What 50 caliber hunting bullets would you all recommend for elk hunting? It is a rifle not a pistol, if that matters.



Thanks,

ASS_CLOWN

Ass_Clown,

I don't own a 50 cal rifle other than a muzzle loader so this is JMO. I'd use the lightest jacketed soft point you can get. Hard to say which would be best, but no doubt any of them are gonna poke quite a hole in a wapiti. What cartridge are you talking about?

Kodiak Bonded core 450gr .510 bullets work real well

ASS_CLOWN



Funny you should mention .510 i just got back from Richard Corbin's My swage die set's finished in .510

It's got a 300 meplat and it's a 10% Deg/ tapper

It will also work in a lever becouse of it's flat point/nose

I took over my extra jacket's to Richard so he could have some but i can have jacket's sent to me for any weight you would like ASAP It also make's a mean looking hollow point

as for weight's. It all depend's on what your shooting it out of ?

50/70 ? 50/110 50 Alaskan ?? a 450 or 500 is really big to be wacking Elk with but by god it will drop them.

Will you be turning them over 2000 FPS it's kinda hard to tell you what one will work best without knowing what type

rifle there being fired from .Wall thickness as well plays a big part as well ........

On Elk nothing thicker then 0.030 for a wall thickness



Pottsy

458Win,

Do you have any load data? Where / how do I get Kodiak bullets?

ASS_CLOWN

Is that what ASS_CLOWN is going to be running the bullet's in is a 50-110

Jameister,

Not trying to start a fight, but much of what you said holds true with elephants too. Many ele have been killed with 303, 6.5, 7mm Mausers, 308 Win, etc, etc.

I think I will stick with my experience and say elk can be very tough. I have seen them drop immediately from an arrow strike while another ran for over 1/2 mile with the lower portion of it's heart, not so surgically removed, by a 416 Rigby (there ain't any blood trail either since there wasn't any pumping going on, makes for tracking them almost impossible). I have seen them drop within 30 yards from a lung hit from a 30-30 (150 gr SP too), while another soaked up 5 chest shots from a much heavier loaded 30-40 Krag (220 gr RN softs @ 2350 fps). Each animal is it's own individual, as I know you are fully aware, so each one will react uniquely to being shot. Anyway, I hope that provided some insight into the formation of my opinion, with regard to their potential toughness.

ASS_CLOWN

Scott,



1. I think the suggestion of a Kodiak bullet is excellent. The Kodiaks are bonded and will hold together well, but they are designed to operate at 50-110 velocities on soft North American game so they should open up well.



2. I would not use standard 500 Jeffery bullet because they are too hard and will not open up on elk.



3. Woodleigh offers a rapid expanding 440 grain .510 bullet. 500 BPEX440 gr. SN Huntingtons carries them, and it shouild perfom the same as the Kodiak.



4. I would also consider one of the thin jacketed Hawks, BUT be careful of pressure spikes so keep the loads down low.



5. What about cast flat nosed bullets? We keep hearing what wonderful killers they are from some forumites, and you could put the theory to test for us.