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Thread: Cast boolit for 7x57 for elk

  1. #21
    Boolit Buddy
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    Quote Originally Posted by kobeinu View Post
    If your wife is anything like the women in my family, she shoots exactly where she means to which means your 7x57 cast idea is sound. I love the post by waksupi.

    All that said, I'd use an Accubond or Partition because they are always further than I'd like.
    kobeinu,
    We usually take our elk with Partitions. My wife with a 308 150 grn. me with 35 Whelen 225 grn.
    The 7x57 I just finished for her for this years hunt. I have been thinking as I was putting it together about cast. I was looking at the 160 grainers that I was planning on loading for her, how long and sleek they are, and wondered how a boollit would look loaded in that case. My thoughts drift that way sometimes....

  2. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by ammohead View Post
    I love how people are so quick to point out the limitations of certain cartridge/bullet combinations for elk. Yet every year thousands of elk are killed all over the US with archery equipment and muzzleloaders. The best archery hunters practice their skills, limit their shots and hunt to get in close. Yet a hunter equiped with a 7x57 shooting a 166 gr cast boolit 1900 fps is deemed foolish. Some people need to get over themselves. Hunt with your 7x57. Practice your shooting skills. Take only ethical shots and hunt in close. You will be at least as deadly as any archery hunter in the field.
    Ammohead,
    I agree with you completely. My wife and I have been hunting together for quite some time. She will rarely take a shot much over 150. I tried one time to talk her into a lasered 236 yd shot. No luck, she said we needed to get closer. We managed to close to 135. We ate good that year. She knows her limitations (self imposed), and sticks to them.

  3. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Larry Gibson View Post
    I certainly don't have any problem with using a properly loaded 7x57 to hunt elk with. With proper bullet placement it will effectively kill elk.

    Having killed over 30 elk with numerous firearms from the 223 Remington up through the level 4 loadings of the 45-70 I can attest to the hardiness and tenacity even a well hit elk can demonstrate. I have seen very, very well hit elk travel very, very long distances even though they were basically dead on their feet.

    I have hunted deer with the 7x57 loaded with cast bullets. While it killed the deer I (Lyman 287308HP at 1900 fps) I was quite unsatisfied with the terminal results. Both deer went a long ways before laying down to die. Both were heart/lung shot. I decided after those two deer than I wouldn't use less than 30 caliber cast bullets for hunting deer, etc. Subsequently with the use of 30, 31 and 8mm caliber rifles with cast bullets I've not had any similarly hit deer go anywhere as far as those two deer hit with the 7x57 went.

    Now with jacketed bullets of proper construction the 7x57 comes into it's own and is an effective elk cartridge out to 250 - 300 yards if the shooters accuracy is capable. I suggest the Hornady 154 gr SP loaded over any of the 4350s, RL19 or H4831SC to 2600 - 2700 fps. Of course the old 175 gr RNSP (If you can find them) loaded to 2300 - 2400 fps over H4831SC will give excellent results on elk out to 200 yards.

    I surely do love hunting with cast bullets but we must realize there are some limitations which we should respect, especially when hunting larger game. Hunting elk with a 7x57 loaded with cast bullets would not be my choice.
    Thanks for the input Larry. I'm pretty sure that I will be going with a jacketed bullet for this years hunt. I was just wondering when I started this post if anyone had done it with cast. I have yet to bring myself to hunt elk with my 35 Whelen with cast, as some of the shots here in N.E. Oregon can stretch a bit sometimes. If it were up to me, I usually try to get to pistol range for a shot. But when it comes to filling the freezer I'll shoot 300 if I have to.

  4. #24
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    I would like to thank everyone for their input for this posting. It has been interesting to hear your thoughts. Different points of view, help with decisions, especially when you have as little knowledge about hunting with cast as I do. My experience with big game and cast is limited to one deer with a 45-70, one with a .54 muzzle loader, and one cow elk muzzle loader. As I continue on this journey with casting my own, the information I get from this site is very helpful. Thanks again to all of you.

  5. #25
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    I shot an elk with a paper parched 170 grain .304" bullet out of a Ruger #1 in 303.

    The bullet was not going that fast <2100 fps I would guess.

    I did a bit of a write up here some years ago.

    Spoiler alert. The elk died.

  6. #26
    Boolit Buddy 43PU's Avatar
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    My buddy used a Spanish Mauser in 7mm using a 170 grn WFN cast bullets 75%Ww 25% pure with 3% tin he killed a BULL moose at 125 with a cast full of varget

  7. #27
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    Putting a drain hole in an elk is going to kill it most of the time. It's WHEN and WHERE...

  8. #28
    Boolit Buddy Landy88's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by knuckleball View Post
    Putting a drain hole in an elk is going to kill it most of the time. It's WHEN and WHERE...
    Too true.

    If any deficiency in placement, cartridge or bullet allows it, the when, inevitably, will be after dark and the where will, inevitably, be the worst possible place out of which to find and retrieve that elk.
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  9. #29
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    There were books written about hunting elk with a .30-30, this was back before elk evolved Kevlar of course. Anyway, that diminutive cartridge seemed to work quite well. Why not a 7x57?

  10. #30
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    Quote Originally Posted by BrentD View Post
    There were books written about hunting elk with a .30-30, this was back before elk evolved Kevlar of course. Anyway, that diminutive cartridge seemed to work quite well. Why not a 7x57?
    Both cartridges with their jacketed loads are efficient elk killers and can be used in many hunting elk hunting situations. Elk, both Roosevelt and Rocky Mountain, are hardy animals and can go a long distance even when dead on their feet. Comparing the efficient killing of elk with cartridges using higher velocity expanding jacketed bullets to that of lessor velocity cast bullets out of the same cartridges is not a valid comparison.

