OK OK, I know I just opened a whole new can of worms and I can't wait to see what everyone has to say.


Im looking for a 30 cal bullet to hunt whitetail with this fall out of a 30-06. Im leaning towards either a 165 to 180 grain bullet and was wondering what everyone can suggest. Im leaning a little more towards the nosler solid base origionals, but I want to hear what everyone has to say. I have tried the 165 barnes TSX with limited accuracy. I should also point out that I am a target shooter more than anything so even though the 1.5" groups I was getting with the TSX would work, Id like to try more bullets to see if I can get the groups down a little more. Thanks in advance,

Scott

If you think this is a can of worms, your right. I just wonder how many different bullets are out there in 30 cal that are more than suitable? I think I heard that Barnes makes a 130gr TSX and you can probally find all the way up to 250gr in more shapes and styles than you can shake a stick at. Matter of fact, I just started fooling with my 30-06 this afternoon with Herter's 180gr semi point. Probally not the best but I'll bet it'll take care of business on a deer.

In my 308's over the years,I've tried lots that would work fine in the 30-06 but eventually settled on the 165gr Hornady spire point for everything. Nothing and I mean nothing kills any deader or quicker when I do my part. But, there's a whole lot more that kill just as dead and just as quick, I just don't like to admit it!

I don't use premium bullets for whitetail deer. Deer are fairly easy to kill and even the big ones aren't very big. I shot many deer with power points, coreloks, hornady and some speers and never felt that any of them weren't enough bullet. I use to shoot 150 gr bullets out of the 06 and 308 but now use mostly 165 gr bullets for no particular reason if I can get them on sale.To be completely honest I handload for just about everything except whitetail deer (Coues deer excepted). I buy whatever is on sale and whichever is the cheapest.In the 50+ years I've hunted and shot whitetails I only shot one at 200+yds, all the rest have been shot around 100yds or less.

Where I hunt whitetails here in central Idaho many of the shots are 200yds. plus-. I usually shoot a 270 / 130gr. or a 25/06 / 117gr.
This fall I will be hunting with a M70 Win. in 300H&H that came to me from an uncle. He always loaded 180s but I will shoot the 165gr. Speer SP.
The country I hunt is river breaks and very open. with just enough brush in the draws to hide the deer. Lots of glassing. It's alot like the Couse deer hunting I had where I grew up, S. Ariz.

180 gr. Partitions in my 300 Ultra have been working great for years and accuracy is spectacular as well.

If you are truly after accuracy with your gun then my advice is to try a bunch of different brands. We can debate which bullet is best on here all day but nobody's response will tell you what works best in your particular rifle.

The 150 grain Speer flat based spitzer is the perfect deer bullet. Next in line is the 165 grain Remington PSPCl. Pushe either to 2800 fps in an accurate rifle and you will have no complaints.

Aside from the inevetible comments from the heavy bullet mafia, NOBODY makes a 180grain bullet that is designed to expand on deer.

Even many 165's are a bit on the "tough side" to dependably expand on most deer (excepting the trophy mulies someone is bound to bring up)

30-06 for deer?

Ok, I'll go out on a limb here for everyone else to take potshots at.... 165gr Nosler Accubond in front of as much RL22 as you can make fit in the case and lit up with the magnum primer of your choice....

Nosler lists 63gr of RL as "max" behind a 165gr bullet
in the 30-06, but I've managed to get another 2.5-3.0gr into
a neck sized case.... Too much RL22 into a 30-06 case is simply impossible.

AllanD

In my rifle, on Michigan Whitetails, I find the 150gr Nosler BT to be highly effective (esp when it's sitting on a book max charge of Reloader 19). Of course I try to keep my shots under 450yd with that combo.

If you're leaning towards a 165 or 180 grain bullet, try out Nosler ballistic tips. You'll get very good expansion, and they'll exit a deer, even on the close shots (or that's been my experience).

Scott,

My "ready for anything" load in .30/06 Sprg. is topped-off with a 165 gr. Nosler Partition. With four different powders, these loads and my rifles will shoot three shot clusters every time.

Obviously, I'm pretty much as accuracy afflicted as you are and if my hunting loads won't put three bullets touching; well, for me that just isn't enough confidence to take every potential shots offered when afield.

Looking at my records the best accuracy and hunting performance I've had from .308" bullets has been using 165 grainers. Why not, 168's were considered the supereme accuracy bullet in this caliber for years anyway. Today, 155er's to 190's are being used for mid & long range accuracy also, but are not my idea of great game bullets for the average Deer.

The 165 Gr. Sierra HPBT Game Kings, 165 gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips, 165 Nosler Partitions are noted in my records as the most accurate 165 grain .30/06 Sprg. hunting loads.

The absolute most accurate load I've ever tried in countless .30/06 Sprgs. has been 55 grains of H-4350 with the Hornady 180 grain Round Nose.

