280 Remington enough for AK moose?

[Muskykris]

View attachment 508238

.280 should do the trick, my .270 did just fine in the Yukon. Shot him quartering to with 140g Swift A Frame and pulled the bullet out just penetrating the rear ham. Dropped him like the Hammer of Thor.

Awesome bull

 

[.280 Rem Fan]

Thanks all! I figured as much. Again I have plenty of options, however I seem to always resort back to the 280. Can't wait!

 

[Mangata]

I will echo all the others that your 280 will be fine.
Also support the heavier bullet. I feel that heavier is better with bone damage if your shot isn’t perfect, and a broke down moose is not going to go as far when wounded.

 

[Rpolar]

I’ve killed AK moose with my 280 and 140gr TTSX, never had to shoot more than 125 yds and the only bullet i’ve recovered was on the far side stuck in the hide with perfect peeled back pedals.

 

[TW907]

Absolutely is!

 

[frank church guy]

Im going up with my 280 AI, 175 AB.
Like others have said I see no issues

love the 280 ai. Fought for a while about a 280 ai or 7 saum. both are so manageable to make them dead accurate. The 284 is a great round for everything but coastal brown bears.

 

[280rem]

Excellent choice! 160 - 175 grain bullet would be the ticket. The 280 and 280 AI have been from my experience the closest thing to the “Hammer of Thor”. Somehow they hit a sweet spot of diameter, bullet weight and just the perfect velocity for a bullet to do its job. Ive used 300 weatherby, 30-06, 338 win mag and my 30-378 has become a favorite to me for elk. Not saying the 280 is any 338 win mag with a 250 grain bullet, but it is a KILLER!

 

[WMR]

Yes, it's plenty, even at twice that range. Use stout bullets and shoot straight. Only hits count.

 

[PA Hunter]

Moose are not hard to kill they just take a little time to expire because their lungs are so big, just don't expect them to fall right over after your shot regardless of what bullet or caliber. Most people recommend more gun because after the harvest grizzlies can become a problem trying to claim your harvest. So in my opinion the more gun is for bear protection not moose.

 

[WMR]

Good answer.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Question in response to PA Hunters post. Whether the lungs are big or small, if they can't supply oxygen to the brain, it's a function of the oxygen remaining in their brain. Sounds like it takes a while for the brain to realize they are dead. Would that be accurate? Just wondering not being critical.

 

[gerry35]

I'm not how it exactly works but can say it's true they sometimes take a bit to realize they're dead already. I have shot them with a 30-06, 308 Norma and 35 Whelen and there seemed to be no real difference.

 

[mcseal2]

Shooting advice that I got before my hunt made sense.

Shoot them through the lungs and let them stand there and die if they are in a good spot. If they leave for a bad spot (like water) shoot them until they are down.

 

[Nails]

My wife shot a nice 60" bull at 275 yards with a 7mm-08. 140 Accubond with great results.

That said, my favorite moose caliber is 35 Whelen.

 

[MountainSide]

Booking an AK moose hunt, I have plenty of rifle options, but love my 280 rem. Just wondering if it is enough gun within 200 yds?

I keep record of all of the game I shoot. Of the 11 moose I've shot, although 2 have been with a 375 Ruger, the majority (6) have been with a 308 Winchester or 270 Winchester. One was with a 243. The longest shot (415yds) was with a 270 Win shooting 150 grain InterLocks...not too far off from your 280.

I've seen over a dozen other moose shot, the majority with standard 270s, 308s, 30/06s, 7mm mag, and yes the lowly 223. There is an elder here who has hunted everything, for decades, with her inherited 300 savage. AR-15s are used a lot, on everything as well. Sufficient bullets and good shot placement are the key.

Your 280 is more than sufficient. Spend your money and time shooting, learning about calling techniques (incredibly effective and fun way to hunt moose), moose biology, quality binoculars, good boots, and good rain gear.

 

[35WhelenAI]

My dad has done everything from hogs to deer to elk with his 280 Remington. Handloaded 160 Partition or 150 Barnes has done yeoman's work.

Best of success with the .280 Rem when your hunt comes!

That said, my favorite moose caliber is 35 Whelen.

Yee-haw for the 35 Whelen. Haven't had the privilege to hunt moose. But the last 21 seasons of elk and mule deer in Colorado, and most recently whitetails in an eastern state, my favorite rifle/cartridge and the one I carried, is a 35 Whelen AI for all of those.

 

[Short Track]

My wife shot a nice 60" bull at 275 yards with a 7mm-08. 140 Accubond with great results.

I was a big big fan of the 7mm-08. Perfect Elk gun. Now I downsized to the 6.5CM. Just as deadly with 140's.

 

[2KHEARTSHOT]

My sister shot a 46" Bull at just over 400 yards with a 700 MTN rifle in 7mm-08, she center punched the heart and dropped it stone dead in 1 shot. 139gr Hornady BTSP reloads. The bull was shot in a harvested flat corn field in ND. Put the bullet where it needs to and the 280 is plenty of gun.

 

[VernAK]

Shooting advice that I got before my hunt made sense.

Shoot them through the lungs and let them stand there and die if they are in a good spot. If they leave for a bad spot (like water) shoot them until they are down.

IMO, this is where it's at but I might add, have a stiff enough bullet that if he turns away and heads for water etc, shoot near the base of the tail to break the pelvis or CNS.

 

[mcseal2]

IMO, this is where it's at but I might add, have a stiff enough bullet that if he turns away and heads for water etc, shoot near the base of the tail to break the pelvis or CNS.

I used the moose hunt as an excuse to have a new rifle built. I was using a light 270 win or heavier 264 win mag for most of my hunting. I had Rifles Inc build me a 300 win mag and used it with 180 grain Nosler E tips for that hunt and many since. I had faith that the 270 with the 140 grain Accubond could do the job, but I'd been thinking of getting a heavier rifle anyway. I planned to do future hunts in bear country where a little bigger tougher bullet wouldn't be a terrible thing.

I have a perfect pair for my use now. The 264 win mag is about 10.5lbs ready to hunt and covers my whitetail, antelope, or low country muley hunting with a 140gr Accubond load that shoots really well at 2914fps. The 300 win is about 8.5lbs ready to hunt and it covers Alaska, elk, or mountain muleys with a 180gr E tip at 2900fps. Both are off WInchester M70 classic actions and close enough in drop and wind drift for shots I have to take quick to use the same holds. Both have Huskemaw scopes with the same reticle.

On lower 48 hunts I take both and have a back-up rifle. If I was starting over today I'd likely go with the newer PRC versions, but the win mags have given me no reason to fix what isn't broke.

Time to stop derailing the thread, I like talking guns to much.