Got my 25-06 ready

[Sourdough]

Had a muzzle brake put on the 25-06 Handi.  While he had it the gunsmith did a trigger job.  Put a Nikon Monarch 3X12X42 with BDC on it.  Shooting a Nosler 110gr bullet, with 57gr Rutumbo, at 3201fps. (average five shots).  It's dead on at 600 yards, and anywhere in between.  I chose Rutumbo due to it's ability to not be affected by cold weather.  Plus it gives some impressive increases in velocity over other powders.

Leaving the trusty old 30-06 Handi at home this year.  We are also taking our Weatherbys for long range shooting as well.  Too bad KP and his son could not make it this year.  We plan on going in two or three days early and shooting predators this year, before Caribou opens.  My son is going with us this year, got to keep an eye on the old man.

KP:  we are going over on the back side of that hill where you got those two.  Camping in the saddle off to the right, where I ran into the Wolves.

[flinthead]

Awesome! I love my 25-06 Handi... and those little bullets are killers. I shoot 115 Nosler Partitions and they will drop anything that walks around here, including some big nasty boar hogs.

[rdlange]

So you're gonna use it for Caribou... OK.  Never thought it would be big enough.  I just got mine for the long range capability even if I don't have over 200yds around here.

Nice to know I've got something more than a varmit rifle on steroids.

Very good luk on the hunt.

Be Well...

[Sourdough]

For Moose it is considered light, but if I do my part it will be adiquat.  Plenty big enough for Caribou.  Now for Grizzly or black Bear I will really have to do my part.

[cwlongshot]

What made you decide on this lighter bullet?
CW

[Sourdough]

Homework!  Check the velocity and energy tables.  With both loads sighted in to be 2 1/2" high at 100 yards.  Effective range is where there is 2000fps an over 1000ft lbs.  This is for Deer or Wolf sized animals.  85 gr = 410yds,  110gr = 525yds,  120gr = 420yds.  So the 110gr bullet reaches out farther than the lighter or heavier bullets for this caliber. 

The more populer 120gr bullet drops down to 2000fps at 420 yards, energy is down to 1066ft lb.  At 500 yards it is down -38 inches with a 250yd dead on sighting.

The 110gr bullet is still going 2023fts at 525 yards,(over 100 yards farther) this is where the energy drops to 1000ft lb.  At 500 yards it is down -30 inches with a 265 yard dead on sighting

[flinthead]

I would be my next paycheck the 115 Partitions will shoot straight through a moose... and kill the crap out of the bears.

[quickdtoo]

The 25-06 will work fine on caribou if it will work for elk, Fred kills moose with 100gr bullets in his 257 Roberts Ultra!! 

Tim

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,77141.msg475891.html#msg475891

Why the .25-06 Remington?

By Glenn Harmaning



I never did understand the reasoning behind the .25 WSSM when we already have a proven cartridge in the .25-06 that is made even more versatile by recent advances in bullets and powder. (The whole WSM/WSSM line merely duplicates existing, better balanced cartridges. -Ed.) The major American and foreign ammunition makers produce a total of 17 different loads in .25-06.

The .25-06 is one of the classic commercialized wildcats that has stood the test of time. So it must have something going for it. I want to share some of the benefits of this effective and highly useful cartridge. Chuck Hawks has written a couple of good, objective articles on the .25-06 as well as a comparison with the 270 Winchester. Make sure to check those out (on the Rifle Cartridge Page) as well.

The .25-06 was designed as a "dual-purpose" cartridge and is suitable for all CXP1and CXP2 game, which account for the vast majority of all game hunted in the United States. As the term implies, one rifle/cartridge combination designed to cover a variety of hunting and shooting situations.

To say that a cartridge is "suitable" for a specific game species means that it will humanely take the indicated game under the conditions in which the species is reasonably hunted. The .25-06 is suitable for all CXP2 game. From the woods to the canyons, from the mountains to the plains, the .25-06 will take deer, sheep, goats, caribou, and antelope wherever they may be found. Realistically, what more does a hunter need?
The .25-06 has been around long enough to benefit from the newest premium bullet designs such as the Barnes-X, Swift A-frame, Nosler Partition, Remington Core-Lokt Ultra Bonded, and Woodleigh Weldcore. With these bullets, the .25-06 moves into the CXP3 game category, becoming adequate for hunting elk, zebra, and other large animals.

Premium bullets enable the .25 to take any game for which the 130 grain 270 Winchester load is suitable. Jack O'Connor, the Dean of American gun writers, felt that the .270 130 grain was perfectly adequate for elk, and he killed a slew of them with that load.

