Many of us hunters cannot afford several different rifles for hunting or reloading. I started and still continue use to use the 30-06 for all my hunting. I found the factory grain my rifle preferred and have used it to take deer, elk and antelope from ranges of 50 to 500 yards. One shot, one kill. The skill of the hunter is also very important.
I like the .30-06. I was introduced to it as a young teenager. My brother was handloading some really hot rounds so I never got to shoot that one. Many years later I was blessed with an M1-Garand in .30-06. I appreciate it as the great tool that it was made to be. Peace, Love and Happiness to you and the family.
I'm a 30'06 deer hunter here in Missouri. My go to load includes the Sierra 2125 150gr bullet propelled to a muzzle velocity of 2700 fps. My self imposed range is 150 yards which is far shorter than this loads maximum effective range. In my opinion, there are very few cartridges as versatile as the 30'06 especially if you load your own. The real trick is to use well constructed bullets with proper expansion and of course, shot placement is always crucial for a humane kill and maximum meat conservation. As is always the case, YMMV.
I have a 80 year old uncle that will not hunt with anything other than his old 3006 savage. The max range in the woods is 60 yards. I made some light loads for him using 170 nossler partitions. They are made for a 3030. I simply loaded down and found the velocity to be about 2450 to 2500 FPS. He loves that load less recoil and will still drop deer.
I grew up with my father using the 30-06 saw him take some incredible shots shooting springbuck at 300 meter a feral dog at 600 meters kudu in the bushveld at 70 meters and its true you have to reload to get the full potential out of the 30-06 Barnes X 180 gr between 2400 fps to 2600 fps excellent for short range under 100 meter in thick bush and 150 grein GS high velocity bullets at 3200 fps very accurate and good for long range I grew up with the 30-06 and have shot some blue wildebeest warthogs kudu and impala with it, use a good strongly constructed bullet for short range at a modest velocity and your 30-06 will not fail you standard 150 greiners will blow up and disappoint you, in my heart 30-06 for ever. Greetings Awie de Villiers South Africa
I have used the 30-06 for 50 years. Here in Alaska after moose this year with my 1979 Win 70 XTR that I bought new after high school in North Carolina . My load for years IMR 4895 @ 47.2 with the Barnes LRX 175gr . Love the 30-06 ! I have harvested big game coast to coast with this rifle.
I am so happy that you made this video sir, I was one of the critics of your original video. I have eaten many a piece of feral hog pan sausage and whitetail deer venison steak provided by a well aimed shot from a 30 06. 😊 God bless.
My first centerfire big game rifle was a 30-06 rifle. I looked through all the calibersand chose 30-06 for a few reasons.... 1} it was super versatile. 2) I could find ammo just about anywhere I might go. 3) It was a proven performer. I wound up getting a Ruger M77 All Weather 30-06. I still have it and use it. It is a tremendously reliable and fairly accurate rifle. I agree that reloading really opens the 30-06 to its' full potential. Tailoring your loads to your needs is ideal. The 30-06 certainly has many options and I like having options. lol
I was looking for a Savage 99 in 300 Savage for years, after foolishly selling my first one... I found one a few years ago, in really nice shape, from 1937 I believe... and it is a Take Down model with a peep sight :)
@whelen hunter Call me lucky as well then, I found the same setup, not in pristine condition though. Love the cartridge counter, a detail I never expected to bring a smile to my face.
My Godfather used to hunt with a Savage 99 in the 308 Win. Now one of his sons and grandsons use it. Real nice gun. Now they motivated me to hunt with a 308 Win, but my 308 is not in the Savage 99. It is in the H&R single shot handi-rifle.
I recently found a 1923 model 99 takedown 300 savage with the fold down lyman dual aperture peep sight, the small aperture folds down to larger hole for dim light, this gun is amazingly accurate shooting off hand, hundred yard bullseye with 6" dirty duck target, I feel very lucky to have found a savage 99 in the 3rd year of 300 savage production, God Bless
I shoot my 3006 with a silencer and factory ammunition. The silencer reduces the recoil very much, so this is no problem for me. Handloading is in Germany very expensive and you need a special license for doing it. So the silencer is the perfect solution for me. Thanks for the great videos.
Such silly laws. While you guys need special permission to create cartridges, we need special permission to protect our hearing. I've never utilized a suppressor outside of air rifles. If it's reducing recoil so much, I suppose it is reducing muzzle energy also?
@@funkingitup1805You will have more Muzzle velocity by up to 3%, thats not much, but everything counts and the precision is much better. Other "Pro's" are that you also protect the hearing of your hunting dog. And you are not blinded by a muzzle Flash in the dark and if you are shooting on a running target the front weight will help you with the following trace when you pull the trigger. The 3006 is not the best calibre for silencer, but the recoil is 30 to 40% lower, if you want the perfect calibre for silencer than i would prefer the 308. With the 308 you can shorten your barrel very much, so that an overbarrel silencer will not making the weapon very much longer and the recoil and sound is getting much lower. The "Neg's" on the silencers are the price (up to 1000 bucks for a good one with utilities), after every shooting you have to take care of him with drying, more weight (224 g in my case) and it makes the weapon longer. Dont shoot too much with the silencer in shooting cinemas, because he is getting very hot and will be damaged, i shoot only 10 times after that i will wait for the cooling. I use the Hausken JD224 XTRM MKII it has steel mesh in it, that is better for sound reducing and the first shoot is accurate without steel mesh the second shoot is accurate I tested it on 20 different silencers. So if you are a hunter the first shoot is very important, most hunters dont know about the steel mesh difference.
And this video is precisely why my "go to" deer cartridge is the 6.5x55 Swede at 2650fps. Sure I have a 30-06. Who doesn't or hasn't have or had one in their lifetime. Mine is the pre64 Win Mod 70 with a 1948 serial number. Action slick as snot and still shoots excellent three shot groups. It doesn't come out of the safe very often. Great video GB. Thanks for posting it.
My uncle Dave is the best Hunter I've ever known. He's almost 90 now, so slowed down a lot. He grew up shooting ducks in the prairies with a 6.5x54 as a kid because ammo was cheaper than shotgun. He took many moose and deer with that little cartridge, but one year a moose got away. His wife was so upset she went and bought him a 30-06. That was his gun for many years. He taught his son, all his nephews and grandsons to hunt with it.
I have a Savage Model 99 Takedown from the late 1930s in 300 Savage. Great gun. I am also a fan of the 30-06 because I reload. You can do a lot with the 30-06 if you reload.
The first centerfire gun of any kind I got was a Remington 700 in .30-06 Springfield when I was 18 for Christmas from my dad. Iron sights and synthetic stock. Winchester Super X 185 gr.. About knocked my shoulder off first time I fired it. Over the past 20 years, I have upgraded that rifle to have a thicker wooden stock and a 9x40 Nikon scope to go with the iron sights. I typically shoot 150 gr rounds from the factory through it. Under those conditions, I handed the rifle hit and ready to my 5.6 ft little wife one day as she came our back to see me practice. She took a few shots with it and loved it. Felt good, didn’t hurt and was fun to shoot. In the past year I started hand loading my rounds using a low to mid end charge from my manuals and a 150 gr bullet reusing a lot of that old Winchester brass. Fun to shoot and have no problem with that setup hunting deer in the Sportsman’s Paradise of North Louisiana. If I ever want to go hunt mule deer on the west Texas Plains I’ll jack up my loads a good bit and make the necessary adjustments. (Probably need to upgrade to a better scope) btw, I’d love to have a 1903 Springfield with iron sights. I love the .30-06.
My brother in law has a 300 savage, lever action hes had since he was a kid. He has slayed many deer in Southern Maine with that rifle. It's a great rifle
I agree with everything said. I'm running factory 180 grain to slow the bullets down and have to deal with punishing recoil. After 20 rounds on the range, I've been punched silly. The first 5 are fun. But, I like my choice and regular range trips are not my thing. After this year I'll probably shoot maybe 5 rounds a year not counting 1 or 2 at Deer. I bought my 30-06 in remembrance of my late Uncle. I hunt in remembrance of my Dad and all of my Uncles. I'll keep hunting with my brothers and cousins until it becomes impossible. Maybe someday, someone will remember me through my Lefty 06. Wouldn't that be great.
