After reviewing 5 pages of information, I can see why the OP asked a more specific question. He is looking (I believe) for
some "real world" experiences, not how well you did from your keyboard.
I hear a LOT of B.S. and rarely see truly good field shooting.
The 700 yd shots you hear of make me sick. IF someone is shooting at any animal at that range, they have bigger problems than caliber or scope.
400 yards is a long ways to shoot, even at an elk. Quite a bit can happen in the time it takes for the bullet to reach the animal. One step, one small flinch, a shift in the wind, etc. can throw a bullet out of the vital zone. My father always made us qualify before the season with a 10" paper plate at 200 yards, from a field position. If you couldn't hit the plate, you either practiced more or didn't carry a rifle that year. I bet if we applied that same test to ourselves, we would find ourselves disqualified on occasion. Try it.
In the meantime, anything in the 30-06 class will kill an elk out to 400 yards. You don't need a 30-378 Weatherby, and you probably shouldn't use anything smal.ler than a .243 Win.
There are my two cents.
Elk
