Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Caught a 143 ELD-X last night

A pretty good (for this property) buck stepped out last night at last light and I shot him quartering-to at 90 yards with my HMR 6.5CM. I was doing my last-minute scans with my binoculars, as seeing deer that late with the naked eye was not much of an option on the big pipeline I was hunting. Deer generally are seen at 200-500 yards. I could see this guy was past his ears when he stepped out, but that was about all I could make out in the last few minutes of legal light. Flipped the illumination dial on the Bushnell LRTSi as I pointed it out the window and that made things much simpler. He bolted at the shot and I heard him crash a few seconds later.

I tagged him in the forward portion of the onside shoulder (red speck in the pic). He made it about 50 yards. No blood trail, but I knew the general area where I thought he'd gone silent.



Flipping him over revealed the telltale lump about 5 inches in front of his hip on the opposite side, so I sliced the hide and pulled out the bullet. It was 55.4gr of jacket.






Impact speed should have been about 2,630fps. I imagine it would have exited on a broadside shot, but this quartering angle stopped it under the hide.

I'd have liked to have seen some core retention, but dead is dead. Didn't get to see the internal damage as I ran this one to the processor 5 miles down the road. Other deer I have dressed out showed the 143ELD-X to behave much like other cup/cores at similar speeds from a 7mm-08 or .308.

Good stuff JPro, nice buck, nice shooting, and congrats.

Nice buck, JPro!
That sounds about right for performance with the ELD-X.

Hypothetical: had the deer been at say 50-75 yards broadside and you hit the shoulder, what could have been the outcome (besides probably a daed deer)? Maybe lots of damage or below average penetration? I have no idea what the MV of a CM is...Otherwise, GREAT shot and nice buck!

Good questions, jorge. I'm going to keep going with that bullet and see what more field data shows. MV on that load is 2,760fps.

I'd never consider the ELD-X (or SST, or Gamechanger) to be a great penetrator when compared to heavier-built designs, but it seems like it should be a good bullet for medium game when launched at moderate speeds. I noticed that they are now making a 110gr ELD-X in .257, which should fly nicely at 3,400 from my .257wby, but I think I'm going to pass on that combo for my kind of hunting....

I used the 150gr SST in my 303 to take a 150 lb buck at 115 yards and got complete penetration. Went in just behind the shoulder (he was quartering away slightly) and punched through the offside shoulder leaving only about a dime sized exit wound. I suspect mv was close to 2650 or so. i just had great luck accuracy-wise in my 308 Model 70 and Browning with the Game Changer, but no way I'd push it in my 257 even though the 100gr Hornady is incredible as far as putting them down. I prefer the 100gr TTSX. I could never get my Weatherby to shoot the 100gr Partition with great accuracy, although my 300 Weatherby likes the 180s and my Browning (Pencil barrel) 308 Safari ONLY likes the 165 partitions. Go figure..

Go to the 27 min mark.. you just gotta hit them 🤷‍♂️

That's really a cool video. Love the enthusiasm!

And yeah, it's more about where you hit them than what exactly you hit them with......

That’s a tough jacket on that bullet. My son shot a small buck with a 110 gr VMax in 6.8 SPC at 30 yds, no exit wound, lots of internal damage. The buck ran 30 yds and laid down. Maybe bullets with a canelure would hold together better.

Congrats on your buck! Good and healthy.
Greatly appreciate the information on the bullet performance.
Thanks.

I hope others will share their experienc with this load in 6.5 CM. Seems to be pretty popular load.
I have heard a fair amount of feedback on not much blood trail. Was wondering if that is typical for load.

Thanks for the report! While it worked well for you, I will probably stay away from them. I hunt thick stuff, and a blood trail is a must. I want blood leaking out of both sides of its body. I shoot a 260, so i would be running very similar velocities. Appreciate guys like you sharing bullet performance on game. Makes it easier for me!

If you really need high odds of an exit with a 6.5, I've had good luck with the Accubond and the TTSX.

Thanks for the info JPro, always good to get first hand info and pics. Good shooting and nice buck.

Awesome!! Been thinking about 120 grn TTSX

Congrats JPro. That's a nice UP buck.

Nice one JPro. Pace Brown?

