Thread: .30-06 loads for elk and deer

I have been hunting with a .270. I have switched to .30-06. I was wondering if anyone has a favorite deer or elk load. There are so many choices of powder and bullets. I will be hunting north of Madras. Rocky canyons but pretty open. My shooting talent shot limit is about 300 yards. I might try 400 yards prone, with a rest, no wind and the animal tied to a tree broadside. Seriously, I am not ready yet for long shots. My new rifle is a Savage 116 with Accu-trigger and Accu-stock. I will not have sufficient range time to be real comfortable with it.


Given these variables, anyone care to share?

I use 180 gr for deer and elk. Try a couple of different loads your rifle It might shoot 150gr or 165gr bullets better.

Do you use the same for both deer and elk? What powder do you use? I have fooled around with 4320 and Varget. At 100 yards there hasn't been much difference.

My 30-06 really shoots well with a 165 gr bullet. Recoil is less than with the heavier bullets and accuracy is great well beyond 300 yards. I would consider something like a Nosler Partition 165 gr and use H-4895. This powder and the 30-06 were literally made for each other. Good speeds and pressures well within the limits of any rifle. Varget is OK but the nod for me goes to H-4895 in this caliber.

Originally Posted by svg4

I have been hunting with a .270. I have switched to .30-06. I was wondering if anyone has a favorite deer or elk load. There are so many choices of powder and bullets. I will be hunting north of Madras. Rocky canyons but pretty open. My shooting talent shot limit is about 300 yards. I might try 400 yards prone, with a rest, no wind and the animal tied to a tree broadside. Seriously, I am not ready yet for long shots. My new rifle is a Savage 116 with Accu-trigger and Accu-stock. I will not have sufficient range time to be real comfortable with it.


Given these variables, anyone care to share?

If you don't have time for the range before the season then I wouldn't recommend reloads.

I have found in my new smith and wesson and my old remington 30- 06 43gr of h4895 under a 165gr spbt bullet is as accurate as I can be. I dont go out past 200-250yrds myself.

Originally Posted by svg4

I have been hunting with a .270. I have switched to .30-06. I was wondering if anyone has a favorite deer or elk load. There are so many choices of powder and bullets. I will be hunting north of Madras. Rocky canyons but pretty open. My shooting talent shot limit is about 300 yards. I might try 400 yards prone, with a rest, no wind and the animal tied to a tree broadside. Seriously, I am not ready yet for long shots. My new rifle is a Savage 116 with Accu-trigger and Accu-stock. I will not have sufficient range time to be real comfortable with it.


Given these variables, anyone care to share?

We'll be working up loads using Barnes 180gr TSX HPBT over IMR4064 for my new Savage 111. That's the plan anyway...

I opted out of the Accu-stock and may regret that decision, finding an aftermarket stock for a lefty bolt may be a bit expensive...

Originally Posted by Hotwheelz

I dont go out past 200-250yrds myself.

Old hunting rule I learned (or was it a rule for old hunters), "never shoot an animal any farther from the truck than you want to pack it".

Luckiest hunter I ever knew was a friend in Alaska. Lived on a homestead near Big Lake. One evening a young bull moose was heading towards his vegetable patch. My friend dropped the moose about 6' from the "A-Frame" he used to work on his machinery. Got to dress out the carcass standing up for a change.

Dear load is much different for me I use 168gr bullet and 55 grains of "big game" powder. I can get you all the specifics c.o.l ect
brand of bullets ect if you would like to try it. I got the load from my brother in law who put a ton of time into figuring this one out.

Originally Posted by Hotwheelz

I have found in my new smith and wesson and my old remington 30- 06 43gr of h4895 under a 165gr spbt bullet is as accurate as I can be. I dont go out past 200-250yrds myself.

this sounds like a solid dear load as well.

