Ok my 2506 is my go to gun for coyote hunting and I know it will kill a deer
I have an old 3006 hasn’t been shot since an uncle gave it to me 45 yrs ago
Considering selling my 300wsm that I have never shot since I bought it 15 yrs ago cause I doubt I’ll ever get a chance or afford a big game hunt
Would u get a newer 3006, 270 for a just in case elk hunt? I’m just bored thinking here on Sunday
I’m hoping to move further north when I retire but what won’t my 2506 kill in Minnesota or Wisconsin?

Without specifics, there is a good chance your uncle's .30-06 has better bones than most affordable rifles than you can buy nowadays.

So many ways to go with 30-06 handloads...

It is a 110 carbine I think I may have shot it at a target 3-4 times and never touched again except when I’ve moved

You already have an '06. Problem has already been solved. As to not "having the chance or being able to afford a big game hunt" I'd say you need to reconsider your priorities since you can make a DIY hunt for elk, mule deer, black bear and pronghorn for the cost of the tag and the gas to get to one of 6 different western states.

I wouldn’t even know where to begin and even look at a diy elk hunt, no buddies that interested in hunting
Used to deer hunt A BUNCH but last few years it’s more visiting and sitting than worry about killing a deer

Not sure about your plans or direction , but with 150-180 gr bullets a 30-06 has proved quite lethal these last 116 years. That being said a handloaded .30-06 can be used for anything on this continent with careful loading .
A soft shooting 110-150 gr reduced load = a .30-30
A maxed out 150-185 gr load for general purpose
A maxed out 200 gr Nosler Partition or equal for the rest.
A 200-230 gr Berger out of an accurate .30-06 can do amazing things to 1200 Yds.
See Versatility............

I am finding that DIY hunts for elk are low-success or more than just a tag. And a non-res MT elk tag is over $900.

But you are right about the -06. It'll do for elk.

However, if OP is looking for support to buy a new rifle, we should help him out 😉.

if the 30-06 is such a good choice then the 300 WSM is even better

300 fps better

Marlin 45-70.

Sometimes it is, but not always , depending on several variables. Sometimes "less" is better. For that matter, the 25-06 with good bullets and good shooting is adequate, tho maybe not preferred, for everything in NA except big bears, and bison, I suppose. I sure wish I hadn't sold mine when I thought I needed a bigger "moose gun". A 30-06....

I'd go out and shoot the 30-06 and 300WSM and nail down which one I really like and then go hunt with it.

He doesn't use the ones he already has and is thinking about selling his 300 wsm. Doesn't seem to have the desire to want to hunt anyway. Just sayin.

Pretty much my takeaway too. He doesn't need another gun he needs ambition

That 300wsm will kill everything you want to hunt . Why in the world would you get rid of it for an '06?
My 300wsm has taken everything from blue grouse to bison, 165-168 gr bullets .

Unless you just want a new rifle, you already have what you need. That 300 WSM is an excellent elk caliber, plenty powerful and very accurate. It's not midway between a 30-06 and a 300 WM like some say. It's much closer to a 300 WM.
I've killed a lot of elk with a 270 but both your old '06 and the WSM have more umph.

Quite a few years ago in about 2008 or 09, I drew a Colorado Moose tag after 21 years.I could have borrowed a 300,but chose my .06 with 180 gr partitions.It did just find. Shows how much I like the .06

While we're kicking the subject around. How able some details on you uncle 30'06.

Nothing wrong with wanting a new gun, but the oldest ones seem to have a soul.

There isn't anything in MN or WI that your 25/06 won't handle though I would prefer one of your 30 calibers for black bear. This only because I like large exit holes in bears to provide the best odds of a good bloodtrail. Your 25/06 will do well on the typical bear but get a truly large bear at the bait and all that fat has a better chance of limiting the blood trail with a smaller bullet.

Just make sure you pick a zone that allows rifles for hunting. There are some shotgun/muzzleloader/pistol areas similar to Iowa. These areas can have some fantastic deer hunting but you will still be without use of your rifles.

Apples to apples the best I can -

IMO

You won’t notice any/much difference in a 120gr Partition in your 25-06 vs a 130gr/150gr Partition* in a .270 Win or a 150gr Partition in a 30-06. Up to Elk and yes all those bullets are fine for Elk. With similar shots of course.

I’ve noticed there ‘seems’ to be a difference when someone uses a .30 bullet of 165/180 Partition and definitely a difference when someone uses a .30 200gr Partition. Not sure what it is about that 200gr .30 Partition - it’s pretty great.

