143 eldx 6.5 not pleased

[TB80]

I don't have any personal experience with the ELDX. However, both on this thread and on other hunting forums (blasphemy, I know), I have seen a similar disagreement about the effectiveness of the round. It seems some people love it and others are not happy with how it works.

[meltingfeather]

on forums I have seen disagreement

FIFY
Specific and universal at the same time!

[Txhuntr2]

Eldx precision hunter loaded ammo in 6.5PRC was bad medicine for this Aoudad opening day of the General season. I hit him at 150yds quartering away and the bullet passed through vitals and ended under the skin in the neck on the opposite side. He ran probably 50 yards and dropped dead.




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[Ryan81]

I’m not a fan of it. I’m shooting it out of .260 Remington. I’ve killed 2 bucks, 1 doe, and 1 spike to go along with 15+ hogs.

Most of the hogs were head/neck shots. I had two deer DRT and two run about 40-50 yards. Had a small exit hole on all the deer with little blood.


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[bphillips]

I’m starting to think people expect them to act like a ballistic tip. It’s not that type of bullet

[BULL21]

I’m not a fan of it. I’m shooting it out of .260 Remington. I’ve killed 2 bucks, 1 doe, and 1 spike to go along with 15+ hogs.

Most of the hogs were head/neck shots. I had two deer DRT and two run about 40-50 yards. Had a small exit hole on all the deer with little blood.


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You’ve killed 19+ animals with the bullet, and you’re not a fan. What are you expecting from a bullet?

[B&C]

Here are my thoughts on the ELDX and from my experience. I had heard great things about them. So my dad and I both used them. His in 6.5cm mine in 308. We both shot deer last year. Mine at 120 yards his at 20 yards. Neither of us had exits. Both deer dropped in tracks. I have shot multiple pigs and big pigs 200+lb ones that they have dropped in their tracks. But never any blood that would’ve been trackable.

These bullets hit HARD. But you better hope that the animal does not run or you are in trouble.

These were initially designed for long range hunting 150yards plus from a hornady rep I met.


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Exactly my experience. I had great expectations for them. Most shots under 120yds were problematic, bullet expanded too fast. Past 120 worked great. I had 2 does under 100yds that the coyotes found before me. No blood after 20 yds.

We shoot between 50-80 deer per year on our MLD and test a lot of bullets. ELD-X are off the list with a few others.

My personal preferences (6.5 creed is my favorite round):
Barnes Triple Shocks and GMX perform the best if the rifle will shoot them. SST's shoot well in most rifles and perform well, tougher than a Nosler BT.
Sierra GameKing's shoot well in every rifle I've loaded them for and are deadly (not a marketing favorite).
Nosler Ballistic Tips are a super accurate choice in most rifles and work extremely well under 3000 fps.

Currently shooting Elite Hunters in 6.5, they are the most accurate loads I've tested in that rifle. They're too long for the magazine is the down side. The field testing is still under review (not enough shoulder shots at different distances yet). Also testing some 7-08 hand loads with Federal Fusion 140's and Hornady Interbond 140's this weekend.

[Radar]

Exactly my experience. I had great expectations for them. Most shots under 120yds were problematic, bullet expanded too fast. Past 120 worked great. I had 2 does under 100yds that the coyotes found before me. No blood after 20 yds.

We shoot between 50-80 deer per year on our MLD and test a lot of bullets. ELD-X are off the list with a few others.

My personal preferences (6.5 creed is my favorite round):
Barnes Triple Shocks and GMX perform the best if the rifle will shoot them. SST's shoot well in most rifles and perform well, tougher than a Nosler BT.
Sierra GameKing's shoot well in every rifle I've loaded them for and are deadly (not a marketing favorite).
Nosler Ballistic Tips are a super accurate choice in most rifles and work extremely well under 3000 fps.

Currently shooting Elite Hunters in 6.5, they are the most accurate loads I've tested in that rifle. They're too long for the magazine is the down side. The field testing is still under review (not enough shoulder shots at different distances yet). Also testing some 7-08 hand loads with Federal Fusion 140's and Hornady Interbond 140's this weekend.

I would be interested in your results with the Hornady Interbond in the 7-08, also would like to know why you have not mentioned Accubonds?

[Buckwheat]

Love the 143 eld X out of my 6.5cm. So does my son. Although I neck shoot all my deer, it’s been devastating. My son has shot several hogs and dropped everyone in its tracks.


“There's more fun in hunting with the handicap of the bow than there is in hunting with the sureness of the gun.” -Fred Bear-

[B&C]

Accubonds

I couldn't get the accubonds to shoot in 2 different 6.5's. My Bergara Ridge has shot 7 different bullets under .5" and I could barely get them down to an inch with an unexplained flyer too frequently. The ELDX and SST accuracy has been very good in every rifle I've tested so I wanted to try the Interbond to insure a drain hole. Federal just released the Fusion bullet for hand loaders this year and I have high expectations for it. Folks were pulling them from factory ammo and selling the bullets. They're also surprisingly cheap at $0.23/ea from midway (140gr .284's). TSX, GMX, ELDX, etc can be $0.75/ea and come in boxes of 50. I'm out of bullets before I finish testing a stubborn rifle!

[Ryan81]

143 eldx 6.5 not pleased

You’ve killed 19+ animals with the bullet, and you’re not a fan. What are you expecting from a bullet?

Lets not use the head/neck shot on the hogs as a reliable indicator of bullet performance.

The bullet worked for whitetail but there was no need to track. What if the deer ran 150-200+ yards in this years waist high broom weed?

I want a bullet that will leave a blood trail. Based on my observations along with several negative posts in this thread, I’m just going to use it for hogs or target shooting from now on. I’ll pick up something else for whitetail.


Edit: If a Broadhead resulted in 4 dead deer but little to no blood trail, would you continue using it?

I didn’t read every post but what is your opinion of the bullet?

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[meltingfeather]

Exactly my experience. I had great expectations for them. Most shots under 120yds were problematic, bullet expanded too fast. Past 120 worked great. I had 2 does under 100yds that the coyotes found before me. No blood after 20 yds.

We shoot between 50-80 deer per year on our MLD and test a lot of bullets. ELD-X are off the list with a few others.

My personal preferences (6.5 creed is my favorite round):
Barnes Triple Shocks and GMX perform the best if the rifle will shoot them.

Wait a second-- you think the ELD-X, which is designed for 50-60% retention, doesn't perform well under 120 yards on white tails and your answer is a monolithic copper alloy bullet designed for 95% retention?
That don't make no sense!

[Arrowflinger84]

Hornady SST 6.5 creedmoor, .270, .30-06 and .22-250 all make great entrance and exit holes at all ranges.

[TexAg07]

If you are disappointed in the performance of ELD-X bullets due to lack of blood trail after average range shots then you are not understanding what the ELD-X was intended to do.

[str8ght]

Im on the 140 bthp band wagon. Great exit wounds and short tracking jobs. Even started shooting them in my grendel and have gotten same results compared to old faithful 123 sst. My creedmoor seems to really love bthp and shoots very poorly with eld-x and the white tails. Wifes 260 is outstanding with Berger's! Shot multiple animals with that one as well shooting eld-x and it pushed the issue to try something else.