Good Lord willing in the fall of this year I will be in Montana on a cow elk hunt. Now the fun part....what handgun to use???

FA 454
FA 475
TC 45/70
358 JDJ
CVA Optima V2 50cal.....leaning heavily on this one

I would take the gun I was most comfortable with so I could relax and enjoy the sights and experiances of an elk hunt in the west. I would lean towards the versatility of the 358JDJ. It has the velocity to make longer shots easier. However... If the challenge of hunting with a revolver or muzzle loader speaks to you then I would encourage you to stick to your guns and make it happen.
GOOD LUCK to you whatever you choose and I hope you enjoy your hunt!

Matt makes a good choice in the 358 and all I can add would be to carry either the 454/475 on your belt just in case she`s in spitting distance.....

X2!

The .50 smoke stick is an easy 100 yard tool and it would make the cool factor a little higher. If you bathe regularly, surely you can get within 100 yards.

After rethinking my response, I will add this- The two cow elk I was successful on were taken at about 60 yards and 75 yards. So, getting close is definitely possible, and doing an elk with a revolver pushes the cool factor way up.

The smoke stick just seems like that would be cool, but on the other hand so does the FA's. I will battle this for several months....LOL

Personally I would take the .454 or .475. The multiple shot capability is with considering and there are plenty of capable bullets available for both calibers.

I would take the CVA Optima V2. I have one and love it out to 100 yards or a little farther.

Im such a "planner" I have already decided on the bullets for each gun...except the for the smoke stick

454 250 XPB or 265 Swift
475 385 Cast HP or 275 Speer
358 250 Hornady SP
45/70 300 Barnes Original

As recommended above, my pick is the 358 as the primary and 454 as a back up. Oh and the 265 swift as the bullet for 454.

I have used a FA .475 (400 gr. XTP) on bull elk, to my complete satisfaction, and would recommend it. The scoped .358 JDJ in a pouch , as a back up, if you can't get close enough to use the .475, would also be a good idea. I'd use a 200 gr. Hornady spire point.

All good choices, I expect you will end up taking 2 of them. Good luck on your elk hunt. A "Planner" always has a back up!

Dick

Just shoot the 265 swift in the smoke stick. 😎

Andy, my friend, I'd go with the 358 JDJ as my primary, and the 454, as my belt gun. Really, no matter what you choose, you'll be in great shape.

Take them all and use the one that fits your hunting area.

.358 with a revolver on your hip, as others have said. It'll cover all your bases, but mainly because I've been enamored with the .358 JDJ forever!

X2 (2 bulls with the 400 XTP)

Only down fall of the muzzleloader is the second shot (if needed) takes a while to load. So either way I would for sure have a revolver on my hip.

I have killed 2 bulls with my Encore 209X50 ML, one with a T/C 320 gr. Maxi-Ball and one with a 295 grain Black Belt. Both worked fine. If you can use sabots in Montana (a no-no in Colorado) you can load a Nosler Partition.

On second thought, here I go reading in-between the lines...not sure if that is good or not

if you are hunting in a centerfire rifle season, then it is ok to use a "lesser" weapon such as archery equipment, a handgun or a muzzleloader; and therefore sabots I THINK would be legal. They just are NOT LEGAL in ML season.

The safe bet of course would be to ask a Game Warden. Also make sure the area you hunt is not a "Weapons Restricted Area." Some areas in Montana have cartridge restrictions on handguns.

Sorry...it's just the "outfitter/guide" in me that wants to be sure the hunter is legal so nobody gets in trouble.

Wheelgun primary (s) and SS backup

I would take two and carry one. If in your shoes I would go with the FA in 475 and have the 454 back at camp if anything happened during the hunt to make the 475 not usable ( highly unlikely ). I like the revolver as it is so easy to carry and that is one of the things that attracted me to handgun hunting. I also have three FA so am biased towards them.