For a cartridge that has taken all known game animals in North America and most Plains animals in Aficia and has done it very well- someone please tell me when did this grand cartridge become inadequate for everything but deer? Even though its killed all of these game animal and was the standard/father for many different cartridges.
If you haven't guessed I'm not a MAGNUM GUY! Don't own one, never will! If there was an all-around cartridge the '06 is it!

The range is now open!!! Fire at will

[ 12-31-2002, 23:48: Message edited by: Gunnut45/454 ]

Agreed.

However, the major gun companies have to continually come out with something new to stay competetive. That is what has lead to all the new and improved stuff. If all I was going to do was hunt deer and similar game in North America, I'd happily carry an 06, but since most of my shooting is on the plains and in open country I generally use a 7mm Mag. Not necessarily any better,just what I'm used to.

The 30-06 never stopped doing what it is designed for, but the companies can no longer lk it for anything.

Mac

I agree in a way, but I also understand that companies must develop new catridges to spark interest and keep people buying guns. If everyone purchased a 30-06 and used it to hunt everything the world of firearms would be very boring. I too am not a huge magnum fan, I prefer the "classics" such as 257 Roberts, 7x57, 300 Savage in favor of owning something different. But I have the luxury of hunting on my own land, if I were spending a lot of money to go on the hunt of a lifetime I would probably bring something that is adequate in any situation I would encounter.

Beats heck out of me. I have used 30/06 twice in Africa now and have taken game from Kudu / Elk / Oryx and down. Has worked for me everytime. Maybe that is why I own 6 30/06 rifles.

The only problem I see in buying an 06 as your first centerfire rifle -- as I did -- is that you then have only the flimsiest of reasons to buy your next rifle.

While the 06 can be used with a reduced load and cast bullets for gray squirrel hunting, a .22LR is really much better for that job. And while some 06's shoot light bullets reasonably well, the BC on 110s and 125s isn't really very good, so the 06 isn't the best for 300-400 yard PD shooting. That gives you a semi-valid reason to buy a .22-250 or the like.

But you're exactly right that if the critter is bigger than a loaf of bread and roams North America, the 06 will work nearly as well as anything developed since the Springfield. The only time I might want more gun would be if I were out West and thought I might round a turn and be facing a grizzly at point blank range. Even then, it'd be hard to beat something like a 220 grain Partition.

kentucky Fisherman,

Great reply. It took me twenty years to get a rifle larger than my -06. Never needed it. Honestly, I probably still don't but wanted a .338 WM.

-M

The 30-06 is the standard by which all rifle cartridges in the US are judged. There is probably no better balanced rifle/cartridge than a good, light, bolt action rifle in 30-06.

It can shoot bullets from 125gr to 250gr. Dependent upon loading, it can shoot point blank into a six inch circle out to 275yds. It is very, very versatile. As we are seeing in post on this board, loaded to its full potential, it comes close to matching magnum performance.

The only real reason for going to a magnum is to deal with those situations in which you know going in, because of the terrain and hunting conditions, that you will be shooting at 300yds and further at game requiring at least a 180gr bullet. Now don't start with this, "just get closer" stuff. Sometimes, you just aren't going to get any closer, like when you hunt white springbok. At shorter ranges or with lighter bullets, the 30-06 is all you need. A 30-06 will do for non-dangerous game up to kudu and elk size. It has applications on dangerous game, but it is not the rifle I'd reach for if that was what I was hunting. Ku-dude

I have hunted for years here in alaska with a .375 h&h. This year i have decided to use the 30.06, vey cabable of taking any thing i shoot at , even brown bear. I say this because my friend , a big game guide has used his .06 on everything and continues to do so.

When the gun companys and gun writers decided that they had to have somthing new and differant to sell and write about.The 06 is a fine round I have 5 but that hasn't stopped me from buying other interisting rounds when the right deal comes up.

About the same time the big gun companys and the editors of the gunrags discovered that American shooters would buy the belted magnums in gross lot quanities.

