Regardless of the cartridge you use, pick a well-constructed, controlled expansion bullet like the Barnes TTSX/LRX, Nosler AccuBond/Partition, or Swift A-Frame/Scirocco (just to name a few). After all, it’s the bullet that kills the elk. While choosing the right cartridge is extremely important, don’t forget about your bullets either. However, if you’re looking for a good elk rifle, these 5 cartridges are a good place to start. If you fall into that group, don’t take the lack of inclusion of your favorite elk caliber on this list as an insult. Countless hunters go afield each year with other cartridges and have great success on elk. Keep in mind that this is not an all-inclusive list either. With all that in mind, my goal with this article is to provide you with a couple of good recommendations on selecting the right caliber for hunting elk. However, an appropriate cartridge will give you some more options on the shots you can ethically take under realistic hunting conditions. You might only get one opportunity at the bull of a lifetime and he might not present a perfect broadside shot at 200 yards. That could be the difference between a filled tag or a crippled and lost animal in the case of a borderline hit on an elk. It’s a plain and simple fact that a more powerful cartridge does provide a bit more room for error than a smaller, less powerful cartridge. We live in an imperfect world and even the best shooters don’t place their shots exactly where they want every single time. However, that only tells part of the story. The saying “a smaller bullet in the right spot is better than a larger bullet in the wrong spot” does provide sage advice. ![]() Yes, shot placement is extremely important when hunting any animal, to include elk. ![]() For this reason, hunters going afield after elk with a rifle should be adequately armed. Stories also abound of poorly hit elk running into the next zip code with no signs of slowing down. ![]() As a point of comparison, it’s not unusual for a big bull to weigh 3-4x as much as a big-bodied whitetail or mule deer. Elk, especially mature bulls, are incredibly large and tough creatures.
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