Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Experience with Federal Fusion ammo on deer

I shot a buck and a 225 pound pig this year with 150 gr 308 fusion. The pig died after about 20 yards, the deer 40. Neither exited. Neither had any blood trail. Accurate, though.

I tend to use and would recommend bullets with a higher sectional density for better penetration. My minimum for 30 cals is 165 gr. and have taken lots of deer with the 180s. I prefer to have an exit wound and quartering shots ask a bullet to do lots of work.

I have used them in my .270 since last year. They are very accurate in my Ruger.



I did recover one bullet from a deer I shot last year. 107 yards. Deer was about 130 lbs 8 pointer. Quartering towards me. Bullet entered just behind right leg and came to rest under skin just in front of left rear leg. Deer ran about 60 yds.





Bullet performed great in my opinion, but as others have said, quartering shots ask a lot of a bullet if you want an exit.

I still use them, but try to focus on more broadside shots. Wouldn't pass on a deer if only presented a quartering shot, though.

They group 1" in my M70 FW 30-06. So far, three bucks this year, all with 165 gr Fusion. Two were about 85 yards or so, another was about 125 yards. Bullet did what it was supposed to.

Didn't know you could buy Fusion bullets. Where did you get them?

Seems I remember someone on this forum talking to a rep at Speer and said it's dangerous to use any powder other than the load data Speer published on their website. I guess using different powder and working up can cause unsafe pressure spikes. May explain why you can't get them. Maybe they are discontinued because of this and if you want a Fusion type bullet, you have to buy loaded ammo.

i used fusions for the first time last month. killed 2 whitetail bucks with one shot per. both bullets exited. neither deer made it more than 30 feet. shot distances were approx 30 yards. the 165 gr fusions are all i have for my new 308 win, so they are all i'll use for a couple years. i have complete confidence in them for whitetails.

My single experience with the fusion loads was with A 150gr 270 WSM load on a sizable MT whitetail. I hit him far enough back that all I caught of importance was the liver on a broadside shot of around 150 yds. The buck was surprisingly DRT. The load exited fully.

I've used it a bunch in the last 3-4 years. Mostly in two different .280 Rem rifles. My BIL and hunting partner uses it as well in his .308 Win.

I've shot 4 deer with it, 2 bucks and 2 does. All literally, dropped at the shot and didn't run.I recovered a bullet in one large bodied, 5pt buck. Took the shot at 10 yards, on the left shoulder. The bullet traveled through, up the neck along the spine and I recoverd the bullet in the neck hide on the opposite side. Never took a step. All the others exited on shots from 40 yards to 75 yards

This fall I shot an average sized doe for our area (110lbs dressed) at 75 yards through both shoulders and the spine. That was the fastest kill i have to date. The deer simply dropped and never moved. Not a twitch, kick, wiggle...nuttin.

My BIL shot a 7pt 167# dressed weight buck, at 60'ish yards. Shot behind the left shoulder, down through the heart and exited behind the left shoulder. Buck dropped at the shot, kicked a bit and died.

The ammo is VERY accurate in every gun I've used it in and works pretty well IMO. I'm going to continue to buy it until I can reload cheaper and better than the Fusion.

I think they tend to be a little soft. I shot a deer at about 100 yards facing me with my .260 (120 grain) and all that was left of the bullet was a piece of bullet base that was smaller than a pencil eraser. The bullet did not "mushroom" but instead is seemed as those much of it sheared off. The deer died just fine and ran about 50 yards. If I had not seen him go down I might have had a tough time finding him with no blood trail though. I have a buddy that is shooting them in 7mm-08 and likes them just fine.

Six consecutive rounds of Fusion 120s through my Rem. 700 25.06 Varminter...

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Again, pretty good fodder for the dollars spent.

My Federal Fusion experience in 7MM Mag and 175 grain ammo:

First this:




Then this:

I don't understand why they offer the 6.5x55SE in a 140 gr. load but offer the .260 only in the 120 gr. If they offered the .260 in the 140 bullet, I think you would have had a different experience. You gotta wonder why they make two different 6.5 bullet weights but don't offer both in the only 6.5/.260 cartridges that they make. Even then I would think it would be reversed. The heavier bullet being for the faster cartridge, not the slower one.

I shot the biggest buck of my life 4 years ago with a 130 270Win Fusion. Deer was quartering toward at 20 yds. I shot through the lower neck and exited far shoulder. Exit was about 2". The deer died instantly like hit by lightning. He weighed 220lbs and scored 168". They were very accurate too. Clover leafs @100yds.