Well, the 25/06 is pretty popular, as most of the manufacturers still chamber their rifles for it. It may have lost some of it's luster to the big craze for short action calibers, but it's still one of the best rounds for varmints to deer. If you ever shoot a deer with one, you'll be amazed, it packs quite a punch, much like the .270. The 25/06 has the same spectacular accuracy as any of the other 30/06 based cartridges, with mild recoil.

So I have a 25-06 to shoot now. I've never had a long action rifle of my own, so this is a first.

Seems to me the .250 savage it great, the .257 roberts is even better, so that should make the 25-06 spectacular! So why does no one I've talked to have any experience with it? Who shoots them, or has toyed around with them? On paper it's shamed by the .270, and the 6mm rem isn't far behind.

It's a savage 110, with the new accu-trigger, blue/synthetic. I'm going to keep it loaded with 90 grain positive expanding points, and see how she shoots at 300 yards. Long shot I know, but this caliber should match up for this kind of shooting and what I'll use it for. I picked the quarterbore mainly for recoil reduction compared to the .270, and the lightweight bullets, plus it was close enough to being 6.5 caliber which is what I really wanted.

79

I have shoot a 25-06 for several years now and it does anything but suck. I have a Remington 700 sendero that has been on every p-dog outing that I have had the pleasure to experience, loaded with 75 grain v-max it will reach out and touch'em so far at a confirmed 750 yards and 87 grain speer sp at 960 yards. Can't quite hit the 1000 yard mark....yet. For deer it has been the same story, the longest shot was about 325 yards with the 100 grain Barnes X bullets. A couple of good friends also have quarterbores as well, one thing they all have in common is the dislike for 120 grain factory ammo. Can't get them to group worth a damn. Have fun with it.

I agree with JB. It's an awesome cartridge. I've also got a Model 700 Sendero in .25-06, and it's a hummer! I cannot find a load with 100 to 120 grain bullets that it won't group. Makes it kinda hard to settle down on one load. My buddy has a Browning BBR in .25-06 that he loves because it is a highly accurate, lightweight hunting arm. Sure it won't handle heavy bullets, but for thin skinned game, it's hard to find a flatter shooting, easy to load round.

Hi fellas. I'm new to this forum so hello to all. I too have a Sendero in 25-06 and haven't had a lot of luck in grouping. Granted I haven't really wrung it out yet. What loads are recommended? I have used 51gr of IMR 4350 with RP brass once fired in the rifle, Rem primers and Sierra 100gr BTSP. I got this receipe from a Lyman relaoding manual. The groups were nothing to write home about. Any suggestions?

s3v3, BLASPHEMY!!!! If I could only have one rifle (GOD forbid that being made law!!!) it would be a 25-06 in some variation! If not a SENDERO, then the custom one I would bild for myself(been there, done that!!) Loaded with 49.0 grains of IMR 4350 behind a 117 grain Sierra Spitzer Boat Tail, ......a deadly deer rifle! If I had to shoot a deer at this moment with the guarantee(nothing is guaranteed with a deer!!) that it would fall within 30 yards of bullet impact....that would be the load!!! Albeit bullet placement plays a role in this but there have been a semi truck load of deer that have fallen to this load from a host of rifles over the years within the stated "30 yard" distance!!! Now you want to shoot varmints a long ways off? Load you up some 85 grain Nosler BT's ahead of 57.0 grains of Reloader 19 and see what happens. Or you may opt for the 100 grain Speer Hp ahead of 51 grains of IMR 4350. Wanta sizzle one down the bore? Go to 59.0 grains of H 4831 and the 75 grain VMax!!!! You mentioned the 90 grain PEP Winchester in your post. That just may be the single most "DEVASTATING" varmint bullet ever!! Pushed by the aforementionted load of 57.0 grains of Reloader 19.....veritable "disintergration" load for varmints!!! Acrobatics from even BIG GROUNDHOGS!!! Oh yes, I forgot to mention that the 25-06 is a fair to middling antelope rifle!! A plumb good mule deer rifle and generally about the most perfect combination gun to be had!!! I shoot the 6's! .243's and 6mmRem.....fine rounds!! Super varminters!!! No 25-06 though!!! I know there are those that will beg to differ with this post and especially the last statement but I cannot be moved from my position!!! If you've got a Sendero that won't shoot.....you are a rare person! If you've got a Savage that won't shoot, likewise! Respectfully, GHD....pastor at the church of GHD, 25-06!!!

I have a Savage 110 in 25-06 it was a special run a couple of decades ago, it has a stainless barrel with black finish in a higher grade Walnut stock. Pretty much any factory ammo shoots just over the 1" mark. Hornady 117 HSSP hit deer like a lightning bolt. I was very surprized the first time one took a step after being hit. I thought I'd missed, but it only went about 15 yds. I have made a few honest 500yd shots on deer with spectacular results.

I knew with a title like this my post would get some attention

I had been wrestling with what caliber to buy in a rifle for months now, something between a .243 (too small) and a .270 (too big).
I was stuck on a 6.5 swede for quite a while, but I knew I would have to handload for the ballistics I wanted. Honestly the .25-06 just never really came to mind, but when it did, it just worked so well, I placed my order the next day.
I'm really excited to try it out, And for $449.00 with scope and sling, I couldn't complain. (BTW WalMart stores don't sell firearms in CA anymore, which is a good thing).
Water jugs and produce will now learn to fear me at even greater distances!

