Build My Elk Rifle

[shooter7]

Ok, so I'll start off with a little background. I'm currently a college student in Michigan and I'll be graduating and moving to Colorado in May. I have a job lined up in central Colorado around game management units 49, 500, 501, 37 and 50. I have spent a couple summers out there and know the area fairly well. I know I'll have the opportunity to hunt at elevations from 8-12 thousand feet. Shots will be anywhere in the range of 5- My personal limit of 600yds.

Now my questions: I will be building a rifle this summer for my future endeavors. Which caliber? Action? Barrel? Stock? Optics? What overall weight do you think I should shoot for? Very open to opinions and tips based on experience. Thanks for the input.

 

[C.O. Shooter]

Let's start with, what your budget is?

Rifle?

Optics?

 

[shooter7]

I'm thinking my budget will be around $2000 total.

 

[C.O. Shooter]

I'm not saying it can not be done, however, may be difficult to do. Would you consider a factory rifle, with decent optics?

My thoughts would lean toward:

Savage LRH (7mm or 300 Win Mag.)
Remington Sendero (7mm/300 Win Mag./300 RUM)
Remington 5R (300 Win Mag.)

Optics: Nightforce SHV or Vortex PST

Bases & Rings: it's a toss up, tons of options, high, medium, low, as far as price are concerned!

That or troll the classifieds for a used one. There are some nice guns floating around!

 

[gillettehunter]

Another rifle that "might" work out is the new Rem 700 long range. They are available in several calibers including .300 Win Mag. Broz looked at one a bout 10 days ago and thought they could be good to go or only need a little work to get them to shoot. Just a thought. Bruce

 

[Rick Richard]

+1 for the Savage LRH.

I just purchased a 300 WSM this week and am very impressed with what this factory gun can do thus far.

With some initial handloads, it will consistently shoot 3/4 inch groups. Working on more to see if I can get it to tighten up more.

 

[Timber338]

It's hard to beat the versatility of a 300 magnum. For anything from coyotes up to moose it will work great.

If you are planning on using factory ammo, I would go with a 300wsm. They run at a little higher pressure and no belt allows more accurate headspace off of the shoulder.

If you are going to reload I would go with the 300 win mag for the extra case capacity.

Right now I'm trying to talk a friend of mine into either a Savage Weather Warrior 300wsm or a tikka T3 lite stainless 300wsm. Lots of factory options out there that will get the job done out to 600 yards, and under $1k (for the rifle).

I have a vortex viper pst 4-16x50 on one of my rifles and am very happy with it. Have shot elk beyond 600 yards with it. I'm sure the new NF SHV will be a great option as well, although a little heavier and more expensive than the PST.

 

[shooter7]

I had a vortex viper PST on my savage 6.5-284 build. Liked the scope a lot. I do handload and already have 300wm dies for my brother's rifle.

 

[dogdinger]

If you already have a 6.5x284 you have the deer/antelope/sheep covered.....go for a .338 for a dedicated elk rifle. I think the RUM would be a good choice and a factory rifle will do just fine with a little tuning.....put the $$$ you save toward a good varmint rifle.....you are gonna need it in the southpark area. Coyotes are thick there...I know from experience. my choice would be the 22-250. AJ

 

[Timber338]

If you already have a 6.5x284 you have the deer/antelope/sheep covered.....go for a .338 for a dedicated elk rifle. I think the RUM would be a good choice and a factory rifle will do just fine with a little tuning.....put the $$$ you save toward a good varmint rifle.....you are gonna need it in the southpark area. Coyotes are thick there...I know from experience. my choice would be the 22-250. AJ

I agree with this. I use a 300 win mag for deer/antelope/sheep. And I absolutely love the .338 caliber bullet for elk. The RUM is hard to beat but you probably need to install a brake. But you can build a lighter unbraked 338 win mag that will be a hammer out to 600 yards for elk.

 

[angus-5024]

I cant argue with the comments on the .338 RUM, its an incredible round (along with all the other .338's of similar size). The only thing I will say is that they are not for everyone. Recoil is stout and it is more to shoot than most of the 30 cals by a large margin.
If I needed one gun to hunt elk with on a college budget it would be a Win Coyote lite in 300 wsm wearing a 2.5-10x44 Vortex pst or maybe a little more magnification. This combo is heavy enough for precision but small enough for speed. 10x is enough for a grand and 2.5 is pretty sweet in the timber. This would come in well below budget and leave enough for good mounts, a harris and sling... maybe even an angle indicator.
If you need a .338, GET A HEAVY BARREL. with 90-100 grains of powder going down the tube they get hot FAST.
good luck.

 

[LeddSlinger]

If you don't like to wear hearing protection/enhancement while hunting, I would not recommend building anything that requires a muzzle brake. You will be screaming, cussing, and hating life the first time that thing goes off in your unprotected ear.

Any of the big 30's would be more than adequate for elk at 600 yards. The 200gr Nosler Accubond in the 300 Win Mag at 2900+ fps is a real thumper.

Any of the bigger 7mm's would work as well so long as you stick to the heavier bullets.

Of course 33's work. That goes without saying.

If you don't mind spending extra to build a custom rifle on a wildcat round, the options are endless...


For optics, I personally use the Bushnell Elite Tactical 4.5-30x50mm scope on my 338-375 Ruger. The 4.5x enables me to hunt timber while the higher powers allow me to take very precise long range shots. Great glass and the scope holds zero and tracks perfectly. My rifle does NOT wear a muzzle brake.

A lot of options out there. Good luck

 

[sp6x6]

A good used 340 Wby would be a start. Thats what I picked 25 yrs ago, easy 1000 yrd rifle.

 

[Boman]

Sp6x6 had it right. For a dedicated elk rifle I'd go 340wby. Its what I did a few times over. I also hunt some of those units and know most shots are under 400yds. Most of mine are within 50.. I eventually went custom for a 7lb scoped rifle. But what I would do if I were you is buy a used Kimber montana in 300win or 338win. If they shoot well throw a scope on and go. But what id do is rebarrel it to 340wby and add a Leupold vx3 and be done. You can add turrets or go with a bc reticle your choice. Good luck and congrats on your upcoming graduation.