag.). But, the point is that the bullet did not do its' job well, and penetration was poor.

As DM noted,

For deer size game there's really no excuse not to adhere to this principle, and so I prefer the such as the 270Win. and/or the 308Win.
No more "varmint" guns for deer (ie; 243Win.) :D

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Thank you all for the comments. I have heard about horrific odors from ripped deer so although it is no surprise, I found myself laughing reading through.

Thanks. You are real champs on this board. I appreciate the detail.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I believe you have tried it but for the life of me can't see you could get to the vitals without hitting the small intestines, the bladder or the gall bladder pancreasor stomach. All which put out some sort of nastiness on you meat.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

If you are going to do this shot, the bullet to use is the Barnes X. It seems to be particularly deadly on the end-for-end shot - either coming or going. And not overly messy, either. Shot one about four years ago looking right at me with a 6MM-284 and a 95 gr. Barnes X. Dropped in his tracks. Found bullet in his hip. Minimal meat damage. Also shot a very good buck walking away from me with the same load in 2003. Also dropped in his tracks. Found bullet in the throat.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

How can you possibly shoot up the exhaust port of the guts and not hit guts ?

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

If it were a monster buck, standing still, reasonably close range, I MIGHT try the shot, I doubt it though, because I have held off on bad shots before! For a meat shot, only if I was starving to death!
If you miss the spine, you can have a long tracking job ahead of you! And when you get started on the cleaning job, you will probably wish you had'nt shot, or had'nt found the deer! Me and another friend helped one of the guys on our lease clean a buck that had been ass-shot! It was not pretty, most of the rear quarters were ruined, and even though we both have strong stomachs, we both had to back off a couple of times, to keep from upchucking!
For me it will be "no shot," too great of risks, too little of rewards!

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I did a cow elk once with a 140 grain 6.5mm Hornady. Hit her right at the root of the tail. Didn't really need penetration but shattered several sections of backbone. Lost some sirloin in there too. Didn't really try to do it, we were pushin' the herd outa some black timber. Usually you got some angle, but it happened fast and I just didn't notice.:eek:

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

As with everyone else it seems I did it once, and my shot was slightly off and ended up turning inside the deer and breaking the hip causing major pain and Honestly the only deer that I had to shoot twice. So I will never do it again. But to answer your question I would probably go with a bonded Bullet.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

That shot is not agood way to kill a deer. There is a great possibility to wound the animal. Yes, it will eventually die, two or three miles from you where you will never find it.

There is nothing like a good placed shot to take a buck.......bonded bullets or not......

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

BIGCOUNTRY,
The shot is very simple, through the hind legs low enough to miss the anal cavity. If it severs the femoral artery the deer would likely be located dead whithin 100yds.

Here is the anatomical location ...
http://home.mn.rr.com/deerfever/Anatomy.html

I in no way condone this shot, just clarifying the facts.....

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I don't believe what you are talking about is not a texas heart shot but a broadsided leg shot. What we are discuseeing here is right up the poopshoot to get to the vitals.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Bigcountry,

I agree that was the original post, I think DM was refering to the shot I mentioned.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

(I believe you have tried it but for the life of me can't see you could get to the vitals without hitting the small intestines, the bladder or the gall bladder pancreasor stomach. All which put out some sort of nastiness on you meat.)

Useing NP's, "if" you shoot just over the poop shootor at the top of it, the bullet will go over the guts, andall the way to the other end of the animial. When the bullet first expands it will damage the back bone and spinal cord anchoring the animial. The animial will bleed out with this shot.

There "will" be meat damage and if anything at all gets on the meat well, i cut it away with all the damaged meat.

If the bullet goes a bit higher it will take out the back bone, higher yet it will hit the neck or head. Like i said, use of the proper bullet of enough weight for the cal., makes it happen. Weak bullets or small HV calibers need not apply!!

I used this very shot one time on a brown bear. It took out at least 12' of back bone and anchored him right there. He died very quickly, in fact was dead by the time i walked up to him.

Robert

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

What load did you use, DM?

Thanks

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

(What load did you use, DM?)

On the brown bear??? The bullet was a Speer 275 grain .338 diameter. Loaded to 2,350 fps.

Drilling Man

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

Haven't and will not ever take this shot. To me if the animal doesn't present a shot of certainity he or she wins the battle and will tip my hat..."THAT'S HUNTING!!".

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I would take a texas heart shot using a Barnes X, Win. Fail Safe, or hard cast bulletwithhigh SD andvelocity.Good luck.

RE: Deer tail end shot
 

I agree 100% !
Problem is people dont know when not to shoot. Then when they do make iffy shots and cant find their game, they blame the caliber.