How to Select an Elk Hunting Cartridges - Bulls, Bullets & Ballistics with NOSLER

Randy and Mike discuss how to select an elk hunting rifle cartridge!
Join Fresh Tracks+ For Early Access - www.freshtracks.tv

[@gabrielcantu3772]

My Dad bought me a Rem 700 7MM-08 back in 91. Still have my and now my young sons hunt with it. Bought a Bergara B-14 Hunter chambered in 7MM-08 a couple of years ago. I won a Bergara 300 PRC in a raffle. Been hunting "out west" 3 times. Still prefer to carry the 7MM-08.

[@brandoncusmc]

Love my 6.8 western shooting 165gr long range accubonds. Took my first elk at 300 yards with it

[@edwardabrams4972]

My father started with a pre64 win in 308 and he harvested about 100 elk with it and then he got his pre64 in 300 win mag and took about another 50-60 elk. He had a close friend that reloaded and was friends with John Nosler when they were in Ashland and he said it made a big improvement in knock down energy compared to the old cup and core flying apart most of the time!

[@russellkeeling4387]

So your father hunted in 160 elk seasons. He must have been in good shape.

[@Elparquito]

I was lucky to make a 5.0 SD, 9.0 ES and 2829 muzzle vel. load for a mountain gun. It's an absolute nail driver. If you don't center punch what you're aiming at with this, it wasn't the rifle or the round. I guess one could always blame the optics if they were to miss with it...but Leopold makes a pretty good optic. Kimber Mountain Ascent in .300 WSM. Load is a Nosler Acubond 180, Nosler brass (or Norma) and AA4350 power. Gotta love NOSLER!

[@derekmcmurry4263]

"If I'm going deer huntin, I'm going to grab my 270 Winchester." Have finer words ever been spoken? Amen.

[@colepriceguitar1153]

What’s so great about that statement?

[@Paqq6969]

270 is a bitch gun

[@derekmcmurry4263]

@@colepriceguitar1153 The subject of his sentence: "270 Winchester."

[@papajohnsy6659]

@@derekmcmurry4263 what makes you love the 270 winchester so? I own one, and hunt with it, but it's not something magical. Tons of case stretch, inconsistent chambers and throating on rifle to the next, and too long of a case with too slow of a twist to shoot hardly any of the VLD or heavy monolithic bullets.

[@derekmcmurry4263]

@@papajohnsy6659 Good question. I love it because it was my first and 2nd hunting rifle. I have more experience with that caliber than any other. I've never owned a bad one, factory or custom. I've had a much easier time getting a solid handload for all of the ones I've owned vs any 308 Win and I've had many of each. I've never used or seen any hunting cartridge that's magical. I've never experienced tons of case stretch and I've been loading it with excellent success for a long time, over 3 decades. Inconsistent chambers and throats is true for any cartridge taking into account manufacturer and reamers used with mass production rifles in a factory, so respectfully, that remark isn't isolated on this cartridge. My experience is no need for a heavy long monolithic in any cartridge. Quite the opposite. The lighter weight bullets driven faster shine compared to cup/core bullets. I'll take my 130 Barnes TTSX at 3360 to 3380 over anyone else's 270 Win load for anything inside 600 yards along with my 110 TTSX over 3500fps on a 450 pound animal inside 400 yards. My Berger150 VLDs at 3010fps have served me well since that bullet was introduced. Unfortunately, too many people try to make a cartridge something it's not. And by the way, Reloading Weatherby posted a video on his accuracy with a factory 1-10 twist 270 Win with 165ABLR and just 2 days ago posted a pic of his friend who tried a 170 grain bullet in his 270 Win shooing 0.6" groups, 1-10 twist

[@sirhookuupdaily9726]

100% agree! 270 on low end through the 338 on high end. I love my 7mm Rem Mag with 175 gr. bullets! Thanks gentlemen, always like to hear what the experts opinions are.

[@coltond5232]

I agree on the 7mm rem mag. Only difference I'm using 162gr bullets. They just work. I use the same setup on antelope, deer and elk.

[@Paqq6969]

Never a 270 for elk lol

[@papajohnsy6659]

@@Paqq6969 If one cannot kill an elk cleanly with a 270 they either can't shoot or can't select a proper bullet. Often both

[@davidgzik3080]

We have used everything from 25-06 to 375 H&H they all will take elk and if you miss... it doesn't matter what you shot at them they run off anyway.

