This 140 maybe 160 pound sow took a 123gr Amax in the shoulder and it didn't exit.  But she still made it about 60 yards. Blood trail was hit and miss.  Now I support the grendel on hogs quite regularly. But the shot was also about 250 yards across and open field. But if I go on an elk hunt I'm taking my 7mm mag with my light weight  .270 as my backup. I will leave both my grendel and  .308's at home. I like 160gr or larger bullet in the 7mm and 140gr or larger in the  .270.

Actually since I came right out and said that the only answer to the OP's question was NOT to choose a caliber that fits in an AR-15 (unless it is very close range you could probably get away with something like a 458 Socom) you are the one with that seems to have the reading problems.

Just like if a newb posted "what it the best rimfire to hunt large deer with?" You don't give them a bad choice just because they asked. You tell them that you don't hunt large deer with rimfire and there are better weapons out there for that job.

Then when a rimfire fan boy comes on and says that his buddies, uncles, cousin shot one with a rimfire you smack him on the nose with some newspaper and say bad hunter.

Where did all of this 600 yard shit come from? Didnt the OP state 400 and under?

Also, havent moose been slayed for over 100 years with the 6.5x55? Think about that for a second before you answer.

That arguement is like saying because a 308 works great on deer at 400 yards a 30-30 will as well. Big difference between the grendel and the 6.5x55 most of the time the 6.5x55 is running at least 140 grain bullets, many times 156 grain and it pushes those 156 grain bullets around 2400 to 2500 fps.

+1. Bring enough gun, especially if it's an animal like an elk. Pigs is another story but do you really want to have to question your round's effectiveness when you are lined up on a half ton elk on some mountain?

One side says you need a 338 win mag to ethically take elk.  The other says you can take them with a 223.  Truth is somewhere in the middle.  7mm08,308,270 and 3006 are plenty as long as you keep shots in the 300 to 400 yard max range(shorter is better) If you want something to push past that and are capable of making the shot, you should look into the magnums(ideally starting in the 7mm range and moving up)

I have personally seen them taken with 308(1), 06(1), 270(2) and 300 win mag(2 if you count one with 300 wsm).  None when far but the one with the 270(150 grain partitions) required 3 shots to get it down and another finisher.  That doesn't make the 270 a bad elk round it dropped the other one on the spot.  In my very limited and totally unscientific, opinion the 300's do appear to put them down with a tad more authority.

That's funny right there.  Ever see what printing costs and associated costs are with manuals for a niche market?

You are going to spend a lot of time and money for no true returns in the long run.

As to ethical elk hunting, would you say that 6.5x54 Mannlicher is suitable for harvesting elephant?

If no, might want to ask this guy why he used it so much.  He killed over 1100 elephants with 6.5x54 M-S, 7x57 Mauser, and .303 Enfield.  If only he had the internet back then, he could take advice from others and only use a .450/400 Jeffries, like everyone told him he needed.  He used it on his first hunts, and never again, went to 6.5x54 M-S.

And a lot of people think 6.5 Grendel bounces off because it it only pushes the same bullets at 2100fps for the 156gr Lapua, or 2400fps for 140gr.

If you know your limitations, your rifle, your cartridge, your optics, and your field shooting from positions, then you only should be taking those shots where you are confident based on competence, not hope and pray shots.

Premium bullets especially have all the penetration, expansion, and energy to put down even bull elk.

It's just that most gun owners can't get past the idea that whatever rules were told to them about what you can reliably take an elk with are not absolutes.

A 6.5 Grendel will put an elk down faster if the shot is in the vitals than a bad rear lung shot from a .300 Win Mag or .338 Lapua, because physics and physiology say so.  If the magnums are in the same placement, with more expansion, a larger hole through the heart/lungs can bleed them out quicker, sure.  Your chances of making that shot with a heavier rifle are not good from improvised positions though.  You certainly aren't going to the range and burning through 200 rounds in a day in most cases, unless you're braked, shooting prone/bench, and take a lot of breaks in between strings of fire.

