The 30-06
 

Heres a cartridge that has persevered. Why??

I've heard it said the 06 is perfect for nothing but good for everything. Heard it said the worst cartridge base off the 30-06 cartridge. Heard it said 270 & 280 = 30-06 improved....ect..ect

But yet remains well within the top 5 selling cartridges.

Not knocking it at all, I owned a Rem78 in 30-06 killed about a dozen deer with it but not much of a gauge to judge a cartridge by only killing something that can be killed with much less of a cartridge.

Now at the end of WWII there were a lot of surplus military rifles around in that chambering but that was 70 years ago and the 06 is still going strong....Why??

So why do you think the 06 has been so popular over the years??

It is ingrained into the psyche of U.S. hunters and has become one of the most popular big game cartridges in the world today. Ammunition is available across the world everywhere that big game is hunted. That alone makes it a top choice for traveling hunters. When I get on an airplane for a hunt there is usually a 30-06 and a 375 in my Tuffpak.

I believe that there are more factory ammunition choices for this cartridge than any other. Other cartridges may well be better for a given purpose but the old 30-06 still works well enough for nearly everything short of some dangerous game. Most folks probably have difficulty with recoil with more powerful cartridges. If I had only one rifle it would be a 30-06.

Because it works, and every outlet that sells ammunition has it in stock at all times.

No doubt part of the staying power of the .30-06 has been its "encumbency." Because there were lots of rifles made in .30-06 because of the military connection, a lot of people owned these rifles. Because there were a lot of these rifles, a lot of manufacturers loaded commercial cartridges for the .30-06. Because there were a lot of commercial loadings for the .30-06, every rifle manufacturer made rifles in .30-06 -- and probably every different rifle model of a manufacturer offered a chambering in .30-06. That is what I mean by "encumbency." Why do we drive on the right side of the road? Because we don't want to change to driving on the left side and because so many cars already on the roads are geared towards driving on the right side of the road.

Another part of the success is that it represents something like the maximum power that the average shooter can tolerate without developing a flinch. I'm just repeating what I have heard other say. But this is plausible. As such, it can be used to shoot a lot of animals -- from Elk and Moose down to Pronghorn Antelope and even coyotes. Do you need a .30-06 to kill pronghorn or coyotes? No, but it will get 'er done. Can you shoot these same animals with a .338 Winchester Magnum? Yes, but some people -- so I have read -- are intimidated by the recoil and report of the .338 Winchester Magnum. Also, I imagine the cost of .338 Winchester Magnum cartridges is relatively high versus the cost of a box of .30-06 cartridges. There may not be much difference between a box of Remington Core-Lokt 180 grain .30-06 shells and a box of 85 grain .243 shells.

There are a number of intersecting factors that have made and will keep the .30-06 as the most popular big game cartridge for a long time. I have shot three elk with a .30-06 Springfield rifle that my dad sporterized from a military action and barrel. It is an accurate shooting and beautiful rifle. My elk partners at elk camp all shoot .30-06. Our leader has been hunting elk for some 25 years and has taken many an elk with his .30-06. It is a very good cartridge.

Some people might feel the .30-06 lacks the stuff to reach way, way, way out there to kill an elk. That may be true. But not everyone is skilled enough to shoot accurately way, way, way out there. And you don't want to wound an elk and track it into a nasty jumbled blow down of dead trees to get it out because you merely wounded it. Where I hunt elk -- and previously where I hunted deer -- the shots are not at great distances. My shots at elk have been under 200 yards I would guess. Two of them have been at less than 100 yards. A .30-06 is entirely capably of killing elk at 250 yards.

I'm not denigrating other cartridges. You asked about the .30-06. I wouldn't mind having a .338 Winchester Magnum, but I don't feel I need it. And maybe it would kick too hard for me?

Over 60 years of hunting, I've had most of the cals for North American hunting. Funny, I kept returning to the 06....it'll do any thing I desire to do.
Dan

Don't know, never owned one, never felt the need...

I think the 30-06 is the cartridge that meets all of our subjective wants and our objective needs, without many of the negative attributes that other cartridges might bring. Our hunting community is dead set that it takes 1,000ft.lbs. at impact to kill deer, so we ALL tend to favor 'over-kill cartridges' like the 30-06, putting us into some interesting considerations for performance at both ends of the rifle.

