Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting What rifle did you set foot with on your rookie elk hunt?

The thread about what rifle you had your kid hunt with got me thinking that the next generation (or two) are better outfitted than we were.
That's a good thing.

So what did you carry on your first elk hunt?
Family heirloom? hand-me-down? something spankin' new? your deer gun? loaner from a mentor?

If you can remember what bullet please identify.


Me?
My only rifle at the time - Marlin .30-30 with open sights. I knew it wasn't the best but I naively thought I would be able to compensate for any range limits of the gun. I soon changed my mind about that.

I don't recall the cartridge but I'm sure it was NOT premium.

I used a winchester 94. Soon changed also.

I bought a 30/06 760 slide action remington as I was INSTRUCTED too by my mentors as they swore it was the best elk rifle they had ever found, and it worked! but being young and reading almost every elk hunting article posted at the time I soon saved up and bought a 340 wby...the elk shot with either rifle died , but being young I thought the 340 wby did a better job....and looking back I would not change a thing, but I also eventually came to realize the merits of that 30/06 slide action, lighter weight and it cost alot less and the recoil was minimal

Rem 700 Mnt Rifle in .338-06 shooting 225 Speer Grandslams.
Public land / do-it-yourself in CO. I got a 3x4.

Ruger MKII SS/Lam in 338 Win Mag. College graduation present from my father. Still my 'go to' gun for most rifle hunts.

Win 94 in 30-30. I actually stuck with it for decades for timber hunting.

Winchester Model 88 in .308 using the Remington Bronze points.

Can't remember the bullet weight

The hand-me-down in Winchester 94 in .30 WCF, now would be a Family heirloom, but has been lost from the family.

Bullet elk was 170 grain Core-Lokts from the local gas, bait, and grocery mart...the place were the pickled eggs smelled the same if the jar was open or closed. The "inferior" 150 grainers were carried if the 170 were not available.

It was the only rifle for 5-10 years for deer and elk, until I got my first 1903 Springfield -06 in full military surplus.

My old .30-06 model 54 Win. and my new BDL .300 Win. Had not used the .300 much, but had killed a pile of game with the old 06.. When the shot came, I happened to have the .300.. It has been my elk rifle since, with occasional use of other caliber..

Pre-64 Model 70 Fwt. .30-06 (the only kind Winchester made in those days) with 165 Partitions--the old kind.

I got my 1st elk at 15 with a Win 94 32 Special. Dad got it for me when I could 1st hunt at 12. It was an effective gun for short range hunting.

First time ever hunting elk I carried my Dad's Ruger M77, tang safety, in 7x57. Shot a cow using a handload with Hornady 154gr flat base bullet. Worked well. I ended up shooting a few more elk with that rifle, if I recall correctly. Dad still has the rifle and my mom has used it several times to shoot a few antelope.

I purchased a .243 Win Remington short action. I had the bolt opened up to accept a .378 Weatherby. The case was shortened to 2 1/4" with 45* shoulders slopping to a 1/4" long neck. It held the same amount of powder as a .300 Weatherby. I was still using Tasco World Class 4-14X scopes then. The stock was a Bell & Carlson.

Rem 700 in 270. Did not get a shot that year though. First kill was with a Browning A-Bolt in 338 WM.

Savage 110 in a 7 mag...

Wby Mk V 7mm Wby

Model 94 with a peep.

The first time I ever went elk hunting I was packing one of two pre 64 model 70s I owned, either a .257 Roberts or an '06. The first time I ever killed an elk it was with a Ruger 77 chambered for .300 win mag launching 180 grain protected point partitions.

I bounce around a lot on centerfires. Get bored easily. I've probably packed a .58 cal side lock TC more than any one single centerfire.

With a Herters Mauser Actioned .300 Win mag, set into a Flaigs stock....reciever sights ( YES!)
The parts were given to me by my uncle for graduation, thinking it would make a fine elk gun. I put it all together...and it did

Brand new Weatherby Accumark in 300 WBY. Topped off with a Zeiss4.5-14 Conquest. Bullet of choice was a 180 Barnes TSX @approx 200 yards. Great Colorado bull on opening morning by noon.