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Need a little advice

Lots of great recommendations but I believe with elk in the equation you need to stay large 7 or bigger for sure. No way shape or form saying the 6.5 whatever flavor won't dispatch an elk . Just the bigger the projectile going in the bigger going out it should be. With more wallop .

I'd personally go 338 caliber my self . It's not to hard to practice and get good with recoil . Don't go burn through a box of 338 rum the first time out . Shoot maybe 5-10 rounds put it away for a couple days then repeat it won't be long and you should be more than capable with the rifle and recoil. It always tickles my fancy when you read we're someone recommends said cartridge because less recoil equates to better marksmanship. No more practice does that and yeah with less recoil you for sure will shoot more . But during all this extra shooting that's being done we should be trying to learn to deal with the recoil. And get accustomed to recoil and muzzle blast
 
wv270wsm said:
Lots of great recommendations but I believe with elk in the equation you need to stay large 7 or bigger for sure. No way shape or form saying the 6.5 whatever flavor won't dispatch an elk . Just the bigger the projectile going in the bigger going out it should be. With more wallop .

I'd personally go 338 caliber my self . It's not to hard to practice and get good with recoil . Don't go burn through a box of 338 rum the first time out . Shoot maybe 5-10 rounds put it away for a couple days then repeat it won't be long and you should be more than capable with the rifle and recoil. It always tickles my fancy when you read we're someone recommends said cartridge because less recoil equates to better marksmanship. No more practice does that and yeah with less recoil you for sure will shoot more . But during all this extra shooting that's being done we should be trying to learn to deal with the recoil. And get accustomed to recoil and muzzle blast
Click to expand...

OUCH!
A man among men!
Lol
 
wv270wsm said:
Lots of great recommendations but I believe with elk in the equation you need to stay large 7 or bigger for sure. No way shape or form saying the 6.5 whatever flavor won't dispatch an elk . Just the bigger the projectile going in the bigger going out it should be. With more wallop .

I'd personally go 338 caliber my self . It's not to hard to practice and get good with recoil . Don't go burn through a box of 338 rum the first time out . Shoot maybe 5-10 rounds put it away for a couple days then repeat it won't be long and you should be more than capable with the rifle and recoil. It always tickles my fancy when you read we're someone recommends said cartridge because less recoil equates to better marksmanship. No more practice does that and yeah with less recoil you for sure will shoot more . But during all this extra shooting that's being done we should be trying to learn to deal with the recoil. And get accustomed to recoil and muzzle blast
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Spoken like somebody who doesnt do a lot of elk hunting....or, the op could go buy him something in the 6.5 or 7mm flavor that is fun to shoot and he can shoot a lot to get comfortable with.

You don't need a cannon to kill elk.

I love the out of staters who roll into my state for their first elk hunt sporting the brand new 338 Rum that they haven't spent much time shooting. They die when I tell them I am shooting a 25-06 or 270win...because as a local I should know elk can't be killed with such a small caliber :rolleyes:.

Most people who grow up in elk country shoot a humble 243, 270 win, or 30-06. A lot of them are shooting cheap factory soft point ammo. They know elk aren't bullet proof...
 
Well, just so predator slayer doesn't speak for all who grew up and live in Elk Country...
I agree they aren't bullet proof, and hundreds of posts on here of people taking them with .243s. However, I (and most of the people I hunt around) are in the .284 cal and bigger category for elk. I know of no grown men regularly hunting elk with a .243. Yes, lots of 270s, 30-06s and 300 mags, although I don't know of a lot of guys shooting longer ranges with a 270 or 30-06. Kind of hitting below the belt by insisting anyone suggesting a 7mm and up for elk doesn't elk hunt much...totally disagree. You are welcome to your opinion but please don't say those of us in the 7mm and up camp don't know anything about elk hunting - maybe we just have a different, more conservative opinion on it.

I started two daughters on 260s, but then upgraded them to .284 cal when they got a bit older. There is just more margin for error with elk by shooting 160, 180 gr or more vs. 140gr or less. Sure you can do it, but why, especially for an OP already used to a 7 Mag. (you can haul your trailer with a 1/2 ton truck, but a 3/4 diesel does it all easier and better).

Also, for long range - I'd much rather sling a 180-200 gr projectile vs. 140 -- that's not great energy at 1000 yds for a large bull elk. If elk aren't on the menu, then I'd shoot a 6.5 cal all day.

Lastly, I think the happy medium for practice is using a muzzle brake on the larger calibers. Good ones cut recoil nearly in half and are great for practice, then just remove it for hunting and tweak the zero
 
aspenbugle said:
There is just more margin for error with elk by shooting 160, 180 gr or more vs. 140gr or less
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This is the biggest load of crap floating around the internet. You really think your 7mm bullet offers a margin of error over a 6.5 bullet? Compensates for poor shots? Give me a break. You are also a little behind the times if you think a 140 is the biggest 6.5 bullet out there. You 7mm guys are worse than the 300 or 338 guys.