Good Shooting,
HBB

There's nothing wrong with the .30-06. I used to own one. Great cartridge for just about any type of hunting situation, but the .338 Win. Mag. excels and is superior in just about every situation than the 30-06 does, and that is what I own now. There's no second-guessing yourself when you have that bear in your sights.

BIGGER IS BETTER.

Well, that is, of course, if you're capable of shooting a mag with confidence.

I love the '06. I probably would have bought one if it wasn't for the 300 WSM that ended up in my closet instead.

Maybe someday . . .

To justify begginning a collection of big bore rifles that I REALLY NEED...

AK nimrod,yes,you may be. And yes,he is a "real guide" The .06 was used for many years but after a phone call and clarification he uses a .338 now because of what you mentioned before re: mad bears.

The .30-06 will never be obsolete as a good all-around hunting cartridge. I started out hunting with a .30-06 thirty years ago, and I still have that first '06 rifle, which I purchased with summer hay money when I just turned fifteen.

It's a perfect round for anyone who wants a widely-available cartridge with sufficient power and a reasonably flat trajectory, yet not too much recoil or rifle bulk.

Even so, I'll play devil's advocate a bit and state that I don't hunt with the .30-06 much any more. I've found that the 7mm magnums and .300 magnums will do all that the '06 will do plus more, as will the .338s and .375s. When you hear the age-old rhetoric that there's "nothing more versatile than the .30-06", don't believe it. It's one of those catch-phrase statements that gets repeated without conscious thought all too often to suit me.

When Jim Carmichel made his famous statement (and every word of it weighs a pound), "There is no shortage of all-purpose rifles - where are the all-purpose hunters?", he wasn't kidding one little bit.

In a lot of ways, the .30-06 is more of an icon that it is anything else, especially with once-a-year hunters who are unfamiliar with other hunting cartridges, and don't want to know about anything else.

AD

I guess I believe in the "less is more" philosophy. I started deer hunting at age 14. My Dad bought me a REmington 742 carbine in 3006 with a Weaver 2.5x scope (post & crosshair, no less). Perfect woods rifle. Unfortunately, I live in North Dakota. Not much for woods here. Or Bears. Noise with the gun was ferocious, and flame shot out the muzzle in low light. I guess I don't recall how destructive it was on game, but for me it was too much. I spent the next twenty years looking for a balance of power and performance and think I have found it in the 260 remington.
Is the 3006 inadequate- Hell no! If anything, for my hunting at least, it is "over-adequate".

CAL9

Captain's Log: Stardate 115798. The 30-06 has been finally judged obsolete and incapable of killing anything other than deer.

Now you know...

I love the 30-06. It is a great round. It feeds very nicely in bolt actions.

Saying it can fire a very light bullet to a very heavy bullet isn't really true. Many rifle will not fire light bullets or very heavy bullets. Mine dislikes any bullet under 165 grains.

Like RangerDave my '06 (Gr.III BAR) really likes the 180 gr. bullets although it will shoot the 165 Hornady ok. I actually like all the 30's, I've got the BAR, A Ruger 77 RSI in 308, a BLR in 300 Win Mag and a Martini action in 300 Sherwood. The BAR is sort of my base 30 cal, I use the Ruger if I know I'm going to do a lot of walking and shorter range hunting, the BLR when I know all the shots will be long, and the Martini is just for plinking. I also use a 338 Win Mag and a 270 just so everything I own isn't a 30.

Boy I got some feathers ruffled! Thought I would. I was just wanting to know if it was true, what was being said in all the magazines and gun shows? I guess it isn't. Don't think I said that it should be the only rifle folks should own. Otherwise I'd have to take back that new Win 94 in 45 LC I bought. Not going to happen. I guess I just got fed-up with what I was hearing. I have know doupt about what I can take with mine just wanted to see what the Mag boys would have to say. Oh and for the Mag Guys who said there mags are better for the Big Bears- what do think killed all those big bears before the big Mags came along- and killed them just as dead as your Mags!! Yep the 06 and a bunch of other "low powered cartridges!!

