all the magazines will tell you you'll want a rifle that has long range and flat trajectory, and yeah, thats certainly no
handicap, but in 50 years of hunting elk I can only think of two or three times a BLR in caliber 450 marlin, would not have been perfectly acceptable, simply because you seldom see game at over 200 yards and ranges under 100 yards are common
much of the area looks similar too these pictures I found posted elseware
selecting the rifle that best matches your particular needs, and one that best matches the game, the territory, terrain, the state game laws, that you hunt and your particular desire in action type, caliber, weight, etc, would be like trying to select the best wife, your input and thoughts on the mater will be critical.
Almost ANY CENTER FIRE RIFLE in 25-45 caliber ,that will work for most elk hunts,and will be fine on most deer hunts!
I can point out a couple factors, that might help you decide, ,but Id suggest you select a fairly common caliber, to allow you to locate ammo at reasonable prices unless you reload. and a few of the classics like the 25/06, 270 win 30\06, 280 rem, 358 win and 308 win, will certainly get the job done over a wide range of conditions
(proper shot placement and a good knowledge of a deer's anatomy are the most critical factors here as whitetail deer are not particularly difficult to kill.)
almost every year I have at least one of the younger guys, in our elk hunt club, ask me what rifle Id suggest for deer/elk hunting, and thats a bit like asking me to select the best choice in a girl friend for them, each of us is looking for slightly different things.
yes most elk rifles might be a bit more powerful in some popular calibers , than required for much smaller deer, but they should all work ok.
most white tail deer weight well under 220 lbs, especially in the southern states, so they are not nearly the size of elk.
like most things you,ll want too match the tools used, too the job at hand!
its your knowledge of the games anatomy and your skills at accurate shot placement,
and proper bullet selection that counts more that the head stamp on the cartridge case!
most white tail deer are hunted in rather tight or bushy cover,
generally limiting the potential distance your likely too see deer to under 200 yards .
Id point out that most white tail deer are killed at well under 200 yards
and calibers with minimal recoil like the 257 roberts, 25/06 , 6.5 mm Swedish, or 270 win, 7mm-08 ,308 win,or 30/30 are perfectly adequate.
or if you tolerate recoil fairly well, 444 marlin, 45/70, or even a 458 win mag work fine, or even a pistol caliber carbine in 357 mag, 45 lc, out to at least 100 yards, or a 44 mag carbine,will certainly be able to handle white tail deer out to ranges far past 200 yards,with the proper 265-310 grain hand loads,
and in the hands of a good consistently accurate shot, they will work for elk.
that being stated, Id prefer a bit more in bullet diameter, and weight, and I,ve had very good results from a 270 win, 25/06, and 30/06 Springfield, 308 win, 358 win and 45/70 on white tail deer,
but a good 44 mag or 45LC carbine will work fine in most areas, on deer, but the pistol caliber carbines would severely limit effective range on elk and even deer, while its usually true, ranges they get shot at, tend to average in most areas well short of 120 yards.
I have had good results with a 30/06 and 200 grain bullets,in a Remington slide action rifle and excellent results with a 250 Speer bullet used in a 35 whelen, in a Remington slide action rifle
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...hat-are-you-looking-for-in-an-elk-rifle.2368/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-favorite-and-most-used-big-game-rifle.13113/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/some-higher-quality-scopes.12533/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...looking-for-a-good-7mm-rem-mag-elk-load.6270/
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/rons-358-win-choice.12388/#post-61647
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...ifle-choice-if-starting-over.6505/#post-55840
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-good-light-weight-elk-rifle.3738/#post-55595
http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...-elk-are-not-mandatory.1275/page-2#post-45920
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/don-t-like-levers.11104/#post-49499
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