Bullet testing pics

I have been shooting the Underwood 180 XTP in the 10mm and they have worked ..... ok.... getting the job done although they have not given a instant blood trail. I recently shot 4 midsize does. 3, I shot perfect behind the shoulder which mushed everything inside and passed through. These three running about 35 yards before expiring. When passing through, it's hard to tell how much energy is being wasted and not transferred to the deer. And exit holes usually don't give recovered bullets. Another doe, the 4th, I purposely pulled up higher hoping the bullet might shock and drop getting the nerves at the spine area due to the briar thicket I was hunting in so I would not have to track her. She dropped in her tracks. So I got good results with the xtp's yet the blood trails were not found until after 25 yards. But once it started, it was very good, lol, for 10 yards. Apparently it almost requires the cavity fill with blood before it "overflows". This is not ideal and requires that you pay close attention to where the deer runs. So I wanted to try something different, to start with the xtp as the standard of what works and move to a bullet that would create a larger exit wound channel. So this weekend I tried the Underwood "bonded" jacketed hollow point in the 180. A jacketed hollow point, not bonded, would for sure do the most damage but was assumed that it's fragmentation would give extreme shock but never penetrate deep, and for sure not give a pass through needed for a good blood trail. The "bonded" jacked hollow point, [speer gold dot] would not fragment and the petals would not separate thus maintaining it's weight for knetic driving in hopes of a pass through. So, I shot doe 5 this weekend. I did pull up higher again due to that same briar thicket. She also dropped in her tracks. However, rather than wait for her to expire the amount of time it would take for her to bleed into her lungs and basically drown, I finished her off with another shot to the head. I was surprised that the bonded JHP did not have enough shock to kill her with this bullet placement. I'm used to ballistic tip bullets with a rifle and I have never seen a deer not killed instantly from this shot placement. So, I realize now that this ain't no rifle. Yet it, the 10mm gets the job done. It's just a matter of learning it's capability and staying within it's parameters. Knowledge is key and this is why I share my experience, and.... someone might save money not having to buy to try as I have done.
Back to the BJHP. The bullet gave me the exact info I needed. At first look, I had a entry and exit hole. 2 holes. However, I took a close look because I wanted to see the size of the exit hole. The XTP overexpands meaning the pedals fold all the way back flat only giving a max size hole at a point during it's pass through. The BJHP was supposed to pedal back and hold it's pedals out to as much as double it's 10mm size, in theory. Upon looking at that exit hole, just inside the hole, there was the bullet. It punched a hole, yet did not follow through it. It held together good and was impressively twice the width of the unfired round. Yet another inch passing and I would have never known the results. The deer was about 100 pounds, shot higher where the deer is not as broad as a dbl lung shot. So...... It would not have passed through a dbl lung and especially not through any buck. I give it 7 to 9 inches of penetration. This would be ideal on thinner animals, but not deer. The deer got 98 percent of the bullets knetic energy. If I were not guaranteed a pass through, I had rather shoot the JHP rather than the BJHP to give more shock due to bullet fragmentation channels, which may have killed the deer instantly. However, I do want an exit hole for better blood trailing.
A good argument could be made that if they were not going to produce a good blood trail anyway, that an exit hole was not as valuable. Makes me wonder if a JHP might make a better bleeding entry hole than a 10mm sized entry and exit hole. This is worth testing and may be my next test since I'm confident it will make quick humane kills.... it's just a matter of best recovery.
So, the XTP may be the best bullet. I'm not sure. I could tell more if I had a 180 pound buck I wanted to take out. The nature of my prescribed doe thinning this year does not produce many chances at mature bucks. However, this lazy mans feeder hunting has been lots of fun with the Glock. I left the BJHP bullet at the cabin but will get it and post it's picture here next week. It is as I said, surprisingly bigger than double it's unfired size, at least as big as a dime. I wish it could penetrate 18 inches like this.

Thought to share my experience with XTPs and A Frames, which mimics your experience.

I shoot XTP FPs 158 gr in .357 mag (rifle -estimated at 2000 fps if you believe the literature) - most of the time no pass thrus but the deer usually collapse/fall right there. The XTPs I have recovered have been .58 and are under the far skin.

Had 1 pass thru on a 180-185 pound buck at close range, he left some chunks at the hit scene and had blood in 20 yards - blood was going out entrance hole...

Tried 180 gr A frames (estimated at 1600 fps per the literature) and can't get a deer to lay over on impact.

It is more like a hard cast bullet as the expansion doesn't transfer that much energy. Shot a 60# deer at 10 yards thru the shoulder, lungs, out paunch and it ran 75+ yards with a broken shoulder... XTP would have turned it inside out, flipped it over and DRT.

