Big Bullets for Big Animals?

[RevJim]

I shot my first batch of "Big Animals" in 1996. I shot a handful of deer sized, but shot 1 or each: Kudu, Red Hartebeast, Oryz ( not super big) Blue Wildebeast and a big Zebra stallion. Used a 35 Whelen Ackley Improved/250X going 2600fps. It was like a hot knife in butter! Only caught 2 bullets, lengthwise shots in Kudu and Zebra. It "ruined me"! ha I have since then took same animals, on two other hunts, plus 5 cow elk plus 4 of the big Spike elk size Gemsbuck of Namibia. Used 300WM/180 XBT, 340Wby/210XBT and 375 H&H/270 Failsafe. Any angle, didn't matter! I "love" a 338 anything on elk, what about you? If you like it, what do you "love" as a "heavy hitter"? (I consider a 300WM/180 a heavy hitter!)

 

[nrpate05]

My heavy hitter is a 25-06 with a 100 grain TTSX. Full pass through on my elk this year. Why go bigger?!

 

[RevJim]

I know a few guys here in Utah that use their 25-06s for everything!

 

[Bonasababy]

Size isn't everything--as they say...

Bullet construction and how fast it is sent along matters as much as size.

 

[RevJim]

That is true, and a given, but I'm asking how many of you guys likes to shoot big animals with big guns?

 

[Southern Elk]

I have a Marlin .444 that shoots 240 gr bullets. Killed several deer with it.

 

[Bonasababy]

That is true, and a given, but I'm asking how many of you guys likes to shoot big animals with big guns?

Bought my 356 for bear and Moose. Haven't taken anything with it yet but hope to. 200 grain shoots better than 250 but I have both. We can't hunt moose anymore in my state--brother and brother in law took one when we last had a permit--I did all the work to find the spots but still had a good time and great story out of it. A 270 proved the best for that bull but that's only because my brother was a bit shook up and sent his 06 ammo a bit awry.