A friend of mine has an 06 pump action, and it's kinda a small sized rifle overall (hes a small guy) and I have never been hurt by a rifle until that one. I grew up shooting my dads 06 Remington semi auto, and was fine. Granted, he may have turned the loads. I've fired big weatherby's and nothing hurt like that little 06
@@96cr It surely would. Still, I'm not a range type person and my rifle is for hunting only. True to my words above, I fired one round hunting last year. It successfully killed a 650lb Moose. The 180 bullet went all the way through the chest to stop short of piercing the hide. I may upgrade to 220 grain if we hunt Moose again this year.
The 30-06 is an excellent do it all cartridge. With the right load it will handle everything from little cous whitetail and antelope to brown bear and everything in between. Even with full power loads recoil is mild compared to the various 300 magnums.
The 30-06 was the beloved platform of my father. He loved that old 54 Winchester and now I have it. Noticing that he was getting older and slowing down, I bought him a nice, light .270 Remington 700 for is Southern California desert mountain hunts. He still wouldn't part with that Old 54. You are right that it is a highly respected round. God bless...
I live and hunt on the plains and have reloaded and used many calibers 30-06 included over the years. What I have noticed is meat destruction tends to have more to do with shot placement , bullet weight/design than actual caliber. That is my opinion based on my experience for what ever it’s worth.
I’m not a deer hunter, but I love to load for the 30-06 to shoot my in my Ruger Hawkeye at the range. Here in Wisconsin 30-06 is a very popular deer cartridge, probably due in a large measure to its versatility. Although northern Wisconsin has lots of heavy pine woods, here in the lower part of the state, the land is varied and tends to alternate between rolling farmland (America’s Dairyland) and smallish stands of timber. Whitetails in the lower half tend to be well fed, and also get relatively large (I lived in Louisiana for a few years and the deer were tiny there). Other popular deer hunting calibers here include .270, 30-30, .243, 7mm-08, .308, as well as 12 gauge slugs. All seem to work well here.
My auto 06 kicks lightly,and is very accurate with 150 grain bullet, perfect your shot placements, its hard to beat.I love it.And a straight on shot is all you have,the power is there.
I use the 30-06 in the open grass lands of the Midwest. 150grain Hornady interlock (3031 if I recall correctly) with 52grains of IMR 4064, WLR primer, mixed brass. It's just over 2900 fps....this gives me a very flat trajectory and delivers wonderful performance between 200-300 yards which is a typical range where I live. I can use this same rifle for anything on this earth. When I become a bit more "vintage" I'll likely drop to 49 grains or so. As you stated, handloading really unlocks the potential of the cartridge!
A wonderful thing about the 30-06 for a reloader is that every powder I have can be used to load a very good load for a 30-06. For instance to load a 165 grain bullet there are at least 15 or more different powders that will produce very good fast cartridges.
Powder burn characteristics are different for varying weight bullets. Hvy bullet = slo-burn Lt bullet = quik-burn Pumping up a matrix of loads and running them through a chrono. Setting up an accuracy chart... Thats how to accurize. Load it for the task at hand otherwise go in knowing you have a half dozen factory loads that you can choose the most accurate from.
Love your channel, have hunted with 30-06 ,loaded with nosler accubond 165gr. On Deer,whitetail, and muley, pronghorns, and elk. In North America, and kudu, and 10 other plains game spices ,in Africa. Most with one shot. Thanks to Ruger m77. Still going strong. God Bless.
If I'm not mistaken, Savage is doing a run of 110's chambered not only in the 300 Savage, but also the 250-3000 Savage. Sure wish I had a couple extra thousand greenbacks laying around. I'd certainly have one of each.
I've loaded 165 grain Hornady BTSP at about 2700 fps for 30-06. Pretty good accuracy in my Remington 700. Will be putting it to the test when I hunt this year.
@@GunBlue490 When working up 165gr BTSP loads for my 30-06 I came to a sweet spot (0.7MOA) at just a tad over 2700 FPS. I stopped there thinking I'd much prefer the accuracy potential to any extra ft-lbs. Over the past 40 years, using several brands of SPBT, I have shot any good many whitetail (25+)with this loading, between 10 and 200 yards (open woodlands, some crop fields) with very few (2) passthrough shots. The two through and through shots both ran, maybe 20 to 30 yards with jellied hearts.. All the rest went down, with heart and both lungs jellied and/or cut in half, where they were when they were hit. Think your advice is totally sound, and wish I'd had it back in the sixties, but now ask myself "should I switch to a 165 gr partition this late in my hunting ?". BTW: I went with 30-06 because that's what's on the shelves at most backroads gas stations where we hunt (along with 30-30, 35Rem, 308Win and 12GA . Thanks again.
GunBlue 390. I totally agree with you on a 30-06 Remington being too much for deer ( in some areas ) I have carried a Remington 760 Pump action rifle for 50 odd years in the Pennsylvania woods ( Tioga County ) and have my own reloads of 56 gr. IMR 4350 at 2700 + - and using 165 gr Sierra round nose bullets and my hunting camp friends (10 of us ) with great success. All carried the same load in the exact make firearm and all shot minuet of deer ( 2" @ 100 yards in woods and across 3-400 yard fields. As you know you can take any animal in range with caliber suitably chosen. Yes reload for the total shooting experience hunting or just punching holes in paper. First shot counts.
Hey, another very good video. I am ready for your follow up video on loading the optimum 30-06 cartridge(s) for whitetail deer. Again, I appreciate your direct, practical shooting advice...many thanks.
As a lifelong 30-06 fan and based upon your previous comments on the caliber, I was hoping you were going to give us your magic potion for the perfect deer hunting round. What projectiles do you use? What type of and how much powder do you use? What kind of primer do you use? I have relied upon and value your information because you have forgotten more about Firearms than I will ever know. I do have a side question, in one of your videos you talked about glass bedding a wooden stock but you never mentioned anything about a polymer stock. I have a Ruger M77 Mark II “All Weather” with “boat paddle” polymer stock. I want to glass bed it to increase the accuracy but wanted your opinion before I started working on the stock only to find out I shouldn’t of done it :-). Thanks for all the great content and keep up the good work
I run a moderator on my Mauser 96 American straight pull in 30-06. It tames the beast in the barrel as far as recoil. Can't hand load here in Ireland unless under licence and strict control so I'll have to stick with factory 150gr. Great gun and round.
Great info! I shot a 30-06 for 25 years putting up with the harsh recoil . Then I sold it and bought a .308 compact that I reload for. My 165 gr Sierra Gamekings chrony at 2590 . Drops deer in their tracks without tons of recoil. Here in the deep woods in Alabama my shots are always less than 100 yards!
I reload my 30/06 using 170 grain nosler partition round nose that is made for 30/30. At 2500FPS out of my CZ 550 FS I shot my first deer last year and had two blood trails from the entrance an exit. Deer went about 40 yards even with heart shot in half. Looked like a 20 gauge slug had hit the deer try using 30/30 bullets which open at slower speeds in a 30/06 but load them down a little, a round nose bullet opens up the entrance more so you have easier tracking if you need to. It will be a shorter range gun though don't try 300 yard shots.
I was thinking about trying the same thing. Would you mind, if you see this comment, sharing some information on what powder you use and how deep you seat the bullets?
I worked up a great deer load for the 30-06. 150 gr rn bullet at 2650 FPS. I’m not going to give load data but I will say I found the lynman lead cast loading manual invaluable when cooking up some reduced loads. Great video
I got a beautiful stainless steel Weatherby Vanguard that I got for a song, from my mentor whom I mentioned in a comment on another video. I hand load, and I love that 30-06!
I'm from Mi., and several guys I knew had them. one of my friends dad had a glass gun cabinet in his home, and there were of at least three of them in there.All the family used the same gun when they went out. I remember feeling sad for my friend 'cause he had to use that gun with those old fashioned cartridges!
Hi, Love your channel and have learned quite a lot from you, Thanks! are you still planing on making a video on loading down the 30-06? Im vary interest in learning more about this. thanks agian
I once read an article in Handloader Magazine by a very accomplished and regarded hanloading author that the .300 Savage is the most efficient cartridge ever in efficiency, that is, fps per garin of powder. I have a 1922 takedown, a fabulous rifle. Thank you again for an informative video. Anmd Benny please?
Very good points. As an old National Match shooter I load my M1 Garand for deer hunting, 42gr of H4895 gives me around 2400fps with a 125gr Nosler BT in that rifle. It will cycle the action and recoil is negligible. Most shooting is within 150 yards and that load provides DRT performance. If you go to Hodgdons website they publish their 60% rule for H4895 and only H4895. You can take your selected max load for your combination and reduce it by as much as 40% for lighter loads. As a reloader this makes a great cartridge even better allowing you to tailor your loads for everything from pests to Elk in a bolt gun.
