|
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,574 Likes: 26
Campfire Kahuna
|
Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,574 Likes: 26 |
There's no doubt that the 300 WM is a fine caliber. It's very accurate and a top notch elk killer. But is it needed for elk under 3-400 yds? No, it's not. If you want one, go for it and you won't go wrong, but that's not the OP's question. For his use, the 30-06 is excellent, too.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” ― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,817
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 10,817 |
I appreciate the replies. The 270 I have is a pump, and about fifty years old. I'd prefer a bolt action. I'm leaning toward the 30-06. If I ever have occasion for something bigger than that, I'll upgrade to a 338. Now we are making a bit of progress. I too would prefer a bolt action and that would prompt me to consider a new rifle if I were in your boots. If I was considering a new bolt action rifle for elk hunting I personally would get it in the best cartridge for elk hunting. The 7mm Rem Mag offers slight but real world advantages over both the 30-06 and .300 Win Mag. Spending a bit of time researching the 7mm Rem Mag might pay dividends in your elk rifle purchasing scheme. ......Spyderman......+1.....Burns is correct..... I for one love the 30 caliber. Owned a 300 Win Wby Vanguard for many many years before selling it and switching over to a different more compact rifle format chambered in the 300 WSM which I have now. The best way to compare one cartridge vs others is by playing around with a downrange ballistics calculator. Hornady has one on their site. Type in all the info for each choice; desired bullet weights, the bullet BCs, est MVs, your scope's desired zero in yards, etc. Write down all the results and then compare the downrange velocities retained, downrange ft lbs in energy retained and the trajectory drops at the various distances. 300 yards or less (300 Win vs 30-06), there is little gain imo with a 300 Win where killing power on elk is concerned. Like Burns, I also suggest that you include the 7mm Rem Mag as a choice for elk. When you compare the downrange #s of the 30-06 vs the 300 Win vs the 7mm Rem Mag in comparable bullet weights, brands and designs, give or take a few grains, you will be surprised in all depts as to how well the 7 Rem compares. Flatter shooting, better velocity retention, greater energy retention, and the 7mm bullets have less bearing surface thereby reducing wind drift. Those are the slight dividends and slight advantages Burns was referring to. There are many less powerful cartridges than either the 30-06, 300 Win, or the 7 Rem that will easily topple elk at 300 yards and less. Although there will be differences of opinion on this, my personal rule of thumb for elk, is to have at least 1500 to 1800 ft lbs of downrange energy at impact. If your max hunting distance is 300 yards, then the '06 and 300 Win will both give you that and then some. That leaves trajectory and wind drift, where slight advantages goes to the 7mm. I have a '015 Ram truck that I bought new. Could have gotten by with the 6 cyl. Chose the Hemi. The 6 could have taken me anywhere the Hemi can. The Hemi with my added HP add ons, is far more fun and exciting to drive. Back in 2011, I could have gotton a new 6 cyl Mustang with about 300 hp. Purchased a new 550 hp GT 500 instead. A 6 cyl Mustang would have also taken me anywhere the GT 500 could. BUT! Guess which is FAR more fun and exciting to drive. Same holds true imo with cartridges. All depends on the ballistic performance you want. I prefer more than is needed for any given game and like added recoil too. But,,that's me. Good luck.
28 Nosler,,,,300WSM,,,,338-378 Wby,,,,375 Ruger
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 46,296 Likes: 6
Campfire 'Bwana
|
Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 46,296 Likes: 6 |
What I like about my old 300's and heavy bullets is the combos ability to grant more forgiveness in the wind department, how can a man judge the unknown? For some reason I just can't see what the winds doing 25 yards in front of my muzzle, let alone 300 yards away.
Trump Won!
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5
Campfire Oracle
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5 |
By the .30/06 and go kill elk with it.
Life Member SCI Life Member DSC Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 8,865 Likes: 3
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 8,865 Likes: 3 |
By the .30/06 and go kill elk with it. +1
Adversity doesn't build character, it reveals it.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 30,316 Likes: 4
Campfire 'Bwana
|
Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 30,316 Likes: 4 |
By the .30/06 and go kill elk with it. Don't go by the 30-06 and not buy the 30-06.
“Perfection is Achieved Not When There Is Nothing More to Add, But When There Is Nothing Left to Take Away” Antoine de Saint-Exupery
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,488
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 1,488 |
I load for 3 30-06's today and have killed one cow elk with an old tang safety Ruger that was my Dad's gun just so his rifle got to do something he never did. But my 7mm RM and lately 300 Weatherby are just more capable rifles for elk. The flatter trajectory and greater damage done to animals past about 250 yards just make more sense where I hunt most of the time. Like a bunch of folks I'll pay over $1,000 in NR tags this year and have only a little over a week to hunt elk on public land most years.
I've averaged an elk a year for the last 15 tries but am on a bull drought the last 3 and keep telling myself cows taste better. Most of our hunting areas are steep or near the public/private line or both. Anchoring the elk is a big deal and I feel like the Weatherby with a 180 grain TTSX is better at that than an 06.