    The 1st elk I killed was a Roosevelt in the coastal mountains of Oregon was with a 30-30 with jacketed 170 gr Speers at 1975 fps....3 shots at 80 to 100 yards into heart lungs with one solidly hitting the heart.....elk still traveled 500 - 600 yards and down into the bottom of a brush choked draw.....took all the rest of that day and the next for me and my hunting partner to quarter it and pack it out.....had to cut trail through the brush to a skid road.......had the elk dropped within 50 yards of where she was shot it would have been an easy 50 - 100 pack down to the skid road. Truthfully I have seen elk hit, usually far back in the lungs or gut shot, go a long ways also especially in NE Oregon where the OP lives. I learned over the years living and hunting elk in NE Oregon that if I was going to hunt elk, and I have, with cast bullets then a large caliber with heavy cast bullets would be best. That is why I built my 450-400-70 (45-70) Siamese Mauser rifle. I have killed elk with 180 and 200 gr cast bullets out of .308Ws and 30-06s. They are the minimal I would use......and then only if I had to.

    Another consideration in my negative recommendation to the OP on using cast in the 7x57 for elk is I am very familiar with the hunting conditions where he hunts. He will be hunting Rocky Mountain elk in a land of wide open spaces, deep and wide canyons that can be open or heavily timbered and canyon bottoms filled with tangles of brush and choke cherries. That's not to mention that the elk, once they start moving, can keep going to the next county..... Then there is the very short season and number of other hunters out there. If you don't drop the elk very close to where you shoot it odds are other hunters may get to it 1st. My suggestion if hunting elk there is to maximize your chance of success.....not to minimalize it.

    BTW; I also suggest to the OP to follow my #1 rule; never shoot an elk on the downhill side of a road......I've often violated that rule and paid for it...... He will know what I mean.......
    Larry Gibson

    “Deficient observation is merely a form of ignorance and responsible for the many morbid notions and foolish ideas prevailing.”
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  11. #31
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    Larry, I disagree entirely.

  12. #32
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    If the lady is a hunter Not a Holiday Inn type), and can place her shots at moderate ranges after a few hours in adverse conditions, then go for it.
    As stated in prior posts, bullet placement is paramount.
    Salvaging old Marlins is not a pasttime...it's a passion

  13. #33
    Boolit Master pls1911's Avatar
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    If the lady is a hunter (Not a Holiday Inn type), and can place her shots at moderate ranges after a few hours in adverse conditions, then go for it.
    As stated in prior posts, bullet placement is paramount.
    Salvaging old Marlins is not a pasttime...it's a passion

  14. #34
    Boolit Grand Master Char-Gar's Avatar
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    There was a time in this country when the economy was vastly different. Jacketed bullets were beyond the dollar reach of many people and the jacketed offerings were inferior to what we have today. There were many meat hunters who used cast bullets for hunting all species in America.

    A hunter who understand the limitations of cast bullets and has the woods skill needed, can kill plenty of elk with cast bullets, even in the 7mm.

    There are way to many shooters in this country who have no idea of how things were done, "back in the day".
    Last edited by Char-Gar; 05-03-2018 at 04:52 PM.
    Disclaimer: The above is not holy writ. It is just my opinion based on my experience and knowledge. Your mileage may vary.

  15. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by Char-Gar View Post
    There was a time in this country when the economy was vastly different. Jacketed bullets were beyond the dollar reach of many people and the jacketed offerings were inferior to what we have today. There were many meat hunters who used cast bullets for hunting all species in America.

    A hunter who understand the limitations of cast bullets and has the woods skill needed, can kill plenty of elk with cast bullets, even in the 7mm.

    There are way to many shooters in this country who have no idea of how things were done, "back in the man".

    my own brother and my sons' don't believe in cast boolits. even though i regularly put deer meat on the table. they are all about 3000+ fps = deer

  16. #36
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    I wouldn't attempt it. Not on a living animal that could suffer because I didnt use enough gun. Might work on a 100 lb whitetail with PERFECT shot placement but ive got better guns and loads even for that. My golden rule is for game deer size of bigger with cast bullet size starts at .35 cal.

  17. #37
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    Same old argument, what will kill versus what is 'REASONABLE" to hunt with. Like Larry, I have shot/killed about 30 elk and observed another 15 or so killed. I have used .308 Win, 8mm Mauser, .32 Win Special, .358 Win, .444, .45-70 and .300 Win Mag. I consider the .308, .270, 7x57, .300 Savage with 150-160 plus Nosler Partition about as light as I Care to hunt with for elk/moose, prefering my .45-70 or .358. I too have had dead elk run 600 or 700 yards, both heart shot and double lung with the aorta spraying blood out a 2" exit hole (8x57-200Partition). If I had no other rifle, I would hunt with a 30-30 or 243, but not because I wanted too or thought it a good idea. My wife has killed several elk, using a .358 Win and .45-70. We shoot cast bullets because they allow extensive practice with low recoil in any rifle. We then re-sight using 'hunting loads' (jacketed at high velocity). My wife says 'THERE IS NO RECOIL WHEN YOU SHOOT AN ELK', save the cast bullets for practice and light game(deer).

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