By Andy Sachleben

November 18, 2016

In May of 2016 I learned that I was successful in drawing a Elk Cow Rifle tag in my home state of Kentucky. I immediately started making arrangements for the January 2017 hunt. One of my primary concerns was rifle/scope/hand load development. I was fortunate to draw a cow elk tag in 2012 for Colorado. That year i decided to take my Remington 700 chambered in 7mm Remington Magnum. I felt it was fitting since 2012 was the 50th anniversary of both the model 700 rifle and the 7mm Remington Magnum cartridge. I called and talked to a technician at Hornady in 2012 and they recommended the 139 grain GMX for the 7MM Remington Magnum. Thats what is the bullet I chose.

For this Kentucky hunt I decided on 300 Winchester Magnum. The bullet I selected was the 200 grain ELD-X. I experimented with different powder loads, and seating depth until i found a tack driving load.

Once this was developed I started to practice shooting at 200, 500, 550, and 575 yards. I would like to shoot further but ran out of real estate.

One day when I was leaving the house to go work on the farm, i spied a coyote hunting mice in the field exactly where I had been shooting 1 gallon milk jugs at 550 yards days earlier. I doped the Leupold Mark IV 8.5-25x50mm accordingly, and pressed the trigger reward releasing 200 grain ELD-X at 2950fps muzzle velocity. That is all it took to dispense the weary predator!

I can't say enough about Hornady, this stuff shoots amazing.

• 168 AMAX Match for the .308WIN
• 139 GMX for the 7mm Remington Magnum
• 200 ELD-X for the 300 Winchester Magnum