.270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
03-25-2005, 05:49 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location:
Posts: 13
.270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
I can't let this pass! A .270 as an elk cartridge, NO WAY!
I've been reading other threads on this forum, about how good the .270 Win is to use on elk, by some of the different posters here. I can't disagree more with that opinion. It isn't a good cartridge for hunting elk. Period. My Opinion.
I know, I know, some will say I kill 2 or 10 with the .270 and didn't have any problems... Well I've killed over 40 elk, some with the .270 and I've been in on the kills of atleast double that (80 or more, I've lost count). More animals were lost/wounded do to the .270s failure to preform and to its less than adaquate preformances. (For mule deer its just dandy)
Try tracking an elk with a little hole in its gizzard through the timber. Or pack it back out of that valley 7 miles from the camp, where it ran into before it expired (if some other hunter doesn't take the elk on its way). The horses can't get into it, and you are the one, that has to pack it out, on your back at 10,000' to the horses. Assuming you have horses, otherwise enjoy the 5/7 mile hike with 500 lbs of meat on your back. Better, try it in the snow. Really great fun. Your outfitter will love you too!
One good thing, and only one thing about the .270 I agree somewhat with (Not Much though), someone mentioned in another thread is the availablility of "Fail Safe" bullets and the Permium Bonded Core bullet. But even with those bullet, the .270 is really lacking in my experiences. Most hunters won't buy premium ammo because it cost to much. They're to darn cheap.
Elk are sometimes very hard to put on the ground, and when I read someone saying the .270 is just a fine cartridge for elk, I just have to laugh to myself and wonder how much elk hunting they really done.
Yeah, the .270 Win will kill an elk, but not very well in my experiences. They are really great for wounding an elk.
Oh, one more thing, when someone talks about shot placement being very important, they are right. It just doesn't happen that way, all the time, under all circumstances, in the field. If they say they can place that bullet exactly, I'd say they haven't hunted very much, or are telling fish stories. When a less than a desired shot placement is made, the more frontal area a bullet has and a bullet sectional density of close to 300 ,works much better than any .270 ever thought of being able to do. Shot placement can be a very difficult thing at times, even when your good at it.
There I've said it.
I've been reading other threads on this forum, about how good the .270 Win is to use on elk, by some of the different posters here. I can't disagree more with that opinion. It isn't a good cartridge for hunting elk. Period. My Opinion.
I know, I know, some will say I kill 2 or 10 with the .270 and didn't have any problems... Well I've killed over 40 elk, some with the .270 and I've been in on the kills of atleast double that (80 or more, I've lost count). More animals were lost/wounded do to the .270s failure to preform and to its less than adaquate preformances. (For mule deer its just dandy)
Try tracking an elk with a little hole in its gizzard through the timber. Or pack it back out of that valley 7 miles from the camp, where it ran into before it expired (if some other hunter doesn't take the elk on its way). The horses can't get into it, and you are the one, that has to pack it out, on your back at 10,000' to the horses. Assuming you have horses, otherwise enjoy the 5/7 mile hike with 500 lbs of meat on your back. Better, try it in the snow. Really great fun. Your outfitter will love you too!
One good thing, and only one thing about the .270 I agree somewhat with (Not Much though), someone mentioned in another thread is the availablility of "Fail Safe" bullets and the Permium Bonded Core bullet. But even with those bullet, the .270 is really lacking in my experiences. Most hunters won't buy premium ammo because it cost to much. They're to darn cheap.
Elk are sometimes very hard to put on the ground, and when I read someone saying the .270 is just a fine cartridge for elk, I just have to laugh to myself and wonder how much elk hunting they really done.
Yeah, the .270 Win will kill an elk, but not very well in my experiences. They are really great for wounding an elk.
Oh, one more thing, when someone talks about shot placement being very important, they are right. It just doesn't happen that way, all the time, under all circumstances, in the field. If they say they can place that bullet exactly, I'd say they haven't hunted very much, or are telling fish stories. When a less than a desired shot placement is made, the more frontal area a bullet has and a bullet sectional density of close to 300 ,works much better than any .270 ever thought of being able to do. Shot placement can be a very difficult thing at times, even when your good at it.
There I've said it.
03-25-2005, 06:26 PM
#3
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Arcadia Ca USA
Posts: 210
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
ORIGINAL: Slamfire
Go...er, uh, Gadd has spoken! His state's game commission better sit up and take notice.
Go...er, uh, Gadd has spoken! His state's game commission better sit up and take notice.
There is a big difference between killing and consistantly anchoring an animal.
There is a big difference between performance with ideal bullet placement and performance with less-than-ideal bullet placement.
While I have shot my fare share of elk in my day, I am sure that there are others here with more experience.
However when it comes to killing large black bears, I am sure that there aren't many who have either killed and been in on more kills than I have.
One of the areas that we kill blackies is South Eastern Coastal Alaska... aka the Coastal Jungle... and they grow some big ones. The black bears here will reach 800lbs.
Most bears are generally stalked and subsequently shot on the rocky beaches, however, unless they are hit hard, they don't die on the beach.
Even if they are at the shoreline, it is only a 20-20 yard dash to some of the thickest and nastiest foliage that you will ever encounter. It is usually 10-20 feet deep and many times requires you to crawl on your hands and knees to get through. Once past this wall, it generally opens up into a NW rainforest.
Don't get me wrong, a very good friend of mine hunts them withhis 270 Win, he loads 140gr Bear Claws, and does quite well with them.
However, I don't think that anybody in their right mind would recommend a 270 Winchester as a bear rifle. Personally, I like hitting bone and I'd be scared to do it with that setup.
