30-06sprg 125gr.
 

anyone ever use this small grain bullet for deer hunting before or know someone that has?

do you think the 125gr. is a tad bit too light for deer hunting? ( lets say using a regular bullet )

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

Yes, i think the 125's are too light for all around deer hunting. Yes, they will work in "ideal" situations, but the 150's should be the lightest used. Even the 150's expand quite rapidly.

Use 150's or 165's and you will have the right bullets for the job.

Drilling Man

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

Yes, it is too light. Good luck.

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

then i wonder why remington have the reduced recoil line with the 30-06sprg using a 125gr. core-lokt ? i would think they would just lower it down the the 8X57j.s. mauser american loadings. that would make more sense than lowering the recoil and putting a 125gr. on her.

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

field and stream or outdoor life has an article on the controlled recoil loads......remington and fedral have them out now.....fedrals are called powershok or something i believe.......they are actually reduced velocity AND bullet weight......and after 200yrds they dont have the energy to expand safely from what i got out of the article........in my opinion i dont think stuff like this should be on the market.....it just dont sound like its very good to me......i may be wrong but i dont think it will perform to good in hunting situations........

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

If the 125 gr is too light, how do we explain a 140 or 120 gr or less that is thrown out of a 270 or 243?

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

I've killed a dozen or so deer with 100gr 6mm so the 125gr 30-06 is not to light for deer. I load 130 gr in 30-06 and 300 win mag. They shoot quite nice and work on deer just fine.

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

Quilly,

I've been using the 125 gr in my 30-06 for years and have not had a problem. Both Winchester and Federal load the 125s'. I used them until I started handloading and now I load my own 125s'.

I've killed deer out to 284 yds (longest shot I have from one of my stands), and as close as 10 yds, also have shot loads of hogs with it. I went to Co. this past yr for mule deer and loaded 165s', was assuming I would need the heavier bullet for them, however, I believe I could have taken the mulie with a 125.

My personal opinion, for what it's worth, no, I don't think they are to light for whitetail.

dog1

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

You can't compare shooting a 100 grain bullet from a 243 and a 100 grain bullet from a 270 or 30-06. The sectional density of the 100 grain 243 is much higher than the density of the same weight bullet in a larger caliber The sectionan density of the 100 grain 243 is 242 you have to go to a140 or 150 grains to get the same sectional density in 30 caliber. Most experts recommend a bullet of at least 210(sectional density) for deer and like 260 or higher for Elk and bigger game. I have used the 125 grain a few times for deer in the 30-06 but it is not recommended for deer. In the reduced loads it may work a little better because the 125 would not be as fragil at lower velocity and would be less apt to blow up or over expand. I often use lighter bullets but always back off on the velocity if they are to be used on deet size game. My 280 shoots the 120 grain bullet well but it has the minimum sectional density so I back it off to about 2800 fps although I can drive it to 3300 in my 26 inch barrel. In the 06 I would stick to 150 grain bullets with exception of the Barnes X bullets. You can use a size or two lighter bullets in the X bullets as compared to standard construction bullets.

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

James B You hit it exactly!!,

Guys, you can't compare bullets of the same weight between calibers and expect the same results!! It's the SD and bullet construction that counts when you are trying to get decent penetration for game animials.

The SD is the length of the bullet in relation to the diameter, so a 100 grain 6mm is a lot longer that a 100 grain bullet in say, 30 cal..

Drilling Man

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

JamesB, Right You Are!

As I followed this thread, I couldn't help but think....
Sectional Density,
Sectional Density,
Sectional Density....

It gets down to bullet shape for flight (ballistic coefficient) and penetrating ability(sectional density)....

Take it to the extreme, imagine a 125gr. bullet in a 50 caliber rifle. it may be the same weight as a 125gr bullet in a 270 but that is where the similarity ends --- in a 50 cal, it won't fly nor penetrate worth beans.

You might recall one of our more colorful members used "heavy for caliber" and "light for caliber" when addressing bullet weights --- heavy for one caliber is light for another. That said though, you can knock over a deer with darn near anything so it will probably do the trick on them, not my kind of choice, but probably will work okay, especially if the deer are in the "fly weight" division.

EKM

RE: 30-06sprg 125gr.
 

Just stick with the 150's. If you load them up, they can shoot nice and flat, and they hit pretty hard.