30-06 enough for moose?

It's called a Texas Heart Shot

H4831 said:
Hey, not so sure about that.
One time a bull moose jumped up in front of me in the bush. I saw his head, andtlers, then he ran straight away, with his head held down. I aimed my 30-06 right at his tail and let fly. He went only about twenty feet, then collapsed.
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If that's all the Moose gave you as a target you took it and had meat for the family and an interesting anecdote.
 
No, definitely not. Moose is a very hearty and dangerous big game animal. Hunting moose with anything less than .50BMG would be foolish and irresponsible.
 
H4831 said:
Hey, not so sure about that.
One time a bull moose jumped up in front of me in the bush. I saw his head, andtlers, then he ran straight away, with his head held down. I aimed my 30-06 right at his tail and let fly. He went only about twenty feet, then collapsed.
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Texas heart shot! :p
 
fredwoodman said:
For years all i used was 243 ( 95 gr Partitions) and i dont recall a moose or a caribou ever needing a second shot.And there has been lots of them
I use a 6.5x55 now, more than enough gun for moose as well. Shoot it thru the lungs and give them 15 minutes before you go and look. It will not be very far from where it was standing when it was hit.
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I'd stick to the 6.5 from now on, for sure. The minimum legal bullet weight for big game in this province (excepting caribou in Labrador) is 100 grains. ;)
 
30-06

jethunter said:
Detective Special, and all you guys who think that a 30-06 is good enough for moose - it's time someone explained some of the more intricate aspects of big game hunting philosophy to you guys: We justify owning multiple hunting rifles by "needing" different cartridges and rifles - long range shooting, bush gun, lightweight, big bore, mountain rifle, truck gun, all-round rifle, bean field rifle, all weather rifle, and just about anything else you can think of. Of course 90% of it is BS, but there's a very good reason for it.

Bottom line - a 30-06 is a fine all-round choice for Canadian big game hunting and you gave your friend really good advice. Just don't do that again, it could cause trouble. For instance, if my wife ever reads these threads it's gonna be real hard to justify the 2 gun safes full of hunting rifles residing at my house, and i think she's already suspicious... wink wink, nudge nudge.... get it??? ;)
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LOL !! Love it !
 
20ga = 1 whitetail 30 yds. 7/8 oz slug.
.303 br = 5 whitetail out to 200yds, 180gr Hornady SP
.30-06 = 6 whitetail 600yds, 480yds, 580yds (165gr Nosler Ballistic Tip)
SKS = 3 Whitetail. 75yds, 110yds, 140yds. (125 gr Sierra Game Master)
.30-06 = 2 whitetail 260 yds, 280 yds (150 gr sierra Game Master)
.30-06 = 1 Cow moose 260yds, (150 gr sierra Game Master)
SKS = 1 cow moose 150yds (150gr Sierra Game Master)

This is my big game story. Many times in NS you go the whole season and don't see a deer. Almost more deer shot here in AB the last 3 years, than in my early life.
To make the point, each shot was broadside. Each was lung or heart. All deer were through and through except the 125gr SKS at 140 yds. (just inside the skin on the far side, fell on the floor when I was skinning it).

The moose with the .30-06 was a lung shot. Didn't wait long enough to chase her and when I walked into the wood line, she staggered to her feet and just stood there 50yds away. I pulled again, she took one step and lay down. (that was the heart shot). Both were through and through. The one shot with the SKS was again on the skin or the far side, but still enough in the meat not to fall out when she was skinned. Tons of damage!! I have never seen so much blood in a body cavity! Waited a little longer that time and she was dead when I got there, 25yds into the woods. Maybe 30yds from where she was shot.

The point? I have used many calibres successfully to down big game. Shot placement is overall impt to me. I am truly blessed. I don't have the driving need to hunt for trophy so I will pass up the shot and go without, knowing that the table will get filled later. I don't pay big bucks to go on guided hunts where I have to have an animal to justify the cost. I hunt for the table and since moving here, I go home happy every season. The .30-06 will do the job consistently.
I have read the regs and the preferred terminal energy on a whitetail beyond 300yds can only be consistently generated by the 500 Tyrannosaur. Somehow, I can never see me using that.
For long shots over open ground, I'll stick to the .30-06. For moderate shots over open ground, I can use the .308 or the .303's. The SKS's for me have been relegated to truck guns and camping guns. For heavier bush this year I will have new rifle to tote. A Remington 799 in a 7.62X39mm, with a 150 gr Sierra Game Master.
And when I wax nostalgic, I'll take out one of the .303's.

My wife still likes her SKS, tho.
 
DANCESWITHEMPTIES said:
The 7.62 x 39mm only comes up light because of the factory selection of bullet weights. Ballistically it's superior to the 30-30.
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I can't see any superiority for the russian cartridge at all, in fact if you look at everything the 30-30 would seem to have the edge, especially if you're talking terminal ballistics. 7.62x39 has a smaller case and doesn't hold as much powder as a 30-30 case, and the math isn't too hard after that.

winchester factory ammo specs:
- 7.62x39: 123 gr soft point bullet @ 2365 fps
- 30-30: 150 gr bullet at 2390 fps

Neither of them starts out fast enough that the difference in ballistic coeffient amounts to anything useful. Both cartridges are at best 150-200 yard hunting cartridges, regardless of your bullet or handload.
 
I have a 30-06 which means its the best! haha just kidding but really i do..

Let's see... if a stove is used to cook food, then 30-06 is used to kill moose?
makes sense :)
 
I have done so much reading and talking to other hunters about this topic I could write a book. :p I am still far from experienced.

