30/06 amunition grain choice

[crazybushcreature]

Currently using federal blue box 180 grain in my 06. I used this for hunting deer last year. I am just curious what everyone else uses? And why?

[TPK]

I use 165 grn for deer and 180 for moose or bear but truly doubt it makes much of a difference ... I believe the type bullet used makes more of a difference than the weight of the bullet used (partition vs barnes xxx all copper vs...., etc.)

[1/2 slam]

165 gr. I like it for everything. My gun shoots 3/4 in groups with it.

[r106]

168gr tsx or a 180gr accubond or partition in 30-06 will kill anything

[bearhunter338-06]

I have used 165gr in my 30-06's and have not found the need for anything bigger. Moose deer bear and elk have all fallen to a well placed 30 cal 165gr bullet.

[kevan]

165 gr. I like it for everything. My gun shoots 3/4 in groups with it.

Same here.... a good 165 gr. Barnes or Nosler is a great choice for a 'do all ' bullet in the '06...

[knighthunter]

I have used 165gr in my 30-06's and have not found the need for anything bigger. Moose deer bear and elk have all fallen to a well placed 30 cal 165gr bullet.

Same goes for me.

[cfree]

I am using Hornady 165 gr sst for deer and 180 for moose - very consistent groupings.

[sawmill]

165 Fed.Supreme,always work great for elk,deer,moose,very accurate in my Brno.Very seldom need a second shot.

[BiG Boar]

Do you have a rangefinder? That would influence my choice.

[Weatherby Fan]

I've always used Federal Premium 165gr Nosler Partitions in my Husky 30-06, besides being very accurate it's killed moose, elk and deer with out issue.
WF

[Rusty]

170 self load, 180 for moose

[hitch]

I shoot 165 gr for everything. Does the job!

[Moe.JKU]

i use federal premium 180gr nosler partitions for everything from moose, deer, elk, blackbear, etc it shoots great out of my gun until i start reloading and find something better thats what i will stick with.

[Dre]

165gr Barnes TTSX - killed deer, bear, caribou, goat with ease
165gr Accubond excellent so far - deer don't know the difference

All handloads that are perfectly matched to my Vortex drop compensation retical. Accubond acuracy is a little more consistent than the TTSX from this gun.

[250 sav]

165 hornady interlocks for all

[Surrey Boy]

165 SuperX in my Browning, 180 Federals in the Remington. Don't know why the accuracy difference, same twist rate in both.

The A-bolt groups vastly different with diverse loads, not sure how that works.

[goatdancer]

Federal high energy, 180 gr Nosler Partitions. Just because I don't want a wimpy 300 WM.......

[Drillbit]

I run 150's because it isn't a magnum.:)

[Big G Hunter]

I use Federal 150 gr bullets for all animals, moose, deer, bears and elk. Never had a problem with them. Their cheap, hold their weight, and kill things.

[Walksalot]

I have always used 165 grain bullets in my 30-06. Having said that, proper bullet placement is top of the list for a quick and humane kill regardless of which grain bullet you use.

[emerson]

I run 150's because it isn't a magnum.:)

This. SSTs for practice. GMXs for hunting. I was given a scope that has a reticle set up for 150s so I make it work.

[Drillbit]

This. SSTs for practice. GMXs for hunting. I was given a scope that has a reticle set up for 150s so I make it work.

I also run the SST's & GMX's. 150's

[Darksith]

I run 168g GMX bullets, flatter shooting with the ability to reach out a little more with less bullet drop, so less calculating compared to a 180g since I have no BDC reticle on the scope. Wouldn't shoot much past 400yds with it though. Fun at the range at 500, I know I could kill something with it at that distance, but wouldn't attempt in the field.

[wicket]

long story short started with cheap 150 federals for 1 year. Switched to 165 fed premium b tips much much better now i use 165 accubonds in my 30 06. Im not sure why or what situation i would ever go back down in bullet weight since my rifle shoots them so well. Not to hijack your thread but I wonder if people go down in bullet weight in a certain situation.

[Jagermeister]

When I owned one, I used 180gr GrandSlam or MagTips exclusively. I thought the 165gr. bullets were a perfect match for a .308Win.

[SPILTZ]

180 gr federal fusion seems to be doing well for me!

[crazybushcreature]

I tried federal fusion 180 grain and it shot all over the map. Went bck to the blue box federal 180 and was shooting fine. Was wierd.

[JoeJoe]

I have used a 30-06 a fair amount and I have used quite a few other calibers as well. The grain of the bullet isn't as important as how the ammo shoots in your gun. If you can get an inch group or better use that bullet. You have to hit a vital spot to make good clean kills and the bullet weight has less to do with clean kills than accuracy. accuracy and bullet placement is paramount. Then comes bullet weight but any bullet in a 30-06 will kill anything in north America if placed well. The bigger the animal the more you need accuracy not the less,as is commonly taken for granted. Big animals are easy to hit but harder to kill. So accuracy is more important. A gut shot with a 30-06 will kill a small animal fairly quick but a large animal will run for hours til it dies no matter what bullet you use.