I'm not saying that I agree with or believe there to be any merit to ANY of these, but I believe that these could be very common responses when considering any of these other popular cartridges over a 30-06, based on the mindset of our sporting culture:

• 243win - well by golly, that's just under-sized, the 30-06 hits harder
• 30-30win - man, that ol' levergun doesn't shoot flat enough
• 300win mag - doesn't kill the deer any more dead, just kicks a lot harder, and who needs extra recoil? Also burns more powder!
• 7mm mag - same problems as the 300 mag, too much recoil, but worse, 'cuz it's metric!!!
• 308win - it's like a ".30-06 Light"... Light beer is for women and liberals
• 270win/25-06 - doesn't have the bullet weight to kill the big stuff, it's like a 30-06 but for coyotes or speed goats

A guy could go on and on... Basically, I read the ESTABLISHED shooting culture that 1) anything smaller isn't as good because it's smaller, 2) anything larger isn't as good because it recoils harder.

I even find myself being a bit hypocritical in this sense. I've instructed a lot of new shooters, and mentored a lot of new gun buyers - if you ask me what cartridge to get as a first deer rifle, I recommend something like a 7mm-08, a 25-06, 243, etc. But when I go to my safe each season, if I can't make up my mind on what "better rifle" to take afield, my default always goes back to my ol' aught six.

Side note - I say all of that and I can't help but think of the "new shooting culture" that is evolving around us. New gun owners that are more influenced by youtube fads than tradition, and that weight rumors and speculation from mall ninjas more heavily than tried and true experiences in the field. I find myself confused to live in a sporting world where the 300 blackout has this much traction, but the 308 Marlin was flash in the pan. These shooters are the kind that would NOT buy a .30-06, simply because it's not present in Modern Warfare video games, or wouldn't buy it BECAUSE IT'S A PROVEN HISTORICAL CARTRIDGE.

I don't necessarily agree, however, that the .30-06 is "great at everything, but not great at anything." I find that the 30-06 is quite likely the ideal cartridge for elk sized game. Not too much punishment on the shoulder, but plenty of bullet weight to do all the killing you want at any range that you're able to connect. I would say that my opinion is that the .30-06 really is a GREAT elk rifle. Even though most of us carry one for deer, for which the ol' Springfield is drastically over-powered. It'll kill anything you hit well with it, but in terms of ideal balance of killing potential and recoil, it's too much for coyotes through deer, and too little for bear through bison.

Have 8 or them can get 180gr remington core @ Wal-Mart for $20. I have 338 win the rem core locks are close to $60 @ some stores.

A lot of good responses.We have owned one since the 70,s and they are way overkill for deer and a poor choice if that is your choice of game to pursue.But if large game is what your after you can,t beat it.

I was shooting at the range one day quite a few years back when a older friend handed me a clip of Korean surplus and told me to shoot it and see what I thought. Nope I told him don't own an 06, he looked at me and said forcefully "your an American and don't own a 30-06) so now I own 3, don't use 'em much but I got them, I do prefer my 338 fed and 358 win at this time but heck tomorrow I might need to go on a quick hunt, and you know you can get 06 ammo anywhere

I'm not going to touch this thread with a ten foot pole, LOL!

What can't you kill with a .30-06 within 200-300 yards? particularly in North America?
110-220gr bullets.

I would bet if you grew up with a .30-06, you love it, or it's sentimental, and no reason to get rid of it.

Also .30+ Magnums aside, what would you want to use on something big, heavy, or even dangerous?

I would bet as many of us age or get sick of being kicked around by magnums, going from a .300mag down to a .30-06 would be a small step down for much less kick.

I bet it's in the top 10 selling cartridges in America until everyone is shooting lazer guns... and probably even then it'll still be in the top 10.

maybe a better question is why shouldn't it be in the top 10?

I wonder how many people in this country have been passed down a rifle, and the only rifle they own is their dad's or grandpa's .30-06? they buy a box of rounds and shoot it once every year or 2 at the range.

I'm just going to echo what a lot of other have already said: It works. No need for "new and improved." If I was specialty hunting I might consider another cartridge but the 30/06 does fine with everything I want to hunt.