[@shinrapresident7010]

The best rifle, cartridge and bullet are what works for you. I'm a southeastern Canadian and have used the same rifle, cartridge and bullet for 15 years; a Remington 700 CDL in .308 Win with 150 grain Federal Fusion. This does everything for me and my family being deer, elk, coyote, wolf, moose and bear and all my shots have been under 250 yards.

[@cabochris100]

Lets say I settled on a 300 Win mag for all my elk hunting out to 400 yards. Now more difficult these days, is the scope selection. Should one stick with a simple 3-9 scope, like a Trijicon Accupoint I have, or go with a dial-up optic? For fast shooting, dial-ups seem impractical? I've always gravitated towards smaller scopes. They're lighter, more balanced, mount lower, and less stressful on mounts during recoil. However, I recently mounted a Trijicon Mil Dot 2.5-10X56 Accupoint on my RUM, and love it! Bright, clear, small green tritium/fiber optic dot, and a Mil Dot reticle, that works darn good for longer shots! I like it so much, I'm thinking about another for my 300 Win? I like how simple it is to use. No dial-up, no side focus, 2.5X for in the timber, and 10X which is plenty for longer shots. But, it is a larger optic. So, it would be interesting what scope you experts run on your elk guns? Lastly, what are your thoughts on brakes? I don't like them.

[@russellkeeling4387]

This is just my opinion but I've elk hunted for quite a few years and have been pretty successful. I have had many scopes and I've gone down in power and am glad I did. On rifles I may shoot a long shot, which for me is 400 or less, I use a 2.5 to 8 power scope. For my 35 Whelen I use a 1.5 to 5 dangerous game scope. I tend to be a better shot if I don't use a real high power scope. A few years ago I shot an elk at 266 yards with a 4 power scope on a .444 Marlin even though most folks would tell you a .444 Marlin is a close in rifle.

[@alraybaca6235]

I hunt with my to 270 for all species

[@beestoe993]

More right answers than wrong answers, good answer!

[@daveaz8581]

Was bummed you didn’t mention which scopes would be best for the 308 or the 300

[@davidgzik3080]

We have used everything from a 25-06 to 375 H&H they all will take elk....of course if you miss,it doesn't matter what you use they run off anyway

[@brushwolf]

Odd ball here. The last 4 or 5 seasons I've toted my scoped Mas 36 to Colorado. With roll-your-own ammo, loaded to 308win specs, it's scary accurate past distances I would shoot at elk.

[@user-eg8hb8xt3j]

my 35 Whelen shooting nosler custom 225 grain accubonds is amazing elk medicine . And anything else in North America for that matter

[@johnanon3081]

Randy, you started with a .270 and were successful with it. Any reason why you decided to move on to the .308? Can you tell us what you like about the .308? Love your channel!

[@OutsidetheEchochamber]

I would guess available with heavier bullets and larger fontal diameter.

[@richardjackson3939]

I would still be using Partitions if I could, deer and elk in Montana, plenty of red stags and fallow bucks in the UK, but game dealer now insists we use copper bullets only, so sadly Barnes it is

[@jcarry5214]

I live down the road from Barnes and I wouldn't hunt with them with the other options available. I know people like them but they have limitations and drawbacks that aren't my style. I tried Hammer bullets and they behave more like partitions. Really impressive. I think they ship internationally, don't know about UK though. One thing that I'm really jealous of with the UK is the fact that you can actually sell game to market. Completely illegal anyplace I've lived in the US. You can donate under the right circumstances, otherwise you're stuck with a whole animal. Some people need that, I don't.

[@richardjackson3939]

that's an interesting statement to me, limitations, drawbacks, style, can you explain more please? Hammer bullets I believe are starting to make their way over the pond, I have tried a few copper bullets now and have settled on Barnes. Yes we can sell as much venison as we can shoot, and my dealer is 6 miles away!@@jcarry5214

[@weeman782]

Im grabbing my 300rum And 130 barnes tsx That will smoke everything even on the longer shots

[@mylesburdett7518]

308 Lacks personality, isn't fancy but works. Just like me.

[@beestoe993]

"Personality"? You mean like the Needsmoor? I dont think so. 308 rocks!

[@GibsonTick]

Hi Randy, I've asked this question on a couple of your videos now, still hoping for an answer! I'm a big Nosler fan, but I have a friend (an experienced hunter) who claims that "none of the guides he uses will allow Nosler bullets in camp" because "they fail". Now I've had great success with accubonds myself, but I'm curious what you yourself would say to that, if anything? Would you have a message for someone with that opinion?