This is why I like the 308. It's like a toned-down 3006. Inherently accurate. A big plus for me is it cheap to shoot and it has a tolerable recoil as long as it's not a featherweight. I would still love to have a Winchester model 70 pre 64 3006 just to have a classic rifle with a classic cartridge. 3006 is excellent for moose and elk too. Thank you
And not toned down that much. There is only a 70-90 fps difference for most bullet weights. The biggest advantage of 30-06 is it's ability to lob 200+ grain bullets. The biggest advantage of the .308 is a more efficient cartridge, shorter case, and that it has lighter recoil and weight.
@@funkingitup1805 Yes definitely true. 3006 with 200 grain Nosler partitions are perfect for moose. They're both very accurate great long-range Target shooters also. Thanks
I had family use 30-06 exclusively, we hunt in thick stuff at times. I was told the logic of using 220gr core lokts for whitetails. Their velocities are 2300-2500 fps. I guess that makes sense, blunt bullet low velocities less damage to meat, I guess the draw back would be substantial recoil, with a 220 you are in magnum class recoil territory.
I'd try 180 grain round nose, which are far lighter, but have more reasonable velocity. Of course, handloading is the way to go if you want maximum flexibility.
There is another advantage of reduced loads: The barrels last a lot longer with the reduced pressures. I started getting fond of reduced loads when I experimented with my 1963 vintage 742 Remington in 30-06. I found that it functioned normally. It never did like heavy loads, and it seems others have had the same problem. As in the M1 Garand, a tuned load is a happy load. It's in great condition and I want to keep it that way.
I love my Rem 760 in 300 savage its old and a pain to handload but kills a PA woods deer every year for me. I would love to retire it but I won't give up the 300 savage. I wish I had the money to have a custom rifle built. I know I could go to the .308 but it has semantial value to me. When I started hunting my Grandfather told me that the only rifle I needed was a 300 savage, and he was right its the best for Pennsylvania white tale and Black bear. I never liked the recoil for the 30-06. I love content and Thanks
Thank you for all of your informative videos. Could you comment on 30-06 reduced recoil factory loaded ammo? I purchased a box of Hornady 30-06 lite, loaded with 125 gr sst bullets. On the box, it reports fps 2700. +2.3 at 100 yards when sited in at 200 yrds. The rifle was used primarily for Mule deer, Elk and bear out in the west. I will be hunting white tails this fall from a stand in Texas, with shots, less than 150 yrds. As they say, you dance with the girl you took to the party.
Most of my adult life I hunted with 30.06, and have taken mule deer at 300 yards, but most less. I love the cartridge, and the versatility of it. But I decided to move to lower recoil, and I'm now hunting with the .243, and 6.5 Grendel. But I still love the 30.06
I also "grew up" on the '06, using almost every factory load available & even a plethora of hand loads. I just moved to the Grendel this year. So far completely satisfied, waiting for hunting season to see its performance on animals.
@@forestwolf60 if you look at the Grendel performance, it compares to the 30-30, in power. I developed a hand load with 129gr. Hornady SSTs, and they hit harder than the 30-30 and .243! My only problem with my Grendel is the complete rifle weighs 10+#! Too heavy for hiking mountains, but I'm taking it with me, anyway
@@Jerry-dk8se I'll check into it. MY Remingto 700 '06 has been shooting factory Hornady 150gr SST for a few years now & I'm dialed into 1/2" groups @ 200 yards. My Grendel is a Radical Firearms w/20" 1:9 twist barrel shooting the 123gr SST.
I handload Hornady 150gr flat base spire points to replicate the old M2 ball loading in 30/06. Around 2,700FPS out of a 22 inch barrel. Great load for shooting over cornfields here in North Central N.C out to a Max of 300 yards (personally imposed limit) and it drops deer with that Hornady bullet as good as any centerfire rifle without destroying too much meat. The trajectory is plenty flat enough for those kinda shots and recoil is quite manageable. I handload a Hardcast and gas-checked 170gr lead flat point to about 2,100FPS in the 30/06 to replicate the performance of 30-30 Winchester for hunting in thick brush also, which is the most common hunting environment here. I own it for it's versatility, but I don't load it to its full potential like I would if I lived out west. If you're not shooting past 300 yards or so and you're not shooting bears or moose there's no sense in loading it full throttle. Of course if you want to though then more power to ya! Edit: These milder loads lengthen the life of your brass and your barrel as well.
Great channel sir, I appreciate it. I recently got back into hunting, and purchased a 1938 sporterized Mauser in 8mm-06. I picked up some loading gear and I'm now loading 200 grain Accubond with 56 grains of 4350. I'd like to get a chronograph and see what kind of velocities I'm getting but it shoots pretty flat to 200 yards. Where I'll be hunting is a mix of bush and open country so I think it'll be a good compromise. I don't like magnums, but I think this load will be good for moose, caribou or deer. Hopefully it's moving around 2700 fps.
My dad just gave me my grandpas remington gamemaster 760 pump 300 sav. Only bad thing i got no one to pass it down to unless one of my daughters takes an interest in firearms.
Off topic question. If I was going to lap a muzzleloader. Could I use scotch bright pad to polish the bore or would that be a bad idea? The reason for asking I had an old timer tell me that's how he done his. And thank you in advance. You are a plethora of great knowledge.
I certainly would not, and absolutely not that way. Bores must be lapped with a slug that is cast to the bore, so that it fits the lands and grooves. Scotch Brite will only scrub the highest points of the lands, and reduce the rifling unevenly. Secondly, a bore is lapped properly before it is cut to length and chambered (not muzzle loaders), which prevents either end from being belled. A muzzleloader can be lapped using the correct process with a cast slug and polishing compound, but the muzzle should be cut and crowned afterward to restore the crown's integrity.
I just picked up an '03 Springfield, that had been Sporterized in the 50's. Never owned a '06 before. Sad that they did that, to such a collectable rifle. But at the least, they did a nice job of it. Thanks for sharing!
Have one too, beautifully sporterized on a Bishop stock w/Redfield peep sight. Dad got it after the war when Uncle Sam was selling them to NRA members for $5.00 through the CMP(Civilian Marksman Program) and reworked it into his elk rifle. I've added scores of guns into my collection since but that walnut beauty is still one of the most accurate rifles I own. But alas, it is mostly retired for other pieces that are lighter and have optics since my aging eyes favor a little gathered light and magnification. Thankfully that '03 is not the only .30-06 in the collection. Enjoy yours, and thanks for sharing!
Steven, there are outfits around who will restore that sporterized M1903 for you to its original condition. There are plenty of old surplus stocks around, as well as period-correct new ones. The CMP - Civilian Marksmanship Program - armorers down in Alabama will do the work, to name one place. Fulton Armory out east can also do it for it. Good luck if you decide to go ahead...
Let me give you another vision of why the 30/06 together with the 270 are the 2 best cartridges that I know as a hunting rifle I have informal shooting. The 308 left me on my feet many times, its low performance below 2400 feet per second in cold conditions, the brass is sometimes rubbish, with the cold barrel it lowers the performance, the 30/06 or the pod. 270 has a very good amount of gunpowder, I have been recharging my 270 for 8 years with a spherical gunpowder, surplus of the war with chile, I don't know its brand and type, but it works wonderfully, instead the last 300 dollars I spent on 4064 and 4831, they were corrosive and in 2 weeks the powder exudes, however with this powder I have had cartridges recharged for 8 years and they work great. Another cause one is amazed in third world countries like Argentina with the 6 ppc, or by the results of American competitions in long range, but in reality to have a rifle to show off with 2 shots, of a diameter and mass that serves for everything, to 1000 meters or demolishing a deer at 400 meters that is not less, anyone a surgical shot in a situation of hunting stress celebrates it and three hundred too
If you can find it, use IMR SR4759, and you can load it down to 2,400fps, and use a 150 round nose. Also use H4895, and do some thing similar. A light deer load can also be 125 grain at 2,600fps.
Hey Pop.. I'm working trigger magic with 47 gr of Varget out of my Remmy 700 in 30-06..I was getting 2850fps shooting 175GR SMK BTHP. I also slammed a 220gr bullet in there, can't remember the charge weight off hand, but was cruising on paper at 700yrds..
