I am quite frankly surprised at the number of folks using the 25-06 in the Idaho panhandle here. Maybe I've just consecutively bumped into all of them or the number is greater than I thought. How about your neck of the woods?

One of my three all time favorites!! Used it when it was still a wildcat! Now it seems to be over shadowed by other rounds. Killed piles of game and varmints with this caliber!

My favorite WT cartridge.

There's not very many 25.06's around here but it is my favorite caliber and I've been using one for about 25yrs. It's a flat shooting fast caliber with mild recoil that hits the target hard and kills deer like lighting. I'm surprised that more people don't use it or it could be they do and I just don't know it. It is without a doubt my favorite deer cartridge of all time.

One of my favorites for sure .

75gr. v-max to 117gr. SST and a few in between , it works great .

I'm surprised by how few use it around here seems like the perfect medium game cartridge.

I use the .257 AI it's Ballistic twin and LOVE it.

I think a lot of guys here see the 25-06 as an "out west" cartridge vs the .30-06, .308, or .270 as "woods cartridges". Don't ask me why...

It's popularity is on the rise as well as the various 6.5's. People are realizing you don't need a .30-06.

No doubt the 25-06 has a following and for good reason too. However, I've had two or three of them rebarreled to a smaller cartridge, such as the 257 Roberts.

Besides me and guys who I've loaned my Marlin XL7 to, I've yet to see anyone afield or at the range with another 25-06 in eastern Nebraska. That said, I have run across 25-06 shooters in CO, KS, western NE, and SD, but not many of them.

Nobody ever knew (thought) it sucked until the recent advent of long range hunting.

I don't recall ever seeing anybody with a 25-06 here in the deep south . Most people who hunt here have magnumitus -if it doesn't sound macho they won't own it , 7mag , 300mag etc. ammo same story .
Although a few lads know about a 270 .

Lots of ex-military around here -their choice 223 , 6.8 semi-autos & 308 bolt gun usually heavy barrel .
25-06 -nope ..

In the 40+ years I've hunted in CA, I've never met anyone that uses a 25/06. I have a Remington model 700 BDL in 25/06. Usually the hunters here use a 308, 30/06, 243 or a 30/30.

My favorite cartridge is a 257 Roberts AI. Primarily because the rifle is an ultra light and a pleasure to carry in the woods. My 25/06 is very heavy! And too cumbersome to hunt with.

Out here, most people are once a year hunters. They don't practice or go to the range. I'm different, I constantly go to the range and practice. And I do consider the 25/06 an outstanding cartridge.

It's really popular here in Texas. It's a good combo of speed and light recoil, which works well for our smaller deer.

+1 It's a fairly popular round in Texas.

I don't own one because I like hunting with a 22" barrel rifles and usually the 25-06's have 24" barrels because they are basically magnums without the belt. I feel like if you lop the barrel to 22" your defeating the purpose for a 25-06.

with all that said I still want a cartridge that is way more over the top and overbore.... a 257 wby.

I have a 1st year production 700 ADL in 25-06 with over 3000 rounds down the pipe. It's dropped it's fair share of whitetails, mule deer and even my first two elk. It, or it's sister rifle in the same caliber, go out every time I go after whitetail or 'yotes and the like.

All kinds of 25cal rifles in my safe and friend's safes. 25-06, 25-06AI, and 257Wby in mine. I know several people who shoot all of those and also the 25WSSM. I've got 3 friends that use the WSSM regularly.

i have noticed a good number of 25-06s for sale on GB for a good bit less than same manufacturer models offered in 260, 7mm08 or 308.

I had one, wifey took it away from me. It's a heavy barrel Rem 700.

I have two 25-06s with a 22" barrels, a Marlin XL7 and a RAR-Predator, and one with 24" barrel, a Remington 700 SPS. All three are accurate shooters and when shooting the same load over a chrony the 22" barrels run about 60 fps slower. I can live with a small loss of velocity, but the muzzle blast seems more pronounced in the 22" barrels.