Some good post fellas, gives you good insight into the "ole 06".

Now I'm far from a ballistic authority but I'm also told that the 30-06 has more potential if youre a handloader. Getting even closer to the ballistics of the 300WM. Im told the factory 30-06 is download incase someone has an old springfeild that the ammo finds its way into......Any truth to it?

I don't believe this to be true, but I can understand how a rumor like that would proliferate through the shooting world. It stands to reason that the 30-06 is a turn of the century cartridge (the last one, of course), so surely handloaders can do a lot more with modern bullets and powder than it was originally designed to do. Combine that with the receiver-failure history of the 1903 Springfield rifle, which had some forging issues in early runs, followed up by soldiers accidentally feeding it the wrong cartridge with a slightly over-sized bullet, and poor cartridge brass quality in those early days, and you get a rumor like this.

But unlike many of the "turn of the century" cartridges before it, the 30-06 was never designed around black powder, and frankly, it ran almost as hard on day 1 in 1906 as it does today, almost 110yrs later. The 1903 springfield was actually designed as a solution to the Krag rifle that was unable to sustain high pressure cartridges.

And of course, when someone hears that "cartridges have to be down-loaded in deference to the old SPRINGFIELD RIFLES," their brain can easily forget that the cartridge in question is the 45-70, and the "springfield rifle" in question is the Trapdoor, not the 1903. A simple case of mistaken identity here.

Then I suppose you can throw in the fact that there were 2 revisions made after the original M1906 cartridge was released, one of which was made to reduce the recoil!! The original M1906 bullet was a 150grn pill, that was eventually replaced by a 173grn bullet in the M1 cartridge (not to be confused with the rifle). After repeated soldier complaints, the 150grn bullet was brought back over a new powder, designated the M2. This reduction in bullet weight is sometimes argued to be an indicator that the 1903 rifles were weak-by-design, so some might confuse that this change was made because of the RIFLE's durability, but it was actually driven by SOLDIER durability instead.

So it's understandable that folks that never handled a 1903 Springfield or a 1917 Enfield and that don't understand the histoy of these rifles might confuse themselves about the 30-06's cartridge potential and its history.

In my personal experience with the two, a reloader can "speed up" a 30-06 a bit and almost reach 300win mag levels (about 100fps over factory), but it's not worth much, and equally, a reloader can "speed up" a 300win mag about the same, so the net gap between the two stays about the same.

One can argue that since the 30-06 is chambered in the same model with the same diameter dimensions for barrel and action as the 308winchester - which is the same diameter cartridge with a higher pressure standard, AND that the 30-06 is chambered in the same rifle dimensions as the 300win mag - which is a larger diameter cartridge, meaning a thinner sidewall as well as a higher pressure, that the 30-06 should be able to be operated at ~62-64kpsi safely. The idea here being that you're exerting the same resultant force on the action as what these other cartridges would, with the 308 action having the same hoop strength, and the 300win mag action having LESS hoop strength. Structurally, as an engineer, I can't argue with the logic, other than to point out that, as a shooter, I haven't found that the 300win mag can do anything that a 30-06 cannot do with SAAMI level rounds in 150-180grn bullets.

Frankly, there's no real world advantage for the 300win mag over the .30-06 anyway, unless you're hunting "too big for 30cal" game and shooting rather heavy bullets where extra case capacity really starts to reveal itself. So emulating the 300wm with a 3006 just doesn't make much sense anyway.

Because it works very well on the game that most people will hunt on a regular basis. There is a very good range of bullet weights and quality ammo is made by everyone that makes ammo. It is easy to handload for and if you don't handload you can get ammo just about anywhere. I've seen 30-06 ammo on the shelves in Cameroon, Zimbabwe and South Africa and I can't say that for the various short mags.

I'd happily hunt 99% of the game in the world with a 30-06. The only game I'd hesitate to go after is the really big stuff like elephant, rhino and cape buffalo and if the 30-06 was all I had and I could get quality 220 gr FMJ's I'd hunt them as well with the 30-06. The only cartridges I can think of that is better for all around hunting than the 30-06 are the 9.3x62 Mauser and the 375 H&H Mag. One thing all 3 calibers have in common is they are all over 100 years old and they are all commonly used. I'll admit the 9.3x62 isn't that common in North America but it is very popular in Europe and Africa.

