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Jesse's Hunting > Hunting Articles > Articles > Hunting Texas Exotics - Trying Out New Toys
Hunting Texas Exotics - Trying Out New Toys
Phillip Loughlin - JHO ProStaff
- SF Bay Area, CA
April 03, 2008
Dan's Nice Axis Buck
Dan took the first nice axis of the weekend with a fine shot and a short trailing job. |
In addition to the hunt for axis deer and blackbuck antelope, I'd be using this opportunity to try out several new "toys".
First of all, earlier in the month I'd sent my old Savage 110 down to KDF Incorporated (http://www.kdfincorporated.com) in Seguin, TX for a muzzle brake and a Timney trigger. Sure, I know there are KDF installers in CA, but I figured, "why not send it to the source?"
I've gotta say this about the good people at KDF. They promised they'd have it done in two weeks, but I got a call a week after they received the rifle to let me know it was ready. I had not planned to pick it up until I was down for the hunt, so it was ready well before I needed it. The service was unparalleled, and I will firmly recommend them to anyone interested in a muzzle brake or other work.
The Timney trigger assembly was an interesting little project. I've always seen the Timneys advertised as "drop-in" triggers. Just pop out the original and pop in a Timney. Except it's not quite like that... at least not with the Savage. I'm really glad I had an experienced gunsmith doing the work, because the tweaking and adjustment, not to mention the safety testing would have left me pulling my hair out. I watched the work as it was done, and while the smith made it look fairly routine, we assembled and re-assembled the rifle several times until we got everything to work. The final step involved grinding one of the trigger guard screws, since for some reason it now interfered with the bolt travel. What a pain! But the end result... well, it was worth it!
I planned to shoot the new Winchester eTip, 180-grain ammo for this hunt. The eTip is Winchester's answer to the lead-free ammo issue. Unlike many other "green" bullets, the eTip is not a frangible, nor is it made of all copper like the Barnes X bullets. Instead, it's composed of gilding metal with a poly-carbonate tip, over the "E2 Cavity" which enhances expansion. The bullet has been on the market for a little while, but this would be my first opportunity to field test it.
When we arrived at the ranch on Friday afternoon, I hurriedly set up a target at 100 yards and got comfortable on the old plywood table we'd use as a bench. My first shots went pretty wild, and I realized I hadn't bore-sighted the rifle after resetting the scope. After a couple of moments to see that my scope was about eight inches off at 25 yards, I made the adjustments and got on paper. A few shots later I was able to print three shots about an inch and a half above the bull, with a group a shade over an inch. This would do, since I had limited ammo and limited time. I have no doubt that with a cool barrel and a real benchrest, this ammo would easily shoot inside an inch... at least from my rifle. Bottom line? I like it!
But what about the KDF brake and the new trigger? I fell in love right away! As a backup, I'd brought along my BAR in .308. The BAR is not the gentlest semi-auto you'll ever shoot, but it's real soft compared to the unmodified Savage in 30-06. Compared to the -06 with the new brake, the BAR felt like it was beating me to death. I'd put the braked Savage on par with an easy-shooting .270. Recoil is all relative, of course, but this thing really made a difference.
The Timney trigger also made a huge difference. I've never really been a prima-donna when it comes to triggers, but I know a good one from a bad one. The Savage was somewhere in the middle. With the Timney, set at 2 3/4lbs, it was like I'd bought a brand new rifle. Maybe it isn't a Jewell mounted in a $20,000 custom rifle, but it's very nice. 
Chuck's Buck
Chuck redeemed an earlier miss with a DRT (Dead Right There) shot on this fine buck. |
Proof is in the pudding, though, right? How did it perform in the field, on live game?