I have a finicky lightweight 30/06 that I tried a variety of bullets in until I found something that it really liked and I've stuck with that load for everything. My rifle ended up liking 56 grains of IMR 4350 and Sierra 180 grain SPBT's. This load has performed flawlessly on countless deer and elk as well as Antelope, Mountain Goats and Bighorn Sheep. Longest shot ever taken was a bull elk at 420 yards, broke his shoulders and exited leaving an exit wound smaller than a beer can and bigger than a golf ball. Pretty good performance for non- premium bullets in my opinion.
I hunt a variety of game so I usually find the right bullet for the toughest animal I will hunt with that rifle and then work out a load for that gun and that bullet and shoot just about everything with it. Hasn't been a problem yet.
If I were you I'd find an accurate load of 180 or 165 grain bullets and be happy with it using it for deer and elk, if it is deer only I'd also look at the 150 grain bullet too. I would not be concerned about making sure it's a premium bullet either. I don't know of too many deer out there that can suck up a cheap bullet from an '06 that is placed correctly and run off, if you make a poor shot a premium bullet is not going to save your bacon when we are talking about deer.

quote:

Originally posted by Allan DeGroot:
NOBODY makes a 180grain bullet that is designed to expand on deer.

Not to nit-pick, but Nosler 180 grain Ballistic Tips expand quite nicely on deer in my experience, and are designed for exactly this application...current heavier jacketed model included.

To the original question, 150 grainers are probably too expansive at full house 30-06 velocities, so I think you are on the right track with your 165-180 grain bullets. Any soft point will work, with the nod IMO going to 165 grains. At '06 velocities the 165 grain 'soft' bullets from Sierra, SPeer, Nosler, Hornady, etc. would do fine. Since you are accuracy inclined, Ballistic Tips are probably gonna be tops. If I owned a 30-06 the 165 NBT is the bullet I'd throw at deer with it...and I did download that bullet in a 300WSM to about 2900 fps one year with good results...right about where your '06 will run.

Don't known about the best...

Try the 150 Accubonds in your 06'. If it will accurately shoot them, they are definite deer killers. I'm loading them for several friends that hunt everything from varmints to mulies w/ their 300 mags and they've probably taken 20 animals combined w/ the 150 ABs w/o any bad performance issues. Only one was shot w/ a 30-06 all the others w/ a 300 at 3200MV. I witnessed a few of the 300 kills on whitetails and they did quite an impressive job. One even busted the shoulder at close range on a quarter-to shot and exited mid deer.

They shoot sub moa in my 06' w/ 49 grns of H4895 at 2950fps.

Good Luck

Reloader

This may well wind up being an incredibly long thread!

Truth is most anything will work. I like the Sierra 165gr HPBT, Hornady's of the same work well too, and both shoot very well in my rifle.

Incidentally, my truck gun has become my Rem 600 in .308W, shooting Hornady 180gr RN. It's as accurate as I am, and can be used for whatever I bump into. The only thing it's not is long range medicine for 'yotes. Nate

Plain Jane 150 gr. bullets around 2850fps from a 30-06 will get the job done. No magic here. roger

My suggestions would be Accubonds as my first choice (1501800gr), and maybe the new Barnes MRX if available yet. Maybe the MRX will give better groups with the plastic tips like the Accubonds.

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:
Plain Jane 150 gr. bullets around 2850fps from a 30-06 will get the job done. No magic here. roger

I think Roger put it into the right context.

quote:

Aside from the inevetible comments from the heavy bullet mafia, NOBODY makes a 180grain bullet that is designed to expand on deer.

I largely agree, but do note that the Nosler Partition pretty well expands on anything from prairie dogs up. Ninety percent of the time, the famous Partition does its killing with the front, not the rear, half.

At any rate, I prefer 150's for deer, especially if you cartridge is .30-06 or smaller. The 150 Nosler Ballistic Tip has worked beautifully for me for many years. Counter to the conventional wisdom, the solid base design of this bullet causes it to penetrate somewhat more deeply than is widely assumed.

However, "best" is a highly subjective judgement. Practically any 150-165 grain bullet that shoots well in your rifle will work just fine on deer -- but the simpler and cheaper, the better.

The Sierra Gameking 165 HPBT will shoot very accurately and kill any deer you run across just fine. I personally prefer to shoot the TSX because of the way it stays together and does less meat damage. The 165 TSX did not shoot as tight as I wanted in my rifle so I tried the 168 TSX and it actually shoots much better in my rifle. I am only talking 3/4" down to 1/2" groups so it is kind of splitting hairs on accuracy but I am a reloader and we can get too demanding at times. Good Luck with your upcoming season.

Nosler redesigned the 180 BT this year with a heavier jacket. Nosler has redesigned the BTs at least four times since their introdoction almost 20 years ago. Many of the BT-bashers haven't used BTs for years or are using info from others bad experiences. These are usually from people using BTs at close range and/or at hyper velocities, somthing that they were not designed for. I think that a 165BT loaded with around 57-58gns of one of the 4350s(caveats apply) is the perfect load for deer. It should get you around 2800fps and probably shoot as good groups as anythig you might try. capt david

In the '06, 180 grain Accubond.

Georgia deer haven't yet adopted body armor.

I reload and use Remington 150 PSPs. They work well on deer.

A few years ago, I used a 150 Nosler Partition and it didn't expand.

Gidday Guys,

Jeez Wayne, its only a bloody whitetail you are trying to tip over.

