Good morning, y’all. I’ve got a pretty basic question that could probably be answered with a little searching on my part, but where is the fun in that?
Me and a couple of my Marine buddies are going on our first elk hunt this fall. We had one set up 3 years ago that wound up getting cancelled, so here we go for our second attempt. My problem is deciding which rifle to take and what to load it with. I have a plethora of rifles that are chambered in what suitable cartridges (according to my campfire research) but now I am second guessing my choice.
As of right now, my choice is a pre-64 Model 70 30/06 loaded with 180 grain Sierra Gamekings. I know, the rifle is heavy by today’s standards, but I figured I should give it a shot while I’m still young and still have some piss and vinegar left in the tank.
After reading the 300WM v 338 Mag thread, I’m really starting to second guess my bullet choice. My hunting experience has been limited to whitetails and pigs on the high end of the size scale, so I have no experience shooting anything heavier than about 250-300 pounds. My general philosophy has been choose a “heavier” for caliber cup and core at moderate velocity, so up to around 2900 or so tops. I’m partial to SGKs and have been happy with this approach, BUT, how foes that translate to elk? Should I ditch the cup and cores altogether?
Interestingly, I had a bullet failure this year on a nice 9 point out of my 338 Fed. Bullet was a Hornady 200 grain SP. shot was through the ribs at 220 yards. The jacket departed on impact and the core was in the offside hide.
We’ll be hunting in SW Montana. Public land. bull elk. 3rd week of November. The rifles I would consider are;
30/06 pre-64 Mod 70
338 Fed Kim 84M
7mm/08 Kim 84M
Of these, the 7mm/o8 is the most pleasing to shoot for obvious reasons, but I can and do shoot all three of these rifles just fine, regularly. I guess what would help me is, if you were to choose either of these rifles, which one and what bullet? Real experience would be greatly appreciated.
