That sounds about right considering how you are processing one, adding 10% beef fat, taking rib meat,and neck.
I do the no gut method and don't take between the ribs.That is 50% fat anyway. I usually lose the flank meat, I don't add fat to the grind,and CPW reccomends not taking much of the neck as the lymp glands are there and CWD is prevalent in many units in Colorado
Yeah we don't have to worry about CWD so that's nice. There's good meat on the neck but it's a pain to get, when I bone them out in the field I only get the biggest chunks off it. The neck does indeed have some lymph glands and stuff, a very large tendon especially on bulls, we have to pick through it. Much easier to do on a table than in the field. The ribs are a pain and that's exactly right, by the time you cut through all the fat and connective tissue there's not much. The meat surrounding the ribcage has some good chunks but the ribs proper is a lot of trim for a little meat. But it all adds up, we are allowed 1 deer and 1 elk a year IF you get drawn, it's a lottery. We stretch it best we can.
If you are getting them out whole, vs packing out pieces, you are definitely getting more meat, also. I bring out quarters, tenderloins and back straps, with maybe a bit of other scrap thrown in. If you have it hanging there whole, you can work on it a bit better.
Yep. When we have to pack them out there's definitely less, for a packed/boned out cow I would say 115lbs is fine. But the OP looks like the butcher got a pretty whole cow elk. I'd have gotten him more meat