For a sub-$300 rifle, the Marlin has proven to shoot whatever you squeeze the trigger on very well. I loaned it to a friend and suggested that he buy the factory ammo that is was already zeroed in with, but he opted for the least expensive factory ammo that he could find, the PP 90 grain hollow-points for about $14 per box of 20. HGe rezeroed the rifle with them and he and his son went on to punch their tags with that rifle and ammo combo.

The only reason I don't have a .25-06 is I sold a .22-250 with a burned out barrel at a gun show to finance one but literally bumped into a guy with a like-new .257 Roberts on his should with a 'For Sale' flag on it. Got the Ruger M77 and the Leupold M8-4x scope for $400, only $150 more than what I got for the .22-260.

The Roberts quickly became my favorite rifle. I think a .25-06 would have as well.

If you shoot factory ammo, 25-06 ammo is more often found on retail shelves than factory ammo for any other .257" bore cartridge.

I really like the 25 WSSM, but haven't a single box of factory ammo on retail shelves for at least four or five years.

Winchester/Olin made a run of 25 WSSM ammo last year, but it appears to have been snapped up by scalpers as soon as it hit the shelf.

You are probably still on WANTED posters in some Post Offices for highway robbery for that deal. I would be jealous if I hadn't picked up an old tang safety in a Roberts a couple of years ago in the same caliber. Even if I had to pay a little bit more!

Never ran into anyone using one at the range or hunting, but I'm sure some must be using them. A few 257 wbys though including mine.

Many moons ago (circa 1981 or so) while shopping for my first deer rifle with my Dad, I overheard a customer ask a clerk what a particular rifle on the rack was chambered for. The clerk replied, "That's a .25-06." I had never heard of such a cartridge but vividly remember it being a one of the early heavy barreled Ruger 77 Varmints. We were shopping for a .243 and that is what I got that Christmas, but after that day in the store, I researched the .25-06 as best I could and swore I'd have one some day. Roughly 10 years later, I bought a Browning A-Bolt Stainless Stalker so chambered. It has been sudden death on most of the deer I have shot with it and it is still one of the most accurate rifles I own.

pretty popular here in NW Missouri. I own one and have owned other.

A hunting buddy hunts with one with great success. Other than him, I don't know a soul that hunts with one.

I've had a few now and once again bought another. Didn't even make it to another season without having one. By far my favourite cartridge and I've used it one deer up to moose. It just seems to kill animals fast.

I have a good friend who has taken pretty much every animal British Columbia has to offer with the 25-06, including a grizzly.

Several family members have them. Since I have rifles chambered in cartridges on either side caliber wise(.243 and 6.5x55) I've never felt a need for one. As others have stated you see them around here fairly often.

I have a friend that hunts Kansas every year. He liked my Howa 25-06 so much, I got him one and worked up a load for him. This last year he took two big bucks and a doe. All were running shots, one of which was a head shot.

I have a 700 SS DBM and it is one of my all time favorites. Lot of punch for little recoil.

I've been shooting along side big game hunters at ranges of various sorts here in Kalifornia since 1958. Saw the coming of the .308 and it's family, and of the 7mm - .300 Magnums.
When the .25-06 arrived, it took off. I suspect it is far more popular than many thought it would be.
Most of the early rifles were built with magnum contour heavier barrels. I suspect that made for better shooting. The lack of magnum class recoil also helped I'm sure. The fact that it shot very flat to ranges where most couldn't hit anything helped as well.
I've never owned one, but I have owned and hunted the .240 Wby and the wildcat .25-284. Both killed surprisingly well with Nosler Partition or TTSX bullets.
The funny thing is that even guys that hunt in heavy cover use them. Never heard anyone complain about it. E

We have LOTS of antelope in Wyoming and the 25-06 is pretty popular here for them, and for deer also. I know a handful of folks that kill their elk with 25-06s too.

The 25-06 has fallen out of favor a bit because everyone is now convinced a .550+ BC bullet is needed to cleanly kill a deer...even at normal hunting ranges. Laughable!

Anyway, I love the 25-06 for it's versatility. Shoots fast and flat. Has available bullet weights ranging from 75-120 grains and furthermore, generates very little recoil.
Great cartridge!

