Regarding the 130gr SBT Sierra bullet, in each case, the bullet and jacket did not stay together after hitting the shoulder bone and "take out the plumbing" and neither of the bullets exited (not a "game changer" if the internal organs were shut down). If I had I shot the deer behind the shoulder and taken out both lungs, I probably would not have had to track them as far as I did and would have had a much easier blood trail to follow (IMO). I, in recent years, prefer to shoot medium and big game in the shoulder when possible for "quick kills"; and I prefer a bullet that will at least drive through the chest cavity from most "reasonable" angles and penetrate the heart/lung area. I don't use Partitions in every caliber I own, but if they are accurate, I've found them to work well in some of the worst of circumstances or shooting angles on animals big and small; and on bone and "soft tissue". I particularly like how they seem to make the smaller caliber rifles more effective on the "bigger" animals of the "species". I agree that a "good shot" can kill deer with just about any hunting bullet or caliber and I know there are those on this site that are just that good - I readily admit that I am not and have to keep shooting almost weekly to come "close" to my "betters" (load, load, load and practice, practice, practice!). Of all the Sierra bullets I've owned and shot, the 130gr (.277) spitzer boattail has been my only failures on deer where the shot was "called". Consider that I've loaded and used "Game Kings" in .243, .257, .264, .284, .308, .323, and .358 diameters for nearly 40 years (I live close to the factory) - I'd call those two "failures" were probably "anomalies"; however, I've had a "bias" against that particular diameter bullet ever since (my bad). I also developed a "bias" for the 150gr Partition in the .270 caliber because my rifle likes them so well and they have always worked for me (go figure!). There are some great bullets out there, like the Trophy Bonded and such, that work just as well as the Partitions and most of the times any "Red, Green, or Yellow" box works fine if your gun shoot them accurately and they are designed and marketed for the game you are after. Isn't it great that we Americans have so many choices provided by our "Capitalistic" society! Fortunately, we all have many different opinions on what constitutes the "Best", so we can keep those great companies researching and turning out better products for the future generation of hunters/shooters at reasonable prices.
