The do-all .30-06: from mice to moose, the venerable '06 can take 'em all

The .30-06 Springfield is the most versatile cartridge ever developed. Considering North American big game only, the 7mm Remington Magnum may win the horse race by a nose. But all in all, the hundred-year old '06 has captured fans worldwide from its birth in 1903 as the .30-03 Springfield. Some devotees go overboard. I read a book in which the author listed best cartridges for different kinds of shooting. From stopping charging elephants to dispatching rats in the basement, this scribe picked the .30-06 Springfield every time. Truth is, being a jack-of-all-trades, the venerable round is probably not ideal for anything. It's not best for varmints. The great Colonel Townsend Whelen said it was too much for deer in the early 1900s. And something bigger is better life insurance against a charging beast bent on turning the hunter into an antipasto.
But loaded right, the cartridge can do just about anything. We could start at the top with the strongest long-range medicine available, but instead, let's work up from the below. Here are 10 ways to load the '06 to do everything: accurate small game and camp meat provider, mild informal target and plinking fun, wild turkey, varmints, deer .30-30 style, deer way out there, elk, all-around big game, moose/big bears, and long-range challenge.The '06 for Small GameIn my home state, Wyoming, a big-game rifle is legal for rabbits and mountain birds. After filling a deer or elk tag, I leave camp with my .30-06 for edibles. Of course a 22-rimfire pistol is great for these tasty items, but on backpack hunts especially, it's nice to have one rifle that does it all, including super light loads for procuring fresh campfire food. So how about a little 110-grain 30-caliber bullet at .22 Long Rifle velocity? The bug in the oatmeal with such squib loads in medium to large capacity cases has always been accuracy-or rather the lack of it. Thanks to Hodgdon's Triple Seven that bug has been squashed. While Triple Seven is a muzzleloader fuel, it cleans up as readily and thoroughly as smokeless (but do the job soon after shooting). I have no concern with Triple Seven loads in my favorite .30-06, an all-weather Legendary Global Mauser 98 action with 26-inch Morrison Precision barrel, McMillan synthetic stock, topped off with a 30mm Swarovski 2.5-10X scope secured with Tally mounts.For low velocity with grouse taking accuracy, go with 30-grains volume (not weight) Triple Seven FFg powder behind a 110-grain bullet. The FMJ (full metal jacket) bullet is allowed where I hunt. it does clean work on camp meat. Choose the 110-grain SP (softpoint) roundnose where the FMJ is not practical or legal. Hornady makes good .30 caliber 110-grain bullets in FMJ, SR and spitzer styles. Good bullets for mountain birds, cottontails, and other delectable fireside fare. To prepare these loads, use a volumetric black powder adjustable measure set at 30-grains. More powder can be loaded, but don't bother. It's counterproductive to the application of this load. Hodgdon warns against compacting Triple Seven in the cartridge case anyway, plus the goal is .22 Long Rifle velocity. The 30-grain volume Triple Seven FFg charge accurately pushed the 110-grain bullet at 1,312 fps.Informal target shootingA little higher velocity is the goal to gain a slightly flatter trajectory. I find a bullet like the 110-grain Sierra soft point just right for light-recoil and relative quietness. This is the kind of load that should always be used in training a new shooter, as well as anyone who is recoil or noise sensitive. My wife and I started a youth introduction program in our little town, whereby we take kids out who want to shoot. The kids never shoot full-power ammo in our H&R .243 single-shot training rifle. In fact, my wife shoots squib loads in her rifle until she's hunting. She plinks away with butterfly amino for practice and rifle familiarity with full-throttle fodder for big game only. In the field, excitement and concentration erase all awareness of the extra "kick" and muzzle blast, I like smokeless powder for this one. Super accuracy is not necessary for such close-range shooting. A charge of 15-grains SR-4759 with the aptly named 100-grain Speer Plinker gets 1,500 fps and is ideal for close-range practice and plinking.Wild turkeyRifles are legal for wild turkey hunting in some areas. The .22 WMR is good for Ben's bird, especially with Federal's 50-grain JHP. But once again the '06 shouts, "Hey, I can do that, too!" Any .30 caliber FMJ bullet is legal for gobblers where I hunt. Often, I do a month-long camp in northern Wyoming where elk, deer, and other big game are open season--as well as wild turkeys. One 110-grain 30-caliber pill swiftly supplies a Thanksgiving dinner. For this work, I want about 2,000 fps. Wild turkeys are tough customers. They can scurry into the brash in a flash, never to be seen again. Aim for the pinion area where wing and body join. Put a 30-caliber 110-grain roundnose softpoint starting at two grand on that spot and it will cleanly drop the biggest tom that ever gobbled and with minimum meat loss. For this load, lay in 16-grains SR-7625 powder with that 110-grain missile for 2,000 fps at the muzzle, and shoot with confidence out to 125 yards.
