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Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! #204860 01/06/2020 2:42 AM
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Chance Weldon Offline OP
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Background

Dawn broke this morning on the last day of Tennessee's deer season, and I have been thoroughly skunked. I've had many shot opportunities on various game that, for one reason or another, didn't result in a kill. That changed this morning.

This deer season, I had three firearms I wanted to take game with: my new 327 Federal Encore build, my granddad's now straight-shooting Mark V 300 Weatherby Magnum, and my 460 Encore, with emphasis on the first two. Unfortunately, deer sightings have been down these past few years, especially early on in the seasons. Some of the nearby farmers haven't managed to get their soybeans harvested, so even my green food plots failed to adequately draw in deer.

The Saturday before Christmas, I began deer hunting again after the December lull with emphasis on getting a doe for the meat. From then until now, I had both weapons raised, ready to fire three times each, but didn't manage to kill anything. With the 327, I missed an easy shot on a close coyote because I didn't realize the muzzle was obscured by the edge of the hay bale I was hiding behind. The second time, a doe came within 40 yards of my position, but downwind, and she bolted before I could shoot. The third time, while trying to aim at a doe at twilight, her companion saw me move and blew a warning before they both ran away.
Similarly, I had that 300 Weatherby aimed at the aforementioned coyote as it ran, and two does on two different mornings but declined to take the shot on any.

As it turns out, though, the 4th time's the charm.

The Last Morning

At 7:00 this morning, as I hid between the bales of my hay bale blind on the hill in the 14 acre hay field, I spied a doe along the left edge some distance away. She was alone, barely 10 yards out of the trees 261 yards from my position according to my rangefinder. Before I reached for the Weatherby, the doe looked intently behind her a few times, as though something was behind her. Thinking it might be a buck or more does, I decided to wait. To my dismay, the doe turned tail and ran back into the woods. I was dejected, fearing I just lost the last opportunity of the dear season. However, at about 7:30, my luck finally changed.

The doe reemerged, crossing the field left to right confidently. I raised the rifle, the hay bale acting as a perfectly steady benchrest. Then, another doe appeared. She was about the same size. Then, a third, noticeably larger than the others. She was the one. I flipped the safety off. Before I could shoot though, three more does trotted into the field, and my target took off with them. I looked up to see the first two does almost across the field. In the time it took me to grab my grunt tube, the rear four had travelled halfway across the field.

At the sound of an aggressive grunt, they all stopped. Having lost track of which doe I originally targeted, I swiftly scanned the four rearmost ones and settled on the one I thought was largest. They still appeared to be around 250 yards, so I raised the crosshairs and centered the top of the first BDC circle on the doe. Deep breath, exhale, slowly squeeze the trigger. My grandfather's 300 Weatherby, having spent the previous two decades in a safe due to a severe accuracy problem that I finally solved this spring, shattered the morning silence. The doe turned away, but fell to the ground without further movement.

I ejected the massive Weatherby case and closed the bolt on another round. The five remaining does were startled, but didn't run off. They quickly regrouped, looking around for the source of the noise. I lay the rifle down, content with my harvest. I finally had some venison, and the late Cary Weldon's grandson at long last killed a deer with his favorite gun.

Another Opportunity

But then, one of the does began walking toward me, closer and closer to my southeast, and my heart began to pound as I realized the real hunt had only just begun. If I could get one of them within about 100 yards, my 327 Encore could finally taste blood. Before she got within range, the sun rose and caused too much glare on the scope's lens to see her through it. The lone doe soon returned to the others. They milled around for about 20 minutes, alternatively looking around and grazing.

Eventually, one of the does began walking directly toward me, and the rest began to follow. The first ones vanished behind the second, smaller hill in the field, the top of which I knew to be 100 yards away exactly. My heart began to pound again, adrenaline flowing, exciting me in a way that, I admit, rifle hunting never does for me anymore. When the last one had disappeared behind the hilltop, I quickly moved the 327 into position just a moment before the first head appeared at the top of the hill. The first does abruptly cut to my left, attempting to cross the narrow treeline into the neighbor's field. I only had seconds to act.

