A 25-06 is in between 243 and 270 leaning a little closer to 270. Any of these cartridges is going to be plenty for deer and hogs. With the right bullet and good shot selection, any of them will work just fine on elk. The only drawback to a 25-06 is availibility of factory ammo. Many places carry only the 100 and 120 grain bullets. Now if you start reloading, 25-06 gives you a lot options from 75gr at 37-3800fps to 122gr at 28-3000fps.