Moose Rifle?

[vandeman17]

I am headed to Canada this fall for my first moose hunt and not sure what rifle to bring. I am not a guy that owns a bunch of rifles so unless I borrow one, I was planning on taking my .270 and 150g ammo. Thoughts?

[high_hunter]

I'm sure it would work with a well-placed shot but don't think it's an ideal setup for a heavy-boned animal nor would be my first choice.

Are you going with a guide up there and if so, what do they recommend?  I believe some guides will have a minimum caliber requirement for large/dangerous game animals they want their clients to use.

Have a good trip and time planning!

HH

[Karl Blanchard]

I wouldn't hesitate to take your .270 for a single second. The 6.5 swede has probably killed more moose than any other clambering on the planet with far inferior bullets than we have now. A 130-150gr bullet going even moderate speeds is adequately penetrating through anything you point it at. 

With that said, new rifles are ALWAYS the right choice 

[Fishmaker57]

Killed my moose, in Alberta, with a 6.5PRC shooting a 143 gr. ELDX. The guide was amazed at how much damage it did. Speed kills....

[wadu1]

A well-placed shot will work well. I know of one old timer that harvested a dozen + with a WIN 1895 in 30-40 Krag.

[vandeman17]

I am totally comfortable and confident with this rifle since its really the only one I hunt with. That is why I feel like it will be plenty because it hits what I am aiming at but we will see how I do if there is a swamp donkey down range. 

[jrebel]

It will be fine.  We have killed 11 moose (our hunting party, 4 of which were me and my son) and all shots were sub 300 yards.  9 of the 11 were sub 150 yards with the majority of those being under 100 yards.  Point being.....your shots will likely be close range and a .270 win with a good 150 grain bullet will crush a moose with a well placed shot.  Moose typically don't take off running when hit, allowing for a follow up shot if needed.  Calibers used for the above moose have been:  .270 win, .270 WSSM, 300 WSM, 7mm mag and 300 wm.   

Hope you have a great hunt and look forward to hearing success stories!! 

[vandeman17]

It will be fine.  We have killed 11 moose (our hunting party, 4 of which were me and my son) and all shots were sub 300 yards.  9 of the 11 were sub 150 yards with the majority of those being under 100 yards.  Point being.....your shots will likely be close range and a .270 win with a good 150 grain bullet will crush a moose with a well placed shot.  Moose typically don't take off running when hit, allowing for a follow up shot if needed.  Calibers used for the above moose have been:  .270 win, .270 WSSM, 300 WSM, 7mm mag and 300 wm.   

Hope you have a great hunt and look forward to hearing success stories!!

Appreciate it. We will for sure post some stories and pics when we get back. Hunt is first week of October.

[Karl Blanchard]

Where in Canada Adam?

[vandeman17]

Where in Canada Adam?

Alberta with an outfitter. It will be my first moose hunt with a rifle in my hand so I am pretty excited. I won't be holding out for anything massive and it will actually be hard to pass on any bulls unless it's super tiny and first morning.

[Karl Blanchard]

Where in Canada Adam?

Alberta with an outfitter. It will be my first moose hunt with a rifle in my hand so I am pretty excited. I won't be holding out for anything massive and it will actually be hard to pass on any bulls unless it's super tiny and first morning.

pumped for you! Your dad going too?

[steeleywhopper]

Moose don't like bullets at all, a .270 will work. If you are hunting in Grizz country I might go a bit more stout, but what the heck that is what the guide is for. Let him post up and shoot at the grizz while you high tail it out of there!

[vandeman17]

Where in Canada Adam?

Alberta with an outfitter. It will be my first moose hunt with a rifle in my hand so I am pretty excited. I won't be holding out for anything massive and it will actually be hard to pass on any bulls unless it's super tiny and first morning.

pumped for you! Your dad going too?

He is but as a non hunter. He is reaching the age where he is more interested in being along for the hunt and enjoying that aspect than being the actual hunter. I surprised him in Feb on his 70th b-day with the news that he was coming along with 92xj and myself. It was a dream of his and my grandpa to go on a moose hunt together and they didn't get to before my grandpa passed away. I wasn't going to let that happen for us so this will have a little extra special meaning.

[jrebel]

It will be fine.  We have killed 11 moose (our hunting party, 4 of which were me and my son) and all shots were sub 300 yards.  9 of the 11 were sub 150 yards with the majority of those being under 100 yards.  Point being.....your shots will likely be close range and a .270 win with a good 150 grain bullet will crush a moose with a well placed shot.  Moose typically don't take off running when hit, allowing for a follow up shot if needed.  Calibers used for the above moose have been:  .270 win, .270 WSSM, 300 WSM, 7mm mag and 300 wm.   

Hope you have a great hunt and look forward to hearing success stories!!

Appreciate it. We will for sure post some stories and pics when we get back. Hunt is first week of October.