I went from 300 win mag to 30-06 for my mule Deer bucks I can't go after deer 🦌 doe. I've been using the 125 Barnes all copper. My grandfather and most of my family uses the 30-06 I was young and want the better 30 caliber rounds for more range but now it's just for ELK hunting round.
I think you bring out some good points, with factory ammo velocities but I've killed a number of deer with the 30-06 with max handholds or cases literally full to the limit with powder. They die quickly and if you're careful about bullet placement the meat damage is minimum. I've also hit a couple of deer with the .300 Weatherby high, and it was destructive for sure in terms of meat damage. I shoot a Winchester Model 70 with Mannlicher barrel, so I'm sure my velocities are lower than factory ammo with a full length barrels. Reduced loads make sense for target plinking and I've done that with my .375 H & H. By the way I once shot a Vermont deer with that gun and it had no visible meat damage, but due to bullet placement errors, I had no blood, but he died a 100 yards away!
I grew up having to hunt deer with shotgun slugs or muzzleloader. The 30-06 that I'm now allowed to use where i hunt is a breath of fresh light recoil.
Most folks certainly don't need a 30-06 for the majority of American hunting. For those who do have one, they can realize better potential with carefully managed loads and bullet selection.
As fare as the 30-06 goes I have had one but so did everyone else. So it didn't take me long to go with other rounds. But the best use I saw of the 06 was my grate uncle. He had a German 3 barrel gun brought back from ww2 2 16 ga shot guns over a rifle he had it rebored\ recamberd to the 30-06. He uses Peterson. 220 gr round nose bullet one pumpkin ball slug and buckshot in the shotgun barrel's. It was his flowing the dogs in on bear ,and hogs. Really took killer up close. That's from the best of my rembrance. It was long year's ago and I was a little kid. Some where there a pick of him it and 2 bear in the back of a 56 Ford pick up. Thinking about it I wonder what happened to that old gun.............
Copper monolithic bullets in particular the barnes tsx and ttsx have changed the game of excessive meat destruction regardless of their velocity .they retain almost 100 % of their bullet weight when a deer is shot in the rib lung area virtually zero meat damage. Even with a 180 grain trsx .I've seen the results
2800-3000 FPS in the 30-06 is necessary when hunting mule deer and elk in the west. Your philosophy makes sense for close range shots at whitetails back east... We now hunt with the 300 RUM due to the need to shoot long range.
Well, of course. I specifically stated that it was tailoring for conditions. You and whomever "we" are prefer a 300 RUM. You don't need one, nor do you need to shoot ranges longer than 400 yards. It's very easy to hunt in closer. It requires hunting. My family and I shot plenty of mulies with 130 grain loads with our 270 Winchesters, and my bull elk had no problem with my 300 Winchester Magnum. I personally spoke at length with the late John Nosler some 25 years ago, who told me he had taken many elk with his 270 and 150 or 160 grain Partitions, and had great confidence in the combination. It just requires that one be willing to hunt, which is what the sport used to be called.
I have hunted with the same Ruger M77 MkII All Weather in 30-06 for 24 years. I had the action bedded, barrel free floated and trigger tuned before I fired the first round. I then shot about a dozen different factory loads to see what worked. It liked Federal Classic 150 grain. I bought a case. I am still shooting that case of ammo because it is my hunting, not plinking, rifle. I have killed a deer (sometimes 2) almost every year. Only once did I tear up more meat than I like. It was a short (30 yard) shot through both front shoulders. If I had to chose only one rifle to keep it would be this one.
I picked up a savage 99 in 300 savage as my 1st deer rifle when I was a teenager in the '80's I sold it for 2 reasons Ammo was hard to find and expensive for a 16 year old. And I wanted bolt action .270 Well I ended up with a model 70 lightweight carbine 30-06 and it was not pleasant to shoot.But being young and dumb .I loved carrying it in woods but hated practicing and confirming zero. I didn't know at the time( 16 year olds know everything) the the 99's were and would become harder to find and collectible. .......Funny how our older self's want to kick our younger self right in the rear Thanks for all the information you are sharing in your videos
I just up bullet weight to keep impact velocity low enough. I load 165gr bullets at 2950 and 180s at 2850. Packs a real punch and bucks the wind better than 150s. I'm a big guy and recoil doesn't bother me as much.
Spot on. I even download my .308. And the monolithic bullets can be one or even two wts lower than cup and core. So very mild recoil 300 yard big game rounds.
@ GunBlue490: Your comments on tailoring your 30-06 to conditions got me to thinking about all of the hunters up in Canada who have used the venerable .303 British rimmed cartridge successfully over the years. Power-wise, the .303 comes in at 85-90% of the power of .308 Winchester, give or take. Yet, plenty of hunters there have used it to take even very large game such as the largest brown and grizzly bears, moose and elk. Until fairly recently, the storied Canadian Rangers used antiquate Lee-Enfields in .303. Why? Because they still worked, all these years later. They finally switched to Tikka .308 rifles a few years ago, but the point remains: It is possible to have "too much gun" in your hand, at least for certain situations. If the felt recoil or power of the 30-06 are too much, simply download the cartridge to something more modest. A 2400-2500 fps load with a 130-grain hunting bullet would be plenty for white-tail, as long as it was a fairly close-range shot. modest recoil, too, which is an aid to greater accuracy. I must be getting old, because I heard some teenager where I live bragging about using his 300 Win-Mag to take a deer. I felt like asking him, "Was there anything left to pick up?" but of course I didn't. About the only possible downside to reduced-power loads in the 30-06 is that you have to take care not to go below the minimum safe loads listed in the reloading manuals, since too-little powder can lead to inconsistent ignition, pressures spikes, squibs, etc. Thanks again for your work. Your videos are awesome!
Have you created the video on specialized hand-loading of the 30.06 cartridge? I see a load in the Speer Manual using H4895 and a 150 grain bullet, starting load 42 grains, that produces 2427 FPS. Is that around what you are suggesting? I am looking for a load that is easier to shoot more accurately.
I sure do remember that video Mr GunBlue490 and holy moly did you get some push back in the comments section. Also I think maybe you should take a second look at the 300 black out. You were awfully tuff on that great round too Sir respect fully
I hunt with my “uncle in law” and he uses this caliber. He doesn’t reload and neither do I (I’ve got a press, but haven’t started messing with it) , but I’d like to have him try something tuned for the deer that usually walk outbst below 100 yards and never beyond 200 in the gravest extreme.
I have owned some wonderful rifles in 30-06, but have never been happy with the results deer hunting with them. Don't mind the recoil, but have quicker/more consistent harvest when using less powerful cartridges like 30-30 or 250 Savage.
Many of us hunters cannot afford several different rifles for hunting or reloading. I started and still continue use to use the 30-06 for all my hunting. I found the factory grain my rifle preferred and have used it to take deer, elk and antelope from ranges of 50 to 500 yards. One shot, one kill. The skill of the hunter is also very important.
I like the .30-06. I was introduced to it as a young teenager. My brother was handloading some really hot rounds so I never got to shoot that one. Many years later I was blessed with an M1-Garand in .30-06. I appreciate it as the great tool that it was made to be. Peace, Love and Happiness to you and the family.
I'm a 30'06 deer hunter here in Missouri. My go to load includes the Sierra 2125 150gr bullet propelled to a muzzle velocity of 2700 fps. My self imposed range is 150 yards which is far shorter than this loads maximum effective range. In my opinion, there are very few cartridges as versatile as the 30'06 especially if you load your own. The real trick is to use well constructed bullets with proper expansion and of course, shot placement is always crucial for a humane kill and maximum meat conservation. As is always the case, YMMV.
That's the perfect deer load that virtually replicates the 300 Savage.
What's your powder load for that velocity?
I have a 80 year old uncle that will not hunt with anything other than his old 3006 savage. The max range in the woods is 60 yards. I made some light loads for him using 170 nossler partitions. They are made for a 3030. I simply loaded down and found the velocity to be about 2450 to 2500 FPS. He loves that load less recoil and will still drop deer.
