Cowboy- for long range i prefer i higher power scope. the 30-06 is a great round for long range. in my experience the barrel quality is the limiting factor in accuracy. the rifleman who compete use really good barrels. the barrel quality is way more important than if you have a 1-10 or 1-11 twist.
30-06 question
- Thread starter COWBOYBUCK
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
COWBOYBUCK
Active Member
Thank you for your help. What scope magnification, etc would you recommend?
gohring3006
Well-Known Member
I was using an 6-18×50 and was doing fine but then I went with a 25 power and it made it a lot easier for me. Check out the Vortex scopes or Bushnell they have some good scopes for the money..
COWBOYBUCK
Active Member
Ok thank you.
the ammo "may" be capable but the rifle, scope and trigger are limiting factors. the CDL i feel is a very atractive and well balanced factory rifle. the 30-06s shot on riflemansjournal at long range are not factory rifles. with those rifles the rifleman/rifle are capable of very accurate long range shooting even with iron sights. i need more magnification like a 6.5-20x 40 or at least a 4.5-14 leup. to make sure the any error is the load or rifle or wind and not the shooter. i shoot 168 bergers out of my 30-06s . to test the capabilty of your factory rifle with factory ammo- i would try some fed gold medal match or HSM ammo loaded with berger bullets.
COWBOYBUCK
Active Member
Thank you.
Unofficial Gun Addict (UGA)
Well-Known Member
Heya cowboy... I have to concur with more magnification for distance work. I know there are guys here that shoot out to 1000 using nothing more than a 4x... but for me, I find that 15x to 25x really helps. Also... The better the glass, the easier it it to resolve your targets/game at distance. Many guys buy $1500 plus scopes and absolutely feel it was their best investment for their gun and shooting. I can't go that high, but I have been incredibly pleased with the vortex Viper PST ffp 6-24x50 I got last spring. I did pony up the cash for a vortex razor... but I found the weight to be a detractor for me. I sold a couple of other scopes on ebay and added to it to get the razor... But ended up selling it for the pst and couldn't be happier.
I'd like to get another... But money is tight... So....
Lastly... I would check out 2 more things... Ffp vs sfp. I love ffp and will never buy another sfp scope. Others feel exactly the opposite so I would encourage you to consider this before buying. Lastly... Even though I mentioned that I like more magnification, usually to get it, you sacrifice lower magnification. So on my favorite scope... 6x is the lowest I can go. This is ok at distance, but it makes fast up close acquisition challenging and isn't the best choice if you re hunting close quarter brush or woodland environments. Also... For coyotes... It makes it challenging if we get one that sneaks up and attacks our call or decoy. A 3-4x is much better under the above conditions. So consider all the ways you intend you use your rifle and under what conditions before you make a commitment !
Good lucky buddy!
-James
I'd like to get another... But money is tight... So....
Lastly... I would check out 2 more things... Ffp vs sfp. I love ffp and will never buy another sfp scope. Others feel exactly the opposite so I would encourage you to consider this before buying. Lastly... Even though I mentioned that I like more magnification, usually to get it, you sacrifice lower magnification. So on my favorite scope... 6x is the lowest I can go. This is ok at distance, but it makes fast up close acquisition challenging and isn't the best choice if you re hunting close quarter brush or woodland environments. Also... For coyotes... It makes it challenging if we get one that sneaks up and attacks our call or decoy. A 3-4x is much better under the above conditions. So consider all the ways you intend you use your rifle and under what conditions before you make a commitment !
Good lucky buddy!
-James
Last edited:
COWBOYBUCK
Active Member
Thank you for all the good info., I need to go get some hands on with some of these scopes. I really appreciate all the help.
The 30-06 can do 1000 yards. And it will do it pretty effectively. Just setting up your rifle is going to help the most. Get a premium trigger and a GOOD scope!
I think Hawke makes the best entry level scope. For $400, you can have a scope that does the job. Or, for $750 and you can get a Vortex Viper PST.