Real nice buck JPro , bullet didn't do to bad considering the distance and the amount of flesh it went through .

Have you heard/read any comparisons ''on game'' eld-x vs. eld-m ?

Did you use the a-max much ?

Congrats on a fine deer! Your recovered jacket is what my limited testing indicated to expect at that impact velocity! memtb

Just north of there.

Mike, I never used the Amax on game but did use the old SST. It seemed to be a bit more explosive than the ELD-X.

Thanks .

Interesting the Interlock ring is where expansion stopped. I'll be trying the 103 6mm this season if I get the same jacket separation then will probably go back to the 95 gr. BT. One place we are likely to see some big hogs and I like a tougher bullet for body shots on them. The ELD-X will probably be fine on them too.

Nice Buck.

Looks like excellent performance to me. All that lead that was shed tore stuff up all along the wound channel causing rapid death.

Just what you want!

I have a hard time picturing an empty jacket with that much frontal area doing a lot of penetration by itself, so I'd wager core stuck with it for most of the wound channel. It did kill pretty quickly. I heard the death run, which was through a fairly open section of woods, and guessed he made it 40-50yards. When we made a pass with flashlights at that distance, there he was.

The core can keep going and usually has a good wad cutter or mushroom shape to it. I have heard of instances where the bullet shed it's jacket fairly quickly but the core went on and exited. I have found large pieces of jacket near the entry but never the entire jacket. I have also had bullets caught on the offside hide and when I removed them the core fell out of the jacket. I call these controlled failure bullets, they all came from very dead deer.

My buddy shot a buck this year with the same bullet athough about 200yds. Broadside shot just behind the shoulder, no exit and an identical empty jacket under the opposite hide.

Makes me worry about a less than ideal shot. Hit them in the liver and they might run a long ways.. one little 6.5 hole and no exit isn't making much of a blood trail..

What grain ttsx did you use? I love the ttsx in our .223's. I can't imagine I wouldn't like it in the 6.5

I’ve killed a handful a white-tails with the 143 eld-x. Out of 5, all but one didn’t take a step. One, shot by a buddy was well placed shot, but she ran about 40 yards and zero blood. I’ve killed coyotes and fox with massive damage and one bobcat that went in and out with little expansion and minimal blood. The take away is, they all died very quickly and their insides of non exit kills were completely destroyed...

Great buck and nice shooting.
I’ll stay away from those, but did load up some 130 game changers in 6.5 CM as a deer round and target round. Hmm.
I hope the game changers stay together better than that. If not I am working up LRX load as elk round that could always be used in deer.

Nice buck. Your photo convinces me to use stouter bullets like the Nosler AB or one of the copper monos. There are much more dependable bullets available. Why take the chance.

Congrats! What part of LA are you hunting?

Congrats. Looks like great bullet performance. Good penetration on a quartering shot and apparently enough penetration to put it down quickly. I’ve got a case of factory loaded 143s laying around. May need to try them on deer.

How do you like the HMR?

I think the HMR is very well done for what it is, a fairly heavy tactical-style bolt gun with adjustable stock. The action is slick and well-designed, they shoot well, and the stock has very good ergos. I'd rather have an HMR than a comparable 700 if they're priced similarly. With that being said, I sold mine off to replace it with another adjustable 6.5CM that's a couple pounds lighter and wears a shorter, threaded barrel for a can (Sig Cross).

JPro very nice buck. I've only caught one 143eldx and got almost what you saw. Mine is running 2625 at the muzzle and I hit this Oryx at the top of the blood drip. Left shoulder destroyed lungs shredded from bone and bullet fragments and a 54 grain jacket was in the offside armpit just under the hide. On three wheels he went about 35 yards.

Might be a good recipe for scrambled coyote.

Tom

Good shooting, can't call that bullet failure exactly.

As much as I want to be a fan of the ELD-X, I can’t allow myself to have total confidence in the bullet. I’ve only shot about 12 deer with the bullet, but results have been inconsistent. I’ve also witnessed several other deer shot with the bullet that mirrored my results.

I’ve seen pencil throughs, impact explosions, long death runs with no blood and bang flops. All of these shots have been within 200 yards to be fair. I’m not sure if it’s jacket or core inconsistencies, but no doubt results varied from bullet to bullet. I’m not talking about poor or marginal shot placement either. I’m talking broadside, double lung/heart shots.