[@nmelkhunter1]

My own experience, as well as those I know who have been, or are, guides in Wyoming and New Mexico, says Nosler Partitions and Accubonds work just fine for everything from pronghorn to mulies to elk in appropriate cartridges. These are mainly 270/280, 7MM Rem Mag, 30-06, or 300 Win Mag.

[@Fresh_Tracks]

Hey! Not Randy but Michael here. I tell your buddy we have an office full of taxidermy from elk, bull moose, bison, deer, and sheep that have been taken with NOSLER bullets. I would say that most of the time we as hunters like to blame things "failing" on the gear when in reality it's us who make mistakes. It's probably not worth the argument with your friend. People get set in their ways especially when it comes to hunting rifles and ammunition. Shoot what you are comfortable with, for us that's NOSLER bullets!

[@GibsonTick]

@@Fresh_Tracks my flavor of choice for 90% of my hunts is a .270 wsm with 140 grain Accubonds. It's killed everything I've ever shot with it, on the spot. My experiences have been fantastic so far!

[@mikemellon80]

I can’t imagine an elk guide saying anything bad about a nosler partition at all. Fail? I don’t think that bullet can fail it’s not hip with super high bc but man it’s awesome for normal hunting ranges

[@derekmcmurry4263]

That's very odd. Many possibilities here but my first thought was someone taking a 243 with Nosler ballistic tips for elk. That could lead someone to lump all Noslers together if they had 1-2 negative experiences where the ammo wasn't really suited for the game. Regardless, the guides in question will advise accordingly based on what they've witnessed. My thoughts are the guides might be new, clueless, biased towards another brand, etc., Ultimately, to advise against the use of a partition, AB, ABLR, or E-tip is ignorance at best

[@echofoxtrotwhiskey1595]

My only bolt gun so far is 30-06. My next is going to a big bore of some kind. I’m torn between the the 35 Whelen and the 375 H&H.

[@edwardabrams4972]

Both of those two calibers are fantastic because the recoil is more of a push with them! My son has both and reloading makes them so versatile

[@jessgoodman798]

375

[@jcarry5214]

I'd go whelen. Neither one is a long ranger and 375 pills are built for dangerous game, might not open on deer family critters unless pushed harder. That's my understanding anyway, you need to be super careful about matching bullet to purpose. Get a 35 whelen and you can afford to shoot twice as much out of any standard action and any stock configuration you want with all the aftermarket support that comes with that. Unless you're doing africa or Grizz. Just my take researching the same thing.

[@echofoxtrotwhiskey1595]

@@jcarry5214 But on the same token I’d be shooting deer family critters with the 30-06.

[@jcarry5214]

@@echofoxtrotwhiskey1595 By deer family I'm including moose and elk. If you're all set with the 06 what are you torn about?

[@williamfeldner9356]

Shoot the biggest caliber you can accurately………. The 338 Winchester Magnum is as close to ideal for elk hunting…….. Powerful enough to compensate for tough angles with good bullets out to 400 yards………..

[@Fresh_Tracks]

That's good advice.

[@mountainpoo1066]

Does nosler even sell to the reloader anymore? I used AB &BT for years. Untill I was thrown under the bus for loaded ammo. I know there your sponsor,to a great content randy. But nosler will never see a dollar from me.

[@TonyYarusso]

Just pulling up the first online retailer I looked at, they have in stock right now component bullets including: AccuBond in .277, .284, and .308 Ballistic Tip in .204, .224, .277, .284, and .308 Partition in .243, .277, and .308 E-Tip in .224, .243, .264, .277, and .308 And others, so yeah, they clearly do.

[@oldschoolweekend]

243

[@Glockshooter09]

Looks like ol’ Randy is out of commission? What happened?

[@Fresh_Tracks]

This video was shot earlier this spring! This video will help you outkzbin.info/www/bejne/kIivfWikqs2ch68

[@bc6806]

Barnes … enough said

[@jimsomerville3924]

338 mag?! Good lord, I'd rather just not hunt than deal with that.

[@papajohnsy6659]

It's not that much rifle my friend. A touch more than a 300 win mag.

[@K-bob_45]

“That’s why no one will remember your name”-Achilles

[@beestoe993]

Dont know if Id go that far, but it is a bit much. I like something a little lighter for hiking so I try to strike a balance between knockdown power and recoil for Elk. On that consideration I agree.