I grew up with my father using the 30-06 saw him take some incredible shots shooting springbuck at 300 meter a feral dog at 600 meters kudu in the bushveld at 70 meters and its true you have to reload to get the full potential out of the 30-06 Barnes X 180 gr between 2400 fps to 2600 fps excellent for short range under 100 meter in thick bush and 150 grein GS high velocity bullets at 3200 fps very accurate and good for long range I grew up with the 30-06 and have shot some blue wildebeest warthogs kudu and impala with it, use a good strongly constructed bullet for short range at a modest velocity and your 30-06 will not fail you standard 150 greiners will blow up and disappoint you, in my heart 30-06 for ever. Greetings Awie de Villiers South Africa
I recently found your channel. Love the honest accurate info. Keep it up
I have used the 30-06 for 50 years. Here in Alaska after moose this year with my 1979 Win 70 XTR that I bought new after high school in North Carolina . My load for years IMR 4895 @ 47.2 with the Barnes LRX 175gr . Love the 30-06 ! I have harvested big game coast to coast with this rifle.
I am so happy that you made this video sir, I was one of the critics of your original video. I have eaten many a piece of feral hog pan sausage and whitetail deer venison steak provided by a well aimed shot from a 30 06. 😊 God bless.
My first centerfire big game rifle was a 30-06 rifle. I looked through all the calibersand chose 30-06 for a few reasons.... 1} it was super versatile. 2) I could find ammo just about anywhere I might go. 3) It was a proven performer.
I wound up getting a Ruger M77 All Weather 30-06. I still have it and use it. It is a tremendously reliable and fairly accurate rifle.
I agree that reloading really opens the 30-06 to its' full potential. Tailoring your loads to your needs is ideal. The 30-06 certainly has many options and I like having options. lol
I was looking for a Savage 99 in 300 Savage for years, after foolishly selling my first one... I found one a few years ago, in really nice shape, from 1937 I believe... and it is a Take Down model with a peep sight :)
You are a lucky son of a gun.
@whelen hunter Call me lucky as well then, I found the same setup, not in pristine condition though. Love the cartridge counter, a detail I never expected to bring a smile to my face.
My Godfather used to hunt with a Savage 99 in the 308 Win. Now one of his sons and grandsons use it. Real nice gun. Now they motivated me to hunt with a 308 Win, but my 308 is not in the Savage 99. It is in the H&R single shot handi-rifle.
I have the same model, from the late 20s. Was my grandfather's and still shoots beautifully. Such a great rifle.
I recently found a 1923 model 99 takedown 300 savage with the fold down lyman dual aperture peep sight, the small aperture folds down to larger hole for dim light, this gun is amazingly accurate shooting off hand, hundred yard bullseye with 6" dirty duck target, I feel very lucky to have found a savage 99 in the 3rd year of 300 savage production, God Bless
I shoot my 3006 with a silencer and factory ammunition. The silencer reduces the recoil very much, so this is no problem for me. Handloading is in Germany very expensive and you need a special license for doing it. So the silencer is the perfect solution for me. Thanks for the great videos.
Such silly laws. While you guys need special permission to create cartridges, we need special permission to protect our hearing. I've never utilized a suppressor outside of air rifles. If it's reducing recoil so much, I suppose it is reducing muzzle energy also?
@@funkingitup1805You will have more Muzzle velocity by up to 3%, thats not much, but everything counts and the precision is much better. Other "Pro's" are that you also protect the hearing of your hunting dog. And you are not blinded by a muzzle Flash in the dark and if you are shooting on a running target the front weight will help you with the following trace when you pull the trigger. The 3006 is not the best calibre for silencer, but the recoil is 30 to 40% lower, if you want the perfect calibre for silencer than i would prefer the 308. With the 308 you can shorten your barrel very much, so that an overbarrel silencer will not making the weapon very much longer and the recoil and sound is getting much lower. The "Neg's" on the silencers are the price (up to 1000 bucks for a good one with utilities), after every shooting you have to take care of him with drying, more weight (224 g in my case) and it makes the weapon longer. Dont shoot too much with the silencer in shooting cinemas, because he is getting very hot and will be damaged, i shoot only 10 times after that i will wait for the cooling. I use the Hausken JD224 XTRM MKII it has steel mesh in it, that is better for sound reducing and the first shoot is accurate without steel mesh the second shoot is accurate I tested it on 20 different silencers. So if you are a hunter the first shoot is very important, most hunters dont know about the steel mesh difference.
I've done just what you explained. Down loaded my 06 to 300 Savage velocities, which allowed my daughter to shoot it and hunt whitetails.
Love the 300 savage and 30-06 great video.
M1 GARAND 150 gr hornady SST 4064 great 👍 load
And this video is precisely why my "go to" deer cartridge is the 6.5x55 Swede at 2650fps. Sure I have a 30-06. Who doesn't or hasn't have or had one in their lifetime. Mine is the pre64 Win Mod 70 with a 1948 serial number. Action slick as snot and still shoots excellent three shot groups. It doesn't come out of the safe very often. Great video GB. Thanks for posting it.
My uncle Dave is the best Hunter I've ever known. He's almost 90 now, so slowed down a lot. He grew up shooting ducks in the prairies with a 6.5x54 as a kid because ammo was cheaper than shotgun. He took many moose and deer with that little cartridge, but one year a moose got away. His wife was so upset she went and bought him a 30-06. That was his gun for many years. He taught his son, all his nephews and grandsons to hunt with it.
I have a Savage Model 99 Takedown from the late 1930s in 300 Savage. Great gun. I am also a fan of the 30-06 because I reload. You can do a lot with the 30-06 if you reload.
The first centerfire gun of any kind I got was a Remington 700 in .30-06 Springfield when I was 18 for Christmas from my dad. Iron sights and synthetic stock. Winchester Super X 185 gr.. About knocked my shoulder off first time I fired it.
Over the past 20 years, I have upgraded that rifle to have a thicker wooden stock and a 9x40 Nikon scope to go with the iron sights. I typically shoot 150 gr rounds from the factory through it. Under those conditions, I handed the rifle hit and ready to my 5.6 ft little wife one day as she came our back to see me practice. She took a few shots with it and loved it. Felt good, didn’t hurt and was fun to shoot.
In the past year I started hand loading my rounds using a low to mid end charge from my manuals and a 150 gr bullet reusing a lot of that old Winchester brass. Fun to shoot and have no problem with that setup hunting deer in the Sportsman’s Paradise of North Louisiana.
If I ever want to go hunt mule deer on the west Texas Plains I’ll jack up my loads a good bit and make the necessary adjustments. (Probably need to upgrade to a better scope)
btw, I’d love to have a 1903 Springfield with iron sights. I love the .30-06.
My brother in law has a 300 savage, lever action hes had since he was a kid. He has slayed many deer in Southern Maine with that rifle. It's a great rifle
I agree with everything said. I'm running factory 180 grain to slow the bullets down and have to deal with punishing recoil. After 20 rounds on the range, I've been punched silly. The first 5 are fun.
But, I like my choice and regular range trips are not my thing. After this year I'll probably shoot maybe 5 rounds a year not counting 1 or 2 at Deer. I bought my 30-06 in remembrance of my late Uncle. I hunt in remembrance of my Dad and all of my Uncles. I'll keep hunting with my brothers and cousins until it becomes impossible. Maybe someday, someone will remember me through my Lefty 06. Wouldn't that be great.
DEEPNNN after 5 rounds shot in succession, mine is unbearable to shoot until it cools down.
A friend of mine has an 06 pump action, and it's kinda a small sized rifle overall (hes a small guy) and I have never been hurt by a rifle until that one. I grew up shooting my dads 06 Remington semi auto, and was fine. Granted, he may have turned the loads. I've fired big weatherby's and nothing hurt like that little 06
Try the 125 grains low recoil
@@96cr It surely would. Still, I'm not a range type person and my rifle is for hunting only. True to my words above, I fired one round hunting last year. It successfully killed a 650lb Moose. The 180 bullet went all the way through the chest to stop short of piercing the hide. I may upgrade to 220 grain if we hunt Moose again this year.
The 30-06 is an excellent do it all cartridge. With the right load it will handle everything from little cous whitetail and antelope to brown bear and everything in between. Even with full power loads recoil is mild compared to the various 300 magnums.
The 30-06 was the beloved platform of my father. He loved that old 54 Winchester and now I have it. Noticing that he was getting older and slowing down, I bought him a nice, light .270 Remington 700 for is Southern California desert mountain hunts. He still wouldn't part with that Old 54. You are right that it is a highly respected round. God bless...
I live and hunt on the plains and have reloaded and used many calibers 30-06 included over the years. What I have noticed is meat destruction tends to have more to do with shot placement , bullet weight/design than actual caliber. That is my opinion based on my experience for what ever it’s worth.
