6MM for cow elk?

the jetman

New member
What is your opinion ?


You know about my Lazar, I mean the 6mm rem I put together.
I shoot a TTS 80 gr Barnes at 3600 fps in a group about an inch at 200 yards off my bipods.
I got draw for an elk damage hunt over in Valentine Mt.
I can shoot two cow/calf.
I talked with the rancher and he said the elk are hanging around the hey stacks and now that there is a lot of snow there staying there all day.
All that said;
Do you think I would be ok shooting my 6mm ?
I have the Marlin 45/70 300 gr Hornady HP 2495 fps. I know that is a better choice but I have killed elk with it before.
The boy has a Kimber 6.5 Creedmoor I could use but I have never shot it.
Then there is there 338/378 , I'm not a fan of this rifle.
I'll bet you can guess why. BUT it does kill elk...
Then maybe the 375 H&H but I regress...
I'm asking about the 6mm.
Anything under 200 yards and I feel confident I can put the bullet any place I want .

What's your honest thoughts?

I plan to shoot two, probably in the same spot/herd.
 
Originally Posted By: gooseislandHead and neck shots, no problem. Through the lungs, again, no problem.
Pretty much it! If your first shot doesn't stop them it could be a mess as they can take a lot of lead. I have seen many guys empty their guns on them. Saw one guy put 17 rounds in one before it dropped. It was hamburger before it hit the dirt.
Another thing is it won't take much shooting before those elk start coming in after dark and leave just before light.

All my elk kills have been .30-06 or .300 WM. Every head or neck kills were 1 shot drop with no bullet recovery. Lung shots some have run up to 30 yds and nearly every bullet recovered under the hide on opposite side.

Here is what's left of a .300 WM 180 gr Corelokt bullet from a few weeks ago. A 242 yds running shot both lungs. And the two ivories.

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I know the gun I know the bullet.
I have shot a few elk in 50 years of hunting and have used several guns to do it. I have shot deer and antelope with a 223 and hated it, I would normally use the 338 or 45/70 If I was OUT HUNTING them. The 6.5 and the 6mm are OUT STANDING deer rifles.
I was just thinking this would be a fairly easy ( although there is never an EASY elk hunt) hunt and a good time to try it.
 
I'm sure it will work....MOST of the time, with a lot more room for things to go wrong and elk not to drop as quickly as you want them to.

Me, I'd just take the 45-70 and not even consider the 6mm. And I love my 6mm rifles and shoot them more than anything else.
 
Sounds like a fine oppurtunity to get to follow a wounded elk when that little bullet hits something hard and takes that "left in Albaturkey." I'm not going to be wondering around in the sub zero weather(-9* here yesterday morning) looking for a cow elk I could have shot with a 30-30 and killed quickly and effectively. Just saying, have at it.
 
I'm going to give it a try in the Morning.
Forecasting light snow for the 4 hour drive and should be around -20* most the day.
I hate snowshoes ....
 
Originally Posted By: gooseislandHead and neck shots, no problem. Through the lungs, again, no problem.

The caliber is on the light side. But, put it PERFECTLY through the lungs and it will do just fine.

Do not do headshots! Sure, if you hit the brain they go down right there. But, why try for a 4" target when you have a 16" target in the lungs? I have seen the results of head shots on more than one ocassion. I put a small buck out of its misery a full week after hunting season that had his lower jaw blown to pieces, puss draining out of his eyes, staggering around suffering a long and lingering death by dehydration or infection or starvation or all three. I have also found cow elk skulls with the jaw bones in pieces that healed some amount with bone growths all over it.
 
Originally Posted By: 6724Originally Posted By: gooseislandHead and neck shots, no problem. Through the lungs, again, no problem.

The caliber is on the light side. But, put it PERFECTLY through the lungs and it will do just fine.

Do not do headshots! Sure, if you hit the brain they go down right there. But, why try for a 4" target when you have a 16" target in the lungs? I have seen the results of head shots on more than one ocassion. I put a small buck out of its misery a full week after hunting season that had his lower jaw blown to pieces, puss draining out of his eyes, staggering around suffering a long and lingering death by dehydration or infection or starvation or all three. I have also found cow elk skulls with the jaw bones in pieces that healed some amount with bone growths all over it.

Headshots are for people with overgrown egos. I've been there too. Guy brags about the two headshots he's made...next two he blows the jaw or nose off and I get to spend hours trying to put them down for him...
 