I've done tons of post-op work on animals where we had to evaluate gun shot wound characteristics, to include x-ray, with tons of military research on other types of animals and wound effects included in documented materials dating back through several Army studies.

When you blast through an animal's heart and lungs, they die.  It's quite simple.  You don't need a magnum to penetrate through even large game thoracic cavities where the vitals are.  You can also run into problems with speed-induced deflection from your intended wound path, where a more predictable bullet traveling at lower speed plows through the course, and higher velocity bullets glance off course.

Most elk are not even 24" wide in that area.  Even if you hit bone with older 6.5mm bullets, you get impressive penetration enough to send a wound channel through the heart/lungs with a broadside shot.

With a 100gr TTSX, 120gr TSX, or 129gr ABLR, you will often get a through-and-through, with full expansion.  Within expansion range, put the shot through the vitals, they will die quickly.  Come off target due to heavy rifles, excessive recoil, bad positioning, and it isn't the caliber directly to blame, but a series of compromises that make that caliber less ideal for field conditions where you might get prone or reasonable supported positions on the terrain 15% of the time.

At the end of the day, practice with what you have chosen until you are confident in making shots inside the elk's vitals within the intended distances you plan to hunt.

No matter what you use, even a 400yd ethical shot is only taken by he or she who spends some time learning the formalities of trajectory and wind compensation, and practices them regularly, otherwise you don't take that shot.

For me, I just got back a few hours ago hiking these mountains from yesterday through this morning.  Thinking about the hunter who has a long action magnum or even short action magnum humming up and down these goat trails, busting brush, and then seeing what will fill their tag, setting up for a shot, and making it under those conditions, you really need to have spent some time with your rifle if the distance is more than 200yds.

You will take more time to settle down your breathing rate and heart respirations if you've been humping a magnum.  There's a reason the top-end shops have been going more and more to carbon fiber stocks, muzzle brakes, and carbon fiber wrapped barrels.  Those guns tend to lurch with recoil still, where you can't see your own hit.

Within 400yds, especially at elk altitudes here in the Western US, a 6.5 Grendel is plenty capable of putting elk down, with practice and care for component selection and engagement range.   Cut off ~200yds of performance from a .260 Rem or 6.5 Creedmoor, both of which are plenty capable of dropping elk at 600yds even with 129gr SST, and practice with the rifle.  Cows and spikes especially aren't a problem.  These things aren't bullet proof.

Even my 16" Grendel with 123gr cup and core target bullets blows right through cinder block, fragmenting the block into several large chunks.

The recommended hunting projectiles all penetrate 21"-25" in ballistics gel, depending on impact speed and expansion.





You have less than 12" of penetration to get to the elk's heart and aorta.  If you hit that spot, they are going down quick.  There is no way to recover from it.

If you hit outside of there, even in the lungs, they can run on you, and often will.  Use a bullet that will make it through the ribs that retains its weight and expands well.

I have been hand loading my rounds for my .270 for over 30 years now, the majority of the time it has been 160 gr Nosler Partition bullets, in that 30 years I have taken 19 bull elk with those hand loads at various ranges out to 350 yards and have never once need to track more than a few hundred yards and never once have I had to shoot the bulls more than once, every shot I have taken has been into the vitals, I have got full expansion and massive damage with those rounds.

If you pay attention and use good quality components and take good shots, understand how your weapon shoots in all kinds of conditions, then practice you should have no problem, there are so many great quality components these days there is no reason if you are dedicated that you can't take bulls with a 6.5, but you need to do your part and don't expect the round or the gun to make up for your inexperience or you being lazy.

Now, I will say, this round that I use has been developed for one specific gun I own and have owned 45 years now, It is a Mauser action 26" barreled .270, these rounds don't shoot worth shit in my model 70 Winchester .270, I could not hit the broad side of a barn using these loads in my Winchester, the model 70 shoots its best with a 150 grain hand load I worked up and it takes game as well successfully.

I would have no problem hunting elk with an AR10, with the right load, developed for the gun I was shooting and knowing the limitations of that particular gun.

