EKM,
I also thought the same thing as dedicated elker,I belive you should hunt with the largest caliber you can handle(even minor discomfort),I also know that any caliber under .270 is iffie on elk there is alot more at stake when shooting wind,angle, bone ect...If it was me and I had access to the .338 I would switch scopes (if of quality)and use it,but hey thats me not him or anybody else

He asked what the best elk round is and since i aint shot elk with nothing but my 270 then thats my best elk round. And until I do shoot an elk with something bigger (which will never happen) thats always going to be my best elk round. And im not someone who drives 2000 miles to another state to hunt elk. I look at elk everyday on the hill behind my house with the spotting scope or I can drive 10 miles up the road to hunt elk. Elkcampmaster If you want to buy me a bigger rifle ill gladly take it. Just drop er off in the mail. Until then Ill use MY REMINGTON 700 MOUNTAIN RIFLE 270 WITH 150 NOSLERS
Heres a little picture of my little ol 270 for ya.

Nice bull Kirkl,
Looks like he' s missing a tine,oh by the way how many shots.[8D][8D]

Nice bull kirkl.

I would think twice before I took a 25-06 elk hunting. The .25-caliber is below what I call the minimum for elk hunting. Take that 338 to the range & see how she shoots. I am sure someone will say. " I have killed 100-elk with a 22-mag or 17-HMR."
Match your caliber to your game & good luck hunting.

Barebackjack, thanks, it took one shot of a 150 nosler. And just because i shoot a 270, i dont advise using the 25.06 either, id try the 338. If i only had a 25.06 then i would have a bigger gun for elk but my 270 serves me fine for both deer and elk.

That is a real nice bull Kirkl. Do you happen to know the weight?

Gosh, I was purchasing a rifle larger than .338 for this year' s hunt, and the " expert" behind the counter (out of the blue) suggested I consider .25-06 instead!!!

I would never consider any quarter bore an adequate elk cartridge. But when you see the reloading manuals and " experts" touting the .243 as an elk cartridge, it makes you wonder what their motive is...

Wow, Kirk, I guess you must have thought I was talking about you...

GIVING THE OTHER SIDE SOME CREDIT:

Nice bull. Your right, they are a " nice little ol rifle" ! I have a nice little ol Remington 700 in 270 myself that I got when I was 14. Hasn' t killed big big game for 25 years or so since I widened my ballistic horizons a little. No doubt, a 270 in skilled hands can be a capable elk killer (with the ever present standard list of limitations put into effect of course).

On the other hand, I' m sure you' ll agree as you start dropping down from 270 down to 22LR that there is a thin red line that gets crossed somewhere, yet there will be a defender standing ready at each cartridge. As long as it is legal right? At that point it is a far far cry from anything resembling " best of anything" .

NOW, GETTING BACK TO " The Best" :

I' ll grant you that it is difficult to look beyond direct personal experience when addressing such a questionas this, where it asks for " the best" and not " your best" . Limited exposure to a wide variety of rifles that are both bigger AND smaller can tend to limit one' s objectivity a little bit as it is real easy to get emotionally attached and defensive about what is in the closet.

Regarding sending you a bigger rifle (LOL), sorry, per your own words it would be a waste!

I don' t see you growing outside your " box" anytime too soon;

How about a new category to alleviate any controversy and make everyone warm, cuddly and happy? Let' s not pursue " the best" , but rather, how about....
Most Popular?
Most Common?
Most Numerous?
Most Historical?
Most Traditional?
Lightest weight?
Most middle of the road?
Etc, Etc, Etc.

With a little imagination we can conform with the new " Politically Correct Mentality" which calls for all viewpoints to be the best and no viewpoint to be allowed to come up short.

Hmm, now about that 6mm, or perhaps I can find a state with NO legal elk rifle requirement, I' m sure I could argue for a 223 for elk and then there would be HUGE numbers of folks that would feel really good (misinformed maybe, but they' d feel good). Hey, maybe this PC thing isn' t so bad after all.

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM

web site quirk -- seems like if you write more than two lines or take more than twelve minutes to write it -- it gets confused

I got no use fer hunters toutin' pop guns for wapiti. I ain' t gonna be diplomatic ' bout it, or spare anybody' s feelins. They ain' t sparin' the elk. Even if they never think they contributed to a single animal' s suffering or waste, jus' blabbin' like they knew sumthin' causes other less lucky or skilled shooters to waste game. I' ve tracked 243 shot elk an' found wounded animals I wasn' t even lookin' for. If you can' t handle a proper elk rifle, do everbody a favor and stay home, cause you ain' t qualified, in skill or attitude.

Colorado elk, It wat 450 hanging with head and horns cut off.

Elkcampmaster, if someone was to give me a magnum rifle I would try it out but im not going to spend 500 dollars on a rifle and 200 on a scope to use it for 9 days out of the year which is how long are elk season lasts. Plus we only get to shoot spikes unless we get drawn for a big bull permit so my 270 is more than adequate to shoot a spike bull and a occasional big boy when i draw a permit so it serves me dual purpose for deer and elk. Dont need to widen my " Ballistic horizons" Ive seen enought spikes get shot by 7mags and 300 mags run off to die and not fall over at the hit of the bullett. Im not emotionally attached, alls I ever see you preaching is MAGNUM, MAGNUM, MAGNUM. Just trying to save a guy a little money from guys like you preaching that they have to have a magnum when ol bob happens to have a 270 and have shot it all there life and get told its not big enough so go spend $1500 on a new magnum setup or you wont kill nothin. So go start your new little cuddly and happy thread and all us non magnum shooters can bow down to you.