Elk hunt help.

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scottbird

scottbird

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mansfield, pa
ok, I have a good friend that is going Elk hunting with his friends from work. one of the guys that I know through him, had a heart attack yesterday, and will not be able to hunt in december, as he is faceing open heart surgery. anyway my friend called me this morning and gave me his spot. I have a question for you guys. I have to take one of two weapons, as they are all I have.
1. savage axis in .308 I use 150gr ballistic tip

2. my #1 mk3 303, that I use 168gr remington soft point.

we are looking at shots no more than 350 yds.

I know both of them will do the job, and I love my 303, and the 308. I am thinking about takeing the 303 just because all the other guys are using more modern firearms, and it nice be nice to show up with a classic. what do you guys think?:cool:
 
personally, I love hunting with the classics. I took an old 8mm mannlicher out for elk last year but never saw anything to shoot at. I have gotten black bear with a 6.5 arisaka, it really is a different kindof experience to take something with a rifle older than you are. with that said, the savage is more likely to be more accurate, which is kindof a necessity when hunting over range, but I would not use a 150gr ballistic tip for elk. the 168 soft tip out of the 303 would be a better deal in my opinion. if you are dead set on one or the other with one bullet or the other, I would go with the enfield but the savage is the better setup, assuming better bullet selection.

out of curiosity, where are you elk hunting?
 
Is the Enfield open sights? I assume the Savage has a scope so I'd go with that one unless you are 100% sure you can make the shot with the Enfield. I would hate to wound an animal due to a misplaced shot. While I don't need a scope it allows me a higher level of precission than iorns. And the irons on the No1 are not the best.
 
tahunua001 said:
personally, I love hunting with the classics. I took an old 8mm mannlicher out for elk last year but never saw anything to shoot at. I have gotten black bear with a 6.5 arisaka, it really is a different kindof experience to take something with a rifle older than you are. with that said, the savage is more likely to be more accurate, which is kindof a necessity when hunting over range, but I would not use a 150gr ballistic tip for elk. the 168 soft tip out of the 303 would be a better deal in my opinion. if you are dead set on one or the other with one bullet or the other, I would go with the enfield but the savage is the better setup, assuming better bullet selection.

out of curiosity, where are you elk hunting?
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Yes a ballistic tip is for whitetails to fragile for an elk. Your 6.5 has those wonderful long bullets and good for black bear.Surprised no one has come on and said use an AR in 5.56 for elk lol
 
both are scoped, and I am prety good with both. I feel more confident with the #1 mk3 as I shoot it a lot more. I have had it out I would say 30-40 times this year, and have not shot the 308 in about a year.

we are going to be hunting somewhere in Main. it will be my second elk hunt, my first was in Alaska, about 15 years ago, and I used an old savage 243, that the barrel is gone out of now.
 
I am going to bring both, just incase something were to happen to my enfield, I think I will get some heads to turn with my old war horse.

I have a passion for the old war horses, and the storys we will never know behind them.

thank you guys;)
 
Hmm...when going on these group expeditions I typically try to turn some heads too. Deer hunting with a revolver over an open field has worked out well, dove hunting with a 1928 rem model 11 always gets a few jaws flapping, and certainly taking my bow squirrel hunting got some odd looks, but not as much as my single six did. Challenge the norm in a way that you are comfortable, and can ethically make a shot. Know your limitations and don't try to surpass them.
 
both are scoped, and I am prety good with both. I feel more confident with the #1 mk3 as I shoot it a lot more. I have had it out I would say 30-40 times this year, and have not shot the 308 in about a year.

we are going to be hunting somewhere in Main. it will be my second elk hunt, my first was in Alaska, about 15 years ago, and I used an old savage 243, that the barrel is gone out of now.
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Wait a minute here......

You are going elk hunting WHERE? There are no wild elk in the state of Maine that I am aware of.

As far as the rifles go why not simply take the .308 but use a bullet that will be effective on elk. Something like a 165 gr Nosler Partition, Barnes TSX, Swift A Frame etc etc..However I find this extremely interesting;

From another thread scottbird you made this statement.

I have hunted deer, bear, black and brown, elk and moose, all I ever used was my 243.
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So I'm thinking that since you have killed brown bear, elk and moose with a .243. That a man of of you exquisite hunting talent would NOT need advice on what to use for a an elk hunt in Maine. Especially considering that if you are going to be elk hunting in Maine it is going to be done at a high fenced game ranch. Why not just use your heavy kill rated .243 on this hunt too?
 
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if you read on I had to put my 243 to rest, the barrel is gone, it was handed down throught the family, I think it was a savage, may of been a stevens,do not have the gun anymore, it sits st my sisters house, have not seen it in about 6-7 years.

I have the 308 for 2-3 years now, have had several enfields, decided to get this particualr one scoped, when I bought it, it had a synthetic stock, and no matching numbers.
 
if you read on I had to put my 243 to rest, the barrel is gone, it was handed down throught the family, I think it was a savage, may of been a stevens,do not have the gun anymore, it sits st my sisters house, have not seen it in about 6-7 years.