I’m not a deer hunter, but I love to load for the 30-06 to shoot my in my Ruger Hawkeye at the range. Here in Wisconsin 30-06 is a very popular deer cartridge, probably due in a large measure to its versatility. Although northern Wisconsin has lots of heavy pine woods, here in the lower part of the state, the land is varied and tends to alternate between rolling farmland (America’s Dairyland) and smallish stands of timber. Whitetails in the lower half tend to be well fed, and also get relatively large (I lived in Louisiana for a few years and the deer were tiny there). Other popular deer hunting calibers here include .270, 30-30, .243, 7mm-08, .308, as well as 12 gauge slugs. All seem to work well here.
Ruger Hawkeye in 30 06 to me is the perfect rifle.
loyal 30.06 user.. have a 1903 rifle and have killed a few deer with it
My auto 06 kicks lightly,and is very accurate with 150 grain bullet, perfect your shot placements, its hard to beat.I love it.And a straight on shot is all you have,the power is there.
I use the 30-06 in the open grass lands of the Midwest. 150grain Hornady interlock (3031 if I recall correctly) with 52grains of IMR 4064, WLR primer, mixed brass. It's just over 2900 fps....this gives me a very flat trajectory and delivers wonderful performance between 200-300 yards which is a typical range where I live. I can use this same rifle for anything on this earth. When I become a bit more "vintage" I'll likely drop to 49 grains or so. As you stated, handloading really unlocks the potential of the cartridge!
A wonderful thing about the 30-06 for a reloader is that every powder I have can be used to load a very good load for a 30-06. For instance to load a 165 grain bullet there are at least 15 or more different powders that will produce very good fast cartridges.
Powder burn characteristics are different for varying weight bullets.
Hvy bullet = slo-burn
Lt bullet = quik-burn
Pumping up a matrix of loads and running them through a chrono.
Setting up an accuracy chart...
Thats how to accurize. Load it for the task at hand otherwise go in knowing you have a half dozen factory loads that you can choose the most accurate from.
Love your channel, have hunted with 30-06 ,loaded with nosler accubond 165gr. On Deer,whitetail, and muley, pronghorns, and elk. In North America, and kudu, and 10 other plains game spices ,in Africa. Most with one shot. Thanks to Ruger m77. Still going strong. God Bless.
If I'm not mistaken, Savage is doing a run of 110's chambered not only in the 300 Savage, but also the 250-3000 Savage. Sure wish I had a couple extra thousand greenbacks laying around. I'd certainly have one of each.
Took your advice on the flannel and laxative oil.
(No, that's not a joke... )
Save soo much learning from you...
Thanks Again,
GOD bless.
I've loaded 165 grain Hornady BTSP at about 2700 fps for 30-06. Pretty good accuracy in my Remington 700. Will be putting it to the test when I hunt this year.
Very nice 👍.
@@GunBlue490 When working up 165gr BTSP loads for my 30-06 I came to a sweet spot (0.7MOA) at just a tad over 2700 FPS. I stopped there thinking I'd much prefer the accuracy potential to any extra ft-lbs. Over the past 40 years, using several brands of SPBT, I have shot any good many whitetail (25+)with this loading, between 10 and 200 yards (open woodlands, some crop fields) with very few (2) passthrough shots. The two through and through shots both ran, maybe 20 to 30 yards with jellied hearts.. All the rest went down, with heart and both lungs jellied and/or cut in half, where they were when they were hit. Think your advice is totally sound, and wish I'd had it back in the sixties, but now ask myself "should I switch to a 165 gr partition this late in my hunting ?". BTW: I went with 30-06 because that's what's on the shelves at most backroads gas stations where we hunt (along with 30-30, 35Rem, 308Win and 12GA . Thanks again.
GunBlue 390. I totally agree with you on a 30-06 Remington being too much for deer ( in some areas ) I have carried a Remington 760 Pump action rifle for 50 odd years in the Pennsylvania woods ( Tioga County ) and have my own reloads of 56 gr. IMR 4350 at 2700 + - and using 165 gr Sierra round nose bullets and my hunting camp friends (10 of us ) with great success. All carried the same load in the exact make firearm and all shot minuet of deer ( 2" @ 100 yards in woods and across 3-400 yard fields. As you know you can take any animal in range with caliber suitably chosen. Yes reload for the total shooting experience hunting or just punching holes in paper. First shot counts.
My favorite for deer was the 270 with a 130 grain nosler. For elk I used the 35 whelen. Both just variations of the 30-06. It’s a great cartridge.
Hey, another very good video. I am ready for your follow up video on loading the optimum 30-06 cartridge(s) for whitetail deer. Again, I appreciate your direct, practical shooting advice...many thanks.
I will be doing one very shortly. Thanks.
I LOVE YOUR Channel God bless you and your family sir
Thank you and blessings to you and your family 🙏.
As a lifelong 30-06 fan and based upon your previous comments on the caliber, I was hoping you were going to give us your magic potion for the perfect deer hunting round. What projectiles do you use? What type of and how much powder do you use? What kind of primer do you use? I have relied upon and value your information because you have forgotten more about Firearms than I will ever know.
I do have a side question, in one of your videos you talked about glass bedding a wooden stock but you never mentioned anything about a polymer stock. I have a Ruger M77 Mark II “All Weather” with “boat paddle” polymer stock. I want to glass bed it to increase the accuracy but wanted your opinion before I started working on the stock only to find out I shouldn’t of done it :-). Thanks for all the great content and keep up the good work
I run a moderator on my Mauser 96 American straight pull in 30-06. It tames the beast in the barrel as far as recoil. Can't hand load here in Ireland unless under licence and strict control so I'll have to stick with factory 150gr.
Great gun and round.
Thank you for the video , God Bless and Keep 'em coming !
Great info! I shot a 30-06 for 25 years putting up with the harsh recoil . Then I sold it and bought a .308 compact that I reload for. My 165 gr Sierra Gamekings chrony at 2590 . Drops deer in their tracks without tons of recoil. Here in the deep woods in Alabama my shots are always less than 100 yards!
God bless you, I love the thirty aught six.
I reload my 30/06 using 170 grain nosler partition round nose that is made for 30/30. At 2500FPS out of my CZ 550 FS I shot my first deer last year and had two blood trails from the entrance an exit. Deer went about 40 yards even with heart shot in half. Looked like a 20 gauge slug had hit the deer try using 30/30 bullets which open at slower speeds in a 30/06 but load them down a little, a round nose bullet opens up the entrance more so you have easier tracking if you need to. It will be a shorter range gun though don't try 300 yard shots.
I was thinking about trying the same thing. Would you mind, if you see this comment, sharing some information on what powder you use and how deep you seat the bullets?
I worked up a great deer load for the 30-06. 150 gr rn bullet at 2650 FPS. I’m not going to give load data but I will say I found the lynman lead cast loading manual invaluable when cooking up some reduced loads. Great video
I got a beautiful stainless steel Weatherby Vanguard that I got for a song, from my mentor whom I mentioned in a comment on another video. I hand load, and I love that 30-06!
You can also load it down to 30/30 velocity and load the 30/30 150 or 170 bullets for a mild close range deer load.
I do just that with a cast lead, gas checked 170gr flat point. Clocking about 2,100FPS out of a 22 inch barrel.
I'm from Mi., and several guys I knew had them. one of my friends dad had a glass gun cabinet in his home, and there were of at least three of them in there.All the family used the same gun when they went out. I remember feeling sad for my friend 'cause he had to use that gun with those old fashioned cartridges!
Best factory load for
Im addicted to this channel.
Hi, Love your channel and have learned quite a lot from you, Thanks!
are you still planing on making a video on loading down the 30-06? Im vary interest in learning more about this.
thanks agian
Great Video and nicely explained! Greetings also to Benny!
I once read an article in Handloader Magazine by a very accomplished and regarded hanloading author that the .300 Savage is the most efficient cartridge ever in efficiency, that is, fps per garin of powder. I have a 1922 takedown, a fabulous rifle. Thank you again for an informative video. Anmd Benny please?
Very good points. As an old National Match shooter I load my M1 Garand for deer hunting, 42gr of H4895 gives me around 2400fps with a 125gr Nosler BT in that rifle. It will cycle the action and recoil is negligible. Most shooting is within 150 yards and that load provides DRT performance. If you go to Hodgdons website they publish their 60% rule for H4895 and only H4895. You can take your selected max load for your combination and reduce it by as much as 40% for lighter loads. As a reloader this makes a great cartridge even better allowing you to tailor your loads for everything from pests to Elk in a bolt gun.
