HMMMM.
Since I've conversed in detail with Lee Jurras, well, maybe I'll just post a bit of his writing:
"
Guys usually know the general scenario they will be facing...The NYC detective 's will probably differ from The Montana Hiway Patrolman, just as the guy going after Grizz with his favorite 44 or 45, or 475 and 500 will differ from the Eastern Whitetail hunter...Now this might not answer all your questions G.... BUT...I don't believe there is a pat answer...I personally have tried to choose the equipment for the job...And or offered the Individual a choice. I took my choice, design, and finished product at tested it in a good portion of the world under a variety of circumstances....My choice today for Grizz or Moose in Alaska, My 375 Howdah or my 475 Linebaugh...All lesser game my Ruger 44 Mag SuperBlackhawk.Jurras 180 gr. JSP.... Personal defense My 70 Series 1911.or 4" 25-5....All-around one gun...Probably 44 Superblackhawk....But who wants just one gun.....If I could only own one, I'd probably have to say my Linebaugh 475, could load in down for squirrel or up for bear....All around bullet design Keith style SWC....Hope I haven't confused the issue...For those of you that might mistake my trivia for just an old man...thats what worked and continues to work for me....Onward and upward...the Curmudgeon"
That said: I've got another master hunter-gunsmith, Jack Huntington that believes, and has proven on large, dangerous game that the British were right. Large, or huge, slugs, moving at slow to moderate velocity kill with an authority that their FPE figures don't justify. Something about having a 440 grain slug tearing a 5 foot long hole in you that's nearly 2" in wound channel that just works.
Here is a shot of the meat damage done by a 440 grain, .500JRH slug, moving at 950 fps, through an Asian Buffalo.
Here is a cape buffalo heart, shot with a Garrett Hammerhead, at near double the velocity:
To my eye, they don't look much different. For some reason, the big, flat nosed bullets tend to kill like a .375 H&H rifle, and, on big animals, the wound channel appears similar. Apparently at low velocity the overall area of the bullet contributes to the bullets affectiveness:
My point here is there is more then one way to skin a cat, and, there are ways to overkill the cat.
Unless I'm going after elephant, I really don't need a bullet over 370 grains in .500 caliber, or .512. 5-6 feet of penetration will do in just about anything, unless you are taking Texas heart shots on game over that size. Then you need that extra penetration, and, in the real world, giant hogs, 1400 pound bears, heck, I drive by bulls that weigh near as much as my car, and their back ends are as wide as the front end on my car, when they are sitting down(yes I have a Toyota Tercel).
The main reason I see for extra heavy bullets, outside such huge animals, is to be able to use expanding bullets.
It's kind of weird, but, it seems in gello you can run into a sort of ballistic wall: I.e. you have to near double the energy to get the bullet to penetrate much more. The faster a HP moves, the faster, and larger it opens up on impact, in most cases. The result is you can shoot the same bullet slower, have it expand less, and penetrate more. I want my HP's to expand as quickly as possible, open up as much as possible, and still give me 18" plus inches of penetration, or more, depending upon what I'm hunting. Depending upon caliber, that maybe a fairly heavy bullet.
Keep in mind the jacket has a LOT to do with the bullets penetration level. Jurras' 180 grain HP is very thick jacketed, as is his SP, with the result he relies on great accuracy and shot placement, along with penetration.
He's also been one of the better shots on the planet for a long time.
So, yes heavy bullets do have a place.
In 357 most of the lighter bullets don't go 18" in gello. Faster you push, the quicker they expand.
Same with 40 and 10mm, going much over 165 grains.
I will say that certain cartridges appear to have a sweet spot, where the heavier bullet suddenly starts eating case capacity, seriously dropping velocity, and, the increase in bullet weight is not worth the loss in velocity.
Also, in big cases, you can push HP's so fast the petals fold back, reducing wounding capacity.
Ideally, I'd like a heavy enough bullet to hit, expand quickly to maximum size, and blow a 20" long hole from one side of the target to the other. This would be a TERRIBLE load if I was hunting elephant, so, just remember Mr. Jurras: Use the right weapon for the likely opponent, or, in the words of Randy White:
"The most important thing is picking the right opponent."
S esq.
