We decided to start homeschooling this year and with that comes the freedom in our schedule that I can now start chasing elk in the western states again and applying for my dream hunts. I’m gunna start applying for moose, brown bear and bison hunts and need a rifle to fill that role. Trying to sort through the bs from the gun writers and and I figured instead I could just ask you guys, the ones with the boots on the ground. Been looking at 30-06, 338-06, 35 whelen, 300wm and 338wm in a Ruger m77. I’m not recoil shy and have been successful hunting with borrowed 300wm and 300wsm. What would you guys suggest?

350 Griffin and howe

375hh all day.

338 WM hard to beat.

.338, or .375.

338 is pretty popular here, but I carry a 30-06. I think being more comfortable (quick and accurate) with a gun is more important than size and a lot of big animals have been taken with a 30-30, but that doesn't mean it was the best gun for the job though either.

.300 win mag

30-06 is enough. Nothing wrong with more, I'm pretty happy with what 338 Winchester does.

Any will work, but I would recommend 300 win mag out of your choices. Versatile and flat shooting, and very common so easy to find ammo for. Chances are if you are in any hunting camp in the west and something happened there would be someone else in camp with one you could borrow ammo from.

I used a 30-06 for many years but about 10 years ago I upgraded to a Rugar 7mm mag. Its a heavy gun, kicks like a mule but shoots nice and packs a wallup. I have broken through both shoulders on moose. Never brought out the 06 since I got the mag.

A well-placed, well-constructed bullet is far more important than caliber. Most of my personal hunting is done with 7mmRM.

That said, 300WM will do the trick. If brown or grizzly bears are on the "to do" list, 338WM or 375H&H won't hurt.

Pete

I'm with Pete on this... The caliber isn't near as important as bullet placement.. While guiding up here in AK, i've been lucky to spend time with most of the new and old calibers of rifles, many different bullet configurations and all the optic options. I've seen poor shot placement with the biggest calibers resulting in follow up shots. I've also seen pure marksmen with a .270 take all of the biggest of our game with a single well placed shot. Caliber and bullet are not near as crucial as placement... I heard a professional archer say that "The bow is only as good as the jerk behind the trigger" and that goes for the rifle as well... Practice, practice, practice and get to know your weapon. I carried a Winchester .300WM for many years guiding with great results but switched to a Winchester .375H&H when we started messing with the bigger bears. When a guide needs to fire his rifle, things have went South and the bigger caliber just gives you a little more help. I now carry my .375 most of the time as I am very comfortable with it. The 30-06 is probably one of the most versatile calibers on the planet. From 55 grain to 220 grain bullets available opens a whole range of options. Whatever you choose, Shoot it and get comfortable with it. Good luck

300WM or 375H&H
Don't get some obscure caliber. You can find ammo for either of the
above anywhere. And you won't be compromising anything with either of the calibers.

I would pick the .300 WM. If you hit something and it takes off, a flat shooting cartridge is preferable for follow up shots. The follow up shots may be chaotic. Also, I believe a .300 WM holds 3 rounds in mag, vs. 2 in .300 WSM. More is better in that situation as well. Obviously, first shot placement is the most critical consideration. My second choice off your list would be .338 WM. I've had good experience with that cartridge, not as much meat damage as 7mm RM or .300 WM. Never shot a bison, but I would feel undergunned with a 30/06. My primary meat gun is a 7mm RM.

9.3x62 is my go to.

Hard to argue with a 300 mag as an all around big game cartridge. But I have and use a 30-06, a 300 WSM, a 338 Win Mag and a 375 H&H.

All good info. As the O.P. stated he isn't recoil shy, it's hard to argue against horsepower.
Of course shot placement is paramount, but field conditions don't always provide for ideal circumstances.
That said, the step up from .30 caliber to .338 is dramatic. The next step is equally large.
And if you don't mind a push in the shoulder, try a modern muzzle loader with a max load of 120 grains of Blackhorn 209 powder, a 370 grain .50 cal. bullet, and a plain recoil pad!
It is my current set-up.

I’ve loaded my Encore with a mag load of 777 and 300gr SST’s for whitetails. It’s a lot of fun. I have thought of using it if I ever draw that bison tag because I love muzzleloading. But I think I read too many stories of them things running dead on their feet and if a guy ended up in the wrong spot and no time for a reload I’d be wishing I could chamber another round!

For what it's worth I'd like to add the .300 Weatherby mag to the list the the .338 Winchester mag and the .375 H & H these aren't in any particular order they're all top shelf calibers it will help if you reload .
Allan

Yep… my 300 mag Weatherby M V , with precision placement has, and will put down anything that walks on this continent.