Hornady ELD-X

Has anyone here used the Hornady ELD-X for plains game? Heading out in April for another plains game hunt with my son and have been working hard to find the right combo for his 308. The ELD-X in 178 grain shoots well but i have read some reports of the jacket separating from the case. Just wondering if there is any first hand experience here on the bullets performance. Thanks in advance for any info you can provide.

I've now got experience of these on red hinds if that's useful?

.270win, 145gr, 2950 out the barrel.

Shot 6 beasts last week with them ranging from 40KG (calves) to 100KG or so.

The shots were between 100 and 280yds. 4 H&L shots, 1 lower neck shot and 1 shoulders.

The bullets are definitely good killers, better than a standard cup and core in that respect I'd say. Everything fell quick as I could have asked, several on the spot, all within 50yds. Examination of the beasts during the gralloch showed substantial damage to a pretty wide area.

That said, they are definitely extremely frangible. All of them did exit and travelled in a straight line, even the one that took out both shoulders, but the exit wounds are impressive to say the least, and much more than my friend was seeing with his standard cup and core bullets. One shot which was slightly quartering showed some jacket frangments left in the beast as well.

I think they're very well suited for my application (lightly built cull animals for meat at mid- to long-ranges), but I'd worry about the damage to the cape if I wanted trophies.

I'd use the .270 ELD-X on any mid-sized soft-skinned game species, so red deer, fallow, various antelope etc. Anything less than 200kg or so anyway, no concerns. Anything with a heavier build or thicker muscle like boar though, and I'd worry about lack of penetration or deflection.

They do buck the wind very well though. I was holding off several inches less than my friend in equivalent conditions and honestly, I think this saved my arse a little on one of the longer shots which was already a little farther back than I'd intended (still lungs, still dead, but not exactly behind the shoulder if you catch my drift).

Have used the 200 gr from my .300 Win Mag (Blaser R8) to take a South Texas Nilgai - roughly a blue wildebeest in size. The range was 140 yards or so and the bullet went through both shoulders making a .30 cal hole going in and a .40 cal leaving. The animal spun around, ran a few feet and died. The bullet is also extremely accurate in my rifle. It will be my go to choice in that caliber in that rifle from now on.

I would not hesitate to use it in that weight for PG from a .300 and suspect a 178 from a .308 would be just as effective.

I used 143g ELD-X in my 6.5CR last year for springbok and impala at 80 to 286 yards. Broadside pass through with a fist size exit wound. Dropped in their tracks.

Appreciate the feedback so far, its always reassuring to hear some first hand experience. It is a fantastic shooting round and some conformation that its also a terminal round is great to hear.

I have taken everything from kudu and Sable in Africa. To moose and elk in Canada. I love this bullet. It pokes holes in paper as accurately as any of my match bullets. But has phenomenal killing ability. I run the 212 grain in my 300 won mag.

I am surprised the Hornady police did not show up to this one lol. Like any bullet..... Shot placement, shot placement, shot placement.

I've killed plenty of hogs with them, never any deer, though.

I will say accuracy with both the 178 and 143 (in my 6.5x55) is absolutely stellar. At the modest velocities of 308 W and 6.5x55 (2610 and 2500, respectively), I've never had an issue with jacket separation. But as with any cup and core, I'd advise caution where impact velocities might exceed 2700-2800. I am not a fan of any cup and core where impact velocities get very far north of 2600.

I consistently shoot a single, ragged hole with 5 shots at 100 yards with both of those bullets.

Red Leg said:

Have used the 200 gr from my .300 Win Mag (Blaser R8) to take a South Texas Nilgai - roughly a blue wildebeest in size. The range was 140 yards or so and the bullet went through both shoulders making a .30 cal hole going in and a .40 cal leaving. The animal spun around, ran a few feet and died. The bullet is also extremely accurate in my rifle. It will be my go to choice in that caliber in that rifle from now on.

I would not hesitate to use it in that weight for PG from a .300 and suspect a 178 from a .308 would be just as effective.

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This is the exact bullet I was thinking of testing in my R8 300WM.

Do you have the 650mm long barrel?
I'm hesitant because of the slower twist rate on the Blaser (1:11 instead of 1:10) and the 600mm Selous barrel.
Think it will stabilize in time or should I just go with a lighter bullet?

BeeMaa said:

This is the exact bullet I was thinking of testing in my R8 300WM.

Do you have the 650mm long barrel?
I'm hesitant because of the slower twist rate on the Blaser (1:11 instead of 1:10) and the 600mm Selous barrel.
Think it will stabilize in time or should I just go with a lighter bullet?

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They shoot in both my long semi-weight barrel and short sporter weight barrel in .300 WM.

