ORIGINAL: salukipv1
well if he's that recoil shy, I think big and fast are out of the decision making category. So big and slow is the only option IMO for elk/moose.
If a .30-06 is too big.....I'd lean towards the .338 federal, or .308.
Bigger bullets produce more recoil, and if they're going slow they won't do worth a darn at even moderately long distances. I think everyone else is right in recommending a cartridge that is moderately fast shooting moderately heavy bullets, like the 7mm-08.
For example, a 338 Federal shooting a 210 gr bullet at 2630fps has 21.9 ft lbs. of recoil and a.308 Win shooting a 180 gr bullet at 2610 fps has 17.5 ft lbs. of recoil, while a 7mm-08 shooting 140 gr bullets at 2850 fps only has 12.6 ft lbs. of recoil and a 6.5X284 shooting 140 gr bullets at 2920 fps only has 14.7 ft lbs of energy.
So I'm going to have to disagree that "big and slow" is the
only way to go for elk and moose when someone is recoil shy. I wouldn't say it's the way to go at all. Especially when someone is wanting to shooting even moderately longer distances.