My first opportunity came just before dusk on Saturday night. I was looking for a trophy axis buck and an axis doe. Jim, the landowner, spotted a group of small bucks and spikes as we were leaving the field. He told me to go ahead and take one of the spikes in place of my doe, since I hadn't had a shot all weekend. I got the crosshairs where I wanted them, and touched off the shot. It felt good, it looked good, but the little buck kicked in the turbos and took off into a cedar thicket and out of sight. Jim lowered his binoculars and said, "you missed him clean! He didn't even flinch."
I couldn't believe it, but he was adamant that I hadn't even raised a hair. Maybe he was right, but in retrospect I still have a hard time believing I missed. One of the other hunters with me agreed later. The deer was broadside at just over 100 yards. It was a chip shot. My guess is that the bullet punched through fast, and the deer didn't know he was dead when he ran off. Looking back, I bet he didn't go 20 yards, but in those thick cedars we couldn't see what happened. Jim said there wasn't any point in looking for him, and despite my misgivings I had to write that one off as a miss.
I include this episode for two reasons. One, is because some of these new bullets will pass right through a small animal, so following up the shot is critical. It may have looked like the animal wasn't hit, even with a solid lung or heart shot. If no critical bones are hit, the animal may run a bit before succumbing.
Second is because I should have insisted on going to trail that deer. Trust yourself as the shooter. If you are sure you made a good shot, you probably did. You owe it to yourself AND to the game to verify a miss or a hit.
The image of the whole thing haunted me all night, and I made up my mind to go look for the deer the next morning, but the next morning found us hunting another ranch instead. Shortly after coming onto the property, a small group of blackbuck does fed out under some oaks at about 225 yards. Since I was meat hunting, one of them would do fine. I took aim, high on the point of the shoulder, and sent the 180 grain bullet down range. There was a solid "thwack" and the doe dropped without a step. The bullet crashed exactly where I'd aimed, taking the top of both shoulders and the spine in between. The exit wound was a little exaggerated by the bone, but it was a little more than double the diameter of the entry wound... perfect performance in my book. I have to admit that a 30-06 with that big bullet is way more gun than you need for these little antelope, but you have to dance with the one that brung ya.
On this hunt I had my brother, Scott, shooting the Extreme Shock (http://www.extremeshockusa.com/) 30-06 ammo. We'd tested this ammo at the range back in December, and it shoots like a dream from his Ruger M77. We were both pretty excited about the potential of such an accurate round. I couldn't get it to group well from my BAR, but different rifles can be picky about different ammo.
The Extreme Shock is a lead-free, frangible, that's being marketed both to military and police shooters as well as to hunters. The frangible bullet is designed to completely disintegrate on upset, so that it won't pass through a target. It's supposed to expend all of its energy when it breaks up. But my big concern was the damage the bullet would cause to edible meat.
My concerns were definitely upheld when Scott took an axis doe with the round. The shot hit the deer in the back ribs, and the damage was impressive. I won't describe it here due to the graphic nature, but almost all of the immediate damage was within the first six inches of penetration. Internal damage was fairly significant, and the entire rib cage was essentially bloodshot. However, the doe jumped right back to her feet and ran off. Scott and Jim had to track her and finish the job with another shot to the head.
If that shot had hit the deer in the shoulder, the entire front quarter would have been ruined. A spine shot would likely destroy the entire backstrap... or at least a good portion of it. I hate to think what would happen if the shooter accidentally hit a ham!
Needless to say, I'll be putting the Extreme Shock ammo up on the shelf with my old ballistic tips. They both kill effectively with a decent hit, but the meat damage is far too extreme for me, as a meat hunter, to tolerate. I think it'd be great for varmints and predators, as long as you're not keeping the skins. I also realize that this was only one experience, but from what I've read the performance of the bullet was exactly as designed.
Eric's Blackbuck
Eric switched gears from his original goal of an axis buck, and took this nice blackbuck instead. |
If you're interested in hunting with Shane at Border Bandit, you can get in touch with him here:
Shane Hearn -
Borderbandit’s Outfitting & Hunting Service
692 County Rd. 203
Uvalde, Tx. 78801
830-275-2199
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