Berger bullet failure

[trophy8]

I shot a buck yesterday morning at about 150 yards with my 6.5-284. I always shoot them square in the shoulder. Hit exactly where I wanted but the bullet didn't expand at all. This pic is of the exit. Entrance was the same spot on the other side. Buck folded like a fat lady in a cheap lawn chair and never moved. I was shoot my hand loaded 140 grain hunting VLDs

[M16]

I would switch to the Berger match bullet. I've had better luck with them.

[trophy8]

Pretty sure the match has a thicker jacket

[WyoBull]

Pretty sure the match has a thicker jacket

True. The hunting VLD's are designed to expand more easily.

[catslayer]

... Isn't failure relative here???? "Buck folded like a fat lady in a cheap lawn chair and never moved" Sounds like it put him down hard and with very little meat damage

[trophy8]

... Isn't failure relative here???? "Buck folded like a fat lady in a cheap lawn chair and never moved" Sounds like it put him down hard and with very little meat damage

That's because I hit my mark. Move that shot 6" back and I'd be singing a different tune.

[M16]

Or as one famous gun writer said "at what point in the animals demise did the bullet fail?"

[trophy8]

Or as one famous gun writer said "at what point in the animals demise did the bullet fail?"

Haha. I get it. Bullet still failed to expand....

[WyoBull]

Some good points above. Both Berger and Barnes bullets (I have a lot more experience with Barnes) are not designed to come apart inside the animal. However, the terminal damage is devastating. Open that animal up and the heart lung will look like you put them in a blender. That is how those bullets are designed to work.
Every animal I have ever shot with my Barnes TSX or TTSX bullets and virtually the same exit hole as entry hole. And, I have only ever recovered one bullet and that was on my Blue Wildebeest and it hung up just under the opposite side skin after breaking both front shoulders.
If I am wrong on the Berger please correct me but I do believe that to be the case.

[Kmart49]

Some good points above. Both Berger and Barnes bullets (I have a lot more experience with Barnes) are not designed to come apart inside the animal. However, the terminal damage is devastating. Open that animal up and the heart lung will look like you put them in a blender. That is how those bullets are designed to work.
Every animal I have ever shot with my Barnes TSX or TTSX bullets and virtually the same exit hole as entry hole. And, I have only ever recovered one bullet and that was on my Blue Wildebeest and it hung up just under the opposite side skin after breaking both front shoulders.
If I am wrong on the Berger please correct me but I do believe that to be the case.

I was thinking the same but like you, my experience is with the TTSX. Those bullets are designed to retain 98+% of their original weight.

[trophy8]

This has not been my experience with the. I have experienced violent expansion on the offside shoulder. The vitals on the buck were that bad but bad enough. Like I said shot placement saved me. I've had a Berger in my 300 blow a 4" exit hole in a big mule deer on a quartering to shot at 346 yards. The whitetails I've shot with it exited and made a mess. One mule deer didn't exit and blew up inside. He didn't go but maybe 10 yards. These are built different than the Barnes. Barnes are solid

[captainsling]

Do you think distance has anything to do with it? I shoot the Barnes and I get little expansion under 200 yds on my 300 WSM. At 400 yards things get really ugly on expansion. They are still deadly at closer range, but I get much better expansion at longer distance.

[trophy8]

I would if I had the same results at the same range. It's only 2950 at the muzzle in this gun.

[RMW]

Berger VLDS usually leave a huge exit hole. But about 20% of the time they don't expand at all. Not sure why this is the case. This is a cull my boy shot with a .308 168vld. Love it when they expand correctly!

[txfireguy2003]

That's because Bergers were originally designed as match bullets, they were never intended to expand. Berger markets them as hunting bullets because some guys (Best of the West crew maybe? I'm not sure) started using them for long range elk hunting. It's the same argument that several people have about the AMAX bullets for hunting....The OP in fact, I think says you shouldn't use AMAX bullets because they are target bullets, yet if you ask Berger, they will tell you that the VLD Hunters are the original VLD Target bullets, and they beefed up the jackets on the newer target version because they were having bullets come apart in flight during high volume competitions.