Okay, I know this is a can of worms but here goes. I have fired all my factory ammo in 25-06 and am ready to start reloading. I will use the rifle for antelope to mule deer and for ranges on the longer side (>200m). I have bigger rifles for elk and smaller rifles for varmints. I am a big fan of NPT bullets but don't think they are the best choice for this application. I shoot 100gr Core-Loct in my 257 Roberts but want a 'better' bullet for the 25-06. I am leaning toward the 115 BT but want some other opinions, so let's hear what you have to say...

I've used both the Nosler Partition in 120 grn., as well as the Barnes TSX 115 grn. Both have performed great in my rifle that prefers the heavier bullets!

100gr. TSX,Seirra, or NBT.

110 Accubond, used them in my 257 Wby this year on antelope, no complaints.

Dad uses 100 grain Interlocks in a 25 WSSM on antelope and deer, never had one come apart yet. He shot one antelope doe this year, crawling under a barb wire fence. Hit it in the left eye, came out the back of the head, reentered on the right side of the spine, exited behing the right shoulder blade. To say the thing was a DRT, is an understatement.

100 grain Hornady Spitzer flatbase. 100 grain Speer. 100 grain Ballistic Tip (I rarely keep one in a mule deer at 25-06 AI velocities). Any of these should work great.

110 accubonds or ttsx

I like the heavier bullets. Have had good luck with the 120gr Hornady Hp, the Speer 120gr Hot Core (sadly discontinued, with no replacement, yet) and the 120gr Sierra HPBT.

I've killed alot of deer with the hundred grain hornady and the earlier model ballistic tips. I think that with the possible exception of the speer 100 grain hollow point any 100 grain bullet will do the job. Many people on here seem to like the hundred grain hornady because it expands quite similarly to the premium bullets. It doesn't have the greatest ballistic coefficinent however that doesn't matter at 25-06 velocities unless your shooting past 325 ish yards.

The newer production hundred grain ballistic tip is cheap, accurate, and seems to hold together pretty well. I have used some of the old ones and had them start to come apart at high velocity. Point is that if someone tells you that they blow up ask them when the last time they used them was.

I did shoot some hundred grain swift scirroco's and found them to be really accurate. They have a really good ballistic coefficient so they should hold energy well. Some other posters on here say that hold together well enough that there wouldn't be a problem shooting things larger than deer with them.

The tsx bullets seem to get good reviews because the are accurate, lead free, and hold together very well. That said I haven't personally tried them except in my .222 with good results. That said they don't really have a good ballistic coefficient so beyond 350 yards they start to fall pretty fast. The company also makes an 80 grain tsx in .257 diameter that can be loaded to really high velocities which should make it a 425 yard point and shoot 25-06 load. I have been planning to try this out some time.

Truth of the matter is that noone can tell you which bullet is the best for your rifle. I can only hint that if you tried some of the above bullets and found the one that shoots the best in your rifle it could be considered the "best" one for your rifle.

In the Nosler book the writer says that he uses 100 grain Ballistic Tips for varmints and 100 gr Partitions on game animals. You could do worse IMO.

100 TTSX or TSX....the end

I have used a bunch of different bullets for pronghorn and deer in the .25-06: 100-grain Barnes TSX's and Tipped TSX's; 115-grain Berger VLD's; 100-grain Hornady SP's and 117-grain BTSP's; and 100-grain Nosler Ballistic Tips, AccuBonds and Partitions in every available weight.

All have worked, even those darn Partitions. Believe it or not, even 120-grain Core-Lokts have worked fine. So I dunno what to tell you, other than to shoot straight.

I like the Nosler Accubond for my 20-06 model 70 using 100 grain Nosler (B.C.-418/s.d.=.238) Accubond bullets on coyotes. However, for mule deer I go to the heavier bullet in the 120 grain Nosler (B.C. .391, s.d.= .260) Partition. Anything else, gets a 100 grain Hornady B.C. 357 s.d. = 216

I had good results last year with the 100gr Nosler E-Tip. The mono construction, polymer tip, and BC are great for a high-vel .25cal.

95 grain Partition will do the job well.

Redleg: I am curious why you say that? Has someone told you Partitions don't kill past 200 m's?


I've used the 100,115,and 120 NPT from the 257 Roberts and 25/06 on deer and antelope out to a max of about 400 yards.....I'm certain there are other bullets as good but doubt there are any "better"....

I do recall a pal drawing down on a stud mule deer buck in eastern NM at about 300-325 yards with his Sako 25/06 and handloaded 120 NPT....at the crack of the rifle the buck collapsed........another pair of bucks, unseen, spooked at the shot about 250 yards away...I grabbed his rifle, flopped to the sit and cracked one that collapsed in 40 yards...

Two down in about 30 seconds!

I'd say that ain't bad and don't know how it gets much better.....

