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30.06 for deer
Mr. Perfect
Member, Moderator Posts: 66,336 ******
As I took yet another deer this year with my trusty rusty remington, and as I perused the extent of the damage done to the meat, it occurred to me this time that the 30.06 caliber is really overkill when it comes to deer.
I know folks love to tout its versatility, but realistically what you've got is a caliber that is a bit big for deer and a lot big for game under that size.
I know folks love to tout its versatility, but realistically what you've got is a caliber that is a bit big for deer and a lot big for game under that size.
Some will die in hot pursuit
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
Comments
Don't think its over kill At all
one Shot, Deer Down Humanely, Use Remington Core-lokt 180 gr. psp
No Huge Exit No Loss of Meat, Job Done.
Mr. Perfect What are you using for bullets I Hope Not those ballistic tip thingies They Waste More meat than their worth From What I Have Seen From Others Experience. Seen Some Shot with them Front Shoulder and Took out Both sides Turned to Mush.
Major Waste IMHO
I Love My Savage 111 30-06
Don't think its over kill At all
one Shot, Deer Down Humanely, Use Remington Core-lokt 180 gr. psp
No Huge Exit No Loss of Meat, Job Done.
Mr. Perfect What are you using for bullets I Hope Not those ballistic tip thingies They Waste More meat than their worth From What I Have Seen From Others Experience.
Admittedly it could be the bullet. I was using just that this year. edit to add: but there is always a large exit wound IME.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
I know a guy that shot a deer with a .50 BMG from an M82A1 at 100 yards. That is the definition of ruined meat...not anything that an -06 can do.
now thats Assinine [:0]quote:Originally posted by Zulu7
I know a guy that shot a deer with a .50 BMG from an M82A1 at 100 yards. That is the definition of ruined meat...not anything that an -06 can do.
tell me about it. He should have gotten much closer.
As I took yet another deer this year with my trusty rusty remington, and as I perused the extent of the damage done to the meat, it occurred to me this time that the 30.06 caliber is really overkill when it comes to deer.
I know folks love to tout its versatility, but realistically what you've got is a caliber that is a bit big for deer and a lot big for game under that size.
Sorry Mr. Perfect, its all about bullet placement. I just killed a nice 8 point last week with a 30-06 using handloaded 165 grain Nosler BT. I shot the deer right in the ribcage and took out both lungs. Damage to the meat was negligible. I have done considerable more damage with a bad placed shot to the front shoulder with a 95 grain .243. IMO- the 30-06 is an ideal caliber for whitetail. [:D]
as far as the 30-06 being too much for whitetail deer,...well inside 200yds, that can be very true. The whitetail deer is easy to drop, and a heavy 30cal pill has a sectional density which is way more than enough to drop a deer. The thing is, is that a 180gr pill from a 30-06 doesn't meet enough resistance when entering a whitetail, to properly expand and expend it's energy in the animal. Most shots with a 30-06 are pass-through shots with very little, if any expansion. Now, at 300yds and beyond, you will see far better results.
Too many hunters have what I like to call,..."magnum disease". They think they need a big powder charge to drop a whitetail deer, which is false. Ask yourself why the 22lr if the worlds most used poaching round??????? It has plenty of energy up close and drops the animal.[;)] When you step up the power, there is a point at which you have overpowered your target, and the bullet fails to perform as it was intended. (do a search on sectional density). For whitetail deer, at any distance under 300yds, the best weight bullet for the 30-06 is the 150gr pill. It WILL drop them on the spot, assuming your shot is placed correctly.
I use balistic tips in ANY caliber, since I know I won't have to track the animal. I take shoulder shots 90% of the time, since I know they will be DRT. You are only wasting a few pounds of meat with that shot, and you can always shoot another deer to make up the difference. Even though I don't want to have to track an animal, I end up taking the front position when tracking someone else's wounded deer, who doesn't use balistic tips. I guess that is what I get for being good at tracking.[B)]
I've used a Mossberg 472 lever gun in .30-.30 for the last 10yrs of hunting and shot a few deer w/ 150gr Rem. Corelokt and recently PMC Eldarado 150gr solid copper hollow points. This year I'm switching up to the 160gr Hornady LeveRevolution.
