What moose cartridge?

I have plenty of opinion on moose "cartridges" but zero personal experience... all "20ish" bulls were taken with bow & arrow... I have been around when many moose were shot, but in my intemperate youth, I was a "stick n' string" purest and used archery gear during the rifle season too...

You can't go far wrong with a .30/06 from MB east and a .300 WM from SK west.
 
The avg distance of the moose I have taken is 130 yards. I'd go 270 or bigger, with a bullet that will punch through some bone and muscle without coming unglued.
 
hoytcanon said:
I have plenty of opinion on moose "cartridges" but zero personal experience... all "20ish" bulls were taken with bow & arrow... I have been around when many moose were shot, but in my intemperate youth, I was a "stick n' string" purest and used archery gear during the rifle season too...

You can't go far wrong with a .30/06 from MB east and a .300 WM from SK west.
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One day perhaps :) but I'll gear my efforts towards Vancouver Island Blacktail first. With the contending with shoulder rotator cuff issues, :( I've found it easier to switch back to firearms, for the time being anyway.

 
Johnn Peterson said:
One day perhaps :) but I'll gear my efforts towards Vancouver Island Blacktail first. With the contending with shoulder rotator cuff issues, :( I've found it easier to switch back to firearms, for the time being anyway.

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I hear ya - it's really a question of how much you have into a single arrow versus the cost of a cartridge.
 
SuperCub said:
I've shot two moose with a 375 Magnum. Both lung shots, neither dropped on the spot.
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Have not seen a moose yet that flopped on a lung shot. Neck or spine, yes. Heart - most definately. Heart twice with a .308.

In my experience, a moose will run 50 to 150 yds after lung shot. Does not matter if it is a .243 or a .300.
 
I have had the good fortune to have harvested moose with 9.3x62 @ 75 yds., 300 H&H @150 yds., 404 Jeffery @ 356 yds., This year I hope to use 7.62x54R, 303 British,270, 45/70,9.3x57, 8x57, 358 win, 358 Norma Mag, 375 H&H , or any of my black powder guns. It is all so exciting, to pick one and just go hunting.
 
I have shot more moose than I can recall with a number of cartridges. A number fell to the .300 win mag with 200 grain Grand Slams. The .444 Marlin was my go-to shooter for a number of years. My preferred load was a 300 grain Speer soft point that was really clipping along. Very effective. I shot one lone calf with a .45-70 guide gun at about 20 paces. 405 grain Remmy soft point hand load in that one. My .338 RUM has accounted for the last few. All worked well. The ranges varied from almost right off the end of the barrel out to a couple hundred yards or so. Most were probably 50 and under. My wife and father-in-law tote .30-06's with various loads. My mother-in-law has dropped a number with a .243. We have never lost one.

Like a lot of hunting - success has probably more to do with using a decent bullet and placing it in the boiler room.
 
saskcop said:
I have shot more moose than I can recall with a number of cartridges. A number fell to the .300 win mag with 200 grain Grand Slams. The .444 Marlin was my go-to shooter for a number of years. My preferred load was a 300 grain Speer soft point that was really clipping along. Very effective. I shot one lone calf with a .45-70 guide gun at about 20 paces. 405 grain Remmy soft point hand load in that one. My .338 RUM has accounted for the last few. All worked well. The ranges varied from almost right off the end of the barrel out to a couple hundred yards or so. Most were probably 50 and under. My wife and father-in-law tote .30-06's with various loads. My mother-in-law has dropped a number with a .243. We have never lost one.

Like a lot of hunting - success has probably more to do with using a decent bullet and placing it in the boiler room.
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:) You've mentioned an old favorite of mine, the Marlin 444. I've never tried the 300gr Speer but the 265gr Hornady has shown to be a dependable performer for me. I do have a few cast bullets I've played with in it but have never tested in the field, one of which is a 300gr SW. The 444 now usually comes along on Moose trips as a spare rifle for the most part.
I have a Marlin 1895GBL in 45-70 and lucked into a sizeable quantity of Remington 405gr bullets. Is there any load with that bullet you've found to work really well? If so, any chance you could PM me some reload info?
 
I'll be young 8x57JS mauser S&B SPCE they fly strait and will do well. .308 should be fine too. Really don't worry much it's your first year you'll be likely hunting calf anyway.
 
In many more remote areas. Calibers like the 30-30, .303, .308 were used for decades. Most shots when hunting moose are in the forest anyway. Swedish hunters use the 6.5 x 55 a lot. Accuracy is more important then extensive power. Get whatever you feel happy with.
 
NL-Hunter said:
Not me. Only people that do not have vid cameras around shoot them at long range.
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True story innit , the average hunter doesn't care for before photos and video, the average hunter is a hunter , photos come later.

key word regularly, id say No, not many past 200, depending on region and terrain, 50-100 is common, or 100-200 is common :)
 
WhelanLad said:
True story innit , the average hunter doesn't care for before photos and video, the average hunter is a hunter , photos come later.

key word regularly, id say No, not many past 200, depending on region and terrain, 50-100 is common, or 100-200 is common :)
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And, many of those 4-500 "yard" shots turn out to be 100-150 when measured out.
 
nomad 68 said:
Many moose have fallen to a .308. Contrary to popular opinion, you don't need a cannon to harvest a moose.
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30-30 win, 303 br, 308 win, 30-06 sprng probably account for over 90% of the moose shot in canada.
The 300 savage was pretty popular as a moose hunting round for a while also as was the lowly 12 ga with slugs.
 
torontogungal said:
30-30 win, 303 br, 308 win, 30-06 sprng probably account for over 90% of the moose shot in canada.
The 300 savage was pretty popular as a moose hunting round for a while also as was the lowly 12 ga with slugs.
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That perception must depend on where you live. I haven't seen anyone around here hunting anything with a 30-30 or 303 British in decades, and don't even know anyone who ever tried for moose with a 12 gauge. 30-06 retains a steady following in the bush and most of the .308s are non-bolts and also used by the bush-centric.
 
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