Yep!

If I had to pick only one of the .25 caliber Partitions it would probably be the 115, both because it's shot more accurately on average than either the 100 or 120, and because I've crumpled some really nice antelope and deer with it. But any of the 3 certainly do the job nicely.

Maybe the Partition is just too old-fashioned--or maybe the lead tips get dinged up in the magazine. I solved the last problem with my latest .25-06, a Ruger No. 1, but can't do anything about the first "problem."

hornady 120gr hp and nosler 110gr accubond. its a toss up.

Probably any of the above mentioned.......Which ever shoots the best in your rifle. I shoot the 100gr. TSX and have zero complaints with it.

I have no complaints with the Partition and use it in almost everything else that gets upgraded from cup and core bullets (my absolute favorite is the 210 PT in my 338-06, killed a ton of stuff with that). I just bought in to some of the aerodynamic hype and was looking for a 'better' bullet for thin skinned game at longer ranges. The fact that I don't need all that penetration and the PT is a fairly expensive options weighs in to the decision a little too. I am leaning to the BT/AB or a Hornady selection, probably in the 110-115 weight but may go down to 100gr, I tend to like heavier bullets...

That is the one right there. Shoots clover leaves from my 257 AI and performs beautifully at 3250 fps point-blank all the way down to 2400 fps at about 360 yards.

I guess it really kinda depends upon your definition of "better" though. Better construction? Better BC?

Best, I never believe in best. But there are several good ones to give a go out there.

100 Horn
115 Noz (NBT or Pt)
120 Sierra HPBT
100 TSX
117 Horn
100 Noz (NBT or Pt)

Just add 7828 and go forth and fill up a couple arks.

Dober

Really like that Hornady 120HP in my 25-06. It is a pretty stout bullet, but works real well on antelope. Mulies, perfect!

Can't forget the NP 115, damn good bullet also. Just happen to like that Hornady. No ruffled feathers now!

I'm pretty happy with a 2-bullet combination. Right now I've got a pile of 100gr MK's loaded up, so I use those for LR shooting, and I use the 100gr TTSX for everything else.

I had a BH sheep that was resentful towards the 100gr MK last fall, and MD, WT, and black bear HATE the 100gr TTSX... *grin*

Well it sounds like the dilema has been solved, at least for the short term. My neighbor just gave me 100 each of the 100 and 115gr NBT he had no use for. I didn't know there was a 115 out there and that seems like exactly what I'm looking for. I'll see which shoots the best and use one for practice and one for hunting. Of course I also ordered 100 Hornady 100gr and some Sierra GK bullets last night too.

100 TTSX. Done deal.

100gr SSII's in any 1/4 bore are hard to beat.....but as mentioned, pretty much anything'll work...

That bullet was designed specifically for elk which is why it holds up so well on smaller game.

I have standardized on 100gn Hornady and 54gn 760 for 3400fps and 55gn with the 100gn TTSX for 3500fps in my 26 inch barrel.

Think wind.......and 115-120 gr bullets........

In my factory 700 I have been shooting 115 NBT @ 3100fps for the last 7-8 years.... I have used it on everything from ground hogs and coyotes to whitetail deer.... as long as I put it where it needs to be, I have had excellent results.....i love my .25-06

burt2506

How far out ya talking there big boy?..

Dober

forget the wind..and the 115s..run a 80tsx or 100 anything at snappy velocity and it won't be in the air long enough to worry about the wind.

I have had great luck with Berger 115 VLDs in my 26/06 AI. They have worked great up close and far out. I also tried the Sierra 120gr BTSP and they worked go if the distance was passed 100 yds but for the close up shots they blow apart.

4 giggles today I got on JBM and ran the 100 NBT @ 3400 and the 115 NBT @ 3150. Both speeds I find to be about top end if I lean on both a bit..

At 500 yds:

100= 15.0" of drift in a 10 mph

115= 14.1" in a 10 mph

At 1K:

100= 72.6" of drift

115= 66.8"

Looking at the chart it appears that somewhere around 750 the 115 begins to pull out front.

Just something to think about..

Dober

They make a 117gr BTSP and a 120gr which is a HPBT. Which were you using? thanks

Haven't tried the 100 gr TSX........................, yet.

But the 100 Partition has proven to be devastating outta my 25-06 AI on a number of Whitetails. I mean, Devastating..!

Scott

I'm in the same boat so to speak. I have the 257 Roberts and the 25-06 Remington. Both are Ruger tang safety's. I shoot 100gr out of the Roberts and thinking I should go with the heavier bullets for the 25-06.

Also thinking to stick with the bullet/powder combo each rifle likes best.

Curious why you're thinking you should go heavier? Don't really care just curious is all?

What kinds of game do you use it for and at what ranges?

