Thinking about 25-06

[Joelb58]

Hello-

I recently shot a 25-06 and really liked the light recoil and capabilities.

Is this a good caliber choice for a lighter recoil long range (talking 400 yards, possible to 600 yards) for deer sized game?

Or phrased differently, do you think there are any better calibers to use? in case it matters I currently have a 7mm-08 and 30-06. Thanks

 

[Dosh]

58, the 25-06 is a great caliber only held back by slower factory twist rate and minimal bullet selection. My son's 25-06 is a tack driver, I simply would like to see a larger variety of bullets for the mostly 1:10 factory barrels or some factory barrels with a faster twist. His does shoot the 115 Berger very well out to 500 in spite of the 1:10. Your 7mm-08 should do well for your needs and then some with minimum recoil.

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

Well you picked the best of the duel purpose cartridges for sure but it has limits... Hitting and harvesting are two totally different things...you might easily hit one at 600 but dropping him quickly is a little iffy... On big game I limit mine to 400 at a stretch for killing power, I wouldn't be shooting 600 for any reason at big game.

 

[Citius7]

I had a 25-06. It was nice. It's a truly do anything caliber. But if I'm going to push steel or target shoot. It's going to be a 6 dasher or 6mm competition match. If I'm going to hunt. It's the 6.5 SAUM or 6.5 284 norma. 25-06 is a compromise. Why do that when you can have the best of each world. Yes the twist is limited but even if u fixed that there are few buyers you can shoot from. It's not worth it. And. It's long action. More weight. Longer stroke to get her loaded. On quick follow ups that's something to be said. The tech is in the 6mm. I can throw 115 Berger or JLK at well over 3300 fps without my Comp match breaking a sweat. That'll bring down most anything. And my BC is better than bergers 115 vld. It's a great cartridge to have one gun.... are you a one gun guy?

I didn't think so.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Hello-

I recently shot a 25-06 and really liked the light recoil and capabilities.

Is this a good caliber choice for a lighter recoil long range (talking 400 yards, possible to 600 yards) for deer sized game?

Or phrased differently, do you think there are any better calibers to use? in case it matters I currently have a 7mm-08 and 30-06. Thanks

Absolutely. I have a .25-06 AI 40º, and love it. Shoots Berger 115 VLD's around 3,300-3,350 with a 26" barrel.

Both of your other calibers will work fine for your needs, but there is nothing wrong with wanting/buying another gun. You will enjoy the .25-06 if you get one. It will compliment your other 2 rifles nicely.

 

[Joelb58]

I had a 25-06. It was nice. It's a truly do anything caliber. But if I'm going to push steel or target shoot. It's going to be a 6 dasher or 6mm competition match. If I'm going to hunt. It's the 6.5 SAUM or 6.5 284 norma. 25-06 is a compromise. Why do that when you can have the best of each world. Yes the twist is limited but even if u fixed that there are few buyers you can shoot from. It's not worth it. And. It's long action. More weight. Longer stroke to get her loaded. On quick follow ups that's something to be said. The tech is in the 6mm. I can throw 115 Berger or JLK at well over 3300 fps without my Comp match breaking a sweat. That'll bring down most anything. And my BC is better than bergers 115 vld. It's a great cartridge to have one gun.... are you a one gun guy?

I didn't think so.

Thank you for all the great responses.

In response to yours, just to make sure I understand, do you have any gun suggestions to go along with the 6mm caliber? Also would a .243 count as something "close" and easier to obtain bullets? I apologize if I am not properly understanding your answer.

 

[toddc]

If Berger or Hornady would bust out a 140gr I would say 25 all day long. Till then, WHY COMPROMISE? A 6 or 6.5 will walk all over a 25, for now anyway. Anyone listening? Berger? Hornady? Anyone?