That said, the AR platform is not my first choice for most hunting, my wife and I do use our .300 blk for hunting deer around the house here, but we never shoot more than about 125 to 150 yards, the majority of the time, it is under 75 yards and we have shot a lot of them from the back porch!

I will always maintain, the person shooting the gun is the most important part of the equation, and no, I am not going to hunt elk with a .22 or deer with a .17, there are limits.

What does a Mannlicher have to do with the price of tea in China?

The 6.5 isn't enough gun to reliably take elk with. It is too small and the minimum should be a .308 and no matter how you try and twist it by saying this flintlock did this or this Enfield did that fact remains the 6.5 grendel isn't anywhere near an adequate elk hunting cartridge.

Well by that definition a subsonic 240gr Matchking 300BLK has well over 28 inches of penetration which according to you as long as you make the right shot and get the heart and aorta then the a subsonic 300BLK is a much better cartridge for hunting elk than the 6.5 since it can easily penetrate further than the 6.5.

Or here is a better idea how about using a cartridge that has a lot more power than the 6.5 grendel or a subsonic 300BLK so you don't have to either be facing directly at it or exactly 90 degrees to shoot an under powered gun hoping it will get through some tough meat and bones and make it into the heart. How about a nice high powered round that could actually tear up the lungs, easily break through the ribs to get to the vitals and put the animal down humanely instead of pushing your fanboy favorite just because you think it might be ok if you get the perfect shot.

Then again I do understand it is expensive to make reloading manuals and the only way to keep it going is to tell people whatever they need to hear to get a 6.5 grendel. The only hard part is to get them to buy the manual before they go out and shoot a 750+ pound elk with an under powered gun and get trampled to death.

Your Wrong God protects Idiots they are almost nearly never trampled! Sorry couldn't help myself. Bad Sparky Bad Sparky. ..

Clearly I forgot the protocol on internet forums where one should never ask for the "best" anything. It ignites the fire in too many people, and the never ending debate starts up.

I'm satisfied with the answers I received. I would be happy to close this thread if that's an option, but I don't know how to do that on this site.

Thanks for the assistance I was given. My apologies for starting a debate that may not have a clear answer. Hopefully it remains the debate remains healthy and constructive... <shrug>

Well you need to ask yourself what have you learned? LRRP has posted several videos of elk being killed. I posted a recovered bullet from a 200# whitetail deer and a 140ish pound hog with out an exit. Now it comes down to what you choose cause your the one that has to evaluate just how good you actually are under field conditions. And the other thing is just how much you will have invested in your larger game hunts. Cause at the end of the day the only person you truly have to answer to is Yourself. People get within a 150 yards every year to harvest elk with muzzle loaders. And even closer with archery. If you have the self control and the skill you may get your tag filled. Fire is good it cleanses the land for new growth.

I don't normally wade into these disputes, but if I've learned anything on this website its to take everything that Grendel Fan Boy says with a grain of salt.
With that said, out to 400 yards with a AR15 my choice would be a 7mm Valkyrie or 270AR. But since you don't reload and both of those are wildcats, I move up to a AR10 or bolt gun.

Name one single thing in this thread that was said positive about the Grendel that wasn't backed up by facts and evidence.

I'm sure there are facts and evidence that a 22LR has taken elk. Exactly what does that prove? Use the right tool for the job and respect the game you're hunting by taking it as humanely as possible using enough gun to up those chances.

Using much of the same logic presented in these pro 6.5 Grendel threads the 6MM AR, 6MM Grendel, etc are superior elk cartridges to the 6.5 G because...

A) They shoot bullets with a higher BC
B) Lighter recoil = more practice therefore better accuracy on game
C) Increased velocity therefor longer effective range on game

The 6.5G is a nice cartridge... accurate and easy to shoot well
I have one. I've killed a handful of deer and antelope with it
My 6.5G hunting experience leaves me wanting more velocity than the 6.5 delivers for hunting in the western states
IMHE the frenzied support it receives for using on larger game reminds me of lemmings running off a cliff

I absolutely agree on that, and in most cases I would bring more gun than a Grendel. But at the ranges the Grendel is designed for, putting a round to the lungs/heart will result in full expansion and penetration depending on bullet choice and range. So a full penetration shot from a 6.5 Creedmoor and a full penetration shot from a Grendel should have nearly the same result.

