Have 30-06 should i get a 7mm rem mag as well

[fmajor]

I've gotta agree in keeping the .30-06. You already have it, got it scoped and sighted in and are familiar with it.

I'm a huge fan of the 7mm mag (had one since 1983) and it does a good job of killing to the farthest range I've shot it (~500yds), but the '06 is also a fine chambering and will serve you very well on probably 95% of any hunting you're gonna do.

If you're ever planning on getting a higher performance chambering, I'd skip right on past any of the .30 cal magnums and go with at least a .338 (depending on what you're hunting and where). Not that the .30 cal magnums aren't effective, but imvho they are not such the huge leap in performance as you'd otherwise expect (from looking at numbers on a computer screen anyway).

Congrats on your new rifle! I hope it serves you well in the years to come.

 

[CopperBasin]

I would keep the 30-06, and if you feel the need to tweak it try reaming it to the AI version.

 

[longrangerigmover]

I am a 7 mag fan I got rid of my 06 several years ago. I have taken elk from just over 550 to as close as about 25 yards they are all equally as dead but if a long shot comes up I would rather have the horse pressure in my hands than not.

 

[TheBlackMambaXD]

OK, so this post is for anybody in the future reading this thread. I'm glad I stuck with 30.06.

 

[SansSouci]

Hi BlackMamba,

Dog Buster gave you excellent advice.

I do not own an '06. When I decided that I wanted to get serious about elk hunting, I bought a 7MM Rem Mag. I had done thorough research before buying mine. The 7MM Rem Mag was designed to be a long range elk rifle. It excels in that capacity.

I would not sell an '06 to buy a 7MM Rem Mag. But that's me. You have to do what's right for you. The '06 will reliably kill elk as long as bullets go where they need to be. That holds true regardless of cartridge. An '06 will kill any elk just as dead as a .300 Wby Mag as long as necessary equipment for pumping oxygenated blood is destroyed. An elk ain't gonna know whether an '06 or a .300 Wby Mag reduced its blood pressure to zero.

Where .284 caliber rifles have a decided advantage over .308 caliber rifles is sectional densities and ballistic coefficients of .284 caliber bullets. For instance, a 160 grain .284 bullet is superior in both categories to a 180 grain .308 caliber bullet. This translates in to farther travel and deeper penetration. An African elephant culler killed close to a thousand elephants using a 7x57 with 175 grain bullets. They will flat penetrate.

The reality is that for nearly all North American big game hunting, an '06 will get the job done. After all, its been getting jobs done for over a century. It will continue to do heavy work for another century.

My advice is keep your '06 and go hunting.