Not wanting to have to track a deer across adjacent properties, I ignored the first three does that were pointed toward and rapidly approaching or already crossing through the trees. The fourth doe appeared, quartering towards me - this was it. I raised my head, found her through the scope, and pulled the hammer back. These actions gave away my position, and the does all paused, watching me. Once again, I inhaled, settled the crosshairs (more difficult this time because of my excitement), exhaled, and slowly squeezed the trigger.

The struck doe turned and ran back down behind the hill, with the others following closely behind. I grabbed the Weatherby again, ready for a quick followup shot. The five does reappeared beyond the hill, the leftmost one hobbling at an angle. She slowed to a halt, stumbled side to side, then fell to the ground.



Aftermath



After following up on the does, I ranged the hay bales from where I had shot both. The mighty 300 Weatherby dropped the first doe on the spot at a distance of 236 yards. The second doe was 104 yards away when I hit her with the 327 Federal Encore, and she ran 81 yards. Not bad, all things considered.

The handloaded 150 grain Hornady SST from the Weatherby hit the first doe dead center just behind her front legs at about 2,780 fps, taking out a rib, both lungs, and annihilating the top of the heart before exiting.



Conversely, the 100 grain XTP from the 327 impacted the second doe at a mere 1,400 fps. I hit her a little low, just below her shoulder, but still managed to clip the heart and puncture the liver. I was surprised to see that it exited her midsection on the opposite side.



Final Thoughts



My season's over, but it ended on one heck of a high note. I finally managed to kill a deer with my grandfather's 300 Weatherby. He had retired the gun because it wouldn't shoot better than 7-8 inches at 100 yards, and asked me to help him figure out the issue. Sadly, he died before I managed to solve the problem - a bad muzzlebrake. Even though I'm a handgunner at heart, it just felt appropriate to use the old Mark V one last time in his memory.

I've really grown to appreciate the 327 Federal. It's decently accurate and very pleasant to shoot. Although the cartridge is a bit light for deer hunting, it killed the doe, and honestly, she didn't run as far as the one I hit at about the same distance with my 460 S&W last year. Just goes to show how crucial shot placement is.


Formerly TN Lone Wolf

"We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided." - J.K. Rowling
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Chance Weldon] #204861 01/06/2020 3:16 AM
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Just Congratulating you on taking a nice doe with your 327 Federal and proving that XTP'S kill deer...even out of the "massive" 327...CONGRATULATIONS again and great shooting man


The Eyes are Useless, When The Mind Is Blind
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Chance Weldon] #204862 01/06/2020 3:21 AM
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45MAN Offline
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GOOD REPORT, GOOD HUNT


"ADAPT OR DIE". I USE ALL CAPS, NOT BECAUSE I AM YELLING, BUT BECAUSE IT IS AN OLD HABIT FROM MY ARMY DAYS, PLUS IT IS EASIER TO TYPE AND READ.
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: 45MAN] #204863 01/06/2020 4:46 AM
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KYODE Offline
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Congratulations! 2 at once is a lot of work if you cut up your own!


Kentucky….no place like home.
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: KYODE] #204864 01/06/2020 6:10 AM
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Ernie Offline
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Good for you


Ernie the Un-Tactical
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Ernie] #204865 01/06/2020 6:59 AM
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Okie Hunter Online Happy
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Congrats.


With God all things are possible. Matt.19:26
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Okie Hunter] #204866 01/06/2020 9:15 AM
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Willicd76 Offline
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Its amazing to me you got that know and of penetration at 100yds with the 327! Great shooting...

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Willicd76] #204867 01/06/2020 9:29 AM
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REDHAWK1954 Offline
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Good shooting. I'm glad your season ended on a positive note.


Michael Joe Moore
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: REDHAWK1954] #204868 01/06/2020 1:06 PM
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SChunter Offline
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Nice work Chance! Congratulations

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: SChunter] #204869 01/06/2020 1:21 PM
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jcp161 Offline
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Nice shooting and congratulations on being able to use your grandfather's gun.

Two nice deer.
\:\)


That's a good season.

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: jcp161] #204872 01/06/2020 2:11 PM
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reflex264 Offline
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Good job!


"A quiet hit in the right place is better than a loud miss in the wrong place followed by 10 more shots on the run"

I was a handgun hunter, when handgun wasn't cool.....
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: reflex264] #204873 01/06/2020 2:26 PM
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Russell Offline
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Congratulations!


