Currently this is the leading contender to be the new barrel on a Mark X .30-06 that is slightly redundant and never has shot the way I'd like.

Who likes it? Who doesn't? Why or why not?

If you like it, what game do you like it for and with what bullet?

Finally, what barrel contour would you use? The 24" .30-06 barrel I have is probably a #1 (it's under .600" at the muzzle, as best I recall) and balances well for me.

John

A good deer, varmit caliber and with care you well be able to take bigger game. If I were going to shoot mostly varmits I would go with a 6mm instead. My sons ruger no 1 shoots serria 117bt at just over 3000 fps thru the crony. I wouldn't feel uneasy taking elk with it as long as I coulnd make sure of broad side shot. Iam going to load up some 87grs for p dogs this year they should blown up.

I don't own one, but have seen one in use a couple of times. Great round for deer and pronghorn. A little light for elk though. I guess if you loaded it with Barnes X bullets it would probably work though.

If I was going after elk I'd want more bullet weight than it can offer. Just my opinion, but after taking and seeing taken over 100 elk my opinion should have some merit.

Mac

The first 25-06 that I had was a Mark X that I stocked for varmiting. That action has since become a 375 Whelen. I now have a Remington Sendero in 25-06.
In the Mark X I found that 100 grain Speer hollow points were pure poison to way out yonder. I never tried it on anything larger then Virginia ground hogs, although this rifle did shoot 120 grain Sierras well. The Remington is for groundhogs. I've not shot anything it but Sierra 100 Match Kings and 117 grain bthps. Both did well if I cleaned the barrel frequently.
Jim

For varmints and pronghorn there are better choices that shoot lighter bullets just as well and recoil a bit less . For deer and the occasional elk, there are better choices that shoot heavier bullets just as well and kick just a bit more . But for the hunting of ALL of the above, the .25-06 is fabulous .

[ 11-16-2002, 20:38: Message edited by: Nickudu ]

I love my 25/06. It is a Weatherby Lightweight Synthetic. I will be taking it deer hunting again next week. Last year I took a buck at 90 yards. 90 X bullet boat tail. Full charge of IMR 4831. It shoots about 3400 fps depending on conditions and powder lot. This little bullet fully penerated with a 3" exit wound. Very devistating. Very easy to load for also. I highly recommend it. It is light for elk if you hunt that. (I have other bigger rifles for that). Have fun

Hcliff

Well John, I guess I will have to throw my two cents in here as well.

The 25-06 is a very usefull cartridge and I find myself reaching in the safe for mine more all the time.

For use on varmints, it is a little large, I admit. It does kick too much for extended use on prairie dogs and it gets hot pretty quick. But, it will reach out there and make those long shots when not much else will. A friend never misses a chance to give me heck about a time we were shooting ground squirrels at an outrageous distance and he was out shooting me terribly using his 25-06 while I shot my 22-250. And for putting coyotes on the ground, it is a top choice.

For big game it is great so long as you do not go trying to make an elk or moose gun out of it. I have used it sucessfully on deer, antelope, and a whole pile of wild hogs. Never had a problem with it on any of them. I have shot wild hogs with the 100 grain Nosler Partition, the 115 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip, the Nosler 115 grain Partition, the 120 grain Sierra HP, they all worked quite well.

As big game rifles go, it recoils less than most and shoots flatter than most, so I like it.

In regard to the barrel, you are on the right track, stick with 24 inch length and get that countour and you will do well. My rifle has a Lilja barrel on it and shoots really well, they are great barrels.

R F

You'd have to ask my youngest son about his 25-06. He stole mine about 3yrs. age and I can't seem to get it back.

The 25-06 is a truly kickass mule deer, whitetail and pronghorn round. It shoots flat and hits hard enough for all of these species and it doesn't have much recoil.

When I lived in Montana, I would have to hunt with my 30-06 until my wife filled her tag and then I could get my rifle back. She doesn't like recoil and she shoots this rifle very well.

I really liked 100 grain corelokts for all of the aforementioned critters. I tried the Nosler 100 grain Ballistic Tips and while they were very accurate and chronographed well they didn't seem to kill as good as the corelokts. ( More testing may be in order as I moved to Arizona after using this bullet for one season) My wife also shot one cow elk with this rifle. I loaded 120 grain Speer bullets. (I couldn't get Nosler partitions) She put the bullet through the front shoulder inside of 100 yards and the core exited but the jacket stayed under the hide on the exit side. The elk didn't go very far but I still think this rifle is a little light for elk. I'm sure there are a lot of other great bullets for this rifle but I haven't tried them.

I'm still looking for my perfect elk rifle but for deer and smaller, this one is it for me. I've also used it on prarie dogs and while a bit large it wasn't my primary dog shooter. I only used it when my 22-250 barrel was too hot. If you can hit grass rats at 300 yards with a rifle, prarie goats are a sure thing with that rifle. Enough said it's one of my favorite rounds.