I've shot them from 11-550 yards and only once would I have passed with th 30-06, not a huge sample size but I really like elk burgers and roasts and steak and I'm not willing to give them up for a year because my rifle won't handle a longer shot or a tough shot angle.
If you hunt on the flats of a big private ranch and live in elk country stick with a deer rifle. If you drove through the night and paid NR prices the little extra practice time and recoil are probably worth it. That 300 yard limit sounds good until your only legal animal of the trip is at 415 yards.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 4,511 Likes: 2
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 4,511 Likes: 2 |
By the .30/06 and go kill elk with it. Don't go by the 30-06 and not buy the 30-06. Figured you'd just suggest go by the .30-06 and then buy a .308.
"Those that think they know everything are annoying those of us that have Google." - Dr. D. Edward Wilkinson
Note to self: Never ask an old Fogey how he is doing today. Revised note to self: Keep it short when someone asks how I am doing.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5
Campfire Oracle
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5 |
Don't by a .308 when you can git a .30/06.
Life Member SCI Life Member DSC Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 17,818 Likes: 4
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 17,818 Likes: 4 |
Molon Labe
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 18,952 Likes: 3
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 18,952 Likes: 3 |
Don't by a 30/06 when you can git a .308. Glad to see you coming to your senses.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5
Campfire Oracle
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5 |
Don't by a 30/06 when you can git a .308. Glad to see you coming to your senses. I could've suggested a .375 RUM!
Life Member SCI Life Member DSC Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 12,651
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 12,651 |
Two questions. For shots within 300 yards, does the 300 win mag offer any advantage over the 30-06? And second, if I do go big game hunting for other animals (i.e., moose, caribou, bear), does the 300 offer any advantage, again, within 300 yards.
I appreciate the replies.
1) No and 2) No +1 Hunted elk for 20+ years using loads between max and a 7mm-08. No issues. Your .270 is a fine choice but like others have said I'd go with a 150g bullet or a 130g TTSX. A .300WM will provide additional range but with a lot more recoil. Ammo will ne more expensive as well. That said, a .30-06 would be a fine addition if you don't have one. I always take two rifles on my elk hunts. My own battery of bolt rifles for elk includes a .280 Rem, 7mm RM, .308, four .30-06, .300WM and a .338WM. If I can't do it with a .30-06 I probably shouldn't even try.
Coyote Hunter - NRA Patriot Life, NRA Whittington Center Life, GOA, DAD - and I VOTE!
No, I'm not a Ruger bigot - just an unabashed fan of their revolvers, M77's and #1's.
A good .30-06 is a 99% solution.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 8,238 Likes: 1
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 8,238 Likes: 1 |
I agree. The gun is just one component, but the one I'm least familiar with. Where I live, we can't use rifles to deer hunt, so I have had no reason to have or shoot a 30 caliber rifle until now. I would try to borrow someone's 300 or .338 mag to shoot a few times before going out and buying one. You may not like it!
Last edited by Teeder; 01/30/17.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 389
Campfire Member
|
Campfire Member
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 389 |
Last year my buddy went to Montana, he killed a bull elk with the 308 Winchester. He killed a cow elk with a 30/30, at about 100 yards. I wouldn't consider the 30/30 to be an ideal elk cartridge. But it worked for him. He only fired one shot at the cow.
If you reload, there's no such thing as an obsolete cartridge.
Once you render an opinion, you open yourself up to criticism.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 22,738
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 22,738 |
Yeah, it's amazing what cartridges will kill elk if the shooter doesn't read about his poor choice on the Internet. Yes after 15 years I have come down from a .338WM to next years attempt - a sling shot using a steelie!
My home is the "sanctuary residence" for my firearms.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 21,959
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 21,959 |
By the .30/06 and go kill elk with it. Don't go by the 30-06 and not buy the 30-06.
"For joy of knowing what may not be known we take the golden road to Samarkand." James Elroy Flecker
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5
Campfire Oracle
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5 |
What's so funny,I cried in my pillow two nights in a row because of that faux pas.
Life Member SCI Life Member DSC Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 21,959
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 21,959 |
What's so funny,I cried in my pillow two nights in a row because of that faux pas. Oh ok. Send me that custom 460 Roy of yours and all will be forgiven.
"For joy of knowing what may not be known we take the golden road to Samarkand." James Elroy Flecker
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5
Campfire Oracle
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 96,170 Likes: 5 |
What's so funny,I cried in my pillow two nights in a row because of that faux pas. Oh ok. Send me that custom 460 Roy of yours and all will be forgiven. I don't think so.
Life Member SCI Life Member DSC Member New Mexico Shooting Sports Association
Take your responsibilities seriously, never yourself-Ken Howell Proper bullet placement + sufficient penetration = quick, clean kill. Finn Aagard
Ken
|
|
|
|
609 members (1100mag, 10gaugemag, 10Glocks, 01Foreman400, 06hunter59, 59 invisible),
18,744
guests, and
1,328
robots. |
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
Forums81
Topics1,194,972
Posts18,539,905
Members74,052
|
Most Online20,796 Yesterday at 04:44 PM
|
|
|
|