Here are the results of 125 yard shot with 200 gr. Federal Fusion factory ammo. Bullet went in left shoulder and stopped under skin on right shoulder. Perfect bullet performance. Retained bullet weight is 157.8 grs. Sure like my Tikka T3 Lite!...Dick

Very nice, congrats and thanks for the post

Nice bull, congrats. Always neat when you find your bullet. I had wondered about the Fusions for elk, but ended up going with the Nosler Partitions in my 30-06 instead.

Yes, I was pleased the way they performed. Shot my buck this year with same gun and ammo. Buck dropped like a stone with one shot! I didn't recover the bullet, as it was a complete pass through.....Dick

Nice bull & congrats ! I'd have a T3 338 Fed...if I didn't have a 358 Win...

Great job!,gotta love those Tikka's !

I have a Leupold 6X42 on it and it is the best feeling gun and scope combo, I have ever owned. I never have been too good at off hand shots, but this setup seems to work well for me, up to 125 yards, anyway ......Dick

nice elk. i keep hearing good things about the 338 federal round, and have never heard anything but positive comments about fusion bullets. seems you have everything right.

nice.

How easy is it to find cartridges in your local area? I had thought about getting the .338 federal but since I don�t reload, the availability is a major factor for me.

Nice bull. Thanks for sharing.

I'm starting to think the .338 Fed. might actually work ;-{>

Nice, good set up. Well thought out rifle/scope/caliber-ammo choice.

Tell me about the hand prints?

Nice shooting and beautiful elk.


BTW, I really like the bloody handprints on the hind quarters!!

Pretty funny

Hand print was the first thing I noticed, looks like an old pictograph. When I see those I ponder the mystical significance and then think it probably was an archaic sign for Joe was here.

I just keep thinking a t3 reamed out to 338-06 would just rock....

Nice pics and post. I am anxious to try out my just aquired and very similar 358 on Elk this year. Is that an OR EE GUN elk? Does not look like the Western part of Oregon to me. Love to hear more about it. Congrats!

Funny not many people talk about the Fusion bullets, I had a buddy kill a B&C Grizzly (over 8 ftr) 2 Septembers ago and his 30-06 with 180 grain Fusions did an amazing job of killing that bear. Dont reckon thats what the Fusions specialize in but that Grizzly sure didn't know it!

I bet that elk used to belong to an indian. Ever seen how they decorated their horses with their own hand prints?

you look like a man who just won the lottery. fine elk, fine weapon/cartridge, and excellent results. congrats.

I shot a few deer with the factory 243 FUSION ammo when they first came out. Accuracy is acceptable and the price was good (I think they have gone up since). They were a little more explosive than I was hoping for. I recovered one and it lost nearly half its weight. Stayed bonded though and penetration wasnt bad. Im not sure if they have changed the jacket thickness since then but I went back to TSX again.

I was thinking that myself...but you would have to shorten the barrel 3/8" to 1/2" to do it...BUT...the 338-06 Improved would work without shortening the barrel...:-)

Want more oomph in 338 cal? Why not just get the T3 in 338 Mag. Same size receiver. May even weigh less as there is more chamber metal removed.
Just doesn't seem that the extra 100fps that a 338-06 gives would be worth the gunsmith expense and then the cost of purchasing '06 length magazines.
I once had a 338-06AI and the cost of dies, fireform bullets, extra effort, just to say how cool it was to shoot a wildcat, not worth it.