This is why I like the 308. It's like a toned-down 3006. Inherently accurate. A big plus for me is it cheap to shoot and it has a tolerable recoil as long as it's not a featherweight. I would still love to have a Winchester model 70 pre 64 3006 just to have a classic rifle with a classic cartridge. 3006 is excellent for moose and elk too. Thank you
And not toned down that much. There is only a 70-90 fps difference for most bullet weights. The biggest advantage of 30-06 is it's ability to lob 200+ grain bullets. The biggest advantage of the .308 is a more efficient cartridge, shorter case, and that it has lighter recoil and weight.
@@funkingitup1805 Yes definitely true. 3006 with 200 grain Nosler partitions are perfect for moose. They're both very accurate great long-range Target shooters also. Thanks
I love the reasoning. You made my pull out my M1 Garand and look at it.
You're right regarding the recoil and accuracy, according to my wife. She likes her 7mm Mauser.
Great caliber, too.
I own a 300 savage from my grandfather. Beautiful gun!
Still my go to caliber. Love my 0h6.
I had family use 30-06 exclusively, we hunt in thick stuff at times. I was told the logic of using 220gr core lokts for whitetails. Their velocities are 2300-2500 fps. I guess that makes sense, blunt bullet low velocities less damage to meat, I guess the draw back would be substantial recoil, with a 220 you are in magnum class recoil territory.
I'd try 180 grain round nose, which are far lighter, but have more reasonable velocity. Of course, handloading is the way to go if you want maximum flexibility.
Another wonderful video....don’t have a 3006, but have been keeping my eye on one for a why now. God bless
As luck would have it, I recently bought a sporterized M1917 Enfield in .30-06! I don't handload currently, but I will keep on eye on this!
There is another advantage of reduced loads: The barrels last a lot longer with the reduced pressures. I started getting fond of reduced loads when I experimented with my 1963 vintage 742 Remington in 30-06. I found that it functioned normally. It never did like heavy loads, and it seems others have had the same problem. As in the M1 Garand, a tuned load is a happy load. It's in great condition and I want to keep it that way.
I love my Rem 760 in 300 savage its old and a pain to handload but kills a PA woods deer every year for me. I would love to retire it but I won't give up the 300 savage. I wish I had the money to have a custom rifle built. I know I could go to the .308 but it has semantial value to me. When I started hunting my Grandfather told me that the only rifle I needed was a 300 savage, and he was right its the best for Pennsylvania white tale and Black bear. I never liked the recoil for the 30-06. I love content and Thanks
I'm surprised that you don't have more subscribers. It's always a pleasure to hear from you, and thanks!
Thank you for all of your informative videos. Could you comment on 30-06 reduced recoil factory loaded ammo? I purchased a box of Hornady 30-06 lite, loaded with 125 gr sst bullets. On the box, it reports fps 2700. +2.3 at 100 yards when sited in at 200 yrds. The rifle was used primarily for Mule deer, Elk and bear out in the west. I will be hunting white tails this fall from a stand in Texas, with shots, less than 150 yrds. As they say, you dance with the girl you took to the party.
Hand loading adds so much versatility to any rifle/cartridge combo! I'm surprised more hunters don't take advantage of these facts.
It would be great to see you do an entire video about the 300 savage or even all of the Savage rounds
I've done that. See my Savage 99 video.
Thanks for another informative video.
Most of my adult life I hunted with 30.06, and have taken mule deer at 300 yards, but most less. I love the cartridge, and the versatility of it. But I decided to move to lower recoil, and I'm now hunting with the .243, and 6.5 Grendel. But I still love the 30.06
I also "grew up" on the '06, using almost every factory load available & even a plethora of hand loads. I just moved to the Grendel this year. So far completely satisfied, waiting for hunting season to see its performance on animals.
@@forestwolf60 if you look at the Grendel performance, it compares to the 30-30, in power. I developed a hand load with 129gr. Hornady SSTs, and they hit harder than the 30-30 and .243! My only problem with my Grendel is the complete rifle weighs 10+#! Too heavy for hiking mountains, but I'm taking it with me, anyway
@@forestwolf60 I did a complete series of videos on my Grendel, by the way
@@Jerry-dk8se I'll check into it. MY Remingto 700 '06 has been shooting factory Hornady 150gr SST for a few years now & I'm dialed into 1/2" groups @ 200 yards. My Grendel is a Radical Firearms w/20" 1:9 twist barrel shooting the 123gr SST.
I handload Hornady 150gr flat base spire points to replicate the old M2 ball loading in 30/06. Around 2,700FPS out of a 22 inch barrel. Great load for shooting over cornfields here in North Central N.C out to a Max of 300 yards (personally imposed limit) and it drops deer with that Hornady bullet as good as any centerfire rifle without destroying too much meat. The trajectory is plenty flat enough for those kinda shots and recoil is quite manageable. I handload a Hardcast and gas-checked 170gr lead flat point to about 2,100FPS in the 30/06 to replicate the performance of 30-30 Winchester for hunting in thick brush also, which is the most common hunting environment here. I own it for it's versatility, but I don't load it to its full potential like I would if I lived out west. If you're not shooting past 300 yards or so and you're not shooting bears or moose there's no sense in loading it full throttle. Of course if you want to though then more power to ya!
Edit: These milder loads lengthen the life of your brass and your barrel as well.
30/06 indeed. I agree very potent round especially if you reload. God bless
Great channel sir, I appreciate it. I recently got back into hunting, and purchased a 1938 sporterized Mauser in 8mm-06. I picked up some loading gear and I'm now loading 200 grain Accubond with 56 grains of 4350. I'd like to get a chronograph and see what kind of velocities I'm getting but it shoots pretty flat to 200 yards. Where I'll be hunting is a mix of bush and open country so I think it'll be a good compromise. I don't like magnums, but I think this load will be good for moose, caribou or deer. Hopefully it's moving around 2700 fps.
30-06 makes a good round for hunting deer and elk out west
My dad just gave me my grandpas remington gamemaster 760 pump 300 sav. Only bad thing i got no one to pass it down to unless one of my daughters takes an interest in firearms.
I have dads 30-06 760. I'm very interested in a better deer bullet. I haven't heard anyone talking about what bullet they use for feral hogs.
Off topic question. If I was going to lap a muzzleloader. Could I use scotch bright pad to polish the bore or would that be a bad idea? The reason for asking I had an old timer tell me that's how he done his. And thank you in advance. You are a plethora of great knowledge.
I certainly would not, and absolutely not that way. Bores must be lapped with a slug that is cast to the bore, so that it fits the lands and grooves. Scotch Brite will only scrub the highest points of the lands, and reduce the rifling unevenly. Secondly, a bore is lapped properly before it is cut to length and chambered (not muzzle loaders), which prevents either end from being belled. A muzzleloader can be lapped using the correct process with a cast slug and polishing compound, but the muzzle should be cut and crowned afterward to restore the crown's integrity.
@@GunBlue490 Thank you once again. This is way I ask you for your insight. I will see if i can find a gunsmith locally to do this process. Thank you
I just picked up an '03 Springfield, that had been Sporterized in the 50's. Never owned a '06 before. Sad that they did that, to such a collectable rifle. But at the least, they did a nice job of it. Thanks for sharing!
Have one too, beautifully sporterized on a Bishop stock w/Redfield peep sight. Dad got it after the war when Uncle Sam was selling them to NRA members for $5.00 through the CMP(Civilian Marksman Program) and reworked it into his elk rifle. I've added scores of guns into my collection since but that walnut beauty is still one of the most accurate rifles I own. But alas, it is mostly retired for other pieces that are lighter and have optics since my aging eyes favor a little gathered light and magnification. Thankfully that '03 is not the only .30-06 in the collection. Enjoy yours, and thanks for sharing!
Steven, there are outfits around who will restore that sporterized M1903 for you to its original condition. There are plenty of old surplus stocks around, as well as period-correct new ones. The CMP - Civilian Marksmanship Program - armorers down in Alabama will do the work, to name one place. Fulton Armory out east can also do it for it. Good luck if you decide to go ahead...
In Montana, and Alaska, .30-06 is just barely enough to deal with Griz and I would not leave home without it....
Thank you for all the info. packed videos you share with us. God Bless!
