Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertip - 168 gr in 30-06

[CH_Tiger_14]

Hey everyone

The last few boxes of 30-06 factory stuff I've bought was Federal Vital-Shok 165 gr (Sierra GameKing). I have a Win M70 which has yielded some excellent 3/4" - 1" groupings at 100 yards using these Vital-Shoks, but I've always liked trying something a little different. Not because there was anything wrong, but just because.

Anyway, today I saw at Wal-Mart that they now have the Winchester Supreme Ballistic Silvertip (WSBST)in 168 gr. For a long time they only carried 308, but I asked the local store to bring in the 30-06 for me and they actually did. Very nice of them.

In some hunting shops in this part of the country, I've seen these same 30-06 WSBST sell for $45+, some closer to $50. These same stores sell the Winchester Supreme Accubonds at $55 - 60+. Anyhow, Wal-Mart is selling them for $24.

So I bought a few boxes. I haven't had a chance to get to the range yet but I'll try to get there next weekend. In a nutshell, what can I expect from these on deer? I'd like to hunt moose but its been 18 years since I last had my name drawn for a moose tag, so for argumants sake lets just say I hunt deer exclusively .

I've been doing some searches on this site with respect to the WSBST's and the +/- seem to be almost split right down the middle, but maybe favoring the negatives ever so slightly.

I don't intend to get into handloading anytime soon (I know, I know) and I'm definitely not as educated on this stuff as most of you are, so give me some honest feedback on these as well as recommending some other 30-06 factory offerings for deer (and moose). I'd like to keep 1 bullet weight for both, and 165 - 168 seems like a pretty good bet on both animals.

I'm very interested to see what you guys have to say.

Thanx.


Brent

 

[Levi Garrett]

Green Light

 

[BBB]

Red light - at least on moose IMO. I've had severe expansion problems and bullet blow-up with the BSTs in .270wsm, and my father used the 168s last year from a 30-06 for a couple of fawns. Both within 50 yards, both blew up and we lost a lot of meat.

 

[CH_Tiger_14]

So what are your suggestions for good factory ammo?

 

[Scott_N]

I think your choice are fine for deer, and will work for moose under most shooting situations. The GameKings and BSTs will open up a bit more dramatically than say a TSX or partition, which would both probably be better choices for moose. The unfortunate thing about premium factory ammo is the price, so it's probably not a bad idea to practice with cheaper ammo, then hunt with the good stuff. The plain truth is that the .30-06 with "standard" ammo has killed more deer and moose than I could ever imagine.... just make your shot count.

 

[todbartell]

the BST should work ok on deer, but I wouldnt choose it for moose

for a great all purpose 30-06 factory load, take a look at the Federal 165 gr TSX or the 180 gr Accubonds.
​

 

[CH_Tiger_14]

thanx

 

[prosper]

Never used 'em, but I know they have a reputation for very rapid expansion, which probably make them more suitable as CXP2 class bullets. For good factory loads - I dunno, I don't shoot factory But Winchester Failsafes look promising, as do the new XP3's