Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 30-06 didn't impress me.

One question, factory fodder or handloads??

Don't much matter. We'll, did to that elk to a degree...

A proper rifle, that. Not mine but someone in my area has a stock 1949 M70 with a nice scope in 270 for 1600 clams.

A single Barnes 168 TSX from my 30-06 caused my first ever elk to hunch up, take two steps and fall dead. I think that old bull was pretty impressed. I certainly was!

I've been shooting the 30-06 since I was 12 years old and there has never been one time that it did not "impress" me. Be smart about schidt, use the right bullet for the job and prepare yourself to be impressed.

A hunter could carry an '06 with a good 180gr bullet and hunt any elk anywhere and be just fine.


I took a cow with 220s a few years ago.. it was certainly impressed.
-Jake

I bet a 165 grain bullet started around 2600fps or a 180 at 2500 would kill a lot of stuff and go easy on the shoulder. Even a 150 Partition at these speeds would be formidable.

Saving men from the Creedmoor, one shoulder at a time. 😁

If a 165 or 168 TTSX out of a dirty ought six does not impress you.....................Then you must be UN-impressible.

If recoil is of concern go with a 130 TTSX at maybe 2800.

Retained weight will be the same as an expanded 180 Partition.

I’m in no position to disagree as I’ve not killed anything with that bullet. It may work great as well.

Think we can all agree that OP's friend is a dummy ?

If recoil is of concern go with a 130 TTSX at maybe 2800.

Retained weight will be the same as an expanded 180 Partition.[/quote]

No, not necessarily.

My wife killed the biggest cow elk either of us have taken in 2018, using a .308 Winchester with the 130 TTSX "downloaded" to 2850 fps. The cow was as large as many mature bulls, and was quartering toward us at around 250 yards.

At the shot the cow staggered 20-25 yards, obviously done for, before falling. The bullet broke the near "shoulder" just above the big joint, traversed the chest and was recovered under the hide toward the rear of the ribcage on the far side. It had lost all its petals, and weighed 80.5 grains, 62% of its original weight.

Have recovered a very few 180 .30-caliber Partitions over the decades. The one that retained the least amount of weight weighed 112 grains, and killed a mature bull kudu at around 350 yards, which was standing at a steep angle above me, pretty much broadside. The bullet broke the shoulder just above the big joint, like the 130 TTSX, then due to angle also broke the spine, ending up under the hide. Both animals were about the same size. (Oh, and due to the spine being broken, the kudu collapsed right there.)

In general TTSXs do retain more weight than than lead-cored bullets of whatever design. But not always--which is why flat statements about retained weight don't always apply--or whatever retrieved bullet "measurement" anybody considers most important when killing big game.

Actually, from what I hear about it, the 180 Ballistic Tip started around 2500 would be a giant killer for quite a ways out. Recoil should be modest in a standard weight rifle.

I have nothing but fondness for the 30-06, it has never let me down. From Javelina to Elk at ranges all the way out to 450 yards I expect it would do the job with reasonable shot placement. In fact I could have done virtually all of my hunting excluding varmints with my old Springfield and it has knocked off a couple groundhogs and coyotes. I personally have been impressed with the old 30-06 since I started using it in 1973.

I've got only proof of ONE...

but it was a 650 lb cow elk, at Gardner Montana... 30/06 Howa, load was 165 grain ballistic tip, fueled with 30 grains of 4198... MV 2250 fps.

The ammo that was loaded was left at the house of my friend, after his son told us 10 times he had it put in the truck.

We get to Gardner, and it said he left it at home...only ammo for the rifle, was the above load, I had loaded for the boy when he was 12 y/o,
and had been in his back pack for 4 years...

distance was 175 yds, running broadside shot.. behind shoulder, destroyed both lungs and top half of the liver...didn't exit, was stuck under the hide on the far side... elk ran about 50 to 60 yards and piled up..

check in station said the cow was 11 years old, after taking out a tooth sample.

Makes a guy wonder why we put up with shooting some of the stuff we do.

"Cause Teeder...we like the "Boot n Beller", lol. I like hitting big animals "hard", but that's just me anyhow...and I'm kind of weird that way, ha.

These elk/chamberings thread will go on until the end of time, won't they?

Long as there is elk and elk hunters....

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Indeed. And there will always be those that believe they need a magnum, and those that know they don't.

Wise words gents