I really like the XTP FPs - they designed them well. They load easy too.

I found my bullet in my console, LOL, while looking for my Credit card to order more ammo from Underwood. I ordered the JHP, going to try for a better bleeding entry hole. We will see. One view is the underside and the other the frontal view

This is a chunk of lead. I don't feel this is needed for whitetail. I hear comments about wanting bone breaking penetration, yet ribs and a shoulder blade can hardly be anything to worry over when it comes to penetration on a deer. After these initial bullet design test are exhausted, I plan to then start testing different weight bullets.

I would love to have feed back from Underwood..... I suspect that the gold dot 180 BJHP by design will be longer than the xtp in the same weight due to the frontal being much more hollow. Thus the possibility that max load is restricted due to bullet seating depths not leaving the same space for equal powder charges. It may be in my mind.... however, the 180 BJHP felt like a reduced load when shooting it. It just did not have that same feeling as the xtp. It felt like a 9mm. I may pull a bullet to see if the case is loaded to the max. Eventually these kills will be on youtube. My son with his youtube channel is usually several weeks behind with his own footage. So it may be awhile before he gets to my footage. Hopefully by then, I will have a few more to add.

Thank you for the information.

So I put the JHP to the test this weekend. Underwood 180. I knew it would not penetrate but wanted to see if the single entry might bleed better than an entry and exit. 2 deer, a 90lb doe and a 170 buck targeted as number 1 on the cull hit list. Both deer were shot at 20 yds. The doe ran 35 yards, the buck about 75 yards. Both hit exactly the same, perfect placement. The blood trail started on the doe at 20yds and 30 yards with the buck. I was hoping for quicker. However, it was a devastating shock. 100% of the energy was put into the deer. They were visible hit hard. This bullet unlike a bonded bullet, will fragment, sending wound channels creating that ballistic tip shock. Both deer bleed better than my other bullets designs. Both bullets had the same effect on the deer of it bleeding extensively out of the mouth. The doe I watched expire. It was like I have never seen. It was coming out like a water spicket. Gruesome talk which I prefer not to see, however, I am testing the bullets, not to see if they will kill, but which might kill quicker and which might leave a better blood trail for recovery. I did not clean the deer to recover the bullets. I gave them away. Eventually these kills will make it to you tube. The footage will be interesting because my initial attempt at the buck did not fire. I assumed I forgot to load the gun when it clicked. I pulled the slide back to see a bullet coming out. I use ladder stands to climb into lock ons, in place of climbing sticks. Somehow, the bullet dropped right through the expanded metal floor and never hit. It should have hit, ding, ding, all the way down ruining my chances at a buck at 20 yds, but somehow it did not hit. However, he never heard anything, I loaded another and put it in the boiler room. I retrieved the bullet. I will take a pic of it as well and post up sometime today. I suspect this is no fault of Underwood ammo but more on me as a "light strike" coming from a weak striker spring in my G40 after having changed triggers

Summary, all three bullets worked very well. The xtp being the better choice for a exit hole. The JHP being a better choice for a hunt where you intend to drop them in their tracks by a higher bullet placement. Although it can be done as well with the others as will be seen as I do it purposely, twice, at 1 particular stand that is a briar thicket where I don't want to be tracking a deer. So based on this info, you decide which you prefer. For me, if I am hunting longer range, it will be the xtp. Shorter range, either the BJHP or the JHP. I say this because I don't know yet how these will do once the bullet slows down out past 100 yards. I do know the xtp did perfect at 72 yards. I hope to continue testing this year at longer ranges and then lighter weight bullets like 150 grain. Hesitant to go to far. Not that I don't think it will do the job, more like not wanting to mess up my 7 for 7 with this gun. Pics coming soon. Tired of waiting on my son to edit it for youtube

It's not letting me load pics today???
EDIT
trying again

It keeps saying they are not a valid file. jpg is what is showing. I'm doing it as I always have, sending from my phone to email, then load to computer. Only difference is a different lap top

I don't think its too unusual for a blood trail to take a few yards to start. Deer move quick and blood flow takes a second to begin spilling. I'm not a fan of the bullets you have chosen, but 99% of my pistol kills are hogs. I find that the HP bullets work well in ideal conditions, but a shot that is off a bit or a thick shield on a boar needs the penetration of a hard cast or solid bullet in my situation.

Have you tried anything like the Barnes bullets? A fully expanding bullet that penetrates well without fragmenting might be the ticket. They were the key to consistent performance on hogs out of my 300blk. Its a somewhat similar lower velocity (than most centerfire rifles) scenario. Letting the air and fluids out of both sides of the engine works great for us!

No one else is able to load pics today. I will load when they get it fixed

Pics are working now