CoyotesMy long-range varmint recipe for the .30-06 is a 110-grain Sierra hollow-point or Hornady V-Max bullet splitting the atmosphere at 3,500 fps. This is accomplished with 57-grains of H-335 (3,529 fps in my rifle) or 59-grains of Hodgdon Varget for a whisper under 3,500. While the 30-caliber 110-grain bullet is short on sectional density and ballistic coefficient, it shoots surprisingly flat, delivering more than enough energy to topple the biggest prairie wolf on the plains at 300 yards or so. Sighted in to strike 2 1/2 inches above target center at 100 yards, the little 110-grain V-Max bullet, in my tests, cut's the bull's eye at 300, while rising only 3.5-inches above line of sight at 200. That's tortilla flat enough for good scores, even on small targets. I can't see shooting sod poodles with the '06 because I wouldn't risk burning up the bore, plus a much milder round is ideal. But for a shot here and there, as on coyotes, this flats-hooting load gets the job done.
Tree stand deer huntingThe .30-30 has long been a favorite of mine and I often lake my Marlin 336 into the field. A couple years ago, I carried a hundred year old Savage Model 1899 lever-action .30-30 that earned a fine antelope buck. However, the more powerful '06 can duplicate the smaller .30-caliber right down to the foot-pound, It's easy. Choose any 170-grain flat-point or round nose bullet recommended for .30-30 velocities, such as Hornady's or Nosler's. I've found both of these to be a good. Drop in 38-grains Accurate No. 2460 powder for a velocity of 2,239 fps. That's a .30-30 on the button. In hunting from any stand where shots are close rather than far, this load turns the .3006 into an ideal mid-range cartridge.Big mule deerAny bullet from 150- to 165 grains will get the job done at longer ranges on deer. A 150-grain projectile can be launched at more than 3,000 fps. My chronograph shows a 150-grain Barnes XLC BT bullet flying at 3,081 fps with 62-grains H-4350. Meanwhile, a 165-grain Swift Scirocco cooks away at 2,989 fps with 59.5-grains H-414 powder. The trick is choosing a bullet that matches the game. While I enjoy a trophy as much as any other hunter, the meat remains highly important to me, and so I like a projectile that does the job without undue blow-up. But you have to be careful. A time or two I've taken deer with bullets that passed east to west on a northbound buck like a Massai spear through a sheet of wet paper. Like the deer I spotted with a binocular about a half-mile off. The stalk was easy through a natural tunnel of foliage. I peaked up over a little ridge, got a good rest, squeezed the trigger, and Crack! Nothing. I watched the deer closely. It went 300 yards, dipped nose forward, and went down without a twitch. That bullet was too hard. Right for the shoulder blade of a moose or elk, but not for the boiler room of a deer.Elk?You bet. The same chap crying out against the Springfield round is shooting a .300 Magnum with only slightly more starch than the following '06 handload produces. Select any good 200 grain bullet on the market. I've had great luck with Northern Precision, Spoor, and others. Over 52-grains of Norma 204 powder, my rifle delivers 2,601 fps. Or go with 59-grains Accurate No. 3100 for 2,643 fps. (24-inch barrel test rifle). And never look back. Most elk are hunted in the forest, although I do know of migrational paths that change that story. In some of the open areas between Yellowstone and Jackson in Wyoming, for example, ridge-to-ridge opportunities on elk abound. Under those conditions, the next load may be more ideal. Otherwise, go with the 200-grain bullet for black timber shooting and count on elk steaks for every good shot fired. With a 200-grain bullet at more than 2,600 fps, the .30-06 is deadly on elk. But the all around 180-grain missile that follows will also do the job, and do it well.