I am using a necked down 30-06 called a .270 :p to hunt moose this year so you better be able to use a 30-06 or I am in trouble!

I was surprised to find out that even though the 30-06 is the most popular all around hunting cartridge on the internet and on the store shelves most hunters I spoke with use a .270 for deer and moose.

It's all about shot placement and how good you are with your rifle.

That's my 2 cents.
 
mikepos said:
It depends, I hit one in the heart and it obviously dropped in it's tracks. 30-06 180g BTW but I work with a guy who's shot several moose and deer witht he same rifle, a .243. he says it's all placement, but IMO he's gone a bit too far. hard to argue his clean kills though, he won';t listen when I talk about what "could" and likely will eventually happen...
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it does not matter what rifle make or caliber a guy is using,if you hunt long enough the what could and likely will eventually happen.will happen.any firearm which is legal and the hunter can shoot effectively is the one to be useing.
 
I havent read a single post in this thread.That being said , if you have a CF rifle in any cal from .243 [the legal minium in most all of Canada] to .700 H&H you can dispatch any moose. Period . All else is pure BS.
 
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JJ-65 said:
, if you have a CF rifle in any cal from .243 [the legal minium in most all of Canada] .
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Damn, now you Saskatchewan guys are trodding on your big brother to the west, like we didn't exist!
We can legally shoot moose with any center fire, as long as we use an expanding bullet.
 
jethunter said:
I can't see any superiority for the russian cartridge at all, in fact if you look at everything the 30-30 would seem to have the edge, especially if you're talking terminal ballistics. 7.62x39 has a smaller case and doesn't hold as much powder as a 30-30 case, and the math isn't too hard after that.

winchester factory ammo specs:
- 7.62x39: 123 gr soft point bullet @ 2365 fps
- 30-30: 150 gr bullet at 2390 fps

Neither of them starts out fast enough that the difference in ballistic coeffient amounts to anything useful. Both cartridges are at best 150-200 yard hunting cartridges, regardless of your bullet or handload.
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okay, let's do the math and compare apples to apples.
the best I can get out of a 7.62x39mm with a 150gr Spitzer point is 2100FPS.
Now, we're gonna launch your 150gr Round Nose bullet at 2400 FPS

So, at 100 yds the 762 has approx 1460 ft/lbs of energy. The .30-30 has 2042.

At 150 yds, the 762 has stats of almost 2000 fps and over 1300 ft/lbs while the .30-30 is falling rapidly behind. with a velocity of 1631 fps and 886 ft/lbs of energy.

however, at 200 yds, the 762 has a velocity of about 1900 fps and 1184 ft/lbs of energy. The .30-30 has a velocity of about 1300 FPS and a terminal energy of about 762 ft/lbs of energy.

So, now that the math has been done, can we agree that the 7.62X39mm round is capable of doing the job if properly compared to what you are asking? I think so.
 
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H4831 said:
Damn, now you Saskatchewan guys are trodding on your big brother to the west, like we didn't exist!
We can legally shoot moose with any center fire, as long as we use an expanding bullet.
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i'm under the asumption that it is the same way in here in b.c. , bison being the only exception where they give minimum energy requirements rather than a specific caliber / cartridge .
 
rookie wildcat said:
okay, let's do the math and compare apples to apples.
the best I can get out of a 7.62x39mm with a 150gr Spitzer point is 2100FPS.
Now, we're gonna launch your 150gr Round Nose bullet at 2400 FPS

So, at 100 yds the 762 has approx 1460 ft/lbs of energy. The .30-30 has 2042.

At 150 yds, the 762 has stats of almost 2000 fps and over 1300 ft/lbs while the .30-30 is falling rapidly behind. with a velocity of 1631 fps and 886 ft/lbs of energy.

however, at 200 yds, the 762 has a velocity of about 1900 fps and 1184 ft/lbs of energy. The .30-30 has a velocity of about 1300 FPS and a terminal energy of about 762 ft/lbs of energy.

So, now that the math has been done, can we agree that the 7.62X39mm round is capable of doing the job if properly compared to what you are asking? I think so.
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I never said the 7.62 rusky was not capable of doing the job. I said they are both 150-200 yd cartridges, and that I did not see the ballistic superiority you awarded to the 7.62x39.

Some interesting data you've collected. Winchester claims their factory 30-30 150 gr power point ammo is still doing 1685 fps at 200 yds, not 1300 fps. I'd tend to believe them rather than your data considering the physical improbability of a bullet losing 358 fps in the first 100 yards and then losing 742 in the next 100 yards... maybe the 1300 fps figure you are quoting is for 300 yards, not 200? Something is not right with your figures.

That 7.62 bullet you're using has a remarkable ballistic coefficient. What hunting bullet are you using that only lost 200 fps in 200 yards? I would have expected a 150 gr hunting bullet in the 7.62 to have retained about 1750 fps at 200 yds.

So the figures i used are different apples than your apples. By my reckoning at 200 yds the 30-30 is doing 1685 fps, and the 7.62 is doing 1750. As I said, i don't see a great ballistic superiority regardless of how much one diddles the numbers.
 
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burnt_servo said:
i'm under the asumption that it is the same way in here in b.c. , bison being the only exception where they give minimum energy requirements rather than a specific caliber / cartridge .
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I am from BC and it was BC law I was quoting.
I didn't mention bison, because I stated for moose hunting.
 
H4831 said:
Damn, now you Saskatchewan guys are trodding on your big brother to the west, like we didn't exist!
We can legally shoot moose with any center fire, as long as we use an expanding bullet.
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Same thing way out here in NB. I have no other great wisdom to impart, but I have read many posts int this string :nest:
 
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