In some states hunting is restricted to straight-walled cartridges like the 444 Marlin & 45-70. Because the bullets are larger and less aerodynamic, they have a much shorter effective range. This isn't that big of an issue because most whitetail deer are taken within 100 yards.
444 Marlin & 45-70 are perfectly capable of killing elk out to about 250 yards, and they are also somewhat popular in forested regions where long range shots are less common. Large bottleneck cartridges are generally recommended for elk hunting because they are effective out to 350-400 yards or even more.
Is the choice mainly for cost reasons, or just personal preferences?
.444 has superior ballistics and a longer effective range, but is quite a niche chambering.
.45-70 is pretty easy to find and a hell of a lot cheaper.
Thanks for the response, still super new to this sort of thing.
In some states hunting is restricted to straight-walled cartridges like the 444 Marlin & 45-70. Because the bullets are larger and less aerodynamic, they have a much shorter effective range. This isn't that big of an issue because most whitetail deer are taken within 100 yards.
444 Marlin & 45-70 are perfectly capable of killing elk out to about 250 yards, and they are also somewhat popular in forested regions where long range shots are less common. Large bottleneck cartridges are generally recommended for elk hunting because they are effective out to 350-400 yards or even more.