Shot Placement on White Tail

Bountyhunter · 11-01-2005, 03:20 PM

The thing is, deer do not run around with red targets painted on them. You have to understand the anatomy well enough to visualize that animal in a transparent 3-Dimensional manner. If the animal is standing out broad side, then the target jazz is ok, but if he is facing away from you, down hill from you, or both, then you have to visualize where inside that fur, the kill zone lies. You may need to shoot at a strange angle in order for the path of the bullet to enter the kill zone. You shoot at a place on the outside of the body that the straight line of the bullet path will continue to the heart, lungs, spine.

The other thing is. you need to study uphill and down hill shots. Either one will throw your line of sight off. The steeper the angle, the higher your shot will strike.

OneInchGroup · 11-01-2005, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bountyhunter

The other thing is. you need to study uphill and down hill shots. Either one will throw your line of sight off. The steeper the angle, the higher your shot will strike.

One of the great entertainments for us older hunters is going afield with someone who has spent hours on end and tons of rounds at the range perfecting their 50 and 100 yard shot placement on a fixed target. Then watch the guy climb 20 feet to a tree stand that has a clear range of around 35 yards down a couple brushy trails, and place shot after shot in perfect horizontal position on one buck after another, and always 2 feet above the shoulder, so the only ones in danger of getting hit are animals that are another 20 yards past point of aim........or ones that pronk straight up when the gun goes off!!!!

Outriderdark · 11-01-2005, 05:37 PM

I only take chest shots because I suck and need all the leeway I can get. (Actually recently realized I have a dominate left eye and I'm right handed so hopefully I won't suck so much this year.)

toolman · 11-02-2005, 02:02 AM

a few other reasons I like head shots are: there is less area for a bullet to go off course after initial contact; they are, in general, slightly more challenging; they don't run as far and I'm really lazy. In all seriousness, if I stumble across a trophy buck as my bro-in-laws' bro did last year, I will take a heart\lung shot if I happen to have enough money in the bank to mount it!

Copper · 11-03-2005, 09:00 PM

Like a lot of the other posts here, I go for the heart/lung shot. There is a lot more room for error with this kill zone. Imagine a 8 or 9 inch balloon inside of the chest cavity, and that's your kill zone. For whatever reason over the last 21 years of deer hunting I've always had a broad side, directly facing me, or quartering towards me shot. I guess I've just been lucky.

Deer are strange after they've been shot. I shot a big 10 point with a .30-'06 with a 150 gr. Nosler Partition just behind the shoulder from about 50 yards or so and he ran nearly 200 yards before expiring. After opening him up, the top part his heart had been tutned into mush. He was dead on his feet, but just didn't know it yet. I shot a fat doe with the exact same round and right behind the shoulder from about 75 yards and she was dead before she hit the ground. After opening her up, the top part of her heart had been turned to mush also.

One thing I learned from my grandpa about hunting is to "aim small, miss small". He told me that when he was in the Pacific in WWII with the Marine Corp, his sergeant told him to aim at button or a pocket on an enemy uniform when he took a shot. You might miss the button or pocket that you're aiming at, but you won't miss by much and you'll still hit the kill zone.

solar · 11-08-2005, 04:30 PM

Everything is good to know. I know deer anatomy well, so I know where to aim. Most of my questions are 'after the shot' related, so keep the stories coming!
m

Copper · 11-09-2005, 06:20 PM

After you take your shot, stay put!!! Try to listen for your deer thrashing around in the brush or leaves. Even if you see your deer go down, (even this is not a sure thing, trust me, I know) resist the urge to climb out of your stand. Sometimes it takes a bit for a deer to expire after they run off. Pushing a deer that has been gut shot or a liver shot can lead to losing your deer. Review in your mind where the deer was when you took your shot. Remeber which direction your deer went after the shot Study the terrain for reference points because your view from your stand is obviously going to be different from your view on the ground. If you're lucky, your deer will be right were you shot it. If the your deer is laying on the ground, approach it from the rear and be ready to shoot. Once you're up to the deer, poke it in the eye with the barrel of your rifle. If there is no reaction, the games over for your deer, if it blinks, put one right behind the ear. If your deer has run off, look for hair, blood, bone fragments, etc. You can tell a lot about were you hit the deer by what's on the ground.

