1st elk hunt need rifle advice

[MWood]

I share the same opinion as djfriesen on the 270 and 7mm RM. I have successfully harvested several elk with both.

If you are comfortable shooting the 270 you own, think about small upgrades like a lighter stock and better optic. Use the rest of your money for range fees.

I am also from the south and am a life long whitetail hunter. I have only had the privilege of elk hunting for the last decade. It is hard to describe the overwhelming feeling of excitement and nervousness when you get your first chance to take a shot at an elk. No feelings I have every experienced when whitetail hunting can come even close to comparing. That is why practice is so critical to your success.

 

[Joefrazell]

7mm rem mag or 300 win mag

 

[deerhunt01]

The 7mm is the smallest the 270 is also close I go for proper placement to avoid meat loss.

 

[BrianEM]

Tikka t3 300wsm or 7mm with a leupold VX5HD 3-15. That would get you well under the 2k budget, they are excellent shooting guns. Great lightweight backpacking gun, every ounce counts. I have the 300wsm, was thinking of getting the 7mm in the t3 superlight, just because...

Pretense, I'm s southpaw. I have a Tikka in 6.5cm on the way, and a Tikka in 300wsm is my plan for elk and such. The old Marlin lever 45-70 with some leverevoltion for the whitetails in the Adirondacks locally. Not much bends its path under 200 yards.
Christensen is very tempting but what does double or triple $ get me? $$$ gets better glass for sure. Bergara HMR being offered in lefty is on my wishlist if it ever comes to the states. Not exactly a lightweight but looks pretty sweet for less than 1k

 

[Lahunter76]

My Leupold VX5HD 3-15x56 came in today!!
I had a 300 WSM Browning ABolt, traded it with a lil cash for my 300 Weatherby Mark V!! So that's the route I would go, I am a lefty also
Buying a used rifle(pawn shop special) for less then 1k and then a lil more then that for scope u would have a nice set up for just over 2k or u can find browning Abolts in a 7mm or 300WSM fairly often for less here in NE Louisiana and the west central Mississippi area. Wouldn't be your custom but would be a good rifle as long as u are not in a rush and u wouldn't break the bank.

Also my 2cents, u can kill elk with a small cal round, R Weatherby killed a water buff in Africa with a 257 Weatherby mag, and no a 338whatever won't kill if u can't place the shot but I am a huge fan of the 7mm mag made by whoever and a 300 mag made by someone lol between a 7mm rem mag to the 7mm AX and all between are good rounds and same thing with the 300s.

 

[Lapua54]

https://clarkarmory.com/blogs/blog/the-308-winchester-our-favorite-north-american-big-game-caliber

 

[sika64]

I'll throw the 300wsm into the conversation myself, less recoil then the 300win and plenty of factory rounds all the way up to the 200gr ELD-X
Or you could buy the 300rum or the 300wby that is in the classifieds

 

[thinair]

7mm rem mag all you ever need. Recoil not bad at all with a brake or quality suppressor, and can run 180 eldm at around 3000, which provides plenty for elk up to 650-1100 range at sea levels, depending on shot placement. It carries enough energy at 650 to shoot thru the shoulder. Colorado park and wildlife states that 2000+ needed for shoulder shot, and 1200+ for lungs. At 650 yards still has 2248fps and 2020 energy left.
Theoretically you can hunt elk up to 1100 because it still has 1777fps and 1266 energy (for lung/heart shot). Eldm expands down to 1600 and eldx down to 1800.
If you hunt in high elevation (let say 8000), the shoulder shot extended to ~875yards. Can decrease the load for deer, or just go with 150eldx, 162 eldX/M or 175 eldx. 150-180 is quite plenty for elk. Also can go with nosler long range accubonds, amazing bullets, though not as high bc as hornandy eld. 7mm is very versatile. It has The Best ballistics (not counting 338 lapua and up).
Could also go with 7mm-08 and 162, which is less recoil than rem mag if you recoil sensitive. Of course effective hunting range will be less.
7mm rem mag and 7mm08 factory ammo is wildly available, also cheap to load if you go that route. Lastly, if you want factory rifle, go with browning hells canyon long range rem mag, it has 8 twist, and is very good rifle for 1200 usd.

 

[DeathstalkerDan]

Hello all! I'm new to the forum but have been lurking for awhile.

This coming hunting season I have my first (hopefully not last) back packing elk hunt. I currently have a .270 but would like to set up a new light weight rifle for longer range shooting, backpacking, and elk hunting.

I don't have much long range shooting experience, I usually do stand hunting within 300 yards for whitetail in Georgia.

I have considered:
Weatherby mark V
Bergara premier
Christensen arms ridgeline
CA Mesa (would put the additional funds to better optics)

I want to keep the rifle under $2000. I still haven't figured out my optics as of yet but it would be around the same $2000

As for a caliber I'm considering:
6.5 creedmor
6.5 prc
28 nosler
7mm
300 win

I wanted a "do all" caliber that would work for elk but would also potentially work for deer. I've never hand loaded nor do I plan on going down the rabbit hole anytime soon so I would be using over the counter ammunition for the time being.

Any helpful advice would be appreciated

Thanks
Dan

As far as the rifle goes if you decide on a short action such as the 6.5 prc then the CA Mesa is a great choice. Otherwise the ridgelinev would save some weight in a long action.

 

[Techy]

Are you judging the effectiveness of a long range cartridge by the diameter and weight of the bullet, or the energy retained downrange? When you run the numbers with the 6.5 147gr eldm, they retain a lot of velocity and energy downrange - its scary, especially when you run it at elevations where the elk hang out. The little 6.5 PRC has 1365ft lbs of energy and is still traveling at 2044 FPS at 1000 yards using factory hornady ammo.

Would it not be even scarier to run the numbers on a heavy 7 or .308 at 1000 yards?

Not sure what it is about new stuff. It might be even a bit more scary to run it on the forgotten 6.5 saum vs the prc

 

[FIGJAM]

Would it not be even scarier to run the numbers on a heavy 7 or .308 at 1000 yards?

Not sure what it is about new stuff. It might be even a bit more scary to run it on the forgotten 6.5 saum vs the prc

Sure - it just comes at the cost of additional recoil which some people don't like.

 

[Techy]

Sure - it just comes at the cost of additional recoil which some people don't like.

I can agree with that. too many can't hit crap because they are recoil shy of their cannon whether they care to admit it or not.

I am a small guy (6'1" 180) so I understand. Now I just use a good brake (mbm) and big bores kick like a kitten. Of course brakes have drawbacks. Haven't shot much over a 338 but no issues. Pure comfort

 

[Crunchy]

Keep it simple 7mm

 

[newrycurt]

I would seriously consider a Win Mod 70 Extreme Weather in .270WSM.