The late Bob Milek, a well-respected editor, was a fan of the .25 and killed many elk with it while he and his family lived in Wyoming. At the time of his writings the Nosler Partition was the only premium bullet available to the majority of shooters. The first elk I ever killed (a big cow) was with the 117grain Nosler partition. It hit the point of the shoulder at 125 yards; the animal stumbled, fell, and never got up.

Another instance was in the 1973, also in Idaho, when hunting with a neighbor family in the Salmon River country. There were four of us hunting some timber and breaks on one side of a wooded canyon that I estimated to be about 1/4 mile across. At the break of dawn, the father took his 14 year old son, who was on his second hunting trip, to the other side of the canyon to see if the herd we had seen the previous day had moved into that area. The older brother and I went off by ourselves to hunt for elk in some dark timber bordering the area they were hunting. The 14 year old hunter was well versed in rifle shooting by his dad and was shooting a Ruger 10/22 before he could ride a bike. He was carrying a Remington 700 BDL in .25-06 loaded with 120 grain Remington Core-Lokt factory loads. His dad had shot an elk the two days before and today was the last day of the season. We had agreed that if the opportunity presented itself the son could shoot his elk and one other animal for his family. (This was legal in Idaho in those days.)

I had not seen an elk close enough to shoot thus far. His older sibling and I had been stalking through deadfall surrounded by tall pine trees for less than 30 minutes when shots broke the high mountain stillness. They were irregularly spaced, the first shot, then a few seconds later then two more shots. They had come from the area where the dad and his son were hunting.

We abandoned our hunt and hiked out of the timber along the side of the canyon until we could make contact with the Dad and his teenage son. Arriving at the scene, we found two dead elk, a two point and a cow. Three shots from the .25-06 and two dead elk.

The father and his son had come upon 7 elk in a small basin not over 300 yards from our camp. (I wish the older bro' and myself had gone with them that morning!) The 14 year old had shot the cow, which had dropped practically where she stood. The young bull had seen it happen and milled around nervously, giving the young hunter time to shoot once and then again to anchor him very near to the dead cow. By the time we arrived on the scene the rest of the herd was long gone. Since that day, I had no doubts that a .25-06 with a heavier bullet was an "adequate" elk cartridge! I bought my first .25-06 after that hunt, a Ruger M77.

The worst that can be said about the .25-06 is that it realistically needs a 24" barrel to reach its full potential. I've had 22" barreled .25-06 rifles and the muzzle blast was pretty severe, but it still outperformed a 257 Roberts +P.

The slower powders provide optimum ballistics in the .25-06. I still use H4831, the original powder that brought the .25-06 into its own. I have tried virtually all bullet weights in the .25-06. I have settled on four bullets and loads to take maximum advantage of the cartridge's excellent versatility.

The first is my predator/varmint load. This is the 87-grain Hornady Spire point pushed at 3512 fps behind 59.0 grains of H4831. This is the bullet that my Weatherby Mark V shoots the best for explosive power on varmints and predators.

The next load uses a pelt saving for coyotes in prime fur season. It is a Barnes solid 90 grain loaded to 3000 fps with 48 grains of IMR 4350. It is an accurate load that hits hard, but usually doesn't tumble even on bone and pokes little 1/4" holes in the hide that are easy to fix.

As an aside, I should note that this is the only 90 grain load that I use. I'm sure that 90-100 grain bullets are sufficient for most any CXP2 game, since a maximum 100 grain load in the .25-06 essentially duplicates the .240 Weatherby Magnum, a potent deer cartridge in its own right. I have just thought that if I were going to shoot 90-100 grain bullets, I would be better off with a 6mm Remington, 243 Winchester, or .240 Weatherby.

The .25-06 with 115-120 grain bullets put it into an entirely different category. In fact, a Remington ammunition survey done some years ago showed the 120 grain Core-Lokt load was the best selling of the three .25-06 loads they make. This is where the .25-06 treads close on the heels of the 130 grain bullet in the .270 Winchester.

My next around load, the one that I shoot the most, is the 117 grain Sierra Pro-hunter bullet at a MV of 3094 fps with 53.5 grains of H4831. It has been an instant killer on every deer I've shot or seen shot with it. Some may think the bullet is a bit too fragile, but deer are thin-sided animals even for quartering shots; penetration is more than sufficient. All the energy of this bullet is expended in the animal. I've never needed to track any deer shot with this load.

