Best Caliber Rifle Elk

[MT-Shooter]

270 win . Great Elk round and somehow it seems to have been forgotten these days. The 270 was sort of the standard for long range flat trajectory and I guess it wasn't new and didn't receive the marketing. It's definitely still very effective.

Good luck on your hunt.

I have harvested about 10 Elk with a .270. The gun has taken a Moose also. Great gun, moderate recoil, flat trajaetory and will quickley kill most North American big game at reasonable distances. Jack O'Conner knew what he was talking about!

 

[chav0_12]

How is it buying ammo for the 325 wsm. 8mm cal is like 257 cal. Just not many bullets to choose from. But I like the concept. My friend had a beautiful Kimber for sale right now and that might be a great option for the OP.

It's tough. I know Nosler does runs of it once in a while. My bro in-law shoots one too and shoots factory stuff but I think he's stocked up and all but stuck it in the back of the safe. I've never bought or shot factory ammo out of mine. I have at least 250 200gr Nosler Partitions and more than 300 200gr Nosler AccuBonds. I just set up in-stock notifications on Nosler's site and when they said they were in stock I bought a few boxes, I was also picking up any and every box of 200gr AccuBonds that I could find because I'd almost ran out once. The nice thing is that I have 3 rifles that are the same just in different calibers, they're Browning A-Bolt IIs so I feel as though I can practice with something a lot less punishing with the same exact ergonomics.

 

[Moike]

I agree with your first responses except I'd cut the WSM. .300 WM, and -30-06 will do great work, their both .30 cal so will shoot the same projectile just the WM will shoot it a few hundred FPS faster. You can buy ammo for both anywhere in the world, the WSM not so much. If your a distance shooter the WM has the advantage because it's faster but Bullet Hit location on the animal trumps that. Also, with the new limbsaver pads; my 140lbs son and his buddies shoot my lite weight.300wm's regularly and do OK.

I've hunted with a bunch of calibers for over 4 decades, shot lots of deer, over a dozen caribou, moose, and smaller animals with various calibers. I routinely shoot with my buddies during the winter and spring out to 800m. I've got .308's, 6.5's, .270's and I've got various guns, some custom guns costing a lot. But when I go hunting I reach for my .300wm Tikka stainless lite with a Leupold VX-5 with the free CDS. I laser the target and dial that simple. Then I just dope my wind. I Never worry about the turret moving inadvertently. It works Every time. It's lite. Never loses zero. Doesn't rust. Factory triggers are superb. The best combo of optic and weapon I've come across. And the .300wm got the power to knock down anything I'm hunting.

My son turns 16 next fall and that's exactly what I'm giving him for his birthday. Hope my response helps, just my $0.02.

 

[DCBenn88]

Shot placement and bullet choice is gonna be your key not matter what caliber. 300WM,30-06 or whatever you go with. One will kill an elk just as fast as the other. I have personally dropped elk in their tracks with a 6.5x55 Swede and 140gr partitions. Doesn't mean it will happen every time. Good luck on whatever you choose.

 

[crm3006]

.338 Win Mag is an excellent round for elk, as is the .300 Win Mag, and the old and reliable .30-'06. Before buying any new rifle, I would shop around and check on ammunition availability, if you are not a hand loader, and even then, the availability of components can be problematic. There are other calibers suitable for elk, I just mentioned the ones I am very familiar with.
As a side note, I have killed two elk with an '06, at the 200-250 +/- range. I used a hand load with Nosler 165 gr. Ballistic Tips.

 

[Samesaw]

Hi everyone, so I am new Elk and deer hunter. I grew up hunting mostly upland game. I am going on a guided Elk hunt in October in Idaho and I looking to purchase a larger caliber rifle than my 6.5 creedmoor. I've ready many articles debating this topic. I am a big guy 6-3 230. Not afraid of a little sore shoulder or kick. For a new hunter would you go 30-06, .300 MAG or even 300 WSM. I hunter mule deer there last year and the terrain is steep so and rugged so obviously weight is an issue. I was looking into the Tikka superior WSM or lite 300. Would appreciate any guidance! Thank you.

Hi everyone, so I am new Elk and deer hunter. I grew up hunting mostly upland game. I am going on a guided Elk hunt in October in Idaho and I looking to purchase a larger caliber rifle than my 6.5 creedmoor. I've ready many articles debating this topic. I am a big guy 6-3 230. Not afraid of a little sore shoulder or kick. For a new hunter would you go 30-06, .300 MAG or even 300 WSM. I hunter mule deer there last year and the terrain is steep so and rugged so obviously weight is an issue. I was looking into the Tikka superior WSM or lite 300. Would appreciate any guidance! Thank you.

I love my 30.06 in my 40yr old Remington 700 bolt action mountain rifle at only 6.5 lbs weight before adding its old 3x9 scope and sling. It's a natural, fast pointing tack driver.