 

[Citius7]

I shoot a Bighorn TL3 action with multiple shouldered barrels. 6mm Dasher is awesome and extremely forgiving to handload for. 6.5 saum is a shouldered barrel to the TL3. As is my 6mm competition match and 6mm Lapua. We have 223 wylde barrels coming that will be our training rifles meant for 75 grain pills. All this gives versitility. And calibers that can be had from the same scope and chassis and action and trigger. Only takes five minutes to spin one off and torque the other one on. We do it in the field. I suggest that. We run MPA chassis. But any will do. The Bighorn is just a good 700 clone with a mechanical ejector. But what makes it special is it's extremely tight tolerances while machining. Josh from PVA said he has measured every TL3 that's come through his shop and from the longest to the shortest it has only been 2 ten thou difference. So he can spin barrels shouldered for you when he never needs to see your action. Pretty sweet. And cheap. One gun. One trigger. One scope. Many settings for zero. Many barrels.

 

[Catahoula]

If I could only have one rifle, it would be the 25-06. I have killed a bunch of elk using the 100 grain Nosler Partition & skinned a couple hundred coyotes using the 100 Sierra MatchKing. My favorite powder is IMR 4831.
Excellent cartridge.
Thanks, Kirk

 

[el matador]

The 25-06 is not a bad round for what its designed for: Flat shooting at moderate range. Those 100 grain bullets really scoot out to 300 yards or more but then the low BC takes over and they peter out.

If you compare the .25-06 to the 7mm-08 using 120 grain bullets you won't see much difference at 500 yards. The .25 might have a slight advantage in trajectory and wind drift - by a couple of inches - but the 7mm carries more frontal area. Between the two I'd take the 7mm-08. You also have the versatility with the 7mm to load heavier bullets for larger game if you want to.

For a step up in performance from the 7mm-08 I would look at a 6.5-06, 270, or 280. If you don't reload I'd get a 270. Any of these cartridges will take deer at 500+ no problem and recoil won't be too bad. Any bullet with a BC around .450 or more will work nicely at the ranges you're talking about.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I love my 25-06. I only shoot Nosler bullets in it now(110 grain ABs, 115 and 120 grain Partitions). Very accurate.

FWIW, my rifle is a M700 BDL.

There's nothing lacking in the 2 cartridges that you already have.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Thank you for all the great responses.

In response to yours, just to make sure I understand, do you have any gun suggestions to go along with the 6mm caliber? Also would a .243 count as something "close" and easier to obtain bullets? I apologize if I am not properly understanding your answer.

To shoot bullets of the weight he is talking about, you will have to build a custom rifle with an aftermarket barrel with a faster twist than what the factory rifles offer.

 

[Bbear]

I have two 25-06's. Both are Rem 700 actions, one with a Douglas 22" 1-10" twist and the other a factory 22" 1-10" twist. The second one has over 3000 rounds through it. It's about due for a re-barrel but shooting the 110 Accubonds through it at 3200 fps and getting .5" groups I find it difficult to justify getting a new barrel for now.
The 25-06 is in it's perfect spot on deer-sized game animals on down to pasture-pests. I've taken Texas hill country whitetail out to just over 650 yards with them dropping in their tracks. I've played with it fairly often at a friends 500 yard range smacking steel with it. I took my first two elk using this rifle using 120 gr partitions. Neither was over 50 yards away when I shot them.
Are there 'better' calibers out there? Yes, most likely. That's mainly in the eyes of the shooter. If you go and compare the different calibers and cartridges strictly by the ballistics, then yes, there are some better cartridges available. Any of the off-the-shelf 6.5's would probably be a better choice for doing the same thing. Though personally, I'd go with something like a 6.5x55 Swede or a 260 Remington.
But saying that, as others stated, the quarter-bore bullets lack in BC simply because factory guns are loaded in the 1-10" twist and the higher BC bullets are too long for that twist to reliably stabilize.
If you limit yourself to 500 or so yards, the 25-06 will work well.

 

[BEEMAN]

I enjoy shooting my 25-06AI with 115 Bergers and H1000. But if I had to choose a gun for shooting deer sized game from 400-600 yds I would grab my 6.5X47.