It's not the gun, but the man behind it.

Sheriff Russell Cottle, Ret.
USMC; 1967-1970; Vietnam-'68-'69
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Russell] #204874 01/06/2020 3:53 PM
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short30 Offline
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Too cool! Your Grandpa is smiling with pride from both shots!!!


First Handgun Deer: ~1982 8" S&W .38Spl
SW 7.5" 686-7 with Matchdot II
SBHH .45LC 7.5"
Contender G2 .35-30/30 (Bellm), .22LR, .22 Hornet, 25-35
Glock 40 10mm; G21 Poly80 w/ 9 inch barrel (in work)
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: short30] #204876 01/06/2020 4:00 PM
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karl Offline
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Congratulations! Way to close out the season!

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: short30] #204878 01/06/2020 4:09 PM
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RBO21 Offline
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Very cool! Congrats!

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Chance Weldon] #204880 01/06/2020 5:16 PM
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cmnash Offline
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That's a good hunt and an excellent report. WELL DONE!

I have been a proponent of the .327 in the past, and have some game experience with it, but must admit I was pleasantly surprised by your report of how well it performed on a shot of that distance.

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: cmnash] #204881 01/06/2020 6:19 PM
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jamesfromjersey Offline
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you did a fine job Chance.... you may start a trend with good shot placement and using 32 caliber XTP`s to take whitetail...
\:\/


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"I have more guns then I need but not as many as I want" "Handgun hunters HAVE to be good"
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: jcp161] #204882 01/06/2020 6:53 PM
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sixshot Offline
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Nice hunt, two in one day is rare but a lot of fun. You'll remember this one for a long time, congratulations!

Dick

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: jcp161] #204883 01/06/2020 7:36 PM
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Gregg Richter Offline
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Good job, meat in the freezer.







Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Gregg Richter] #204886 01/06/2020 11:52 PM
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popo Offline
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Good shooting and writeup.Congrats.

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: popo] #204887 01/07/2020 12:19 AM
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Pa. Mike Offline
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Excellent post with great details. Congratulations on a successful hunt!

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Pa. Mike] #204888 01/07/2020 12:50 AM
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Brenden Offline
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Congratulations! Two well placed shots.

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Brenden] #204889 01/07/2020 1:13 AM
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PsTaN Offline
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Excellent ... and I'm happy you were able to create a memory that will last a lifetime!!


PsTaN

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"Hold your horses, the elephants are coming, and out stamped Alabama"
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: PsTaN] #204890 01/07/2020 1:23 AM
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wheelguns Offline
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Getting done,congratulations Chance.

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: wheelguns] #204893 01/07/2020 2:10 AM
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Chance Weldon Offline OP
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Thanks guys!

I forgot to mention, the load I used in the 327 was 13.1 grains of H110 under the 100 grain XTP. This averaged 1,794 fps out of the 12" barrel, and was about 1" accurate at 100 yards. The bullet seemed to have expanded rapidly initially, but the hole in the offside hide wasn't very large. Really wish I could have recovered it to see how well it held together.


Formerly TN Lone Wolf

"We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided." - J.K. Rowling
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Chance Weldon] #204903 01/07/2020 10:12 PM
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Carpe Diem Offline
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The 100XTP is surprisingly tough. IME with it in the .32 H&R Magnum at 1250 fps MV it expands but still penetrates well. The mushroom isn?t huge but it works.



.


Based on total trigger pull weight, my trigger finger has lifted well over 200 tons....
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Carpe Diem] #204906 01/08/2020 5:21 AM
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dave thomas Offline
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sub calibers will still get it done if properly placed. well done -the work begins!


Ephesians 6:10-18 because we are warriors.
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: dave thomas] #204907 01/08/2020 5:54 AM
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BIZZMO Offline
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Nice shootin!,Out west we call them side-hill salmon!

Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: Chance Weldon] #204909 01/08/2020 8:47 AM
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Zee Offline
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Well done! A very good report and pleased to see the autopsy.

Congrats on both kills. I don?t discriminate firearm platform. I like them all. 😁


"To Hell with efficiency, it's performance we want!" - Elmer Keith
Re: Two does down, one with my 327 Encore! [Re: jcp161] #204910 01/08/2020 12:38 PM
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racksmasher1 Offline
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Good shooting Chance


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