I think when dealing with elk, it is somewhat similar... In that you want to hit that animal hard and anchor him under less-than-ideal conditions.
Anyway, just my opinion...
SA
03-25-2005, 07:03 PM
#4
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Crescent Valley, NV
Posts: 2,271
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
This is very interesting, and I find it funny to see how things have changed over the years. I have a book at home about Elk hunting. It was put out in the mid-80's or so. It was put out by the North American Hunting Club, though I don't remember the authors off hand, though I do recall Wayne Van Zwoll, and Chuck Adams. In there, it has the 6 most popular elk cartridges for that time period. They were the .270, 7mm Rem. Mag, .308 Winchester, .30-06, .300 Win Mag, and the .338 Win Mag. This was long before the Ultra Mags, or Lazz's cartridges came out. The Weatherby Cartridges were out, but were quite unpopular in the time. Now all everyone wants are these super magnums for elk. Everyone thinks that the 4 first cartridges listed (No, I don't consider the 7mm Rem. Mag a true magnum due to the fact that it is only slighty more powerful than the .30-06) are not capable of taking elk!! They had been responsible for thousands upon thousands of elk before people even started asking if they were good enough to take elk!!! No one had to ask, they just knew it would work!! And this was before a wide selection of super premium bullets became available (a good addition in my opinion!).
03-25-2005, 07:33 PM
#5
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location:
Posts: 659
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
i am with u c.b. i live in wyoming and elk hunt every year. i have killed plenty of elk. when i hear someone say that .270 is not a good elk rifle, i think wow what would they think of my 30-30 or .357 roberts? oh before you all get bent out of shape i have never wounded an elk! i also eat elk steak every year! so stop worring is my gun big enough and start working on being a better shot. use a little patience and take your time and get close and make a good shot!
oh i almost forgot i have not gun hunted elk in 4 years, it got to easy!
oh i almost forgot i have not gun hunted elk in 4 years, it got to easy!
03-25-2005, 07:40 PM
#6
Dominant Buck
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: WC FL
Posts: 26,323
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
ORIGINAL: charlie brown
This is very interesting, and I find it funny to see how things have changed over the years. I have a book at home about Elk hunting. It was put out in the mid-80's or so. It was put out by the North American Hunting Club, though I don't remember the authors off hand, though I do recall Wayne Van Zwoll, and Chuck Adams. In there, it has the 6 most popular elk cartridges for that time period. They were the .270, 7mm Rem. Mag, .308 Winchester, .30-06, .300 Win Mag, and the .338 Win Mag. This was long before the Ultra Mags, or Lazz's cartridges came out. The Weatherby Cartridges were out, but were quite unpopular in the time. Now all everyone wants are these super magnums for elk. Everyone thinks that the 4 first cartridges listed (No, I don't consider the 7mm Rem. Mag a true magnum due to the fact that it is only slighty more powerful than the .30-06) are not capable of taking elk!! They had been responsible for thousands upon thousands of elk before people even started asking if they were good enough to take elk!!! No one had to ask, they just knew it would work!! And this was before a wide selection of super premium bullets became available (a good addition in my opinion!).
This is very interesting, and I find it funny to see how things have changed over the years. I have a book at home about Elk hunting. It was put out in the mid-80's or so. It was put out by the North American Hunting Club, though I don't remember the authors off hand, though I do recall Wayne Van Zwoll, and Chuck Adams. In there, it has the 6 most popular elk cartridges for that time period. They were the .270, 7mm Rem. Mag, .308 Winchester, .30-06, .300 Win Mag, and the .338 Win Mag. This was long before the Ultra Mags, or Lazz's cartridges came out. The Weatherby Cartridges were out, but were quite unpopular in the time. Now all everyone wants are these super magnums for elk. Everyone thinks that the 4 first cartridges listed (No, I don't consider the 7mm Rem. Mag a true magnum due to the fact that it is only slighty more powerful than the .30-06) are not capable of taking elk!! They had been responsible for thousands upon thousands of elk before people even started asking if they were good enough to take elk!!! No one had to ask, they just knew it would work!! And this was before a wide selection of super premium bullets became available (a good addition in my opinion!).
CHARLIE BROWN, YOU GOT IT RIGHT!
03-26-2005, 10:20 PM
#7
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Kalispell Montana
Posts: 39
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
Most people would be shoked with how many elk have been taken with a 30-30. Don't get me wrong now thats all that some of the old cowboys had to shoot. And they could shoot them old 30-30. for the average modernday hunter you might pick something bigger if you cannot place a shot.
Farmanimal
Farmanimal
03-27-2005, 11:34 AM
#8
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: lebanon pa USA
Posts: 652
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
Try tracking an elk with a little hole in its gizzard through the timber
03-27-2005, 06:41 PM
#9
Typical Buck
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Anchorage,Alaska
Posts: 512
RE: .270 on Elk, No Way! There I said it!
OK here's my 4 Cents worth as 6 months ago I gave 2 cents on the same subject.
You can drive a VW cross country.
You can fish with a stick and string.
You can bass fish from a Row Boat.
And yes you can hunt Elk with a 270, but with better selections out there, why would you with the inexperiance want to. If you have to ask advise go with a larger caliber instead of a bordering caliber.
You can drive a VW cross country.
You can fish with a stick and string.
You can bass fish from a Row Boat.
And yes you can hunt Elk with a 270, but with better selections out there, why would you with the inexperiance want to. If you have to ask advise go with a larger caliber instead of a bordering caliber.
