Best .30-06 Factory Target Load....YMMV

tomjones

tomjones

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Fraser Valley B.C
So I got my first .30-06 a little over a week ago.
So far I've shot Hornady 165sst, Winchester SuperX 165 Power Point, Federal Blue Box in both 180g and 150g soft points.

The Hornady had grouped the best but is more expensive. So far it's just been punching paper and the results are not too far off.... The 165-168g seems to be this rifles sweet spot. Although I achieved impressive results with the other weights as well... Hunting accuracy is not a factor just looking for the best budget range ammo. Recoil/flinch is also not a factor.

Does anyone have a favorite value factory cartridge for range and bush target shooting? The rifle is a FN M70 Featherweight. To be honest, if I hadn't got such a good deal on the gun I've always wanted I would have bought a .308 for the cheap plinking ammo.

Also, I'm interesting in reloading. Can anyone offer a suggestion as to a kit that would be fairly simple and produce consistent results. I don't need anything fancy or fast, in fact I rather enjoy working with my guns and ammo.

Thanks,
TomJones
 
You could start the way many handloaders did, with a simple Lee Loader. This thing is affordable, and the only other piece of equipment you need is a nylon or brass head hammer. It allows you to make quality ammo for your rifle, but it will also wet your appetite for a press, a scale, and and a bunch of loading manuals. Once you get onto it, you'll be able to load about 20 rounds per hour. The short comings of the Lee Loader are an inability to weigh powder charges as powder charges are measured by volume, and the inability to cycle rounds that weren't originally fired in your rifle, as the Lee Loader only neck sizes and has no way to bump the shoulder of the cartridge case, which might be necessary in order to close your bolt on a reloaded cartridge.

You should purchase as many loading manuals as you can manage. Each manual comes to its load data from a slightly different angle, and it is useful to compare data from one manual to another. Beyond the actual loading data, these manuals are a virtual treasure trove of ballistic knowledge if you take the time to read them. IMHO, 3 is the minimum you should have, I have more than 20. The Lyman, Sierra, and Hornady manuals will give you a good start.

All single stage loading presses operate in a similar fashion, the Bonanza Co-Axe is a bit different, but only a bit, and the all load at about the same rate. Most have a "C" or an "O" frame into which a die is screwed into the top, directly above the ram which enters from the bottom. I have a personal preference for green loading tools, (RCBS and Redding) but you don't have to spend that much, and Lee now makes a pretty extensive line of light and medium weight presses.

The one Lee product that really turned me off though was their powder scale. The example I tried was neither accurate nor repeatable, and IMHO, was dangerous to use. When it comes time to purchase a scale get one from RCBS, Redding, Lyman, Dillon, Hornady . . . anybody but Lee! Interestingly enough, the Lee spoon style powder measures can be nearly as accurate as a scale. Most powder scales are considered accurate to + or - .1 gr. If used correctly, a Lee spoon, when heaped up with powder, and the heap is then pushed off with a plastic card, I found that the accuracy was slightly better than .2 gr for 10 measures of extruded powder, or about the same as a scale.

When it comes to low cost plinking ammo, its pretty hard to beat the cost of shooting cast bullets in your rifle. A small charge of fast burning powder will propel a 200 gr bullet at about 1800 fps, with little noise or recoil. The only real hiccup to shooting cast in a .30/06 is that you must be mindful of the possibility of double charging a cartridge. If you are interrupted while loading, stop, deal with the interruption, then start over, ensuring the cartridge you are about to load has no powder in it.
 
Boomer said:
You could start the way many handloaders did, with a simple Lee Loader. This thing is affordable, and the only other piece of equipment you need is a nylon or brass head hammer. It allows you to make quality ammo for your rifle, but it will also wet your appetite for a press, a scale, and and a bunch of loading manuals. Once you get onto it, you'll be able to load about 20 rounds per hour. The short comings of the Lee Loader are an inability to weigh powder charges as powder charges are measured by volume, and the inability to cycle rounds that weren't originally fired in your rifle, as the Lee Loader only neck sizes and has no way to bump the shoulder of the cartridge case, which might be necessary in order to close your bolt on a reloaded cartridge.

You should purchase as many loading manuals as you can manage. Each manual comes to its load data from a slightly different angle, and it is useful to compare data from one manual to another. Beyond the actual loading data, these manuals are a virtual treasure trove of ballistic knowledge if you take the time to read them. IMHO, 3 is the minimum you should have, I have more than 20. The Lyman, Sierra, and Hornady manuals will give you a good start.