I have a bunch of big magnums. Truth is you don't need them to kill elk, even at long range. Shoot what you want - but stop spreading this silly lie that bigger bullets compensate for poor marksmanship. People like you are the reason guys from out of state come rolling in with guns they can't shoot. Furthest elk I ever chased was gut shot from my buddies 338 win mag. I expect stuff like this from the 300 and 338 crowd, but the 7mm guys? Its laughable...

You also speak like somebody who has never hunted with a 6.5. They are bad medicine on elk - sling a 147 or 156 out of a 6.5x284, 6.5 prc, 6.5 SAUM, 264 win, 26 Nosler or 6.5-300 etc. elk wont notice a difference between that and your 7mm bullets.

You are right about the 243 - most guys have moved on to the 6mm creedmoor. That 108gr eldm or 105gr berger puts them down a long ways away.
 
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No, that's the lie, that good marksmanship is ALL that matters and bullet weight and construction doesn't matter. (It also assumes no one shooting 300 mags can shoot well and only the .243 guys are good shots) With that logic, why not just hunt with a .22 or better yet, I've got a new 20 cal. So, with your logic, if I shoot well, then I can take a bull at 500 yards with my 20 cal. Wow. I can also put that 40 grain bullet through the vitals, no need for a head shot. Anything is a great elk gun if you shoot it well, I guess - please.

Yes, a 243 in the boiler room beats a 458 in the guts sure (duh). But what about the bull that takes a step as you are breaking the trigger, placing a front leg in front of the vitals. That is what I'm talking about "margin of error". If I shoot just as accurate with both a .243 and a 300WM a 200 grain bullet sure gives better odds of still making a lethal shot than 100 gr. from a .243 with that beefy front leg in the way. If you only take full broadside shots, and animals never move, sure, use the .243, and only at limited ranges. However, if you ever need to take a quartering shot or the animal moves, or you need to shoot them at 1000 yards, don't tell me your 25-06 is as up to the task as a 300 mag or 338. You can do it, but a 300WM with a good bullet and good person driving does it better on a bull at 800-1000 yards. You also don't need 4wd in the Colorado mountains, and hunting in jeans is perfectly fine too in perfect conditions :) . I'm never condoning the mindset of I have a 338 blaster and I can just spray bullets. I agree, that's dumb, and your point is taken, but it doesn't mean everyone shooting the larger stuff has that mindset. Given similar accuracy, and bullet construction, a 200gr bullet is more lethal under more conditions and shooting angles than a 100gr bullet from a .243 - that's just physics, and field experience.
 
I find people get to caught up in cartridge choice when it comes to this, when really you just need to look at the bullet your shooting out of your gun. If it has adequate energy and velocity (with that bullet) to kill what you intend to kill at any given range, and your a good enough shot to pull it off consistently at said range, your good to go.
Bigger bullets don't compensate for poor shooting, but bigger bullets do offer better terminal ballistics, if that wasn't the case, the same argument could be made for shooting elk with a .223, there is a point where it doesn't make sense.
That point is what people tend to argue about, and get defensive about.
I tend to lean toward the 1500/1000 ft-lb mark for Elk/deer. You can certainly do it with less, but generally speaking, I wouldn't, everyone has to make their own choice on that.

There are plenty of guys out there that can shoot those big magnums every bit as good as anybody can shoot anything.

I won't get into my long range elk gun, but rather than 143 eld-x out of my 6.5 drifting 58" in a 10mph wind at 1000, it drifts 30!!!

What about us .375 guys?!!!
 
aspenbugle said:
No, that's the lie, that good marksmanship is ALL that matters and bullet weight and construction doesn't matter. (It also assumes no one shooting 300 mags can shoot well and only the .243 guys are good shots) With that logic, why not just hunt with a .22 or better yet, I've got a new 20 cal. So, with your logic, if I shoot well, then I can take a bull at 500 yards with my 20 cal. Wow. I can also put that 40 grain bullet through the vitals, no need for a head shot. Anything is a great elk gun if you shoot it well, I guess - please.

Yes, a 243 in the boiler room beats a 458 in the guts sure (duh). But what about the bull that takes a step as you are breaking the trigger, placing a front leg in front of the vitals. That is what I'm talking about "margin of error". If I shoot just as accurate with both a .243 and a 300WM a 200 grain bullet sure gives better odds of still making a lethal shot than 100 gr. from a .243 with that beefy front leg in the way. If you only take full broadside shots, and animals never move, sure, use the .243, and only at limited ranges. However, if you ever need to take a quartering shot or the animal moves, or you need to shoot them at 1000 yards, don't tell me your 25-06 is as up to the task as a 300 mag or 338. You can do it, but a 300WM with a good bullet and good person driving does it better on a bull at 800-1000 yards. You also don't need 4wd in the Colorado mountains, and hunting in jeans is perfectly fine too in perfect conditions :) . I'm never condoning the mindset of I have a 338 blaster and I can just spray bullets. I agree, that's dumb, and your point is taken, but it doesn't mean everyone shooting the larger stuff has that mindset. Given similar accuracy, and bullet construction, a 200gr bullet is more lethal under more conditions and shooting angles than a 100gr bullet from a .243 - that's just physics, and field experience.
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This is funny - smart move moving away from the 7mm is better than a 6.5. Now we are comparing 243s to 300 wm? We should all just shoot 50 cals and be done with this nonsense. While we are at it lets jump into bullet construction? Because those 7mm bullets are constructed a whole lot better than the 6.5 bullets apparently? Does a 7mm penetrate through bone better than a 6.5? Tough argument to make.
 
