which rifle should I take
I have a 270 or a 375H&H
or should I pony up the cash to get a 300 win mag, or something similar in 30 cal

Take the 270, and the 375 as a backup. No, take the 375, with the 270 as a backup.

Or the other way around. Worry about where you are going to put the bullet, not the size of the bullet. JMO, Dutch.

either one will do the job. Like Dutch said, concentrate on putting the bullet where it is supposed to go.

the 300 is ideal for myself, the 270 would be perfectly fine and the 375 seems like a little overkill to me

Assuming that the .270 is somewhat lighter to carry, and assuming that you can shoot it better, it would likely be the first choice. There's nothing wrong with a .375 if it's light enough to hike up mountains with and you can shoot it accurately.

Whichever, use the right bullet. A 150 Nosler Partition in the .270 and a 260gr Nosler Accubond or Partition, or 250 grain Sierra in the .375 makes either a fine elk rifle.

I would take the one you shoot the best and can pack around in the hills all day.Both will do the job with the right bullet and placement..
Good luck on your hunt.

Jayco

If you are going to hunt a lot in the thick timber, I wouldn't mind having the .375. Either way, you are probably looking @ a 300yd max. shot anyway, both will get there & do the job.

Ideally, I'd use this as an opportunity to buy a new .300 Winchester Magnum myself, or maybe a Weatherby, but you can definately save the money and instead bring your .270, it's plenty for Elk as long as you put the bullet in the killzone. 150gr. Partitions get my vote.

rbrowntx ----- If you shoot both rifles equally well for Elk the .375 would be best for all shots, the good, bad and ugly. If you have the perfect shot the .270 is plenty, you just never know what you will get. Good luck and good shooting.

I think that todays incredible bullet selection makes chamberings like the 270 more worthy of Elk than they used to be in days gone by. Take a look at North Forks and Accubonds for instance, the weight retention and size of the mushrooms are something that 270 users in days gone by only dreamed of and a larger caliber was the only way to obtain a wound channel that such slugs are capable of. Just a little food for thought.

Personally I would take both and let the persuit method dictate which one I shouldered at any given moment. If you decide to use the 270 then choose your bullets well, a heavy for caliber monolithic will penetrate like nobodys business, but I think a well placed North fork or partition would be a better way to go.

Take them both, examine the the type of hunting situation you are going to be in and assuming you shoot both close to equally well ask your outfitter what he recommends. Bullet selection and placement is more critical than the difference between these two calibers for elk.

Have a great time.

270...north fork 150 gr

http://www.northforkbullets.com/270-150.htm

nuff said

The .270 and the .375 are two of my favorite calibers. Which do you shoot the best? My last elk was taken with the .375. Like phurley5 said take the .270 if you will have a good angle. If not the .375 is good to have when things are less than perfect. Remember there are many degrees of wounded but only one degree of dead.

The last thing I would want to do in August is buy a new rifle for a hut this fall. I would take the .270 loaded with a good premium bullet and not think twice about it.

Jeff

In my opinion the 270 is a good elk rifle with premium bullets if the range is reasonable. I wouldn't shoot past 250 yards. You might consider Hornady Light Magnum ammo or Federal High Energy, or a good stout handload.

If you can shoot the 375 well (I know I couldn't, the recoil would have me flinching terribly) and carry it all day long through tough terrain I'd take it. Elk are tough. I've seen them run a long ways even when hit squarely with smaller rifles at long range.

Thanks for all the advice, but the winner is the 375.

The reason being is I never shot anything besides paper with this rifle, and for some reason I think all my rifles need to be hunted with. Plus it's stainless, Id hate to get back and have to reblue my favorite gun.

I have killed 4 elk with a .280 and one with a .300 Win Mag.
All were one shot kills on free range elk in Wyoming, Bridger Teton Wilderness. Ranges were 125 to 260 yds.

Blued guns don't rust if you put a couple of coats of car wax on them. I have taken several elk with my 270 but this year, if it gets finished in time I am taking a 376 Steyr. I camped and hiked last year for 14 days and light means a lot in the mountains.

I have killed a lot of elk with the .270, 7x57 and 06, several with the 300 H&H, but my pick is the .338 and .375 hands down...

Todays elk like to get in the thick stuff, blow down timber and don't come out until dark it seems, therefore you have to go in there after them and the majority of shots you get are going away from you, the .338 with a 300 gr. Woodleigh or the 375 with a 300 gr. whatever will handle that shot easily and push their nose in the dirt at the shot....

The elk I took last year was shot at 75 yards moving briskly thru pine trees and I definitly had to pick my shot but the 150 grain Hornady was found perfectly expanded under the hide on the far side. Ihave used the 338 on a couple of elk but the rifle I had was too light and I did not enjoy shooting it. Then I got a 300 Win mag and now I am hoping to get the 376 Steyr done in time.

.375 H&H without hesitation. Yes the .270 will do it with good bullets and careful shots. But I prefer the peace of mind of being able to let drive at any angle and get full-length penetration if necessary.

If you're recoil-shy then the .270 for certain. I'd use 150gr FailSafes.

I am going elk hunting Oct this year in WY. This is a horseback hunt and I will only take one rifle. [I will have a 475 Linebaugh revolver also]. My rifle of choice is my Blaser R 93 Synthentic in 300 Win Mag with a Leupold 3.5-10 LR with the Ballistic cam.
I will use 180 Federal Trophy Bonded loads. I can hit a 9" plate at 415 yards, and a chest sized plate at 535 yards on a "regular" basis. I have even hit a Coke can at 400. I hope I shoot my elk at 30 yards.... but if the wind ain't too bad, I can make a long shot if necessary. The area we will be hunting may give us a shot at point blank or at long range. That is the beauty of a good 300, it can do both.

Open country with longer shots take the 270, if you shoot it better. If you are in heavy timber I'd lean towards the 375, I prefer a 35 Whelen for heavy timber elk. I've found the 270 with 150 gr Partitions works geat on everything I've tried. I'd go for Partitions in the 375 as well. Take both rifles and try each one out, maybe one of them is your lucky elk rifle!