bwinters,
Thanks!
I must also point out that my experience is similar to Brad's. Still have a 22" barreled .338 Winchester Magnum that weighs about 7-1/2 pounds with scope, but haven't hunted with it (or my .375 H&H) since acquiring my 9.3x63 over 15 years ago. All I apparently use the .338 for anymore is breaking scopes when testing them for articles.
Must also note that the .338, 9.3x62 and .375 do not guarantee quicker kills than "lesser" cartridges, even on deer-sized game.
Might use my .375 if I go back to Africa again, but aside from one bison have never used it in North America, mostly because I found it too heavy for mountain hunting even when I was much younger--the reason I built my light .338.
But these days have several rifles weighing less than 7 pounds that are perfectly capable of taking elk, but probably my favorite is my NULA .30-06, which weighs 6 pounds on the nose with scope. Have taken more elk with the .30-06 than any other cartridge, including my biggest bull, and none have gone more than 45 yards after the shot. But then my wife could say the same thing about the elk she's taken, and all of them have been shot with the .270 Winchester, except one with the .257 Roberts.
