Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Need advice on factory ammo for Elk hunt

Hi Guys,

I live on Oahu and did and called around to see what kind of 180 grain 30-06 ammo is in stock. This is what I found. Would any of these be a good bull elk round?

* Federal Fusion 180 gr
* Hornady SP 180 gr
* Hornady SST 180 gr
* Winchester Super X Power Point 180 gr
* Winchester Power Max 180 gr

Thanks,
Dave

Any of them will work

Thank you. I'm not very familiar with ballistics and such. Are there any standouts in the bunch?
Dave

You can buy any ammo you want online..

I wish I could. Shipping to Hawaii would include HazMat fees and add a couple of hundred to the cost since it goes by air... So far I have not found any way around that. Maybe someone knows different. Thanks.
Dave

I assume that Hornady soft point is the Interlock? That's what I'd grab out of all of those. mtmuley

Stay away from the SSTs.

They will all work with a good solid shot placement. I got stuck with three boxes of Remington Core LOKT a few years ago and have killed two elk with them. Core LOKT is one of the cheaper bullets on the market. The SST's have that plastic tip, which I shy away from.

I'll second that.

I use factory ammo out my 30/06. I've killed elk with both the 180 Hornady sp & 180 Winchester power point. I'm using Winchester power points this year. Bob

I like the Hornady Interlock 180, but the Winchester Power Max is a bonded bullet.

Expat

I have never paid a hazmat fee for ammo. Primers and powder yes, but not loaded ammo.

Thanks for the info.

I think the difference in shipping is that on the mainland you can ship via ground. Hawaii is air. Try adding some ammo to your favorite online shopping cart and then put in "96744" for a zip code and see what happens. In my experience they will deny the order or add a couple hundred bucks. I hope you prove me wrong.

I called Hornady twice today and was able to talk to someone each time. That was not the case with Winchester and Remington. I left messages for those companies. The Hornady guys were helpful, the wait was very short and they will get my dough.

I picked up a box of 165 gr Interbond and a box of 180 gr Interlock Spire Point. I'll see how they shoot this weekend.

I almost purchased a 4" S&W 617. The trigger seemed good. I wonder if I will be able to resist?

Thanks for all the input.
Dave

I've used the Interbond (hand-loaded) successfully on Mulies and believe it will do well on Elk.
The Federal Fusion loads have all been very accurate in any rifle I've put them through and that seems to have been the case for most folks. Never killed a critter with them, so I can't personally vouch for them. Keep hearing good reports about them though.
I've hand-loaded the SST and couldn't get it to work well. YMMV, of course. Especially with factory ammo.
But, I'm thinking any of the loads you listed will put down an Elk pretty handily if you do your part!

My choice would be in this order:

* Hornady SP 180 gr

* Winchester Power Max 180 gr

* Federal Fusion 180 gr

* Winchester Super X Power Point 180 gr

I would eliminate the SST ammo from consideration.

Ditto.

FC