Finding a Nosler Partition inside a game animal has been a rare event for me in the 60 or so head of big game I have taken over the years.

This 180 gr NP was launched from a 300 WSM and hit the Whitetail at approximately 175 yards.

It was a raking shot from the rear that entered high on the right rear flank. It smashed through three ribs near the spine as it travel forward. It then entered the body cavity and traveled just under the spine raising havoc with the tenderloins and pulping the top of the left lung. The bullet then exited the chest cavity into the upper "armpit" area and and re-entered a portion of the very swollen rutting neck where it came to rest.

Excellent performance in my opinion. In excess of 30 inches of penetration, including through bone. I have been shooting them for 30 years and they are my exclusive hunting bullet.

GREAT deer and beautiful bullet. Text book performance.

Congrats.

cant beat that

Looks like it worked as advertised.

Great buck.

Nice buck!

nice deer... sorry about the loins...

Congratulations, uber buck.

Nice buck, The Nosler worked like it should. They always do.


That deer should put a smile on your face.

Way to go! Really nice buck there...

Great buck!

So..... a 60 year old bullet design penetrated 30"?!

Me too on the exclusive use of Nosler's - though I've been pursuaded to use Accubonds in a couple of rifles that prefer them over the Partitions. The shame.........

My own 180 Partition from my 300 WSM did a full perforation of a mature bull elk where the neck/shoulder meet at 200+ yards a few weeks back. The bullet is still sailing as far as I know. The bull didn't move far.

How much does it weigh now?

I've probably shot 25 whitetails with Partitions, never recovered one yet. That's a textbook example of why I use them, and a GREAT buck.

It weighs 109.7 grs now on the digital scale.

Gotta love them partitions

Great, thanks!

61% after 30" of penetration. Good deal.

Just hard to beat that.

I for one do not think a bullet has to retain 100% of it's weight to be effective or the best.

That buck is nice, bullet to!

Heck of a buck! Congrats. No doubt the bullet performed.

Nice buck!!! And that is why I gave up on Sierra BT and went to NPT exclusivly for hunting. Started using them in my sons 257AI 115gr and they kill everything with them. I was using Sierra 130gr BT in in my 270 untill I hit a WT buck just below the eye at about 225yds and the back of its head was still there, it was soft but not what I would have expected, I did not skin it to see the bone damage, but I would have thought it would have been blown open. It did DRT though.

Thanks for the report and great buck!

I love partitions. My favorite 257 Roberts bullets has been the 100 gr. Partition because it hits harder than a Roberts should.


ddj

Dandy buck. I shoot Nosler bullets also.

Great buck! One thing about a Partition.....you always know what's gonna happen when the hammer falls...

Look's like bullet failure to me!!! HeHeHe!!!

I have been using them now for about 10 years and have not recovered one yet.

Its a rare event to recover a Nosler Partition, I been shooting game with them since 1969 when I bought some of those high priced bullets for a 7mm Remington Magnum I bought with lawn mower money. The fellow that suggested it to me was a neighbor that hunted a lot and I mean a lot, said that I would like it better than an 30-06 that I was going to buy. He was correct, and those 175 gr Partitions did the trick for the hunting I did with that rifle. The one thing though Partitions shoot a whole lot better now than they did then, then again back then we were not hung up like we are today with groups. I remember shooting a group with the load I settled on after zeroing in the scope, 4x M-8 Leupold. measured 1.7 inches and I was jumping up and down about it. Went on to Smack a lot of game with that load, including a 30 day safari to Kenya in 1971. Good bullets, at a reasonable price, you have to spend a lot for just a tad bit better weight retention. As I get older, the more lazy I get, All I want out of a rifle is to pretty much hit were it looks and bullets perform well enough, Nosler Partitions do that bullet wise, and my Blaser R-93 7mm RM takes care of the other issue. I like getting old and lazy, I have more time to enjoy my hunting and how I enjoy my hunting. Looking forward to sitting out on my favorite knoll form an hour before sunrise to sunset on thursday, its tradition.