So you are saying that as long as the 6.5mm projectile has full expansion and is capable of making it completely through the animal, the same diameter bullet will do nearly the same damage regardless of the projectiles velocity out to at least 300-400 yards? This is my theory as well.

Essentially, I think that a 6.5-284 will do more damage because it will jelly some organs at closer range, but with proper expansion and penetration, it should be comparable. A guy just has to learn what bullet and what range that is depending on what animal he's hunting.

Like I said, Grendel wouldn't be my first choice. But if that what's I had, I would use it with confidence to a few hundred yards.

That is the whole point of this thread. He has an AR15 6.5mm with an 18" barrel. If that is his only gun so be it, then use what you have. BUT if he has access to to a better caliber of gun ethically it would be better and wiser to use that. I don't care if some here thinks the creedmoor can walk on water. Take enough gun in case you don't get that perfect shot.

I'll agree on that, though I think in a lot of cases the Creedmoor is enough gun. People have successfully used it on elk and red stag at 600+ yards very often. I also think 7mm rem mag is a great choice though too, I like having options.

Oh, sorry I thought we were talking about the Grendel, not the Creedmoor even though I even typed the word...confused myself there LOL. Yup, I agree on the 6.5 CR being a good caliber for that compared to the GR.

Was thinking of getting a 7mm-08 for long range hunting.

We're on the same page.

I think with all the push behind 6.5 stuff right now, it's hard for the 7mm-08 to beat the Creedmoor. We have hunting bullets with over a .6 bc and match bullets near .7 bc. Pair those with a 22-24" tube and you have a rifle capable of taking game at 800yds, if the shooter is up for it. The Fix in 6.5 Creedmoor has taken a handful of huge red stag at 600+ yards with the 143 eld x. And Sam who works for Vortex gas taken a monster bull at 700+ yards with one shot from a 24" Creedmoor, plus many more kills each year. It's a very capable round.

Yup, hard to beat a Creedmoor with a 24" barrel much less a 22" one. I'll ethically probably never take a shot past 400-450 yards though. A 700 yard shot is probably beyond my abilities and or eyesight.

I have a .308 Savage with a 22" barrel and am going to see if I can get a 150Gr Accubond to push 2900 fps out of it. That might allow me to bypass the upgrade. A 165Gr might be better but I don't know how fast I can push it realistically.

At sub 500yds that would definitely do the trick. The high BC of the Creedmoor takes over after that but I bet you'll get good results using either bullet.

Sorry for taking this off topic but I love talking ballistics.

The 190 ABLR is also something to look at. Much slower, but such a high BC and low performance FPS (1300) that it helps the .308 at longer ranges even though initial velocity is fairly slow.

If you look at the 125/130gr solids, they are ~3100FPS muzzle, but are (supposedly) only good to 1800FPS. Reality for good performance IMO is probably more around 2000-2200FPS from results I've seen, and comments from others as well. The plus side is that driving them that fast, normally end up with zero weight loss, so equivalent of about a 168gr bullet. Additionally, no concern with a close-range animal where a lead core bullet may completely come apart at the same speed.

I'd have to look at the numbers again, but pretty certain the light bullets win the close/mid-range trajectory battle. From what I calculate, a 250yd zero with the 130's essentially means your zero is your distance limit. And keeps you just a hair over the 4" drop to still hit elk vitals (8").

Starting to get off topic, but have realized there are more intricacies to performance than projectile weight and velocity. Why I've come to the conclusion that if I want to take shots on game beyond ~250yds, it's going to take two different loads/bullets. Any cartridge is going to see the same issues when talking about shooting game at varying distances.

Of course if you throw large frame AR's into the equation there are lots of other options.  What do you not understand about the OP's question?  The title clearly states AR15 platform.  Never seen a .308 in an AR15.  I'm not arguing that the 6.5G is the optimum choice for elk, or even a good choice, but it is the best choice from an AR15.

