magnum hunters
 

i have a 44 rem mag which is a beast. i also have a 300 rem ultra mag which is almost too much. i shot a spike in the shoulders and it just blood shot the meet. what do you think

RE: magnum hunters
 

If you take out one or both shoulders, you are going to mess up some meat. Regardless of what caliber you use! That is why I always go for a broadside, double lung shot. Zero meat loss!

RE: magnum hunters
 

Aim a bit further back in body and you'll zing right on through with minimal meat damage, taking out the lungs. Like Jag said, you hit the wheels and your going to ruin meat with any caliber.

RE: magnum hunters
 

Go for the boiler room and eat up to the hole.

RE: magnum hunters
 

Ditto what the others said. I shoot a .300 Wby primarily when deer hunting and I don't suffer any excess meat loss because I always (if possible) shoot them behind the shoulders, not through the shoulders.

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RE: magnum hunters
 

I saw a small pronghorn that was shot with the 300 Ultra Mag. There was about two Mac Donalds hambergers worth of meat left on that critter. One would expect that from a dinasour gun.:) Get a 250 savage or a 260.

RE: magnum hunters
 

James I wonder bout that sometimes...lol. I shot one through the shoulders with a .243 and it was NOT a pretty sight...lol. For me it doesnt seem to matter...whatever I'm shooting...if I hat a shoulder...the meat is trash. I always try for neck shots if they are close an rib if its over 100 yards. Works pretty well if you practice a lot.

RE: magnum hunters
 

If I go for a shoulder shot I hold high on the shoulder blade. Put it between the shoulded blade and the backbone.

RE: magnum hunters
 

For snickers and grins, I shot a tiny doe with my 300RUM about two years ago just to get blood on her before I took her to Newfoundland. Only blood shot meat was near the neck. Other than that nothin wrong with the hinds, nothin even wrong with the shoulder. I have a hard time seeing this bloodshot meat thing. Where are you guys shooting your deer?

RE: magnum hunters
 

You're not really hitting them with the rifle, you're hitting them with the bullet. I'd choose a bullet that doesnt open up too quick if you're using one of the larger 30 cal mags. I've used the 7mm Rem Mag for our deer which weigh about 130ish field dressed and don't lose very much meat. But like the others say, lung shots all the way.

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RE: magnum hunters
 

I have harvested deer with an 06, 6.5x55, 300wm and a 307win, have never had a problem with a lot of meat damage. Bullets used have been corlokts, interloks and gamekings. I can see meat in the shoulder area being damaged but not from the ribs back if shot through the shoulder. Didn't say if this was a quartering shot or a broadside or what the bullet selection was either.

RE: magnum hunters
 

Unless I'm purely hunting for meat (only on an occaisional doe hunt), I always aim for the point of the shoulder. See, I like to do all my hunting before I pull the trigger (I happen to be color blind so blood on the ground does not stand out--I have to look for "wet brown" that is out of place). I've never had an elk or a deer take a step shot through the point of the shoulder. Granted, I inevitably loose a few pounds of meat, but for me, the trade off is a good one. Most of my shooting is with a muzzleoader with barnes expander bullets, or a 300wby or 340wby with partitions. I think these help keep the meat loss down somewhat. When trophy hunting, I know I'm using enough gun and a tough enough bullet to make any angled shot on deer (elk are another matter--even with the 340wby). We all have an obligation to kill quickly and to not waste an animal. Having said that, IMO, there isn't a right or wrong answer here.