This Is Why The Popular .30-06 Still Rules

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Ignoring all the excitement over modern cartridges, there’s a century-old round that’s not just relevant, it’s profoundly good. At practical hunting distances, and for all non-dangerous North American game, the grand old .30-06 offers commanding performance.

It’s more potent on elk and moose than any 6.5mm cartridge. And although the .30-06 is not an extreme-range rocket, it’s a sledgehammer of a round that doesn’t recoil excessively. It handles a broad range of bullet weights, including some heavy-for-caliber projectiles that give it genuine elk-thumping authority.

Yes, modern cartridges are all the rage across America. In the wide-open West, where the long-range hunting movement has exploded, space-age cartridges are pivotal. The enthusiasm such rounds are whipping up has spread to most hunting demographics, from the big woods of Maine to the swamps of Florida; from wild sheep country in Alaska to Coues deer country in Arizona. Whether hunters need the long-range ballistic advantages of cartridges such as the 7mm PRC, 6.8 Western and .280 Ackley doesn’t seem to matter. Hunters want them.

I’m one of them. A certified cartridge addict, I have a compulsive need to work with every new whiz-bang cartridge that comes out, and I fall desperately in love with most of them. However, beneath all that, there’s a practical side that always reminds me that for use at ethical hunting distances—say to a ¼ mile or so—the .30-06 still rules. A quarter mile is 440 yards, as fellow horse-racing enthusiasts will know. Quarter-mile capability is a mantra of mine; open-country hunters benefit tremendously from quarter-mile reach.

Let’s round it up to 450 yards for easy reckoning. And let’s recognize that for most hunters, that’s a long shot. If you factor in all the hunters from sea to shining sea, the vast majority rarely shoot at game past 200 yards. To most of us, 450 yards is far indeed. Yet, it’s still within the .30-06’s reach. You may narrow your wind drift a tad by going to a 7mm PRC. But in the hands of a savvy shooter equipped with an accurate .30-06, a quarter-mile shot is very doable.

But don’t just take my word for it. Let’s look at some ballistics to prove the point.

.30-06 BALLISTICS

Now, the legendary ’06 is old, but that doesn’t mean we need to use old projectile technology. Stoke your .30-06 with today’s ammo, and you’ll really give those modern cartridges a run for their money.

Several outstanding new loads exist, including Hornady’s Precision Hunter 178-grain ELD-X, Federal’s Premium 175-grain Terminal Ascent, Remington’s new 175-grain Premier Long Range and Norma’s 180-grain BondStrike Long Range. For this discussion, let’s use Federal’s 175-grain Terminal Ascent. It has a reasonably high, but not outlandish, G1 ballistic coefficient (BC) of .520, so it’s a good representative of the better class of bullets commonly used in the .30-06.

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Factory specifications has the bullet exiting the muzzle of a 24-inch barrel at 2,730 fps. Let’s sight in our rifle at 200 yards and plug those numbers into a ballistic calculator. We’ll give the scenario a 10 mph crosswind. For atmospherics, we’ll stick with the standard sea-level norm. (Keep in mind that as you go up in altitude, air density becomes thinner, and ballistics get a big boost.) Muzzle energy is 2,896 ft-lbs. Call it 2,900 for easy reference. That’s pretty impressive.

At 100 yards, trajectory arches 1.9 inches above line of sight. Impact is dead on at 200 yards, and the bullet drops eight inches at 300 yards. At that distance it’s still moving along at 2,230 fps and carrying 1,931 ft-lbs of energy. Drift in the 10-mph wind is about six inches.

At 400 yards, the Terminal Ascent bullet drops 23 inches, impacts at 2,073 fps and with 1,670 ft-lbs, and drifts 11.5 inches in the wind. And at that magic 450-yard mark, it drops 33 inches, impacts at 1,997 fps, impacts with 1,550 ft-lbs of elk-clobbering authority and drifts just 15 inches in the wind. Quarter-mile capability, baby.

