Ammunition advice: 30-06 (grain, tip, make etc)

melgalvis

Active Member
I have now purchased my 30-06 and am looking for some advice on ammo.

My main quarry will be roe, red and Fox but I assume I don't want different loads for different beasts due to ballistics etc

I'm thinking 150grain as a ' one size fits all'. Any comments?

Also advice on manufacturer, tip-type etc would be useful.

I also appreciate I'll have to have play and see what shoots best, but I've got to start somewhere!

Thanks guys....
 
Hi there melgalvis I also use 30-06 cal and I use federal fusion for red roe sika and fox brilliant bullet tab the highlander
 
Hi melgalvis. What make of rifle did you get. I recently got a remington 783 and im using federal 150gr sp and shoots really well. Dont know if its an old wifes tale but was told if you get an American gun shoot American ammo......scott
 
Hi chief. I got a 30-06 about 18 months ago, mainly for reds but i use it for fox and roe as well sometimes, purely for a change (my other day to day rifle is a .243). I shoot 125g Federal Factory soft point ammo which until recently i have been able to buy at Bushwear no problem. I find it relatively consistent and fair value (compared to ballistic tips etc).

I only picked 125g over 150g because in my own little head i figured the drop was less. The fact is there is so little in it within my comfortbale kill range (up to 200 yards for deer, anything for mr fox!) - see the federal website. I also picked it because one of my favourite estates shoot 125g federal and they drop 100 odd reds per year.

Supply of 125g accessible to me seems to have dried up recently but i can buy 150g federal soft points easily so i am going to buy a few boxes and switch to this weight for a year or so. I have researched and debated this with those more knowledgable than me and the consensus is wont make a difference to my stalking results.

Some will argue that 150g is a big round for roe, but the only bad news is for the deer, i have shot plenty of roe with my 30-06 and never had a problem and quite frankly never bothered to think about the difference, they were all dead and to quote Tom Berenger "one shot, one kill".

So enjoy your new 30-06 rifle, have some fun, perhaps try a couple of different types of ammo but i would keep an eye on availability with your local/preferred dealer and dont get too drawn into the minute performance. As we all know, rounds are not cheap so hopefully this chat saves you a few/gives you a starting point.

Let me know how you get on, and i will do the same, i have 12 125g rounds left and on the hill a few times before the end of the season so will have to make a change soon!

ATB

W
 
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The .30-06 is way "overkill" for the game you are hunting, so you don't need a 165-gr or 180-gr bullet.

If you look at the ballistics of 150, 165, and 180-gr hunting bullets at typical MVs of 2900, 2800, and 2700 fps, they all shoot about the same at every range, out to 500 yards. You can find loads in all three weights which will shoot the same, just with more energy as the bullets get heavier. That is one of the beauties of the .30-06.

Do you handload? You should. Then just get a vanilla bullet like the Sierra Pro Hunter or Hornady 150-gr flat base Interlock, and load them to 2,950 or 3,000 fps if you like, 2,650 for small deer, foxes, deer under 100 yards, etc.
 
Firstly guys, thanks for the help - there appears to be a general consensus on the Federal 150g sp, so I think i'll go with that...cheers

Secondly, loving this site with access to good knowledge and advice - its awesome!!

Scott; I also took the Remy 783 - how are you finding it?

Willy; i'll keep you posted on my progress with 150's...and how they perform with me behind the trigger!
 
reload 165g partitions for anything from fox through to the biggest red stags. very few 'do it all' loads in 06, but that's IMHO 'one'.
 
Willy; i'll keep you posted on my progress with 150's...and how they perform with me behind the trigger![/QUOTE]

I just picked up my new supply of 150's today. Only £27 per box. Sorted for a year or 2.
 
hand loaded 150 g Hornady sst does all i want it to , a few years back i had a few( 3) runners with heavier 180 from fox to roe , passing through without expanding i presume , found a fox a week later still wick and shot in the 'kill' zone , cant understand why ! but all has been good since going on to the sst's good luck with your choice ,arron.
 
hand loaded 150 g Hornady sst does all i want it to , a few years back i had a few( 3) runners with heavier 180 from fox to roe , passing through without expanding i presume , found a fox a week later still wick and shot in the 'kill' zone , cant understand why ! but all has been good since going on to the sst's good luck with your choice ,arron.

:thumb: I use 150grain sst over 145grains of n140 in my 308 i find them to be a good all rounder.

Regards kev
 
Wassa "tip"?? ~Muir
I think he meant bullet but he could have meant the tip of the bullet as in soft pointed, ballistic/plastic tipped or hollow pointed bullet :D

PS.
This is posted as a light hearted quip to cheer everybody up first thing this morning:lol:
 
Hello melgalvis,
I just got hold of a Sako 75 in 30-06 flavour. I bought 3 boxes of ammo available at the RFD's, RWS 150g soft point, Norma 150g ballistic tip and Winchester 180g soft point. The Norma suited my rifle and I knocked over 2 Roe bucks on my first outing with this rifle. Not that much more carcass damage as my .243 with home loaded 100g Speer soft points. When I get some dies I will be loading Speer and Nosler in various weights to see what I get.
 
As promised feedback. Was on the hill friday and the 150g are absolutely fine. In fact, given the lack of 125g supply the estate have switched to the 150g. They are 80 stags down so far..... Good enough for me.
 
Nice feedback willyroe, thanks.

I got my rifle, scope, mod, mounts, rounds yesterday...but unfortunately there's a problem with the bolt number not matching rifle number so am awaiting what the implications are on this! Will be a few more days before I get to play.

Ps. I had a limited selection to choose from, luckily the well-advised Federal 150gr SP were available so I snatched them up!
 
Hello melgalvis,
I just got hold of a Sako 75 in 30-06 flavour. I bought 3 boxes of ammo available at the RFD's, RWS 150g soft point, Norma 150g ballistic tip and Winchester 180g soft point. The Norma suited my rifle and I knocked over 2 Roe bucks on my first outing with this rifle. Not that much more carcass damage as my .243 with home loaded 100g Speer soft points. When I get some dies I will be loading Speer and Nosler in various weights to see what I get.

Reload,

out of interest which performed best accuracy wise for your rifle as have only tried RWS through my 75 so far?

cheers

Mick
 
Hi Mick, here are the results of my first play with the factory ammo that was available. As you can see they all performed well off the bonnet with a bipod at 100yds. The 180g Winchesters looked pretty good, but I reckon I pulled the 3rd shot... :oops: I have just got a few boxes of Privvi in 170g and 180g to try out next.
I went for the 150g bullet as I mainly stalk Roe, however I will use a heavier bullet for Sika etc.
.30-06 target 001.jpg
 
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