If you twisted my arm I’d keep your 25-06 and load it with a premium (Partition, TTSX, LRX, Cutting Edge etc) and hunt everything - but - since you have that ‘06 I’d go straight to loading 180’s or 200’s and then you’d have a very potent combo. Get a optics setup to suit your expected range scenarios and get to killing.


*don’t flame me too hard for lumping the 150gr .277 Partition in with everything else in the paragraph - I fully know that it a great projectile and should probably be grouped in with the 180/200 .30’s. In terms of all around excellence.

I'd revisit your 06' as it's got family history, then likely keep that and sell the wsm and put that money into a big game hunt out west.

Go with the 06!

A few comments:

Swamplord claims the .300 WSM is 300 fps better than the .30-06. This defies the basic laws of internal ballistics. When loaded to the same pressures, the difference is bout half that--about what most bullets from either round will lose within the first 50 yards.

Aside from that, my wife and I have killed 100+ animals up to big-elk size in North America, Africa, Europe and New Zealand, with various .30-06s. No problems. (Would include moose-sized as well, but but neither of use have taken bull moose with the .30-06. But we have with the .270 Winchester and 7x57 Mauser, with no problems.)

Ernest Hemingway, back in the day when bullets were far more primitive, took not only Cape buffalo but a rhinoceros with the .30-06 with 220-grain "solids," also with no problems.

My friend Phil Shoemaker's sig-line here is: "Anyone who claims the 30-06 is not effective has either not used one, or else is unwittingly commenting on their marksmanship." Which has been my experience as well, after using the old round in over a dozen rifles for close to 50 years.

Yep. Same could be said for the 7X57.

You can afford an big game hunt. The most affordable is black bear and you can get tags OTC. You can also get an second non res bear tag for like $35. Go and try it and see some country, take a bear maybe and at the same time scout elk territory. You 300wsm and 30-06 will be great.

I don't know about his, but I have my dad's old Rem 721 30-06. He bought it in about '52 when I was 4. Just for the fun of it, I used it 3 or 4 years ago and got a cow elk with it. 15 years ago, I did the same and got a moose with it. It shoots great but needs some work on the safety. It just flops on and off.

You have all the big game rifles covered.... I'd keep a .270, if I felt the need for something bigger. I've owned and hunted two different 30-06's and simply like the .270 a lot better. It'll kill anything an 06' will and is more pleasant to shoot.

What I would do if I were in your shoes, is buy a good fast twist .223.
Scope it, shoot it, hunt it..... it'll soon be your absolute favorite rifle.

Sell everything , buy the 270 of rifle of your dreams and a really comfortable fold up camp chair. Then you will be all set up for sitting telling lies or hunting.

You can get support to buy a new rifle here anytime. But your existing 2 gun battery 25-06 & 300WSM works perfectly well for deer, elk , etc. and as most have mentioned the 30-06 does it all.

Bigger deer will still drop dead shot with a 100-115 grain bullet in the right place out of the 25-06. Your 300WSM is a perfect longer range elk gun. If you need to play with your arsenal treat your rifles to new scopes, stocks, gunsmith work - trigger, trued action, muzzle brake, whatever makes them work for you.

You can never go wrong with a 30-06 but my safe never lacks a 270.

I have killed xtra large moose, large bears, deer of all sizes, and some grouse with a 30-06, from about 25 yards on out to 400 yards since 1965. Never needed more rifle -- never shot more than 2 rounds.

I handload my ammo, and the one I have settled on for the last 15-20 years is a 168 Barnes TSX going 2900 fps. Accuracy is very good, and bullet is very effective.

I also like my Tikka T3 in 6.5 Swede, but hard to leaave one of my old -06s at home. They Just Git er dun.

Buddy of mine kills the living crap outta western wash elk with a 25-06 and a 110gr tsx. Kalama Washington family I'm friends with between grandpa, father, two sons have taken over 60 elk between them with a 25-06. I'm a huge fan of a 115gr Partition in a 25-06!!!!!! Some times less is more. Recoil sucks azz...

Shag: I don't see a 110 257 TSX bullet on Barnes website. What am I missing?

I like GUNS so caliber is often not all that important to me. I shy away from some because I love shooting too and if I can't get brass or bullets I will not be as interested. An example is the old Remington M8 rifles which were made in 25 Rem 30 rem 32 rem and 35 rem. I ONLY would buy the 35 Remington. I can make 25 Rem, 30 Rem and 32 Rem brass from 30-30, but I don't really want to.
So I don't get overly concerned about calibers. I like the guns, and what every caliber they are is usually OK. Not always, but most times.

Find a new gun that you like and don't worry about the caliber unless it's one you can't or won't use

Apparently I'm missing a brain cell... lol my bad 115gr TSX

gotcha, thanks

280 ai

.284

I knew a man who could afford any rifle, any caliber, and retired from Remington as an executive.

