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What bins should I get for elk hunting...


Dober

Your 30.06 with good bullets will work fine. I'm partial to Nosler Partitions (165 or 180 grain). Spend your money on a top quality pair of boots and the best binos you can afford (8x or 10x). You will be using the boots and binos a lot more than you will use the rifle. Practice, practice, practice at long range, 200 to 400 yards and get real confortable with your rifle. If you are looking for an excuse to buy a new rifle, a lightweight 300 Win Mag would be perfect with 180 or 200 grain partitions. And have fun, elk hunting is the ultimatre adventure for anyone who does not live in "elk country".

Look no further unless you have the cash and desire to buy something else. If so, my choice would be a 300WSM. But I really think you'd be better off evaluating your equipment such as boots, optics and pack. Maybe a specific kind of outwear depending on the conditions you expect. But don't buy in the hype on some threads here that you need some fancy new rifle.
Good luck.

A good GPS, compass, laminated maps, lightweight backpack, better sleeping bag, riflescope to make 500-yard shots realistic (3-9 Conquest with Rapid Z600), shooting sticks, new gutting knives, binos, boots, socks, lightweight rain shell, etc, etc......

We can spend your money all day long!

The best you can afford... then stretch some more.

IMO

Being from the east and having been on 2 western hunts, my opinion would be....keep the 30-06, buy a good set of binos, a good set of boots, and a mountain bike. Ride the bike as far as you can every day, walk as far as you can every day, and don't fret a new rifle.

Thanks for the advice i guess keep the rifle and put the leupold cds on it and try to get some good binos

I can attest to the stopping power of a 180 grain 30-06 reaching out to at least 385 yards. I nailed a black wildebeest with one holding at the top of the shoulder and it never took another step. They are as tough or tougher than a North American Elk.

An 06 can kill an elk at 500 but hitting it fairly is another story. My longest shot in 50 years of hunting came this fall with a 350 yd kill on a cow. At that range, the bullet is dropping fast and you really need a good rangefinder. Guessing the difference between 300 & 350 across a draw is iffy at best and it means a difference in bullet drop of maybe 8 to 10". If you guess wrong, you're going to wound it or miss entirely.

I just checked a ballistic table for a 180 gr bullet with a BC of .50 starting at 2800 fps. With a 200 yd zero, it'll drop 20" at 400 yds and 41" at 500. Can you estimate 41' at that range? How tall is an elk?

I went on my first elk hunt this year out by Craig, CO. Took a 5x6 at 40 yards with my 30-06 and 180 gr NP. He folded where he stood..............I'm still smiling.

Kurt

You can shoot at em as far as you want but I'm going to hold the shooting at 400 yards.....there's just too much air around them past that range to make me comfortable with a longer shot.

We all have limitations and most of ours fall short in comparison to the effective range of the '06 when loaded with the proper bullets.....Hell yes the 06 works, but it's boring that's why I use my 338.....

Like others have said, spend the money on high quality binos (I would suggest 10X42 - I bought a pair of swarovski SLC for $900 and it included the tripod mount), a tripod, boots, and get in good physical shape. The 30-06 is plenty good to get it done.

Yea, good glass (particulary bino's) > good shape physically > good boots and appropriate clothes > rifle and chambering. By far.

Already decided on my 30-06. Got the boots, binoculars and clothes. I've hunted deer in the west, but decided that if I'm driving that far I'll pay a little more for an elk tag next time. Had a trip planned for this Fall, but things just did not work out. Maybe next Fall.

I'm undecided on the bullet.

I've experimented with the follwing handloads.

150 TTSX @ 3000 fps
165 Hornady Interlock @ 2900 fps
180 Hornady Interlock @ 2800 fps

All three loads consistently group around .75" @ 100 yards. Often closer to .5"

I use the 165 to hunt here in GA and am tempted to just use the same load for elk. I'm open to try other bullets and have just bought a box of 180 Accubonds. First range trip with those loads produced 1"-1.5" groups. Tweaking things might produce better accuracy.

What do the experts say.

Very cool, and congratulations. Hope it's the first of many...

I'm a real Partition fan. Every 30-06 rifle I've shot them in they went into .75" groups or less with little load work. Results on game have been great. I would use the 180 Partition on Elk as my first choice, possibly the TTSX, but in a 165 for elk.

I could be wrong, but I believe that most bullet manufacturers build the lighter .30 caliber bullets (such as the 150) with a thinner jacket to open up on lighter game such as deer. I believe the heavier bullets- 165, 180, 200, 220, are built with a heavier jacket and heavier cup to handle the extra expansion of heavier skinned animals. This would not apply to the "monolithic" bullets such as the Barnes X and the TSX, IMHO. I could be wrong, and if I am I'm sure someone will correct me, but that is the logic I've used for a great many years and I've seen results on game to confirm my theories.

Bob

My experience with the 165 interloc bullet, accounting for somewhere around a dozen elk, broadside at 200 yds or less behind the shoulder it's a complete pass thru, thru the near side shoulder , bullet was most often a lump on the far side, over 250 bullet was usually found under the hide on the far side. Shot two different bulls in the neck at around 125 yds, both times it blew a hole in the vertebrae you could put your fist thru. Had one bull on a severe angle about 225 yds nearly straight up, bullet entered the sternum , up thru the heart and lungs and broke the spine...
Yup them interlocs work just fine.

I'd consider buying a 30-06 just to shoot 180 Partitions at all things great and small.

What is wrong with that? You don't need anything else. If you simply WANT another gun get a 300 WSM. It's simply a 30-06 Improved.