What is a good round for elk hunting with a remington model 721 in 30-06? I hunt an open area in colorado, with the possiblity of 400+ yard shots. It has a 3x9-40 burris scope on it. I was thinking about 180 grain winchester fail safes. or maybe even a 200 or 220 grain bullet. I also shoot mule deer and antelope with this rifle.

The Fail-Safes are a good choice, as would be Partitions, TBBC, Accubonds, and a few others. I would stay with the 180grs. Good Luck!

With the possibility of 400 yard shots I would use one of two Federal loadings, the 180 grain Barnes TSX or the 180 grain accubond. Either of these two bullets will offer you about the flattest trajectory possible out of the 30-06 and still give you good penetration out that far but will still hold together up close.

With the bullets available today there is absolutely no reason at all to use a bullet heavier than 180 grains out of a 30-06.

Stay with the 180 grains. If the winchester failsafe shoots very accurately, I would stick with that.

Use the SWIFT SCIROCCOS. If they have them in 180 or 165 grain bullets. They shoot fast flat and pack a whallop. Dont be affraid of the 165 grain bullets either. They will kill them dead as dead.

Stick with a 180 gr. Barnes X, Win. Fail Safe, Nosler Partition, Swift A-Frame, Trophy Bonded Bear Claw., or Win. Partition Gold. Good luck on your elk hunt!!

krueger,
for the conditions you describe the 168 barnes triple shock is the perfect bullet.
Flat trajectory, 100 wt retention for maximum penetration, yet bullet will not blow up if you are lucky enough to get a 50 yards shot.

The fail safes have a tendency to pencil through without enough expansion especially on a close shot where the petals may shear off.

If you go to too heavy of a bullet (over 180)your trajectory will be really bad at 400+. With any other bullet except the barnes I agree with the 180gr but with the barnes you can do just as well with the 168g.

Plus the triple shocks are proving to be a VERY accurate bullet.

Again 165 grain swift scirocco

I would 2nd the solid 165 and 168 gr bullets mentioned above. IMO I wouldn't go 180 gr with a 30-06 shooting long ranges. I grew up shooting very long distances in the open country of Wyoming and have seen people using 180+ gr bullets. It was only a matter of time until they all dropped back down. Look into the ballistics and drop at that yardage and you will see why.

Sighted in to hit zero at 200 yards there will only be a 2 inch difference between a 180 grain boat tail and a 165 grain boat tail (BARNES TSX). At 400+ yards I would want the heavier bullet over the 2 inch flatter trajectory when hunting elk. Even with a Barnes bullet.