[ 01-02-2003, 23:04: Message edited by: Gunnut45/454 ]

The only guy I'm worried about is Harry. What is he doing with six 30.06s?

I can't imagine having two of the same caliber.

Sell five of those guns and take the other one to Africa on the money you made.

Rifle #205 has a piece on marketing new rounds. It ends, "Howard [of Winchester Ammunition] recognizes that he may have to keep the .300 WSM centered in the public eye for years until it can stand on its own merit in a limited market."

In short, the 30-06 is inadeqate because the US economy slowed down just as the 300 WSM came out. The 300 WSM is also why you can't buy a stainless short action M-70 in 308 these days, and it's why we're facing years of articles about gunwriters who get sent on exotic hunts to prove it can hang with the 30-06.

Take it with a grain of salt and check back in ten years. Okie John.

I have lots of magnum rifles (7mmRem.Mag., 7mmSTW, .300Wby., .338 Win.Mag., .375H&H, .470 Capstick) and I use them where I feel the additional power or bullet weight puts the odds in my favor.

If forced to do so, I would be very happy hunting 95% of my game (including African game) with my trusted .30-06.

George

The only 3 guns a worldwide sportsman needs: (1)22LR (2)12 gauge shotgun (3)30-06.

Quick,
Somebody slap the bastard that wrote that last reply before my wife reads it!

yep im sure glad my wife doesnt read these posts . i would have to constantly explain why i need another centerfire lol . she and the kids did suprise me at christmas with my first flintlock . i wont even go into the handgun issue

Well Gunnut, I guess you are not a "Gun Guy" but more of a "hunting guy". There is nothing wrong with that. Just probably belongs on the Hunting Forum. You only buy guns you need. When I say need, I mean if you got a gun for a job, there is no reason to buy more.

Now, I hunt but mostly bowhunt. I mean you don't need no stinking 30-06 for American Game. Just a little more skill, little more patience, and bam, you can do the same thing with an arrow. But I am a gun guy first and formost. I love my guns. Love going to the range with different ones. Love making nice little holes. After all this is a guns page. So is there any reason to boo hooing cause someone gave you more options? I think not. You should be happy.

I used to hunt a lot, many deer seasons in 2-3 states every year. I shot more deer with a .30-06 than any other cartridge. I've taken the cartridge elk and moose hunting, but alas, these were not to be productive hunts. I've personally felt that of all the calibers I own, the 06 is probably the closest to ideal for North American hunting. Not my choice for big bears, especially a charging one, but certainly will work (I never shot a bear with the 06). Not my choice for varmints, but certainly does work (shot many a woodchuck with the 06). IMO the .30-06 is ballistically the best balanced .308 caliber cartridge; and for me, the .308 bullet deliverd by the 06 in appropriate weights will suffice comfortably for anything in North America except for charging bears.

[ 01-03-2003, 05:59: Message edited by: targshooter ]

Hey, BIG COUNTRY!
Which Turkey Creek? I'm on the other end of Long Branch.
Meanwhile back at the ranch,I am tickled to death that we have such a selection of rifles to choose from and that people can afford some of them.
I do have a problem with prople telling the "new guys" that they have to buy an Earsplittenloudenboomer for their first elk hunt etc. Give the poor guy a chance! A good '06 or .270 or 7x57 would be much better than some mid bore with the case capacity of baby bottle.
My Lord, we got people running around the Appalachians with.358's and 8mm RUM's trying to kill Bambi at 75 yds. They shoot the poor animal with a bullet designed for a 800 lb. animal, it doesn't open-up, just blows a hole and some schmuck like me gets to spend the next 8 hrs. looking for it.
Kinda' like the guy that gets a promotion and goes out to buy a new TOUR GLIDE ULTRA, for his first street bike, it might work out, but the potential for disaster is way up there.
But in the end , to each his own



[ 01-03-2003, 06:42: Message edited by: TERRY8mm ]

It never did. With the proper loading and shot placement, it is capable of taking any animal in the world. So there!!! End of discussion!!!

