This question is for Mule Deer, and anyone else with experience loading with Hornady's Superformance powder.

I own a Browning X-Bolt .30-06, which I rarely use, but am getting set up for one of my sons to use this fall for deer and elk.

Out of curiosity, I bought a box of Hornady's Superformance ammo to try, with their 150 gr. GMX bullet. Their advertised MV for this round is 3080 fps.

This ammo goes over the chrono at 3050 fps, out of a 22" barrel, and was good for a couple of 2", 5-shot groups at 200 yards. This accuracy, and velocity, would work for a lot of applications that I can think of. I also like the monometal bullets, in somewhat lighter weights than traditional, for almost everything I shoot nowadays. Usually, it's Barnes TTSX and TSX bullets.

Now, my question is, can these velocities be duplicated using Hornady's Superformance powder, in .30-06? Before I get all geared up to handload for this rifle, I would like some indication that similar performance is possible compared to the factory ammo. My only knock on the Hornady factory stuff is it's cost.

I use 65 grains in a 24 inch barreled 30-06 and it goes 3092 average with my V3 Magneto Speed. I'm loading 150 grain CT bullets. I shot a Mule Deer 5X5 buck a couple of years back at 293 yards DRT.

Accuracy is acceptable and I will use this load anytime I'm loading 150 bullets in my 30-06

Bighorn,

Hornady uses different blends of Superformance for various cartridges in their factory ammo, but the blend sold by Hodgdon for handloaders is the one used in the .30-06. So yeah, you should be able to duplicate the factory ammo.

I don't meet any of your qualifiers, but Barnes shows 3030fps with their MM 150s over 58gr of Big Game. Superperformance ain't on their list, though.

I've not seen either powder on the shelf around these parts, of course. For accuracy like you're getting, I might be willing to fork over the big bucks for the factory stuff, even as a dedicated cheapskate.

I reckon Re17 would get you there for velocity.

I run superformance with 150 ttsx's in my 300 wsm and it is very fast and accurate. I've ran the 150's over 3400 fps in my wsm and accuracy has been sub 1/2 moa. I tried it a little bit in a 30-06 but I don't recall the results of hand. My 30-06 can run 155 scenars over 3100 with rl-17 and pretty close to 3100 with h4350. I usually run the h4350 in my 30-06 mostly out of years of habit.

I've only used Super Performance powder in the 30-06 with the Barnes 175 gr LRX bullet. With 58.5 gr in a 24" Forbes 20B rifle I'm getting 2930 fps. I haven't tested for pressure, but plan to do so this summer.

Going to work up a load using the 150 gr. Nosler Partition in one of my 30-06's this year. 3000 fps is not all that hard to get with a 24 inch barrel and some 22 inchers will do it too with several powders.

59 grains of SuperPerformance in a Remington 700 M40 Long range 26" barrel. Don't remember the velocity but it was in the 2900 range. This group was shot by a 44 year old woman, her first three rounds ever fired from any rifle. 100 yards. 178 AMAX.