Elk RIFLES

A pull-no-punches look at what does -- and does not -- constitute the perfect gun for hunting North America's finest game.

Equipped with a set of antlers, whose main beams can exceed 6 feet in length, America's most impressive game animal is the Rocky Mountain elk. Nothing quite gets the blood racing like the sound of a big hull trumpeting in the chilly dawn mist. The wapiti is truly special.

Elk are tough, wary and adaptable, living in some of the most remote, inaccessible terrain you will ever dare to hunt. They can move quickly and silently through deadfalls that you couldn't even begin to penetrate on a motocross bike. They can live just as comfortably at 10,000 feet as they can at sea level.

If the elk demands the utmost in endurance, experience and woodsmanship from the hunter, then the hunter had better have some equally high expectations for his rifle. An elk rifle must be just as tough. rugged and ready to perform as you are.

An elk rifle is a special breed of hunting rifle, and its pedigree is determined by the unique demands of an elk hunt. Elk live in the mountains, for the most part. Hunting in the mountains means you are occasionally presented with long shots. Enter criteria number one: an elk rifle must be accurate,

Begging everyone's pardon who swears by his BAR or lives by his '86, the fact is, by and large, only bolt-action rifles are interesting. Other action types are simply not as accurate as a turn-bolt. Put it this way -- when was the last time a maker of lever actions offered a sub-MOA guarantee on a .30-30?

Single-shots have their place. but that place is not on an elk hunt. Accuracy is part of the problem, but the main reason to leave your Ruger No. 1 nice and warm in the safe while you head into 20-below elk country is because of our next requirement for an elk rifle -- toughness.

Elk live in remote, hard-to-reach places. In other words, horseback to get there, horseback to hunt. Jostling around for six hours a day in a saddle scabbard, knocking against trees, brushing against rocks, banging into brush, demands a rugged rifle. We spell that "synthetic stock."

A synthetic stock is impervious to weather, does not shift its zero with temperature extremes, is light weight and resists breakage better than wood. Granted, synthetics don't have the aesthetic appeal of hand-rubbed Circassian walnut, but when it's snowing on the mountain and you slip, scuffing your stock on a rock, then talk to us about the aesthetics of fiberglass.

We also like a stainless steel action and barrel because of the rust-resistant qualities of noncarbon steel. Most rifle companies offer stainless construction in calibers suitable for elk.

Life Begins At 30

The third and last requisite of an elk rifle is the same criterion that makes heavyweights popular in boxing -- raw power. Elk require a hard hit to knock them down. Weighing in the 700 lb. class, elk are heavily boned and thickly muscled. Yes, you can shoot one in the ear with a .22 LR, but the idea is not to see how small a caliber you can get away with; the idea is to match the gun to the game to ensure positive, humane kills.

For an elk rifle, life begins at .30 caliber. The venerable ought-six is, in our view, the bare minimum -- and only then with a good 180 gr. load. Better yet is a .300 magnum -- Weatherby, Remington or Winchester -- loaded with 200 gr. premium bullets.

A quick word on bullets: use the best. Premium loads from the factories are as good as any handload. In fact, most of the top-of-the-line factory loads use handloader bullets like the Nosier Partition, Swift A-Frame, Barnes X-Bullet or a proprietary stinger like Winchester's Fail Safe.

For most experts, "elk rifle" means .338 caliber. We concur most enthusiastically. Our idea of the Perfect Elk Caliber is the .340 Wthby. Mag. If ever there was a cartridge made for a specific game animal, it is Roy Weatherby's .340 and the Rocky Mountain elk.

Using Weatherby's own proprietary ammo (loaded by Norma), you have a choice of two excellent elk loads: a 225 gr. Barnes X-Bullet at 3,000 fps or a 250 gr. Nosler Partition at 2,950 fps. These are perfect ballistics for elk -- a trajectory flat enough to hold dead-on out to 300 yards, with only 10" of drop at 400, coupled with over 4,000 ft./lbs. of muzzle energy.

The bad news about the .340 Wthby. Mag., however, is that only two rifles are chambered for it, Weatherby's own Mark V and Sako's Stainless Synthetic. (Our context here is limited to major manufacturers. Certainly you can have a custom .340 built and there are several boutique makers who offer the caliber.)

The .338 Route

If neither the Mark V nor the Sako whet your elk bugle, the .338 Win. Mag. is our second choice. You give up just 200 fps with a 225 gr. bullet, but nearly 400 fps with a 250 grainer, compared to the .340 Wthby. Mag. That's not good.

Offsetting the decreased performance is a much wider ammo selection. There are at least a half dozen good elk loads available from the Big Three. Remington offers a 225 gr. Swift A-Frame trundling along at 2,785 fps; the Swift is a superb bullet, previously available only to handloaders.