Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles felt recoil 270 vs 30-06

One of the biggest selling points of the 270 over the 30-06 is the reduced recoil. Will a 30-06 loaded with 130g or 140g bullets have approximately equal felt-recoil as the 270 with same bullet weights?

I'm asking because my son is shying away from the 30-06 recoil, even with 150g bullets. I'm figuring that shifting to the 270 will be the answer, but I've never experimented with lighter bullets in the 30-06. That would be an easier switch.

Thanks,
Jeff

I can't tell any real difference between them until you get up to the 180's in the '06.
However, I have a load for the .270 that uses a 110 grain ProHunter over a starting load of IM 4350 that is accurate, deadly on deer and has very low recoil.
Maybe a .243 would be an option?

Recoil with the same weight bullets and same velocity would be close. If the weight of the rifle (and the fit) were the same and the weight of the powder were the same it would be almost identical.

How stout are the 150 loads?

Load 110-130 gr bullets with reduced charges of 4064, or, today RL15.I used 4064 because that was the old JOC recipe.

His working max load was 49.5 but you can safely go lower with 4064,say 45-46 gr and velocities will be in the 2700-2800 fps range with 130's.

Muzzle blast and felt recoil will be reduced and the round will behave more like a 7x57 instead of a 30/06.

In general yes the 270 recoils less than the 30/06.

Check it out.

.30 cal. with same bullet wt. and powder type and velocity as .27 cal. should have somewhat less recoil due to lesser charge wt. (ejecta) and less rocket effect due to larger bore of the .30. My opinion.

Thanks for the experienced feedback gentlemen. My 30-06 loaded with 150's is on the faster end of the spectrum, so it feels similar to the factory 180's for me.

I will give him some slower lighter 30-06 loads for summer shooting, until he loses his flinch response, before we go to the trouble of switching to the 270.

Thanks!

I don't think a full power 270 load is going to help, or any full power load.

Both rounds are overkill. If you're buying a new rifle look at something smaller like a 6.5 Creedmore is popular theses days.

But if you reload, I'm a big fan of the versatility of the 06 over the last five decades. Load up some 150gr loads using the starting loads in the manual with 4895, or use the Rem reduced recoil loads if you are not a reloader, and that should be in the ballpark...they don't kick much.

Also stock fit and a soft recoil pad and use some shoulder padding at the bench.

Treat his flinch properly. Get the boy a nice shotgun shooting vest. I like my shooting vest with the padded leather shoulder pad, and even more after a long range day. They look good too and every skeet/trap shooter I know wears one for good reason.

Shooting from the bench is the worst position for a beginning shooter to start with a rifle that recoils and should be approached differently with adequate recoil protection.

If he has a flinch, that is very serious and he should spend some months behind a 22lr and work up to a 223.

Once established, a flinch is a neurological reflex problem that may not go away on it's own.

Was just about to post the same thing about going to a 6.5 of some kind but you beat me to it.

Barring that, the starting loads of 4895, either IMR or H, should be very accurate and turn the .30-06 into a .300 Savage or even less.

FWIW, I use 46.0 IMR4895 as a standard target/plinking load with Hornady 150 grainers and it has proven extremely accurate across all four ought sixes it has been used in. And if that recoil is a bit much you can even go lower and should be able to maintain good accuracy.

I'm still fast at some things... sometimes!

You can take 4895 down to 80% with consistent ignition but a 150gr Ballistic Tip or equivalent at 2350fps will be adequate for any deer if well-placed, and that is a very mild load. Around 42 grains 4895.

Hodgdon says you can take 4895 even lower, down to 60% or 32gr and that is very low.

Hodgdon 30-06 Reduced Load

I was never bothered by recoil, but my first centerfire rifle when I was 12 was a 20" 30-06 K98 I built from parts out of the parts bin with a cut down mil stock...no recoil pad, I couldn't afford one...:)

I ran full power loads but they were overkill for the deer in the area, so I started cutting the powder back. It fit my small frame so it was a great handling rifle for a kid.

Even when I was older, I used to run reduced loads back East in the field out of my 06, not for recoil but so as not to tear up the deer. They work fine.

The 125 Ballistic Tip is another great bullet choice as well at around the same velocity. It's designed for big game so no worries there.

The flinch is a very serious condition though and needs to be addressed properly like any serious malady.

A flinch is a neurological injury that needs proper rehab.

To be honest with you,I don't really feel that much difference in recoil between the two.The 30-06 in my opinion,is the better of the two and gives you many options in bullet weights.As stated before me,a good fitting rifle,with a good pad makes a huge difference in felt recoil.

Check out the Hodgdon youth loads. 60% of the Max load listed with H4895 are where they start.

http://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/H4895%20Reduced%20Rifle%20Loads.pdf

I'd rock 125 NBTs at moderate MVs until he gets confident with the '06. You could switch over to 130TTSXs for hunting if a light NBT doesn't give the warm fuzzies.

There isn't much I wouldn't hunt with a 130TTSX FWIW.

Load up some 110's for him to practice with. Then step up to 150's for hunting. You don't have to load them hot, to kill deer...Just sayin..

You could, in my opinion hand someone a rifle in either cal and if they didn't see which round it was loaded with they wouldn't know the difference when they fired it

Try 40-41 grains 4895/165 Sierra GK. Very mild (some would call wimpy) but crazy accurate in my last three 06's- and a sound killer on our eastern whitetails. Why beat yourself up with each trigger pull? Shoot loads like this and save the hot rod potential of full-snot '06 loads for situations that demand it.

The only thing that beats this load for me in an '06 are cast loads, but that's fodder for a different campfire, maybe.

A large part of discomfort might be the rifle does not fit him like it should.
As for loads just use starting loads and when the time is right they can be upped.

That's more like it. Too bad he started out with full power loads. Make sure the stock fits him well. And that it has a newish, quality pad. When shooting at the bench he should use a separate shooting pad or shot bag between the butt and his shoulder. Shooting off-hand will be easier on him.

One thing to add here is,whatever you choose,get him a scope with around 4 inches of eye relief.Recoil is one thing,but if a scope touches any part of his face in the recoil,it will not be pleasant for him to shoot.

The long relief scope is a good suggestion. I started him with a slingshot of course, then a BB gun, then a 22. When he started in with a 22-250 he thought he had the centerfire world conquered, especially when he started hitting steel at 400yds..., guess not.

Problem is he's a lefty, so I wanted him to love the Savage99 with a thumb safety as his deer rifle. He didn't like it, so we went to the Savage 110L in 30-06 which matched his 22-250 for fit and feel.

He's a full-grown 5-10" young man, the Savages fit him as well as any factory LH rifle with <14" LOP. I think my next tactic will be going out after woodchucks with the 22-250 and show him a couple 150yd deerfield shots, that he "needs" the 30-06 for.

I really appreciate all the help and suggestions. The answer to this sort of inquiry is always pretty basic..., more trigger time.