Berger vs Federal Trophy Copper

[BDR]

Looking for some opinions. I have a 2506 that I can't make up my mind what ammo to shoot. I shoot Berger VLD out of my bigger calibers and love it. Animals go straight down but... No exit holes. So here is my concern. My daughter and wife often hunt with this 2506. They place an ideal shot with the Berger and deer goes down. A not so ideal shot and deer runs with no exit and not so bueno. I know the trophy copper performs like the barnes tsx and they always exit which helps with a not so ideal shot. What's the green screens thoughts?
BTW they both shoot great out of rifle I just need to decide on one.

[Drycreek3189]

I don't like the hollow-point blow-up-inside-'em bullets on anything I'm gonna eat. Hogs or coyotes, that's fine. I want an exit hole, but that's just me.

[courtatlawjudge]

I stay torn up on the same issues. I kill a lot of stuff drop dead in it's tracks with .224 80grain vld. Never an exit Wound. Nearly lost a mule deer in a foot of snow last year over it. That was more an issue of me being so convinced he went one way that I didn't just turn a little the opposite way and realize that he was dead within 3 seconds and sledded his way down a draw. Looked like a bomb went off inside. But I keep thinking, one of these days ... But thpse groups in the.o's sure make it hard to change.

[trophy8]

My bergers blow huge holes in stuff....

[trophy8]

[ATTACH][/ATTACH]

350 yard hard hard quartering to me shot. Huge hole.

Most have been that was unless I don't hit bone and they zip through little animals like blackbuck (I intentionally did that so I didn't blow a hole in the cape).

[Walding1989]

Berger bullets all the way. My 6.5x.284 will put holes in .25 inch steel plate at 300 yards with a 140 grain vld

[BDR]

My bergers blow huge holes in stuff....

Wow. I have NEVER had a Berger VLD exit and I've killed a lot of stuff. Thanks guys keep em coming.

[Mike D]

I've never had a Berger bullet NOT exit.

[droptine8850]

Never shot Bergers, but plan to try some in my 260 this year. Trophy copper/Barnes/GMX type monometals work good if you hit bone or use them on heavy game......behind the shoulder shots on whitetail tend to make for harder tracking jobs, in my opinion.

[Muddy Bud]

Give me a Berger anyday. My experience wither copper based bullets is very small exit wounds that don't bleed much anyway.

[ByronF]

My Bergers in my 260 always exit. Maybe it's because they don't hit bone???

[bboswell]

I have limited experience with the VLD's on game but what I have has left me less than overwhelmed. All exited with pretty small exits and all deer ran the normal 30-40 yards they do when hit behind the shoulder with about anything else.

This was with 7mm Rem and 168g Berger Hunting VLD

[oneforthewall]

I'm in the minority, I like the Swift Scirocco's. A bonded bullet with decent expansion at a wide range of velocities. They have good BC's and usually exit.

[Capt.Bryan]

I may be wrong but it seems to me that the velocity at impact may effect whether a vld bullet exits or not. With my wife's 257 weatherby we have taken 5 dear with the 115 vld bullets 4 dropped in their tracks and one of those had an exit, one ran 20 ft with an exit. These deer were shot from 100- 200 yards the furtherest 2 had exit holes, the 3 closer ones did not have an exit. I have found that with most bullets including the vld bullets a high shoulder shot drops them in their tracks. Their will be nothing but mush inside the chest cavity and usually takes out part of the spine with the vld bullets with that shot location. My dad and I both tried the ttx bullets in 270 with deer running after a pass through and very little blood trails. As for the 25-06 I have found the federal premium with the 117gr Sierra game kings works wonderful. I pulled it out of the safe and let my 12 year old step son start hunting with it and he has taken 3 deer with it and all 3 had 2-3" exit wounds. One deer ran 20 yards with massive blood loss and the other 2 dropped in their tracks.