Its 2023 and you're going on your first elk hunt. What rifle/cartridge do you choose?

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It's 2023 and you're going on your first elk hunt. You've decided to buy yourself a new cartridge/rifle for this task. What do you choose?

I know the question of "best elk cartridge" gets thrown around a lot. With each passing decade both the variety and popularity of ideal cartridges seems to change.

I went into this with the classic 338 WinMag in mind but have since found both the selection of quality rifles and in-stock ammunition to be quite limited.

Having the capabiility of being effective on elk at distances of say 400m while also proving versatile enough to be used on other game (bear, sheep goat etc) where opportunity presents itself.

In the 2023 Canadian context (price, availability), what rifle and cartridge are you choosing for this kind of hunt?
 
I've bought a few 338's and even the beat up ones had very nice bores. It is simply beyond most people's recoil tolerance.

225, 250, 300 all will kill Elk.

See if you can get a hunt somewhere during the rut. Unless it's already booked next year I imagine. Not sure anywhere but NE BC is open during rifle season/ rut, but other parts of BC may be. No 400 yard shots needed and the most fun I've ever had with my pants on
 
The 338 is a great chambering for Elk. That being said, I think the 300 Win Mag is just as versatile.
I have shot the majority of my elk with the 308 Norma Mag, which is ballistically very similar to the
300 Win Mag. A 200 grain bullet can be driven close to 3000 FPS MV. This makes it quite flat shooting
and the recoil is a bit less than the 338.

The last 4 years I have hunted [and killed] my elk with 8mm rifles, the 325 WSM and the 8mm Rem
Mag. If I had to pick a dedicated Elk rifle, it would be the 8mm Rem Mag with either 200 or 220 grain
A-Frames. However, this is a bit hefty for deer sized game. Dave.
 
7mm RM or 300WM would be my first two choices. Lots of variety in factory rifles to choose from and they're both relatively well stocked factory ammo wise.

Both cover Elk easily enuff and the 7mm gives you some flatness for Sheep/Goats if they are readily avail to you and plan on chasing them with regularity.
 
At this stage I would use your tried and true deer rifle and leave the new boomer for next year. The boomer would be a 7mag that you can shop around a bit for.
 
Hmmm, with all the new cartridges available, I think I would go with a 30-06 hahaha… in a fairly light rifle with great optics and my own reloads! It would have to be blued steel and a nice figured walnut stock!
Or my soon to come Bradshaw ratage action single shot in 7x65r with a 165gn bullet of the partiton or Aframe kind!
 
Being that I am a newbie elk hunter (wink wink) choosing a new rifle/cartridge combination in 2023, I would be highly tempted to get a 7PRC in a Browning Mountain Pro Tungsten from for an all around western big game rifle.

Being an experienced elk hunter, advising a newbie elk hunter, I would recommend any rifle that fits the person comfortably, chambered to a cartridge from the 270/280/30-06 class on up to the 338 Win Mag which they can comfortably handle the recoil in their chosen rifle platform. If they can handle the recoil of a magnum cartridge, then any 270, 7mm, 300 or 338 magnum would suffice. If they aren't completely comfortable with recoil, than any non-magnum cartridge within the caliber range already mentioned will work just fine. As always, bullet placement is key...and stay away from that onside shoulder bone!
Given our current state of affairs in ammunition and reloading supplies, I would also recommend one of the more traditional cartridges (e.g., 7mm Rem Mag), vs the newest cartridges (e.g., 7 PRC) where supply is limited, so that they are assured that they can acquire the ammunition, and/or reloading components, to feed said rifle sufficiently so that they can get it sighted in and spent some range time with the rifle shooting targets from the bench and field shooting positions. Enough so that they are practiced and familiar with handling and shooting their new firearm (and optics), are confident that they can place the bullet in the vitals of an elk from a variety of field positions, and know at what range they can reliably do so.
 
DGY said:
Hmmm, with all the new cartridges available, I think I would go with a 30-06 hahaha… in a fairly light rifle with great optics and my own reloads! It would have to be blued steel and a nice figured walnut stock!
Or my soon to come Bradshaw ratage action single shot in 7x65r with a 165gn bullet of the partiton or Aframe kind!
Click to expand...

a very good choice but here not only we will always be newbie but to get drawn for an elk will be more a miracle lol ...
 
117 years later and the 30-06 still checks off all the boxes.

Our trouble is is that we're too cool to shoot something as common and mundane as the 30-06. :)
 
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