Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Best Elk Cartridge in the World??

30-06 = 460 yards for velocity, 485 yards for energy
300WM = 625 yards for velocity, 650 yards for energy

At 450 yards, the comparison looks like this:

30-06 = 29” drop, 2019fps, 1583fpe, 14.5” drift
300WM = 21” drop, 2270fps, 2002fpe, 12.4” drift

That is a healthy chunk of additional energy for the 300WM.

A side-by-side comparison shows that anything the 30-06 can do in terms of velocity and energy with this load, a 300WM can do 165 yards further down range. Drift is essentially the same at 600 and 660 yards. If MPBR zeroed, drop is the same at 600 and 650 yards.

Effective range is only one measure of a cartridge’s capability. I would argue that effective area is even more illuminating for comparison reasons as game can appear from any direction. Range is a linear measure while area is geometric.

Increasing the 2000fps range from 460 to 635 yards results in a 36% increase in linear range but an 85% increase in the area that can be covered. I often hunt elk in open sage country where game can and has come from virtually every angle. Even at my personal limit of 600 yards, my 300WM increases the area I can cover by 70%. That is not a “small amount” to me.