30-06 grain choice??

[HuntOrBeHunted]

I'm sure theres a fair amount of people on this website that own a 30-06.

What bullet do you use? And the real question I have is what grain? I use 150 grain and i'm thinking about jumping up to 165 and i'm trying to find a nice bullet I can stick with.

And input?

[Terry]

165's generally shoot better out of my gun than 150's. It's not a huge difference, but any little bit helps.You are going to have to find what your gun likes best.

For a specific brand, I really like the Fusions.

[Deerthug]

185 Federal Fusions only for my 30-06. Anything less drops lower than my intended target.

[tughillhunter]

i use 165. fusions.

[Dad 6424]

I use a 165 gr Hornady in my 760 Remington 3006 my son soots the same 165 gr in 270 Hornady out of his 760 Remington they hold tight groups and recoil is mimanal. BUT I can not hit the side of a barn from inside with his gun he does ok with mine gofigure .

[Culvercreek hunt club]

I shoot 165 grain Sierra Game Kings in my handloads. I believe his was one of the bullet offereings in the Federal premiums I shot until last year.. Have always had apass through on Deer even through 2 shoulders. and on 2 bears and 2 Caribou.

[jim335]

I use the Remington Express Core-Lokt 150 gr.PSP. I was using the 180 gr., but the 180's didn't seem to expand enough, exit and entry looked like same size. Where the 150's expand nicely and seem to give more "shock" to knock a deer on it's butt.

Both bullets are very accurate out of my Rem. 760.

[Deerthug]

I use the Remington Express Core-Lokt 150 gr.PSP. I was using the 180 gr., but the 180's didn't seem to expand enough, exit and entry looked like same size. Where the 150's expand nicely and seem to give more "shock" to knock a deer on it's butt.

Both bullets are very accurate out of my Rem. 760.

I used the FF185gr in my Remi 710 on my 7 pt I took at 50 yards this past opening weekend. I could not find the entry hole when I looked initially but the exit hole was the size of my fist. He stumbled 7 yards and dropped. I guess it depends on shot placement too.

Edited December 12, 2012 by Deerthug

[Grizz1219]

150 or 165 Fed. Fusions...

[dbHunterNY]

I use the Remington Express Core-Lokt 150 gr.PSP. I was using the 180 gr., but the 180's didn't seem to expand enough, exit and entry looked like same size. Where the 150's expand nicely and seem to give more "shock" to knock a deer on it's butt.

Both bullets are very accurate out of my Rem. 760.

i've found this to be true. here's why i think why. ideally you want the bullet to just barely exit and practically fall to the ground. with a rifle any pass through is wasted energy that's not discipated into the animal. all 30-06 bullets i've had pass throughs with regardless of where i shot. i found that with deer sized game most hits in the vitals went through minimal bone and significant muscle mass. the heavier bullets i've found to punch through too much and not expand creating lots of shock. 150 grain bullets seems to put deer sized animals down better. at 300 yards and under, i'd shoot everything EXCEPT maybe the biggest stuff in North America (Brown Bears, Grizzly, Moose which I haven't hunted yet) with a 150 gr bullet. If you can find a round with that weight that shoots well from your gun that's what i'd suggest.

[NYbuck50]

My gun likes a 150gr better than a 165 or a 180.. When i started putting the gun together i shot groups with all 3. the 150's were clovered at 100 yards off of a bench. the 165's and 180's were about a 3-4 inch group each.. It's weird, but some guns flat out shoot a certain grain bullet better than others.

[ants]

I love 150 grain Remington core lokt. They fly great out of my rifle and they knock deer on their a$$. I also think the 150's work better than the 165's I have used in the past.

I think the Core Lokt bullet, itself is a good bullet (reloaders rolling their eyes now....I know). For the past few seasons I have been hunting with a 7mm-08 loaded with 140 gr. core lokt and I get great performance with that load too. Nice exit holes and the deer pretty much go nowhere.

[Pygmy]

I love 150 grain Remington core lokt. They fly great out of my rifle and they knock deer on their a$$. I also think the 150's work better than the 165's I have used in the past.

I think the Core Lokt bullet, itself is a good bullet (reloaders rolling their eyes now....I know). For the past few seasons I have been hunting with a 7mm-08 loaded with 140 gr. core lokt and I get great performance with that load too. Nice exit holes and the deer pretty much go nowhere.

