Orion2000 - Definitely good luck to your grandson on his cow hunt.
I'm very glad that you responded and touched on this topic. My first interest was to buy my daughter a Ruger American LH in 6.5 creedmore because I was looking for a cartridge with reduced recoil. After doing some reading on the internet I was concerned that even with a heavier bullet selection the 6.5 might not be enough for Elk. Ideally, I'd like to buy my girls rifles that are capable on both deer and elk as those are primarily the game animals that we wish to pursue. As a result of the research I did, I chose a 7mm-08 for my eldest daughter.
I would love to hear your recommendation of a bullet weight for elk, and I would love to hear from anyone that has successfully used the 6.5 on elk. I understand that bullet placement is ultimately the most important factor in hunting with a rifle, but if many of you believe that the 6.5 can be more than capable on an elk I might reconsider my caliber choice for my youngest daughter's gun.
Thanks all.
True story. Had a guy work for me that was an avid, but broke, hunter. He had a 22/250 he used for coyotes....and elk. He was 5 for 5 on elk, 5 years running. 55 grain bullets. Then he moved up, to a 25/06, and kept killing his elk, deer, and the occasional bear.
The 6.5 CM will kill any elk alive today.
