I know a lot people love them, I’m not one of them. My sons elk hunt had similar results as above. To be fair, we did find the elk, fortunately.
That would be my #1 choice but unfortunately I can't physically bow hunt.
If I can get a few coming in I will definitely take it with my bow
Hammer bullets do the opposite of this. Their website says they "initiates expansion upon impact, shedding petals immediately." From my use of them I'm 100% sold. Not to mention their accuracy is incredible. Things might change, but currently Hammer hunters are the only thing I load into my two big game rifles. I'm in the process of developing a load for my 30-06 with their 166gr Hammer Hunters.
Have you had any issues with lack of penetration on a shoulder or quartering shot?
I personally haven't yet. I've only shot a cow elk, a deer, and a couple of wild pigs though....all dead. The Hammer bullet owners have been to Africa I think a handful of times with their bullets and think they did fine down there too.
Vitals on bears are back farther than ungulates! If you are hitting shoulder your missing the vitals and asking for a nightmare. I worked for an outfitter in the 90s that preached "taking out the shoulder cause bears are so hard to kill" Nothing could be farther from the truth. My archery group lost multiple bears aiming like we would for ungulates. I started reading and was dumbfounded how little this is talked about. Bears die easily if you take out the vitals-they just aren't where we've been taught. Since aiming back haven't had one go 30 yards.
Hammers are (mono) solid copper bullets so once the petals shed the shank continues to penetrate. It's relatively rare to actually recover a shank because they penetrate so well. Like most long mono bullets you need to have the right barrel twist in order for the shank to penetrate straight.
