Thread: 7.62x54R can not kill an elk

I was talking to a friend at work about picking up a mosin nagant for big game hunting and I was tolled that the only choice for elk was 30-06, and
the 7.62x54 was too small.

is this just some kind of snobbery or should this noob just listen and pass on any other ammo.

The 7.62x54r and .30-06 are pretty much the same. Sounds like your friend needs a kick in the pants. Or anybody else that tells you one caliber is the "only" caliber for elk.

Hit them right and they will drop on the spot. L

As long as it is not a .270, read some where that the bullets just bounce off.

Keep a reasonable range and they should work just fine.

what ever happend to the idea of shot placement over caliber.....

I could kill an elk with a ball point pen. I'm sure a Mosin would do just fine.

He'll probably tell you you can't kill a deer with a 22-250 or a .243 also, but then again he doesn't sound very bright!!

Just don't let your friend have any of the meat off that elk you kill!!!

Originally Posted by gehrheart

As long as it is not a .270, read some where that the bullets just bounce off.

Keep a reasonable range and they should work just fine.

I have hunted elk in Oregon since 1968, almost exclusively in the Ochocos or the Maurys where shots are generally 150yds.+ and never used anything but a .270 with 150gr. bullets. Are the antlers hanging on my wall a mirage???

The 7.62x54R sits ballistically right between the .308 (7.62x51) and 30-06 (7.62x63). So it is MORE then acceptable for Elk. It has been used to take much bigger game in its home country of Russia.

Just make sure to use an expanding style bullet for hunting game.

Originally Posted by MA Duce

I have hunted elk in Oregon since 1968, almost exclusively in the Ochocos or the Maurys where shots are generally 150yds.+ and never used anything but a .270 with 150gr. bullets. Are the antlers hanging on my wall a mirage???

Second that! Killed more elk than deer and I have always used the .270 my dad got me when I was a kid. I also hate how people make claims that I have to have a 30-06. They have no clue that a .270 is a 30-06 shell necked down to .270 and it has a flatter trajectory to boot

People have killed elk with a .22 so its really about how well of a hunter / shot you are than the actual caliber.

Your friend is either a snob or merely uninformed, but in either case he's wrong. Like everyone else has said here, hunt with confidence if you are shooting x54.

Edit: Maybe he was thinking of 7.62x39? In that case he'd be right.

Keith

My stepdad told me he used to poach deer with a 22lr because they didn't have money for food. He said you just had to get close and shoot them right behind the eye. I think a Mosin will do fine.

Bud's gun shop had them on sale for under $100, not sure if they still are.

Originally Posted by Markjz

I was talking to a friend at work about picking up a mosin nagant for big game hunting and I was tolled that the only choice for elk was 30-06, and
the 7.62x54 was too small.

is this just some kind of snobbery or should this noob just listen and pass on any other ammo.

I've been taking elk with nothing but my sumo loin cloth on.

Seriously, don't know enough, but maybe a fmj bullet isn't the best for the job... and the bullet is the real issue.

Posted by gearheart<<<As long as it is not a .270, read some where that the bullets just bounce off.

Keep a reasonable range and they should work just fine.


Now look what youve started! You just included the 7.62X54 into the knockdown dragout that was once the squared circle domain that belonged the .30-06 and the .270,,,this gould take generations to settle!

Having harvested elk with everything from the 250 grain .338 winchester magnum to the recurve bow I've had for 35 years,, its all about arrow and bullet placement, waiting for the correct shot and knowing what the weapon your useing is capable of are paramont. The 7.62x54R is a very powerful cartridge that when used with the right bullet is capable of taking any animal that walks on the face of the planet,, period.

Originally Posted by salmonriverjohn

Posted by gearheart<<<As long as it is not a .270, read some where that the bullets just bounce off.

Keep a reasonable range and they should work just fine.


Now look what youve started! You just included the 7.62X54 into the knockdown dragout that was once the squared circle domain that belonged the .30-06 and the .270,,,this gould take generations to settle!

I know, I know. I am sorry.

I just just, well still shaking my head on the last thread about the .270. I meant it as a joke.

I like the .270 one of my fav's building another one now.




really I just want to see some bullets bounce of an Elk. ( we need a smiley of that Elk standing there with bullets bouncing off)

Originally Posted by salmonriverjohn

Having harvested elk with everything from the 250 grain .338 winchester magnum to the recurve bow I've had for 35 years,, its all about arrow and bullet placement, waiting for the correct shot and knowing what the weapon your useing is capable of are paramont. The 7.62x54R is a very powerful cartridge that when used with the right bullet is capable of taking any animal that walks on the face of the planet,, period.

OH YEAH????? How about Zombies????

I agree with the many others here who stressed projectile configuration and placement. Knowing how your system performs and having a realistic knowledge of your marksmanship can make any caliber effective against most game. Having said this I would not try to drop a Cape Buffalo at 400 yards with a .22 short.....just me perhaps.....

UH aren't all the bullets mentioned above, 7.62x54R, 30.06, 7.62x39, 30 caliber bullets? Why wouldn"t any of them not kill an elk?

Originally Posted by rdb241

UH aren't all the bullets mentioned above, 7.62x54R, 30.06, 7.62x39, 30 caliber bullets? Why wouldn"t any of them not kill an elk?

In the case of the x39, I would hesitate to use one from a humane standpoint. I'm not sure the caliber by itself is a good determination of what makes a good large animal hunting load. With average energy slightly less that of a 30/30 and horrible ballistics, shooting an elk with one should probably be avoided unless one is truly in a survival situation. Can it be done...sure. Should it?

Keith

Originally Posted by rdb241

UH aren't all the bullets mentioned above, 7.62x54R, 30.06, 7.62x39, 30 caliber bullets? Why wouldn"t any of them not kill an elk?

Just because a bullet has the same diameter does not mean that each cartridge has the same power. There are many different velocities put out by these guns making the ballistics very different.

7.62x39, 123 gr (8.0 g) Full Metal Jacket 720 m/s (2,400 ft/s) 2,073.6 J (1,529.4 ft&#183;lbf)

7.62x54r, 9.7 g (150 gr) FMJ 865 m/s (2,840 ft/s) 3,629 J (2,677 ft&#183;lbf)

.30-06, 150 gr (9.7 g) Nosler Ballistic Tip 2,910 ft/s (890 m/s) 2,820 ft&#183;lbf (3,820 J)

Just for fun,

.300 Win mag, 150 gr (9.7 g) SP 3,290 ft/s (1,000 m/s) 3,605 ft&#183;lbf (4,888 J)

.30-378, 165 gr (10.7 g) BST 3,500 ft/s (1,100 m/s) 4,488 ft&#183;lbf (6,085 J)



I know not all the bullet weights are the same. I picked the most "standard" round I could. There are MANY more options.