Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 30-06 vs 300 Win Mag

Where will you be hunting??? Will it be in grizzly country??
Every hunter should have one (or 2) 30-06 rifles. If your gonna be in grizzly country I'd look at the 338 WM, 358 Norma or any number of the 375 bolt guns.
In a world of compromise some don't - but if you do, look at the 300 WSM

The winning post ^^^^

The elephant in the room was my 270 is a pump and I think it sucks! There is only one stupid question in the world. And that is the one you already know the answer too. What a joke.

By the way I have just purchased two 270 s this off season and I am impressed! I have hunted with a 3006 for over 10 years. The 270 s I have just purchased are not pumps and they do not suck.

That has worked well for me.

It's worked damned well for me as well..

Horseschidt.

I've chronoed the Superformance, no difference out of two different Brownings.

That said, at 300 yards if a .30-06 won't kill it, a .300 Win Mag won't, either.





P

Well said.

Well, the .300 slings a bullet faster, and hits harder on both ends. Is that an advantage? I've hunted with several different rifles, including the 7mm & .30 cal magnums. Long ago I was thinking there was nothing I'd done with any of the magnums, that I couldn't have done with the good old .30-06 rifle...

So last year I loaded up a bunch of 165 gr Nolser Ballistic Tips for my .30-06, did a lot of practice ahead of the season and took four head of big game:

Black bear at 325 yards
Antelope at 245 yards
Mule deer at 140 yards
Elk (cow) at 338 yards

All died quickly. No tracking. The .30-06 with a pretty normal bullet did just fine.

It's more about the hunter/shooter than the cartridge. Perhaps a few shots from a friend's .300 and .30-06 would help you decide? They're both fine cartridges, easily capable of what you require.

Regards, Guy

[/quote}
last year I loaded up a bunch of 165 gr Nolser Ballistic Tips for my .30-06, did a lot of practice ahead of the season and took four head of big game:

Black bear at 325 yards
Antelope at 245 yards
Mule deer at 140 yards
Elk (cow) at 338 yards[/quote]

I am glad to get current information like this on the Ballistic Tip bullets by Nosler. In the past I have passed on good prices of ammo loaded with that bullet because of their reputation as fragile. It appears they worked well for you on a different variety of game.

Me being a flatlander and having to drive a thousand damn miles to hunt elk would put me squarely in the 300 mag 200 gr partition camp.

You have a 270, I'd get a 338 WM, even hunting moose and caribou in big bear country would warrant it's purchase, 250 gr partitions or swift a-frames would be the bullet for me if my rifle would shoot em well.

I meet a lot of NR's in my hunting Colorado.Especially seem to see a lot from PA,WS,MN and such.Those whitetail hunting states.

Of those hunters,I see alot of Remington 30-06 pumps and few 35 Whelen and more than a few.270's in the same model rifle.

They sure take home a lot of elk with those

Yeah, it's amazing what cartridges will kill elk if the shooter doesn't read about his poor choice on the Internet.

What question is that?

Nothing wrong with a 30-06 but if you are buying a new "Elk Rifle" go with the classic elk caliber 300 magnum of your choice. When someone asks me these days I tell them buy a Tikka 300 WSM with a Meopta 3.5-10 scope from Cameralandny or Optics Planet then for less than a grand you have a great elk killer.

If you see the bull of a lifetime across a canyon at 380 yards it is nice to hold on spine and drop it instead of coming home empty handed (likely outcome on first DIY elk hunt). I like the new Weatherby Vanguard or Howa for good shooting rifles that seem to fit and not recoil beyond normal a little heavier but not bad to have on a 300 Win or Weatherby.

I killed a bunch with a 7 mm but like the extra reach and knockdown of the 30 caliber 180 grain TTSX bullet at close to 3200 FPS. Sighted in at 225 yards you just point and shoot out to about 340 yards.

I shot my most recent bull at 346 yards. One shot, 140 Partition, 7mm-08, through and through, DRT.

If you want a magnum, fine, just don't think you need one to kill elk.




P

Constantly.... ad infinitum. Ad nauseum. SOS.

Carrying a heavier 300 WM could be just enough fatigue to make you sleep a little better at night, and that could be an advantage.

Now we are making a bit of progress.

I too would prefer a bolt action and that would prompt me to consider a new rifle if I were in your boots.

If I was considering a new bolt action rifle for elk hunting I personally would get it in the best cartridge for elk hunting.

The 7mm Rem Mag offers slight but real world advantages over both the 30-06 and .300 Win Mag.

Spending a bit of time researching the 7mm Rem Mag might pay dividends in your elk rifle purchasing scheme.

At the end of a long day in the mountains I've never blamed the 2 extra lbs carrying a standard weight rifle for the fatigue. Guys carrying an extra 25 lbs around their midsection who need a 7lb rifle never made much sense to me.

Carrying an 80-100 lb load on my back on the way out is the goal so a 9 lb rifle shouldn't be too much of a burden.

I understand that there are folks who shy away from recoil because they can't shoot rifles that kick as well as they can their 270's, 7mm-08 or 6.5x55 deer rifles. They are certainly capable of killing elk with those lighter deer rifles but no matter how skilled and capable a marksman is wielding them they are not as effective as the same placement from one of the fast 30's when the ranges are extended or the shot angles are fair or poor with heavy bones in the way. Being able to take longer shots from steep angles through shoulders is an advantage.