muzzleloader question

[Jethro]

me & my dad bought new knight .45 super disc rifles early this fall. last friday i filled my tag and monday he filled his. we are both shooting hornady 180 grain xtp sabotted bullets with 150 grains of pyrodex. the deer i shot was about 50 yards out and slightly quartering toward me, bullet placement was right behind the shoulder. dad shot his deer straight on about 30 yards, bullet placement was between the brisket and shoulder. both shots were quick, clean kills with major internal damage the only thing is that both deer had alot of meat damage at the entry location of the bullet. dad had lost 75% of the whole front shoulder do to the damage from the bullet. my question is, has anyone else shot this bullet or similar and had the same performance? also was this due to the close yardage? any thoughts, suggestions, advice, experiences? thanks

 

[muddy]

You said your dad shot the deer straight on as in straight on facing him or was it broadside? If it was facing him and you rip a bullet down through all that you're bound to have that happen, personally I find it fortunate that you salvaged 25% of the shoulder if this is the case. What might have happened is the bullet richhocheted (sp?) off some bone and broke itself up and several pieces of lead tore it up. The sabots are designed to cause damage so in the case of a less than optimal shot you can cause enough damage for the deer to bleed to death. Hope this sheds some light on the situation. =)

MW