Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Breaking Elk shoulders

Give him a moment to overcome his inertia.

mathman.......you owe all your 3rd grade science students a 100% refund.

That means all of it, Greenhorn.

Bullets do funny things at times.

I was carrying my old pre 64 M70 in .338 mag when two cow elk snuck up to the trail I was on and slipped across. I waited close to 5 minutes before I started to move on when I heard a stick pop...

I backed off into the reprod and got ready, when a 5 point bull stepped up and peaked around a big fir tree at me. I could see from nose to the start of the shoulders and hit him as close to the tree as I could.

That 250 gr Nosler Partition bullet hit the neck bone where it makes that bend to go up to the hump. It tipped the bullet sideways and it came to rest midway through the off side shoulder.

It had barely started to open up when it collided with all that bone and was squished flat. It knocked him down, but he needed another shot to stay there.

I had a couple of boxes of the Speer 275 gr semi pointed bullets all loaded up by the original owner of my rifle. One day I thought I'd just burn a few of them up to see how they shot. I was super impressed, as they turned out to be the most accurate bullet I'd shot to date in that rifle..... They also kicked pretty good and I saw little reason to use them.

My favorite .338 bullet was the Hornady 225 gr spire point. It did all I needed to do to an elk.

I found those 275’s were real accurate as well. If I have the time I’d like to load a few in my Alaskan with some RL26 and see what it does. My old one loved them with R22. I’d bet 26 gets a bit more speed as well. Be fun to hunt with the old bullets. I’d imagine they won’t bounce off an elk.

I asked on another forum, but what do you guys think of the 338WM and the Hornady 225 CX? Think it will act like the Barnes 225 TTSX? With bullets being so scarce, I have been hanging on to these 225 CX. I sold the Ruger 77 before I could try them in it. Now, I "might" have located another 338WM, and I can get into it for less than rebarreling this Savage 06 to 338/06! I love my 300WM but what I like for timber (and openings up to 250yds) in mind and like to use a thumper.

The last bull OL Elmer killed was with the 275 in a 338KT. Killed the spike bull but blew the 275 to dust.

500yds.

These days a 6.5MM Creedmoor with 130gr VLDs is a better 500yd elk cartidge than the .338 KT spitting 275gr Speers.

Time changes and elk are easy enough to kill with good shot placement and elk shoulders are no problem.

I see the butthurt over not knowing the difference between moment of inertia and linear momentum is still strong.

Even Elmer could be the victim of a single bullet failure.
I don’t think there is are many bullets made that have not had an anomalous performance example.
The next time I go elk hunting should I be so fortunate, I’ll have my 260 rem and a 140 nosler pt. My old man gun I call it. I would prefer the 120-130 Barnes tsx but not enough to ignore the stack of Nosler pt’s in ammo can.
Is it better than my long gone Ruger #1 338wm and the 275 Speer? I don’t believe so but I know it will do the job if I do mine.

If there's one thing you do have experience with......it's linear momentum and butt pain.

Only from pitching it to you.

Your mathematical prowess is only surpassed by your advanced wit.

Keep at it Mike, and some day you'll be the equal of mathman in this respect.


You're halfway there.

Man!

I was enjoying this thread!

Welcome to the campfire!

Each day provides the opportunity for a new start. It just a choice.
So; I often used as an aiming point, for my bullets path through the vitals, the off leg. This sometimes broke shoulder bones from high to low depending on that animal’s position. I tried to plan on having a bullet and rifle that allowed that to happen. I think that is a solid plan for elk.
The anomalies in that plan were few and I was fortunate to be carrying a rifle and bullet that could handle them.
Best regards gentlemen,
F01

This thread only needs contribution from one more member to make it a true campfire thread. Hint…

Was with a buddy yesterday when he shot an old, dry cow elk. He shot just as she started to move and she dropped at the shot. We thought that he had spined her. He actually hit her right rear hip, shattering it completely and continued into her left hip, breaking it as well. Then the bullet either turned and got the liver or the exploding pelvis bones did. .300 RUM, 180 partition at about 3400 fps, 130 yards, lost alot of meat in both hindquarters. It was a bad shot, but she was dead within seconds.

I did the same thing (sorta, kinda) with a 375 H&H 270 Failsafe on a running warthog in South Africa. I was surprised it died instantly! Now, I grant you, a cow elk is much bigger, ha, but the effect was the same.
When you read of Elmer Keith shooting elk in the "rump shell", it was usually because a. it was the only shot he had and b. it was survival. He had to have that meat... its always hard to see ruined meat, but it just happens sometimes, even if we really don't need it to survive.

I have him on a short leash.

How many times a day do you dye your pom-poms?