Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Which 7mm-08 Bullet for Elk?

Yes, bullets that penetrate well on elk do make a difference--in my experience. I may not be an expert at most things in life, but I killed my first elk in 1970 and have been killing elk fairly regularly since. I've also observed more elk killed by family, friends, and clients, and by now got a pretty good idea how to evaluate bullet performance when I'm up to my elbows in blood and guts.

I've killed as many elk with conventional cup & core bullets, and even bonded bullets, as I have premium bullets--which is why I've learned to like premium bullets.

There are regular questions on the forums by folks asking if their favorite bullet (x, y, z, etc) is sufficient for elk. There is ALWAYS enough answers to assure them it's plenty good. Apparently every bullet, in every caliber, in every cartridge, at every velocity, currently manufactured is sufficient these days.

I mean, I kill elk with my 56# recurve and Zwickey broadheads, so I guess every rifle and bullet is probably overkill

And yes, I've seen bullets do things they weren't supposed to do, and I've seen critters respond to hits in odd ways. But for whatever reason, an exit hole tends to produce a very sick elk, that immediately acts sick, doesn't go far, or just dies on the spot.

The bottom line is this; Premium bullets seem to produce less drama, and I've chased enough elk over the years that I like less drama.

I've yet to see a Ballistic Tip make it to the far ribs of an elk.

Dober sometimes uses a mean-azz 7mm Mashburn with a wimpy bullet, I sometimes use a wimpy-azz 243 with a tough, deep penetrating bullet.

I guess it all comes out in the wash.......


Casey

Casey,

I suspect that many of your clients were using BT's they had on hand for a while--though the .338 has always had a very heavy jacket. The 180 .30 got a similar jacket maybe 3-4 years ago, and now works extremely well.

One of the odd ones is the 120 7mm. This got a super-heavy jacket before any other BT, due to frequent use as a silhouette target bullet. The early version broke up on steel and didn't knock those rams over consistently, so the jacket was really beefed up. I know a guy who's killed several elk with it from a long-barreled 7mm Remington Magnum, including some big bulls. He says he's never recovered one from a rib shot.

John,
that is an interesting story about the 120gr 7mm BT-before I always kind of scratched my head when folks mentioned some(big game) BT's being 'tougher' than others.

John, that 120 is a scary-accurate little bastid, too. Love that bullet.

So since it's tough and all, is it still a fast opener like BT's are reputed to be on game?

Yeah, it is. They all still have a very fast-opening, fragmenting front end, but the jacket thickness in the rear varies some, depending on the bullet and its "normal" applications. One reason the 180 BT got the super-heavy jacket in the rear is that people kept insisting on shooting elk with them, even though Nosler suggested the Partition was the bullet for that purpose. It's also the reason the .338 had the super-heavy jacket from the bullet's very beginning in the early 1990's.

The 200 grain .338 bullet is one amazing bullet. I have seen them do some amazing things. The last one I witnessed was shot out of a .338 Win mag. at 2,800 fps. The HUGE cow elk was at 300 yards quartering away and up hill (the hunter was shooting down hill at it). The bullet took out the near side rib, removed 3 inches of the sternum completely (yes, I measured it), shattered the off side scapula and knee joint and exited. The off side leg was hanging on by a little bit of skin. The lungs and heart were soup. You could put your arm through the hole it made in the bottom of the chest. A bullet that completely powders that much bone and still exits is completely amazing. Needless to say, she dropped and was dead. I have seen 180 grain Ballistic tips do the same with huge mule deer and elk. I just can't buy into the fact "They blow up on hair." Never seen it, not remotely out of dozens of ballistic tip kills. Again, I will take all the junky ballistics you can send my way. ;o) Flinch

The Partition blows the front portion because that is what it was designed to do...leaving the rear portion to drive through.But one advantage to the Partition is that even at long range, where velocity has fallen off, the NPT will still expand reliably.

I've killed game from ante;ope to elk with them to almost 500 yards,so I know they work....and a few animals in distances measured in feet, not yards...and know they work there,too.

So, I would have a hard time thinking that they in any way, have any "problems".

As to the wadcutter effect,I have seen enough X bullets to know that they,also, will blow the petals under high impact velocity,and leave you with the same wadcutter effect.

As to things like bonded bullets, I've been hunting with the original bonded bullet, the Bitterroot since sometime in the early 80's IIRC...like the TBBC and Swift Aframe(which came along to emulate the BBC),they behave somewhat differently than a Partition; generally open to a wide frontal area under high velocity,and maybe not so widely at longer distances where velocity has fallen off...(but still widely enough, even against light resistance, as I saw on a pronghorn at about 400 yards one day with a 270 and 130 BBC)and frequently (always?)retain 95%+ of their weight, regardless what you drive them into and at what speed.

Again, because they were designed to do just that.

