Pros and cons of the 30-06 round
 

What are the pros and cons of the 30-06 round for deer. Like max range, max power, recoil, ammo availability. Why are so many guys going away from it.

There are no con's with the 30-06. One of the best rounds ever invented.

recoil is a bit more than you should have to deal w/ from a deer caliber.

upside is ammo is about as cheap and plentiful as you could ask for.

The only downsides I can think of for the old '06 is the game down on their sides. For flat out versitility the '06 is hard to beat. Max range for deer is more than likely more than you can shoot accurately. Why are so many going away from it? Well its because there are a lot of other chamberings out there that are good enough for deer. (like the 7-08 to name one) But the '06 can do anything these smaller cartridges can do with power to spare. Which may be why some people are leaving it. I've heard it said and seen it written several times that the recoil from a 30-06 is about as much as the average shooter can shoot comfortably. But in a well stocked/fitted rifle the '06 is more than manageable.
Sorry - but a cartridge that has been around for over 100 years has to have something going for it. Yeah, the 300 magnums are more potent but with proper bullet selection and placement, the '06 will handle anything in NA.

30-06 is a great caliber some people may not like the recoil, others might want to be different, also urban sprawl might be pushing some to a light caliber. I use .308 just because i got a better deal on it then a 30-06.

I never realized there were cons to a 30-06. Also never realized people were "going away" from it. I know alot of people are taking to the new short mag cartridges but the thing about the 06 is that it has stood the test of time. I feel you've been misinformed.

Pros:
(1) more than adequate killing power, (2) appropriate loadings commonly available everywhere, (3) appropriate types of rifles commonly chambered in .30-06

Cons:
(1) trajectory may limit shooting to less than 300 yards, (2) recoil more than what other adequate cartridges generate (.25-06, .243 for example).

I'm trying to be objective. It is hard to argue with my pros, so I'll let them stand unsupported. With reference to trajectory, the .30-06 does not have as flat a trajectory as other available cartridges, for example the .25-06 and the .243. Sure, you might be able to theoretically kill a deer with a .30-06 at 1000 yards . . . but you might also need to be a champion rifle shooter able to estimate range to target with extreme precision. Also, while the recoil of the .30-06 is manageable by most hunters, notwithstanding it delivers more recoil than other adequate cartridges.

I've got two .30-06 and I appreciate them greatly. I also have a .25-06 and a .243. I take the .25-06 or the .243 for deer and pronghorn hunting and take the .30-06 for elk hunting. Sure, I could use the .30-06 for deer and pronghorn hunting also, but why not mix it up? Also, I do appreciate that most hunters -- 90% -- can't shoot accurately out at the ranges where the trajectory of the .30-06 may fall behind the faster cartridges. I know I don't have any business shooting game at 400 yards. I've shot a pronghorn at 240 yards, and that felt like a long shot.

Maybe this is or isn't a con but it takes the 30.06 about 20% or more powder to do only about 5% more performance wise, of what a .308 does. I hope I worded that right. I don't think that people are necessarily going away from the 30.06, I just think that there are new flavors of guns to try now days and people are giving some of them to go. But I think that most are finding that the 30.06 kills them just as dead as the new fandangled stuff does.

Is this a desperate cry for attention?

It's versatile...but plain vanilla.

Let me guess here. A 7mm-08 with 140gr moly coated X bullet with RL19?

The 30-06 will do most anything, but there is always something that will do it better.

1) Max Range-With a 150 grain pointed bullet or a 165 grain pspboat tail the trajectory is almost identical. A Three inches high grouping at 100 yards, with either bullet, both bullets will be aproximately 1/2" hight at 200 yards, and they'll be sighted in at 250 yards, At 300 yards you have toaim just 6" high. A skilled hunter who practices with the 30-06 can take a deer out to 400 to 500 yards. It takes one heck of a shot to kill beyond that.

2)Max power- Is has enough for everything except an irate grizzly.

3)Recoil- It kicks, but an average sized adult should be able to handle it, A limbsaver pad would a great addition to this gun.

4)Availability- Walmart has the in stock, Rem, Win, and Federal. You can't say that for many calibers except for the 30-30

Thanks guys everyone has a option on this one.

I have been the guy who had to have the newest round on the market and I will always have a soft spot for the 7mm-08. I have to say though that after 20 years I have slowly accepted what my father told me when I was ten. "If you can't do it with a 30-06 then you really don't need to do it." We have no large bears in La,so as usual he was right.

In the end just pick what your comfortable with and know what your rifle,and you,can do.

