25-06?

[Co243Win]

Ok i am thinking of getting a new project.. I was thinking about an X-bolt 25-06.. What do you guys think about the 25-06 for elk? Anyone have any experience with one. Thanks Nic

 

[DrMike]

As with many fine calibres, the 25-06 will work for elk. I say that with the proviso that you are willing to wait for the proper shot and use a premium bullet. Nevertheless, elk are tough animals. I prefer to use a little more horsepower--more mass and more frontal area--for those times when the shot is less than ideal.

 

[6mm Remington]

I agree with Dr. Mike completely, but if you wait for the right shots and pass on the iffy ones it will work fine with QUALITY bullets. I shot a spike bull about three years ago at right at 300 yards with my wife's 25-06 and my load of 120 gr. Nosler Partition. I had plenty of time to make the shot, wind was not an issue, I had a perfect rest over a log, and he had no idea I was there. I had all the time in the world to get settled and wait until he was broadside and I had a clear lane through the dead standing timber. I also have taken another spike bull with my 6mm Remington which is even more on the lighter side. I shot this bull at 30 yards, he had no idea I was there, and I was using a Nosler 100 grain Partition. I DID NOT want him to run down the horribly steep and timbered ridge we were on as it was far enough to the top as it was already. I shot him at a slight angle away from me right in the center of his near right side shoulder. The bullet went in and caught part of his lungs and broke his shoulder. That LITTLE Partition penetrated clear through the shoulder, his center mass area, and exited out his neck just in front of his off side shoulder! Not bad for a 6mm Remington and 100 grain bullet! He staggered just a few steps and was dead on his feet and was going to go down, but I did not want him to suffer, nor did I want him to see me or something and get a kick of adrenaline and head down the mountain so I shot him once more at the base of his ear. He dropped instantly.

 

[SJB358]

Mike said it pretty well. I wouldn't think there would be any issues at all with a broadside shot into the ribs with a 25-06 and a good bullet, as RM2506 has done before. I guess it depends on your comfort level with the rifle. If you have the chance to get something bigger, I would think you would be happier in the end. There is a big difference between a big bull elk and a cow or spike, so size of the animal does change a bit, but overall, they are some tough animals. Plus, I guess the main benefit to me is a bigger gun will more than likely make two holes, one in-one out. That means alot on tracking the animal after the shot if a bad shot was taken or the elk moved at the shot. Having tracked an elk over the mountain after a bad shot with my 270WSM, I tend to go bigger now, it won't make up for a bad shot, but it does give you more sign on the ground to follow up a wounded animal. Scotty

 

[257 Ackley]

I have seen two elk shot with a 25-06 using 120 grain Remington Core-Lokt bullets, so I know that it will work with the right shot placement. After hunting in SW Montana last year, my mind was changed about what qualifies as calibers for elk in any given situation. The only shot I had all week was ranged at 515 yards, which is too far for anything that is not a magnum caliber with a good BC and substantial down-range energy. If you live in the area you hunt and can afford to pass up marginal shots for a caliber like the 25-06, by all means use it. I don't live in one of the western states and need to make sure that the week to 10 days invested in travel and hunting give me a chance to harvest an animal in a humane and efficient manner.

 

[JD338]

I agree with the others, the 25-06 with a premium heavy bullet will work under ideal condirtions.

JD338

 

[Elkman]

Ok i am thinking of getting a new project.. I was thinking about an X-bolt 25-06.. What do you guys think about the 25-06 for elk? Anyone have any experience with one. Thanks Nic

Nic this will be my 48 or 49th season chasing after elk, I have been at it a lot of years have been pretty successful and have a pretty substantial data base on which to base my comments. I have writtian similar responses several times in fact Scotty and OT 3 could probably write it for me. Between 1958 and 1969 I killed 13 elk with a 3006. In 1969 I killed one a long ways across a canyon by breaking three of her four legs. I was not happy with my performance and realized to hunt the country and style of hunting that I wanted to do the 06 was not enough gun. I then moved up to a 300 win mag and have never second guessed that decision. Hunting is not just killing, it is the hunters responsibity to kill the game quickly, using fair chase and to recover and utilize the meat. Now having said that I will say that if you are the type of hunter that will only shoot standing elk as did 6mm, will wait for the perfect shot and will not take the long shot the 257 passed up then the 25/06 will work for you. My closest elk has been 17 yards, my fartherst (measured) 420 and few if any of them fell where I shot them. If you want to hunt the deep dark timber, want to take the rear end shot going away, or the quartering shot with them moving, or the cross canyon shot in the trees at 300+ yards then the 25/06 won't get it done. At least the part about utilizing the meat, you probably kill them but you won't recover them frequently. There are a lot of excellent elk calibers out there, I personnaly consider the 06 class of cartridges at the minimum, with some of the better being the mediums like the 338/06, the 35 Whelen (although range is limited). The best is at least a full length 7mm caliber magnum or better. I like any thing that has a 300 associated with it, I know the .388's are stellar preformers, the 8mm and a host of others in those classifications. I know I am leaviing out some ones favorite but you are getting my point. A poorly hit elk (cow or bull) with any rifle is an elk that can go a long ways, into some of the steepest, nastiest, most rugged country on the planet leaving a little blood trail and die. Not what any ethical sportsman wants. Nuff from me.

