Deadly Speculations
We see it each and every day in all manner of things! When it comes to dangerous game…”I Think”, “Maybe”, or “Who Knows” are Speculations that can get one hurt very bad or maybe killed!
We first must determine just what is Dangerous Game? Dixie Slugs interpretation of dangerous games is quite simple…any game, large or small, that can do bodily harm! We see a great deal of speculation posted by people that have never hunted dangerous game or tested their suggested ammo on any stress tests or dangerous game. What is the new shooter supposed to turn to?
Today there is a total misunderstanding of bullet designs by the general hunter population. The factories and Syndicated Rag Writers continue to pump out misleading information. They stress velocity above bullet design performance. Even those velocity figures they post are likely to be from 30” pressure guns instead of the standard length barrels being used in the field. The single most important factor in shooting dangerous game is not the velocity, but rather the bullet’s design. The British recognized that over one hundred year ago in Africa and India.
When does games become dangerous game, rather than potential dangerous game? Again, Dixie’s simple answer is when it’s close enough to harm the shooter. With this in mind, we need to understand whether, or not, the bullet will perform!
Ammo criteria for dangerous game is as follows:
(1) The bullet must not fragment!
(2) The bullet must have a high Sectional Density (weight vs. diameter or weight alone) in order to penetrate deep!
(3) The recoil must be manageable!
Those are simple requirements, but there is a limited amount of ammo that meets these simple requirements.
Criteria #1…. factory jacketed bullets are designed to expand within a selected velocity envelope. If the close impact velocity is too high, they will fragment. If the long-range impact velocity is too slow, they will not expand properly. Therefore, the best design is a solid non-expanding bullet!
Criteria #2…. too many expanded jacket bullets do not have enough retained weight to penetrate as deep as need for dangerous game. Here again is where solids come into play!
Criteria #3…the most overlooked one! If the recoil is too great, it has an affect on the shooter’s ability to be accurate or handle follow up shots!
The Dangerous Game Animal!
Most, if not all dangerous game is what we call as being “Slow Nerve”. They just do not react like most “Thin Skin Game”! So-called high shock bullets just don’t work. Unless the brain or spine is destroyed, they will keep coming until you break them down! A true wild boar hog is a fine example of one of the smaller dangerous game animals. They have a rather small brain case far in back of the skull and a thick grisly shield on the shoulders.
The sheer mass, tissue, and muscle of the larger dangerous game animals will put a severe test on the bullet’s design.
Here is a picture of an Angus bull that weighed over a ton, was crippled and had to be killed. We have discussed this bull’s picture in another article, but it’s appropriate here. The load involved here was Dixie Slugs Original Terminator. What the picture does show is the massive tissue/bone damage and penetration need in an animal this large.
More information can be found on Dixie Slugs forum posted Todd Corder.
For further information, you can contact me at dixieslugs.com or jcgates@bellsouth.net.
James C. Gates
Dixie Slugs
Old Town, Florida