257 Weatherby for ELK

+1 on what Evil Lurker said about elk being tough. Although I've never lost or been party to one that was lost, VERY few are DRT, regardless of what they are shot with. Elk are VERY tough animals. I've seen heart shot elk run like they were healthy as the day they were born.
 
As I stated earlier I am by no means a professional elk hunter. However I have seen a dozen shot with a 340 Wby. Magnum, and most shot the 250 grain Sierra bullet. All but two were shot directly in the front shoulder. We did not have to chase a single one of those ten. The farthest run was about 50 yards. Tom.
 
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I don't doubt you HOGGHEAD, but most people I know don't shoot directly into the shoulders because of the amount of meat that gets ruined.
 
I seemed to shoot at quite a few that were busting butt through the lodgepoles and I saw quite a few sticks and bark fly. The ones that were standing still usually died in their tracks.
Once you jump them, the "standing there staring at you" is all over. I've never shot an elk through the shoulder meat in my life, we lived on them or went hungry when I was a kid.
 
Originally Posted By: Evil_LurkerI seemed to shoot at quite a few that were busting butt through the lodgepoles and I saw quite a few sticks and bark fly. The ones that were standing still usually died in their tracks.
Once you jump them, the "standing there staring at you" is all over. I've never shot an elk through the shoulder meat in my life, we lived on them or went hungry when I was a kid.

I totally respect your attitude about shooting in the front shoulder. And you are definitely right, there is considerable meat damage.

However I take that shot because I am a handicapped hunter and I hunt with a couple of other guys who are also physically challenged. So for me chasing one around the mountain is not a possibility.

We live in WV and do not get to do a lot of elk hunting. So when we have an opportunity to kill such a fine animal--we take it. And we try to assure our limited experience by possibly over compensating with the cartridge and bullet choice.

But as stated earlier I do respect your opinion about meat damage. However I will admit that I would never shoot at one running through the LodgePoles. I do not take shots at running game(big game).

But if I was just meat hunting for elk. I do not think I would feel undergunned with a 340 Wby and a 250 grain bullet in the boiler room. But I would with a quarter bore. Just an opinion. Tom.
 
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As it has been said you can kill an elk with any caliber all the way down to a 22LR, But to choose the caliber for you you will need to figure several different things, Recoil- can you handle a magnum, if not there is no sence in the big bullet if you can't place it where it needs to go.
-Weight how far in are you hunting
-distance you will be shooting
-The cover in your area
-The terrain where you are hunting
-Plus several others that would take to long to mention
I would choose the biggest bullet that you can accurately shoot, If your not good with the weapon none of the other stuff matters.
I do think a 340 wby with 250 grain bullet is a little to much but that is my preferance and if you like that gun and feel good with it then let the lead fly.
 
If the 257 is what i had to hunt elk with, i would hunt elk with it. I use a 300 win mag, My current ammo is 180gr Etip's for open country hunting and 220gr hornadys for timber hunting. 200gr accubonds or partitions will work also. Bigger is better for elk, so if you have the cash. Buy an elk rifle.
 
Buddy of mine killed 7 bulls with his before he hired a guide that told him that the 257 Weatherby was not an elk rifle... All Bulls he shot dropped in their tracks. He shot 117g Factory ammo. He sold the rifle and spent $3500 on a Jarrett rifle.

I made him a sign "I'm an idiot".
 
Quote:...before he hired a guide that told him that the 257 Weatherby was not an elk rifle

Did he say "You're not going out with me until you get a rifle to suit the job, because I'm not tracking them all day."

Maybe the guy knows something, since you're paying him money.

I'm just sayin.
 
IMO the 257 Weatherby is sufficient for Elk.. Lots of people around here use a 25-06 and have no problem. If ya wanna put a big bull on the ground where he stands bust a shoulder.. I prefer Nosler partitions..

FWIW I use a 270 Win w/130 Nosler partitions, and have for years..

Here's the lil lady with her Elk last fall. One shot, double lung, 270, 130 nosler, 70 yard recovery

Elk.jpg
 
Thanks to everyone for your response. The whole reason for this post is that I have been wanting a 257 Weatherby for some time now and also a Nightforce scope. Well after selling some stuff and scrapping here and there I came up with enough money to do both at the same time I bought a Remington 700 CDL SF topped it off with a NXS 2.5x10x32 with LaRue mounts. Then two weeks later came the phone call asking if I wanted to go on a ELK hunt well naturally the answer was yes. The main reason I asked the question about the 257 Weatherby for ELK is because where I live I don't need anything any bigger for the whitetail that we have here and they are the biggest thing we have to shoot besides hogs and the 257 will work well for them as well. If I was to buy another larger caliber rifle it would probably get used on this hunt and then set in the safe and never get used again.
 