 

[Guy Miner]

Elkman - that reads like very sage advice. Thank you for posting, based on your 40+ years of elk hunting experience!

Much as I enjoy mule deer hunting with my .25-06, I have better tools available for elk. Meaning bigger rifles. I was surprised when I took up the .25-06 some years ago to learn that a few of my friends had used one on elk, usually with good results. They've all gone to bigger cartridges now. Took my bull elk with a 175 gr Nosler Partition from a 7mm Rem mag at about 180 yards, with perfect performance and a quick kill.

I can give you several stories of wiz-bang .25-06 performance on mule deer, but have never used mine on elk, and am not likely to do so while I have a .30-06, a .300 WSM and a .375 on hand. The .300 WSM with a quality 200 gr bullet seems much better to me than my .25-06 with a 100 - 120 grain bullet.

Regards, Guy

 

[REDGREEN]

I load 120 grain Speers for a buddy that uses his 25 06 for moose and elk. He hasn't lost one, but also, he waits for a perfect presentation before he fires. I use a 270 Weatherby magnum on them, and as already stated by Guy Miner and Elkman, they are tough animals. If you screw up, they will find the most miserable, thickest place in the hills to expire. It will work, but there are better alternatives available for the task.

 

[nitis]

I love my quarter bores but if you are looking for an all around caliber I would get the 270 wsm if I were you flys as flat or flatter than the 25.06 and can be loaded up to 160 grs with partitions 140 gr ABs you name it my buddy gets 3150 out of his model 700 and 150 gr bergers

IF you know elk are on the menu dont sell yourself short

 

[Songdog]

If you screw up, they will find the most miserable, thickest place in the hills to expire. It will work, but there are better alternatives available for the task.

Ain't a big enough caliber on the mountain to correct that... you hit an elk bad, and all bets are of... .25-06 or .375, doesn't matter.

I've killed a couple of cow elk with the .25-06 running 100 NBTs... that was before all this internet jazz... when ballistic tips actually killed stuff instead of bouncing off... remember that? Anyway... with elk I've always tried to have a "bowhunting" mentality. What I mean is... I look for a "perfect" shot... if it isn't there, then I wait. Bowhunters kill tons of elk every year... because they make holes in lungs and heart. If you can do it with a bow... you can certainly do it with a stout bullet out of the .25-06. If you have to take a shot in the timber at an elk that's moving away from you... then it's rolling the dice... regardless of what caliber you're shooting.

Take your time and pick a spot... run a 115 Partition (or 100 e-tip) through the lungs... and grab your knife (and preferably a mule).

 

[DrMike]

You are correct--a bad shot with a big bullet is still a bad shot. I think the fly in the ointment is that few are willing to wait for the shot. The current trend is that those in the woods around here are becoming shooters rather than hunters; and this can only lead to growing numbers of wounded game. I admire and commend all long-distance shooters who take time to know their rifle and are familiar with the loads they are shooting. Unfortunately, I am witnessing a growing number of people who believe that because they buy an expensive scope, a big rifle and ammunition used on a television show to make marginal shots. I seldom witness these nimrods shooting at the 400 yard range, and almost never do they take time to shoot at 600 to 1000 yards. A handful of cartridges fired at a 100 yard target does not give me confidence in the ability of the shooters.

I had a fellow a few years back who had purchased a 7.82 Warbird. I was asked to develop a load for the rifle. It was the third rifle chambered in this cartridge that I had received within a period of about one month. When I asked what he intended to hunt, he replied that he intended to shoot elk at 1000 yards. The answer was similar to that which I had received from a growing number of people. First of all, in the timbers in this area, seeing a thousand yards can be difficult. Nevertheless, I responded to this gentleman that the rifle was certainly capable of taking elk at 1000 yards, as was true of any of a number of cartridges of lesser power. "However," I continued, "your ability to do so is very much in question if you do not spend time with this rifle at the range." He did not want to spend time with the rifle; he only wanted to have the bragging rights.