Nice deer!!

I stopped one in a dink last year. Entered flank on a quartering-away shot, skidded along the bottom of the spine for 6-8", and then... uh... I don't remember where it went after that!

This was from my .358; 225 grain NP. Check out those HORNS!

Jeff, that was atleast a 6 year old buck in swampy's neck of the woods....To the OP, that is one heck of a nice buck!!!

5090: I taught myself to reload Rifle bullets exactly 52 years ago this coming spring.
The first bullet I loaded was a 30 caliber Nosler Partition!
My family was poor and I had to share reloading expenses with two other young but enthusiastic Hunters.
We eventually had to ask some questions but I am glad the Nosler Partitions were recommended right off to the three of us (who all had access to our fathers and uncles 30/06 Rifles).
I still use Nosler bullets virtually exclusively in a myriad of Big Game Rifles I own and hunt with.
Although, I have switched over to mostly Nosler Ballistic Tips for my Deer and Antelope duties over the last 15 years.
I still use the Nosler Partitions for Bear and Elk.
What a great trophy you brought to bag there!
Which state was it in?
It seems over the years I have recovered maybe 20+ Nosler Partitions mostly from Elk, Bear and Mt. Goats.
I used to wait for broadside shots on Deer with my Partitions and they almost always died with one shot but the bullets passed through the heart/lungs quickly and were often gone.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

My favorite bullet!

Excellent buck, congratulations!

Great buck, congrats !
Shot a buck, facing me, in the white patch of the throat/chest. Not the correct aiming point, but wanted to see what type of bullet performance would result. Anyway, dead deer and recovered the 180 Partition outside his left ham under the skin. Looked indentical to your bullet. I am a beliver !

Like most folks I shoot Nosler, have for years and anything I shot was dispatched the way an animal should be taken. A few years ago I purchased a .257 Roberts and previously I had a .25-06. Also I had a large quantity of 117 Nosler part. base bullets. Once they were gone I purchased the 120 grain .257. This bullet is indicated in the Nosler manual for .257 Roberts with an oal of 2.78". All I can say is...... NOT. The 120 gr part.base cannot be loaded to 2.78" even though the manual shows it. The bullet ogive will not allow it. I called Nosler and was told yes that is right. The bullet put into the loaded ammo is a different ogive than the ones "we" buy on the market. I cannot tell you how disappointed I was in the "professionalism" of Nosler for this. They know the problem and nothing in the manual tells you the 120 cannot be loaded in the .257 Roberts. I expect better in this fraternity. I still believe a person would be hard pressed to find a better hunting bullet, and a more accurate bullet for that matter, than a Nosler, but this is just wrong.

louie: Welcome to the CF!

What model rifle do you have? Is it a short or 30/06 length action?

Awesome Buck!!!!!! Congrats

Partitions set the standard along time ago! The perfect bullet...

Great buck! Good find on the bullet!

Maybe if you shot a bit bigger deer, the bullet wouldn't have worked quite so well!

Beautiful buck and a nice recovered NP. After they hit big bones they are not usually as tidy. Friends and I have recovered quite a few 180 NP's from elk and moose, and some from big mule deer and bears.

The retained weight on this one (109 of 180) is bang on also. Most of ours ran 60-62% of original weight, unless they hit big bone and smashed up or bashed off more weight. They do their job well.

What a great buck! I however have a good collection of Nos. Partitions recovered from mostly bull elk, but several are from deer such. If I ever learn how to post photos I'll share them. Nosler Partition aren't perfect, as one or two from my collection will show; until prefect comes along they'll do.

Buck is a beauty. May I ask what part of ?the country

VarmintGuy and eyeball,

The buck was taken in N.E. Washington State. Whitetail populations are currently down due to winter kill, predation and partly due to poor management by Washington F&G. But, despite all this, decent bucks can be found with effort as the photo indicates.

Good shooting;

5090