Long Range Elk Gun
 

What Your Favortie Long Range Elk Gun??

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I'll Start out with the 325 WSM or the 300 Win Mag or 300 WSM:D Not Sure witch one to pick haha!!??

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

nm

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

long range300 to like 700-800 About there
haha

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

nm

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

haha dude i was kidding haha no like long range 300-700 800 about there

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

nm

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

haha that dude from i donno i was watching it on wild tv was shooting a 300 WSM and he shot and elk at a laserd 894 Yards and got him right in the heart

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

270 WSM

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Really man u would shoot an elk at 700 yards with a 270 WSM

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

.340 weatherby, 2nd would probably be .338 RUM, then maybe some .300 mag....

but the quitessential long range elk gun is a .338, there's little to argue with that. if not a .338 maybe a .300 RUM or .300 weatherby, the .30-378wby is getting way popular though thats too muchi my book, and if you compare numbers the .340 kinda does more than the .30-378 but ya definitely a .338 mag, and probably not the .338 win mag btw.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

If you are talking about a true long range elk rifle then IMHO none of the ones you listed will qualify and you won't find a rifle on the average gun shops shelf that would be capable of doing it either.

If you are talking at least 600 yards and being able to kill an elk with a single well placed shot then the cartridge needs to be able to fire a mid to heavy for caliber, very streamlinedbullet at 3000 fps or faster and this would be a hand loading proposition only. The rifle would be custom built and capable of .5moa. Then would come countless hours at the range shooting from various different field positions.

My list would include large capacity 30 and 338 cartridges. Just a few that would be on my short list.....

300RUM - will fire at 180 grain bullet at 3300 fps and a 210 grain Berger at 3100+
30-378WBY mag. - Will fire the same bullets about150-200 fps faster.
7.82 Warbird - About the same ballistics as the 30-378.

338RUM - Will fire a 250 grain bullet at 3000 fps and a 225 at 3100+ from a 26" barrel.
338-378WBY mag - Same bullets about 100fps faster.
8.59 Titan - About the same ballistics as the 338-378.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Well thanks Bigbulls - finally and intelligent answer to this post. I whole heartly agree with your suggestions. I just surprised that no one mentioned their grandpa's 30-30. I just hope none of these guys attempt to shoot and elk at 600 or more yds just because they saw it done on TV.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

IMHO if you cant shoot it with a .338wm then its to far for almost all hunters.That should get you out in the 400 yard range.I know that the hunters around here at my range couldnt tell 200 yards from 400 yards.

And bigbulls you are right on the spot with your answers.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

IMHO Elk for the most part are not long range animals.

I hunt elk every year, this last year I picked up a 340-Weatherby & fell in love. I hunted elk for 21-years with a 300-win mag. The 300-win mag is a good elk rifle. IMHO the 340-Weatherby is a way "gooder" elk rifle.:) My go to elk rifle is my 340-Weatherby.

A true long range elk rifle IMHO would be the 338-Lapua.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Well yeah.. I mean look at the most popular round the 338 Win Mag..

At 500 Yards the 270 WSM with 150 Grain bullet has more Speed, and Knockdown power and is flatter than the 338 Win Mag..

270 WSM at 500 Yards 150Grain- Speed = 2213 Energy = 1631 Drop = -34.7

338 Win Mag at 500 Yards 180Grain - Speed = 1950 Energy = 1520 Drop = -39.2

So yeah.. I would use the 270 WSM. In fact, the 270 WSM is ballistically better than all of the others listed at 500 yards.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

.300 wby mag.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Better than which ones listed?

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Shakes own head in bewilderment

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I shoot a 338 Remington Utra mag. 300 grain Sierra Matchkings at 2650 fps.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I'd go with a bigger bore... .338 mag please!

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I will start with my Rem 300 saum then pick the 300 wsm. You can load my 300 saum with a 180 gr bullet at speeds up to just over 3000 fps so that should do the trick at 400-500 yds.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

You cant be serious...
andwhy use a light weight 180gr bullet in a 338, you loose all the advantage that a 338 gives...

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

300gr in a .338? thought the max was 275gr ?

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

as far as the .270 wsm at 500 yds etc.....vs a .338 win mag.....sure I can believe that, but compared to a .338 RUM or .340 wby how does it compare? let me check....

270 WSM at 500 Yards 150Grain- Speed = 2213 Energy = 1631 Drop = -34.7 (copied from above)

.340 wby 225gr --- speed = 2100fps ------ energy = 2200 ft lbs ----- drop, cant really be compared since....wby centers at 300yds, least not easily....

