Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters 25-06 and blood-shot meat?

25-06 and blood-shot meat?

I'm going to and fro on what hunting bullet to try on for small island axis deer.

I want to anchor them because of the type of terrain I hunt in, so the high-shoulder shot will be my choice of shot to minimize tracking.

Most shots will be inside 200 yds and only occassionally longer if conditions are right.

I'm looking for a stout, accurate conventional bullet in 100-120 grain and hope to MINIMIZE bood-shot meat.

Any recommendations on bullet choice from your experiences.

Does the 100 Sierra SBT open up too fast at 25-06 velocities?

I need them to hit the dirt fast

Thanks!

I don't know how tough those deer are, as I've never shot one.

Maybe a 100 gr. Partion? It won't blow up like a bomb, but it may not give you a DRT kill like a Ballistic tip either, if you fail to shoot them high in the shoulder.

For the shoulder shot you mentioned, I would guess the 100 gr. Partition would be a good choice.

I always used 120 gr. Partitions on Whitetails. Never had any bad meat damage, I know the BT's can occasionally cause some signficant meat damage though.

JM

If you ever get around to using the Hornady 120 Hollow Point on game, you will probably stop looking at other bullets.

Sierra 120 grain BTHP works very well on deer, on any shot taken.

For the type of shooting you're doing, with a conventional bullet it's hard to beat the 120-grain Corelokt.

It don't matter which bullet you use if you are breaking bone and putting them down fast expect to see blood shot meat.

IME bone fragments ruin more meat and cause much more damage than the bullet itself.

You want a bullet that will 'stay together' and not 'blow up' upon impact, that's what causes blood shot meat. Any hollow point will, very rapidely, expand as will must conventional soft points bullets. Go with a bonded bullet or a partition type to get a 'controlled expansion'. Such a bullet will give you deep penetration needed as well as a good blood trail due to having TWO holes, an entrance and an exit. Nolser Partitions and Accubonds fall into this catagory as do Barnes TSX and TTSX bullets. I like the 130 partitions in my .270 Win. because they don't leave a lot of meat blood shot. I use the Accubonds in my 6.8 for the same reason. I have also used Barnes bullets in both calibers with great results. A big plus is they are also very accurate bullets.

Think hard about 7828 and the 117 Hornady round nose.

Dober

Yes, I believe I need to make compromises here as it's dawning on me I can't have one without the other

It's inevitable I presume.

I guess I need to keep'em in the BOILER ROOM or NECK SHOTS...

If you're going to be using the shoulder shot, and you want as little meat damage as possible, the 100gr TSX/TTSX stands out above the rest.

I've shot a bunch of deer with that load, and the vast majority have DRT (I use the high shoulder shot with this bullet, almost exclusively).

I've used the 100gr SGK on a couple of deer, and it would be a good choice for rib shots, but I've seen a LOT of ruined meat on one deer that I hit in the brisket/shoulder crease on a frontal shot that I pulled slightly to the right. The bullet never made it beyond the diaphragm and I didn't find any remnants, either. The deer made it ~70 yards and collapsed. The thoracic cavity was a soupy mess.

Break them down with a Barnes.

RM,

To get the results I want,... I may need to try the 100gr. Partiton...They've never failed me in my 30-06 180gr load either...
I appreciate you taking the time in sharing your comments!

I know I don't need a Premium to kill a deer...really wanted to stay with a conventional, but maybe I need to think differently about the situation because I do want them DRT...

Maybe I need to start a thread on Neck Shots in an effort to turn off the lights and preserve the shoulder meat...

Thanks again!

I have used the 100 grain Sierra, and WON'T use it again on deer. It just doesn't exit on broadside shots where high velocity is concerned.

The 117 Hornady on high shoulder shots does well, but usually takes a quick twist to get the best accuracy from it.

The 100 Nosler Ballistic tip has done very well at anchoring deer for me out of the 257 Roberts AI. I get complete penatration, through both shoulders.

In my 25-06 AI, I push 100 grain Partitions at 3400+ and even with double lung/heart shots I have never had a deer leave my sight.., that bullet is a little soft up front, but the core at those velocities on deer up to 180 lbs, always exits on broadside shots (so does the nose, creating another exit hole).