Migra

John,
I've owned a 25-06 now for 31 years. Bought a Rem 700 BDL first thing when I got out of the service. Had the trigger worked just a bit, that's all. I used to practice with my 87 gr. Sierra reloads on starlings. All that was left was a puff of feathers! That same load worked great on groundhogs as well. For our Pennsylvania whitetails good old 100 gr. Remington Core-Lokt's do the trick. Not wanting to waste my GI Bill of Rights benefits, I went off to Penn State University. While I was away, some thief decided he needed all my guns more than I did. 12 years later it was returned, less the bolt...had the factory proof it with a new bolt but it couldn't hit the broad side of a barn so re-barreled to 338-06 Ackley Improved. In the meantime I came across a used Colt-Sauer that was reported to have taken plains game in So. Africa. I now use it on whitetails with the Barnes 'X' 85 gr. with AA3100 powder. In Aug '04 it's gonna be my light rifle on my first safari to Namibia for plains game. That old Remington is gonna be the heavy rifle.
Both my rifles had 24" sporter-weight barrels. Never miked the muzzle diameter of either. The Colt-Sauer heats up a bit quicker than the Remington did when fired too quickly, but we all know it's the first shot that counts, right?
Why do I like this caliber? I liked it's wildcat history, it's bullet speed, it's versatility on varmints up to deer and black bear. I guess the bottom line is that it killed everything that needed killing--quick and humane, if I did my part. All in all a very likable caliber. And if you handload your own ammo like I do, you'll find that's it's not finicky to load development. If I can keep the thieves away, I'll have mine 'till the day I die, I like it that much!!

The 25-06 is one fine cartridge for Caribou, deer, antelope, yotes and chucks. The 25-06 is noted as being hard on barrels. If only used for big game hunting the bore will last a long time. I find the 26" medium heavy barrel length is perfect for all hunting venues. Those very light weight barrels give to much muzzle jump in a cartridge like the 25-06 with it's recoil. Short light weight barrels are easy to carry but are not going to give you the best in the field shooting success with thier muzzle jump. My medium heavy barreled 25-06 is one fine shooting game getter. Shot placement is the key to harvesting any game animal no matter what cartridge your using. A well balanced hunting rifle you can shoot well will do the job.

Thanks all for the info -- my only real concern was barrel life and heating but we have no prairie dogs in Virginia and I suspect I won't shoot it out on groundhogs! With the time it takes barrels to cool in a Virginia summer, I probably won't shoot it out on targets, either.

I handled a Remington 700 in a gunshop today -- used BDL with a barrel that looked about the same size as my current one though with a smaller hole in it. Balanced fine so I believe I'll go that route -- #1 or #2, whatever it looks to be when I mike it.

What scopes do you guys like for your .25-06s? I'd like something suitable for the broad range of uses -- from hunting whitetails in the woods and fields, to stalking groundhogs. My only prejudice is against observatory-sized objective lenses, and anything that retails more than about $400.

John

[ 11-18-2002, 05:43: Message edited by: John Frazer ]

John,

You can successfully hunt everything in Virginia with a .25-06. (I'm one of those eccentrics who hunts small game with squib loads in my deer rifle.) I had one that liked 75 grainers under a max charge and it simply pureed groundhogs inside the skin inside 300 yards.

Enjoy.

John-
The Nikon Monarch 4-12x40 will serve you quite well and is priced around $315-325. For the price, there is no scope on the market that tops the Monarch when ALL critical areas of optical performance are considered.

On scopes.

I put an ancient 10x Weaver on anything I use for varmints and a fixed 2.5x or 4x on general purpose rifles. You can get away with cheap scopes if you stick to fixed powers.

I bought a 25-06 Rem 700 BDL this year and I love it. The ultra light recoil makes range sessions much more fun. Many of the supporters of this round tout it's effectiveness and I have seen nothing to contradict their praise as I took 1 doe with it so far and she dropped on the spot. That's the kind of performance I like. I think it's Ol' Sarge who always quotes,"It kills like chain-lightnin'". I love that!!

It is a great cartridge for animals up to, say, 200 pounds. Whoever said it works great on coyotes isn't joking! A wonderful whitetail round, I think a little bit larger would be a good thing for elk. Not that you couldn't kill one but it would HAVE to be in the ribs or neck to be reliable, and you can't hit the shoulder to be reliable at all.

John, you have some good responses here. This is a good board with lots of knowledgable shooters.

In regard to scopes, I have a Leupold 4.5 X 14 Vari-X III on my 25-06. Probably more scope than I need, but I like the darned thing.

I would readily recommend just about any decent 3X9 for use on the 25-06. However, the Leupold VX II 4X12 would seem like a good option these days. (A good deal cheaper than the 4.5X 14)

R F

John,
If you're not just whistlin' Dixie about 'stalking' groundhogs, then a low power fixed or compact variable would make the whole rig a little lighter to carry. I am partial to the 2x7x36mm Leupold makes. But I also have a 6-18 power waiting in the wings if I ever get the chance to go after pronghorn. I think the 25-06 should be dandy on them, too.