I would worry about being over gunned with a 150 ballistic tip but would use it with confidence. On another thread I asked what you guys are feeding your deer so that they grow body armour and no one came back to me with an answer.

Surely you want complete expansion on an animal not much larger than a large dog and penetration is not really a worry.

Happy Hunting

Hamish

150gr Ballistic Tips and a health dose of IMR-4064 in my 308 works really well.

I like 165s in the 06
witch ever one shoots straitest in your rifle is the one you want.
Lots guys like 180s , and they will work also. If you get a good hit on a deer with a 165 grain 30,06 load , your hunt is over.
...tj3006

quote:

Originally posted by Hamish:
Gidday Guys,

Jeez Wayne, its only a bloody whitetail you are trying to tip over.

I would worry about being over gunned with a 150 ballistic tip but would use it with confidence. On another thread I asked what you guys are feeding your deer so that they grow body armour and no one came back to me with an answer.Hamish

Words of wisdom from way down under. roger

If your a target shooter, you probably have had good experiences with a Sierra bullet. Their GameKing's are fine for deer and are usually very accurate. By the way, their 220RN will open up just fine on Whitetail.

Whichever 150-165 bullet shoots the most accurately from your rifle should work fine. It is only a whitetail, after all. I have never found them that hard to kill and certainly not with a 308 size bullet from a '06.

Is is one of the easiest questions to answer.


THE ONE YOU HAVE IN YOUR GUN WHEN YOU HAVE TO SHOOT A WHITETAIL.

I have had great success with Hornadys new Interbond bullet,but then again I have killed too many deer to count with the old Interlock that has been around for years.Drop-Shot

What twist rate is the barrel of your gun?

Use that to determine what weight bullet would be a good start, and then decide what bullets in that weight would be a good choice. As pointed out, deer are pretty easy to kill so I'd pick something made for hunting that shoots good in your rifle

In the 30-06 I really like the Hornady 165gr BTSP

quote:

Originally posted by MajorCaliber:
In the 30-06 I really like the Hornady 165gr BTSP

Yup, me too. This is a very fine bullet for deer. But then it don't take much either.

My choice for Whitetails for the last 27 years has been the Sierra 165 HPBT Gameking. Consistently accurate, consistently deadly. The bullet is designed to expand reliably at long-ish ranges in full throttle '06 and magnum loads. That makes it downright explosive at close range. I throttle it back to .300 Savage velocity and get A. Even better accuracy B.Less "commotion" after the trigger gets pulled (no small consideration in my 6 3/4 lb. re-barreled Guild gun) C. still very impressive performance.

On another note, for "sh*ts and giggles," try a 180-190gr. medium hard cast bullet at around 1900-2000 fps. Don't laugh, that load will do the trick on Whitetails too. Impressively, in my experience. Duplicates the old .303 Savage which accounted for as many deer kills a hundred years ago as anything else.

Just my $00.02 worth!

Scott,

Your post does not define the ranges that the bullet will be used nor the shot angles etc. Some will only take easy shots at 60 yds and others wing away with going away shots and might even shoot at long range.

In general I have found that 180 gr bullets are a little tough for whitetails on broadside shots. I have not used the 180 Nolser Ballistic Tip but I read that Nosler has toughened up that bullet for heavier game than deer.

A buddy uses a 30-06 for deer and takes tough shots. Most ranges are under 200 yds and he loads the 150 Partiton to the max. I have a 308 ready for deer and am practicing with the 150 BT's and I will hunt with the 150 Accubonds.

I only load 150's and 165's in the 30-06, but I want to try out the lighter TSX's

MRX? I can buy 2-1/2 times as many TSX's for the same money.... and I can't imagine needing that tungsten core...

AllanD

depends on the energy on impact and the bullet weight

I use a 30-06 BAR for deer, I have shot deer with bullets weights 150, 165, 180 and 220. I found the deadliest was the lighter 150's, doesn't matter whether it is a RN or spire and not a premium. I shot one at 125 yds and I thought I missed it but the deer dropped on the trigger pull and when I recovered from the recoil I thought it run off until my buddy told me it dropped on the shot/ I killed another one at about 10 yards when it ran by me and instant death, neither bullets exited
I like premium bullets for bigger game but deer aren't hard to kill just a smaller target than a moose and if you plan on taking full body angle shots either move up to the 165's or 150 premium like partitions or the like

165gn ballistic tips. Used them for years with zero problems

Theres some great stuff so far, lets keep it coming.


Ill give you a little more info as well. Ive seen deer from other states, and let me be the first to brag, our deer in northern michigan can get pretty big, and Id hate to loose a big deer because I was only planning on shooting a little one. Make sense? That being said, idealy I would want a bullet that is designed to transfer all of its energy to the target, and not just zip right through. At the same time, Im not looking to use a varmint bullet that will blow up on impact and barely make it through the hide.

As for how long of a shot? Im a firm believer in be comfortable with my shots. I cant name a distance Im will to shoot without knowing exactly what type of groups Im getting and just what the drop rate is. While I do have chances for a 300 yard plus shot, I doubt I would take it.