StumpGrinder
Well-Known Member
everyone has to start somewhere and most hunter and shooters I know are more than happy to help a new guy or gal get started in the right direction.
30-06??
- Thread starter R-Dog
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
These 30-06 threads are always interesting. Almost everyone has a soft spot for the old round and usually an older one in the safe with fond memories. However, most grab the new rifle out of the safe. My only 30-06 is an M1 Garand but I have fond memories of dad's old Springfield. I wouldn't choose it for a new rifle but certainly respect the round and wouldn't fault anyone showing up with that rifle to hunt.
Gary in MD
Well-Known Member
A few years ago, I decided it was time to treat myself to something that not only was accurate but also easy to look at and enjoy carrying in the field. I ordered a Cooper Custom Classic and threw my wallet up on the counter. I could have ordered it chambered in any cartridge that I wanted..... You guessed it - the old 30-06 !
Gary
Gary
SSG Graybush
Well-Known Member
Nothing wrong with a 30 06 for elk. Theres newer better cartridges ballisticly, but 30 06 will be fine. For the non reloader its a good choice because of variety of factory ammo. Start out with a box of 150 flat base Interlocks, 150 Seirra Gamekings and 165 Accubonds. See which shoots best.
Knifeguy
Member
Seriously jasonco ???
NOT COOL !!!
Welcome aboard! At 77, I have more guns than an aging individual should need, but when my son started shooting years ago, after the custom 22 that I started him with, the next gun was a custom stocked 03 06. Thi was followed by a custom Mauser auctioned 22:250. As he grew, he's added some new ones, but come hunting season, it's the 06 that's harvested deer and elk. It'll do everything you train yourself to do. Congratulations to you, and to your son in law for getting you started.
Wow! A busy thread!
After having used a 378 Wetherby Magnum as a very young adult I found that a truly lived that rifle.
Fast forward to the late 90s from the mid-60s and I discovered hat a long hiatus from shooitng left me a bit recoil averse. I started using a 270 Win instead.
Today, my favorite is the 6.5 Grendel, but my comments are focused on the 30-06 recoil and performance.
There is NOTHING wrong with the '06! Should one be worried about that wack on the shoulder or classic Weathery eye, try using reduced recoil loads (commercial or had rolled) for most casual shooting. Then use your serious ammunition a few time before the hunt.
BTW that commercial reduced recoil stuff is seriously effective on deer-class game, so it might become one's go-too ammunition anyway. Then one has the best of both worlds because siply by switching one's ammunition the '06 will readily harvest just about any North American animal.
After having used a 378 Wetherby Magnum as a very young adult I found that a truly lived that rifle.
Fast forward to the late 90s from the mid-60s and I discovered hat a long hiatus from shooitng left me a bit recoil averse. I started using a 270 Win instead.
Today, my favorite is the 6.5 Grendel, but my comments are focused on the 30-06 recoil and performance.
There is NOTHING wrong with the '06! Should one be worried about that wack on the shoulder or classic Weathery eye, try using reduced recoil loads (commercial or had rolled) for most casual shooting. Then use your serious ammunition a few time before the hunt.
BTW that commercial reduced recoil stuff is seriously effective on deer-class game, so it might become one's go-too ammunition anyway. Then one has the best of both worlds because siply by switching one's ammunition the '06 will readily harvest just about any North American animal.
Wolf01
Well-Known Member
Give me a break! Everyone has to start somewhere, what better place than here for instruction and ideas.
We are loosing hunters and shooters at a alarming rate.
Lefty G-gear
Well-Known Member
(1993) My first bolt gun is a 700 BDL Custom Deluxe .30-06. - Handloads: 165-gr. Nosler Partitions, IMR-4350 (58-grains) = 2800-fps and shot half-inch groups. 2-deer, 1-elk, all within 250-yards, easy. - I live in Wyoming.
7mm Remington Magnum are good too.
So are 270s and 280s.
Please don't let desparaging comments annoy you, there's jackasses on every sight. If I don't like a particular thread, I just move on; however some people have a penchant for trying to put others down. Generally all the people on here are extremely helpful and supportive and they are all more than willing to help. I found this thread interesting and picked up on it right away because I too have an interest in the 30-06. And......I'm hitting 75 this year, and have been shooting since I was eight-years old with my first .22. Why not the 30-06, it's been around since 1908 or there abouts. I am finishing up a custom 30-06 as I write this reply. I could have built whatever I chose to build, it was the 30-06 because of its versatility and can be used for just about anything one would care to hunt for in the U.S.; woodchucks to dinosaurs!! I black bear hunt and have plenty of rifles to use for that, however I also wanted something that could be used for black bear as well as a stand in gun for whitetail deer hunting, for me that's a 30-06. I am considered "ole" school compared to many who are on the forum. I also like the .270 Winchester, and when a new, barrel burning designer cartridge comes out I compare those ballistics against those of the .270 Winchester. Unless one has to eek out every "foot-per-second" out of a cartridge, the .270 Winchester is a tough one to beat. I don't get excited over any of the designer cartridges because advertising hype doesn't equal performance; and....for me the 30-06 doesn't need hype because it "does" have performance. When the .280 Ackley Improved came out, it was the latest and greatest 1000 yard, anti tank cartridge on the market and it was going to revolutionize the hunting and shooting world. Well....three years later and you no longer hear or read about the cartridge. I am not putting this cartridge down as I believe it is a great round, just making a point that the marketing hype is now touting another round to make sales. I am now reading where the "shooting specialists" are saying that the 6.5 Creedmoor is an overrated cartridge and is being used on game that it was never designed for. The latest and greatest is the "6.8 Western", a glorified .270. A lot of press and hype, I cannot believe it is being touted because its twin, the .270 Winchester short magnum, is already out there. If you choose to go the .270 Weatherby magnum route you will be paying around $100 for a box of ammo, and around $3.00 for a round of brass, and.....that is if you can even find it anywhere. The 30-06 will do anything that you have stated that you want to do with the cartridge, and it will not rattle your back molars loose when you squeeze the trigger, cause you to remortgage the house to purchase ammunition or components, and you will be able to find ammunition available just about anywhere you choose to hunt. In my opinion you made a great choice in both rifle and in cartridge. Good luck hunting with your step-son, at 67 it's great to be looking at new adventures.
The .06 is tried and true. Don't get too caught up on hype. Have fun first and foremost.
It's absolutely a wonderful choice, hunt what you want anywhere and it's as accurate as anything else. Have fun!
Absolutely nothing wrong with the tried and true 06. If you're not a handloader and buy off the shelf, good choice. You can " usually " find ammo about anywhere. Non pandemic of course. If you do hand load, a dream to work with. I love ALL my wildcats and obscure chamberings. But the fact is the old 06 will do anything you are looking to.
My first hunting rifle was the 06. Never regretted it.
Good luck hunting.