Remember, the game itself hasn't changed. What worked well 100 years ago will still work today. That being said, I personally don't have a 30-06 since I prefer the 7mm Mag due to the fact I normally hunt wide open spaces. But if I was only going to have 1 gun to hunt with, I'd look long and hard at the 30-06.

30-06, jack of all trades, master of none! There is no doubt the '06 is a great cartridge or else it would not be around anymore. However, I have never owned an '06 and probably never will! For a "one gun" person the 30-06 is a great choice, shoots everything from the accelerator on up. I just prefer the short action .308 and it's off-spring!

Nomercy, Very imformative post. I didn't think that it would be all that down loaded. Thanks for education.

Flags that's saying quite a bit for the 06 from a man that's hunted all over the world!!

Very interesting read and great info. I however feel it has stuck around simply because 30.06 is just so much fun to say!:biggrin:

Seriously though I have owned one and its a great cartridge.

The 30-06 Springfield perseveres because:
 

The 30-06 is famous because there have been only two world wars and the 30-06 Springfield was used by the greatest country on earth to win those wars!

Some other cartridge might fill and fit where the 30-06 is now however the facts above make it real.

Some say the 30-06 is too small for this and too big for that! Of course that can be said of any other cartridge as well!

When I was a kid every family had at least two guns.

One was a shotgun and the other one was a rifle.

The rifle was either a .30-30 or a .30-06.

If you could only own one rifle the .30-06 would be a great choice; in particular with modern ammunition.

“Beware the man who owns only one gun; he probably knows how to use it.”

Even 5 or six years ago most people I know their main deer gun was a 30/06 or 270. Know a lot of them are going to short action calibers around the 308 family. Also with the advancement of the so called budget rifle even the average man can afford more then one rifle of quality. My father's main rifle for 30+ years was a remington 700 bdl in 30/06 he got new in 1970.

Yes, This!

Lots of good responses here. I've got a .30-06 because my grandpa gave me one when I was 12, that's where it started for me. I've killed around 20 deer with it since then at ranges from about 15 yards to just under 400. I've shot paper out to 500 and currently do not plan on taking that particular rifle any farther, although it is certainly capable of it. I don't have the numbers that many here can claim, but I've killed deer with I *believe* 8 different cartridges. All those deer are equally dead. But when I get really serious about getting a deer on the ground, I always seem to grab the '06....it just seems like the right thing to do. As others have said.... If you could only have one rifle.... you wouldn't go wrong picking the .30-06.
-Jake

Every hunter I know always believes he has the best cartridge. Its like saying I am looking for a good hunting knife, or a nice bolt action..

the one response I didn't see about the 06 is the wide range of bullets available for the 06. it can be loaded from 110 grain bullets all the way up to 220 grain. this gives it the capability to be used to hunt just about anything. if you reload this opens up all possibilities for the 06. wouldn't recommend the 06 for dangerous game unless you are really good. that why the magnums are made.

Very simple it works.

30-06 on African Game
 

I am from Africa and I have used a 30-06 since the day I started hunting. This calibre happens to be the most popular calibre in South Africa as according to the amount of ammo sold by SA company PMP. I am now a Hunting Outfitter running Clarke Safaris. Having hunted a wide variety of African Game(including Eland) with this calibre using 180Gr bullets, it has always performed exceptionally well. Not too fast, not too slow, it is consistently more than capable of killing game out to 300 Yards. I will always be a loyal fan of this fine calibre that has stood the test of time.

Welcome to this forum Andy. What 180 grain bullet do you like for eland at ranges of 200m or closer (assuming proper shot placement)?

Welcome and nice to see a PH that knows the capabilities of the 06 with the proper ammo in the right hands!

I'm in Germany and when I leave the house to go stand hunting; I usually take a 30.06. It will take care of the Red Deer, the Roe Deer and the Wild Boar (whichever crosses my path). I'm shooting at distances up to 250 mtrs and if I hit where I was aiming (and I mostly do), it's a one shot deal. When I'm on the move or on a drive hunt in a thickly wooded area I use my lighter .308 :barmy: