Bear hunting in 30-06

E

ezekielz

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Surrey, BC
Wondering which grain would be the good for bear hunting? I got some 180gr and thinking that what I need. Would 165 or 150 be enough? Kep in mind these are commercial loaded rounds not hand loaded. For those that ask its hornaday 180gr SST rounds.
 
Nope, no way a .30-06 can kill any bears.
Seriously though Grizzly or Black bear? cause for Black bears any load you would use for deer will work. Grizzly's I can't say theres much hunting for them on this coast but I imagine any good 180 grain or heavier bullet particularly Nosler partition or a nice 200+ grain roundnose at about 2400 fps should ruin a bruins day.
 
Phil Shoemaker and a Brown Bear taken with a .30-06 and 200gr Partitions - or maybe it was 220gr Partition, I can't remember, but it was one of those two bullets.

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In that case just about any decent 165gr bullet should be just fine. Your 180gr SST will surely do the job.
 
Pretty hard to go wrong with the 180 in a .30/06, regardless of the species being hunted. That said I like heavier, other guys prefer lighter, but as long as the bullet weighs 150 grs or more, you'll do fine provided you shoot well. As soon as you shoot, cycle the action and be prepared to shoot again, if he needs more, give him more.
 
I took a good blackie with a 140 Accubond from my 270WSM. He went about 40 metres into the trees and piled up.

A 30-06 with 150s, 165s, or 180s will do quite nicely. My favourite for the 30-06 is the 165 softpoints as a general purpose, off-the-shelf load. Plenty of smack for a blackie. My experience with blackies has all been close range hunting, within 100 metres, so if I were carrying a 30-06 solely for the purpose of a bear hunt, I would opt for a 180.
 
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