This is just me, but I'd pick the weight that shot the best and sort it out from there. Just not enough diff in trajectory to matter..

Thx
Dober

Funny how velocity makes up for weight/BC in wind drift lots of times.

In 243 at least, I don't feel like an 80 TTSX is much handicap on wind, and it is enough of a laser to be preferable at hunting distances, at least for me. Seems I'll often get a crack at a something not-so-critical like a hog or coyote where there's not time to range them. Hold on hair and touch it off can make a little extra margin on elevation handy.

DJ

yeah with that 80 grainer sighter in at 320 you can hold ten inches over the deers back at 500 and score a kill shot....

120 NP's and RL-22

So far all I've used is a 100 gr. CoreLokt factory load, which was effective. I'm thinking I'm gonna go with 100 gr. Ballistic Tips in my handloads.

I am also a Nosler Partition (120 gr.) fan for the 25/06; they have done the job for me.

The Hornady 120 (#2560) shoots to the exact point of aim in my Ruger 77 as do the Partitions, so perhaps you too will be able to sight in with the Partitions, practice a lot with the cheaper Hornadys, and save the Partitions for hunting.

I typically used IMR 4831 powder for the 120 grain bullets, and Norma MRP for the varmint weights.

IME those 120gr Hornady HP behave a lot like 120gr Partitions.

This was the first year I hunted with the 25-06, used 115 gr. TSX for pigs and deer. Worked great!

Dober,

The downside to the uber-light-for-caliber School Of Thought is wind at longish ranges--beyond 300yds.

Now, I don't go looking for long range shots, but it has been known to happen

I just had that demonstrated again this winter shooting at 600 and 900 yds with a buddy. A 243 with 100gr and a 308 with 155 gr gave up the ghost as the wind became stronger (and stronger). A pair of 270's with 150 NBT's (one is a 25 in bbl that really moves a bullet) held out longer before adjusting for windage became ridiculous. The clear winner was my buddy's 300RUM with 190 Bergers.......

Even running a light bullet 3-400 fps faster doesn't make up for the effect of wind. Give me BC and enough mass for caliber when it comes time to make that canyon shot or bust a pronghorn in the breezy sagebrush country

?

?? (could u elaborate somewhat?)

Alpine-you might of missed this post I had a bit earlier. From where I sit I feel that weight isn't everything and that at some point speed helps a ton load.

Dober

on mid and small sized things decent accuracy and high velocity trumps all......out to 500 yards

just for fun run an 80 grain tsx at 3800 against a 52 grain bullet out of a 220 swift. It's not that far off.

my 25-06 is twisted 1:12 and the only bullet it shoots really well is the 75 grainer

That kind of sucks, but I think that Barnes once upon a time did some 75 X's? Steelhead would know as I think he has one or two world supplies of them..grin

Dober

I enjoyed really good results from the 80gr TTSX in my .257 Wby. I don't see why it wouldn't also be wonderful when launched from a 25-06.

John

Correct as usual Mark. Here were my loads in a 26" barrel.

75gn Barnes X
48gn IMR 3031 3.234" 3525 Mild
49gn IMR 3031 3541
50gn IMR 3031 3594
50gn AR 2206 3705
51gn AR 2206 3831
57gn H 4350 3.211" 3659 1.5"
58gn H 4350 3709 1.230"
55gn 760 3666
56gn 760 3.452" 3698
58gn 760 3770 2368 MOA
* 59gn IMR 4350 3.215" 3807 2414

John

I use the Nosler Partiton 120 grain bullet for large deer. I have practiced on paper using the Nosler 110 grn Accubond (very accurate in my rifle) but I still like the 120 grain partition bullet a little better. I wish Nosler would come out with a 130 grain Accubond bullet for that 25cal.

From all of the responses it looks like Sierra is making the 117 SBT just for me. To be sure, all of the other choices are excellent and I would have no problems using the Partition myself but for 25-06 game (antelope and deer) I have had pretty good results with the Sierras. I think the key is shooting whatever your bullet of choice is as much as possible so that you can hit where you aim with a high level of confidence and precision. That being said there will always be a need for a specialized bullet for a specialized application, so if someone wants to shoot his buffalo with a less than optimum caliber rifle you had best use one of the premiums.

I shot a 25-06 for many years and had very good luck with 115gr PT and the 117gr Hornady. I shot the Hornady more due to price and never felt I needed more of a bullet, they were very accurate and performed very well on game. I lived in a place that had rock chucks at 450yd from my porch which gave us lots of fun shooting. We shot all kinds of rifles at the chucks, but the 25-06 with 117gr Hornady(and my 6.5-06 with 140gr BT) gave the most consistent hits in all conditions. Sadly that rifle was stolen but I will get another some day.

Sorry, my C.R.S was kicking in. Its the 117gr Gameking #1630.