Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 7mm Elk bullets, AGAIN

Over a period of 40 years. All of the following have work for me out of a 7mm Rem. Mag.
139 Hornady FB - 1
150 Nosler Partition - 2
160 Sierra BT - 2
160 Nosler Partiton - 2
145 Speer Grand Slam - 3
150 Nosler BT - 1
160 Speer Hot Core - 1
Most of these were one shot kills, bulls, cows and calves. So for me anyway the 7mm Rem. works with a varity of bullets. The only bullet recovered was one of the 160 Sierra BTs.

MTMAN, would you care to expand on the type of hits meaning broadside quartering from the front or rear, what sort of bone was hit and so on?

Anyone have reports on the 7mm E-tips on elk?

For you 160 AB lovers

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth...sler_Accubond_2nd_s_for_7mm_#Post5174616

Elk are not that tough. My son dropped one running at 150 yards with Rem 130g Core Lokt factory ammo out of my 270 this winter. If you want to shoot a "non-premium" bullet both for practice and hunting in a 7mm Mag, my recommendation would be the 175g Rem Core Lokt Pointed Soft Point. It will do the job, period and you can buy them in bulk.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/default.aspx?productNumber=1601340182

Regards,

Chuck

Dang shipping... if I knew my soon to arrive 7WSM liked them, I'd break the $200 threshold for free shipping buuuuut...

I have long since come to the conclusion that a 150 grain bullet will do all the trophy hunting I ever intend to do. I found it quite interesting to read Dogzapper's endorsement of the Hornady 150 Interlocks. I have never felt like I needed any more than a 150 in 7mm or 308.

Mark,
Do you have a preference between the Spire Points or Boat Tails or is it just your gun?

RL28--I'll generally take a boat tail over a flat base but only if it shoots more accurately. If it doesn't then it's of no worry for me. Fact is, I've found that in my rigs generally the flat base Horns will shoot better than the boat tails.

Dober

Yep, my pard shot a big bull at just over 400 yds with one last fall ( I dont remember the bullet weight)with a 7mmRem Mag

Anyway it shot well, didnt expand as much as would a TSX but the elk didnt notice...

My concern with the ET is expansion, I'll be interested to hear how it goes as more people get to using it.

Dober

Yep, I'm sticking with the TSX and TTSXs for now, though this guy and JB both assured me the E-tips were easy to get to shoot...This pard of mine obviously recovered the bullet..100% weight retention etc, but I could have hoped for more expansion...

I have seen about 20 animals taken with E-Tips, about half by me and about half by hunting companions, the animals ranging in size from coyote (1) to a couple of big bull elk, one a really big-bodied 6x7. I have also shot a few into various kinds of media.

In my experience they tend to expand more than standard TSX's but not any more than Tipped TSX's. Of course, expansion is also a product of impact velocity and what the bullet hits.

Did the E-tip overpenetrate on the coyote???

I'm sticking with TSXs....a certain writer of repute turned me on to them years ago, and I am loathe to change...

Besides....I think you gotta shoot at least 12 coyotes with them before you are qualified to pass judgement...or at least rumor has it in Turdcutterville...

Good stuff to know JB, Thx

I've been a bit concerned about longish range work (say 400-600) and how they'll do. But you know me I've been a NBT guy for a long time.

Dober

The meat on the top side was okay. The meat on the bottom side (ground side) was spoiled. It only got down to about 50 that night. Flinch

Ouch. Well, that makes sense. I'm no great killer of elk but the one bull I have killed was on a sunny hillside, probably mid-50's and climbing at the time of the shot, and it was a race to get those hindquarters off and hung in SOME kind of shade before things got ugly. I was alone, but it was morning, so I just focused on getting them off of there and hung (and battle the yellowjackets, lol). Amazing how much heat a mass of meat like that retains!

It's interesting to hear that the Amax has worked so well for you. I've got a stash of them waiting for when my 7WSM gets here, but I've been shooting them in my 7-08 in the meantime. I've been seeing it as a deer/antelope bullet based on what others have said. Sounds like you've seen them penetrate well?

I have seen a couple of elk spoil with snow on the ground. The hunters didn't hang them or open up the rib cage with a stick, so the air could get to them. Their thick coat is like wearing a parka. It just doesn't let the heat out. You gotta get elk cooled out quick.

I had a small spike spoil over night a few years ago. I shot him perfectly through the shoulder broad side right before dark. I gave him a few minutes and went over to where he went down. He jumped up and bailed off into a hell hole. I couldn't believe it. The bow shot was right in the heart area. I bumped him two more times as he went further and further into the hell hole. It was about 45 degrees, with a good canyon breeze blowing. I figured I would let him set over night and die. I went back the next morning and he was dead 10 feet from where I stopped tracking him. He was completely spoiled. The broadhead had somehow slipped right between the heart and lungs and didn't touch either organ. It clipped a small blood vessel and that is what killed him. Pretty strange that the head missed the organs. I have never had that happen before. I have made that shot countless times, with perfect results every time.

Oh, and there was a bear sitting on that bull when we found it. He didn't want to give it up, but sat in the brush popping his teeth. He watched us cut it up from about 50 yards away. I checked all the large muscle groups and they were all very sour and warm. Bummer, because young elk are fabulous table fare. Flinch

We used to hunt elk on Tower Mountain, Ukaih unit, NE Oregon, until the burn that happened there grew up so much that it really impacted the hunting in a bad way.

The last year we were there a buddy and I were about 4 miles into the wilderness area in a place we call the end of the meadow, when another hunter shot a spike pretty much right out from under my buddy.... a few more steps into an opening was all my friend was waiting for.

ANYWAY, this other guy does a great job of getting it hung up (!) and skinned, but for some reason, didn't come back for it for several days... we went back up there a few days later and there's this skinned, hanging, UNBAGGED spike elk... covered in birds and bird $hit!

THAT was an "ouch".

Your story sounds like what happens to people every now and then. They get shot through the chest or whatever but the bullet miraculously misses everything. I guess it has to happen sometimes. It's one reason I like bullets that fragment some- I think we are of like mind on that one.

Flinch, were those 162's SSTs or something else?

Thanks.

Jeff, yup, me likey a bullet that fragments with RAPID expansion. I use a lot of ballistic tips and love them. IF the bullet fragments and doesn't churn stuff up inside the animal, the bone fragments do.

I would rather lose a little meat to blood shot and have the animal down right now, vs. an exit hole for tracking and risk someone else getting a shot at it or losing it. If I need to track an animal, I change bullets.

Contrary to what a lot of guys like on here, the worst bullets have been partitions for me. I haven't seen a single one stir stuff up inside an elk or deer. Everyone I have witnessed or used penciled through the critter. Every elk I have had to track, regardless of caliber, has been hit with partitions (.30-06, 7mm mags, .270's). Sure they penetrate and exit, but just don't cause enough trauma for my likes. I have either shot or witness 7 elk shot with partitions. The chase was on with every one, VERY slight blood trails, if any. All the animals have been recovered and were hit well, but still made the 150-300 yard dash into hell holes and thick crap. I was worried we wouldn't find a couple of them. The caliber sized exit holes never bled a drop. Good thing there was snow on the ground.

Everyone has a different bullet criteria. Mine is, I want them down right now with major hydrostatic shock and major internal pudding. I couldn't care less about exit holes.

162 grain Hornady boat tails soft points were the bullets I have had issues with. They have been extremely explosive with little penetration, which has really surprised me. The SST's and Amaxs are much better bullets for hunting. Flinch