My advice is 1) the rifle has to feel good and natural to you, does it shoulder fast and fit perfect even with a thick jacket ? Does it point fast and is it on target when you first shoulder and look through your scope ? Will the weight be a concern, or are you amazed with how light and balanced the little lady feels in your hands? Wood stocks are always warm to hold even in snow cold winter hunts. 2) a slightly firm, but beautifully crisp trigger pull is a pure joy to experience on any rifle, you will want this trigger pull to excite and please you every time. 3) caliber (finally) what and where are you hunting ? Thick bush or high plains, lots of valleys or snow covered mountain peaks ? Range ?? Expected average distance to target ? Ammo expense and availability ? Also any ammo shortage scenarios ? Easy to find or load ? 4) many wonderful caliber to choose from I'd say .270 , 30.06 , 300 win mag , etc. all the way up to .338 Lapua. 5) what's your experience? Are you relaxed and comfortable shooting very loud, very violent, very noticeable recoil calibers ?Being afraid of shooting your rifle (buck fever) is a terrible thing when your accuracy is critical spending hours to get high up on a mountain edge with one critical shot to win the day before your valuable light fades. 6) Glass, having iron sights can be critical in some scenarios, but high quality optics rule the day for most shooters. Lots to consider and mounting a perfect scope on your lovely little lady a very important topic on its own. Don't cheap out here, make sure your budget allows for good glass to maximize your shooting effectiveness. 7) say a prayer of thanks to actually own and shoot this fine example of God Given Freedom !! Millions of people in this FU crazy world can only dream of having the freedom we enjoy as shooters, so lets not take it for granted. Lastly, good guns tend to hold their value pretty good, so you can almost consider this as a long term investment. Enjoy, and give thanks to all those engineers and talented people who put their heart and soul into making your day hunting a little piece of Heaven.
Cheers,
SE
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[longbarrelxp]

The .338 win mag and .340 Weatherby are great, but I would reach for my .338-06 NULA.

 

[Brushcutter]

It's tough. I know Nosler does runs of it once in a while. My bro in-law shoots one too and shoots factory stuff but I think he's stocked up and all but stuck it in the back of the safe. I've never bought or shot factory ammo out of mine. I have at least 250 200gr Nosler Partitions and more than 300 200gr Nosler AccuBonds. I just set up in-stock notifications on Nosler's site and when they said they were in stock I bought a few boxes, I was also picking up any and every box of 200gr AccuBonds that I could find because I'd almost ran out once. The nice thing is that I have 3 rifles that are the same just in different calibers, they're Browning A-Bolt IIs so I feel as though I can practice with something a lot less punishing with the same exact ergonomics.

My first year with the .325 ammo choices were very limited. Since then I've found several premium loads to choose from. I don't use much each year so it hasn't been a problem to hunt with good elk loads.

 

[chav0_12]

My first year with the .325 ammo choices were very limited. Since then I've found several premium loads to choose from. I don't use much each year so it hasn't been a problem to hunt with good elk loads.

For sure. I know I have enough bullets for that gun that I can shoot it way more than I would ever want to. It's a pretty heavy hitter but it's a shooter.

 

[COBigJohn]

I have harvested about 10 Elk with a .270. The gun has taken a Moose also. Great gun, moderate recoil, flat trajaetory and will quickley kill most North American big game at reasonable distances. Jack O'Conner knew what he was talking about!

Yep.... Love my 270 win.... It is my hunting rifle and like O'Conner I believe in the capability. With Mine is a solid 0.7 MOA and is awesome for Antelope, out to 500 yards with lighter bullets and with 150'er grainers, it will pound a Bull Elk.

Sure, I own a 7mm Mag, but it is my benchrest rig.... and I love it also.
.........

 

[Horicon Marsh Hunter]

A short action Tikka will not be lighter. Tikka only has one action size. They just use a short action extractor for the shorter cartridges.
But, you can't go wrong with a Tikka.

Thanks Win.308Stealth for correcting my thinking that a Tikka 300WSM would be lighter. I wasn't sure myself before I posted so I checked Tikka's website and found the 300WSM listed at 6.2# vs 300 WIN MAG listed at at 6.4#, thus my assumption only that they produced a short action. I understand Tikka would likely just change out the extractor to minimize the production costs vs the production of another action.

 

[orifdoc]

I'm sure others have said this, but shot placement is 100x more important than caliber/rifle. My pipsqueak niece killed her Idaho elk this year with one shot from a .243 Tikka. A .270 would be fine, and if I was holding a .257 and a nice elk showed up I wouldn't hesitate. One of the guys I hunt with tips them over regularly with his 6.5 Creedmore. People kill them with sticks & musket balls all the time.

Given the choice, I'd probably go with a .300 Win with a minimum of a 180gr bullet, but ONLY if you trust it, have practiced with it, and shoot it WELL. Some elk just don't want to die, and a .300 helps encourage them to give up before they get to the bottom of the ravine.

One more thing - the number of people who shoot magnums well is much smaller than the number of people who think they shoot them well. Some have no trouble and some get flinchy just thinking about it. How big or tough the shooter is doesn't seem to matter much. A bad flinch, once developed, can be tough to rid yourself of.

 

[mdmiller]

Hello from Illinois!
300 WM or 270 Wim.
Factory ammo and don't look back!

 

[Chas1]

300 win mag