Suggestions for a good Elk cartridge?

[wytex]

I'm a 30 cal fan. 300 wsm is my rifle and has taken many elk, mostly cows, with great success. Your .06 is also a great elk caliber. Update your rifle or get a new mountain rifle in 30-06 and you'll always have a backup in the same caliber. Many fine lighter weight production rifles out there that won't break the bank.

 

[el unit]

30.06 is good round out west.

 

[nrpate05]

If you like your '06, I'd use that. Load it with tough 165 or 180 grain projectiles and WELL HIT elk will crumple. I like Barnes Vortx ammo, but there are plenty of good bullets on the market today. I shoot a 7mm mag and occasionally wish I had gone with a non magnum cartridge, but its a nice rifle that shoots well and the recoil is manageable. An elk rifle with light to moderate recoil may not really exist, but a .270 win will kill elk and I do like the ballistics of the .270 WSM. Those will also do well for when you decide to move out west and end up hunting antelope and mule deer as well as elk!

 

[Dan O]

I own a 30.06 Remington that has kind of been used an abused over the years. Im looking for something that would be light to moderate in the recoil realm. Any suggestions and opinons would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time.

Your sentence regarding recoil I think has been over looked. First, is your 30-06 on the upper end of the recoil range your comfortable with? Do you want a lighter rifle, if so the recoil will increase generally. If your Remington shoots well and isn't to heavy then use it and maybe update your scope to a vx3 or vx6. Then find a good load in the 165 to 180 grain range (partition/accubond) and practice, practice, practice. If the 30-06 is to heavy and the recoil is on the upper end of what you want then go with the 7-08 or 308 win in a light weight rifle and have fun.
There ya go problem solved

 

[MJE2083]

I own a 30.06 Remington that has kind of been used an abused over the years. Im looking for something that would be light to moderate in the recoil realm. Any suggestions and opinons would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time.

Your sentence regarding recoil I think has been over looked. First, is your 30-06 on the upper end of the recoil range your comfortable with? Do you want a lighter rifle, if so the recoil will increase generally. If your Remington shoots well and isn't to heavy then use it and maybe update your scope to a vx3 or vx6. Then find a good load in the 165 to 180 grain range (partition/accubond) and practice, practice, practice. If the 30-06 is to heavy and the recoil is on the upper end of what you want then go with the 7-08 or 308 win in a light weight rifle and have fun.
There ya go problem solved

I agree with Dan O. I suppose everyone's definition of recoil is different. Light recoil to me is like 22lr-.22-250. Moderate 243-30.06 followed by heavy hitters. I suppose the light-moderate recoiling cartridges that would kill an elk are in that 7mm08 area

 

[hank4elk]

I'm an old 30-06 guy.
You can pretty much get rid of any recoil with a decent stock. My Hogue full aluminum bed overmolded stock eliminated any I had in my old 700. Can shoot it all day now. Can't even start to do that with my 30-30.
They will shoot and put down game .Get ammo just about anywhere.
Tempted to get a Howa Hogue in 06 for back up.

If I was starting out again these days it would be a 308. Always liked the way they shoot.Similar to an 06 with less recoil.

 

[Sask hunter]

Personally I use a 338 haven't shot an elk with it but it worked amazing on my bear last spring. 7mags and 300 mags would be good I don't think they kick too bad but that may be over your recoil tolerance

 

[Bob Vetter]

First off, I consider myself a certifiable rifle nut. I m very much a 35 caliber fan. I m working on the finishing touches of a semi custom rem 700 SA 358 Winchester! I have a 30-06 I've used with great success. I also adore my 35 rem and 30-30. I have owned a 7mm Rem Mag and 338 Win Mag. Neither live with me any more. My favorite Light rifles these days would be a 7mm-08, 260 Rem, 243 Win and the 6.5x55 Sweed. Its all about shot placement anyways. Good luck in the search!

 

[boucheed]

In the infamous words of Jack O'Connor...“Assuming a cartridge can make its way on merit alone, that cartridge is the .270 W.C.F. In its early years it sat in the corner, dressed in sackcloth and covered with ashes, while few riflemen suspected that underneath it had a figger like Miss America, a disposition like an angel, and it could bake pies like Mother used to make.”

 

[C_Dick_Run]

I shoot a 7mm mag and would consider that in the middle recoil range for centerfires, probably similar to an -06. Every shooter is different, so the best advice I can offer is go with the biggest caliber you can confidently shoot.

