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150 or 180 grain bullet

old man

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I was thinking of using my 308 for elk this year instead of my heavier 300wm. the Question I have is what is the minimum down range energy needed to put down an elk. ? I was going to go with the horniday 150 interlock doing 2900fps. but I noticed Randy's son did a fine job with tha180 gr. I am looking for the longest range I should be shooting.
 
I've shot multiple bulls and cows with my 270 wsm using 130 Core lokts without problems. Either of your bullets will do the job out to 400. I'm assuming you might not be shooting farther than that?
 
I knew a lady here in Michigan that took a nice 6X6 bull with her 243 and 100 grain core locks.One shot and down. More bullet placement than caliber.
I will be shooting my 300WSM with 180 accubond but my back up rifle is a 270WSM with 130 grain Partitions.I have confidence in both.
 
The 150 Interlock is a great performer as is the 180. If you keep your shots under 400 yards and don't hit any heavy bone, you should be fine. 300 and less would be better. If you know your rifle and the ballistics, then the 180 will hit harder at extended ranges. It will only drop a bit more than the 150 at 300 or less.

I load the 150 to 2934 fps in my Ruger American .308 under CFE223 powder. It shoots sub-half-minute at 300 yards. I am taking it as my backup rifle for elk in November.

After all the effort and expense that goes into an elk hunt, I personally would use the heavier rifle for primary and take the .308 as a backup in case of issues with the other rifle.
 
My vote goes to the 180. The 150 is an excellent whitetail choice, but your only shot might be quartering away, and you would need the heavier weight bullet for better penetration.
If you do get a broadside shot, it should leave two holes, and make tracking easier if necessary. A 165 would be an excellent compromise between the two. Jim Zumbo writes a lot of books on Elk hunting, and is an expert in my opinion. His favorite Elk cartridge is a 30/06 with the 165 grain bullet. 30/06 and .308 are pretty darn close in performance.
Good Luck !!
 
165gr AB, done.

This, if your gun likes them. My problem is that my rifle does not like any 165-grain bullet at decent velocity. I have to load them to 2600ish to get decent groups and that is not really the performance that I want. I can load the 150s to 300 fps more than the 165s with incredible accuracy. If you go by ballistics, then the 165 does not have much more out to 400 yards with the 150 loaded to 300 fps more velocity. The only thing is the added 15 grains, which may be a different discussion. Based on my experience, the Interlocks perform about the same as the Ab at 308 velocities and have always been very accurate in my rifles.

Speaking of Zumbo, I ran into him while scouting antelope before my hunt. Had a good chat with him and his buddies from North Dakota.
 
Thanks for all the opinions people. just got my riffle back from gunsmith who charged me $159 just to put my rugger 77 into a fiberglass stock. so will have to see weather the 180 is as accurate as the 150 was. I guess I will go with the most accurate . not much time, leaving for wyo. on the 30th for two weeks.( MAYBE,) if I can last two weeks.
 
What do you mean just to put it in a stock? Is it bedded? It seems reasonable for that cost.

How far are you capable of shooting? IMO, The 308 is capable out to my long range ability for any elk.

I like the 165gr version, no special reason, as its just what I like... Just get familiar with the ballistics as they are quite different across the spectrum of bullets.

Good luck on your hunt.
 
150 vs 180

I would take a box of both 150 and 180 grainers out to the range and see how they do. Everyone's rifle is likely a little different. Either bullet ought to be fine for elk. With that said the 150 grain is likely a little flatter at long range; however, the 180 may have a little more "lead" and knock down...especially at closer ranges.
 

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