All single stage loading presses operate in a similar fashion, the Bonanza Co-Axe is a bit different, but only a bit, and the all load at about the same rate. Most have a "C" or an "O" frame into which a die is screwed into the top, directly above the ram which enters from the bottom. I have a personal preference for green loading tools, (RCBS and Redding) but you don't have to spend that much, and Lee now makes a pretty extensive line of light and medium weight presses.

The one Lee product that really turned me off though was their powder scale. The example I tried was neither accurate nor repeatable, and IMHO, was dangerous to use. When it comes time to purchase a scale get one from RCBS, Redding, Lyman, Dillon, Hornady . . . anybody but Lee! Interestingly enough, the Lee spoon style powder measures can be nearly as accurate as a scale. Most powder scales are considered accurate to + or - .1 gr. If used correctly, a Lee spoon, when heaped up with powder, and the heap is then pushed off with a plastic card, I found that the accuracy was slightly better than .2 gr for 10 measures of extruded powder, or about the same as a scale.

When it comes to low cost plinking ammo, its pretty hard to beat the cost of shooting cast bullets in your rifle. A small charge of fast burning powder will propel a 200 gr bullet at about 1800 fps, with little noise or recoil. The only real hiccup to shooting cast in a .30/06 is that you must be mindful of the possibility of double charging a cartridge. If you are interrupted while loading, stop, deal with the interruption, then start over, ensuring the cartridge you are about to load has no powder in it.
Click to expand...

Excellent information....Thank you!
 
I found the hornady superformance 165gr sst to shoot the best in my m70 fw. I load hornady 150's and 165's right now. Tried the berger 168gr hunting vld and it is hit or miss.
 
For a near complete reloading kit, look at the Hornady Classic Lock and Load kit. And Hornady has a promo of 500 bullets for the cost of shipping with this kit. SFRC has the best price. Don't forget dies and a shell holder.
 
Im still using my Lee Classic O single stage loader. Got a target over my bench with a 200m group 3 shots of 4 touching from my Sierra 165 boattails thru my Browning Xbolt 308. Didnt like Nosler or anything else. Loves the Sierras. I like to take my time when loading so the Classic is quite adequate and for around a hun its an excellent deal. Solid too. The rest of the stuff has changed though. RCBS 505 scale is accurate and an RCBS powder thrower seems to fit the bill as well. Dont forget that if you load a crapload of ammo and sell all your reloading stuff you will get a lot of your cash back. Cant lose.
 
Tried out some federal vital shock loaded with sierra 165gr game kings they shot right at moa. Not as good as the hornady stuff I have used but still better then lots of others.
 
I have a Browning Xbolt 30-06 almost paid off I hope to have next week. I usually run 180gr boattails in my '06s and will start with this one just the same. My 308 Xbolt loves the 165 Sierras but I like a tad more thump with the '06 so will try the Sierras and Nosler 180s first off. Then again there is supposed to be some magic involved between the 308 and 165gr bullets too.
 
hometownhero said:
I found the hornady superformance 165gr sst to shoot the best in my m70 fw. I load hornady 150's and 165's right now. Tried the berger 168gr hunting vld and it is hit or miss.
Click to expand...

That mirrors my experience too. The gun will shoot anything tight enough to harvest a Buck but if I'm trying to impress my friends Hornady 165-168sst shoot really tight.
With a baby on the way it's hard to get the wife to see reloading is the only true way... Save a buck long run and create a custom cartridge... I see no faults but just try dealing with a hormonal women you love.... Lots of yes dear I understand...
One day I will have my reloaders bench... One day...
 
I lucked out. My wife is a survivalist and thinks reloading is a great idea. Doesnt think I have enough ammo yet or guns.
Keep in mind it is not likely that your rifle will love the particular bullet you apply. My new Browning Xbolt 308 wouldnt shoot well with any of the bullets my Ruger did well with. Working up a load should involve both different bullets and powder too along with primers. Then again I just use CCI primers. When you find that magic mix though its a joyous event. Keep plugging. Its worth the effort.
 
Way back before I started reloading, I always found Federal Premium ammo to shoot the best, and that in a variety of rifles. Hornady was often a close second.

Like many others, I can't stress the many excellent reasons to reload; better ammo is only one of them.
 
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