My last load is used when I need to raise my 25.06 into the CXP3 category and hunt elk-sized animals. I know the capabilities of the Nosler Partitions. The 115-grain partition or its 120 grain big brother would be an excellent choice if you need deep penetration on large animals. However, my choice for the best bone-breaking and deep penetrating bullet is the 115-grain Barnes-X at 3100 fps with 55 grains of RL-22. This bullet will not break up and gets to the vitals from any angle on an elk. Don't take my word for it. Try them on your next hunt. The X-bullet is one lethal projectile. And, if you play with the seating depth and keep your bore clean, Barnes X-Bullets will be as accurate as any other bullet you can shoot.

The number one factor in killing any animal is bullet placement. Even before today's premium bullets and loads, the .25-06 had cleanly taken elk. With bullets like the Barnes Triple Shock, the traditional Nosler Partition, and Swift A-Frame, there is no reason whatsoever a good .25-06 rifle should stay at home during elk season. Take it, use it, and bring home an elk!

Recoil in rifles of equal weight is 5 ft. lbs. less than the .270 Winchester shooting a 130 grain bullet. In a 6.75 pound rifle, the .25-06 recoils like a .270 in an 8 pound rifle. This means that you can have a light mountain/stalking rifle in .25-06 that will be within the recoil tolerance of the average shooter. The .270 creates a wider wound channel and has more energy, but we've already established that the .25-06 is an adequate caliber for elk. So, why have more of what you don't need? Instead, why not shoot a rifle with which it is easier to secure good bullet placement?

There are so many cartridge choices for shooters today that it sometimes seems that the latest trend-setting rounds must somehow provide new levels of lethality. Objectively, of course, that is silly. The .25-06 was a fine cartridge at its inception. It was made perfect with the arrival of the slow burning powders, and since its SAAMI standardization in 1969, it has not left the shooting scene. It truly can fit each CXP1 through CXP3 game need in a way that very few, if any, other cartridges can equal. Try a .25-06. You won't be disappointed!

http://www.chuckhawks.com/why_25-06.htm

[gcrank1]

I wish they would make one in 6.5X55, that would be a do all IMHO, but metrics havent done well in this country.

[PHATINJUN]

Sourdough why the muzzle brake?? Tim thanks for the read. I had been thinking of getting rid of mine but now again see the reasons for keeping it. Kurt

[rdlange]

Sourdough, I am wondering what kind of stock you use on this rifle and how you set it up?  A picture maybe?
 
And also why the muzzle brake?  Doesn't seem to be a heavy recoil rifle... does it help stabilize the barrel for better accuracy?
 
Tim's quote was the article that convinced me I 'needed' a 25-06 way more than a 243.
 
Be well...
 

[ihookem]

What made you go to a lighter bullet?  Home work. Seems a lot of hunters are going to smaller bullets. With better bullets they work. I read of guys shooting 300 lb pigs with .223's on this sight.

[Sourdough]

PHATINJUN, rdlange:  The reason for the Brake, is I like to see where the bullet strikes.  Sometimes I can see the animal go down, other time I loose it but can recover and find it faster.  I was able to find a laminated stock just like my Ultra Comp 30-06.  With the brake on it I can't tell them apart except for the scopes.  By the way, "It is an ejector, just like my Ultra Comp. and all my other Handi's".

ihookem:  The reason for the 110gr bullet is range, period.  The animal of choice is Wolves.  I want to be able to reach out there and touch them.  The 110gr reaches out farther and with more authority than the other .25 cal bullets.  The lighter bullets don't have the energy out at longer ranges.  The heaver bullets bleed off velocity too fast, affecting range.

They rolled Caribou season back two and a half weeks this year.  Instead of the 10th we have to wait till the 29th.  We are leaving the 26th hunting for preditors (Wolves and Bears) till the season opens.

[Deerhunter#1]

I just added a 25-06 to the collection as I am waiting for the barrel to adobe from a member. I have been pondering getting one and decided it was time. Very interesting read on the 110roof bowler bullets. That being said I just ordered dies and bullets also. I went as a start with 120 grain speer hot core as midway has them on sale for 1384 dollars. I know they are being discontinued in place of the deep curl but at that price couldn't pass on a couple 100. Hope they shoot well.

[Old Fart]

Kind of funny...I just picked up a 25-06 barrel for $40 (    ) a couple days back.
Then the new Rifleman arrives and it has a nice article on this old venerable round.
Now today I find this old post popping up.
I'm going to have to get busy and wring this puppy out. 

[Deerhunter#1]

I wish I could find a deal like that. I am waiting for mine to arive and hopefully it fits one of my receivers with no modification(that would be great). Wanted something between my 243 and 270 and hope this fits the bill in recoil and powder. Cant wait to get shooting as I have developed all necessary loads for my other guns and need something to work on. As mentioned I hope these Speer bullets work well. Going to try them with h4350 since it is what I have and if that dont work I quess i will go with the h4831sc.