To be successful, I have found that applying dope on my turrets works best for me as opposed to getting a fancy reticle and doing hold over. I also do t care for the custom laser engraved turrets if you are a beginner. It will take you too long to get accurat enough dope and then your turret will be all wrong.
A scope with 6-24x50 magnification with .25 MOA adjustments is proficient for shooting that distance. It can be done with less.
Rifle setup is first. Then load development and then practice, practice, practice.
It's really pretty easy.
I think Hawke makes the best entry level scope. For $400, you can have a scope that does the job. Or, for $750 and you can get a Vortex Viper PST.
To be successful, I have found that applying dope on my turrets works best for me as opposed to getting a fancy reticle and doing hold over. I also do t care for the custom laser engraved turrets if you are a beginner. It will take you too long to get accurat enough dope and then your turret will be all wrong.
A scope with 6-24x50 magnification with .25 MOA adjustments is proficient for shooting that distance. It can be done with less.
Rifle setup is first. Then load development and then practice, practice, practice.
It's really pretty easy.
I really think you will do better with a bullet around 168 grains. You don't have a dedicated long range scope and you are shooting a standard twist rate. I would jay stick with something that shoots good from 150-168 grain range. Getting a 215 to shoot out of a 1/10" barrel may prove tricky for a beginner. And it will drop a lot more than these other guys shooting them from 300 mags (your scope might not adjust that much at 1000 even with a 20 MOA rail.)
gohring3006
Well-Known Member
Here we go again.
What twist do you recommend for a 215gr ?
If you shoot a 150-168gr 30cal bullet at 30-06 velocities your going to be on the edge of good transonic transition and will have a hard time getting good results at 1000yards believe me I have been there..
If you look at what most guys are doing at 1000 with 308-30-06 they are running at least a 175 smk it goes transonic pretty well but most are staying away from anything lighter.
As for the heavier high BC bullets dropping more, they will show more drop out to about 500-600 yards but they start dropping at a slower rate than there lighter counterparts. And quickly catch up and actually end up with higher velocity at extended range..
Last edited:
MontanaMarine
Well-Known Member
215s will be fine in a 1/10 twist.
Just for reference, a while back I put a few of the Berger 215s through a 1/12 twist 308Win. At 2600 fps they were stable and accurate.
Just for reference, a while back I put a few of the Berger 215s through a 1/12 twist 308Win. At 2600 fps they were stable and accurate.
I'm just going to have to agree to disagree with you on the bullet weight. I shoot my factory 1/10" twist 30/06 to 1000 somewhat frequently. And at 1000 I have 6.2 more MOA drop from a 180 grain than I do from a 150. The 180's didn't group quite as well at 100. About .785 (best) of an inch while the 150's were only about .425. (Best) I wouldn't call that a significant difference.
The weight threshold of performance for a 30-06 supposedly lies at 167.5 grains. More than that, and you are supposed to start seeing it drop faster.
If I ever run across this equation and article again, I will post it here. That information is what I based my previous comment on.
Shooters make lots of assumptions and generalizations about increasing grain weights and how that alters the kinetic energy of your load. Ke=1/2M*V^2
Mass is much less a factor than velocity. 1/2 is really just a constant applied to the whole equation, but if you look at the equation, you see that as mass goes up and velocity goes down, there will be a tipping point... That is graphable and for some reason lies at 167.5 grains for 30-06. which I am sure was exhaustingly long winded.
The weight threshold of performance for a 30-06 supposedly lies at 167.5 grains. More than that, and you are supposed to start seeing it drop faster.
If I ever run across this equation and article again, I will post it here. That information is what I based my previous comment on.
Shooters make lots of assumptions and generalizations about increasing grain weights and how that alters the kinetic energy of your load. Ke=1/2M*V^2
Mass is much less a factor than velocity. 1/2 is really just a constant applied to the whole equation, but if you look at the equation, you see that as mass goes up and velocity goes down, there will be a tipping point... That is graphable and for some reason lies at 167.5 grains for 30-06. which I am sure was exhaustingly long winded.
