300 Blackout & 125 SST for Whitetail

**MMH** · September 22nd, 2022, 08:31 AM

My 300 Blackout load w/ 125 gr. Hornady SST has a MV of 2230 FPS & would still be above 1000 ft.-lbs. of energy at 125 yards.

Is 1000 ft.-lbs. a 'magic' number. Would a deer hit with 1500 ft.-lbs. of energy go down any harder (approx. energy of a 308 at 350 yards)?

Yes I know about shot placement and am not looking for a lecture how a poor hit w/ a 50 BMG will just cripple, etc. I am talking about a legitimate shot through a lung/heart.

**rkrcpa** · September 22nd, 2022, 08:43 AM

There is no magic number, deer do not wear armor. The MV you state is a little less than 30-30 ballistics but if the bullet you are using will expand at those velocities you should be fine.

**akley88** · September 22nd, 2022, 08:53 AM

Hornady doesnt list a min velocity for expansion. after some digging i found people have said that they were told by Hornady that 1600 fps is min velocity for reliable expansion. There are also people that have reported no issues taking whitetail out to 200 yards with these.

**340M&P** · September 22nd, 2022, 09:01 AM

A few years ago, I used my 300 BLK with a Hornady 110 CX load to take a decent sized doe. High velocity load but still suppressed and shot at 25 yards, she never flinched. Walked about 30 steps and fell over. It was a good lung shot just above the heart, and it worked, just no reaction in this case. Much like a lung shots from the crossbow. They tend to walk or flinch and jump once, then walk but always drop.
Last year I took a buck with my 30-06 handload of a Barnes 150 M/LE bullet going about 2700 from the 18" suppressed barrel at around 75 yards. He flinched at the lung shot, ran 40 yards and piled up.
Either way, it's meat in the freezer.

**MMH** · September 22nd, 2022, 11:35 AM

Originally Posted by akley88

Hornady doesnt list a min velocity for expansion. after some digging i found people have said that they were told by Hornady that 1600 fps is min velocity for reliable expansion. There are also people that have reported no issues taking whitetail out to 200 yards with these.

w/ my 16" barrel I stay above 1600 out to 250 yds. This is at 710 ft.-lbs. of energy. I've never taken a whitetail in PA past 150 yards.

**Dirty Boxer** · September 27th, 2022, 10:44 PM

The Hornady tenth edition reloading manual lists their bullets with suggested speeds for reliable expansion. The .308 125 SST suggested speed is shown as 2,400 - 3,200 FPS.