Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting 25-06 Performance on Whitetail

I have a new-to-me 25-06 that I finally got a chance to shoot at a deer this year. This is not a "bullet failure" kind of thread. I ended up with an exit wound and a dead deer, so I am not complaining. Still, I had odd results and I would like to share them with you.

I did not have a chance to chronograph the final batch before hunting this year, but it was 117 gr Hornady SPBT over H4831SC. The load was reduced 2% off MAX, and I was shooting 1" groups at 100 yards with it from the bench.

The setup was this: I had a doe tag to burn. I went out to my luxury box. At Dark -2 hours an adult doe came out into the field and started munching with her head down. Fairly soon, she gave me at perfect broadside shot. At 150 yards I caught her in the lungs. The bullet took out both lungs, let the heart intact, but detached. She ran in a tight loop, circling back the way she came and piled up just on the other side of a 3-strand barbed wire fence.

The bullet created a .25" entrance wound and a .5" exit wound, both in the chest area. I could not find evidence of a broken rib. When I went to clean her out, I found the diaphragm had been breached and the stomach was opened up.

What happened? This is my first venture with deer using something smaller than .308 cal. Was this a fluke? Was it bullet fragments that took out the stomach and diaphragm or was it an overly-energetic pressure wave? What recommendations would y'all make going forward so I don't have stomach muck to deal with in the next deer.

Was likely a fluke.

Shock wave, most likely. It can happen with anything, but a high velocity round and a well expanding bullet will do it more often than not.

Shoot the next one in the neck.

The .25-06 is an absolutely superb round for whitetails.

Likely a fluke in the details of how it played out, but consider a gallon milk jug struck by that same bullet. That hydraulic pressure, while spread over a larger area, is what you saw inside that deer.

If you don't like those messes I'd switch to a 90- or 100 gr mono and shoulder shots, although based upon my experience I doubt the stomach rip will be a regular occurrence in similar situations.

I really like the 25 cal 117 Interlock quite a lot and it's always done well for me.

Not disagreeing about the shockwave, but a 117 from a 25-06 is not really any more of a high velocity round than a 130 from a 270 or even a 120 from a 7mm-08. I usually notice the shock factor being a bigger deal when speeds are up around 3,300fps or more. Lung shots with moderate weight Interlocks at 3,000fps +/- MV are great for boiler-room chest hits on deer.

I once hit an 8-pt with a 180gr WSM behind the right shoulder with an angling shot approaching the front of the left shoulder. Perfect angle. I found the bullet in the right thigh.

Stuff happens.

I kind of figured this was a fluke. Overall, I'm happy with the 25-06. I've shot several deer from this blind over the past 8 seasons using 30-06, 35 Whelen, and now 25-06. The distances have all been mostly the same. The results have all been the same: dead deer. Some run. Some fall over. It's been an interesting comparison with not too much deviation.

Now, you need a .220 Howell, a 6-06, a 6.5-06, a .280, a 9.3x62, a .375-06, and a .400 Whelen. You could even slum a .270 to round it out.

Sometimes we're left scratching our heads. The most bloodshot shoulder I've seen lately was a deer I shot with a reduced load from my Whelen. Muzzle velocity was 2,450fps with the 225 Accubond and the deer was 220yds away. Go figure.

When you "caught her in the lungs" how far back in the lungs was that?

If you keep doing what you did your going to get what you got.

I been using the same load for over 20 years and have taken at least one deer every year. You cannot judge a bullet or load by one Deer. Keep doing what you did.

I was aiming for just above the elbow. Judging from the two holes, I'd say smack dab in the middle. There was nothing resembling a lung when I opened her up.

This wasn't the biggest deer I've taken, but I'd say 110 live weight.

Wow. Tiny deer over there! I've heard of gut ruptures with lung shots and fast 22's. Guessing it was a pressure wave rupture, and a fluke. A 117 at 3k seems like a lot for 110lb deer. I now get why you like a modestly loaded 30-06--likely less damage. Seems like 30-30 country.

I've seen some gut busters happen when the 300 mag guys at my camp smack one with a fast stepping 150.

Max load under a 117 in a 25-06 and 24" barrel should be ~3100 fps. With the Hornady CC bullet used, and the range, I would expect a pretty good mess inside that deer from hydrostatic shock. I've seen the 25-06 and old Nosler Ballistic Tips give similar results out of my brother's 700 in 25-06.

I've seen and experienced a 270 with the old Fed Premium Vital Shok load (Nosler 130 ballistic tip) give similar results at ~100 yards, penetrating the shoulder of a smallish deer and finding jacket and lead chunks in the off shoulder. Seen this several times in years past as it was my go-to load in a 700ADL that was my first CF rifle. Killed around 40 deer with that combo. I bought 6 boxes of the same lot number of these rounds due to their accuracy. I still have some. Never lost a deer, but I never took a texas heart shot either. Nowadays I handload accubombs, hornady interbombs and hornady interlocks (deer) in my 270s.

I would definitely not want to shoot an elk with that round...

Oh, don't get wrong. 110 lbs LW is probably the smallest doe I've taken in 10 years. I regularly get them in the 170 lb range.

It sounds like this was a fluke, but not that big of one. Cool. I can live with that.

BTW: My son once nailed a button buck with his Garand inside 50 yards. It blew up the deer. It opened up the abdominal cavity at the bottom and EVERYTHING came out. The deer ran 60 yards with all its organs falling along as it went. Yikes!

IMO: it was a fluke, not necessarily associated with, or unique to, any caliber or cartridge.

I will confess to hitting one a little far back this year.
I hunted 6 days in a row without seeing anything but blue jays and woodpeckers.
Finally I saw a small buck around 100 yards away in the woods. I was shooting from an elevated stand and resting the rifle.
The buck was walking but I was confident
that I could hit it. I had to swing and shoot between trees. When I fired he kept walking and when he paused I fired again. He dropped at the second shot.
I could have saved the second shot which spoiled some meat. I like them down.
The 250 gr bullet from the 35 Whelen may have been deflected by a twig or two on the first shot or maybe I should have lead him a bit. But it was the only deer I saw in a week of hunting and I like
to have some groceries in the freezer.
To sum it up hitting them in the guts is not good even with a big slow bullet.
whelennut

Have killed whitetails from 70 to 140lbs with a 25-06 and either a 100gr Sierra spitzer or (mostly) with the 100gr Nosler Btip. All but a few were lungers, some at over 400 yards.

The vast majority dropped right where hit. Little in the way of bloody meat except on one shoulder whack, or excessive damage.

The more "perfect" lung shots generally had pretty good exit wounds and about zip left in the lung department. All of those dropped where they stood or walked, when hit.

Never chronoed my 25-06 loads over the past 30 years, but a 100gr bullet, 54grs of IMR 4831 and a 24" barrel should oughta put 'em somewheres north of 3200 FPS. My bud used the same 100gr load in his M700BDL and they ran right around 3250 to 3300 maybe 20-25 years ago.

Last deer I killed (2 years ago) with a 100gr Btip/25-06, was about a 120 pound doe at 200 yards. Heart shot, fairly small exit hole (one inch or so), dumped her on the spot.

The 117gr Hornady BTSP Interlokt might be the most perfect bullet for the 25-06. My Dad used it in his 257AI w/a 25-06 load for many years to kill large Texas panhandle whitetails. powdr