I’ve killed my KY buck this year (not with the ELD-X), so I’m now going on doe patrol for the rest of the season. I’m thinking of whacking 5-6 with the 6 Creedmoor and the 103. If I do, I’ll share my results.

Congrats on a nice buck

I've shot a dozen or so with that bullet from a 6 Creedmoor.
So far, it's worked exceedingly well on shoulders and in boilers although none of them have been at spitting distance.

Will be interested in your findings.

Good job. That one needed culling for sure.

That said when you pick a bullet like that we know in advance what its limitations will be. JB says its dead. yup. We run Berger 140s in the CM. I know my limitations. Don't take quarter to shots. Broadside is by far the best. We just wait for the angle or try another day. BUT we have a few TTSX along too in case we find an animal we want dead and can 't wait for the right shot.

All around the results are good and what one would expect from that. The ELDX seems a bit better at slower speeds to me. But thats my take. Trying to run them in the Grendel next. Should be happier at that speed

Good job. Congrats

Congrats on the buck! Good shooting, sir.

On the bullet, it’s what I have come to expect from Hornady wares. I prefer those that stay together rather than come apart. I like the Barnes TTSX and LRX, personally.

Try the 105 BTHP. I like it better than the 103 ELDx.

Pards boy won't let my bud load anything but the 100 grain TTSX in his Creedmoor. Absolute hammer on whitetails.

I bet the kid has killed a dozen or more deer with that combination and 6 or 8 hogs in the last 8 or 9 years since he started hunting. Have never heard my pard complain how they perform.

Funny thing is my buddy has never used them in his Creeds but the kid just keeps on stacking with his and the TTSX.

He and his oldest boy tried the ELD-X but had inconsistent results. All dead deer but some pencil through at close range and some grenade at extended range while some performed perfectly at all ranges.

I had almost the exact same shot opening weekend,96 yards, entered point of shoulder, broke the skin a little forward of the opposite rear shoulder.
Jacket looked just like yours just inside the skin.
6.5 CM with muzzle velocity of 2628 from a 20” barrel.

Killed a New Mexico mule deer buck in 2018 with the 143 ELD-X, a factory 6.5 CM load that was probably getting 2650 or so. The range was 101 yards, lasered after the shot. He was standing broadside in some oak brush, and the sensible clear shot was high on the shoulder. He went straight down. Found the bullet under the hide on the far side, the jacket and core lying next to each other, the two parts weighing 86 grains. It had broken both shoulders and the spine. Didn't get a chance to weigh the deer, but got exactly 100 pounds of boned meat, which is usually about 1/3 of whole weight.

My hunting partner killed an even bigger-bodied buck on the same hunt, with the same load. The deer was quartering away at 311 yards. At impact the buck did the little heart-shot jump, then trotted 30 yards and fell over. The bullet went from the left-rear ribs to the right shoulder, and the core was firmly in the jacket. It weighed 106 grains, 74% weight retention.

Opening day in the UP. Right buck, 143 ELDX from a 6.5 CM. Left buck(mine)143 ELDX from my 6.5 PRC. Both were lung shot pass through shots, both with silver dollar sized exits! For me, it's the 15th deer dropped by that bullet!

Last 3 years I've dropped 3 cow elk with the 143 ELDX using the 6.5 CM & PRC and been right there to watch another 5 drop using those 2 rifles and a RPM.

In every case we made sure they were broadside, tight in the leg crease, double lung shots. Never have recovered the bullet.

I used the ELDX because when the NPT and NAB became unobtanium, I could still get the ELDX.

ELDX on big bull elk wall hangers? Nope. I now have a pile of NPT, Oryx, and Weldcores that I would use instead.

This is apples to oranges, but I shared camp with two guys in Newfoundland that were using 178grn ELDX's out of a .308 and a .30-06.
The guy with the .308 shot a woodland caribou at about 40 yards, quartering away. The bullet barely made it through one lung.
The guy with the 06 shot a decent bull moose perfect broadside, at about 60 yards. Hit it 4 times and had time to get in his backpack and reload before it dropped and then had to finish it with another round.
Very poor penetration in all cases.