Just one bulletThe British folks at Holland and Holland altered the .375 H&H Magnum case around 1920 into the Super .30, which we know as the .300 H&H Magnum. Cordite powder, the stuff that looks like strands of spaghetti, created a whopping 2,700 fps with a 180-grain bullet. Wait a minute. Isn't that normal everyday .3006 velocity? You bet it is. When the Americans got a hold of the slope-shouldered .300 H&H case, they poured in a different kind of powder with upgraded results-the 180-grain bullet departing the muzzle at 2,900 fps. The cartridge won the Wimbledon 1,000-yard match in 1935. Well, pilgrims, that is exactly what can be expected from the common garden-variety .30-06 today. And you don't even have to handload for it, although you can if you want to.
Federal Cartridge Co. found a way to push the 180-grain bullet at 2,900 fps in a factory load dubbed the Vital Shok. The company advertises this load at 2,880 fps, but the first box I tried earned 2,925 from the 24-inch barrel of a Sauer .30 06 rifle. The second box I tested averaged 2,950 fps. The handloader can duplicate these ballistics, especially with the Barnes Triple Shock X-Bullet, an exciting new projectile. The 180-grain version of the Triple Shock has three grooves in the shank to reduce bore contact, hence bore friction.I found no problem with 62 grains H-4831SC for 2,938 fps from a 24-inch barrel rifle with the 180-grain bullet. Very similar velocity was obtained with a little less powder and the accurate 180-grain Nosier Accu-Bond bullet. In short, a 180-grain 30-caliber bullet can take off at 2,900 fps in properly built rifles. I submit that a 180-grain 30 caliber bullet was not so long ago considered deadly for all around big-game hunting in the .300 H&H Magnum. If that was tare then. it has to be tree now. A hunter could conceivably go for any big game from antelope to moose with a 180-grain bullet loaded in his .30-06 rifle-provided the bullet is of proper construction-not too tough for thinner-skinned game, such as ante lope and deer, not too fragile for larger animals such as elk and moose.Moose and bear loadsRealistically, any one of the newer 180 grain controlled expansion bullets will work on moose and bears out of the '06, especially Federal's Bear Claw, Barnes Triple Shock, Nosler's Accu-Bond. as well as favorites from Winchester and Remington that have proved efficient for years.Long-range shootingIt's absolutely harmless, enjoyable, and challenging to shoot across a wide mountain canyon with a safe backstop on the other side--the name of this game being far. Rangefinders are common enough that we no longer have to guess at how distant those long-range targets are. We can find out in seconds. Four hundred yards is just getting started. Shots out to a 1,000 yards with the .30-06 are entirely feasible. Naturally, our sporting rifles aren't going to compete with those made for 1,000-yard matches. But once the wind is doped out, it's not impossible to put bullet after bullet into a reasonably close cluster "way out yonder" with the '06. These loads are not for hunting, because such long shots are not condoned for game, but rather for the shear challenge. One of my favorite loads for this long-range shootfest is Sierra's 200-grain MatchKing bullet, which can be driven at 2,707 fps (24-inch barrel test rifle) with 55-grains IMR-4350, or a flat 2,700 fps with 56 grains Reloder 22. This shapely missile packs the mail way out yonder.
The two main limiting factors to building specific .30-06 loads for a personal rifle are safety first, accuracy second. The hottest loads noted here are taken from standard manuals. They are safe, but can strain rifles not made to withstand full pressures. As for accuracy, as Colonel Townsend Whelen said. "Only accurate rifles are interesting." So how about the .30-06? It's not the match cartridge its little brother .308 Winchester can be, but have no concern. My all-weather rifle is, admittedly, built for accuracy with its special Morrison custom barrel, stiff action, and top-notch stock, coupled with a good scope of high optical resolution locked in place with precision mounts. So it is an exception, and I know that. But if the .30-06 wasn't inherently accurate, the groups out of that rifle would not be in the half-inch realm at 100 yards from the bench, which they are, consistently.
I like the trend we enjoy today-new cartridges hatched like chicken eggs on the old farm. The short-case magnums are especially cool. Long may they thrive and may there be more to follow. The .17s are fun. I especially enjoy shooting the 20-caliber .204 Ruger with its four-grand bullet speed. And I had the good fortune of coming off with another record class Coues deer in Mexico with a 270 WSM-Winchester Short Magnum. But when I had to make a decision on chambering my all-weather rifle, the nod went to a cartridge that was designed in 1903 as the .30-03 Springfield, now celebrating a century in the slightly shorter-neck version created in 1906 that we call the .30-06 Springfield. With the right loads, the old '06 can still do just about everything.
Author is responsible for the use or miss-use of the reloading data in this article.
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