aspenbugle said:
that good marksmanship is ALL that matters and bullet weight and construction doesn't matter.
Click to expand...

You are putting words in my mouth here - I never said that. But marksmanship is king - I do believe that, above all else...caliber, cartridge, bullet construction...all of it. Put the bullet in the vitals and an animal will die.
 
PredatorSlayer said:
Where did you come up with those numbers? I read them all the time on here and roll my eyes. Are they really more than arbitrary numbers? The numbers I use are significantly lower.
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As I said, it can certainly be done with less and that's a choice each person has to make. I should add that I don't like impact velocities much less than 1800, that's just from personal experience, and doesn't make it anything more than that. As we all know you can read whatever you want, but it's tough to argue with what you've seen. I don't like what happens with impacts below 1800 (ish).

As far as 1500/1000 goes, those are just rough numbers, and bare minimums for me. That puts my .260's at 600 for elk, which I don't think they have any business doing based on the kills I've seen on deer at those ranges. I don't like to use the absolute minimum that can get it done, it's probably just my way of thinking. I'm a builder, everything I do has to be stronger than it needs to be.

I really don't care what anyone chooses to use, if it's served you well, carry on. If you've never done it before, err on the side of caution. You can read all day on what is appropriate for long range elk hunting and you'll find everything from creedmoors to 50 cals. Just like a multiple bid process, usually it's a good idea to toss the low one and the high one, the reasonable stuff is typically in the middle.
 
Never said I was a 7mm guy. Don't know where you got that. Said my daughters shoot 7mm (7SAUM vs their old 260). I'm a .300/.338 fan for elk. I've killed them with .264 and .260. You're the one that said: "Most people who grow up in elk country shoot a humble 243, 270 win...". Just following your logic with the .243 in that list.

I agree, not a ton of difference between 6.5 and 7mm, accuracy and bullet construction much more importance then. They will all kill elk. I just took exception to the comment that someone suggesting a .338 must be on out-of-stater or not hunt elk much. You shoot your 6.5, and I'll shoot my 300 or 338 and we'll both kill lots of elk. I shoot 300 and .338 more for the reasons nmbarta mentions - higher bc projectiles in general and more energy on target (for a big animal like elk). I don't use it because I just have to aim at hair now, since it's so big - that's dumb.

Last thing I shot with my daughter's 260 with was a bull in the timber at 30 yards. It died. He wasn't in the mood to change poses for me and offer me a broadside shot, so I took what he offered. It worked. Do I plan to use the 260 for my "timber/close-range gun"? No. Could I? Yes. I'm now building a .338 for my "elk timber gun", just because (well, one I don't have one, and it sounds like a good excuse :) ) and I'd rather slap him in the shoulder with a 225/250 grain bullet than a 140 (just like I'd rather zing a home intruder with something from a .45 vs. a 380). accuracy and bullet construction are king at that point (with the bull at 30 yards), but given I shoot both just as well, and with the same bullet type, I like that larger hunk of lead, but wouldn't mind your or anyone else preferring a 6.5 for the job. Good for you, just don't bash me for using a 338 and cubbyhole me as an oaf that just aims at hair since I carry a "cannon". We both shoot accurately, I just like a little more insurance than you do, which is a personal preference thing.
 
Seth McCament said:
I am fairly new to long range hunting. I started out shooting a Remington 700 7mm Rem Mag at range, and recently graduated to a Browning Xbolt 26 Nosler, which I love and am efficient with past 1000. However, I recently got the urge to build a custom rifle and am struggling on choosing a caliber. I love the 26 nosler, but I havent been able to start reloading, so finding and buying the ammo is killing me. 6.5 CM is also in the picture because of ammo availability and obviously ballistics are great.. but I spend a lot of time open plain big game hunting so for that factor I was thinking 30 caliber would be nice as well. Maybe 300 WM? What is everyone out there shooting? Recommendations for long range muley and elk calibers are much appreciated!
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With what you are listing I'd go 28 nosler or 300rum. With a brake, kick is easy to deal with. Lots of off the shelf options and both are accurate with saami coal length ammo in my experience. They don't have to touch the lands to shoot well. I love my 6.5 cartridges but I prefer larger for long range elk. Like I said before, my uncle killed monster elk with. 25-06 and 270 though.
 
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