Holy hanna there is a world supply of BS and lack of experience spewing forth here! Killing elk just isn't the rocket science most on this thread are trying to make it. Way too little experience in killing elk for a lot of the people responding like they do/did.
High shoulder shots being sketchy with something a 6.5 PRC (basically a 6.5/06, 270 type of load) is nothing but pure horse apples!
People need to exhibit a bit of cool and take good shots, surgical placement is your friend no matter if you're using a smallish or a big round! And the big rounds absolutely do not guarantee a quick down and out knock out!
Far and away the quickest killing rounds I've been around in the last 44 years of elk killing and guiding people to elk as well hunting with friends and observing them put elk on the turf (the number is well into the triple digits is all I'll say) have been the 25/06, 6.5/06, 270, Big 7's, the big 30's and the big 340 Wby. Keep in mind we've kept our shots to 700 or less, even though a lot of the country we hunt one could go for a long freaking way, we work to get to 700 or less or the elk win is the way we look at it. And I've seen zero diff between how quickly that group took them down.
I've known a ton load of elk taken out with 243's, Swift's and 22/250's. Once again, skilled hunters who are patient and stick a bullet in the right place. Pretty much all of the elk taken with the various 22's have been 55 Horn's w/c, 60 Horn HP and SP and 63 Sierra as well the 55 and 60 NSB. Nothing special to them, tuck it in behind the front and viola they're headed to Croak City Wyo!
Two falls ago after the season I took the scapula's off my elk and hung the bone's on the target butt in front of a fresh target. 100 yards away the 60 Horn HP and the 63 Sierra both punched thru and made nice neat wholes thru the paper behind. Not a great test but it showed that if I needed to they'd punch thru and be in good shape to tear up the lungs. Lungs torn up, game over!
I filled my tag this last fall at a bit over 300 yards, 63 Sierra (22/250) tucked in behind the left front, exited low on the shoulder (elk was a bit downhill from me). Said volunteer ran a short ways 20 yds or so and hit the turf! Most of the time you won't get a quicker kill than that with any round, big or small.
Lastly, I'll close up with and get it right out front before someone brings up the whole old story of "yeah but the residents have the luxury of hunting all season" line of bull. Pretty much each and every elk hunter that I know or talk to in the course of the years who are coming to hunt elk have way more time in the week or so they're here than pretty much all of the residents do that I speak with. Plus a goodly share of the non residents are hunting guided and on private land and that gives them a monster leg up. So yeah the non resident hunters can use the same rounds as the residents do and don't need the big boys to get the job done like so many preport.
I've went on long enough, now if you wish to buy a new rifle I totally get that. But don't talk yourself into any of the bs that you need a bigger round than the 6.5 PRC for elk. That's simply crazy talk!
