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[quote=Royce...
Another point that I would have thought a coyote hunter would know, is that whether a rifle puts it's first shot dead on or not is not dependent on the cartridge, it has to do with bedding, barrel characteristics, etc.
Profession guides have said on here that about one out of ten hunters that show up with Magnums can handle them.- Another bear guide has had to follow up more bears that were wounded with magnums than with 270 class cartridges.
And I have shot elk with the 270, 300 magnum, 35 Whelen and been around a few more shot with other calibers.
Just so we are getting a fair comparison here, how many elk have you seen killed with each, the 270 and the 300 magnum, and with what kind of bullets.

Everyone knows that NO ONE can shoot a .300WM with any accuracy. Just look at my .300WM target below for proof. The first shot was from an oiled bore so while its placement is understandable. There is, however, no excuse for #3 except poor marksmanship.



In 2010 I took more or less identical Ruger rifles to the range for a last check before my elk hunt. One was a .30-06 and the other my .300WM. I set clay pigeons up on the 600 yard berm and took a total of 5 shots, two with one rifle and three with the other. I don't recall which was which, but it is irrelevant - what is important is that while I got a pigeon with both guns, I MISSED with three of the five shots. Probably should have just sold both rifles right then. Like a fool I kept them but had the good sense to hunt with the .30-06, which dropped my elk so fast it was on the ground before I recovered from the recoil. In 2012,though, I reverted to stupid and hunted with the .300WM. I shot my elk at 399-400 yards (measured via GPS coordinates and Google Earth) and, as anyone with any brains would expect, it failed to go down at the shot. Instead it went about 5 yards total before piling up just as I was getting ready to fire a second shot. Got lucky on that one...

Here is a pic of the elk and the Ruger MKII .300WM, exit side:


The cow was down inside the circle:


Sure wish I'd used a non-magnum...

The OP doesn't say whether or not he can shoot all of the rifles with the same accuracy. In fact, one would expect that not all of the rifles are equally accurate, regardless of the shooter's skills. In lieu of information to the contrary, though, I'll take it on faith that the OP shoots each of the rifles mentioned well enough to have confidence in considering them for an elk hunt. While you rant about magnums, you know nothing about how the OP shoots each of his rifles or about their individual capabilities with regard to first round shot placement. One would think you would know that "whether a rifle puts it's first shot dead on or not is not dependent on the cartridge".

How many elk have I seen killed with a .270 Win? None - no one I hunt with uses one. That said, over the years I've seen multiple elk that were killed with a .270, I just didn't witness the killing personally. From 1982 until 2002 the only bolt gun I used for elk was my 7mm RM. Since 2000 I've taken 13 elk using a variety of rifles, including my 7mm RM, multiple .30-06s, a .300WM and a .45-70. In addition I've hunted them with .257 Roberts, .30-30, .375 Win and .44 Mag rifle and pistol, but with no shots taken. My hunting buddies have used .30-30, 7mm RM, .30-06 and .300WM rifles. This year Daughter #1 will be going on her first elk hunt and will use her .308 Win. If her by-then hubby buys a non-resident OTC tag it will be his first elk hunt as well and he will use a .30-06. My current plan is to use a .280 Rem.

Funny thing, the .280 Rem doesn't shoot any better than my 7mm RM, .300WM or even my .338WM. Here's a group from said .338WM. First two shots were cold bore, after which I marked the target while allowing the barrel to cool before taking the 3rd, unmarked shot. Pretty crappy repeatability - the 3rd shot missed both of the previous holes.


I don't know what possessed me to think it was accurate enough for hunting elk, but in 2013 I did just that and used the .338WM to take my elk at 487 lasered yards, the longest shot I've ever taken on big game. The elk continued on for 58 yards before going down. Sure wish I'd used a non-magnum...

A 300 Magnum in a rifle that is too heavy to haul up a mountain, or that won't put it's first, cold barrel shot on point of aim, or that has some imitation of the Hubble telescope doesn't make an elk hunting package. Elk hunting is not a game of marksmanship, it's a hell of a lot more like an endurance contest. And you can kill elk quite easily past 400 yards with a 270.
More elk are missed by over gunned hunters, than are lost to under gunned hunters-.

Coyote hunter
You are good are making up things I didn't say and then arguing against that. Not so good at logic and contradicting what I actually said. I never said 300 Magnums didn't shoot, and never said none could shoot them.
And the rest of your bafflegab is just getting farther and farther from the point-

Whatever one you feel most comfortable with. If you have one tied to a tree the the Guide gun makes sense. The 270 MR seems to be the closest to your 260 and will dispatch near and far.. That'd be my choice

W

I'd go 06 myself, hard to beat for near and far. My load is 180 Nosler BT at 2900fps. My 300 RUM can beat it but at a cost even though the recoil is less with the brake but weighs more too.

Everybody goes on and on about accuracy but no one mentions nerves. Yes I admit to having had buck fever before and learning a lot from it, almost cost me the deer in my avatar. To me being familiar and comfortable with the rifle counts for a lot.