25-06 vs 7mm rem mag

S

sweatybetty

New member
howdy all! i have a savage 7mm that i used to scare a nice bull elk a few weeks ago. in oregon to hunt elk you must use a .24 caliber or bigger. im thinking that i flinch a bit with the 7 mm. (im a soaking wet 145 lbs)
i have never shot a 25-06 and would like to know if its big enough for elk and how it compares to a 7mm as far as recoil, accuracy and distance. all opinions welcome! thanks guys
sb /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
Yes the 25-06 is big enough for Elk. I've used one myself a time or two but you must use the heaviest slugs and pick your shots. It kicks about like a 270 the round is accurate but that depends on the rifle and it is a 300 yard round. I have a friend who gets his Elk every year for the past 20 years and all he shoots is the 25-06. If it was me I would just put a muzzle brake on it. I have a Ruger in 300 mag and it was a killer with horrible recoil, I had a brake put on and now it fun to shoot just loud than before.
 
First you need to shoot what's legal, second you need to shoot what you can shoot well. I have a friend who's wife has used the same Weatherby Vanguard in 25-06 for at least 25yrs. to hunt with and has killed at least a dozen elk with it. I don't recall what bullet he's using but to the best of my knowledge she has never lost one to a bad shot. I helped a friend load up some Barnes bullets for a sheep hunt over in the Steens several years ago and he had two complete pass trues on a nice ram. I would say a well placed shot with the 25-06 is far better than a bad one with the 7 mag.
 
You might also want to check into a Sims recoil pad. No personal experience, but I've heard that they're really nice.
 
I have killed elk with small calibers on up to the 375 H7H mag (With a 300 grain bullet, talk about recoil). Unless you are a very experienced elk hunter, I would not recommend the 25-06. Not enough bullet weight. Imo, the 270 with a 130 gr bullet should be minimum. As some said above, install a good recoil pad on that 7mm and practice with it. The 7mm mag is a very good elk rifle. The nasty thing about muzzle brakes is the noise, horrible. I suggest you shoot that 7mm (with a good pad) until you are confident with it, the recoil issue can be overcome.
 
Go with the least recoil. You will shoot better. Good shot placement is more important than power. Many people here use the old .243 for elk.
 
The muzzlebrake would be a cheap solution but I personally hate the noise they create. If you think the 7mag is too much maybe consider trading it in or selling it for something you shoot well. A 280 Rem would be a good choice and a 7mm-08 is a great round if you are sticking to under 300 yards. Same wide 7mm bullet selection and very mild on the recoil. I have a mild load with 140gr partitions I use for everything. Very close to the 280 in performance but much more pleasant to shoot, not that the 280 is bad. Something to consider.
 
I hate recoil and love muzzle brakes. I had a 7 mag with a brake and my 10 year old shot it a lot.My .270 has a brake. I'd never shoot it in practice without hearing protection.
 
A 25 will do, but pick your shots and run a 120 grainer, preferably a Partition. While I think that a 25-06 is a bit light for elk, lots of elk have been taken with it. If you ever get to Wisdom, Montana, you will fit right in with your 25-06. Those Big Hole boys swear by them.
 
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Get a good recoil pad,my 7 mag with one doesnt kick any more than my 25-06 without one.



Yep, +1 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
I have both and I really would not want to go after elk with the 25-06. You may want to consider something along the lines of a 308.

Good Luck and Good Hunting
 
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I have killed elk with small calibers on up to the 375 H7H mag (With a 300 grain bullet, talk about recoil). Unless you are a very experienced elk hunter, I would not recommend the 25-06. Not enough bullet weight. Imo, the 270 with a 130 gr bullet should be minimum. As some said above, install a good recoil pad on that 7mm and practice with it. The 7mm mag is a very good elk rifle. The nasty thing about muzzle brakes is the noise, horrible. I suggest you shoot that 7mm (with a good pad) until you are confident with it, the recoil issue can be overcome.



Well there certainly must be a minimum caliber and bullet weight for elk that is reasonable. But do you think your example is it?

Do you think and elk is going to notice the difference of 10 grains of bullet weight and 2 hundreths of an inch in diameter???
.277" - .257" = .020"
130 grains - 120 grains = 10 grains.
An elk would not know the difference.

Many people use a .257 Roberts and 100 to 120 grain bullets on elk. I have been told they just tend to drop like rocks when hit with a .257

Do not get me wrong, I would want a .270 and a good quality 150 grain bullet as a minimum for elk. I would most likely use my .338 Win Mag with 215 or 225 grain bullets.

But I am certain a 25-06 would work just fine.
 
I have seen a spike bull shake off a 200 grain 8mm rem mag through the lower shoulder that completly broke the far leg at 100 yards and run 1.5 miles sidehilling before he slowed down,never underestimate the endurance of a spooked elk.A 25-06 could work if all the proper requirments were met but anyone who has any experience hunting elk in rugged country knows that is a rare occourance,take enough gun for the worst possible shot,not the perfect one.If you do your part you only have to fire the [beeep] thing once,recoil should not be a consideration.
 
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I recommend a 270 with 130 grain as minimum.
not a lot of recoil and as much knock down as anything in
it's class. the most important thing is shot placement.
on Elk you have to make a good shot #1. next is enough bullet weight and speed. they are pretty big and durable

I shoot a 7mm ultra mag that thumps me real hard when sigting it in. but when hunting I just make sure I hold it
into my shoulder tight and after that it's just noise and a gun that is rally going to get it done for you.

nothing makes you a better shot then a gun that you know if you hold it on where you want to hit, is going to get it done for you.
 
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