Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Berger bullets for elk?

Sounds about right. The 7mm 140g North Fork I used on the buck was going a mite faster, a nominal 3214fps at the muzzle and would have arrived the 150 yards downrange to the buck in about .148 seconds. Moving at 10mph the buck would have gone over 2 feet in that time. Even from a standing start he was able to turn an 'easy' quartering-away/behind the ribs shot into a ham shot and only had to move about a foot to do so. It was a once-in-31-years Murphy event.

The photo below shows one reason I like North Fork bullets - reliable but controlled and limited expansion over a wide range of velocities. The first was recovered at the range, the second from the far side of an elk after breaking a leg and ribs, the third from the aforementioned buck after penetrating from ham to sternum.

30-06, 165 grain @ 2800fps MV, ~1887fps @ impact
Recovered from dirt
500 yards, 145.0 grains retained weight (87.9%)


.30-06, 165 grain @ 2800fps, ~2749fps @ impact
Recovered from cow elk
~25 yards, 133.2 grains retained weight (80.7%)


7mm 140 grain @ 3214fps, ~2855fps @ impact
Recovered from buck mule deer
~150 yards, 131.2 grains retained weight (93.7%)