Choice of 7mm for bull elk

[WeiserBucks]

Complete and total bullet vaporization.

Once again, what's the issue? You killed the animals as intended. Controlled expansion, bonded, frag bullets, monos, results are what matter.

 

[BuckSmasher]

Once again, what's the issue? You killed the animals as intended. Controlled expansion, bonded, frag bullets, monos, results are what matter.

Well true, but I eat what I shoot and don't care to chow down on lead for one thing. For another, we are talking about smallish Texas whitetails from Lampasas and Edwards Counties. Not exactly comparable to an elk. Doesn't inspire confidence to me. Does it for you?

 

[WeiserBucks]

Well true, but I eat what I shoot and don't care to chow down on lead for one thing. For another, we are talking about smallish Texas whitetails from Lampasas and Edwards Counties. Not exactly comparable to an elk. Doesn't inspire confidence to me. Does it for you?

I've been shooting elk with fragmenting bullets for a long time with great results. Sometimes I get an exit and many times I don't. The animals die quickly and that's all I care about. I have confidence in killing ability, excessive penetration and exit holes don't factor into my decision making process at all.

 

[streamerfish]

So every bullet will blow right through an elk shoulder no issues? Lol that’s good to know. Glad I got lucky and picked the tsx or partition.

As long as we are eliminating arguments like a .22LR or varmit specific, yeah, basically all of them will go through a elk shoulder.

 

[The big greasy]

As long as we are eliminating arguments like a .22LR or varmit specific, yeah, basically all of them will go through a elk shoulder.

Wasn’t trying to argue, just was replying to the video posed how some like to push how small one can go… I will stick with my partition or tsx just to be on the safe side in case the shot doesn’t happen perfect every time. To the OP if I had to choose, it would be the 7mm rem mag if one can shoot it accurately.

 

[omicron1792]

Complete and total bullet vaporization.

Doesn’t that mean 100% of the energy, aka whallop, ends up in the animal?

 

[BuckSmasher]

Doesn’t that mean 100% of the energy, aka whallop, ends up in the animal?

I hear ya. I think that energy or 'whallop' is an easy and accurate way to compare similar bullets I don't think it alone kills animals. Destruction of vital organs does. Maybe a fragmenting bullet in heavy for caliber bullets doe that in a perfectly still, completely broadside shot. I frequently shoot animals at quartering angles and want the assurance the bullet will get where it needs to. Shot my bull last year at quartering on and below angle with 30-06 168 grain ttsx and bullet shattered humerus, went through the lungs, the diagphram broke and offside rib and cut the hair on the exit side and it fell out in my hand. Fully mushroomed like a x bullet commercial. That is the kind of performance I like.

 

[One300wsm]

Patrick Smith, founder of Kifaru, said this about the hierarchy of killing power decades ago:
1. Shot placement. 2. Shot placement. 3. Shot placement. 4. Use enough bullet. 5. Use enough gun.

This still

Wise man!!!

 

[ResearchinStuff]

I had one similar experience with a 6mm TSX. I shot a small whitetail and had no blood trail at all. I knew I hit it as the distance was about 10 feet from it and 20 feet up in a tree. When I got to the deer, it looked like it had just penciled through. In diagnosing the bullet performance, the bullet entered going 3200fps and stripped the petals off and the shank of the bullet exited. The heart had 5 holes in it. 4 petals (3 were in the heart) and the shank. I do believe you can get these things going too fast. Perhaps this is what you encountered. My father and my one son both use the 165TTSX from their 06s and have not lost a single animal...elk or deer.

Single wound channel in all cases. One heart had a hole through it so small I couldn't even fit my pinky into it. I've written about the experiences numerous times over the years. Animals all died, but very poor wound channels. Deaths have occurred much faster with every single other weapon system and projectile I've used, including archery.