Should be right in the middle of the prime rut.  We hunt northern Alberta the same week and the rut is a pretty amazing time in the moose woods.  Hopefully your guide will allow you to hunt and shoot black bears as an option.  The tags are cheap and well worth the gamble on weather.  The berries are usually thick and Alberta has some big bears.  The bear hunting can be variable depending on the year and weather.  We have hunted that same week with highs in the low 30 and snow on the ground....or in the upper 70's. 

[CamoDup]

Killed my moose, in Alberta, with a 6.5PRC shooting a 143 gr. ELDX. The guide was amazed at how much damage it did. Speed kills....

Same set up I killed my WA moose with. Your .270 is plenty with a well placed shot.

[bearpaw]

I am headed to Canada this fall for my first moose hunt and not sure what rifle to bring. I am not a guy that owns a bunch of rifles so unless I borrow one, I was planning on taking my .270 and 150g ammo. Thoughts?

A .270 works just fine on moose, Good luck!

[vandeman17]

I am headed to Canada this fall for my first moose hunt and not sure what rifle to bring. I am not a guy that owns a bunch of rifles so unless I borrow one, I was planning on taking my .270 and 150g ammo. Thoughts?

A .270 works just fine on moose, Good luck!

Thanks Dale. Hoping you would chime in

[Taco280AI]

I used a 308 last year, no issue

[TeacherMan]

Took my last bull in AK with my .270 with 140 gr bullets. Went less than 10 yards. Normally carried a .338 but mostly because of grizzlies. They generally just stand there when you shoot them; it’s not uncommon to question yourself if you even hit them.

[Ingwe]

I have killed 3 bulls in BC with my .338 mag and 225 grain accubonds. I have also taken two bulls in Alaska with my .270 and 130 grain bullets. I have a couple of friends in Alaska who have always used .270 with 150 grain bullets for moose every year and have each killed grizzly with same gun.

[tluns]

   Moose die pretty easy, that .270 will be plenty. When I went to Canada the guide was happy with that caliber and was more concerned that I had bonded bullets. With that being said I still bought and used a 300WSM because it was a good excuse to.

[pickardjw]

Out of curiosity, what bullet are you shooting?

[wadu1]

Remember Jack O'Conner used his 270 on African Safaris.
"Plenty of younger hunters who have never read a Jack O'Connor story have heard his name, and most hunting rifle aficionados know him as an advocate of the versatile . 270 Winchester (which was a newfangled, whiz-bang caliber when he started championing it in the 1930s)."

[Okanagan]

.270 will be fine, especially with 150 grain bullets.  As some others have said, I would pay the exra needed to use bonded bullets, or at least Nosler Partition.  Moose are usually not extremely tenacious of life, but they are BIG, often take awhile to expire, and lots of penetration is a good thing.

[vandeman17]

The 150s I have shot in the past are federal fusions but I have no issue buying a few boxes of other rounds to see what shoots the best.

[elkrack]

You can’t go wrong with accubonds

[jrebel]

I think bullet construction is more important that bullet weight in this case.  130 gain accubond would win out over a 150 grain nosler ballistic tip as one example. 
 

Accubond, partition, federal trophy bonded, etc. 


If this bullet shot well....It would be at the top of my list for factory ammo. 

Accubond

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1001755023?pid=844063

Partition

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/102197335?pid=453354

The prices on these are grosssssss!!!!  Curious what local shops have on the shelf??

[92xj]

You’ll have a 300wm with 180hh beside you if you start to get one ounce of hesitation in the brain at crunch time.   You’ll be fine.   

[BULLBLASTER]

The 150s I have shot in the past are federal fusions but I have no issue buying a few boxes of other rounds to see what shoots the best.

Those fusions will be just fine! Keep shooting it in the lungs till it goes down. If your fast you can get a few.   

[RB]

Bullet placement and construction are key. Used a .375 H and H with 300 grain Nosler Partitions for my OIL Moose tag in Washington last year. As others have stated when hit they do not go far and may act like they are not hit. My shot was through the lungs at less than 100 yards and he took off like I missed. Less than 50 yards and he went down and stayed down. Best of luck on your hunt it will be fun! 

[huntnnw]

Of all the animals I’ve hunted moose are the weakest animals I’ve ever hunted or been apart of on a hunt. Doesn’t take much to put a moose down

[salish]

A well-placed shot will work well. I know of one old timer that harvested a dozen + with a WIN 1895 in 30-40 Krag.

That's exactly what I'll be using for deer this fall in MT. I love the 30-40 and those old 95's.
My dad shot a large moose in BC in 1964. He used his Remington Model 760 pump in 30-06. His loads were 220gr RN handloads. His moose went down with one shot.

[Threewolves]

270 is fine. As far as a mooses stamina, everything thing dies when you get a proper hit and pop the lungs. Moose just happen to have a larger kill zone.

I have only killed 5 moose, 4 were with 300 win, my 5th and biggest was with an arrow. A 270 is way better than an arrow. Those were in AK. Oh, my friends used 308, 06, 270. The 300 was the only rifle I had then.

There is a difference between hunting with a gun bow. If you bow hunt elk, take your bow. It is as close as you can get to hunting dinosaurs in N. America. And you can always use you 270. Put an arrow through one!
 

   

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