BeeMaa said:

This is the exact bullet I was thinking of testing in my R8 300WM.

Do you have the 650mm long barrel?
I'm hesitant because of the slower twist rate on the Blaser (1:11 instead of 1:10) and the 600mm Selous barrel.
Think it will stabilize in time or should I just go with a lighter bullet?

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At the price of ELD-X, it's worth experimenting. My Savage 10 has a 1:10 twist. An 11 shouldn't be an issue, but there's only 1 way to find out.

I'm also shooting them out of a savage 10, 1:10 and the are a tack driver. Was the only factory round that i could get consistent groupings out of that rifle. With the 308 and the 20" barrel i'm right near 2500 fps at the muzzle so no lightning fast impacts with that rifle. I'm excited to see how they perform on the upcoming trip.

Red Leg said:

They shoot in both my long semi-weight barrel and short sporter weight barrel in .300 WM.

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Red Leg - Thanks for the info, do you have a particular load that works and you like. Thanks for your help.

MMAL said:

Red Leg - Thanks for the info, do you have a particular load that works and you like. Thanks for your help.

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Shooting factory in both.

Not my first recommendation for Africa...
Rather invest in something with a proven track record...penny wise pound foolish...

IvW said:

Not my first recommendation for Africa...
Rather invest in something with a proven track record...penny wise pound foolish...

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Suppose we would still be shooting four bores? Seems like an excellent load. I have at least actually fired them.

IvW said:

Not my first recommendation for Africa...
Rather invest in something with a proven track record...penny wise pound foolish...

Click to expand...

Any first hand experience with the round? Any particular reason you wouldn't recommend? I have always been puzzled when someone says a bullet shoots a ragged hole at 100 and then get a response to find a better bullet. Isn't it all about shot placement? For me personally the only true failure i have ever had was with a nosler round, wouldn't ever go back and wouldn't ever recommend but it was based on a personal experience with an accubond. Can you share any personal experience with the eld-x that would have caused you to think they may not be suitable for plains game hunting.

A couple friends and myself have tested the ELD-X extensively.
143 in 6.5
162 and 175 in 28
212 in 30

Coyotes to elk, also water tests with elk leg bones.
Keep the velocity below 2900 and it will be fine. They do expand and shed weight but at and below the listed velocity they penetrate good enough on elk at all ranges and angles. Note only the 212, 30 cal was used on elk.

143 tested in 260 R.E.M., 6.5-284, 6.5 PRC
162-175 in a 28 Nosler. Which pushed them too fast for close range. Best past 250 yards.
212 tested in a 300 win mag, best past 75 yards but will do the job closer with a lot of damage

Outdoorbound said:

Any first hand experience with the round? Any particular reason you wouldn't recommend? I have always been puzzled when someone says a bullet shoots a ragged hole at 100 and then get a response to find a better bullet. Isn't it all about shot placement? For me personally the only true failure i have ever had was with a nosler round, wouldn't ever go back and wouldn't ever recommend but it was based on a personal experience with an accubond. Can you share any personal experience with the eld-x that would have caused you to think they may not be suitable for plains game hunting.

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There were four of us on our recent trip to King Ranch. We took four Nilgai with two rifles (one was my R8) and a friend's Sauer. All four were shot with 200 gr factory loaded ELD X bullets. Two, one of which was mine, were shoulder to shoulder. The third was a behind the shoulder shot and the fourth was a frontal. All bullets exited and no animal went farther than 20 yards or so. Shortest shot was about seventy yards and the longest nearly 300. A nilgai is roughly the size of a blue wildebeest with similar hardiness. I was impressed by the round.

Red Leg said:

There were four of us on our recent trip to King Ranch. We took four Nilgai with two rifles (one was my R8) and a friend's Sauer. All four were shot with 200 gr factory loaded ELD X bullets. Two, one of which was mine, were shoulder to shoulder. The third was a behind the shoulder shot and the fourth was a frontal. All bullets exited and no animal went farther than 20 yards or so. Shortest shot was about seventy yards and the longest nearly 300. A nilgai is roughly the size of a blue wildebeest with similar hardiness. I was impressed by the round.

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Frontal that exited, that's impressive.
Do you happen to know the muzzle velocity of that load? Just wondering if the 2900 fps holds true with it

Mike Van Horn said:

Frontal that exited, that's impressive.
Do you happen to know the muzzle velocity of that load? Just wondering if the 2900 fps holds true with it

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Honady quotes it at 2850. I have not measured it. The frontal was at a slight angle. The bullet entered the chest and exited the flank past the last rib. The range, as I remember, was around 150 yards on that one.