what you think of the 30-06 cal
- Thread starter JB
- Start date
Hi
You'd fit right in down here with a 30-06.
The 30-06 is a *very* versatile hunting round. For tack driving accuracy, I would look at other options.
What are you trying to do? If hunting, what kind of game? If targets, what ranges and types?
We could spend a *long* time going down each and every one of the various rabbit holes in all those areas ....
Bob
FWIW, 30-06 is the cartridge designation, not the calibre. That having been sid, the 30-06 is capable - with creative loading - of doing just about everything that its 300.* magnum brethren do, give or take a few feet per second.
Pro: It will do almost everything most 30 cal magnums will do at a fraction of the cost; it is good for every type of north american game, nearly every make of factory rifle produced has a 30-06 variant; you can buy 30-06 ammo almost anywhere.
I like them. I prefer them to 300's, but would aslo consider win 308 which is just a smaller cased 30-06 for versatility.
Cons: it's recoil if you want to shoot lots of it, and its limitations launching bullets over 180 grains.
Pro: It will do almost everything most 30 cal magnums will do at a fraction of the cost; it is good for every type of north american game, nearly every make of factory rifle produced has a 30-06 variant; you can buy 30-06 ammo almost anywhere.
I like them. I prefer them to 300's, but would aslo consider win 308 which is just a smaller cased 30-06 for versatility.
Cons: it's recoil if you want to shoot lots of it, and its limitations launching bullets over 180 grains.
Hi
How much are you going to shoot?
If you are a typical hunter, the answer may be less than 100 rounds a year. In that case ammo cost is not very important.
If you have a 200 round a week habit blasting cans at the local dump, then something like a .223 will be a lot more friendly to your wallet.
It's been a lot of years since the 30-06 was a military round. You can still find surplus ammo for it, but it's getting scarce. A .308 is a similar round with much better availability of surplus ammo.
It all depends on what you are going to do ....
Bob
How much are you going to shoot?
If you are a typical hunter, the answer may be less than 100 rounds a year. In that case ammo cost is not very important.
If you have a 200 round a week habit blasting cans at the local dump, then something like a .223 will be a lot more friendly to your wallet.
It's been a lot of years since the 30-06 was a military round. You can still find surplus ammo for it, but it's getting scarce. A .308 is a similar round with much better availability of surplus ammo.
It all depends on what you are going to do ....
Bob
Steve David
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Oshawa, Ontario
It is the caliber that Carlos Hathcock made most of his "serious" kills with. A few companies make match 30/06 and a lot info on very accurate 30/06 is available.
Hi
The 30-06 in a 5 pound rifle is a lot to handle. Been there done that.
In a rifle weighing in around 9 to 10 pounds a 30-08 with 168 grain bullets is the standard definition of "about all most people are comfortable with". In fact the military ammo was specifically reduced in power for that very reason.
In a full blown bench gun weighing in at 15 pounds and shot off bags, a 30-06 is fairly mild compared to what many long range shooters are using.
Lots of choices ...
Bob
The 30-06 in a 5 pound rifle is a lot to handle. Been there done that.
In a rifle weighing in around 9 to 10 pounds a 30-08 with 168 grain bullets is the standard definition of "about all most people are comfortable with". In fact the military ammo was specifically reduced in power for that very reason.
In a full blown bench gun weighing in at 15 pounds and shot off bags, a 30-06 is fairly mild compared to what many long range shooters are using.
Lots of choices ...
Bob
Hi
The .308 and 30-06 are two of the most modified cartridges in existence. You can get either case and put it behind almost any diameter bullet known to man. Many of the combinations come in multiple flavors. The results are popular enough that many of them are now factory loaded ammo.
Smaller diameter bullets go faster, larger diameter bullets can be heavier to hit harder. What ever you specifically want to do, you can find a derivative cartridge that does it better than the .308 or 30-06 parent.
The debates about the relative merits of the offshoots have literally filled thousands of pages. Some gun writers made a living off of elaborating their view of the differences.
Are you interested in 1500 yard shots at gophers? There's a derivative cartridge for that. Worried about a close encounter with an elephant, there's a modification for that. Competing in the 600 yard bench rest competitions - there's one for that.
It all depends on what you want to do.
Bob
The .308 and 30-06 are two of the most modified cartridges in existence. You can get either case and put it behind almost any diameter bullet known to man. Many of the combinations come in multiple flavors. The results are popular enough that many of them are now factory loaded ammo.
Smaller diameter bullets go faster, larger diameter bullets can be heavier to hit harder. What ever you specifically want to do, you can find a derivative cartridge that does it better than the .308 or 30-06 parent.
The debates about the relative merits of the offshoots have literally filled thousands of pages. Some gun writers made a living off of elaborating their view of the differences.
Are you interested in 1500 yard shots at gophers? There's a derivative cartridge for that. Worried about a close encounter with an elephant, there's a modification for that. Competing in the 600 yard bench rest competitions - there's one for that.
It all depends on what you want to do.
Bob
As a precision rifle round, 30-06 isn't as popular as 308, or even 300WM.
Any properly built rifle and properly constructed ammo will shoot plenty accurate enough, unless you're in the top echelons of target shooters who can honestly shoot the difference.
If it's a target rifle you're wanting, IMO the 308 will do just as well, with less recoil and a bit less powder burned.
If it's a general purpose rifle you're asking about, post this in General or Hunting/Sporting, batten down the hatches and wait for the usual ####storm...
Any properly built rifle and properly constructed ammo will shoot plenty accurate enough, unless you're in the top echelons of target shooters who can honestly shoot the difference.