If a person is confident with their ability and their equipment, they can shoot wherever they please. I know I'm not a weekend warrior hunter or shooter, and trust my ability and equipment 100%. I eat,sleep, and breath hunting and shooting. I've only taken head shots on 2 occasions on big game. I would much rather shoot high in the neck, towards the base of the head. Ymmv. I have heard and seen what you are talking about. But the people who do it are people who hunt 2 weekends a year and shoot maybe once a year.
 
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Well I guess I'll have to wait to answer my question.
I feel sure the 6mm would kill a cow elk ,But no cows to test it on.
We hunted and "scoped" a LOT of country.
Bull after bull after bull.
Groups of bulls ,and a herd of bulls.
Some monsters some little peanut heads but all bulls.
We put the hunt on suspected cows time and time again, only to find more bulls.
The ranch owners put us on areas that where loaded with elk.
Yup all bulls, some we hunted to with in 50 yards.
AND, did you know my camera will not work at -20*?
If I could step out side the truck, I could get one picture, more then that and nota .
Two days sun up to sundown chasing bulls .
We where seeing a lot of deer and coyote tracks too.

SOOOO

On the trip home we called coyotes, It was warming up to +5 in the daylight , nice...
I was afraid our cold coyote streak was going to persist.
It did for a few but, we where hearing call back at most of our sets, that was encouraging.
We kept at it till the wind was about as high as we like to call in and it "Broke".
A group of 3 coyotes came charging in to our challenge calls looking to kick some butt.
They came in on my side, so I knew the boy would not shoot till I did. At that point , no presser a 3 day hunt ,butt cold miles of walking and not a shot fired, right no presser on the old man.
They stopped about 200 yards and froze looking for a threatening coyote. It's now or never.
The safety on the 6 slid down almost by it self the cross hairs dead center shoulder of the end coyote. Bang, flop! and The six seemingly moved to the fleeing coyotes like a laser tracking a MIG fighter. I heard the FP switch to the fox bang and the wounded coyote yelp and the front runner hoped to a stop to look back.
Now closer to 350 yards . Again the coyote was dead center in the scope, bang, Flop!. The third disappeared someplace never to be seen again. My son jumped up to congratulate me on a specular funk braking Double. He was surprised to see me digging in the snow. He hollered what the heck are you doing ?
"I look up and said I'm looking for my brass", haha funny thing to be doing after that he said. But Hey there 6mm brass and as valuable as the coyotes to me. I only found one dang it.
IT FELT VERY GOOD to have two dead coyotes laying in the snow.
It was the last set we did the wind just came up to hard to continue , and we still had 3 hours home.
No Elk but we broke the funk and had 2 very nice coyotes , What a perfect way to spend time with the boy.
I did find the 80 gr Barnes TTS at 3600 fps a little rough for shooting coyotes, Going to need a needle and thread to sell the furs but hey there dead.
NICE.
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Originally Posted By: springerOriginally Posted By: 6724Originally Posted By: gooseislandHead and neck shots, no problem. Through the lungs, again, no problem.

The caliber is on the light side. But, put it PERFECTLY through the lungs and it will do just fine.

Do not do headshots! Sure, if you hit the brain they go down right there. But, why try for a 4" target when you have a 16" target in the lungs? I have seen the results of head shots on more than one ocassion. I put a small buck out of its misery a full week after hunting season that had his lower jaw blown to pieces, puss draining out of his eyes, staggering around suffering a long and lingering death by dehydration or infection or starvation or all three. I have also found cow elk skulls with the jaw bones in pieces that healed some amount with bone growths all over it.

Headshots are for people with overgrown egos. I've been there too. Guy brags about the two headshots he's made...next two he blows the jaw or nose off and I get to spend hours trying to put them down for him...

I have killed a fair number of elk in my lifetime and have killed a few with headshots and more neck shots.
Being the furthest thing from egotistical I have confidence in the ability to take quick ethical shots and equally to pass on shots that are iffy or marginal.
This has not only been displayed here but witnessed and even video recorded by others.
Was going to headshoot my elk this year because that was the shot presented but it jumped up and ran so I took the 242 yard running shot in the lungs. Again witnessed and documented.
There are people that will empty their gun and miss an elk at 100 yds. I've witnessed that and worse but that does not reflect my abilities.
 
Barnes at 3600 is cooking, it will smash through a lot and will kill an elk. I would just worry about losing some of the expanding pedals on a shoulder or small blood trails on a heart or lung shot, or worse a liver shot.
 
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