.30-06 effective range

[Seeknelk]

Cow at 500...my buddy hit him with a 300shooting 180 accubonds. It only slid up the scapula and parked under same side backstrap sinew! Without any expansion..I think it was a one off.
It gave me a shot with my 30/06 at 630 yards. A 178 eld x in from hornady precision hunter factory loads in her lungs tipped her over in seconds. Golf ball sized exit.
Not really the same thing, but I shot another bull thru the chest 5 times with barnes 130ttsx at 385 yards. He was dead after first shot I suppose, but didn't show too much, and I didn't want him making it over the hill.

 

[3325]

Proper shooting and bullet placement > Bigger hammer in this scenario.

I agree. And for most shooters, shooting and bullet placement gets better with less recoil.

 

[tcpip95]

Never a bad idea to focus on shooting fundamentals. Just be aware that your group size may not be as good as well as actual numbers for dialing for distance may be different.

I periodically use "old" ammo just for practicing fundamentals with some of my rifles. This could be ammo that I grabbed to season the barrel (ex: CoreLok), ammo that I tried to see if my rifle liked (but didn't), etc.

I agree. I have about 1,000 rounds of Barnaul Golden Bear both FMJ and SP. I bought it cheap a few years ago precisely for practicing shooting fundamentals.

 

[JAC8504]

I definitely need to practice more at longer ranges with my 06.

 

[ArcherAdam]

On paper, you still have just over 1,000 ft.pds. of energy at 600 yards so that with proper bullet selection will stop anything that walks in NA. If you are like me...if I do not have a rock solid rest it will not matter. My furthest shot was 358 yards at a bull elk. It did walk off then trot a heart/lung shot and fell after about 50 yards.

I would keep what you have. Unless you go with another Tikka, you will have to learn a new platform which when in autopilot you may revert back to your muscle memory. As well, you will experience additional recoil which could lead to shooting form errors if it can't be controlled. Lastly....any additional costs out of pocket is less tag money!

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

 

[mku140]

We have had good success with the 06 on bull elk up to 550 yards

 

[black dawg]

I am sure there are other bullets as well, but the 178 eldx loaded fast in the 3006 talked me out of carrying my 300wm anymore......

Just the sound difference between a 165 accubond and the 178eldx whacking rocks at 5-600 is pretty impressive

 

[Jackal7]

Just found this thread.

I bought a Tikka T3 30-06 this summer and put Swarovski Z3 glass on it. Reason: I couldn't find ammo for my Sako .270 WSM but found 8 boxes of Nosler Trophy Grade 180 gr Partition 30-06 ammo.

The gun dislikes the Federal loads I had sitting around, but groups the Nosler Partitions well at 200 yards.

I plan on using it on caribou in September 2022. Any reason not to shoot the 180 grain Partitions on that hunt?? I have always shot Accubonds out of my Sako but am new to Nosler Partitions. I am a decent shooter but limit my shots to under 400 yards.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Just found this thread.

I bought a Tikka T3 30-06 this summer and put Swarovski Z3 glass on it. Reason: I couldn't find ammo for my Sako .270 WSM but found 8 boxes of Nosler Trophy Grade 180 gr Partition 30-06 ammo.

The gun dislikes the Federal loads I had sitting around, but groups the Nosler Partitions well at 200 yards.

I plan on using it on caribou in September 2022. Any reason not to shoot the 180 grain Partitions on that hunt?? I have always shot Accubonds out of my Sako but am new to Nosler Partitions. I am a decent shooter but limit my shots to under 400 yards.

Run them. Keep your shot within 450-500 yards and you should be fine.

 

[brandonmacd1]

As far as ballistics you should be good

 

[General RE LEE]

ELD-X reloads in my Tikka T3x 06 are 2750 FPS. That's 1600 FPS/1000 lbs out to 775 yards. That's my whitetail number. Lots of bullet drift though if there is some wind.

