Roundballs for Elk

[azmntman]

Have hunted elk here in AZ for 45 years (a few as a kid following pops). I will say Elk can be hard to kill. Your time, mid-late NOV, will make it a bit easier as the bulls have come out of the rut and are interested in not much else other than rest and food. If you can shoot a bull in the chest with that 58 he should go down quick. Trick is to shoot him before he sees you and to not move after the shot....you do not want him knowing he was shot or he he will flee (and per above a fleeing elk don't know he is mortally hit and can go a long long way). Stalk, wait for broadside shot, shoot, freeze, watch and WAIT about 10 mn. Then go look and see f he died within site or not. If not he should be pretty close. If you shoot and spook he will make ya pay. Have had em drop, feed n drop, trot n drop and have helped others that spooked em follow em 1/2 mile down in a canyon n drop (this hurts after age 50).

6A is a great unit. If yer after horns hunt low in the cedars (within a few miles of oak/pine mix), for meat up close to Flagstaff/Lake Mary and Mormon lake.

A trophy elk is an elk in the freezer (so I hunt cows :grin: ). Have fun out here. :thumbsup:

 

[Dave Marsh]

6A is a great unit. If yer after horns hunt low in the cedars (within a few miles of oak/pine mix), for meat up close to Flagstaff/Lake Mary and Mormon lake.

A trophy elk is an elk in the freezer (so I hunt cows :grin: ). Have fun out here. :thumbsup: [/quote]

I am a meat in the freezer guy. Not really looking for a trophy elk. I am staying in Munds Park and will be hunting Mormon Lake and Lake Mary. Shoot and remain still after the shot is my plan. Don't need to run him into the next county. Thanks for the advice.

Dave

 

[Rifleman1776]

I haven't read the other responses, so forgive if I duplicate. Your soft round ball is a killer with the right charge and, above all, placement. If you are confident and practiced with your rifle, go for it. However, range should be within about 100 yards. Don't try any of those TV show type ultra-long range shots.

 

[Col. Batguano]

So in keeping with this thread, is a 50 cal RB big enough to confidently hunt elk with? I hear a lot about 54's and 58's. Clearly those would be better, but all I have in LR's are a 40, 45, and a 50. Nothing bigger. Sure, anything can be killed with just about anything, but the operative word in my question is hunting them confidently, not having to wait for everything to be perfect in order to shoot.

 

[BrownBear]

I'd have no qualms whatsoever with well-placed shots inside 75 yards, with inside 50 being an even better goal. I'm yet to recover a 50 cal ball from a deer at those ranges, even on quartering shots. So if it will penetrate that much deer, it should have no problems penetrating on broadside elk shots. Theory because I haven't done it, but based on sound experience.

Another bit for the theory pot. I have a couple of buds who have taken their moose every year with 50's and RBs. Same point.

 

[longcruise]

I'm a strong supporter of the .54 and larger for elk. But! There are a number of members here who use .50 round ball for elk with success regularly.

 

[faste350]

don't sweat the "grief", you have the upper hand in this case. practice and be ready. when you score on a nice elk, the pressure is on them :yakyak: i love being in those situations, it really makes you a better hunter :thumbsup: GOOD LUCK!

 

[renegadehunter]

I 100% agree about it being about shot placement.
Every year for the last 21 years I've gone archery hunting for elk during the rut. I've taken several with a bow, which is all about them hemorrhaging and not kinetic energy. A double lung hit has always resulted in my finding the elk within 100 yards...the longest was a cow that went about 80 yards. I prefer a pass through simply because there will be more holes for blood to leak out if I have to do much tracking, and the lower in the rib cage the better. A high lung hit can take quite a while before it will start showing blood on the ground. An elk hit in only one lung or just plain hit bad that is pushed too soon can go a loooong way! They are incredibly tough and have stamina that will amaze. Main thing is to give it time if you're not absolutely sure of the hit...my minimum is 6 hours for an unknown or marginal hit.
I think your RB load will do just fine within its effective range as long as you do your part...just like with any other animal you've hunted.