Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 7MM-08 for my first elk hunt?

You need to re-read and comprehend what I posted instead of jumping on the train to bust my balls, and when you comprehend what was posted, you'll realize you just posted the opposite of what I was talking about concerning taking a 100 yard shot with a 350 yd zero rifle.[/quote]


You don't have that time to "check and click click'ing" when they are 300-500 yards across a small valley walking through openings on the opposite ridge from you...I guarantee you. I can put you in places where you'd miss the Bull of a lifetime if you had to go through the regiment you just described.

While you are check and click click'ing, a man with a 350 yd zero rifle is putting the crosshairs on the boiler room and pulling the trigger. By the time you get through check and click click'ing, that Bull just might have walked behind trees in a heavy covered area on the side of that ridge, and you can't/won't see him walking off through the trees...never to be seen again during your hunt.

I know of what I'm talking about. I hunt a ranch as I just described. There's a reason you count horns with your scope in certain hunting environments.

2.848”-2.850” (which is why I only use a comparator these days, try measuring Partitions from the tip)

The OAL exceeds magazine length. I swapped the short action bolt stop out for a long action stop, and I’m using .30-06 length magazines.

My nephew found accuracy within short action length, around 2.824” if memory serves.





P

Really? You don’t have to "change" where you place your crosshairs at 350, 400, 450, 500 yards on a rifle sighted in 1” high at 100 yards for a cow shot?

So...you are saying you'll put the crosshairs in the center of a cow at 100 yds and at 400 yds and at 500 yds?

Remember....you said you don't have to change nothing...no matter where you go.

7mm
140gr partition
.434 BC
2800 fps muzzle
3100 elev
59 degrees F

100 - +1.3
175 - 0
350 - -(15.9)
400 - -(24.3)
450 - -(34.7)
500- -(47.3)

You would miss your cow at 350, 400, 450, and 500 if you place the crosshairs in the center of the body and “do the same sighted in +1"at 100yds.... And Change nothing no matter where I go”

At 350, you better put the crosshairs on the spine, and 400,450,500…you better start counting the number of imaginary body thicknesses you need to stack on top of the one you’re trying to put in the freezer, so you can rainbow that plug into the boiler room.

Lol…..OK

Yeah I know what you mean about OALs and I wouldn't ask if we were talking about partitions or hps but I have found the plastic tipped bullets pretty good
The reason I ask is that I am having no luck getting better than 1.5 moa with the 150s in a proven gun loading from jammed to magazine length, even though the 162s are easy to tune

Dude............

I'm guessing a few of us here have killed an elk. Maybe even 2.

My money is on the guys responding to you in any situation you describe.

So, so, so. You are shooting at Elk that "may" be 500 yards away-you don't know, because you have't ranged them, remember you didn't check- that are possibly moving in and out of trees in "a heavy covered area"?

Some of these guys know what they are talking about and can spot the BS way past 500. You should stick to shooting tables.

The only train on here is the one pulling the boxcars full of what you don't know.





No, it was not. 400 yards is not "long range" and the OP said he may have to shoot out to 400 which means anywhere from zero to 400 yards. As others have pointed out that usually means closer to zero than 400.




And I can guarantee you that you don't necessarily need to twist turrets to be on at 400 with a 100 yard zero.

Is it Table season already?

I agree with you totally. Those who have years of experience hunting know you don;t always get a clear rib cage shot. Many times your only shot is thru a small opening thru the trees or vegetation or only the top of an animal on the other side of a rise. This point is being totally ignored .You don't always get a clear broad side shot!! If I only waited for clear broadside shots there would have been many elk me & mine would have never harvested. The overwhelming amount of deer & elk me & my family have taken over the years has been under 200yds. To many shooters are infatuated with long range & have no skill at getting closer. I sight in at + 1.5"@ 100. That makes for a dead on hold out to 300yds even if I only have a small hole thru the trees to aim at. I have had those hunters who have sighted in so as to be dead on at 500yds & then shoot over & miss a simple 100yd shot.

I’m no LR shooter, but do know at 350-500 in “heavy cover” one best take the time to study exactly what is between you and the animal. When they are walking around it becomes harder.

He should take his theory over to the LR forum and see how it goes there, because table shooting isn’t getting much play here.

Absolutely!!! There is a considerable difference between shooting off a bench with a heavy shooting rest .than off a fast & furious rest in the field when game is spotted. Elk are considerably more aware & spooky than deer. They sense the slightest movement or sound. This translates to them moving when you need to place your shot. You would have to keep changing your shooting position. Another point ignored. When shooting long range across a canyon there can be multiple cross winds you are totally unaware off blowing at different velocities & angles. Also up drafts & down drafts. The shooter has no way of knowing. You may have a super accurate rifle but your bullet could arrive several inches off. Elk have a tremendous stride. If an elk is moving at just a slow trot they can move forward 2 to 3 feet before your bullet arrives at 200 yds. depending on the velocity of your bullet. This can mean a gut shot or a total miss, Experienced elk hunters are aware of this. another point totally ignored. Couple all this with a small window to shoot thru which happens frequently ,. Many times an off hand shot is required at close range. Being able to keep all your shots in an 8" circle at 100yds off hand is need to place an accurate shot.... You will see all kinds of hunters shooting at long range targets. How many diligently practice close range off hand??

