Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 30-06 Do it all rifle - but mostly elk

Love the 30 gov't.

Of your choices listed, I can't throw rocks at any of them. They all work.

However, if you can locate one to handle, find yourself an FN rifle, like a JC Higgins 50. The quality, ergonomics, and balance are superb IMO.

The 30-06 is boring. Boringly accurate and, boringly effective. I can't see where your son would be making a mistake with a good bolt action 30-06.

I have taken a pickup truck of deer with the '06, almost invariably with a 150 grain Hornady over 52 grs. of IMR 4064. Three 3 moose have succumbed handily to the '06.The first to a 168 Barnes TSX and the last two with 180 Nosler Partitions. I spent a summer, prior to my first Newfoundland moose hunt shooting an '06, a 7 mm Rem. Mag and a .375. I know, the 7MM Rem shoot a bit flatter and the 375 hits harder, but at the distances I would ever have to shoot, from a practical matter, there wasn't a dime's worth of difference. Lesson learned....the 06 was easier to shoot from field positions.

Three shots and three moose from 150 to 250 yards. The first rifle was a Rem. 700 with the Barnes 168 grain , the second was with a Tikka T3 and the last was with a Ruger No1S. The latter two both with heavy doses of H4350 and 180 Noslers. All three of those rifles would shoot 5 shots into 1 inch groups. I am sure that other cartridges would have done petty the same.

I type this looking at three gun cabinets holding at least 50 guns. Cartridges run from .22 LR through .222's and .223's through a few 6mms's, some 7mm's, a bunch of 30's, a 375's, a couple 45-70's and a .458. The .35's and the 348's are long gone.

There isn't anything about the '06 that members here don't know. Whelen got it right when he wrote, " The 30-06 is never a mistake." After more than 50 years hand loading and knocking stuff off, I think Whelan got it right.

O, I need to add, that maybe,although I am battling the actuarial tables here, a 6.5 of some sort is probably is in the not too distant future.

To the original post, 30-06 for sure in whatever bolt action rifle your son likes.

I like a Sako L-61, weight is about right for me!

Don't mean to side-jack the thread, but could someone please tell me what exactly "freezes up" or " ice's-up" on Browning X=Bolts in Alaska?

Personally I would not even concider anything new nowadays...one of my favorite rifles is a custom husky HVA in 30-06.. They can be had fro less than 500. ..For 1200 dollars you can have a really nice L61r Sako...it pre 64 mod 70...

Trigger assembly

The browning has a pot metal trigger group housing that can break pretty easy..I had to replace one for a guy one time...

The OP live's in Colorado, I imagine it can get pretty damn cold in Colorado. Just to many negative reports from AK on the X-bolt for it to even rate a thunk. Unless your a road hunter.

This, I’ve seen 2 broken ones during the December moose season.

You guys are confusing X-Bolts with A-Bolts. The X-Bolt is a better rifle. The A-Bolts have had a lot of horror stories.