My favorite caliber

[WildRose]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I do believe the .270 win has killed more elk than any other caliber. My buddies dad killed 63 bulls on the Olympic peninsula with the same .270, my buddy took 23 bulls in Oregon with his .270. Sadly he's no longer with us.

Highly doubtful. Millions of them have been taken with .30-30's and 06's starting long before it was developed and are still hugely popular with elk hunters.

The .270 has a much smaller niche following.

 

[WildRose]

I am also a big fan of the 270 wsm. I tried to get behind the 7mms (own and have owned several) and the 30's, but it wasn't my cup of tea. I am turning into more an more of a fan of the 6.5's. I have a 260 and my son has a 6.5 creedmoor. Low recoil, high BC bullets with awesome sectional densities is fun stuff.

I have a very respectable collection with numerous calibers and the more I shoot the 6.5's the more I want to shoot the 6.5's.

As bad as I hate to admit it but if I had to wean myself down to only two rifles I think one would be a a .260 and the other a .375 Ruger. You'd have everything from prairie dogs to elephant covered with that pair.

 

[WildRose]

Not quite the mass and energy of the .500 class big bores, I have owned and hunted with my H&H 500-450 Nitro Express, acquired in the early 90's. 480gr@5000FPE. Made in 1904, also a rifle with interesting history, its still well suited for the intended purpose. Shown below is a Lion I shot about 30 years ago....at 20 paces. The rather tatty insert photo shows the original owner, a famous writer, PH, and adventurer, William Buckley. Hard to see but he holds the exact same rifle used for a lion he shot 100 years earlier.
View attachment 113693

Great story, great photo. You had to feel like you were walking with giants that day.

 

[WildRose]

EXACTLY! I cringe every time I read caliber recommendation threads for elk or bear or whatever and guys are saying calibers under 300 win mag or 338 win mag shouldn't even be considered and they aren't adequate for elk. I think people confuse their personal preference with what is really needed to kill these animals. If you want to own and hunt with large calibers do it - different strokes for different folks...don't say that smaller calibers are inadequate or shouldn't be used to kill elk or bears or big muleys. It's just not true. I don't have anything against large or magnum calibers either...I own and have owned and hunted with several different ones.

It takes a quality bullet put in the right place with enough energy to perform as designed.

Most of the rest is as you say personal preference and internet hype.

Make a poor shot, use the wrong bullet for the intended POI and all sorts of bad things happen regardless of the caliber.

 

[LDHunter]

I've always turned to my 30 caliber rifles when I wanted to kill medium to large size game. After 50 years of hunting and having witnessed a LOT of game harvested I've concluded that my choice of 30 caliber kills more reliably and quickly then almost any other caliber but I'm not sure I could say it's any better than a 7mm and a 7mm Magnum will always reign supreme in the every day man's devastating game killer. It may be a bit much for a whitetail but the fact that it's great even up to and including elk and moose it's hard to ignore it as a great harvester of almost all game and it's super available in the ammo department. The 300WM is possibly a bit better but the recoil of the 300WM vs the 7RM seems to be just a bit too much for most of the people I know.

Curiously enough I've never owned a Remington 7mm Magnum but almost all my hunting and shooting buddies have one. I do have a couple of the Remington 7mmSAUM rifles and love them but if you aren't a handloader the ammo is very expensive and very hard to even find and brass is nearly impossible to find so I don't recommend them to most hunters/shooters.

As for the 270... Yes it's a great game killer but the need for a broadside shot is much more important with that caliber due to the fact that it doesn't carry a heavy enough bullet with the necessary speed to crash through bone and heavy tissue to reach the vitals like a 7mm or 30 caliber will do. If your hunting situations present enough broadside standing shots then it may be perfectly fine but in my experience we don't often get presented with that type of shot especially with trophy worthy game and it seems like that's important to most hunters. Otherwise you'll have to track and lose more game than you will with a heavier caliber.

Make mine a 30 or 7mm....

 

[Elkeater]

Aye Sir! Me too, I have 3 of them but when it is time for a new barrel, it will be different.

When I'm satisfied with my .300 WM I would like a .270 WSM on a long action to be able seat the longer hammer bullets out further.

 

[Joefrazell]

Definitely. 30 cal over .277 cal. alot more offerings and bullet weights to choose. My favorite would have to be the 300 win mag. 270 win is a great cartridge also

 

[Idaho Lefty]

My son and I, used our Tikka T3's, to kill 2 Bull Elk this, Fall. His with, a 7mm-08 w/ 150 gr. ELD-X's at, 2,850 FPS, mine with, a .270 WSM, w/ 140 AccuBond's at, 3,150 FPS,.. 2 shots , 2 DEAD, Bulls. Cannon's, are NOT,..necessary ! Good Bullets and accurate, "shot PLACEMENT",.. ARE, tho ! And we "shoot" these lil' "Pop Guns" pretty well, because,.. RECOIL and Muzzle BLAST,.. don't bother us ! PS; my .338 Magnum "Flinch" is almost,.. gone !!! Favorite Caliber,.. ONE that, I can "shoot",.. WELL and,.. Kills !

 

[buck8541]

I know I have written about this in other posts, but I went to the 280 AI and have never looked back. I still have lots of other rifles in the safe, but the 280 makes every trip with me no matter if its pigs, antelope, deer, or elk. 160 Gr Accubonds have a good B.C. and leave my barrel at 2975fps, plenty of power out to 800 yards (my longest shot on a deer) and no magnum recoil. Win, win for me.

 

[VLD Pilot]

I know I have written about this in other posts, but I went to the 280 AI and have never looked back. I still have lots of other rifles in the safe, but the 280 makes every trip with me no matter if its pigs, antelope, deer, or elk. 160 Gr Accubonds have a good B.C. and leave my barrel at 2975fps, plenty of power out to 800 yards (my longest shot on a deer) and no magnum recoil. Win, win for me.

Just as I've said, with today's bullets and powders, magnums are not necessary like they once we're.

 

[mobenzowner]

I'd sure hate to shoot a bull elk with the 30-30. It may have killed it's fair share, but I bet a good percentage wondered off and died later from their injuries. I wouldn't think of even taking a broadside shot with it past about 125 yds. Not saying I'm right but that's my opinion.

 

[FIGJAM]

I'd sure hate to shoot a bull elk with the 30-30. It may have killed it's fair share, but I bet a good percentage wondered off and died later their injuries

When that happens its a shot placement issue, not a 30-30 or any caliber issue.

 

[rustyshackleford]

Just as I've said, with today's bullets and powders, magnums are not necessary like they once we're.

Don't forget optics. When all you had was a standard duplex reticle increasing your MPBR through increased velocity wasn't the worst plan. Now with the advent of optics with 25-35 mils of travel these rounds can be more accurately placed than ever.

 

[Gregory Duerr]

17 Remington...........................No Closed Season................