Is a Remington model 700 7MM08 a big enough gun for elk hunting?

have a chance to buy one tonight if it will do the jobIs a Remington model 700 7MM08 a big enough gun for elk hunting?
The 7MM-08 is a very nice cartridge. You can kill and elk with one but heck, you can kill an elk with a bow and arrow too. Does that make the 7MM-08 a great elk gun? The answer is no. If you will limit your distance and take only a good standing broadside shot, the cartridge will get the job done.





I'd advise against it however. Elk hunting often leaves you with long shots and elk don't go down easy. Even the 7MM Mag is a tad light for me. I don't like chasing after wounded animals and I feel that something in the .30 class such as a .300 Win Mag is a better choice, if you can handle the recoil. It will put an elk down more humanely than some lesser cartridges assuming good shot placement.





That being said a Remington 700 is my favorite off the shelf rifle and I think the 7MM-08 is a great deer cartridge with its only drawback is that ammo choices are limited unless you reload.





Good luckIs a Remington model 700 7MM08 a big enough gun for elk hunting?
buy the 7mm-08 (never turn down a model 700!) but use your 7mag for the elk hunt, with a good stout 175gr. bullet.





the 7mm-08 is a fine cartridge, but with elk, penetration and the ability to break heavy bone are essential, and all else being equal a heavy bullet will do these things better than a lighter one. That said, bullet construction is critical, and a 7-08 with a 140gr A-frame or Accubond will get the job done far better than a 7mag with a flimsy bullet of any weight that breaks up on impact. Standard commercial soft-points are ok for deer at short woods ranges, but elk call for tougher stuff.





Most of the premium bullets loaded for the 7mag these days seem to be 160-162gr, and that's ok, far better than 139-150gr which are deer bullets, but my top choice would be the Federal Premium Vital-Shok 175 gr Trophy Bonded BearClaw, these bullets were putting everything else to shame long ago when ';premium factory load'; inevitably meant Nosler Partition
Yes it can do the job for elk but with the exception of the Barnes X-Bullet %26amp; similar designs a 140gr/7mm bullet isn't a very good choice for use on them. Even using the Nosler Partition or Swift A-Frame I'd recommend the 160gr weight.





Differences between the 7mm Remington(or Weatherby) Magnum cartridge %26amp; 7mm-08 Rem.?


Recoil is the main one. The magnums will hit game harder but also hit the shooter a LOT harder.


You can push 160gr bullets faster then the 7mm-08 can push 140gr ones. The mags give more potential reach then most hunters can really use.


When using the more fragile bullet designs you can have massive meat damage with hits at less then 100 yards and especially under 50yd.





If you need a mild shooting round for most deer hunting the 7mm-08 is great. Its even better as a starter deer gun since if you handload you can make some very mild loads that will cleanly take deer out to well over 200 yards. There are even low recoil factory loads that work well for under 200yard hunting.
It's hard to find factory loads suitable, most being 139. 140 and 150 grain bullets. A good 160 grain bullet should be more than adequate, but you may have to handload to get one.


Added: the difference between 7mm08 and 7mm RemMag with 160 grain bullets is about 250 fps.
it'll definetely do the job for you. i know people who take down elk all the time with their 7mm mausers from ww2
Absolutely, i've witnessed an elk %26amp; moose dropped w/a 25-06
If it's 7mm-08', then you are definitely set.
';(never turn down a model 700!)'; Yah right haha. Go ahead and buy it, but don't use it on elk.
Yes it will.
Go with the magnum just in case
oh yes ive dropped a few with my 700, great rifle for anything of that size