I've always had good luck with the 115 partition but I would love to see a Hornady ELD-X for the 25-06 just for chits and giggles....

It's a flat shooting fast caliber with mild recoil that hits the target hard and kills deer like lighting. I'm surprised that more people don't use it or it could be they do and I just don't know it. It is without a doubt my favorite deer cartridge of all time. [/quote]

My take on it with caribou as well. Should never have sold that sucker! (Thought I needed to sell it to afford a "moose gun"..Dumass!

23 bang-flops in a row over a couple years. The first one took a bullet at the base of the neck, lodged against the opposite hip bone. Not a premium! He was dead and didn't know it, the second broadside thru the lungs knocked him flat.. The next 23 were one-shot bang flops thru the lungs or neck.

The rifle was a factory standard Ruger 77V with fiddleback walnut from forend to butt plate.

30 years later, I'm still kicking my ass. OK 35 years.

FL and south GA. I know three guys who love it. Two of them are factory ammo guys, one is a handloader. All three will probably always have at least one. All three are very good deer hunters. All three also own a .270.

I know of at least one feller that thought a TC Encore pistol chambered .25'06 was a good idea. I had the misfortune to be next to him at the range one day. The barrel looked custom, 14" or so and ported. I vacated my seat when he was shooting it and resumed my load testing when he set it aside to cool down. Did then, and still do, think it was one of the most bone-headed wastes of a cartridge and money I'd ever seen.

Never seen a soul use one. In Michigan, it's either a 30-30 or 30-06.

I used a buddies in Texas to kill a pig. That is it.

Though, if I needed a new deer rifle, it would be 264, followed by 25-06.

I see more 25-06's than .280's. It's popular around here. I've had a few in Remmy 700's, all tack driving deer killers. Love to build one someday...
Win 70 Classic Action
PacNor dupe FWT contour 24"
MCM Featherweight Edge - Brown or Gray with a red pad
PT&G Bottom metal
Talley LW
Leupold 6x
Nosler 115gr Partitions

I haven't met anyone with one in the PA woods where I hunt. Most guys in our camp use the 30 cal old standbys. But I started carrying a 25-06 this year and wish I would have picked one up years ago. With the 100gr ttsx it will handle all the hunting I will ever do.

Other than myself, I can think of three other guys I know who've used them over the years. Right now I have a .25-06 AI.

Have owned 3. First one went to a kid who couldn't afford a deer rifle. It was a Rem700 sporter with a after market Brown Prec. stock, Talley LW and a VX II 2-7X33LR on top. Kampfeld Ti bolt and she was the best offhand shooter I have ever owned. loved 120gr NP's and 100r NBT's. Traded him straight across for his 20" or so TV!

I have never seen one not shoot 100gr NBT's and R19.

Seems to be an "out West" thing. Have never owned a 25-06. Not aware that any of my hunting buddies own a 25-06. Here in KY it generally jumps from .243 to .270 to .30-06. A few 7RM's and 300WM's thrown in for good measure.

Nothing against the .25-06. But for me, I don't see it doing anything that I can't do with a .270 and handloads. If I were going to hunt a quarter bore here in KY, it would be a .257 Roberts.

I went in a gun shop in Kalispell Mt. on vacation and was asking about what calibers were popular up there. The guy told me the Indians around that area (Flat Head, I think) liked the 25-06. He said everyone else had magnum fever.

Back here in Indiana you don't see them very often. The DNR just started letting us use 30 caliber and 6mm rifles for deer season this year, so coyotes and punching paper is about all you can use it for. You can go to the Indiana DNR website to see what we can use for firearm season on deer.

I love the 25-06 and use it all the time to hunt coyotes. I hope some day I can come out and hunt antelope. I doubt if I will ever get to do an elk hunt but I would be hard pressed not to try it with the 25-06 just to prove a point.

Sanchez; Do you know the rationale for allowing only 308cal or 243cal cartridges?