FFS read his post again. He is willing to move up to an AR10 or something else if need be. Quit using only part of his post to fit your argument.

What do YOU not understand about his post?

looking for "best" caliber, for AR15 platform, to hunt larger game

You probably just missed the thread title...

As I said, I agree that there are better rounds IF you go to a different platform.  That doesn't change the fact that the 6.5G is still the best from an AR15.

358 Yeti. As of yesterday, there were still some barrel and bolt combos for sale. Can't post the vendor, he's banned. Just google it.

200gr at 2500fps out of a 16"

It's funny how one guy in this thread posts responses backed by piles of statistics, evidence, ballistics and real world experience, and so many are so quick to discard the information simply because it disagrees with the concepts you're so used to accepting.  Not sure how some of you lever earn anything new cuz you know it all already.

No I did, I actually went farther and read his first post explaining his situation before deciding to converse. You seem to want to fucking win at something so go ahead you win.

Done with this 6.5 GR walks on water, best caliber stuff.

I'm curious why you hate the 6.5G so much?  Is there a cartridge you think is better that's fits an AR15?  I welcome different opinions, that's how people learn.  I never asked you or anyone else to agree with me.

The 300 Win Mag.

Nosler just came out with a new accubond lr for the 308.  168 grains near .600 BC.  I would think with 2000MR you could approach 2800 fps out of your savage.  That load will change the game for the 308 when it comes to ranges past 500.  Of course when hunting that type of shot is rarely taken.

I just saw that. Has a ridiculous BC!Look at the 190 grain BC, wow. The good thing is it opens up as low as 1300 fps but that is a lot farther than I can shoot.

Maybe I missed it in all the 6.5 trash talk but for Elk and similar size large game hunting with an AR-15 platform why would you not use 450BM, 458SOCOM, 50 Beowulf?  Any of those cartridge would have more than enough energy and good bullet mass for reliable kills on big game.  The only thing they lack is long range but any of those cartridges are easily 200 yard cartridges and with good ammunition, a range finder, a decent scope, and properly calculation 300+ yards could be done.

Many disagree with his piles of statistics, evidence, ballistics and real work experience. If you never venture outside of this forum or that other forum, you'll likely never know it.

That makes sense Ed.  I just find it curious that I rarely see anyone debate him with their own evidence, ballistics etc.  Most of the replies are like those I've seen in this thread calling anyone who likes something that isn't mainstream a fanboy.  I'm not a fanboy of anything I haven't tried myself, but I do love trying new things out to see what works, which is why I just built a 6.5G to see what it can really do.  According to all the data I could find, which extends way beyond these forums ;) it seems like the 6.5G has alot going for it.  I guess the disappointing part is even if the 6.5G is everything advertised, I doubt people will want to hear it because they don't seem to want to accept anything that contradicts their long held beliefs.  Maybe it'll suck, I don't know yet.  But I'm willing to give it a shot before acting the way some people do around here.

I do believe I would use one of my not actions for elk.
As for a hard hitting hunting cartridge, I picked up a 458 SOCOM. One heJJ of a cartridge, love it!

Nobody said the 6.5 GR sucks or hates it. At least I know I haven't. It's a great caliber for what it is and what it's suited more for deer, goats and hogs. People said there are better options out their for Elk. AR15, win 300 mag or move up to AR10 as used in the OP's own words. That seem to have triggered the 6.5 GR fan boy rage.

Man, if the knickers get any more twisted, we'd have a neutron star.

W.D.M. Bell proves the dictum shot placement, shot placement, shot placement.   (The irrevelevant guy with the irrevelevant 6.5 M-S)

Since shooting is a perishable skill, there is something to be said for lots of trigger time.  And from the looks of it, the Grendel is an adequate hunting cartridge with a decent cost to trigger time ratio.

6.5x54 Mannlicher is the ballistic equivalent to the 6.5 Grendel.

The projectile doesn't know the difference once it has left the muzzle.  Even not including the elephants that WDM Bell killed with 6.5x54 M-S, think of all the giraffe, kudu, Cape buffalo, and other large, tough game he killed with it to pay for location services on elephant herd movements with local tribes.  If only he had someone like you to inform him about what would work.