Bright red blood is a good thing, usually its a heart shot or a major artery. Pinkish, frothy blood usually means a lung shot. There might also be lung tissue, or the blood has air bubbles in it. Dark red droplets that peters out after a 100 yards or so usually means a muscle shot, and this is not good. Not all deer that have suffered a fatal shot start bleeding immediately, but a deer that has been fataly hit will generally start to bleed out within 15 - 20 feet from where they were shot.

I hope this helps you some. The best lessons that I have learned from deer hunting have been learned the hard way.

solar · 11-09-2005, 10:29 PM

Wow, best post on the subject yet. Awesome information - thank you.

You shoot it point blank with a 30.06?

m

Copper · 11-10-2005, 05:10 PM

Nearly point blank. I had to turn down the power on my scope to see the deer clearly. I had been hunting up in northern Missouri where your shots are generaly 200 yards plus. I had a Harris Bi-pod and a big 3.5 X 12 X 50 and was ready for that long shot. I didn't get anything up north, but decided to use the same rifle in the woods down south. I knew better, but did it anyway.

solar · 11-11-2005, 06:26 AM

How long do you wait after your shot to track the animal?
m

Andrew · 11-11-2005, 04:35 PM

Just to add to the list greenish browny blood means you've hit the deer in the gut and like dark red blood it means you have a lot of tracking to do.

Copper · 11-17-2005, 07:56 PM

I wait a good 30 minutes before I climb down out of my stand. Depending on what type of evidence I find at the place where the deer was last standing when I shot will decide how hard I start tracking. I have been lucky enough to have made good, solid chest shots and the deer that I have shot haven't gone too far. I have however lost two deer in the 21 years of deer hunting. It happens to all of us at one time or another, and it's a sick feeling when it does happen. I have been down on all fours looking for the tiniest speck of blood before trying to recover a deer.

11-01-2005, 05:37 PM	#43
Outriderdark Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: New Jersey, USA Posts: 1,125	I only take chest shots because I suck and need all the leeway I can get. (Actually recently realized I have a dominate left eye and I'm right handed so hopefully I won't suck so much this year.) __________________ "Would it make you feel better, little girl, if they was thrown outta windows?"-Archie Bunker

11-02-2005, 02:02 AM	#44
toolman Mr. Fixit Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: abilene,tx Posts: 5,807 Blog Entries: 24	a few other reasons I like head shots are: there is less area for a bullet to go off course after initial contact; they are, in general, slightly more challenging; they don't run as far and I'm really lazy. In all seriousness, if I stumble across a trophy buck as my bro-in-laws' bro did last year, I will take a heart\lung shot if I happen to have enough money in the bank to mount it! __________________ cosmoline is an aphrodisiac!

11-11-2005, 04:35 PM	#51
Andrew Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 46	Just to add to the list greenish browny blood means you've hit the deer in the gut and like dark red blood it means you have a lot of tracking to do. __________________ :full: :full:Just get in yer crosshairs and start shootin'!!! :full: :full:

11-01-2005, 03:20 PM	#41
Bountyhunter Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: New Mexico Territory Posts: 103	The thing is, deer do not run around with red targets painted on them. You have to understand the anatomy well enough to visualize that animal in a transparent 3-Dimensional manner. If the animal is standing out broad side, then the target jazz is ok, but if he is facing away from you, down hill from you, or both, then you have to visualize where inside that fur, the kill zone lies. You may need to shoot at a strange angle in order for the path of the bullet to enter the kill zone. You shoot at a place on the outside of the body that the straight line of the bullet path will continue to the heart, lungs, spine. The other thing is. you need to study uphill and down hill shots. Either one will throw your line of sight off. The steeper the angle, the higher your shot will strike.

