Forums.NitroExpress.com

My 1st elk hunt was when I was 8. My dad barrowed one of his brothers 30-06s so I could use "the rifle" (the only one we had in those days) a Savage M99 in 300 Sav. We stopped at a gas station along the way and Dad bought some "elk ammo" that were loaded with 180 grain bullets instead of the usual 150s we shot for deer.

There was my Dad, his brother Walt, and 4 men from the shop they all worked at from time to time. I was the only kid on that hunt. It was for both deer and elk, and on that hunt I and Mr. Terry were the only 2 that got elk. Most of the men got deer.

The M99 was too long for me and uncomfortable to use because I was so small then, but I made a good shot and killed a young 5X4 bull moving on a trot going from my left to right. The 300 Savage had it's original iron sights and was as basic as you can get, but it did a fine job. That bullet took the top of the heart out, both lower lungs and exited.
Since that elk I have killed more then I can easily count, and I have come to know beyond question that it's 1st about the skill of the hunter, next about THE BULLET used and 3rd about the cartridge and gun. As a guide in 3 western states I have seen killed about 7-10 times more then I have killed myself.
Any rifle that can reliably put a bullet clear through an elk (including breaking bones,) and give a wound that is in a fairly straight line works fine for killing them. Any bullet that breaks up early and/or has a tendency to curve off line as it pernitrates is a poor choice. I have killed 7 bulls with 44 magnum handguns and many bulls and cows with a 270 Winchester All 1 shot kills. I also have killed 5 with muzzleloaders firing round balls. Again all with 1 shot each. And 1 with a wood arrow. I have a friend that's killed 7 nice bulls with a Marlin M94 carbine in 357 magnum using heavy LBT cast bullets and he's never needed a 2nd shot. I have also had bad luck with 7MM Mags and 300 mags when I tried bullets that broke up on impact, and seen one very long tracking job from a perfect hit with a 338 Mag using an old Nosler Ballistic Tip that took 6-1/2 house to track down.

So these writers may tell you a 338 is perfect and a 357 magnum is far too small, but the real world have shown me this tripe is simply not true. Bullet holes kill things. The bullet is simply a tool to make that hole. If you can place a nice size hole in a fairly straight line through an elk's vitals and out the other side it matters very little what launcher was used to make that hole. From spears, arrows, handgun bullets, round balls from muzzleloaders, and rifles all the way up to 375H&Hs 416s and even the 50 BMG, if the hole is placed in the correct location and the bullet holds together and goes fairly straight through, all guns kill elk.

If the bullet breaks up or turns off course all cartridges can fail.