I have the 308 for 2-3 years now, have had several enfields, decided to get this particualr one scoped, when I bought it, it had a synthetic stock, and no matching numbers.
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That is all very interesting scottbird. But it does not answer the question. Why does a hunter of your reported experience need advice on what rifle/load to use on a high fenced elk in Maine? Seems to me that a man who has killed brown bear, elk and moose with a .243 should already have that figured out. He should also know that a .308 diameter 150 gr BT is a fantastically poor choice for elk hunting. I'd be interested to hear where you are going to be elk hunting in Maine as well?
 
if you read on I had to put my 243 to rest, the barrel is gone, it was handed down throught the family, I think it was a savage, may of been a stevens,do not have the gun anymore, it sits st my sisters house, have not seen it in about 6-7 years.

I have the 308 for 2-3 years now, have had several enfields, decided to get this particualr one scoped, when I bought it, it had a synthetic stock, and no matching nerumbers.

I loved my 243, and I was not by any means braging, just telling what the caliber can do.

H&H hunter, there are elk all over the eastern seaboard, I live in pa, there are elk here, in oh,pa, va, wv, ky, ny,they have been letting them loose. I am not sure about some of these states, but I just moved up from va, and there they treat the elk as deer, no special license needed.

have I done some dumb things in my past, yes, but what I should have told you, is that on them hunts I had my friend behinde me with his 300 win mag, just incase something happend.

I just figured that if Fred Bear could kill a polar bear at 20yds with a bow, why couldn't I hunt these animals with a 243 at 80-100yds.
 
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just want to know, if the decision were someone elses, would you want to take the most modern of your weapons, or step out and do something out side of normal. I am no where near that great of a hunter, I just found myself in the right place at the right time.

I am no one special, so I have done some crazy things, who has not.

t
 
scottbird.......

H&H hunter, there are elk all over the eastern seaboard, I live in pa, there are elk here, in oh,pa, va, wv, ky, ny,they have been letting them loose. I am not sure about some of these states, but I just moved up from va, and there they treat the elk as deer, no special license needed.
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One of the things that we strive for on THR is accurate information. We have a large readership many of whom come to this sight for the purpose of gathering information. With that in mind we don't have a lot of time for folks who intentionally spread false information or outright lies.

There is a hunting season for elk in PA and IT IS HIGHLY REGULATED and extremely difficult to draw a tag for elk in PA or any of the other eastern states that have reintroduced elk. Please do not spread incorrect information. If you don't know look it up or ask somebody who does know.

From the PA game regulations

http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?open=514&objID=568324&mode=2

Pennsylvania Elk

Elk Hunting
The application period for the 2014 elk hunt closed July 31st. The annual drawing for elk licenses will take place on August 16 during the Elk Expo at Elk Country Visitor Center in Benezette, along with seminars, exhibits, vendors and entertainment.

Pennsylvania Automated License System (PALS) is the site to apply for the elk license drawing and check the status of your application. Preference points can also be checked through PALS.

Pennsylvania Hunting & Trapping Digest (pgs 78-80) provides details about the elk hunt.

Where can I get detailed information about individual elk hunt zone boundaries?
What's the best elk hunt zone to select as my "preferred" zone?
Elk Check Station Map

To check the status of an elk application: Successful 2014 applicants who provided a phone number have been notified by phone. Hunters can check on the status of an elk application and preference points through the Pennsylvania Automated License System (PALS) at www.pa.wildlifelicense.com. Click the first radio button, scroll to the bottom of the page and click Start Here and follow the prompts.
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With that in mind I'll say it one more time. There are NO wild elk in Maine. So how are you planning on hunting them there?
 
Deleted...Not a productive comment...
 
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number one I said main I think, and two I was not talking about the elk huntiung in pa. va, that is virginia has elk, and you hunt them in deer season, no special permit needed, that is in va.

2nd. you want to send me a notice privatly to call me a liar, then show me proof. you do not even know me, you would not know that I watched my father as I was growing up, and he had that same 243, and shot everything with it. deer bear, turkey, mule deer, in MI, and elk, and moose in Alaska, we were there when he was in the army.

now to you sir, mr. H&Hhunter, it is now time for you to prove to this forum, that there is no way for that 243 to do what I told you it has done. you want to prove some one of lying, or accuse them, so now let us all see the proof?

Yes Elk do live in Maine, although there are no wild Elk living in Maine. Many different animal farms in Maine breed Elk and other animals for hunting or other purposes. The last wild Eastern Elk was killed in 1877. Though there have been many successful efforts at repopulating eastern states with Rocky Mountain Elk, Maine has yet to start a wild Elk population.

at no time did I ever say it was a wild hunt.

ignorance is knowladge to the hippocrite.
 
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Confusion and misunderstandings, looks like.

From Googling, elk in Maine are descended from imports and are treated as ferals, with no license required. One advertisement for a 500-acre game ranch says no license for imports and can be hunted with or without a guide.

So, not native. But not free-ranging and wild, as in western states' native habitat.

In the FWIW department, the sub-species of native elk in Texas are extinct. Any elk in Texas are treated by the Wildlife agency as ferals, same as coyotes or cougars. Only the basic hunting license is required, just like almost all hunting in Texas. So, it's up to a landowner as to whether or not "his" elk can be hunted, and at what fee.

More FWIW: That .303 load oughta work okay, from what people have said about what they've used. While I'm not an elk hunter, I figure that in a .308 a heavier bullet would be a bit more reliable for penetration. I generally think conservatively about angling shots.
 
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