Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting ELD-X reports...

True. What still eats at me is he was "alive" about 15 minutes (estimate) after the first shot (and second). Maybe the first shot missed a lot of lung....I don't know, it's all guesswork now.

Testing to continue.

Calvin asked a question above and I'd didn't see it unti this morning.

I don't really know how much time elapsed. The buck did the death dash. Shot -- then full speed run until he crashed. The does weren't in a full speed death dash and 75-100 yards may be a little conservative.

I'm not unhappy with the bullet performance. It's just not what I expected. I expected a softer bullet with lots of fragmentation based on reports I've read on the 'net. That's not what I experienced. Reports on this bullet from the Creedmoor vary significantly.

As I said before, my results are only limited to three deer. From what I've seen so far, the bullet is harder/tougher than expected. That's not necessarily a bad thing.

I'd highly encourage trying a mid weight to heavy weight Berger VLD....

Issues over....

If you have a lung cavity that is destroyed, then the bullet did its job. Many deer do not die like they "should". White tails, in particular, are extremely tough and do crazy things, that can never be blamed on the bullet. I shot a doe a few days back, with a 129 Interlock from my Creed. The shot trashed both shoulders and the doe made it about 60-70 yards to the trees, before she died. Many animals that are lung-shot, run a long way and I have had many that just drop. You never know what is going to happen.

It seems to me like the ELDX bullets are a bit too frangible for some applications, but look to me like they perform much like Bergers on deer. They shoot very well in the rifles that I have experimented with, but I have not used them on game. I think that they are like most bullets, in that they will eventually perform in such a manner, as to make the shooter say that they failed to do what was expected. The bottom line is that no bullets are do-all, end-all in all applications. The ELDX and others are made to perform supposedly close and far. I think they are better suited to long-range killing and it is hard to be perfect in both scenarios.

I know a guy that shot a large cow elk through the lungs with a 143 ELDX , from a 6.5x55 AI. The elk was less than a hundred yards away and the 143 did a complete pass through with a fairly large exit. The elk made it a few yards and collapsed. It may well have been a different scenario, had the shoulder been hit.

As the bullets get more and more game stacked up, threads like these will tend to show people what they are getting into, at least.

...... and at all velocities.

Four reports.
Last year, CO mule deer, 312 yards, 6.5 CM 143eldx factory. Entrance just behind shoulder, exit in front of last rib, Dropped right there, lungs were jelly.
Last year KS whitetail buck, 85 yards, same rifle and load. Entrance behind shoulder, exit in front of opposite shoulder. Again, DRT and lungs jellied. No bone or CNS impact.
This year, Yukon moose, 140 yards, .300 WSM 200 grain ELDX factory. Entrance 4" above elbow, no exit, took out top of the heart and jellied the front of the lungs. Took two steps and dropped.



This year WY mule deer, first shot 230 yards with the Creedmoor, broke elbow and golf ball entrance in rib cage, no exit. Deer ran 55 yards and stopped, next shot at 285 yards behind shoulder, exit golf ball size. Dropped there, first shot would have killed him. Lungs all liquid.


Taking the Creedmoor to KS next week.

Heck of a moose and great info!

I've been lung shooting a few (not with that bullet) and they all run. The least was 50 yards, and no more than 100.

Never had one go more that a few steps or one jump when shooting shoulders. I'm going back to shoulder shooting.

Thanks for reporting on the ELD-X fellas.

? ? ? BOTH shoulders ? ? ? humm





Sounds more like my observations.

Jerry

Shot a 8-pointer couple weeks back.

Hunting over a food plot with most of the deer hovering in the 150 to 200 yard range with a chance at shooting up to 350 yards.

Hunting with a Browning X-bolt in 6mm Creedmoor loaded with Hornady 103 gr. XLD-X at 2,930 fps. I was hopping for a longer range shot because I wasn't sure how the XLD would react on a close range higher velocity shot.

Had an 8-pointer walk up behind me and come into the plot at around 30 yards, decided to double lung him and keep it off of bigger bones due to the range. He bolts for about 40 yards back into the thicket he came from and crashes. I wait 20 minutes and head down to where he was shot. No blood trail. Double lunged with no blood trail ?

Once I get him skinned I fine a 3 1/2" entry wound in the rib cage and peppered holes in the off side rib cage, with no exit.

Bullet probably works much better at longer range/slower speeds.


The following week I drill a 9-pointer at 40 yards with a .308 running 125 gr. Accubonds at 2,975 fps. Angled shot in the front shoulder out the last rib on the far side DRT.
Much better bullet for my application.

Son shot a buck three weeks ago w/6.5CM and factory 143 eldx. Deer was walking slowly across steep hill at 385 yds. Bullet entered and exited in front of hams, took out spine and blood-shot about a pound of steaks (did not nick intestine. Put down for good with shot through on-side leg bone, found under hide in front of last rib on other side. Can't condemn or endorse we're eating. Mac

Something I should have mentioned in my earlier post. Two frontal shots, ~80 yards and ~30 yards. No bones hit, lungs shredded. However, when gutting, the stomach was intact...for which I was glad, but it should have been ugly. I don't believe penetration was much deeper than through the lungs. I didn't think to note if the diaphragm was damaged....I should have looked for that.

maybe it's just me, but I get good reliable performance out of the Remington Core-Lokt stuff. If a deer ran off 100 yards, I would have problems finding it in the nasty thick, swampy pine forests I hunt here in North Florida.

My daughter just shot a buck at about 175 yards. Behind shoulder and bullet took off bottom of heart and 1 lung. Deer made it 60 yards. This was a 140 eld match bullet out of a 6.5 Remington mag. No exit no blood. Kinda sounds like the same performance as some with the eld x. Ed k

Anybody got a report on the ELD-X in a 6mm or .243?

I decided to try the ELDX this year because it is themost accurate factory ammo so far in my 7mm-08. Only a sample of one to date. Approx 225 yd shot downhill at slightly quartering toward. Entrance just above mid shoulder, exit through ribs. Pencil through hide entrance, quarter round hole through shoulder, silver dollar size exit. Deer dead right there. I'm getting to favor the shoulder shot when it presents. As Isaid this is a sample of one. Time will tell.

Mule deer buck In Wyoming, 150 yards quartering away. Buck dropped at the shot and didn't take another step-- bullet was recovered under the offside hide. Need to boil the meat off it before I weight it to get an accurate reading but it retained a good bit of its mass.

I used the ELD-X out of a factory loaded 6.5 Creedmoor cartridge to take a smallish 6pt whitetail this season. Shot was taken at just shy of 200 yards. Entrance on the right side about 2 inches behind the shoulder crease, bullet stopped under the hide after passing through the off side shoulder. Deer stumbled forward but did not get a first down (Make 10 yards) before dropping dead. The recovered bullet is in three pieces. Deer is in freezer.

I had considered using the ELD-X but I've been using the 130gr Berger Hunting VLD's in both my Creeds the last two years and so far have been very impressed so I decided if it wasn't broke don't fix it. Speed is 2800ft/s out of one rifle and 2700ft/s out of the other.

All have been pencil through the hide then a nickel/quarter size hole through the near side ribs, organs were mush with a fifty cent to golf ball sized exit.

These are from last year don't have pics from this year loaded but they are pretty much identical.

Exit on a 120lb doe at 360yds. She went maybe 30yds with a blood trail Ray Charles could follow.



9pt my son killed at 75yds 50 cent size exit and great blood trail went maybe 40 yds.


Exit on a 75lb doe quartering away at 180yds.