If it's a target rifle you're wanting, IMO the 308 will do just as well, with less recoil and a bit less powder burned.
If it's a general purpose rifle you're asking about, post this in General or Hunting/Sporting, batten down the hatches and wait for the usual ####storm...
Well the way I see it, the 30-06 is a 100 year old cartridge, just like the Stanley Steamer is a 100 year old automobile. Both very capable, both reliable. However given todays technology, why would you want to travel (hunt) across the country with one. Other than to brag that you have done it.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Why is it that because it wasn't invented last week some people think it can't be any good? The '06 will drive a 180 gr bullet at 2800 fps. This provides a flat enough trajectory to reach out beyond any sensible range, bucks the wind well, effectively kills game up to 1200 pounds, and does it all with moderate recoil. How can a .300 WSM be any better than that?
The .30-06 is gawds gift to rifleman. It isn't one of those cartidges that is a crutch for bad marksmanship, like alot of hunters choose magnums for. It is capable of taking any animal on the north american continent and probably has, at distances out to 600-700 yds. Reloading components (brass) are cheap and readily available and there are 60 plus different .308 projectiles that you can load into a .30-06. If you are one of the few people who find that it recoils to badly for you, a simple solution is a PAST shoulder pad. You can shoot .30-06 bolt action rifle all day long with one of them.
If your one of those people, and there are many of them, that only want one rifle, well the 06 may be the choice for you. There are others that I would choose, the 6.5x55 for instance, will do most every thing the 06 will do, and some things it wont, and less recoil.
There are many many other choices out there that are as capable or more so than the 06 for a single rifle owner.
For those of us that choose to have more than one rifle, there is no reason to have a 06 in the cabinet, as every thing it does, another caliber will do the same in spades.
It is not that the 06 is not capable. It is that there are many more modern calibers that are much more capable.
There are many many other choices out there that are as capable or more so than the 06 for a single rifle owner.
For those of us that choose to have more than one rifle, there is no reason to have a 06 in the cabinet, as every thing it does, another caliber will do the same in spades.
It is not that the 06 is not capable. It is that there are many more modern calibers that are much more capable.
Northman999
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Yukon
The 30-06 is a great cartridge. You can effectively take anything in North America with it, providing you are up to the task and use appropriate ammunition. It's also available in pretty much any rifle you want, and ammo is inexpensive, common and available in a huge variety of factory variations. As a hunter, I'd be very hard pressed to think of a big game situation where a properly set up 30-06 rig could not be relied on to get the job done well.
This is the Precision Rifle forum, so let's assume that JB isn't thinking about hunting rifles. The cartridge is not used very often in precision rifles - ones that are used on target ranges. It will work, but there are other cartridges that are better.
If the question is about an accurate rifle for hunting, there are few cartridges that offer any improvement over the '06. It is one of the best.
If the question is about an accurate rifle for hunting, there are few cartridges that offer any improvement over the '06. It is one of the best.
If talking about fullbore type target shooting, I'm not sure that any of the others is better per se, just that they have different benefits. IIRC there was a good discussion about 30-06 in precision shooting within the last year, with mysticplayer and a few others offering very good input.
30-06
I am assuming you want the 30-06 for a precision cartridge.
If you want a 1000 yard cartridge, I think it is one of the best if you are shooting 190 to 210 grain bullets. These bullets have great wind drift resistance.
The other advantage it has, is it's long neck, which is appearing to have some affect on throat and barrel life. It is extremely accurate when loaded with Re22 and these heavier bullets.
Great brass is available from Lapua.
The other advantage is that it's case capacity is perfect to shoot these bullets in their operating sweet spot about 2900 fps using long barrels. This gives 100% case filling which is known for increased accuray. Also, the case capacity is right between the 308 W and the 300 WM. Therefore, the 30-06 gives the velocity required without the heavier recoil generated by the 300 WM.
I have been considering building an 30-06AI for long range shooting. The AI case gives slightly better case capacity for using the same charge of Re22 without having to compress the powder too much.
The other alternatives to the 30-06 would be a 300 RSAUM or WSM. The RSAUM would be the preferred case IMHO because it is just about the same capacity as the 30-06AI and is a short fat case which would fit into a Rem short action the same as the 308 Win. However, you lose the "advantage" of the long neck but gain the "advantage" of a short fat powder column.
To me either would be a good choice depending on the action you want to use.
Steve
I am assuming you want the 30-06 for a precision cartridge.
If you want a 1000 yard cartridge, I think it is one of the best if you are shooting 190 to 210 grain bullets. These bullets have great wind drift resistance.
The other advantage it has, is it's long neck, which is appearing to have some affect on throat and barrel life. It is extremely accurate when loaded with Re22 and these heavier bullets.
Great brass is available from Lapua.
The other advantage is that it's case capacity is perfect to shoot these bullets in their operating sweet spot about 2900 fps using long barrels. This gives 100% case filling which is known for increased accuray. Also, the case capacity is right between the 308 W and the 300 WM. Therefore, the 30-06 gives the velocity required without the heavier recoil generated by the 300 WM.
I have been considering building an 30-06AI for long range shooting. The AI case gives slightly better case capacity for using the same charge of Re22 without having to compress the powder too much.
The other alternatives to the 30-06 would be a 300 RSAUM or WSM. The RSAUM would be the preferred case IMHO because it is just about the same capacity as the 30-06AI and is a short fat case which would fit into a Rem short action the same as the 308 Win. However, you lose the "advantage" of the long neck but gain the "advantage" of a short fat powder column.
To me either would be a good choice depending on the action you want to use.
Steve
