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taylorce1 · February 11, 2010, 07:37 PM

Where are you elk hunting? You shouldn't need a back up rifle to your .30-06, just make sure your scope is rugged and holds zero. Make sure you check your zero when you get to where you are hunting.

As far as bullets go you shouldn't need anything heavier than a 180 grain for even the largest bull elk. A premium bullet will give you a little extra insurance, but if you go with Barnes TSX/TTSX bullets drop down to at least 165 grain for the extra FPS for reliable expansion. I killed my first elk with plain old .30-06 180 grain Winchester Power Points no problem.

Just practice a lot from field positions at the range. Sitting, kneeling, prone, and off hand, if you can incorporate improvised rests such as a day pack or shooting sticks as well into your practice. Practice using a sling as well to improve your shooting. Bench shooting is fine to find which ammunition shoots well in your rifle, but you will not find a bench when hunting elk.

Elk are tough, but they are not bullet proof. Taking out the lungs takes them down pretty quick. Some guys like to break shoulders, I don't see the need as I've never had a lung shot elk run more than a few yards. Where you will have problems is if you have to shoot elk already on the move. Just keep shooting until they go down is my best advice.

I don't know about hunting rifle season hunting with a ML but in Colorado during ML season there are a few rules that you will find quite different from IN. First one is no sabots, bullets must be full bore and length can not exceed twice the bore diameter, so for a .50 cal you can't be longer than 1" with conicals. Powerbelts are legal for now. No pelletized powders, BP substitutes are fine but must be granular. No optics allowed, so trade in that scope for a peep site. Make sure you know the firearm rules for where you will be hunting before you go.

February 11, 2010, 07:37 PM	#9
taylorce1 Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2005 Location: On the Santa Fe Trail Posts: 8,494	Where are you elk hunting? You shouldn't need a back up rifle to your .30-06, just make sure your scope is rugged and holds zero. Make sure you check your zero when you get to where you are hunting. As far as bullets go you shouldn't need anything heavier than a 180 grain for even the largest bull elk. A premium bullet will give you a little extra insurance, but if you go with Barnes TSX/TTSX bullets drop down to at least 165 grain for the extra FPS for reliable expansion. I killed my first elk with plain old .30-06 180 grain Winchester Power Points no problem. Just practice a lot from field positions at the range. Sitting, kneeling, prone, and off hand, if you can incorporate improvised rests such as a day pack or shooting sticks as well into your practice. Practice using a sling as well to improve your shooting. Bench shooting is fine to find which ammunition shoots well in your rifle, but you will not find a bench when hunting elk. Elk are tough, but they are not bullet proof. Taking out the lungs takes them down pretty quick. Some guys like to break shoulders, I don't see the need as I've never had a lung shot elk run more than a few yards. Where you will have problems is if you have to shoot elk already on the move. Just keep shooting until they go down is my best advice. I don't know about hunting rifle season hunting with a ML but in Colorado during ML season there are a few rules that you will find quite different from IN. First one is no sabots, bullets must be full bore and length can not exceed twice the bore diameter, so for a .50 cal you can't be longer than 1" with conicals. Powerbelts are legal for now. No pelletized powders, BP substitutes are fine but must be granular. No optics allowed, so trade in that scope for a peep site. Make sure you know the firearm rules for where you will be hunting before you go. Last edited by taylorce1; February 11, 2010 at 07:44 PM.