Whack instead of whomp

[gwtx]

Shot a good size boar a couple nights ago. 170 yards, 123 SST, 27.5 gr AR Comp, 18" bbl. Broadside shot. I heard the dreaded "whack" instead of "whomp". I had this happen once before with a 30:06 150gr pro hunter bullet. It sounds like it hits a fence post. It's the "shield". Either the pig moved, or I moved off target a tad. I was aiming in front of the shoulder. I shot the rifle the next day, 4 rounds into one ragged hole. Bound to have been the hog that moved,,right? Neither I nor the buzzards have turned up a carcass yet. Never found the one that was shot with the 06 either. I hate it when this happens.

[A5BLASTER]

It's all good, just shrug it off and move on. It's just a pig, they bred like rats anyway. If it died there will be many more to replace it in 3 months.

[Javman]

Pigs, they breed like freaking rabbits! Doubt there's much left of it with all the buzzards and coyotes around Tx! Move on and slay more swine!

[gwtx]

It's not that I feel bad about not making a clean, humane kill. I just like to see if the bullet hit where I was aiming, and what kind of damage it did. If it weren't for that, I would just gut shoot'em so they would run off and I wouldn't have to drag'em to the trash pile. Every time I beat up myself and my equipment mowing the pastures, I get madder at them. Thanks for the replies.

[Javman]

How about trying some mono bullets to get through that gristle plate?

[Glockpride]

Pigs can be hard to hit cleanly as they almost never stop moving. They are constantly jostling and jockeying about wether out of nerves or fighting for position. I?ve taken note of this the several times I?ve been hog hunting. Unlike deer which can stand still for several minutes, a hog must have jittery nerves.

Better luck next time.

[gwtx]

How about trying some mono bullets to get through that gristle plate?

Thanks,
This has only happened twice in my time of shooting hogs, and I have shot a lot of them over the past 29 yrs.
I am very happy with the way my rifle shoots the sst's. I appreciate the suggestion, and would like to try some , but right now time and funds are needed elsewhere Maybe a winter project.
This old man just needs to shoot better

[gwtx]

to Glockpride,
When that happened, the wind was in his favor, and he may have smelled me and started to move at the same time I pulled the trigger, who knows. Could be the muzzle flash made him move 1/2", even though the flight time of the bullet is pretty short at 170 yards, even with a 2400 fps bullet. He'll be back, and I'' get him sooner or later. Thanks, good huntin to ya.

[Double Naught Spy]

gwtx, you said you were making a broadside shot forward of the shoulder, which should be the base of the neck or very top of the thoracic cavity. What vitals are present there? You have the spine and blood vessels as you will be forward of the lungs and heart. As you obviously did not cause any sort of significant damage to the CNS (spine, brainstem, brain) either directly or indirectly, then you are left with damaging blood vessels as your means of bringing the hog down. If you don't hit a major blood vessel, the hog may run a considerable distance before collapsing. Hitting a major blood vessel could still result in a hog running upwards of 100 yards. Otherwise, you have the trachea, esophagus, and muscle tissue. Hitting these may not bring the hog down for a very long time, if at all.

Hitting the shield should be no problem for a bullet going ~2100 fps which is how fast yours should have been going at 170 yards. So if the hog moved forward, you would be into the shoulder and the lungs. Good double lung shots should bring down the hog pretty quickly. Poor, clipping, lung shots may not bring down the hog or not bring it down very fast at all. It can take a long time for the lungs to fill with blood to cause asphyxiation.

If he survived, hopefully you will get another shot. Otherwise, he may be dead, but way over on your neighbor's property.

You may have hit pretty much where you were aiming, but simply failed to damage anything that would result in immediate or very fast incapacitation. Neck shots can be sort of all or none like that.

[gwtx]

DNS, thanks for the reply. I understand, agree with, and appreciate your input. I have had really good results with shots to the neck/base of skull area. Usually bang flop kick, but not always. Over the years(25+), there have been very few "runners" that I didn't find later(thanks to the buzzards) . Sometimes as much as a week later. The area where he was shot is an opening in pretty heavy woods. If they run, I usually find them where they crashed into a tree, and normally no more than 50 yards away. Of course, "usually" and "normally" aren't absolute when it comes to wounded pigs The buzzards around here follow my truck when I drive around that area . BTW, thank you for sharing your knowledge, experience, and especially your videos which I enjoy very much. I have learned a lot from them, and all your input. Much appreciated. Keep up the good work.

[Double Naught Spy]

I think most of us have good luck with neck shots. Not being critical of the neck shot at all. I like them. There just aren't many critical structures in the area and things like blood vessels aren't always quite where you expect. A shot that worked fine on the last hog may not have worked quite so well on this one...through no fault of yours.