I've reloaded the .30-06 most of my life and I've found that 180 grains bullets and IMR4350 is the best combination you can get. Take your loads right out of the Hornady manual and you will have no problems. If your shooting them out of a semi auto try the slightly faster powders first. 4895 is an old military powder that worked well for the military and still does today. You may not get optimum speeds for the 180 out of it though. The military used it with a 150 grain bullet. The .30-06 has a good track record and the reloading manuals are the best source for the specific loads. There isn't a powder bullet combination that hasn't been tried somewhere someplace by someone.

Every 30-06 I have owned liked IMR 4350. I currently use 55 grains under a 165gr Partition. Some claim a 180gr bullet stabilizes better in the 06, but dead animals didn't seem to notice. This combination is not the latest whiz-bang, but it is very accurate and consistent. Ken

Another here who loves both 4895 & 4350...

150/165/168gr = 4895
180gr = 4350

I find the Hodgdon version of both powders are a bit shorter cut & tend to run thru the powder measure more uniformly than IMR. Of course, IMR & H versions are NOT interchangeable... standard reloading precautions apply (start low & work up, reference several manuals, etc)

I shoot 180gr Ballistic Tips for deer and 180gr Partitions for elk. I think in the future I will give the Accubond (also in 180gr) a try. I've given thought to using some 165gr bullets, but all of my rifles have grouped the 180s well enough that I haven't wanted to start a whole new load development cycle, yet! I have to think that the good 165gr bullets can carry more speed than the 180s out of the muzzle and will have a bit flatter trajectory.
I've been using RL22 for the last several years. My Rugers would not take a max load from the manual without reaching what I considered signs of excessive pressure, but matched factory loaded 180gr ammo's velocity. My Kimber seems to have no trouble with near max loads (after having worked up to them) and will poke the 180gr bullets out of a 24" barrel at 2800fps.
The max load for my Rugers was 59.5gr of RL22 and the Kimber is comfortable with 60.5gr.
My data has come from the Nosler manual.

Imr4350 @ 56.0 grains
180g hornidy accubond btsp
Remington 700-30.06- 22"

Can't believe I'm the first to ask why the .270 was forsaken.

Hope this doesn't "start something".

Originally Posted by Spitpatch

Can't believe I'm the first to ask why the .270 was forsaken.

Hope this doesn't "start something".

Maybe because the .308 performs just as well with the benefit of being able to use all those bullets left over from loading for a 30-06.

I use 4895 for all my -06s...44.5 behind 168gr HPBT in military brass for the M1 and 49.5gr behind 168gr HPBT in commercial cases for my Remmy 742. Both are accurate and reliable functioning with these loads.

I would go with 180g Nosler partition with IMR4831 or 165g with IMR4350. 4350 for me works very well with 180g but some people think its a little fast for the lighter lead. I recently spent a bunch of time dialing in 180g with 4831, but ran out right before the hunt. Loaded up with the 4350 on 180g and pattern was a little bigger than with the 4831. Nonetheless, next day shot two wild boar with this load and both went down instantly. I hit one from about 150 yards in the neck and it had a huge exit wound, plus the brain was literally turned into oatmeal from the shock. 30-06 loves these powders.

Originally Posted by BBDartCA

I would go with 180g Nosler partition with IMR4831 or 165g with IMR4350. 4350 for me works very well with 180g but some people think its a little fast for the lighter lead. I recently spent a bunch of time dialing in 180g with 4831, but ran out right before the hunt. Loaded up with the 4350 on 180g and pattern was a little bigger than with the 4831. Nonetheless, next day shot two wild boar with this load and both went down instantly. I hit one from about 150 yards in the neck and it had a huge exit wound, plus the brain was literally turned into oatmeal from the shock. 30-06 loves these powders.

4350 is a GREAT powder for '06 loads. It's just about perfect for both the bullets you listed.

My '06 does fantastic with a 165 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip's shooting sub MOA groups. Considering it's a 1903 A3 with an Oct. 1942 barrel on it, that's more than adequate. Of the 5 or 6 powders I tested with this rifle the 4350 was far and above the best.