I used to shoot a .300 Jarrett that pushed those 200 gr Accubonds at 3028 fps. Yep, it put a thump on any bull, and anyone who shot it as well. Recoil, according to a recoil calculator, was not too far off a .458 Win. mag, and yes, I had one of those too. My Jarrett was about 8 lbs scoped. I shot it with a brake to tame that recoil. It killed elk just fine. It was also way more gun than necessary to kill elk. To quote CLB;
"When I read about or talk with people who hunt and kill big Elk on a regular basis, the talk of "magnums" rarely if at all enters the conversation."
That pretty well sums up my life-long experience here in western Colorado, the elk hunting capitol of the world. (IMO) There's more guys here than when I was a kid that shoot magnums, but most of them are from somewhere else My son-in-law shoots a .300, and has for years. He still can't hit a thing with it! But it's a manly gun and he prefers to miss than to admit he can't shoot it. Poor guy, he really caught hell when my daughter shot one when he couldn't hit it. Any way, all this is fun, but when you come here to hunt elk, do yourself a favor and bring the gun you can already shoot with. It's a huge disappointment to get here, work for a shot, then miss or shoot poorly because you can't shoot that roaring magnum well. Don't go home saying I wish I had brought ol' faithful that I've shot a thousand deer with.
My son-in-law shoots a .300, and has for years. He still can't hit a thing with it! But it's a manly gun and he prefers to miss than to admit he can't shoot it. Poor guy, he really caught hell when my daughter shot one when he couldn't hit it. 
Any way, all this is fun, but when you come here to hunt elk, do yourself a favor and bring the gun you can already shoot with. It's a huge disappointment to get here, work for a shot, then miss or shoot poorly because you can't shoot that roaring magnum well. Don't go home saying I wish I had brought ol' faithful that I've shot a thousand deer with. 
