Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting The 300 Wby Mag for elk- is there anything better?

“Spendy” is relative but I understand where you are coming from. I look at it differently.

Many times I’ve compared the difference in cost of bullets shot at game during the year and found that, after filling my antelope tag, my deer tag and two elk tags, it would take several years of similar success with Ballistic Tip/Partition/TTSX/take-your-pick bullets to save enough money to buy a cheap class of wine with my dinner out. (This with handloaded ammo for all bullet types considered.)

The most expensive part is load development but after that I develop loads with less expensive bullets that closely match the trajectory of the North Forks. Those cheaper loads get used for practice right up to the last range session or two before hunting season – and even then the North Forks get used sparingly. Used this way a box of 50 will last several years. (I actually do substitutions for most of my hunting loads – BT or SST for AB, etc.)

North Fork bullets have produced extremely accurate and consistent loads in my rifles. My then 20-year old Ruger M77 turned it its best group ever when I switched to North Fork bullets, 3 in .262” at 100 yards during a pre-season scope check. I don’t need that kind of accuracy for hunting but I’ll take it. More importantly, North Fork bullets have always performed as desired, providing excellent accuracy, reliable but limited expansion and deep, straight-line penetration. Most importantly, animals have gone down very quickly when I have done my part.

The cost of 7mm RM 160g handloaded North Fork ammo is comparable to many factory hunting loads from the likes of Remington, Winchester, Federal, Hornady, Barnes, Nosler, etc. It is MUCH less expensive than some offerings by these companies. North Fork has occasional sales and if you take advantage the cost delta often comes down to about $0.50 per bullet, even when comparing handloaded ammo. Assuming scope checks at 100, 400, 500 and 600 and say 5 more in the field (antelope, deer and two elk), call it 20 rounds fired, maybe $33 sent downrange. Compare that to fuel costs, processing, food, lodging/campsite fees, license and other miscellaneous costs for an antelope and elk/deer hunt and the difference in bullet costs is in the 1% range.

Given that it is all up to the bullet once the sear breaks, an extra $0.50 per bullet for a bullet that consistently performs as desired is anything but “spendy”.