Cape buffalo average 1300lbs.

Giraffe average 2600lbs for a male, 1800lbs for a female.

Elk:  720lbs male, 515lbs female

If only he would have had a .308 Winchester....

I'm going to look at actual results from people that have kill tallies in the thousands, and weigh them mathematically to your claims.

WDM Bell:  Hundreds of African game killed in addition to 1100 elephants, using old school bullets from a bygone era.

Recoil737:  "I don't care what any fanboi says, .308 is the minimum caliber for Elk."

What happens to credibility when you double down on unsupportable statements?

OP asked about using something within the AR15.

He got answers.

There's a reason I used 95gr GMX going 2800fps for my load, because I want a faster kill.  100gr TTSX would be similar.

I think people who don't understand comprehension and logic jump to the conclusion that 6.5 Grendel is being advocated as the best elk cartridge ever, because they forgot the context of the OP's question, which was limitation inside the AR15 receiver set.  If you scroll back, you'll also see where I mentioned .243 WSSM in the AR15, then posted video of .243 WSSM dropping a large bull with a heart shot earlier in the thread.  The only advantage 6.5 Grendel has over that is affordability for more practice, which is a practical advantage that shouldn't be overlooked.

The 6.5 Grendel has proven to be adequate for taking elk within 400yds.  If you would have told me that you were planning on hunting elk with it several years ago, I would have told you that you are insane, unethical, etc.

Then I saw Mark LaRue's 407yd shot with a 120gr TSX, and figured it was just a fluke.

Then more and more people started posting pics of DRT'd cows, spikes, and even bulls using barrel lengths as short as 16", in addition to 20" and 24" guns.

Projectile selection ranged from hand-loaded 100gr TTSX to 125gr Nosler Partitions, and factory 123gr Hornady SST.  Before I saw all these real-world results, I was in the old school mindset that you need a .300 Win Mag minimum for elk.

There is video of elk being dropped like a sack of potatoes at close range, and fairly quick kills at longer ranges, including shots from several youth shooters.  One of the videos shows a bull elk bedded down being shot, and he doesn't travel far at all, basically stood up, struggled, and fell down.  The dad got impatient, told his daughter to put a few more in him, but he showed signs of going down from the start.

You can then look at video of shots being made at elk using 300 RUM, where they get a hit, and the animal runs off, required a follow-up shot.  Travel distance was farther because the hit wasn't where it should be.  The shooter flinched on video when she went to break the shot.

The best elk cartridge is the one that has the killing power necessary for vitals perforation, that you can practice with enough without inducing flinch, that will be used within the range you are capable of making the shot inside of.

For different people, that means different things.

In my hands, a .300 Win Mag from a solid position will provide me more effective range than 6.5 Grendel, but I'll never own one because I don't like shooting them unless it's a heavy target rifle with a brake, from solid support.  I also hate humping that kind of rifle in the mountains, and will experience higher heart rate and fatigue at altitude, preventing good fundamentals on-call.

If I was shooting a bolt gun, I would use one of the 6.5-08 class of cartridges from a lightweight set-up, with a good bullet in the 130gr weight class, like the 129gr ABLR.

For the seasonal places here in the Rockies/Uintahs, we get a lot of pressure, and I mean people all over the place spooking the herds.

The animals are moving quick, so long range shots are mostly out of play, unless you find a location that has very little hunter pressure.

That means most shots are within closer ranges.

I like lightweight rifles.

I'll continue to use my 17.6" Lilja barreled Grendel.  I know I can make high hit probability 1st-round connections with it inside of elk vitals out to farther than I will shoot them, so 300yds and in is well within my capabilities, well within the capabilities of the bullet to do its job, and I can see the round go in, unlike .308 bolt guns, and any heavier-recoiling bolt gun.

If you were to step up to a GII profile rifle, 6.5 Creedmoor would be what I would recommend, or 7mm-08 with the 139gr GMX.  Plenty of elk have been dropped with .25-06, which has horrible energy retention because of poor BCs in the .25 bore.