Both these styles of bullets behave a bit differently, for a lot of reasons having to do with their designs and the materials from which they are made;but I know they are both solid choices for about anything,and both are very dependable in lethal effect.

I suppose its asking too much to expect the bullet companies communicate some design change to the handloading public. We end up relying on Mule Deer and others to update what the companies have done. Everyone wants to use the "best" bullet for the job but "bullet roulette" adds a dimension we don't need.

Casey,
Wow! Zwickeys and a recurve! Way to go. What brand recurve?
Ok, back to regular programming.

The problem I see with the general hunting public is, we all judge a bullet's performance differently. That is why the bullet makers have so many varieties. I find that many guys have one mind set on bullet performance and look at little else. If the bullet doesn't meet their specific requirement, it fails. For example;

1. Bullet MUST exit all the time, every time with bone crushing performance, PERIOD! This mind set or requirement is the most common (Barnes X bullets and Fail Safes are the leader in this department, with partitions being a little ways behind).

2. Bullet must destroy everything internally, with a lot of hydrostatic shock and massive tissue upset. Exit hole is not important.(Nosler Ballistic tips, Sierra Game Kings, and Hornady Amax's are their favorite bullets)

3. Bullet must have a "perfect" text book mushroom when recovered, if it is recovered. (Federal Trophy Bonded, Accubond, A-Frame are the preferred bullet).

4. Must have HIGH B.C. for long range hunting (Berger, Amax, Match Kings)

Everyone I have talked to and hunted with fits into one of the above groups and will argue their point profusely. Are any of them wrong? No, but everyone else that doesn't think like "they" do is wrong and will only wound game ;o) Flinch

Flinch,

I have seen the 200-grain .338 Ballistic Tip do the same sorts of things, a number of times. Yet supposedly it can't, because it's a Ballistic Tip!

You hit the nail on the head about judging bullet performance: Everybody has their own idea of what's perfect performance, and not all of the opinions have much to do with how quickly the animal died.

In fact I did an article about the mythical "perfect" big game bullet once, quoting a few bullet manufacturers who are driven nuts by all the customers who demand The Greatest and Only Big Game Bullet Ever Made.

I had a couple bad experiences with 140 BT's out of a 7mm-08 in the early years and that made a bad impression, but I since overcame that and have used a couple 180 & 200's out of my .338-06 and they've been awesome.

If it's the one I'm thinking of, I was quite impressed with the results. I learned lots that day, thanks for the help.

I'm thinking it was the "one". Very impressive shooting and results. You never did say how the meat turned out. I am sure it was delicious. Did you ever find that nasty hat you always wore? Your wife made me throw it away. Sorry dude...she made me do it. ;o) Flinch

Turned out great. I wondered what happened to that hat... I'm getting a new one ready as we speak.

You guys getting much snow? Folks were cancelling stuff here because of a 2-4" forcasted snow...

I and a friend of mine had some unfavorable experiences with early BTs in 270 (130gr) and 30-06 (150gr) both driven at maximum velocities. I haven't completely regained my confidence in them when driven real fast. That said, I have come to love the 115 BT out of my 257 Roberts on deer. It will go through both shoulders without a hiccup.

If I were to go elk hunting with a 7mm08, I'd feel more comfortable with a 140 or 150 Partition. I have never had a Partition fail me.

You summed it up pretty well there Flinch...Me, killed a lot of deer with the SMK, Amax, BT and SST bullets and never had a problem but have no experience with elk.I use the TSX in my 243 because it drives a little deeper if the angle is not ideal. My 7-08 should be ready this spring if LA Precision stays on schedule so I find this thread pretty interesting.

I've shot a bull and a cow with handloaded 140gr. Nosler Partitions. 5x5 bull was a head shot at 80 yds. DRT! The cow was a angling front shoulder shot at a measure 426 yds. Bullet hit front shoulder and exited on the otherside near the hind quarter!!! Both shots fired from an 18" barreled Model 7. Shot several deer also with this load and I have never needed more than one shot so far. Hate to mess with something proven but will try some TSX soo.I haven't tried the Barnes bullets yet but am hoping for good results. I got a couple boxes to load but haven't gotten around to it yet.
Good Luck,
WW

My friend got his white tail deer this year with a 165 grain new style ballistic tip bullet out of a 300 win mag. The bullet hit high in the back broke one shoulder and the spine but didn't exit the deer. The bullet did expand to a classic mushroom shape. I don't think that I'd be shooting at an elks shoulder with a 165 grain ballistic tip any time soon.

The 243 loaded with 95g partitions is my choice for cow elk, never an issue.

I shot two large bulls in Az with a 7 mag loaded with the old style ballistic tip at 3200 fps, range was about 100 yards-150 on a dead run. The shots hit dead center of the animal, height and length. They were dead at the shot. One of them never kicked, the other kicked twice...go figure.

I have no experience on a 7/08 on elk...