79

The 25-06 and .270 with similar weight bullet will have about identical recoil. The bullet weight stops at 120 for the 25-06 but goes much higher for the .270. But the 25-06 will go lower on bullet weight, for my purposes that's a so what. It's still blasty and more recoil than I want for a night of shooting jackrabbits from inside a pickup. Even if my hunting partner is doing the shooting--too much blast. Milder .22 centerfires work much better. An exception to this is using cast bullets with lower velocities,lower pressure and much less blast--both the .270 and the 25-06 work great. I use cast bullets for this type shooting in the .22's as well. So for me the question becomes why not get the .270 instead of a 25-06? I have no answer. I do like the old .257 Roberts and it's true the 25-06 has some velocity on it,but it aint earth shattering difference. I realize the 25-06 works great on antelope for example--but doesn't the .270 or .257 Roberts? I just consider it a fine answer when there was no question. That's just me, from the sales since about 68/69 when Remington brought it out and the wildcats before that it's obvious many disagree.

I had a Ruger 1V in .25/'06. It was very accurate, and could produce 3200 FPS MV with Nosler 115-grain Partitions and Sierra 117-grain PSPBT's using Norma N205 and MRP. I used it as a central Texas whitetail rifle, and never had to shoot a deer more than once with it, regardless of range! I think very highly of the .25/'06, and think it would be hard to beat for any game up to elk. It might be on the light side for a big bull elk, but maybe not if you used aBarnes X bullet.

Shame on you!!!

I beleive that the 25-06 belongs and should have a place reserved in everyones gunsafe. I have shot more critters (Deer, antelope, rockchucks, ground hogs, fox, yotes...The list go's on!) with my Rem. 700 25-06 than I care to count.

25-06 sucks! You should receive 25 lashings for that statement.

Ben

I think the 270 is great. But for deer I use the 25/06 or the 257 AI. Performance on deer (130gr 270 or 117gr/120gr in 257) is indistinguishable. But with the 25/06 or the 257AI (or a reloaded Roberts) the recoil is light enough that I can watch the reaction of the deer to the shot. With a 270, the recoil, while not objectionable, is just enough to lift the barrel so that I can't see the deer's reaction.

Olarmy--Seeing the deers reaction with 25-06 but not the .270 would make me think you are comparing a heavier bullet in the .270 with a much lighter one in the 25-06? I suspect you already know this as indicated by the 130 grain and 120 grain comparisons you made. BTW San Angelo here--what town in Texas you from?

The reactions I've seen mos times from the impact of the 117 Sierras and the 25-06 have been that the deer went about 2 feet....straight down!!! GHD

s3v3ntyn1n3,

.25-06 sucks?

I would wait until I know the Crown Prince of the Quarter Bores better before asking a question like that. I have been shooting the .25-06 since before Remington adopted it and gave it their name. I own three .25-06�s(Ruger No. 1b, Ruger M77V(older tang safety model) and a Remington M700 BDL Varmint) at this point in time and all three are super accurate. My deer load this year is going to be the Barnes 100 gr. TSX ahead of 50.9 gr. of RE 22 for 3,430 fps.. Best part is it groups right at 1/2� out of my Ruger M77V. Most times a deer won�t move, except down, after being hit with a good bullet from a .25-06. Personally you have a accurate rifle and cartridge combination that should give you years of great service. Just because your friends don�t know about the .25-06 means it sucks. Just means maybe your friends need to learn about better cartridges? Lawdog

I have a 25-06. It shoots about 0.5 moa. I shot a buck at close range about a month ago with it. I used a popular 100 gr bullet at about 3300 fps. The bullet hit bone at the surface and fragmented. The total wound depth was less than six-inches. The deer was not mortally wounded. We did get him killed though with follow-up shots.



I have killed deer and hogs with a multitude of calibers. My observation is that if the velocity get over about 3000 fps the terminal bullet performance becomes critical. Ordinary soft points tend to blow up, in the animal, on close range shots. You end up using fancy bullets. That is fine but you really have not gained much because the controlled exapansion types, like partitions, make a smaller wound channel. Most big game is not killed way out yonder, it is usually killed at less than 100 yards. So we are shooting a rig that is not really suited to the shots that are normally used to take game.



"But, the trajectory is flatter and I can shoot to 400 yards or more." Well maybe you can but, most guys can't do it with certainty in the field. The cement bench and sand bags is a different thing than shooting at real game in real condiitons. So, you may or may not be able to kill reliably way out there. I personally prefer to get closer and up the odds.



The super fast small caliber cartridges have their place. If you are hunting small animals that really are way out there, like antelope on public land, I think you may have something.



So where does this leave us. Next year I will be shooting a Pre '64 M-70 FW, with a 2-7x Leupold in .308. I plan on using 165 or maybe even 180 grain plain jane soft points. That sounds mighty old fashoned you say. Well in reality you give up about 75 yards of point blank range. That drops the maximum no hold over range to right at 300 yards. Sounds like pleanty to me. That big slow bullet will expand nicely and plow through. The rifle is light, short, smooth and reliable. To my way of thinking it is a better hunting tool than a screaming fast light bullet fired from a heavier longer rifle.



Others disagree, that is fine.



Truth is most of harvesting big game is about the skill of the hunter and not so much the rifle. Your 25-06 will kill game just fine. I would stick with 115 or 120 grain controlled expansion bullets.

I have been researching the 25-06 for a while and based on much reading and many recommendations would like to get one. What would you recommend Winchester, Ruger, Rem, or?

in a good bolt.

thanks