planning an elk hunt

K

KEN K

New member
I've decided to elk hunt at least once while I can still walk. I've killed plenty of deer but was wondering about bullet choice for elk since they are 4 times larger. I plan to hunt with my jap 7.7 174 gr, bullet that I hand load. I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on soft point vs. hollow point, the hollow pt. is a boat tail and should give me better trajectory and speed at 300 yds. , but how well will it penetrate say in the shoulder at that range. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
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I would say use the soft point. A quality 174 gr bullet at about 2,300 fps should penetrate fine and give you a clean kill within 200 yds, 300 may be a stretch. I doubt that the cartridge with that heavy of a bullet would be unsuitable.
 
I dunno the ballistics on your rifle but the generall rule for elk is 1500 ft/lbs KE on target. Sounds to me like 300 yards might be a bit long for that rifle. Also the toughest bullet is the best, HP's are probably not a good idea.
 
You really need to use a soft point bullet and not a HP boattail. The HP will shed it's jacket and not give you the impact you're looking for.

I gave a lift one time to a hunter who got lost, who just happened to write articles for Handloader magazine. He used the Nosler partition bullet as his benchmark whenever he was comparing bullets/loads/etc. and since we were both elk hunting at the time, what he said made sense as far as bullet type.
 
Stick with the softpoint, as it will expand and reasonably stay together. The HP may separate at close range without giving the utmost in penetration, something of great importance on a 900 lb. bull. Always use more than enough gun.
 
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Majestic World Lodge in the Allegheny Mts. of Pennsylvania offers good elk hunts for less than $3,000.00. It's a high fence operation but the animals are not tame. They even offer a discounted hunt for "promo bulls" which are an un-intentional cross between European red stag and North American elk.

The Lodge is very comfortable, food and beds most excellent. The hunting is not high exertion but I recommend hunting with an open-sighted lever action carbine or big revolver to make it more challenging. Archers are welcome, too.

Contrast this to a drafty tent and older cot. Snow squalls in the Bighorn Mts. of Wyoming just add to the misery. Plan to spend a whole lot for a 6 day pack-in wilderness hunt and return home feeling exhausted.

I've not hunted at this Lodge but spent an enjoyable weekend relaxing with my wife. We stalked a herd of elk (un-armed). Their fallow deer are equally fun to stalk and photograph.

Jack
 
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