Though numbers dont always tell the facts, I think in africa this has been proven and proven, sometimes 500grs with less energy is better than 300grs with more.....

also i would think a 225 or 250gr bullet would penetrate better at 500yds than a 150gr bullet. though now were talking section densities, ballistic coefficients..etc.....

also 150grs isnt' exactly a big elk bullet.......i tend to think a 300 mag with 180 is kidna ideal, but 225 or 250gr is awesome! so ya comparing 150gr to 225/250grs

coruse pick whatever you like, I just think overwhelmingly many beleive a .338 as the ultimate long range elk rifle. not necessarily the flatters, fastest, most eneergy, but thy do well in all.

personally love the bigger .338s, .338 win mag is a great all around, but the .338 RUM and .340wby are just awesome, long range, very fast, very powerful! maybe more of a BIG all around/ dangerous game .338 than the .338win mag is a all around.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Nope Sierra makes a 300 grain match king. It has a sectional density of .375 and a BC of .768.

It can be hand laoded and fired from any of the 338'sI listed at 2800+fps.


We are talking about long range. 500 yards isn't long range. To some, myself included,it is much farther than we would shoot but it isn't truely long range. 500 yards is at the very beginning of true long range. And since we are talking about real long range you can throw the .338 win mag right out the window. See my first post.




A 150 grain,Hornady SST.270 bullet fired at 3100 fps will have 1100 foot pounds of KE left at 800 yards and 810 at 1000 yards.

A 250 grain, HornadyBTHP .338 bullet fired at3000 fps will have 2200 foot pounds of KE left at 800 yards and 1750 at 1000 yards.
The same bullet fired at 3100 fps will have 2375 foot pounds of Ke at 800 yards and 1900 at 1000 yards.



Watch the videos, this is long range hunting and if you are targeting elk you had better have a heavy bullet fired at high velocity so that ithas enough retainedenergy when it gets there.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=cCyTRzL5AAQ

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ssh8Vsbvn2A&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_6rKgL75POo&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=np3NthiI-VE&feature=related

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

What you mean by "long range"?? IF I were to select a cartridge for truly LONG RANGE elk shooting, (over 600 yards!! it would be: (top three)

1. 50 BMG
2. .338/378 Weatherby
3. .338 Lapua Magnum

The 270 WSM's factory figures may show more enrgy than the .338 Win. mag. at 500 yards. But such figues can be misleading! A good 250-grain .338 bullet is going to do more damage than one weighing half that much, and having half the frontal area of the .338. For example, big-bore black powder riflesshow relatively low kinetic energy levels, but they kill much better than smallbores that show much higher KE figures. This is because the 'foot-pounds KE formula uses the square of the velocity-a .220 Swift, for exmaple, shows a pretty impressive KE level, but if the bullet blows up on impact, it wil not kill big animals..........

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I feel FT lbs Momentum are a more accurate measure of overall terminal performance than KE. I feel this especially true on larger game like elk. Whencomparing the 270 WSM to the 338 WM based on the FT/LBS Momentum a very different picture develops. I will also compare relatively close BC bullets which was not done in the 270 WSM/338 WM comparison

500Yards Momentum KE Drop Wind Drift
338 WM 225 Grain Accubond65.22055 42.616.6
270WSM 150 Grain Nosler Partition45.961532 36 17.4

Thats a 41% edge in ft/lbs Momentum for the 338.The WSMhas an edge in drop but not terminal performance.

Keep in mind that the vast majority of elk are killed above 7000 ft elevation. That means it is much harder for the WSM to close the initial KE gap of 700 LBS KE that the 338 has over the 270 in most real hunting situations.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I figured I would catch flack for voting for the 270 WSM..But I like that caliber and personally I would never shoot more than about 400 yards with any caliber.. Just Don't feel comfortable with anything farther than that.. So for my preference the 270 WSM would be fine. In fact I was suprised to see the numbers were better than the 338 at 180 Grains (which I picked simply becuause the 150 in the WSM and 180 in 338 where as close to comparable numbers as I could get). Do I think the 270 WSM could kill an elk at 800 Yds? Yes.. Is it the best choice, Probably not.. But for my shooting limits (400 yds) is would be just fine..

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I see a few people typing about shooting at 600-800 yards and wonder why. Most hunters prefer to stalk as close as possible and few shoot much past 200-300 yards.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

Because that's what the question was.

I don't think any one here said that they would actually take a shot at 800 yards. But if we were capable of such a shot what would we shoot? There are people that have the equipment, time, and facilities to become very proficient at shots at this range.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

7mm STW...

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I am gomnna guy with my favorite the .338WM.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

I think the .300 Wby Magnumis the ultimate cartridge for North American big game at long ranges. It has been around a while but in my opinion still sets the standard for .300 rounds.

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

338 Excaliber

RE: Long Range Elk Gun
 

My favorite do everything gun from antelope to moose is my 340 Weatherby. I use 185 grain Barnes boat tails. I can hold an 8" kill zone out to 400 yards. From there I have to adjust for elevation.