I think there are some general characteristics that we as hunters should seek to understand that will help us select the most appropriate gun/ammo combination for each situation. This is of course separate from shot placement although it can be seen as related when considering shot selection.

In my mind these go something like -

Bullet construction and weight

Velocity or related, but slightly different, shot distance.

And game targeted

All bullets, from the cheapest cup and core, through the bonded bullets to the premium monometals have something of a sweet spot when considering these characteristics.

The harder you push a bullet, and the shorter your shots, the more likely you are to have inconsistent results with the more general cup and cores and their polymer tipped counterparts.

On the other hand if you are shooting long range with no expectation of close shots (actual distance is debatable as seen in this thread), and with a slower MV then a monometal is likely not the best choice for you.

Where this gets most difficult is perhaps something like large bean fields or power lines where shots can range from point blank to extreme long range - this situation really presses a bullet on both ends of the range.



Blood trails are just not an exact science. I shot my buck this season with a bonded bullet from close range but the blood just wasn't there. Turned out that even with a large exit hole it was plugged with various critter parts.