Help with Elk Hunting

[Fly]

I have never hunted a Elk in my life.I live in
east Okla & most of our hunting is under 100 Yd.

I have a friend that wants to go Elk hunting, but
I don't know where just yet.

Ok guy's give me a clue to how far most Elk are shot & what Cal would be best?Also with real powder how many grains @ what bullet?

Fly m

[Dean D.]

Your question is a hard one to answer without knowing the country you are going to hunt.

Where I hunt Elk I'd say most of our shots are in the 50-100 yard range. Dense woods with occasional meadows/openings.

As for load, I would suggest you pick the most accurate combination for your gun. Your gun is going to tell you what it prefers. Most folks will recommend a minimum of .50 cal.. I have a cousin who has hunted Elk with ML's since the 70s, he started with a .50, went to .54 and has finally settled on .58 the last time I talked to him. He likes the stopping power of the larger caliber.

Good luck on your endeavor and enjoy your hunt!

[Omnivore]

What Dean said. I'd also point out that different states have different minimum bore sizes for certain game. Check into that. 50 caliber with a heavy-ish bullet would be plenty adequate IMO, but bigger can be better so long as you find a reasonably accurate load that you can practice with and be reasonably comfortable. Some elephant loads can hurt, and they're not needed on an elk.

Correct shot placement is far more important than caliber.

If your friend hasn't hunted before, I'd like to address a comment I got long ago after telling a guy he should get closer to make his shots. He said my comment was foolish, didn't I know, because he hunted in some pretty flat, open country, and you can't sneak up on a (pick your prey).

Doesn't matter. Stalking game, and elk are usually quite reclusive, can be a losing proposition more often than not.

What you want to do is scout out an area and find out where they're going to be, and when, and then get yourself in there beforehand. With this method, I've killed three deer (started late in life, what can I say) in three seasons-- two at less than 25 yards and one at about 85 yards. Only one of the three even knew I was there before being struck, and that was the longest of the three shots. My son has killed more than I, and most of those at less than 30 yards. I guess it's not "hunting" so much as "sniping". All your "hunting" (scouting) is done well before the season starts. Water sources are often a choke point in daily game movements. Sometimes it's the avaiability of cover, etc. - know your area.

The answer for "how far should I expect to have to shoot" is;

No farther than you can reliably and properly hit your target.

So it comes down to experimentation and practice, once you've found your accurate hunting load. I am comfortable with my caplock 50 cal at about 100 yards with a patched ball load, as I've practiced with it up to that distance and I know I can hit the vitals of a deer at that distance from a standing position. Therefore, if a fine animal is well past that distance, it's not a shot. Sorry Charlie. Try again later.

You should also know the rifling twist rate of your barrel, and so you'll know what bullets it was optimised for. That's only a reference though, as some loads that normally "shouldn't" be accurate in a certain twist barrel might actually do alright.

[Naphtali]

I have never hunted a Elk in my life.I live in
east Okla & most of our hunting is under 100 Yd.

I have a friend that wants to go Elk hunting, but
I don't know where just yet.

Ok guy's give me a clue to how far most Elk are shot & what Cal would be best?Also with real powder how many grains @ what bullet?
Fly m You have jammed several questions into one, I think.

Regardless what range successful cartridge elk season hunters shoot, muzzleloading hunters' practical limit is (should be??) under 120 yards. You'll be pleased to know that the median first shot range for cartridge gun hunters is less than ML limit. . . . But wait! There's more.

Elk are significantly larger than deer. And, at least in western Montana, they tend to hang out in nasty, vertical places during the season - despite my seeing hundreds just off highway 83 between Seeley Lake and Clearwater junction during the off season. Were you to down an elk back of beyond, how are you getting it to your truck? If you have not or did not down the elk in a convenient close location, you have a long, Long unpleasant job bringing it out.

And that's the reason why I abandoned .54-caliber muzzleloaders in favor of 72s - not because a 54 won't do the job cleanly, rather to improve the likelihood the elk will drop near where I shoot it. Packing a large mule deer from a ravine cured me of any thought of being reasonable in terms of ML rifles. . . . And no, I was not the shooter. My hunting partner's son shot. It took several hours to pull it out in sections by rope.

As I type, my .72-caliber load is 150 grains Goex FFg beneath a custom 775-grain bullet. While I have not yet chronographed the load, one of my rifles is having a Pachmayr simulated leather recoil pad installed - recoil is brutal, but, hey, I only shoot once every few minutes.

Hope this helps.

[missionary5155]

Greetings
An old feller up in Michagan told when I was just starting to hunt ( I am 60 now) that a bigger hole is always better. Dad really liked the 69´s and I am inclined that way. Have never lost any critter popped with one. But I hunt river bottoms and shots are close. My longest deer shot was 30+ yards. My brother in law hunts elk. Arizona area near Flagstaff. His longest shot is 55 yards.
Mike in Peru

[waksupi]

Most elk in this area are shot at well under a hundred yards. There is some serious jungle where I usually hunt, and you just can't see them further away. Trajectory past a hundred or so yards makes long shots risky.
I consider the .54 the most common, and minimum I would want to use for elk. I use a .62. Round ball, all the way.

What was said about getting an elk from where you shot it, to where you can haul it, is VERY important. Think before you shoot. If you want to practice, shoot a 800 pound steer, and pack it a mile or two. Make sure there are several deep canyons, thick brush, and at least one stream crossing to make it realistic.

[leadman]

I've shot probably over a dozen elk, but only one with a ml. This was my first elk here in arizona. I used a 58cal. H&R Huntsman. Round ball with 90grs of FFG. Shot was about 80 yards, went thru the heart and lungs broadside. Elk went about 30 yards and dropped.

As others said find a spot were they go to water, or on the travel path to the water. I usually hunt close to the water holes here in Az.
My shots have been from 50 yards to 472 yards. The farther shots were when I was walking.
Do be selective of the terrain you shoot the elk in. I packed 2 of them out on my back when I was younger. Won't do that again.

Good luck.

[quilbilly]

Having hunted elk for 25 years with a ML rifle, [I] have found my 50 cal more than adequate using a sabot and a 255 gr .426 boolit. The charge is 80 gr of Goex FFF. I am hunting Roosevelt elk in the jungles (aka. rainforests) of coastal Washington State where a shot longer than 75 yards is rare.