Let me give you another vision of why the 30/06 together with the 270 are the 2 best cartridges that I know as a hunting rifle I have informal shooting. The 308 left me on my feet many times, its low performance below 2400 feet per second in cold conditions, the brass is sometimes rubbish, with the cold barrel it lowers the performance, the 30/06 or the pod. 270 has a very good amount of gunpowder, I have been recharging my 270 for 8 years with a spherical gunpowder, surplus of the war with chile, I don't know its brand and type, but it works wonderfully, instead the last 300 dollars I spent on 4064 and 4831, they were corrosive and in 2 weeks the powder exudes, however with this powder I have had cartridges recharged for 8 years and they work great.
Another cause one is amazed in third world countries like Argentina with the 6 ppc, or by the results of American competitions in long range, but in reality to have a rifle to show off with 2 shots, of a diameter and mass that serves for everything, to 1000 meters or demolishing a deer at 400 meters that is not less, anyone a surgical shot in a situation of hunting stress celebrates it and three hundred too
Trail Boss powder for a little over 1000fps and your plinking!
In "Green Hills of Africa" Ernest Hemingway wrote about hunting lions with his 30-06 springfield, very interesting read.
If you can find it, use IMR SR4759, and you can load it down to 2,400fps, and use a 150 round nose. Also use H4895, and do some thing similar. A light deer load can also be 125 grain at 2,600fps.
Hey Pop.. I'm working trigger magic with 47 gr of Varget out of my Remmy 700 in 30-06..I was getting 2850fps shooting 175GR SMK BTHP. I also slammed a 220gr bullet in there, can't remember the charge weight off hand, but was cruising on paper at 700yrds..
I’m looking forward to the unveiling of your new 30-06.
I went from 300 win mag to 30-06 for my mule Deer bucks I can't go after deer 🦌 doe. I've been using the 125 Barnes all copper. My grandfather and most of my family uses the 30-06 I was young and want the better 30 caliber rounds for more range but now it's just for ELK hunting round.
May be the best cartridge for hunting ever in history and all of its offspring especially the 270.
I think you bring out some good points, with factory ammo velocities but I've killed a number of deer with the 30-06 with max handholds or cases literally full to the limit with powder. They die quickly and if you're careful about bullet placement the meat damage is minimum. I've also hit a couple of deer with the .300 Weatherby high, and it was destructive for sure in terms of meat damage. I shoot a Winchester Model 70 with Mannlicher barrel, so I'm sure my velocities are lower than factory ammo with a full length barrels. Reduced loads make sense for target plinking and I've done that with my .375 H & H. By the way I once shot a Vermont deer with that gun and it had no visible meat damage, but due to bullet placement errors, I had no blood, but he died a 100 yards away!
I grew up having to hunt deer with shotgun slugs or muzzleloader. The 30-06 that I'm now allowed to use where i hunt is a breath of fresh light recoil.
Never wanted or needed a 30-06 here in N.C. Short Action cartridges are more than sufficient for my needs.
Most folks certainly don't need a 30-06 for the majority of American hunting. For those who do have one, they can realize better potential with carefully managed loads and bullet selection.
As fare as the 30-06 goes I have had one but so did everyone else. So it didn't take me long to go with other rounds.
But the best use I saw of the 06 was my grate uncle. He had a German 3 barrel gun brought back from ww2 2 16 ga shot guns over a rifle he had it rebored\ recamberd to the 30-06. He uses Peterson. 220 gr round nose bullet one pumpkin ball slug and buckshot in the shotgun barrel's. It was his flowing the dogs in on bear ,and hogs. Really took killer up close.
That's from the best of my rembrance. It was long year's ago and I was a little kid.
Some where there a pick of him it and 2 bear in the back of a 56 Ford pick up.
Thinking about it I wonder what happened to that old gun.............
Copper monolithic bullets in particular the barnes tsx and ttsx have changed the game of excessive meat destruction regardless of their velocity .they retain almost 100 % of their bullet weight
when a deer is shot in the rib lung area virtually zero meat damage. Even with a 180 grain trsx .I've seen the results
2800-3000 FPS in the 30-06 is necessary when hunting mule deer and elk in the west. Your philosophy makes sense for close range shots at whitetails back east... We now hunt with the 300 RUM due to the need to shoot long range.
Well, of course. I specifically stated that it was tailoring for conditions. You and whomever "we" are prefer a 300 RUM. You don't need one, nor do you need to shoot ranges longer than 400 yards. It's very easy to hunt in closer. It requires hunting. My family and I shot plenty of mulies with 130 grain loads with our 270 Winchesters, and my bull elk had no problem with my 300 Winchester Magnum. I personally spoke at length with the late John Nosler some 25 years ago, who told me he had taken many elk with his 270 and 150 or 160 grain Partitions, and had great confidence in the combination. It just requires that one be willing to hunt, which is what the sport used to be called.
I have hunted with the same Ruger M77 MkII All Weather in 30-06 for 24 years. I had the action bedded, barrel free floated and trigger tuned before I fired the first round. I then shot about a dozen different factory loads to see what worked. It liked Federal Classic 150 grain. I bought a case. I am still shooting that case of ammo because it is my hunting, not plinking, rifle. I have killed a deer (sometimes 2) almost every year. Only once did I tear up more meat than I like. It was a short (30 yard) shot through both front shoulders. If I had to chose only one rifle to keep it would be this one.
I will add I have a 1920s Savage 99 in 300 savage. I haven't hunted with it yet but it is a fine rifle.
SOOO practical! You're the greatest
I picked up a savage 99 in 300 savage as my 1st deer rifle when I was a teenager in the '80's
I sold it for 2 reasons Ammo was hard to find and expensive for a 16 year old. And I wanted bolt action .270 Well I ended up with a model 70 lightweight carbine 30-06 and it was not pleasant to shoot.But being young and dumb .I loved carrying it in woods but hated practicing and confirming zero. I didn't know at the time( 16 year olds know everything) the the 99's were and would become harder to find and collectible. .......Funny how our older self's want to kick our younger self right in the rear
Thanks for all the information you are sharing in your videos
I just up bullet weight to keep impact velocity low enough. I load 165gr bullets at 2950 and 180s at 2850. Packs a real punch and bucks the wind better than 150s. I'm a big guy and recoil doesn't bother me as much.
Spot on. I even download my .308. And the monolithic bullets can be one or even two wts lower than cup and core. So very mild recoil 300 yard big game rounds.
@ GunBlue490: Your comments on tailoring your 30-06 to conditions got me to thinking about all of the hunters up in Canada who have used the venerable .303 British rimmed cartridge successfully over the years. Power-wise, the .303 comes in at 85-90% of the power of .308 Winchester, give or take. Yet, plenty of hunters there have used it to take even very large game such as the largest brown and grizzly bears, moose and elk. Until fairly recently, the storied Canadian Rangers used antiquate Lee-Enfields in .303. Why? Because they still worked, all these years later. They finally switched to Tikka .308 rifles a few years ago, but the point remains: It is possible to have "too much gun" in your hand, at least for certain situations. If the felt recoil or power of the 30-06 are too much, simply download the cartridge to something more modest. A 2400-2500 fps load with a 130-grain hunting bullet would be plenty for white-tail, as long as it was a fairly close-range shot. modest recoil, too, which is an aid to greater accuracy. I must be getting old, because I heard some teenager where I live bragging about using his 300 Win-Mag to take a deer. I felt like asking him, "Was there anything left to pick up?" but of course I didn't. About the only possible downside to reduced-power loads in the 30-06 is that you have to take care not to go below the minimum safe loads listed in the reloading manuals, since too-little powder can lead to inconsistent ignition, pressures spikes, squibs, etc. Thanks again for your work. Your videos are awesome!
Have you created the video on specialized hand-loading of the 30.06 cartridge? I see a load in the Speer Manual using H4895 and a 150 grain bullet, starting load 42 grains, that produces 2427 FPS. Is that around what you are suggesting? I am looking for a load that is easier to shoot more accurately.
I sure do remember that video Mr GunBlue490 and holy moly did you get some push back in the comments section. Also I think maybe you should take a second look at the 300 black out. You were awfully tuff on that great round too Sir respect fully
God bless ya mate. That's the information I was looking for.
I hunt with my “uncle in law” and he uses this caliber. He doesn’t reload and neither do I (I’ve got a press, but haven’t started messing with it) , but I’d like to have him try something tuned for the deer that usually walk outbst below 100 yards and never beyond 200 in the gravest extreme.
I have owned some wonderful rifles in 30-06, but have never been happy with the results deer hunting with them. Don't mind the recoil, but have quicker/more consistent harvest when using less powerful cartridges like 30-30 or 250 Savage.