Jayco, your .270 story doesn't surprise me, SD matters (oh boy, here we go) and a hard 140 from a .270 is gonna dig deep... But penetration isn't everything, and of course larger cartridges penetrate too.
I have carried a 7-08 for elk before; it was my backup rifle my first couple years and I carried it to try to change my luck. I had no doubt it would kill an elk...
... but since I shoot things like my .338 very well I simply don't see the advantage- for ME- in a lighter cartridge.
There's also the deadererer factor. Elk shot with say a .270, or deer with a .223, are only dead. Even after butchering and wrapping and freezing you can still hear the packages rustling around in the freezer... no thanks. I prefer them to freeze up and hold still for Pete's sake! (not Poopy Pete; different Pete).
With my .325 or presumably .338 the elk are deadererer and the meat stays still in the freezer.
