Stepping up from 30-06

I don't agree that a 7mm is much if any an upgrade to the 30-06. I reloaded 7mm's for years and could never get it to do any better than my 30-06. My 30-06 180 grain reload chrono'd at 2800 fps in a 22 inch barrel. After trying several powders in various 7mm's in a 24 inch barrel the best I could get was 2850, maybe 2875 if I pushed it. Please tell me how that is so much better than the 30-06? In the 7mm you might gain a little more with a 26 inch barrel but the same gain could be had with the 06. I call BS!!!!!!
 
skidderman said:
I don't agree that a 7mm is much if any an upgrade to the 30-06. I reloaded 7mm's for years and could never get it to do any better than my 30-06. My 30-06 180 grain reload chrono'd at 2800 fps in a 22 inch barrel. After trying several powders in various 7mm's in a 24 inch barrel the best I could get was 2850, maybe 2875 if I pushed it. Please tell me how that is so much better than the 30-06? In the 7mm you might gain a little more with a 26 inch barrel but the same gain could be had with the 06. I call BS!!!!!!
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Need to do more testing then. 7mm rem mag should reach 3000 fps with a 162/168gr. Bc and sd are better then the 30 cal.
 
Mds694 said:
So I’ve had an itch for a new hunting rifle. Primarily whitetails but moose and elk as well. Currently use my grandfathers a-bolt 30-06. Where I shoot I can’t imagine anything presenting over 300 yards. And to that end, I wouldn’t be comfortable shooting anything farther at this point anyways. I’ve looked into several calibres, magnums, short magnums, etc. My biggest hope was for something that shoots flatter but still hits just as hard. Now correct me if I’m wrong but as far as I can tell, there really isn’t anything that fits the bill. Closest I can come up with would be 7mm rm, 270 wsm, or 300 win. And even then it doesn’t seem to make a significant difference in the field. Thoughts?
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300 WM would make sense. It does what the 30-06 does, just a bit farther. It will open up your operational envelope.
 
hometownhero said:
Need to do more testing then. 7mm rem mag should reach 3000 fps with a 162/168gr. Bc and sd are better then the 30 cal.
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The ‘06 will push a 165 to 3k fps with ease from a 24” tube. BC and sd are all but irrelevant at <300 yards and anything a person would choose to shoot with either rifle. If one needs more penetration you choose a mono, more damage look at something softer.
 
Boomer said:
The .30/06 is perhaps my favorite cartridge, but in some cases, a .300 magnum is better. Typically, the .30/06 (180 @ 2750) is sighted 2" high at 100, and hits zero at 200, and is 8" low at 300. A .300 Winchester, sighted for 250 yards, prints 2" high at 100, just like the '06, but the bullet strikes only 3.5" low at 300, so if your self imposed maximum range is about 300 yards, this represents a useful advantage.

In terms of terminal performance, a faster bullet produces larger wound volumes, than a similarly constructed, slower bullet. A bullet that doesn't upset penetrates deeper, a bullet that is designed to grenade will do so more violently, and a bullet that is designed for controlled expansion on big game will meet its maximum expanded diameter sooner. John Nosler designed his Partition bullet because he was dissatisfied with the existing bullet performance on elk with his .300 Weatherby. A bullet that hits faster and harder, must be constructed more strongly, but must also take the target density into consideration. If you're deer hunting with a .30/06, a 150 gr Ballistic Tip will produce lightning fast kills. It you are deer hunting with a .300 magnum, the Ballistic Tip will act more like a varmint bullet, so the Accubond is a better choice, but the Accubond from an '06 probably won't kill as quickly as the Ballistic Tip, due to the lower velocity, and light target density.
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Yes, absolutely. The 300win mag is superior to the 30-06 at longer ranges, the only downside is the added recoil. You're only adding 2 inches to the barrel length, but you've already chosen to have a longer rifle (and increased recoil) when you own a 30-06 over the 308. If you're in a place where a 300 yard shot happens maybe once a decade, like a deer shot on a straight stretch logging road in BC, you can still use any of the 3 mentioned cartridges, it's when you're going longer that you want to really want a 300win mag.
 
Mds694 said:
So I’ve had an itch for a new hunting rifle. Primarily whitetails but moose and elk as well. Currently use my grandfathers a-bolt 30-06. Where I shoot I can’t imagine anything presenting over 300 yards. And to that end, I wouldn’t be comfortable shooting anything farther at this point anyways. I’ve looked into several calibres, magnums, short magnums, etc. My biggest hope was for something that shoots flatter but still hits just as hard. Now correct me if I’m wrong but as far as I can tell, there really isn’t anything that fits the bill. Closest I can come up with would be 7mm rm, 270 wsm, or 300 win. And even then it doesn’t seem to make a significant difference in the field. Thoughts?
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Not a great deal to be gained but all three are excellent and very capable of killing any deer, moose or elk with a well placed bullet. Wanting a new rifle in a different cartridge is more than reason enough. Heck even a .270 Winchester would shoot flatter and perform similarly on game to a .30-06 with appropriate bullets.

SuperCub said:
Why not leave the 30-06 for moose and elk and buy a smaller bore for flatter shooting deer? Something like a 25-06, 243 or 260. Smaller bores are funner to shoot and usually get used more. I learned that from my 257Roberts.
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I have got to second SuperCub's recommendation. I am not sure how much emphasis you have on factory ammo but my personal favorites are .25-06 and 7mm-08, although the .30-06 and 7mm-08 shoot very similarly trajectory wise.
 
Jim870 said:
Not a great deal to be gained but all three are excellent and very capable of killing any deer, moose or elk with a well placed bullet. Wanting a new rifle in a different cartridge is more than reason enough. Heck even a .270 Winchester would shoot flatter and perform similarly on game to a .30-06 with appropriate bullets.
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Totally, but you can never stop at one more.
 
I use .308 180gr federal blue box, never had a problem filling the freezer. The .308 was my "step up" from my 30-06( P17) a few years ago, no going back for me.
 
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