We mostly draw cow and spike tags anyway, so this isn't rocket science.

The myth that .308 is minimum for elk has zero substantiating evidence to support it.

I'm not buying or selling...

The 6.5x54 M-S that you cite as the ballistic equivalent of the 6.5G looks to be a lot closer to 260Rem (the M-S launches a 160gr @ 2450fps). Cartridges of the World says that the ivory hunters took brain shots and relied on the penetration of heavy, solid bullets to kill.

The good folks at Hornady have developed a measure they call HITS to assist their customers in matching loads with intended game. They recommend a minimum HITS rating of 901 for large animals like elk.  Their 6.5Grendel hunting load (123SST) is rated at 790 at 100yds, so it seems they wouldn't recommend this load for elk.

Modern actions can take advantage of the 6.5x54 M-S case capacity.

Modern steel alloys did not exist in the early 1900s when WDM Bell harvested his game there.

I'm looking at Hornady's data right now, and 160gr is at 2200fps with max loads from an 18.5" carbine, the common production configuration of that fire stick.




Max loads with 129gr is 2400fps, which right where 6.5 Grendel is with a 129gr from an 18", and they were using really primitive projectiles back then, nowhere near as developed we are today.

If only someone could have told WDM Bell that he was under-gunned, maybe he wouldn't have been able to kill all those giraffe, Cape buffalo, kudu, warthogs, and the full gamut of African plains game.  He was originally told he needed one of the huge magnums, and had bad experiences with it, mainly inability to source ammo for it, insane recoil, lack of ability to spot your own hit, inability to practice with it, etc.  He ditched it after the first trip and used 6.5x54, 7x57 Mauser, and .303 Enfield for the rest of his hunts, as well as a 5.6x52.

We have much more capable hunting bullets nowadays.  I think people that are not around animals enough to see how vulnerable they are get caught up in these mandatory caliber arguments, forgetting that you are launching a substantial piece of metal that will fly through the vitals at Mach 2, spinning over 200,000rpm (if you have tight twist).  Imagine a spinning little boat motor at 2 times the speed of sound ripping through your heart and lungs faster than a thought, then wondering what happened, as the blood pressure drops rapidly.

You look around to see what's going on, but feel tired.  Then you take a nap.

Like I said you will say anything in the hopes to get someone to buy your book. The fact that you are basically talking out of your ass about the size of giraffe or cape buffalo just shows what an incredible fan boy you are.

It seems you are trying to say that the 6.5 grendel is capable of taking Elephants, giraffe and cape Buffalo? Is that what you are saying because I would like you to show everyone even more how ridiculous your assertions are.

Funny thing is most hunters will agree that hunting large game with the 6.5 Grendel is not a good plan otherwise you would see these people hunting with it. Instead you see most with a minimum of a .308 or larger because they are much better at taking large game.

The fact that you can't support the 6.5 on its own and have to bring up outdated material just shows how weak you stance is but please keep telling people that the 6.5 grendel is a great elk hunting cartridge. Which as most know it is not but it gives us a great insight in to just how bad the fanbois are when it comes to the 6.5 Grendel.

It seems you have been dancing around the basic question by trying to compare it to guns that it is not or were used so long ago that the word ethical hunting wasn't even invented yet. Do you think the 6.5 grendel is a good gun out all the others out there to hunt elk with?

Personally I would stick with a AR-10/AR-308 frame with a 20" or longer Bbl. length in a sane or common
caliber like .260 Rem, 6.5 CM, or 7mm-08 . The 6.5mm and 7mm calibers just work great on larger
game like Elk even at longer distances as they are very flat shooting and retain velocity/energy at
range.

You would have to a wildcat AR-15 caliber like the 6.5mm BRX, 7mm Val., or .375 SOCOM that has larger
case capacity than the common AR-15 calibers/cartridges like the 6.5 Grendel or 6.8mm SPC for longer
range work...

Again, shot placement and great projectile design makes a significant difference in taking down larger
game at longer distances...

Good luck.