Neck Shots on Deer?

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donovan

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Neck shots can be very effective, but they can also result in a wounded deer unless your very familiar with a deers anatomy.
Be off a couple of inches, and you nick the windpipe, resulting in a wounded Deere that not die for days.
I still have the bullet in my desk that I recovered from the neck of a deer. Looks like it was a lead miniball, perfectly mushroomed. It had been shot the year before in a non vital area of the deers neck with the skin trapping it on the opposite side.
A shot behind the leg has a 9" diameter kill zone. Much more room for error.
+++++1
 

hard_r

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I was taught "always behind the shoulder". If I don't have THAT shot, I don't have A shot. That's hunting. I WILL NOT risk wounding a deer. I don't care if it's Bambi's dad. That's just how my Poppa taught me when I was 9 years old. I hunt for the hunt, not the kill. In my opinion risky shots are unethical. And my .300 Win Mag drops 'em "dead right there" every single time.
 

AllOut

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You're doing it wrong.

Obviously LOL
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My hunting round in that gun is 150gr NOS BT right at 3200 fps
Both those deer were killed with it, the top one is mine. It was 249 yards on the range finder. If this deer was smaller it probably would have exited. The majority of the bucks we kill are close to the 200 lb mark, if I hunted around here (NE OK) with smaller deer it would probably blow through them.
There are two schools of thought on this. One, is guys want exit wounds for blood trails. Two, exit wounds are a waste of energy and blood trails are not needed with guns. I made this round for the latter, maximum penetration (pushed against back side of skin) without exiting. That means the bullet dumped every bit of it's energy inside the animal and wasted none outside the body.
I took a class on Kenamatics in college, bullets and ballistics was a big part of it. As far as hydrostatic shock and enteral damage this round is perfect.
 

AllOut

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What was the range you shot that deer with .300 win mag?
I've killed them out to 450 yds with a .30-06, through the shoulders and never had anything other than a pass through.
I guess if it were a varmint round, it could happen.

Im assuming your shooting at least the same or heavier bullets than I am and obviously at slower speeds
Heavier bullets at slower speeds decelerate slower in liquid (animals are made mostly of liquid). The slower deceleration makes for more penetration so an exit wound would be expected.
Fast bullets, especially lighter ones decelerate real fast when they hit liquids.
 

AKguy1985

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Both of the deer i've shot the first was a neck shot with a 12ga slug. He dropped like a sack of rocks, two years ago deer #2 i got with a high shoulder shot, knicked his spine and got both lungs, he dropped where he stood. I'm a fan of the neck shot i'm lazy and dont want to have to track a deer. I like them to die where they stood.
 

swilliams

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I've shot deer through the neck and through the upper shoulders. The neck shot is great, instant kill with a rifle with no tracking however it is a tough shot. If the shot is not perfect I shoot through the upper shoulders. I would rather track one then place a bad shot in the neck and have it run for miles or live for days without finding it. If one is not confident in their skills, weapon, or the shot in general I would suggest going through the shoulders for the bigger kill zone.
 

ElkStalkR

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Do you guys neck shot in archery season too?

Why or why not?

OMG, I hope nobody says they try this with archery gear!! You CANNOT depend on any archery gear to penetrate enough into the vertabrae to severe the spinal cord! Usually a misplaced spine shot with a bow will drop a deer in its tracks. USUALLY being the key word, but if you hit the vertabrae wrong it will simply stick in the bone without hitting the spinal cord and they will run off wounded.
 

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