I understand that the TSX/TTSX bullets are the least damaging in the area of meat loss.., and someone here at the fire has some cool vid of a nice buck crumbling at the shot from an 85 grain TTSX...

I would stay away from the 100gr. Sierra.

As Mule Deer said a convential should serve you well.

There's about as much meat on the neck of a deer as the shoulders. Either shot spoils some meat. If you want to minimize bloodshot meat, either slow down your 25-06 with light handloads, or shoot a slower caliber. Full-speed 25-06 rounds would not be my first choice to minimize meat loss. I personally prefer a 6.5x55 with 140 grain bullets at around 2600 fps, or a 7x57 with 160-175 grain bullets at 2400-2500 fps. Other good ones are 30-06 with 220 grain bullets at around 2500 fps, 308 Win with 180 grain bullets at around 2600 fps, and 300 savage with 180 grain bullets at around 2500 fps. There are many, many other good calibers with moderate speed. Contrary to what you might have heard or read, all these loads shoot flat enough to zero the rifle at 200 yards and aim dead-on out to 225 or so.

I have had nothing but bad luck shooting at muscle and bone with jacketed 25 caliber bullets. Most don't seem particularly well constructed, and nobody makes them heavy enough for my taste. If you are going to shoot deer in the neck or shoulders with your 25-06, I would recommend nothing other than the super-tough monometal bullets, like the Barnes TSX and the like.

BR,

Good stuff right here for me to consider!

Seems like I can't have the best of both worlds...heck, what was I thinking

Thanks for taking the time!!!

Big Redhead is right on the money...

Though I believe he meant to say "..zero at 200 and hold right on out to 325 or so..."

Something "chunky" at about 2400fps-2600fps. is a beautiful thing.

Really good stuff here too! Thanks!
Conventionals may be the best however, but it looks like I need to give up the HIGH-SHOULDER SHOT and NECK SHOT mindset because of excessive meat damage...

Lately, I've been craving for some sweet, island axis venison...and this has been the deciding factor I guess in my quest for rules of engagement

Darn, I'm salivating right now just thinking about it...

I use a 257 Roberts with 85 gr ballistic tips and 257 weatherby with 120 gr Speer Grand Slams for Queen Charlotte Island balcktails. Type of bullet matters very little,what I need is accuracy because I only do head shots out to 200 yrds. No lost meat etc. If you insist on shoulder shots I think 120 gr bullets are the way to go with Nosler part. and barnes TSX as my first choice. Also going to try the Hornady 117 RN in both to see about accuracy,they should work fine.For shots out to 200-250 yrds I do not think you need max loads,reducing things abit might help IMHO.

Big Redhead and 358WSM-

I appreciate you and all the other fok here taking me to school in hopes that I may have a better understanding of things! Thanks to all...

But TRUTH be told...I got this 25-06 just recently in hopes of shooting a fast, flat 100 grain bullet that would open quickly upon impact and dump ALL its energy into that deer...for a lightning fast, drop'em in its track, DRT kill...

Being a trophy hunter I never worried about blood-shot meet as all my trophy rams,goats, and pigs were pretty tough and rank...so meat was not a primary issue...never!

But now that my son and I will be hunting island axis deer for the very first time, I am really having a tough time in being comfortable losing that much PRIME meat...So hence my saga remains! I can't have my cake and eat it too

It is apparent to me that I need to stick that fast, flat conventional into the boiler room and stay the heck away from them shoulders if I'm looking for maximum yield when shooting this 25-06....And start learning how to TRACK no matter how difficult that may be in the terrain I'm hunting...

It'll be the first year we start bow-hunting as well, so developing those skills will be of great imporatnce no matter what...The way I see it now I need a conventional that will give me a good blood trail as well...

This discussion has really helped me in seeing the bigger picture...I'm glad I posted this here and you all taking me to school...Being a Late-Bloomer to hunting this stuff is really helping me to strategize my approach and take my field experiences and grow from there....I try my best to NOT over-think things, but I love that SWEET venison for sure and it's showing through right now

Awesome help folks!

Yep, I just thought of that as a consideration myself....hehehe
Keyword for me was"""a bit"""....It'll be fun getting whatever bullet and shot-placement combo worked-out and see what compromises I'll be satisfied with...Thanks!!!