Power Belt

[TommyGun496]

Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem or if it was just a fluke...I shot an elk with a 345gr copper jacketed h/p power belt.  The bullet hit a rib and did not penetrate, just broke the rib.

[CP]

Hit the off side rib after passing through animal? 

[TommyGun496]

It didn't pass through anything.  It hit the rib and stopped.

[sirmissalot]

You must have been able to get another shot in him?

[TommyGun496]

He was 50yrds broad side.  The shot should have killed him.  I was able to get another shot off and dropped him.

[CP]

Sounds like a bad load, very low velocity.  Was the 2nd shot the same bullet, powder charge etc.? 

Pretty stupid elk to stand there while you reload after poking him in the ribs with the 1st shot.

[snowshoes22]

Had a 245 grain powerbelt blow up on a mule deer shoulder and not penetrate.

[Curly]

I had a powerbelt (all lead) pancake on a blacktail buck several years ago.  Hit a rib going in and just flattened out.  Killed the buck, but I swore I'd never use the powerbelt again.  I could see how an elk rib would completely stop the bullet..........   I would have thought that the copper jacket would help.

[TommyGun496]

The second shot was the same load and bullet (maybe a little less powder...I was in a big hurry).  He took off after I hit him, the decided to take a look back at me.

[CP]

Maybe the 1st load had a damaged gas seal, wet powder, partially blocked nipple, bad cap, etc.  A lot of things can go wrong with a ML load. 

[littlemac]

 

I shot an elk at roughly 100 yds in New Mexico 2004.  Same bullet, 50 cal mag, triple seven in a Thompson Omega, broke the shoulder up pretty good with full penetration.

[MountainDevil54]

348gr flat point would be better for elk. HP's are made for quick expansion.

[hillbilli]

no real copper jacket on those powerbelts, just a  real thin copper plating.. I've had less than overwhelming penetration out of the 245gr, but also helped butcher a half dozen cow-elk sized critters with really good wound channels and exits from powerbelts, mostly the 300+ gr..

[deerslyr]

I had a powerbelt (all lead) pancake on a blacktail buck several years ago.  Hit a rib going in and just flattened out.  Killed the buck, but I swore I'd never use the powerbelt again.  I could see how an elk rib would completely stop the bullet..........   I would have thought that the copper jacket would help.

I had similar experience on one of my blacktails with a 348 grain non jacketed pb on a forky blacktail. Found the bullet under the skin on the far shoulder flat as a pancake. Flipped that buck right over and he was DRT  I thought the terminal performance was awesome regardless of the shape of the bullet. The other one I shot with the same bullet went in the back of the cage and exited out his off side shoulder (quartering away) another DRT.

[Curly]

I had a powerbelt (all lead) pancake on a blacktail buck several years ago.  Hit a rib going in and just flattened out.  Killed the buck, but I swore I'd never use the powerbelt again.  I could see how an elk rib would completely stop the bullet..........   I would have thought that the copper jacket would help.

I had similar experience on one of my blacktails with a 348 grain non jacketed pb on a forky blacktail. Found the bullet under the skin on the far shoulder flat as a pancake. Flipped that buck right over and he was DRT  I thought the terminal performance was awesome regardless of the shape of the bullet. The other one I shot with the same bullet went in the back of the cage and exited out his off side shoulder (quartering away) another DRT.

Yeah, mine was a 348gr too (.54 cal).  Performance was good, deer was DRT (at about 100 yards), but I had used the same load for elk that year and I felt lucky to not have taken a shot at elk that year.

[Jonathan_S]

Sounds like an over powdered shot or too close for the way the bullet performed. None of my close up shots on deer or bear have passed through with powerbelts, only those over 75 yards. When I shoot with more than 120 grains, bullets splatter, especially hollow points.

[hunterrcc]

Happened twice three times.  Never will I use a bullet without ballistic tips!  I shot 295 and 348 powerbelts all lead hollowpoints shot very well but horrible on getting through the hide.  Your not the only one!

[Kowsrule30]

I use to use the all lead 295 PB.... No issues... One was a quartering toward shot on a mature bull elk at 52 yards... Right through the shoulder bone, through the lungs, heart and found it under the off side hide... I've haven't seen that much tissue damage from some heavy magnum rifle shots before... The bullet looked like a science project melted down but sure did the trick....

I now use the 295 copper coated areo tip.. They seem to go in a few more inches before exspanding and don't exspand as much... Shot a BT in the chest dead center with one from 48 yards.. DRT but gutting was a mess... Pulled the bullet outta it's pelvic bone...

[scotta]

I shoot the 295 copper aero tip power belts and had 2 good results. 2010 buck hit high in the spine and and shattered his spine . 2012 buck broke both front shoulders and passed through. Both shot were 100-125 range shots with 110 grains of triple 777 .

[duckmen1]

i have shot mulies from 20 to 116 yards with pass throughs on the few i have shot
even through both shoulders on one
would like to recover a bullet but never been able to
shooting 348 all lead hollow points

[shootnrun]

I have killed 5 elk with 295gr pb's and 100grs of pyrodex. The last 3 with the aero tips. All 15-80 yard shots. No pass through tho. Found all slugs in the opposite shoulder. My dad shot a bull at 176 yards with the same load last year and the bull went 50 yds and piled up. Found the slug in the opposite shoulder.. I have missed a lot with these bullets (mostly bull fever) but when I hit they never go far. 

[Chesapeake]

I have killed 5 elk with 295gr pb's and 100grs of pyrodex. The last 3 with the aero tips. All 15-80 yard shots. No pass through tho. Found all slugs in the opposite shoulder. My dad shot a bull at 176 yards with the same load last year and the bull went 50 yds and piled up. Found the slug in the opposite shoulder.. I have missed a lot with these bullets (mostly bull fever) but when I hit they never go far. 

Are you sure you missed clean???

I think PB's are junk on impact, but thats just cause I've seen the results several times. Yeah the elk died on all but 1 case, another in our group finished the job on that one, but in all cases terminal performance left much to be desired. Our group has killed 2 elk in the last 2 years that had someone elses Powerbelt in them. Its easy to tell them bullets with the stem and copper tinfoil plating. They arent jacketed.

[shootnrun]

In the two instances of misses, yes. Once ther was snow, the other I spent hours circling and searching. Some shot the bull during general firearm