I've killed three buff, all with solids. Was ready to use Woodleigh softs but the PH asked me not too since he had seen too many issues of one sort or another. His main beef was the soft, shot from a frontal angle, sliding along on the outside of the ribs and not penetrating. He had seen this more than a couple of times. His boss also favored solids for the same reasons.

With solids, death comes very quickly when the shot is true. Calibre size streams of gushing blood. Lungs shredded from secondary projectiles - the shoulder bone fragments in particular. Major vessels above the heart likewise a wreck, the heart still pumping blood, but it has nowhere to go but out.

BTW, and I'm sure you know but .510" Woodleigh softs in 570grs and 600grs have an upper velocity recomendation of 2200fps. Have you had any issues like over expansion at 2350fps? Have all passed through? Any recoveries?

I don't believe in shock as a killer. Though I believe it happens with smaller animals fairly frequently. I want to rely on blood loss. A 150lb deer might be killed fairly often by shock from say a 100 or 150 grain bullet. I think it the rare case when a 1500lb cape buffalo is killed by shock with a 300 or 400 or 500 or 600grain bullet. Death by blood loss is a 100% killer, so long as the bullet penetrates to hit heart, lungs, the great vessels, liver.

JPK