we all can tell you do not like the 270! but I have one question? Is the 270 capable of taking any elk.

SpyroAndes,

Currently the newest cartridge I am "getting to know" is a 458 Lott. I've casually entertained the idea of a 500 A2 [][][], which is also a 460 Weatherby necked up to .510 --- what is the difference?

I figure I could download it a bit and have the equivalent of a .505 Gibbs with a better bullet selection and lower pressure due to the downloading.

More likely I'll go in the opposite direction and pursue a 300RUM with a long heavy barrel, then again, I said that right before I saw that orphaned 458 looking lonely, unhappy and calling my name.
=================

gotlost,

My answer to your question, quite simple really:
(1) Perhaps it will in your elk camp [knock yourself out], but
(2) It won't in my elk camp [nothing under 30-06 power].

I DO LIKE 270'S THOUGH, JUST NOT FOR WAPITI. Some of my longest shots ever were with a 270. Great childhood memories of my first high power, a M700 in 270 with a 4x12 Redfield: deer, antelope, coyotes, prairie dogs [didn't have anything smaller at the time for the prairie dogs, sorry] and also my first reloading experience was with the 270. I still have that same rifle.

Not so happy memories of 270's in the elk woods.
Do whatever you choose to do for elk.
Good luck with whatever you choose.

Some how I knew your answer would be along those line, You have my respect and admiration for sticking to views.
Larry

I have a Rem 700 long action, a fluted 32" Lilja Barrel & McMillan HTG stock sitting here on my desk and I have been thinking about building either a tight necked 300 RUM or a 30-338 Lapua.

I have been leaning toward the 30-338 Lapua due to the higher quality of the Lapua brass. That is half the battle w/ a long range rig.

Anyway, either way, those poor Coues Deer won't know what hit them.

SA

I'm gettin tired of all the .270 & Elk topics too but the part that pisses me off is apperantly the ones that are against it dont watch enough elk hunting shows. You would be VERY supprise at how many people hunt elk with .270's and do very good. Why cant you people get it in your heads that ITS NOT THE GUN, its the skill of the hunter that kills the elk. The gun is just a tool in the process of killing it.

I am done with this section of the forums untill these .270 & Elk arguments are long gone.

Jeepy,

Boy, you got me dead to rights on that one, I don't watch much for elk hunting shows, especially other than the once per year (October) that I'm in the middle of an "elk hunting show."....

Is that your favorite source of the information for the opinions you been trotting out through this little discussion? Any real life experience hunting elk by chance?

I'd recommend that you never forfeit the right to rebut a subject later. If you find this thread (and others like it) offensive, then that may be a challenge for you as this is one topic never goes away for long.

Id like to address this "Index"

Page 1 (Top) EKM - Why the disconnect? And do you want to bother trying to reconnect them?
Ok Im at a lose as to what the heck that means?

Page 5 (Low) EKM - Magnum Shot Placement: Any Angle, Any Bone, Any Time!
Really so you advocate taking risky shots as long as your shooting a big enough gun? An elk shot in the guts with a 800Slobber Knocker magnum, is still an elk shot in the guts.
'
Page 6 (Mid) SpyroAndes - Its About Being Unhindered By Your Weapon!
So bow hunting is totally out of the question? I always thought it was about putting a bullet in the kill zone.

Page 7 (Mid) Rather Be Hunting - Dead Is Dead.... Oh, Really?
Yep really, elk sometimes run no matter what you shoot them with, same as deer.

Page 7 (Low) BareBackJack - Jack O'Connor's 270 Was The Ultimate SHEEP Rifle!
That was so true in Jacks day, but correct me if Im wrong Jacks day was back in the 30s and 40s, and back then they didnt have Barnes or Grand Slam bullets. Hit an elk in the kill zone with one of those, shot out of a .270 within 400 yards and its going down.

Page 8 (Top) EKM - Varmit Rifles, Deer Rifles, Cross-over Rifles, Elk Rifles, Elk Hammers!
Yep all you have to do is point one of those super mags at an elk and then fall the heck over. Get real.

Page 8 (Top) EKM - The Response To "Its Not What You've Got, It's How You Use It" line.
It is all about how you use it, a .270 slug in the chest cavity is still a bullet through the chest cavity, nothing lives long with out a heart or lungs.

Page 8 (Low) RatherBeHunting - Cows and Rags Don't Equal Big Bull Elk, Not The Same!
Oh I forgot, once elk grow over 600lbs the start growing kevlar hide, take out the heart or lungs and its dead.