He owned a ranch in Montana with big mule deer, pronghorn and elk. He could shoot rifle, pistol, shotgun, whatever... a natural. For example, when he wanted a challenge he shot wild pheasant on-the-wing with his .45 ACP 1911 pistol. And even hit some.

For a retirement gift he was offered anything from the factory. He requested a M700 in 25/06 stainless in a synthetic stock. The gun liked Nosler Partition 120 gr. It was the only gun he hunted big game with the rest of his life and the last time I had a chance to speak with him, he never failed to collect a shot animal.

Which is all to say, I'm not sure you need another caliber than your "coyote" gun.

If you are buying new....go with a .35 Whelen. Can use it for deer in Iowa and it is a great elk round.

Even better Idea....send that old 30-06 out and have it rebored to .35 whelen, breath new life into the old girl.

Don't agree with a rebore on the 110 at all. They are easy and cheap to rebarrel. OP needs to reconnect with his memories with his uncle. Even if it's just an inexpensive antlerless deer hunt with that 06..mb

First question to ask is why you think you need to sell any of them. Maybe you have a good reason, maybe it's just a "twitch." I know 'cause I get twitches myself and I often am quite successful doing things I regret later. Since you're mentioning getting a .270 or a different '06 just in case, it does not seem that you actually need to down-size your "collection", you're just bored and stirring.

Second, a thought .. for "just in case" for an elk hunt that may never occur, the .25-'06 is ok. It wouldn't be my first choice for elk but I would not be a bit hesitant to load it up with heavy partitions or heavy X bullets and hunt elk. (I'm much in the same boat with my little .308.) I've packed a .257 Roberts elk hunting and though I never killed an elk with it I killed things even bigger yet. There are just some shots that I wouldn't take with a .25 that I'd take with a magnum .30 or bigger.

I'd leave well enough alone. Keep what you've got. Stock up on components so you have enough. Work on load development. Don't change guns unless one of them is not functioning correctly.

I have shot a lot of whitetail and a few coyotes WI with a .243. That is a really nice cartridge for our deer; your 25-06 is probably a better one.

Take your pick on the .300 short vs the 30-06, thousands of lines of text written about that pros and cons. I don’t have much family left anymore, but if I had fond memories of my uncle, the 06 would get the nod.

i get the impression that only someone from Iowa would think oving to wisconsin would be an improvement

The 300 short is between the 30-06 and the 300 WM but much closer to the 300. There really isn't a lot of difference between them. The only practical difference for hunting is in your head.
However, if you don't reload, ammo for the WSM is hard to get, here at least, and it's quite expensive. 30-06 ammo can be found about everywhere. As an example, right now MidwayUSA has a half dozen brands of 30-06 but only 1 brand of 300 WSM.

Speaking of 300 short and having about every caliber to date a few years ago I re-discovered the 300 Sav via a Rem 722 bolt gun. It is now my favorite deer and whatever cartridge. Keep the 25-06 and use the right bullets....do the same with the 30-06 and you have a nice all around battery.

Keep in mind. If you are hunting deer in what I believe to be your home state of Iowa, you can not use any of the rifle calibers you currently have. But, you can use a .35 Whelen. Send the 06 to jes or whoever and have it rebored to .35 whelen. Same rifle, same barrel, same uncle, same memories....different caliber that you can use for deer in your home state. Also, a great elk caliber....your uncle would want you to take it elk hunting, so go.

Keep in mind John Glenn that the 110 is the least expensive rifle to rebarrel there is. rebarrel it not rebore it...mb

Your big game calibers are spoken for, maybe a .223 Rem, or maybe a 22-250?? Fun guns to shoot, that is for sure.

Take the old .30-06 out and shoot it before making a bunch of unnecessary changes.

I vote for the old 30-06 also.

The 300WSM and 30-06 are for the most part duplicate rigs. Keep the 30-06 as the 300WSM is slowly fading away. Take the 300 WSM and rebarrel to a 6.5 PRC as it covers both territory the 270 Win and 7mm Mag cover. Now you’re set with a .25, .26 Mag and a .30.

You have everything you need. I would take what you have and just tune it up. Maybe cerokote a new stock,recoil pads and a new trigger or two. Add some new glass and mounts. Unless you want something new.

A friend of mine uses a 25-06 and it’s quite the elk killer. I can’t imagine you’re not well armed with 25-06 and 30-06.

I'd say you are covered with what you got for anything you can legally hunt in both states at this time. If you want to sell the .300 WSM and buy something you will like better and maybe shoot on a regular basis then go ahead .