The only problem with the 30.06 is it can't hold bragging rights anymore. Some guys NEED bragging rights.

Through my years of growing old I've seen the 30-30, 270, 30.06, 7mm Mag., .338 Mag all get and give-up bragging rights.

It is the same reason everyone buys new cars and trucks each year. It doesn't have anything to do with the capability of the equipment we already own.

bigcountry
I'm both actually- I love to have new toys, but I get things that are usefull not just to say I got one of those- just never found the usefulness of a gun that kicks the crap out of you for a 200-300 fps extra!!! And it's more to the fact I've never had the kind of money to buy every gun I've wanted -if I had I would probaly own alot more than I do. And who said I've never used a bow? Can you say you've actually touched a deer that you've shot? I have.

Gunnut, don't really understand where your going with this. But what the hey, takes all kinds. You were going on and on about what you need, and I was explaining you sure don't need a 30-06. Needing a 30-06 for deer is about the same as needing a 8mmRemMag for deer. Thats what I am getting at.

Terry, I lived my whole life near the ARH hospital. I mostly stay in MD now for work. My wife is still down there in Martin County. Wierd story. But anyway, I was talking to a guy over Christmas at Uncle Sams, and he was going on about he uses a 338UltraMag for deer. He did drop a nice 19 pt near Louisa, but argued with him about that. Its none of my business what he does, but cracked me up a little.

I don't need the six 30/06 rifles I have nor the 6 Brno 22 Hornets. I did not need the 86 pre 1972 Sako rifles I had in the '80....but I WANTED every damn one of them and that is what really counts.
Owning well over 100 firearms at any one time in my last 25 years would well establish I did not need anymore but I WANTED every one of them and there are still others I must have before leaving this hunting ground.
I also had 6 motorcycles and 5 sailboats all at the same time. Just think how the economy would be today if more fools like me had more money to spend!
You that hoard all that money in your bank account are the cause of a down economy...if you don't spend it you will never get a chance to get it again! Keep the circle going! Get out there and buy just one more firearm!!!!

A boat is a hole in the water that you throw money into.

Seriously, this is an interesting line when you reallize the .30-06 is actually a restandardization of the military round from 1903. Same shell new powder and bullet. 100 years later its still the one to beat.

Both of my answers were taken but, 1) if we all had .30-06's then the rifle makers would be out of business, and 2) the gun rag writters who have proclaimed themselves experts would have nothing to write about.

That was my point Sam, I buy a lot of stuff I don't need, just want. I don't think I even own an '06 anymore, need to look. See what I mean, I've got stuff packed away I haven't seen in years.
I have been more interested in the older, more sedate calibers the last few years, hence my screen name. The mad rush for velocity does make it harde to find what you want sometimes.

Bigcountry, I know what you mean, we moved back in'97. I still travel for work, SCREW MASSEY ENERGY!!! It's great to live here and not be at the mercy of the coal companies. The fact that some monster bucks hang out around the house doesn't hurt either. My son-in-law took a 203" non-typical in '99, from my property.
You a B.H.S. grad too?

From my experience the 30-06 is just too big for some jobs. For example, a perfectly placed neck shot on a mountain grouse at 50 yards will clip the top of the crop. This results in lots of feathers and not much for the soup pot.

What I was trying to say is that the 30-06 is inadequate for grouse. It will take them humanely but too much meat damage.

I think the .30-06 is perfectly adequate for probably 98% of the critters on this planet. I have killed deer and antelope deader that yesterday's puppy love with a .243. Eleanor O'Connor took an elephant with her .30-06. I usually hunt with my .300 H&H simply because that is what I prefer. If for some reason I was limited to only one rifle I sure would not turn down an '06 loaded with a 165 gr Barnes X at max velocity.

[ 01-04-2003, 11:57: Message edited by: WyoJoe ]