Now, although the old .30-06 warhorse has what it takes at 450 yards, and it’s all we’ll ever need if we never shoot farther than that, let’s not be ostriches with our noggins in the sand. Just to be informed, let’s briefly compare the new 7mm PRC’s performance at the muzzle and at 450 yards, using a same-weight 175-grain Hornady ELD-X bullet. It exits the muzzle at 2,975 fps with 3,450 ft-lbs of energy. Bullet drop at 450 yards is 25.8 inches. Retained velocity is 2,344 fps, and energy is 2,134 ft-lbs. Wind drift is just 10.2 inches; less than the .30-06 at 300 yards.

At sea level, the 7mm PRC carries as much energy (1,503 ft-lbs) at 750 yards as the .30-06 does at 450 yards, and nearly as much velocity (1,967 fps). Basically, it has as much authority at 750 yards as the .30-06 does at 450. Just an FYI.

SETTING UP YOUR .30-06

Forget the 7mm PRC. We’re red-blooded Americans who love the .30-06 and prefer to stalk within its capabilities. That established, let’s take a look at setting up to get the best our grand old cartridge has to offer.

First, use an accurate rifle. One-MOA accuracy is perfectly adequate for cleanly killing a deer at 450 yards, but two-MOA accuracy really isn’t. Use a high-quality rifle, and have a gunsmith do a trigger job and tune the rifle for accuracy if necessary. Next, put a good scope on it. Your grandpa’s 3-9x Redfield is perfect for his lever-action .300 Savage Model 99, but you need a scope with features that help you shoot far. Pick a scope with either good holdover hash marks—and learn to use them—or with a dial-up turret. If you go the turret route, insist on a turret with a zero stop, so you can always dial straight down to your 200-yard sight-in. Additionally, a zero lock—different from a zero stop—is a feature that just may save you a miss by preventing your turret from getting spun accidentally.

Want a recommendation? Leupold’s VX-3HD in the 3.5-10x40 size with the CDS-ZL turret can usually be had for about $600, and is a terrific scope that has all the features any .30-06 owner will ever need.

Next, it’s time for ammo selection. Splurge on at least three, and preferably five or six, different boxes of premium .30-06 ammo. Pick stuff that’s loaded with heavy-for-caliber, high-BC bullets built for the type of game you hunt. In other words, if you’re an elk hunter, pick something like a Barnes VOR-TX LR or Federal Terminal Ascent or Hornady Outfitter, rather than a Nosler Ballistic Tip. If you’re after Texas whitetails, on the other hand, that Ballistic Tip is prime.

Test all that ammo, and let your rifle tell you which it likes best. Go buy more of that load. Sight in your rifle meticulously. Return to the range several times to check and finesse your zero. Then, make whatever pilgrimage is necessary to get to a long-range shooting facility. Calculate and validate your trajectory to 450 yards. Make a range card and memorize your bullet drops if you’re using a holdover reticle. Better yet, if you have a good turret-equipped scope, get a custom turret engraved in yards. (The Leupold VX-3HD comes with a voucher for a free turret.)

If you’re a handloader, your job is similar, of course. Pick a bullet, tune a load and carry on.

THE REASON WHY

Before wrapping up, there’s a question that must be answered: If there are more modern “better” cartridges available, why have and use a .30-06?

There are several reasons. The one that resonates with most hunters is this: “It’s what I have.” Darned good reason. Another is near-universal availability of rifles and ammo. There isn’t a bolt-action hunting rifle out there that’s not chambered in .30-06. There’s not a major ammo manufacturer in the world that doesn’t load .30-06. Hunters have a nearly unlimited number of options in rifles and ammo.

Also crucial is the fact that the .30-06’s recoil is manageable by most hunters. And perhaps most importantly of all, it’s authoritative. With good bullet choice, it’s adequate for all North American big game, although it’s light for coastal brown bears. But for tiny Texas whitetails up to Alaska-Yukon moose, the .30-06 is profoundly good.

There’s a truth the old-timers knew: Pack a reliable, accurate .30-06 loaded with tough, heavy bullets, and there’s not a critter on this continent you can’t kill.