 

[Jim1 AB]

I know of only one guy that should be using a 25-06 on elk. There are others, no doubt. It takes a lot to watch an animal of your dreams just walk away because you don't have the perfect shot. I don't have that amount of time to spend hunting, yet. And to tell the truth there are just to many other fine calibers to choose from.

DrMike
I appreciate your sediments. I had a guy ask me this year to mount a scope for him and sight it in cause he had no idea how to do it. This is pretty basic rifle 101 stuff. I wouldn't do it. If he doesn't want to lean the most basic stuff he shouldn't be hunting.

 

[FOTIS]

As that rest stated the 25-06 will work for elk. A 120 Partition at 2900-3000 fps will do the trick. Shot placement is everything. That said, I personally consider the 270 as minimum for elk.

 

[BK]

Around here (in Oregon), mostly elk that are legal to shoot are cows and spikes. While I have a fair number of rifles that are more of what people would call 'classic' elk calibers, I wouldn't hesitate to light one up with my .25-06 (or my .257 Weatherby), assuming good bullets - Partitions if I could get them to shoot in my .25-06, eTips, Scirocco IIs, TSXs.

Now if trophy bulls are a possibility, I'm taking my Whelen or .300 Win., at least until I get a .340 Weatherby.

 

[Guy Miner]

Good point. Despite what the hunting magazines portray, most elk hunting isn't for 700 - 800 pound 6x6 or bigger bulls... Excellent point.

 

[velvetant]

what is the average weight of a non trophy elk?
I have yet to hunt elk but it's on my bucket list.

 

[Songdog]

I know of only one guy that should be using a 25-06 on elk. There are others, no doubt. It takes a lot to watch an animal of your dreams just walk away because you don't have the perfect shot. I don't have that amount of time to spend hunting, yet. And to tell the truth there are just to many other fine calibers to choose from.

This is exactly the kind of attitude that can get you in big trouble on elk... regardless of caliber choice. If you're taking "imperfect shots"... then you're bound to get "imperfect results". Starting a bullet in the paunch of a hard-quartering bull... just because you feel like you have "enough gun" to get it through to the vitals... is inviting trouble... 115 Partition out of a .25-06... or 220 Partition out of a .300 Winny. Expecting a caliber/bullet to compensate for poor shot placement (or poor shot choice), whether intentional or unintentional, is rolling the dice... and borderline reckless.

It's a much greater trophy to let a critter walk becuase you don't have a shot... than to look at bone on the wall and remember the 3-mile tracking job on a wounded bull because you thought you "brought enough gun"... and actually you just "brought enough luck".

 

[Antelope_Sniper]

As that rest stated the 25-06 will work for elk. A 120 Partition at 2900-3000 fps will do the trick. Shot placement is everything. That said, I personally consider the 270 as minimum for elk.

I agree with Pop regarding the Minimum for Elk. A 140gr premium bullet at 2700+ is the minimum I would recommend. Now if you have one tied up to a tree, a 25.06 will work fine, but under spooky wild conditions, something bigger is prudent.

Ain't a big enough caliber on the mountain to correct that... you hit an elk bad, and all bets are of... .25-06 or .375, doesn't matter.

I have to disagree with you here. Now if it's a totally bad hit, say straight though the guts, I'll will generally agree with you. But I've seen elk hit in less then optimum places with .338 and .375 mags end up in the freezer when I don't think they would of from a lesser round. But if you put a big enough hole in them, you are more likely to catch a bit of spine, an artery, tear the diaphram and collapse the lungs, or turn a weak lung hit into a significant lung hit.

A good .338 200gr BT, or 225gr BT launched around 3000fps will do a substancial amount of tissue damage. It's still not magic, but it gives you a much larger margin of error. A 25-06 on elk is like using a .32 revolver for self defence. Yea, it will work, but there are many better tools.

 

[jmad_81]

I have heard of people shooting elk in their beds with a .22LR. It worked. Right, well yeah it worked that time... I would prefer to be over gunned and not need it than to need it and not have it. You still have to make a good shot with a bigger gun, no exceptions. I have seen elk take several 225gr. 338 WM bullets, and one take a 260 AB out of a 375 R. Every one of these shots where kill shots and they all didn't go right down. ELK ARE REALLY TOUGH! I watched a guy break a leg on an old bull, and the bull ran off for a mile and a half in the sage brush before he even stopped to think about hurting.

I wouldn't reccomend anything under .277" for elk. The 270 WSM that was brought up earlier is a sound suggestion for a light all around gun. Whatever you get, shoot it well, make good shots, and you'll be enjoying some tasty elk burgers.