Deer/elk rifle

[KBG]

I understand I'm about to poke the proverbial bear with a stick. But, what is considered a good/great deer gun that could take down an elk? I've never hunted elk before but if the chance ever arose I want something that would do the job. Leaning towards a 270/308.

 

[benenglish]

Do you reload or is the question limited to factory ammo?

 

[Sam7sf]

I understand I'm about to poke the proverbial bear with a stick. But, what is considered a good/great deer gun that could take down an elk? I've never hunted elk before but if the chance ever arose I want something that would do the job. Leaning towards a 270/308.

Skip the 270. 308 is an ok base. Hell I have hunted deer with 762x39, it works. Elk I have been a bit more thoughtful about. Before you think cartridge, think terrain. In all reality what distance will you be taking your shot at? Roughly. The reality is a 280 some yard shot is the longest for me. Not far but in person it’s far, if that makes sense? When you look at what energy is out at 300 plus, 500 yards, and hunting a bigger animal, you tend to favor harder hitting rounds. I’ll name a few common ones:
30-06 heavy loads, 338 win mag (common and seems to be forgotten, but a great do all hunting round) 35 whelen (also a forgotten but effective one), and a 300 wsm more of a benefit past 400 yards for energy.

 

[baboon]

Those caliber would do it if your up to the shot placement needed at the distances you would be shooting.

 

[BuzzinSATX]

I understand I'm about to poke the proverbial bear with a stick. But, what is considered a good/great deer gun that could take down an elk? I've never hunted elk before but if the chance ever arose I want something that would do the job. Leaning towards a 270/308.

Either will kill an elk, and either will wound an elk that you may never find...

A "good" elk round needs to be able to penetrate deep and break bones. By good, I mean you have a less than perfect shot at a major bull. You can take him quartering towards you, but you may need to get through some heavy muscle and maybe a bone to reach his vitals. If I were carrying a 300 Win Mag and a good bullet, I may take the shot if I was sure of the placement. Probably gonna pass with the .270, as I would be less inclined to believe he'll go down where he's shot.

Wounded elk can travel a long ways. My friend and I tracked one he'd shot with a .308 from around 200 yards that he hit in the front shoulder. We looked for that elk for two and a half days. By the time we found him, so had a pack of coyotes and God knows what else. They'd been eating on it for a while. Sad deal. It was a decent bull. We were in the national forest near Utica MT. The elk had traveled at least a couple miles over two ridges to where we found it dead. We were sure it was his bull as it had a kinda odd looking 4X5 rack.

Penetration is key, and choose your shots wisely.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

A good gun for elk would probably be more than necessary for deer.
Lots of variables, one of the bigger ones would be distance.
Then again, I've never gone elk hunting.

 

[Maverick44]

I understand I'm about to poke the proverbial bear with a stick. But, what is considered a good/great deer gun that could take down an elk? I've never hunted elk before but if the chance ever arose I want something that would do the job. Leaning towards a 270/308.

For deer, either is fine. For elk, 30-06 would probably be a better choice. You really can't beat it for an all around round.

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[KBG]

Is there a caliber in your opinion to stay away from? Think 25-06 is as low as i would want to go.

 

[KBG]

So it sounds like 270/308/3006/300 is the way to go. Any particular brand and or make and model to stay away from?

 

[Sam7sf]

I’m sure most are good brands. Consider too, a rifle you don’t really care about getting scuffed up. Like a ruger American. Their pretty durable. Accuracy is fine. I also like howa and savage.

 

[oldag]

30.06 or .308 would work well.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

Now you need a scope.

 

[deemus]

I have a friend that shoots elk and mule deer with a 270. I use a 30-06 when I do either. But 270 would do it if you are good with it, and have a good presentation.

If you are looking to buy a gun for it, the 30-06 is a good choice. You can shoot pretty much anything with that. Its enough for elk, and more than enough for deer. A good vitals shot on deer will preserve the meat. You hit a shoulder and its gonna blow it up some.

A few guys I know have bought 300 Win Mags, and hunted once with them. And that one is big time overkill for Texas whitetails. Its a punishing round, and not just for the animal.

 

[BuzzinSATX]

Is there a caliber in your opinion to stay away from? Think 25-06 is as low as i would want to go.

I think the 270 is the lower range of a good elk gun, but again, it’s all about the shot.

I think Maverick is spot on with his post regarding the 30.06

 

[Younggun]

Is there a caliber in your opinion to stay away from? Think 25-06 is as low as i would want to go.

I’m a big fan of 25-06. Accurate, flat shooting, not punishing in a lighter rifle. Highly underrated IMO.


But I don’t think those relatively light and fast moving bullets are what you want for this project. It’s an amazing round for varmints to white tail or even mule deer, but I think on an elk there’s a good chance the bullet won’t preform. Probably break up before it gets where it needs to go if it hits any heavy muscle and bone.


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[toddnjoyce]

So it sounds like 270/308/3006/300 is the way to go. Any particular brand and or make and model to stay away from?

If your going to CO for elk, you’ll want to think about weight as you’ll be putting miles under foot at high elevation.

Unless you’re going with an outfit that lets you ride into a base camp, but even then the elevation change and distance you’ll walk (or snowshoe) will make you wish for less weight.

 

[baboon]

Where are you planning on hunting your elk? Some guys forget there are plenty behind game fences in Texas. If your going out of state to elevation you better train for it.

 

[Vaquero]

30/06 would be my minimum for elk.
That said, innumerable elk have fallen to the 30/30.
I just ain't that desperate for food.

 

[Hoji]

Can’t believe no one has suggested 45-70.

 

[deemus]

Can’t believe no one has suggested 45-70.

Tough to make a 400 yd shot with a 45-70.