11-03-2005, 09:00 PM	#45
Copper Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Southern "Mizzeruh" Posts: 246	Like a lot of the other posts here, I go for the heart/lung shot. There is a lot more room for error with this kill zone. Imagine a 8 or 9 inch balloon inside of the chest cavity, and that's your kill zone. For whatever reason over the last 21 years of deer hunting I've always had a broad side, directly facing me, or quartering towards me shot. I guess I've just been lucky. Deer are strange after they've been shot. I shot a big 10 point with a .30-'06 with a 150 gr. Nosler Partition just behind the shoulder from about 50 yards or so and he ran nearly 200 yards before expiring. After opening him up, the top part his heart had been tutned into mush. He was dead on his feet, but just didn't know it yet. I shot a fat doe with the exact same round and right behind the shoulder from about 75 yards and she was dead before she hit the ground. After opening her up, the top part of her heart had been turned to mush also. One thing I learned from my grandpa about hunting is to "aim small, miss small". He told me that when he was in the Pacific in WWII with the Marine Corp, his sergeant told him to aim at button or a pocket on an enemy uniform when he took a shot. You might miss the button or pocket that you're aiming at, but you won't miss by much and you'll still hit the kill zone.

11-08-2005, 04:30 PM	#46
solar Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: MA Posts: 157	Everything is good to know. I know deer anatomy well, so I know where to aim. Most of my questions are 'after the shot' related, so keep the stories coming! m

11-09-2005, 06:20 PM	#47
Copper Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Southern "Mizzeruh" Posts: 246	After you take your shot, stay put!!! Try to listen for your deer thrashing around in the brush or leaves. Even if you see your deer go down, (even this is not a sure thing, trust me, I know) resist the urge to climb out of your stand. Sometimes it takes a bit for a deer to expire after they run off. Pushing a deer that has been gut shot or a liver shot can lead to losing your deer. Review in your mind where the deer was when you took your shot. Remeber which direction your deer went after the shot Study the terrain for reference points because your view from your stand is obviously going to be different from your view on the ground. If you're lucky, your deer will be right were you shot it. If the your deer is laying on the ground, approach it from the rear and be ready to shoot. Once you're up to the deer, poke it in the eye with the barrel of your rifle. If there is no reaction, the games over for your deer, if it blinks, put one right behind the ear. If your deer has run off, look for hair, blood, bone fragments, etc. You can tell a lot about were you hit the deer by what's on the ground. Bright red blood is a good thing, usually its a heart shot or a major artery. Pinkish, frothy blood usually means a lung shot. There might also be lung tissue, or the blood has air bubbles in it. Dark red droplets that peters out after a 100 yards or so usually means a muscle shot, and this is not good. Not all deer that have suffered a fatal shot start bleeding immediately, but a deer that has been fataly hit will generally start to bleed out within 15 - 20 feet from where they were shot. I hope this helps you some. The best lessons that I have learned from deer hunting have been learned the hard way.

11-09-2005, 10:29 PM	#48
solar Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: MA Posts: 157	Wow, best post on the subject yet. Awesome information - thank you. You shoot it point blank with a 30.06? m

11-10-2005, 05:10 PM	#49
Copper Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Southern "Mizzeruh" Posts: 246	Nearly point blank. I had to turn down the power on my scope to see the deer clearly. I had been hunting up in northern Missouri where your shots are generaly 200 yards plus. I had a Harris Bi-pod and a big 3.5 X 12 X 50 and was ready for that long shot. I didn't get anything up north, but decided to use the same rifle in the woods down south. I knew better, but did it anyway.

11-11-2005, 06:26 AM	#50
solar Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: MA Posts: 157	How long do you wait after your shot to track the animal? m

11-17-2005, 07:56 PM	#52
Copper Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Southern "Mizzeruh" Posts: 246	I wait a good 30 minutes before I climb down out of my stand. Depending on what type of evidence I find at the place where the deer was last standing when I shot will decide how hard I start tracking. I have been lucky enough to have made good, solid chest shots and the deer that I have shot haven't gone too far. I have however lost two deer in the 21 years of deer hunting. It happens to all of us at one time or another, and it's a sick feeling when it does happen. I have been down on all fours looking for the tiniest speck of blood before trying to recover a deer.