When you take the shot at your deer, you will neither feel the recoil nor really hear the shot.

Target shooting/tuning the 30-06 is fun...you know you are sending some serious power down range.

I realize that some people are more recoil sensative than others,but my 14 year old shoots a savage 30-06 with no issues.

I'll bet that every game animal on the planet has been taken with an "06" using proper bullets for the job at hand. Sure it's too light for some and too heavy for others but with an "06" it can be done. How many other rounds can do all it does and be as manageable as it is? Long live the "06".:hail:

The same could be said for numerous chamberings,which were on the scene prior to the '06.

nocon
 

I very much like the posts that note that there is no "con" about the .30-06. Very true.
None of the alternate ideas and calibers mentioned are really marks against the .30-06. They are only different suggestions. There are more powerful calibers. So what. Pick one if you need one. The .308 may be more efficient with lighter bullets. Great for the .308 Win. It doesn't diminish the utility of the .30-06 one bit.
Recoil - very subjective as one can see from the posts above. For every person who finds the recoil objectionable under a given circumstance, another will tell about how their 12 year old shoots it just fine. Recoil is something one gets used to in any case.
Pete

I have to agree, there are lots of other cartridges to chose from, but there are no cons for the old .30-06. It is as simple as that.

I have used dozens of different cartridges over the last 42 years I have been big game hunting and I am a great fan of a number of them, including less potent rounds than the '06 and some that pack a lot more punch. But after all this time it is still one of my favorite cartridges for 95% of the hunting I am going to do.

I have shot a lot of game over the years with one......from pronghorn to moose and grizzly. The .30-06 was absent from my gunroom for a number of years but just this past month I found a beautiful old Husqvarna Crown Grade in .30-06 and I bought it. I sold my trusty old .300 mag. I have no regrets and as I get older I find I am slowly going back to just a handful of trusted cartridges that get the job done.

When I quit traveling to distant place to hunt it may well be that the .30-06 will be the only rifle left in my gunrack.

Cons?
 

I don't really think there are reasonable cons to the '06, unless you are talking about too much gun or recoil for light game. I guess it depends on what you are after. I know I've got an exceptional '06, but I've had low # Springfields and post '64 M 70s that I would not load up (Spr.) or would not take the loads (M 70) that I can shoot with my M-8000 Husqvarna and its 1 in 12 twist barrel. I can shoot 165 Barnes boat tail X bullets at 3000 even. Other than big bears, I feel I can use this gun for everything I could possibly hunt. It would probably kill grizzly too, but not a gun to stop one if it came to that. (I will never have the $ to hunt griz, so it is really a mute point.) Yes, it recoils a bit, but not too bad, and my gun only weighs 7# with scope, sling, and loaded magazine, with its Brown fiberglass stock. My 14 yr. old was very excited when I said that it would be his some day. Don't know what gun I would rather have. Groups very well too. Now if you are talking about factory loads that may be used in old low # Springfields and have to be safe to shoot in pumps and autoloaders, then the '06 does not have much on the .308, which I also have and think quite highly of. But loaded to its potential in a strong gun, the '06 has a bit more of an advantage than most are willing to admit. If I was really a ballistics freak, I would probably have mine rechambered for '06 Ackley Improved, but really, what would an extra 100 or so fps get me?:confused0024:

cons: too common, nothing unique about using it.

pros: WIDE range and availability of ammo

Maybe to heavy for varmints and maybe a bit light for the big bears, but fantastic for anything in between.

The way I look at it is this, Too common??? Really? Since when did how many people using anything effect preforming a clean kill on a animal? I understand wanting to be different, but is that really a con?

On another note, The 06 is about as good of a all around round you could ask for IMO. Decent ballistics, Your normal run of the mill hunter can really only shoot out to about 300 yards and Hit the intended target properly the 06 does that well. Also its got enough knock down power to take pretty much anything in NA. But depending on where I am ill still carry a 45, just incase....

I have used a 30-06 on and off for the last thirty-five years and here is my take on it.

Pros-a lot a bullet and factory loads for the 30-06. Easy to find ammo no matter where you are.

When I have shot a WT with a 30-06, it usually goes down where I shot it. Can't say that with my 300 WBY, 30-30, or 243.

It is accurate out to the maximum range most of us shoot (or should shoot).

You can find a semi-auto, pump, bolt action, lever action, or SS in the 30-06, depending on your preference.

Cons- can't think of any. I guess it isn't as glamorous as a magnum.

did not expect to hear so few people have a issue with it. I figured some would but dang seem 95% love or atleast like the round.