I drew a cow tag this year and I don't think I can afford a larger rifle so I will be using my 7mm-08. Right now I am looking at 3 different bullets. 140gr. Barnes X. 140gr Nosler Partition. 145gr Speer Grand Slam. My question is does anyone have a favorite load they use for elk? Any advice would be greatly appriciated. I am not going to limit myself to only the above bullets if anyone has a load that works well with a different grain bullet. Thanks in advance.

When I do go rifle hunting I use a 170grn. I usally don't take real long shots so I like the knock down power of the 170. Good luck this year.

I have yet to draw an elk tag in AR, but when I do I'll probably use my .270. Yes, the 7mm-08 is plenty for elk. As for factory ammo, you can't go wrong with the Winchester 140gr Fail Safe. Federal also has a good selection of 140gr Noslers, but I'd probably prefer their 150gr Speer Hot-Cor SP.

The 140 grain nosler partition will do a great job on elk. I was deer hunting with my 7-08 this year and shot at a deer at about 150 yrds wiht 140 grain partition and missed. well I hit a pine tree sappling about 4 in in diameter right in the center and blew the tree in two.

My buddy thinks this is just an awsome caliber for deer,this may be true for shorter ranges but I would not shoot long ranges and would not use this on elk at any range. I watched my buddy shoot a buck at 80 yards shooting downhill on him, it did knock the deer down but this deer was alive and just layed there with his head up looking around.After having to finish it off and closeer examination of why the deer didnt expire sooner, the bullet barley pntrated the shoulder blade, it just made a big hole under the shoulder.If this would have been an elk this elk walks.I don''t know what type of terrain you will be hunting but alot of terrain I have hunted offers lots of long range shots at elk.Elk are thick skinned and heavy boned and very tough to bring down.If your shot is off its mark a little bit you could be trailing for a long time. I would try to borrow a bigger gun at least 30-06 I prefer to use a .300 mag or 7mm or bigger. just my 2 cents

peetey,

I highly recommend either the 140 xlc or 140 tsx. I shot a large spike with the xlc and wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Penetration and expansion is phenominal with the Barnes's. Even if you hit a shoulder or other major bone at normal ranges I wouldn't be to worried. Most who are skeptical about the 140's have never seen what an x bullet can do. Not magic but way out of the league of the competators. Despite what some may think, you will be able to shoot out to any normal range on your elk with the 140 Barnes in the 7-08.

It may take a little experimenting if you want to shoot sub moa. Get the Barnes reloading manual and read about loading for accuracy. Varget works great in my gun and it is very accurate with the tsx's I am loading now.

The great news is they are making a 120 gr tsx! this is going to be my go to bullet for blacktails and mulies.

Yeti

I agree with using the barnes x or triple shock. But there is a lot to be said about the partition. You really can't go wrong with either one. Maybe even look at;

Nosler Accubond
Hornady Interbond
Swift A-Frame or scirroco
Or a trophy bonded

Bonded bullets are awesome for penetration, they simply will not come apart. Its all just about I use anymore and I love them. Problem for me with the barnes is That I can't get them to shoot well in any gun except for my .350 rem mag. The best thing about barnes is that they too don't come apart and you should use light for caliber bullets. This is discussed in there reloading book. For instance, if you like 30 caliber 165's or 150's jump a weight down in the barnes. This means you can load a faster load and not worry about fragmentation.

To put it in a nutshell, any bullet you asked about will work. Pick the most accurate.

i have a 7mm mag taht i hunt elk wiht and i use 175 gr speer boat tail for it i like to use alittle bigger bullet cuz i dont get any shots over 75 yards so i use a big bullet

but yeah 7mm is an awesome chamber