Ideal Elk Cartridge?

[davsco]

Not on your list but 6.5PRC is outstanding. Loaded with 156 bergers that thing is lethal

load recommendation please!?

 

[Eric375]

these are the numbers I went with and they shot very well in my rifle

ULTIMATE 6.5 PRC Hunting Load: Berger 156 Elite Hunter + N565 – Ultimate Reloader

ultimatereloader.com

 

[Sturgeon]

I have .338 Win Mag and it is great cartridge, but I have a muzzle break and shouldn’t be shot without ear protection. My dad has .338-06 and has killed a couple elk with it and been happy, he also has a .338 Federal that is handy for hunting timber when you know shots will be under 300 yards. .280AI, 7mm rem mag, .300 mag or .30-06 all deserve to be in the list too.

 

[packer58]

30 Nosler 210 gr Nos ABLR ........ not on the list but should be....

 

[Seeleylakehunter]

Oh man don't make the 270 joke again lmao . Lol sorry had to troll ya on that one OP.

 

[h2so4]

I think some of the guys will upset you didn’t include the .223 77gr TMK.

 

[Hntelk]

30 caliber gun for elk, cant be beat!

 

[mtnbiker208]

338 win mag

 

[slvrslngr]

I’m a middle of the road kinda guy, so the 30-06 w/180’s is my ideal load for elk.

 

[mcseal2]

My current elk rifle is a 300 win mag shooting 180gr Nosler E tips. It works great, no complaints shooting deer, elk, moose, or caribou yet with that set-up.

That said I picked 338 win mag. For an elk specific rifle I’d choose the greater frontal diameter and bullet weight. Elk are tough with heavy bone and in the timber shot angles can be less than ideal. Broadside in open country anything 270 win or up with a good bullet does fine.

 

[Indian Summer]

One with enough energy at the longest range you might shoot. If you can’t handle something like that put a muzzle brake or suppressor on. Don’t just shoot less gun and call it good. Dead elk quick is priority 1! School me on placement and I’ll ask what I placement is best for a .22 short!

 

[Bsib2]

7 mag


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I picked .300 win from the list provided, however, my .308 shooting 175 grain Federal TA was more than enough for the job this past Sep.

 

[Ross]

Shoot the gun you can be proficient with and not afraid of it with sufficient proven history and that you can be confident YOU can place bullets in the boiler room…..all the variables and options don’t mean shit if you cannot make a good shot In the moment Then keep shooting till they are on the ground

 

[elkguide]

From my years of guiding elk hunters and hunting them myself, I have seen elk taken successfully with all of your choices except the creedmore. As a guide, I was much happier to have a hunter come into camp with his or her beat up old trusty .270 or .30-06 than with a brand new "super duper" whatever. Elk can take a lot of lead before realizing that they are dead and while I have rifles in most of the calibers that you listed (and a few more) when I head out the door elk hunting, 9 out of ten times, I'm grabbing a .300 Win Mag.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

From my years of guiding elk hunters and hunting them myself, I have seen elk taken successfully with all of your choices except the creedmore. As a guide, I was much happier to have a hunter come into camp with his or her beat up old trusty .270 or .30-06 than with a brand new "super duper" whatever. Elk can take a lot of lead before realizing that they are dead and while I have rifles in most of the calibers that you listed (and a few more) when I head out the door elk hunting, 9 out of ten times, I'm grabbing a .300 Win Mag.

I appreciate your thoughts, and the outfitter we hunted with in Sep echoed your sentiments. They actually enforce a 160 grain minimum on bullet choice. They don't mandate a caliber, but they want guys shooting heavier bullets.

 

[black dawg]

Have killed elk with 130 grain 270 cup and core stuff, and up to 338wm with heavy partitions, with a couple calibers in between. Nothing died any faster than with the 270.

 

[SBAHunts]

270 WSM for that bit of extra kick

 

[WDE91]

I'm putting together a 280Ai that I plan on using out west.

 

[Firehawk]

Like I said in an earlier post, I chose .338 WM. The poll is asking for the "ideal elk cartridge". Doesn't say anything about recoil, recoil sensitivity, weight of the rifle, long range/short range specifications etc. That is the reason I chose the .338. Do I own one, NO. Why? Well I like the light handy rifle I have chambered in .325 WSM. I also own a 7mm Remington Mag and we have a few 7mm-08 rifles in the family. They all kill elk just fine. But...if I weren't recoil shy, had access to reloading equipment and components, the .338WM is better. Shoots big heavy bullets at .30.06 trajectory and flat out packs a serious punch at most elk killing ranges.

The 7mm Remington Magnum shoots flatter and at long ranges has more energy, but within 500 yards, it is really hard to beat the 338.

300 Win would also be another really good choice, but I am bored with 30 cal stuff. I like unique things. This is why I have a 325. a 200 grain .323 bullet leaving the muzzle at around 2900 fps. Hits like a hammer. And almost impossible to find factory ammo. That is ok. I have two sets of dies, over 300 pieces of brass and several hundred bullets. As long as I have access to decent powder, I will be able to load for it for years to come. But if I could only have one cartridge, with the sole purpose of hunting elk, I would have a nice rifle chambered in .338 and install a 4 port muzzle brake if needed.