I'm not pharm, but you should probably be asking how far off the lands he runs those. Every rifle is different when it comes to throat length, due to erosion and manufacture tolerances. From what little I've messed with the 150 ELDX, I found a good load that shoots sub moa in a winchester model 70 featherweight, by running them .020" off the lands. Also, for a hunting rifle, it is never a good idea to "jam" the bullets into the lands. You need to find where those lands are and set your own oal.

That's something I think gets overlooked--that the wind speed along the path of the bullet may not be what you're experiencing where you are. That's why I doubt I would take a shot on an animal beyond 400 yards, unless it was really calm.



I hit a bear about 8” behind where I was aiming with a 300gr bullet starting at about 2,750 fps. Bear was 97 yds away, walking left to right at about 4 mph. Later, I was curious, so I used a ballistic calculator to determine time of flight, which was 0.12 seconds. 4 m/h = 5.9 f/s. 5.9 f/s x 0.12 s = 0.706 ft = 8.5”. So, that bear moved about 8” between discharge and impact. Bear still went down, but if the shot was at 200 yds, without leading it, I would have been off by a little more than 17”--even if it just was walking. Since then, all but one of the critters I have shot were standing still, but I always think about that now when hunting.

To the OP, I apologize for the hijack.

For seating depth I use the Berger method.

http://www.bergerbullets.com/getting-the-best-precision-and-accuracy-from-vld-bullets-in-your-rifle/

I find velocity first, then I load cartridges. My longest length just kisses the lands (the mark left on the bullet by the lands is square). Then I come back .04” four times. When I find a node I load .02” over and .02” under.

It’s been working so far.






P

Excellent , you have the understanding of experience!!!!! You can't beat real in the field experience. I'm sure this will stick with forever. I have been stressing this point for years to my students in hunter safety classes & other hunters. Some listen, some don't.

I found that a plain Duplex works great for me so like to zero anywhere from +1" to +2" @ 100, then shoot off a rest out to 500yds. I then mark the group (3 shots) and go back to the 300yd starting range. I see where the group "subtends" near the crosshair, at 350yds, 400, 450, then 500 , the group will be low, so I turn the power down until the group subtends the top edge of the bottom post ( again a Duplex style) and write down what power scope was on for that load. I write it down because sometimes I'll switch the scope with another Brand and it is usually different. I do that because I "naturally" want to hold high at longer range, so Kentucky Drop comes easy for me. Along with a small set of 8x Binocs I take a small , shirt pocket size rangefinder (usually one up to 500yds) because I have missed some shots by misjudging the eyeball range. Especially if the sun is on me and he is in the shade or vice versus. When in the timber, I'm still good for threading the needle. Myself, I do "pretty good" eyeballing out to around 300yds, then its a SWAG! I have almost always been able to use the rangefinder, and if they are walking, I usually pass on the shot. I hunt by myself and I have shot them as close as 250yds up the knife ridge above me, and when I got up there, there were hundreds of tracks, many game trails. I love snow on the ground, and I can glass around me and find either them or some blood. No snow....pretty dang tough to find them, that's why I like to break them down, and "for me" that is .270/.308/30.06 with Premium bullet "minimum". I "prefer" 35 Whelen/338-06/300 & 338 Mags. I even used a remarkably handy, pure factory Mod 700 BDL SS .375 H&H ( the Classic .375 is great too) with the 300 Sierra. Now we have Premium 250-260s for it. I will use my new to me 7x57 on elk, but I will use a Premium bullet and load it on the heels of .270 pressures! If Only had access to factory, I'd just stay in the timber. I have a hunting buddy out here who has used his Browning BLR in .308/150 Corlokts on mule deer/elk and one big cow Bison. So yeah, a 7mm/08 will work too. Only way you will know for sure...just go do it, get the experience, if you make a kill, do a good necropsy on the bullet channel. If you felt the longer ranges intimidate you ( they sure did me at first!) then adjust either your equipment or your hunting style. Have a ball dude!

Hey Bubba…

I’m guessing you’re one of the best keyboard elk hunters I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting.

I humbly bow to and acknowledge your ability at keyboard hunting with your many days afield, (4,000+posts)

My money says you’ve worn out several keyboards while afield.

My money says the dude packing a rifle zeroed 6” high at 100..... is a lot more likely to be referred to by the name “Bubba”... than anyone else in this thread....

That’s funny as hell.

I’m just under 5k posts, can you insult me next? I haven’t killed as many elk as some, but maybe as many as most. And I hunt public ground in Oregon, which is saying something.






P

My money says that “Bubba” you refer to knows how to put the crosshairs at the “BOTTOM” of the 16” diameter circle, surrounding the boiler room, at 100 yards, which would place that elongated hunk of metal DIRECTLY in the center of the boiler room for a DRT kill shot.

My money also says being you can’t figure that simple task out shows me you have a wall full of keyboard hunting licenses, and have filled your tag every year.

You might want to try "thinking" before you go afield on your keyboard. Otherwise, this "Bubba" might embarrass you while you're afield.