 

[Addicting]

First off, I consider myself a certifiable rifle nut. I m very much a 35 caliber fan. I m working on the finishing touches of a semi custom rem 700 SA 358 Winchester! I have a 30-06 I've used with great success. I also adore my 35 rem and 30-30. I have owned a 7mm Rem Mag and 338 Win Mag. Neither live with me any more. My favorite Light rifles these days would be a 7mm-08, 260 Rem, 243 Win and the 6.5x55 Sweed. Its all about shot placement anyways. Good luck in the search!

Bob, how has your 6.5 Sweed performed on critters? I was looking at that and ended up settling on a 6.5 Creedmoore for better availability and ballistics. I read that in Europe the 6.5 Sweed is used on Stag and is kinda like our 30-06 as far as everyone has one and uses it for everything.

Thanks

 

[Mthuntinfool]

All good advice. If your current rifle shoots well, stick with it for now till you find something you really want. For my 2 cents, I have killed 3 elk in the last 3 years. first was a cow, 50 yards with a 30-06. second a bull at 200 yards with a .257 Roberts. most recent was a cow, 450 yards with a 7mm Rem mag. Just as long as you can shoot it well, any rifle will kill an elk. good luck on your search for a new rifle.

 

[MJE2083]

Bob, how has your 6.5 Sweed performed on critters? I was looking at that and ended up settling on a 6.5 Creedmoore for better availability and ballistics. I read that in Europe the 6.5 Sweed is used on Stag and is kinda like our 30-06 as far as everyone has one and uses it for everything.

Thanks

They kill moose with 6.5 swede in Europe. I don't own one but I would like to someday. From everything I've read it's a really great old cartridge. I would agree that it probably is comparable to 30-06 in popularity

 

[henson270]

This is a great campfire question, isn't it? There are so many great choices out there, and there are so few ways to go wrong. I'd say pick a cartridge you shoot best, whatever it may be, and stoke it with the highest quality bullet you can find. Nosler Partitions, Swift A-Frames, any of the copper-homogeneous bullets (Barnes X, Hornady GMX, Trophy Copper), Nosler Accubond. Put a well made bullet in the boiler room, and you'll have an elk on the ground.

 

[cgarner]

I shoot a 7mm Rem Mag. When i bought it, it was the only left handed gun available at my local store. I think it is a good all around cartridge, but it is loud and the recoil can be a problem for some folks. My dad and brother have 30-06 and the 7 mag definitely kicks harder IMHO and is very loud, wear hearing protection. All the calibers mentioned will kill elk and other small game critters you might hunt. I would start by looking at ballistics and see which caliber will fit your hunting situation best and will compliment the '06 you already have.

 

[jvanderlinde]

I have a 7mm and a .280. I haven't used the 7mm since i bought the .280.

 

[Bob Vetter]

Yeah it killed just fine. Only used it on smaller critters and deer as kids. It was popular among my friends in high school. At the time Swedish Mauser where a dime a dozen and cheap. Great rifle.

 

[Bob Vetter]

Here's my new "Elk" rifle! Well it's actually my new do all rifle. It's a 358 Winchester.

Cheers!

 

[ErictheRed]

I've killed elk with 30-06, 300 WSM and 270 WSM. They are all fun to shoot. If you're planning on hiking for your elk, a lighter rifle is a better choice. That means the lighter calibers are probably a better match for accuracy. I always use Nosler Trophy Grade bullets and my preferred model is the Kimber Montana. The new Montana's come with pre-machined muzzle break making them super easy to shoot.

 

[Brian in Montana]

My go-to elk rifle is a 300 WM with a muzzle break on it. The recoil is about like a .270, but it is unholy loud with that break. If the 30-06 is a little more recoil than you'd like, and it's withstood "a little abuse", I'd suggest you look into the Witt Machine. Just do a google search. It's a clamp-installed muzzle break. I've never used one, but it's an interesting product.

However, you might just want a new rifle (I totally get that too); if that's the case, my vote goes for the .308. There is so much good ammo out there for the .308, you can just do a lot with it. Over the past couple of seasons, I've gotten in the habit of hiking farther and going into harder to reach areas. Just because of the lightweight design, I've been hunting more with my Tikka T3 in the .308. But, yes, as the original poster pointed out, there is nothing as important as shot placement. Also, as Randy Newberg points out in that video, keep shooting until the elk is done. They are big, tough animals that can surprise you by how much abuse they might withstand.