 

[wapiti-warren]

I have the same set-up as a couple people on the thread here: Tikka T3x Superlite 30-06. I just started using factory load Hornady Precision Hunter ELD-X 178 grain because in Canada right now it's really hard to find hunting ammo. I previously killed a couple elk using Nosler Partition 180 grain.

Has anyone had experience with the ELD-X with close range shots? I'm reading that there can be issues with under-penetration and over expansion for this "long range cartridge". My rifle loves the cartridge at the range, but i'm a bit concerned on what could happen if i happen to take a close range shot on an animal (nice to problem to have, i hope!).

 

[Formidilosus]

I have the same set-up as a couple people on the thread here: Tikka T3x Superlite 30-06. I just started using factory load Hornady Precision Hunter ELD-X 178 grain because in Canada right now it's really hard to find hunting ammo. I previously killed a couple elk using Nosler Partition 180 grain.

Has anyone had experience with the ELD-X with close range shots? I'm reading that there can be issues with under-penetration and over expansion for this "long range cartridge". My rifle loves the cartridge at the range, but i'm a bit concerned on what could happen if i happen to take a close range shot on an animal (nice to problem to have, i hope!).

They kill just fine at close range/higher impact velocities. All the people that state that they under penetrate, and yet no one has a picture of one that “blew up” and didn’t penetrate the chest.

 

[Laramie]

I have the same set-up as a couple people on the thread here: Tikka T3x Superlite 30-06. I just started using factory load Hornady Precision Hunter ELD-X 178 grain because in Canada right now it's really hard to find hunting ammo. I previously killed a couple elk using Nosler Partition 180 grain.

Has anyone had experience with the ELD-X with close range shots? I'm reading that there can be issues with under-penetration and over expansion for this "long range cartridge". My rifle loves the cartridge at the range, but i'm a bit concerned on what could happen if i happen to take a close range shot on an animal (nice to problem to have, i hope!).

Agree with the above. They do expand a lot up close but the base still holds together enough to get the job done.

 

[HaydenLane]

Haven’t read all the replies, but in this thread and others I see a lot of “under 400 it doesn’t matter” comments. While kinda sorta true, last year the only factory 30-06 I found was Federal Premium loaded with 180 grain Barnes TSX bullets. Out of my Tikka 30-06, that would’ve been a maximum effective range of ~250 yards.

If I use Barnes stated minimum velocity of 1800 fps, it would get me to about 420, but I don’t think it’s wise to push it with copper bullets.

I know this is a unique case of a low BC, heavy projectile in a slow/slightly short barrel, but it’s worth noting that not *all* factory 30-06 loads are good to 400 (the same in a .308 would be even worse).

 

[tcpip95]

Here is the ballistic data for the Buffalo Bore SuperCharged Lead-Free in 30-06. Uses a Barnes TTSX 168gr bullet, assuming a 24" barrel.
BC: 0.47
MV: 3,000 fps

With a copper bullet I would want a terminal velocity of at least 2,100 fps to ensure proper expansion, so you're good to about 500 yds with this setup.

 

[Bigjimbo769]

Another bullet option is the Barnes Vort-Tx LR 175 grain. On paper it looks like you should be good to go out to 600. I have been trying to find some to test if my rifle likes it.

 

[ramsdude47]

Anyone know off the top of their head the best bullets to shoot paper at 1000 yards with?

My head is spinning after plugging in 5 different bullets to ballistic calculators, I figure someone on here already knows.

 

[35WhelenAI]

Anyone know off the top of their head the best bullets to shoot paper at 1000 yards with?

My head is spinning after plugging in 5 different bullets to ballistic calculators, I figure someone on here already knows.

With your comparison, what bullet did you come up with if you had to choose between those five?

Highest BC, doesn't always win especially at a kniwn distance with an accurate rifle. Could be some combinations are better than others despite plugging numbers.

 

[ramsdude47]

195 ELD-M is looking like the first I will try.

It looks like I probably wouldn’t get anything close to the BC Hornady lists for the 208 with 30-06 velocity. But dang that BC difference really makes a big difference, at least on a theoretical chart lol.