I just got off a phone call with a friend, whos dad got his ELK this year like he has done many years in the past
with his 257 Roberts rifle.(vaugely similar to this one, but his is much older he bought his years ago)
he had accompanied his dad on his elk hunt to help drag out and process the elk as his dads in his 80s now. and while he can still walk and hunt, processing an ELK is basically a younger mans job .
now Id point out that he a Colorado resident and hes usually, but not always hunting on private land that sees little hunting pressure , and he limits his shots to under about 150 yards as hes not all that comfortable shooting at much longer distances, but like most years he patiently, waited until he got a semi-broadside shot angle and slipped a 100 grain speer bullet into the elks heart/lung area from a sitting position.
the shot was made at about 80 yards , his dad had seated himself down wind and under a large conifer from an open fence gate where the ELK tended to travel thru a freinds pasture to reach a water basin/wind mill the elk use as a water source many evenings on his friends ranch.
the ELK ran about 60 yards and folded in mid stride.
many guys (including myself) feel that the 270 Winchester with a good 150 grain bullet is about as small a caliber as any elk hunter should choose but that's also because we know very few people have the mental strength to pass on shots they may get at ranges over a set range where the smaller calibers may be limited, in there ability to do the job well.
but his consistent use of and success with that 257 Roberts rifle (it was a bolt action Winchester 70 feather weight) proves its the guy using the gun, and his precise shot placement more than the caliber used that produces success.
http://www.gunnersden.com/index.htm.257roberts.html
http://www.handloads.com/loaddata/defau ... er&Source=
http://www.gunsandammo.com/content/257-roberts
http://www.reloadbench.com/cartridges/257r.html
with his 257 Roberts rifle.(vaugely similar to this one, but his is much older he bought his years ago)
he had accompanied his dad on his elk hunt to help drag out and process the elk as his dads in his 80s now. and while he can still walk and hunt, processing an ELK is basically a younger mans job .
now Id point out that he a Colorado resident and hes usually, but not always hunting on private land that sees little hunting pressure , and he limits his shots to under about 150 yards as hes not all that comfortable shooting at much longer distances, but like most years he patiently, waited until he got a semi-broadside shot angle and slipped a 100 grain speer bullet into the elks heart/lung area from a sitting position.
the shot was made at about 80 yards , his dad had seated himself down wind and under a large conifer from an open fence gate where the ELK tended to travel thru a freinds pasture to reach a water basin/wind mill the elk use as a water source many evenings on his friends ranch.
the ELK ran about 60 yards and folded in mid stride.
many guys (including myself) feel that the 270 Winchester with a good 150 grain bullet is about as small a caliber as any elk hunter should choose but that's also because we know very few people have the mental strength to pass on shots they may get at ranges over a set range where the smaller calibers may be limited, in there ability to do the job well.
but his consistent use of and success with that 257 Roberts rifle (it was a bolt action Winchester 70 feather weight) proves its the guy using the gun, and his precise shot placement more than the caliber used that produces success.
http://www.gunnersden.com/index.htm.257roberts.html
http://www.handloads.com/loaddata/defau ... er&Source=
http://www.gunsandammo.com/content/257-roberts
http://www.reloadbench.com/cartridges/257r.html