Off the top of my head, I can recall killing elk with: 8mm Rem, 375 H&H, 300 win, 338 win, 54 cal muzzleloader. And one cow, many years ago, with a .270.
It's a pretty even split, I would guess, between the 300 win and 375 H&H, for total count.
Thanks for the response Andy. It does, however, bring to mind an old saying; "experience can be long but narrow."
You obviously favor large armament, and have not veered from that philosophy. Of course there's nothing in the world wrong with that. A big gun is never a bad thing, as long as you can shoot it (you obviously can). However, the term "confirmation bias" does come to mind. Hmmm...
I've used the 338 WM and 300 on big bulls. I've used the 270, 7-08, 30-06, and 308 on big bulls. They all died, but lighter rifles are far more enjoyable to pack for my hunting style (mostly backpack hunts), and lighter recoiling cartridges are more fun to shoot in light rifles. Obviously if a horse is carrying your rifle, within reason it really doesn't matter what it weighs. However, I prefer rifles around 6.75 lbs "all up" (scoped, w/ sling and rounds). For me, the 338's and 300's really should weigh in the 7.75lb range, and really, a bit more weight is better (it goes without saying "balance" is more important than sheer weight or lack of it).
I'd also suggest you really don't know what a 7-08 with a 150 gr bullet is capable of unless you've killed more than a few elk with it and similar rounds. Cartridges are truly more alike than different. Punch the lungs and elk die quickly like any other deer. Hit them at the margins, they'll run all day no matter the cartridge. And despite what gunwriters say (and which everyone seemingly repeats), I've never found big bulls die much different than any other average sized elk. Blasphemy I know...
At the end of the day, we only have ourselves to please. But I can truthfully report there has never been a bull I've taken, including old mountain animals in the 6.5-11.5 yo range, that needed anything more than a good bullet from a 7-08.
