Moosemike, I concur with WCH. Cartridges from .22 to the .416's will kill elk but when you start considering the panapoly of limitations with cartridges toward each end of the spectrum, you start moving toward the middle (the old Bell Curve again) and it's there you begin slicing more thinly based on your own experiences, capabilities, and that of those whom you read about.
It's probably as much a mistake in going too big as it is in going too small. There's a point of convergence where your ability, preferences in platform, and cartridge size all meet and it does, within reason, vary widely from person to person.
At the end of the line, they are gloriously big, vigorous animals, that cling to life with a vengeance and deserve a humane, quick end.
