best 25 06 bullet for deer hunting!

best 25 06 bullet for deer hunting

  • barnes tsx

    Votes: 16 26.7%

  • nosler partition

    Votes: 23 38.3%

  • nosler accubond

    Votes: 16 26.7%

  • sierra game king

    Votes: 5 8.3%
  • Total voters
    60
Deer only? I might be persuaded to go with the accubond myself. Deer don't take a lot of killing; though I'd probably choose something other than a 25-06 for distances inside 150 yards - at that short range I'd rather not have to deal with all the blast that a 25-06 makes
 
my first choice would be the Nosler Accubond

second would be 100 gr TSX

third would be 115 grain Partition

if none of those worked I would take a hard look at the rifle as there would most likely be a problem with it

half inch groups at 200 yards is great, but deer are a bit bigger than a ping pong ball
 
probably the Sierra or Accubond, followed by the tsx then the partition. All will expand fully well before getting to the vitals though
 
redmist25 said:
I have shot over 20 deer with the 115 partition from 20 to 385 yards and never had even a hint of a problem. Been tempted to try the accubonds but why mess with success
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Shortly after I got my .25-06, and at my next 'shopping' trip at P&d, I picked up a small variety of bullets to get started with. Nosler 120gr solid base, Barnes 115gr Flat Base Triple Shock, Nosler 110gr Accubond and Sierra 117gr Spitzer Boat Tails. The first ones I tried were the Sierra's, and with the accuracy I got, I haven't even tried the others, yet. Thought I'd have to go a long ways to improve upon the results I've got with the Sierra's.:D
 
accuracy dont matter if your Sierra bullet blows up on impact and ruins half a deer, or worse - you cant find it at all if your bullet fails to fully penetrate the vitals and fragments.
 
todbartell said:
accuracy dont matter if your Sierra bullet blows up on impact and ruins half a deer, or worse - you cant find it at all if your bullet fails to fully penetrate the vitals and fragments.
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No arguement there, but so far, that hasn't been my experience. Again, the reason I've gone to Sierra in quite a number of cases is over the years, if there was a brand of bullet that kept coming up better than most accuracy wise, Sierra was it.
I've loaded Sierra 180gr SBT's for my buddy's .30-06 and he brought back two that he recovered from a couple of Moose and I was impressed that they both had peeled the jacket right back to the boat tail, but they still held together. I've had very similar results with the 200gr SBT's that I've loaded in my .308 Norma Mag and used on Moose. Most recently I picked up some Sierra 250gr SBT's from 240gord and loaded them for my son's .338wm. He just got his first Black Bear in the B.C. interior with that load. The bullet wasn't recovered as it was a broadside chest shot at just under 100yds and passed through.
I agree with what you've said concerning 'performance'. If I'd had a number of questionable results I would've opted for something else, but so far so good, no complaints.
 
my experience with Sierra bullets is limited to one caliber and one animal (6.5mm 140 grain GameKing). 250 yard shot - 2200 f/s impact velocity, bullet penetrated 8 inches and came apart, retained 30% of its original weight. Also the bloodshot was terrible, wrecked 1/4 of the deer. It did flatten the deer but its not performance I feel comfortable with in a big game bullet. I am very hesitant to use them again
 
Accubonds!!!

BIGREDD said:
I have got my best groups with the 110 accubond... and it is a proven performer. I will never shoot another bullet on deer with a rifle.
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I'll second that. I do not have a 25-06 but use the Accubonds in my 300WM and 270WSM, and wish they were available for my 243. Best bullet out there in my opinion.

Now, maybe the new Nosler E-tip when they are available.
 
todbartell said:
my experience with Sierra bullets is limited to one caliber and one animal (6.5mm 140 grain GameKing). 250 yard shot - 2200 f/s impact velocity, bullet penetrated 8 inches and came apart, retained 30% of its original weight. Also the bloodshot was terrible, wrecked 1/4 of the deer. It did flatten the deer but its not performance I feel comfortable with in a big game bullet. I am very hesitant to use them again
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With results like that I can see your hesitation and if it happened to me I'd feel the same. The 140gr is made for higher velocities than the 2200f/sec you mentioned so I would've expected them to hold together better than that.
I should've kept info on the retained weight of the Sierra .308 180gr & 200gr SBT's I made mention of but I didn't. To the best of my recollection, and perhaps with the exception of one bullet, I doubt that I lost anymore than a maximum of 30% of the original weight, if that.
 
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My results with Sierra mirror those of todbartell's very iffy in the frangibility department. If I had to use Sierra, It would be the heaviest possible for diameter. I opt for the Accubond first, Partition second for the deer bullet. Regards, Eagleye
 
Not all weight Sierra Gamekings are built the same. An example is the 150g Sierra used in the 270 Federal high energy loads. It goes to the far side of moose every time. A friend of mine and his wife use it and allways find the bullet near the far hide even if a sholder is hit. Bullets are usualy peeled back a little more than half way. I have also witnessed him take 2 black bears with it. Full penetration on a 6'3" bear through the sholders.
 
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