I'm a dyed in the wool handloader, but I'm not about to roll my eyes at the Remington Coreloct. It is a tried and true, proven bullet and has been performing well for hunters for many years. When people ask my advice about factory loads, I usually suggest trying plain jane Remington Green corelocts. As often as not they need to go no further.

[BfloHunter]

I've been lucky with 150 gr core lokt also. 4 shots. 4 deer. Great year!

[HuntOrBeHunted]

Lot of people using fusion rounds with good results i'm going to have to look into them.

At a 100 yards whats your guy's grouping size?

[jim335]

I site in at 50 yards. Rem. Core-Lokt 150 will group to the size of a quarter.

[ATbuckhunter]

Every gun is different but i love my Barnes 180gr TSX bullet.

[hoythunter]

I shoot the hornady superformance 165. Any other ammo I've tried doesn't pattern nearly as well for me. Trial and error but it gets expensive.

[dbHunterNY]

Lot of people using fusion rounds with good results i'm going to have to look into them.

At a 100 yards whats your guy's grouping size?

I have a couple rifles that shoot between 1" and 1.5" groups with the 150gr Core-lokts. My Browning Abolt being the 1.5" grouper haven't found much that it likes yet. which is odd. My dad has a Remington 7600 pump in 30-06 that he bought years ago at Woolworth's i think. He's never cleaned it and shoots 150gr Core-lokts only through it ever since he bought it. It will hold within 2" groups at 200 yards any day of the week. I'd be affraid to clean it. that thing would be my dream gun if it wasn't for the horrific trigger.

[HuntOrBeHunted]

I have a couple rifles that shoot between 1" and 1.5" groups with the 150gr Core-lokts. My Browning Abolt being the 1.5" grouper haven't found much that it likes yet. which is odd. My dad has a Remington 7600 pump in 30-06 that he bought years ago at Woolworth's i think. He's never cleaned it and shoots 150gr Core-lokts only through it ever since he bought it. It will hold within 2" groups at 200 yards any day of the week. I'd be affraid to clean it. that thing would be my dream gun if it wasn't for the horrific trigger.

Horrific triiger meaning its to strong of a trigger pull? Thats the case with my 30-06 I love the cailber but HATE the pounds on the trigger pull I think it's near 7.. I want about 3.

[Bballhunter11]

Nosler 180 gr Ballistic Tips and Accubonds

[donjohnk]

150gr winchester ballistic tips, killed 5 deer so far and dropped em everytime

Edited December 29, 2012 by donjohnk

[Pygmy]

Horrific triiger meaning its to strong of a trigger pull? Thats the case with my 30-06 I love the cailber but HATE the pounds on the trigger pull I think it's near 7.. I want about 3.

No need to put up with a heavy trigger...

I have had trigger adjustments done on 4 of my rifles and have done 1 myself ( due to very precise instructions in my owners's manual) and they all were MUCH better than than the "lawyer proof" factory settings..I don't think any of the trigger jobs cost me more than $35... It probably is more now, but it ain't gonna break the bank, and ALL of my hunting rifles have SWEET triggers now..

My triggers are all around 2.5 to 3 pounds...

[HuntOrBeHunted]

No need to put up with a heavy trigger...

I have had trigger adjustments done on 4 of my rifles and have done 1 myself ( due to very precise instructions in my owners's manual) and they all were MUCH better than than the "lawyer proof" factory settings..I don't think any of the trigger jobs cost me more than $35... It probably is more now, but it ain't gonna break the bank, and ALL of my hunting rifles have SWEET triggers now..

My triggers are all around 2.5 to 3 pounds...

Yea i'm going to be calling a local gunsmith the trigger pull has caused me to not like my gun so much. I hope it comes back working like a dream.

[dbHunterNY]

not to get off topic but what i meant by it having a horrific trigger is it had a rough pull with some creep and over travel. basically you want a trigger to travel smoothly with a consistant pull all the way until it breaks and breaks cleanly. if it feels as if you can feel the mechanics and parts rubbing against either other then you can't pull smoothly without the crosshairs moving just a tad. if you have good shooting forum to pull straight back on the trigger you can shoot even a heavy trigger with a nice pull. a rough trigger isn't good though.