***Yes, the 30-30 can kill an elk and so can a .243, but the problem is how far might that animal go before it dies and might not be found compared to a bigger caliber designed for that bigger animal. Conventional wisdom from all the old timers back to Jack O Connor was that a deer should be hit with 1000 ft/lbs and an elk with 1500 ft/lbs of energy at POI to solidly anchor it. If that figure is used, it really limits the yardage of that 30-30. I've seen a number of bulls only flinch and stand there when hit with a 7 mm mag like it was a miss before a second shot took them down. All I'm saying is if the kid can shoot that 30-06 accurately like he's shown he can with no recoil or flinching problems, he should have no problem hitting the large vital area of an elk with a lot more energy with that 30-06 on a bi or tripod and will extend his range a lot compared to the 30-30.