Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Elk & Plains Game Cartridge for my daughter

the scope

My 10 year-old has killed kudu, zebra, black wildebeest, nyala, black bear, and dozens of deer, hogs, and smaller plains game with his .260 and Federal's 120-grain Barnes TSX load. My daughter also killed a kudu with one shot from the same gun. I Like the .260 because it has just a hair more recoil than a .243 but kills and penetrates so well. All his big animals were one-shot kills, and we got exit wounds with most of them. Several of my clients have gone to the .260 for their kids as well and have similar success with them in Africa. Because it has such mild recoil, you can also build them a gun that's light enough for them to carry comfortably that won't beat them up.

That's not an issue in any African country I know of.

I've used a .270 to take several bull elk. All were one-shot kills, including one at 396 yards. I've also used a .260 once with similar results. That said, I prefer a .300 with good 180s for elk. However, I've trained lots of youth and lady shooters. They are often very recoil sensitive and weigh a heck of a lot less than we do. If she shoots a smaller cartridge well, stoke it with good bullets and turn her loose.

I've seen lots of animals lost that were shot poorly with big guns, but I can't recall seeing a heart-shot animal lost no matter what it was shot with.

Let her continue to hunt with what she is comfortable using.

Spend the $$ you would spend on a rifle, on some steel plates that will keep her enthused with practicing from field positions. Kids and adults alike love to hear steel ring. It is a great motivator. Find a female friend she can shoot with too. Keep it fun for her.

I have no doubt the .270 with a deep-penetration bullet will kill any Elk in NA with a proper shot. I feel the short action bullets have merit in ballistics, and rifle characteristics so if you're getting something new I'd say the .270 WSM, 7mm WSM (since you reload) or the 300 WSM all excellent choices in that order.
One merit the .270 has; easy to find ammo and it's usually relatively cheap, why spend extra dollars unnecessarily?


For Africa - I've got no idea why you'd want to go there anything they have in Africa you can legally shoot I'm pretty sure we've got in Texas.

I killed my elk with my 270/150gr. Partitions. 'Nuff said.

My son in law, who has a beautiful .270, just got the hots for one of the Super Whomper .30 caliber short magnum cartridges.

No way he was going to listen to anything but his "extensive research".(he is a teacher) Yup, yup! Just t'other day he was telling me he "missed" 2 coyotes at no more than 200 yds, and a mule deer at~400. (He and his buddies all have those little rangefinder thingies, and think they are some sort of laser-eyed supermen.) I admire my son-in-law, who is a quadraplegic, and hunts from his wheelchair, or off a 4 wheeler, but he is no way a marksman! Wasn't before his accident, either,but his condition makes him more susceptible to heavier recoil, IMO.

Shots he could make easily with his 270, he misses with his monster masher! He, and most anyone else who shoots the larger calibers, IMO, is overgunned! The resulting flinch is causing his misses.

Your daughter will probably be the same...we shoot best what kicks us least...and, as the majority of people have said, if she is comfortable shooting the .270, it will probably do all she may ask of it.
If it doesn't have a good recoil pad, put one on, or better yet, replace the existing one, because they do harden with age.

I haven't tried the lower-velocity rounds, but they wouldn't make them, if there wasn't a market! How many times have you heard lately of a business doing something "just because it's a nice thing to do"?

Anyway, good luck to you and your daughter.