Evil, all my buddy did was change guides in a different state.

I talked to him today, he had a Weatherby Mark 5 blow up and took off his thumb and a chunk of his face. It was determined that the firing pin had lodged forward as if it had been fired, so when the round was pushed forward, the round went off without the bolt lugs locked...it almost killed him.
 
House cat if thats your rifle and you feel confident in it use it. But understand and know your limitations as well. If I were to go elk hunting I would first grab my 300 ultra then my 7 mag then 257 bee only difference being how far and how good of shots I would be willing to take.

Meaning I wouldnt have to take as cupcake of a shot wth my 300 as I would my 257! I might take a 500 yards hot instead of a 300 etc

I think you know this but this is what is not being explained
 
It will definately do the job with a good bullet and a good shot, but like others have said, there is a lot better calibers for elk then any quarterbore, 257 WM or not...

Also with elk, you rarely get that perfect broadside shot, and you get maybe 1-2 chances at elk in a season so you better be able to make the most of them. Its just a safer bet on your part to be able to bring the biggest rifle you feel comfortable shooting and be able to make smart choices on the shots you do take if you choose to bring a smaller caliber.

I personally have shot all my elk with magnums such as the 7 RM, 300 Win Mag, 300 RUM, 338 EDGE and go for the shoulder or high shoulder shot to anchor them where they stand so they dont run halfway around the mountain and end up in a worse spot then they already are. Elk are big tough animals and can go a lot further then most think on adrenaline with no lungs...

My personal lower limit on elk is a 7 RM with a good 160g bullet. I shot a few with the 300 win and RUM and like them, but the way my 338 EDGE lays them down makes me a firm believer in 338s for elk.

Now I know you dont need a magnum to kill elk, you just have to limit your range a bit. Where I hunt elk, your typical shot is going to be no closer then 300 yards out to as long as you care to shoot, so I"m set up with magnums shooting heavies. But that depends on your terrain and your own personal limits and what not. If I knew I wasn't gonna be shooting any further then 500 yards, Id be ok with a 270 or 30-06, but I have the option and ability to shoot from 1K-1200 and those cartridges just wont do it for me.

Theres a difference between real elk hunters and your so called elk hunters...real elk hunters are the ones that are out there every year filling there tag every year or every other year. THink I read an article in a magazine where it was the same 10% of elk hunters are the ones who continually harvest 90% of the elk, theres good reason for that.

Like you say, gives you good excuse to go buy another rifle, cant beat that! Stick a good 160-175g bullet in that 7 RM and you'll be fine on any bull in any situation out to as far as you probly care to shoot. You cant say the same with the 257 WM.
 
there is a difference between a real elk hunter and a elk hunter who will take a shot at 1200 yards or even think about it. You don't need a 338 you need a 50 cal.
 
I've taken most of my elk with a 405, but the one taken with a 25-06 went no further than those harvested with larger cal.
Shot placement and bullet perforance are key, but I would not hesitate with a 257 wm that I know and shoot well.
 
Its laughable at best to suggest that a 257WBY isn't capable of succesfully hunting elk with... and the comparison to a 243 is just plain ridiculous...120gr bullets from a WBY and 165gr loads from a 30/06 are pretty close in the energy department out to 300yds...and it staight out beats a .30....Also in these examples SD tips in favor to the WBY with like bullet styles... But I suppose those cartridges aren't good for Elk either....FWIW, most anything that eats 70plus grns of powder is no slouch with a properly constructed bullet....lol

Are their more powerfull cartridges more suited to hunting elk? sure....but give me a break. How many idiots hunt whitetails with 300RUM? I would say thats more ridiculous...

OP, take your 257wby...go on your trip, pick your shot .(as should be the case no matter the cartridge or animal) you'll be fine and it will be most enjoyable ....Then post the pics of the hunt!!!

BTW...I kill piles and piles of coyotes with a .17Rem, should I be using a 22-250?
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Edit to add.....If your shooting at game at 1200yds, caliber choice is the least of your concerns...A bad hit is a bad hit. caliber doesn't matter..


 
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My buddies and I manage to kill them with arrows from ours bows pretty easily........I don't think a 257WBY thru the boiler room will have any difficulty taking one down.......
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I've never hunted elk with a rifle, but if I was I would grab my 7mm RM or my 45/70.
 
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