I don’t get to go very often. If I get a shot, I don’t want to take any chances with whether I have enough gun. A better question might be why you would choose a 243 fo elk? It seems to me that there are much better options. Recoil sensitive? Have it on hand and don’t want to buy another rifle?
I have a 6.5 and a 25-06 but I’d rather use something a bit bigger.
Oh, only 5 elk while I've been carrying one of the 243's, another 6 elk by my now 20 year old son, remaining elk by 13-14 year olds. My son's first elk was at 375 yds with the bull quartering towards us. Over the past 50+ years, between myself, friends, family, and guiding I've witnessed quite a few elk killed and have done a lot of "bullet necropsies". The bullet one chooses matters a lot more than the cartridge. So far, with a 100 gr NPt, the 243 has been a No Drama cartridge--something I can't say about a lot of other bullets regardless of caliber.......
And yes, the low recoil makes the 243 a hoot to shoot in a light mountain rifle, and I have a 243 AI I'm saving back for when I hit 70 yo, it might become my primary big game rifle. In the mean time, I stick with my big guns in 270W or 7mm08.