Of the Hornady LR rounds what kind of damage do they do.
I know,they're leathal when properly placed.
ANy different to the fist sized clot areas I've seen on my deer w/the 150gr rounds?
I'll also be taking out my Rem 870 w/some Hornady SST slugs and Federal Barnes Expander sabot slugs.
I shot a 10 pt buck a week later with a 308 and 150 gr bullets at 250 plus yds. I hit high in the shoulder and dropped him in his tracks. I guess the distance ate up some velocity and my reloads are pretty mild, but their wasn't an inordinant amount of damage on a meaty shoulder shot.
I used to use a 300 Weatherby, I still use my 7 mag (which isn't really that much different from an '06), but killing a deer isn't really that hard, they aren't that big. Maybe it's just mine that are small though[:D]
KC
30.06 has kept ouy family fed for years with very little waste.
shot placement is the key
my dad and i always used 180 grn. remington core lokt bullets
A good whack behind the front shoulder with a 30-06 won't hurt the meat. Sure you could use a smaller rifle. Whatever you feel comfortable with.
+1.
Any caliber yo use to shoot meat will cause gross waste.
I know a guy that shot a deer with a .50 BMG from an M82A1 at 100 yards. That is the definition of ruined meat...not anything that an -06 can do.
How did he get it in the tree stand?
yeah Pass through .......Bout Nickle Size EXIT... But Dead There.. No Chasin'em
No Meat wasted And yeah I can Shoot another one, and not waste Any of It either.[;)]
Im glad to see the majority of the smart hunters realize that ballistic tips are not the best. It is not necessary to blow a hole as large as a grapefruit.
define smart?[}:)]
I don't have to track my deer[8] But then again, I can hit them correctly as well[;)] If all the "smart" hunters spent as much time on the bench, as they did on the keyboard, they would know that the balistic tip is the most devatating hunting bullet ever made. BUT, I can leagally shoot over 40 deer per season here, so maybe my experience is, in some way, biased[8D]
quote:Originally posted by JimmyJack
Im glad to see the majority of the smart hunters realize that ballistic tips are not the best. It is not necessary to blow a hole as large as a grapefruit.
define smart?[}:)]
I don't have to track my deer[8] But then again, I can hit them correctly as well[;)] If all the "smart" hunters spent as much time on the bench, as they did on the keyboard, they would know that the balistic tip is the most devatating hunting bullet ever made. BUT, I can leagally shoot over 40 deer per season here, so maybe my experience is, in some way, biased[8D]
wow where can you kill 40 deer per season
I have had great results shooting Winchester Supreme Ballistic tips but I have not done it 40 times in all my deer seasons
quote:Originally posted by JustC
quote:Originally posted by JimmyJack
Im glad to see the majority of the smart hunters realize that ballistic tips are not the best. It is not necessary to blow a hole as large as a grapefruit.
define smart?[}:)]
I don't have to track my deer[8] But then again, I can hit them correctly as well[;)] If all the "smart" hunters spent as much time on the bench, as they did on the keyboard, they would know that the balistic tip is the most devatating hunting bullet ever made. BUT, I can leagally shoot over 40 deer per season here, so maybe my experience is, in some way, biased[8D]
wow where can you kill 40 deer per season
I have had great results shooting Winchester Supreme Ballistic tips but I have not done it 40 times in all my deer seasons
the Eastern Shore of MD[:D] We have limits for both whitetail and sika deer. That limit covers muzzleloader, bow, and rifle. keep in mind, the species difference gives you 2 times the limit, since there are two different types of deer. They have cut us back on the sika this year, so we are cut back by some 10 deer or so. BUT, we still have an abundance of deer. We shot 19 in 3 days during black powder a few weeks ago, and that was in 2 days of hunting. That also DOES NOT count what I can take on crop damage permits. That adds another 80+ tags per year[:D]
It had nothing to do with shot placement either. It left a crater a half inch deep and 8" around with blood shot meat for another 12 inches beyond the crater in every direction. That was enough experience for me to never use them again.