I'm not Sanchez, and don't know much about Indiana except where it is on a map. However, if I were going to guess why only .30 or 6mm calibers would be ignorance...nothing else makes sense.

Well, it first started with basically handgun cartridges in rifles with given cartridge dimensions. One of the wildcats that was developed as a work around was the 358 Hoosier. I reload those and its essentially a shortened 308 Win case necked up to 358 bullets. The case has to be between 1.16" and 1.8" and bullet diameter of .357 or larger for any rifles other than 30 or 243 calibers.

Are you still with me, LOL.

The DNR was supposed to open it up to regular center fire rifle cartridges last year and did not. Then a state legislator got a bill passed and the 30 Cal and 6 MM was all that was in it, plus what ever was approved previously. Also the 30 & 6 can only be used on private land, and its on a try and see basis to be reviewed at the end of 5 years I think.

Most of the big stink came from people worried about stray shots with the center fire rifles vs. shot gun and hand gun cartridges. There was even talk about limiting it to south of US 40 as it is hilly and the bullets would not stray as far.
So now we can deer hunt with a 300 Ultra Mag or a 30 Carbine or a .243 but not a 100 grain 25-06!

I think the guy that got it passed had some people telling how the bill should be and just used those calibers as an example a they became the law. Kind of like how Nome Alaska got its name.

Oh I forgot that under the rules for handguns it has to fire a bullet of at least .243" with a minimum case length of 1.16" and no maximum length. Which means you can use a 25-06 handgun.

I know TMI.

Wow! thanks! Appears to be a classic example of how ignorant government legislators pass stupid laws!

It gives you great pain between your ears. It could be worse it could be Illinois. Sorry Illini.

I have tried to like the cartridge. First try, the rifle was too heavy (Sako). Last try was a limited run of Ruger no. 1, a trim 24" barrel and an A style forearm. I could never find an appropriate scope that allowed for eye relief without seriously crawling the stock. Leupold 3.5-10 would work at up to 5x. Cutting the stock about an inch would have bee n a last resort solution, but having other drawbacks. So, I traded it a for a new bolt gun and scope in .223.

Best, jack

Jack: sounds like you had rifle issues, not cartridge issues.

There is some question about Nome, but Chicken is a better example. They wanted to name the town Ptarmigan but no one knew how to spell it. So they went with Chicken.

I picked up a discontinued Marlin MR-7 (excellent platform) for a cousin's son to use as his fist deer rifle. It's well-built and very accurate and he's been dropping NE whitetails in style for years now.....

Smallfry: I have three close friends who Hunt all manner of game with the 25/06 Remington caliber, INCLUDING Elk!
I have pair of VERY accurate 25/06 bolt action Rifles myself.
I don't Hunt Elk with them but I have seen two of my friends kill Bull Elk with their 25/06's.
I have seen one of my friends kill both Mt. Goat and a Black Bear with his 25/06.
Bullet placement and quality construction are most likely keys with this caliber for the larger game.
I have killed three kinds of Deer, Antelope, Coyotes and Rock Chucks with my 25/06's and have had it along on several Wolf Hunts (no luck there as yet).
I always have made it a point (for the last 50+ years anyway) to casually inquire of Hunters I come across afield (both Big Game Hunting and Varmint Hunting) which caliber Rifle they are using.
The 25/06 is and has been pretty popular here in the west.
The 25/06 Remington does a LOT of things very well indeed!
Long live the 25/06 Remington.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I have a good friend who has shot just about everything we have to offer here right up to a grizzly with his 25-06. Never had an issue with it....

I had a pushfeed Model 70 in .25-06 that would shoot the eye out of a gnat with 4350 and Hornady 100 gr spirepoints. Took my first pronghorn with it at 383 steps (before laser rangefinder days). However, I found the light bullet tended to wander in the wind and tried changing to a 7 mag with 140gr ballistic tips. Seemed to be not so sensitive to the crosswinds, and I have never looked back. Whatever works.

I've had a 25-06 for all but two years (the first two) of my hunting life. I think it's a great round and I really don't know how many deer, hogs and coyotes if killed with it but it's a bunch. I'll always own several.