Page 9 (Low) ELKINMTCWB - 270's, You shoot'em, Someone Else Tags'em, Your Decision!
270s shoot them and enjoy the backstraps.

Page 11 (Low) EKM - The Ratchet Factor, Actions Speak Louder Than Words, and Other "270 Things" That Kinda Don’t Add Up….
Chatter factor, I just like to hear the words "elk hammer" come out of my month.

Page 12 (Top) Jeep4x4 - Elk Hunting Shows As The Font Of Wisdom
Yeah those guys that guide the pros dont know jack about hunting, that must be why the pros are hunting with them.

yes indeed the 270 will down an elk i have taken three with a 270 and none have went more than 20 yards

I see there are a few folks that have too much time on their hands until the draw results come out (myself included). I hope everyone draws their tags!

Long before meeting "Old' Don", I chose the .416 Rem as my elk rifle. After shooting with the man, I am more confident my choice was justified. I believe you should use what you are comfortable with and most shooters don't have the training to handle larger calibers, won't take the time to and thus will stick with less effective cartridges. I purchased a Win .25-06 a few years ago and the salesman (Boulder, CO Garts), said he had recommended and sold several to people looking for an elk gun and I told him I was buying it for 'yotes, he thought I was kidding. Nobody (honestly) is going to say they don't feel ALOT of recoil shooting larger bores, but proper training and fitting make it a non-issue. You aren't going to go to the range and shoot three boxes of .416 Rem like you would a .270 and have an enjoyable experience, detached retinas keeping your cheek off the stock perhaps, but no fun. At my range I constantly meet shooters who stick with particular calibers (smaller ones) because they believe "I get good groups with this rifle and I am not comfortable with more recoil. I don't want a more powerful rifle". Their fitment and techniques are HORRIBLE. They often say, how can you shoot that .416 so much?!? From reading these posts about the the .270 as a elk round, I believe many of you do cleanly harvest elk with .270 et al, but the enormous leap of faith comes from inexperienced hunters reading these posts and assuming they can do the same thing because they can shoot "cloverleafs off the bench". One quote I will never forget from our beloved BJ was, "Show me a feller that can git wit'in 20 paces of a bull and git him with a .30-30 and i'll show you someone who's got the makins of a real hunter." If you have poor hunting skills, you really have no business hunting, much less assuming you can "talk the talk" because someone else on this forum did with the same setup and shot larger groups off the bench.

A ranch hand I know, who weighs maybe 100lbs, has been using the .416 Rigby for elk over 10 years. He has dozens of rifles, but goes to the Rigby for elk. We both agreed when comparing shooters, if you can shoot a mid/big bore well, you can shoot a smaller bore more effectively than someone who does not have the training/experience of a large bore and flinches at a .338 win mag off the bench. It comes down to familiarity with the firearm, and the vast majority of "box of ammo a year" hunters don't have it. It would be an interesting poll to find out how many hunters here actually have .30-06+ guns in the battery and choose to take a smaller bore on the once-in-a-lifetime 8+ preference point hunt.

In the hands of a great shooter .270 is a good cartridge, but inferior to many others. With my .416, I have never had to track or lost an elk. Perhaps more of us would feel the same way as Don if we had to spend most of our limited hunting time (and away from our families) tracking other members of the party's wounded animals rather than actually HUNTING.

Good luck and safe hunting to everyone.

CE

Buckshot,

It's too bad you didn't get involved earlier as each point was hashed out, I saw ya posting all around on the "270 lovefest" threads, seemingly carefully avoiding this one....

I know reading for detail is a pain for some folks.....
Some read the index only, don't get around to the underlying material and then wonder why they "don't get it".... (Kinda like trying to "just get by" in school by reading the chapter headings and not doing the "homework." )

Simply put:
"Don't try to teach a pig to sing, it sounds like hell and it irritates the pig."
-OR-
Don't try to show folks the opposite side of the issue that don't want to see it (thus the disconnect), it makes 'em whine (sounds like hell) and makes 'em mad (irritated) which usually ends up being a lose-lose for everyone.

Hence my advice to the "30-06 and up for elk" gang to consider not bother wasting their time trying to explain it to y'all (the decision whether to bother attempting the re-connect)

IMHO, your single post actually kinda helps confirm many of the points touched upon.
As I mentioned (many times) in this thread, and pointed out to the "270 Lovefest crowd",... this thread wasn't really written for you as the audience, though some have invited themselves (that's okay), so don't worry about it.