I shot one Muledeer Buck with a Nosler Ballistic tip and it was the absolute worst bullet choice I ever used on a game animal.
It had nothing to do with shot placement either. It left a crater a half inch deep and 8" around with blood shot meat for another 12 inches beyond the crater in every direction. That was enough experience for me to never use them again.
That has been my experience with them, DRT for sure if you hit behind the shoulder. Not sure how these would perform hitting shoulder, but I dont like the mess. I'd much rather load down for my 308 with a good bullet, and at the shorter ranges the bullets will expand more than enough, leaving a short tracking job, less of a mess in the ribcage, and less damaged meat.
I shot one Muledeer Buck with a Nosler Ballistic tip and it was the absolute worst bullet choice I ever used on a game animal.
It had nothing to do with shot placement either. It left a crater a half inch deep and 8" around with blood shot meat for another 12 inches beyond the crater in every direction. That was enough experience for me to never use them again.
chambering and bullet weight?
use a 125 grain bullet and you wont have that problem
+200 on that.
Have a friend that has been reloading 30-06 ammo for years to use for deer hunting. 95% of the time he uses 110 to 125 grain bullets. Those small bullets pack a huge punch and 90% of the time they will turn the heart cavity into mush and the bullet will not even exit the animal. He started hand loading his deer ammo after most of the factory ammo only offered 150 grain, 165 grain or 180 grain bullets.
You do not need a big gun nor bullet to put meat in the freezer. A well trained 11 year old can do it easily with 95 grain Federal .243 ammo if given the chance.
quote:Originally posted by MVP
I shot one Muledeer Buck with a Nosler Ballistic tip and it was the absolute worst bullet choice I ever used on a game animal.
It had nothing to do with shot placement either. It left a crater a half inch deep and 8" around with blood shot meat for another 12 inches beyond the crater in every direction. That was enough experience for me to never use them again.
chambering and bullet weight?
30-06. This was in the mid to late 90's and if I remember right, 165 grain bullet.
It acted like it just dissintegrated on impact where all the energy disperssed to the sides of impact. I noticed you mentioned longer shots where this one time I used the ballistic tip on a hunt, my shot happened to be about 60 yards, so a fairly close shot.
My brother bought a rem 700 30-06 an shot a doe the same size at 40yrd in the ribs will same kind/brand of ammo(diff caliber). His hole only baseball size.
quote:Originally posted by JustC
quote:Originally posted by MVP
I shot one Muledeer Buck with a Nosler Ballistic tip and it was the absolute worst bullet choice I ever used on a game animal.
It had nothing to do with shot placement either. It left a crater a half inch deep and 8" around with blood shot meat for another 12 inches beyond the crater in every direction. That was enough experience for me to never use them again.
chambering and bullet weight?
30-06. This was in the mid to late 90's and if I remember right, 165 grain bullet.
It acted like it just dissintegrated on impact where all the energy disperssed to the sides of impact. I noticed you mentioned longer shots where this one time I used the ballistic tip on a hunt, my shot happened to be about 60 yards, so a fairly close shot.
you may have been in the period before nosler changed the jacket thickness to make them a true large game hunting bullet. At first, they had jackets so thin that they exploded on impact on varmints. after that, they adjusted to a thicker jacket for hunting. The new jacket design, since 10-15yrs ago, makes them the ultimate deer bullet.[:p] NO DEER, walks from this bullet.
Some folks worry about the extra 3-4lbs of meat when shooting through a shoulder, I don't consider that at all, since I don't have to track them. Also, that area of the animal doesn't yield much meat anyway.