How many of you use only copper bullets?
I mainly deer and turkey hunt. Deer make up the majority of the meat my family eats throughout the year, we buy very little meat at a store. Yesterday while eating sausage made from a deer taken this past fall a small piece of grisle got caught in my teeth....I finally was able to dig it out and found it to be lead instead of a chip of bone/cartiledge. My wife found a small piece of copper jacket in the same batch. I'm feeding myself, my wife, a 7 year old, a 4 year old, and a 6 month old will be eating before long....... Finding the lead bothered me more than a little bit. I process 2-3 of my own every year and send 2-3 more to a processor for things like sausage which I guess is more likely to end up with fragments.
I only use copper bullets in a .223AI right now. I've no doubt that regular cup/core will take deer cleanly and efficiently...it's self evident. All copper isn't needed but I may move everything to copper. I could process all of the deer and play it safe but honestly I don't have the time. It's "cheaper" (considering time) just to have some of them processed (although I do enjoy doing it).
Again, not an argument that all copper premiums are needed for deer, but I'm interested in what others have found in regards to lead and processed meat(?).
JCM
