Hand load for 30-06

I'd go with 4350 or 4064. With the 26" barrel probably go with 4350. I'm kinda stuck on the 165 gr boatail for any 30 cal I load. Old fashioned Hornady Interlock and Sierra Game Kings have always done a good job for me. Start low and work up to best load.

Welcome to "The High Road".

With that 26" barrel, you could probably still get a good 3000 fps with a 150 - 155 gr. bullet. And since you referred to coyotes, you probably want some good velocity. And by using something in the 150-155 gr. range, you can still reap the advantage of using a slow burning powder.

As for what's appropriate for that 26" barrel, refer to Hodgdon, Alliant, or your favorite bullet or powder manufacturer and find a load that looks appealing to you. Then start the development process, it's fun, and is a lot safer than using data you got from someone you don't know on the internet.

GS

Welcome to THR.

I have been using IMR 4350 and I have tried Hodgdon H4350. The results with the IMR 4350 are good. The powder does cut in my RCBS powder throw so I do tend to load small batches and weigh every powder charge. You sound like you may be doing a lot more shooting than me. I have been using Sierra and Hornady and Barnes bullets in the 165/168 gr weight and fired from my Browning ABolt.

I have a 1lb container if Varget and I was planning on working up a few loads with 150gr bullets with load data from the Hodgdon site.

Good luck. Sounds like you are in need of some pest control. I bet it isn't easy tagging a coyote especially once you pop a few and they figure out the guy with the boom stick is a problem.

Welcome to THR.

I am going to sort of deviate here and suggest a slow powder like RL19 pushing heavier 168 to 180 grain bullets.

We have flat meadows making hard for close shots plus generally some wind.

Click to expand...

Combined with the 300 to 500 yard range I just tend to want to run with the larger heavy bullets and a slow powder, especially with the 26" barrel. I believe you should try some of the other suggestions and simply see what works.

Ron

56gr of IMR4350 and any 165gr Boat Tail you choose has been a staple of the 30-06 community. If a 30-06 won't shoot that it wont shoot anything. Start low work up.

If you are ONLY gonna use it for coyotes and deer won't be on the menu. I'd suggest a 175gr Sierra Matchking. It's not gonna matter if it's a match bullet or not on coyotes they will go down with a hit from one of those SMK's. People use them in .308 to shoot 1000yds so 500 in a 30-06 is no problem.

Welcome to the forum. Your post tells me you want a load to do the following:

* Have a good chance to hit a small target with the first shot that's up to 500 yards away with a .30-06.

Here's my approach that I think that'll make it possible.

First off, you need to decide what is most important. I doubt a coyote 500 yards away will know the difference if a bullet hits him at 1700 or 1800 fps. While slower powders will shoot medium weight bullets (140 to 175 gr.) faster than medium speed ones, none of them have a track record for accuracy and minimum velocity spread like medium speed ones do. That's why IMR4895 was the powder selected for medium bullet weights by arsenals loading the '06 for both combat and competition use. Competitive shooters did the same thing. So, what's most important; highest impact velocity or missing your point of aim the least possible amount?

Second, the more recoil a rifle has while the bullet goes down the barrel, the harder they are to shoot accurate. That recoil moves the bore axis off its desired point to put the bullet where you aim it. Heavier bullets are harder to shoot accurate. Another choice you have to make. Heavier or lighter bullet; which one do you think is most important?

I would want a bullet that is both accurate and easy to shoot precisely. That makes the ones in the 150-grain weight range ideal. And able to shoot it reasonably fast at about 2900 fps so its flatter trajectory means a greater chance of hitting my target when my range estimation is off several yards.

In the heyday of the 30-06 winning matches at ranges up to 500 yards, IMR4895 powder was popular with 150-gr. bullets. They left at about 2900 fps, had mild recoil compared to heavier ones leaving slower, bucked the wind quite well and were very accurate in good barrels. A good load performed well in all sorts of barrels. That's the powder that did so well with 150 and 155 grain bullets at long range in the .308 Win.

Therefore, I suggest you load 50 to 51 grains of IMR4895 under a Sierra 150-gr. spitzer boattail bullet seated to have minimal jump to the rifling. It may be too long to fit in the rifle's magazine but single loading them to get better accuracy won't be a disadvantage. But use this load only if best accuracy and first shot hits are most important.

If highest velocity is most important, then choose a slower powder that'll shoot that bullet out faster.

I have always relied on IMR-4350 with 165gr in an 06. Usually if the gun doesn't shoot that well it will need some tweeking. But when you are talking top accuracy with a 150gr Bart is dead on. IMR-4985 dominated the long range matches for many years. Oh, by the way, it will work with heavier bullets too. It just doesn't sizzle.

CaptCurt, yes, IMR4895 did well at long range from .30-06 cases, but only with bullets up to 180 grains of weight. A lot of folks pulled the 172-gr. bullet from M72 match ammo then replaced it with a Sierra 180-gr. SBT bullet; it shot more accurate than the military match bullet did.

IMR4064 was better. One of the arsenals proved weighed charge of it shot 30% better accuracy wise than metered charges of IMR4895 in M72 match ammo. But it cost way too much to pay someone to weigh powder charges so they stuck to metered ones of IMR4895.

190 and 200 grain bullets in the old war horse's mouth did best with IMR4350 in its belly for accuracy at long range.

With all cartridges, one has to decide what their first objective is with a given bullet; winning the race to the target or all landing in the smallest piece of real estate on it. Rarely, if ever, can you have both.

I'm getting 3000-3050 fps,( it depends on the individual rifle) with 60-61 gr of H4350 from a couple of 22" guns with 150 gr Hornady SST's. You shouldn't have any trouble at all getting 3100 fps with the longer barrel. I'm pretty consistently under 1 MOA for 3 shots and is fine for big game at 500+.

For coyote at that range you might want closer to 1/2 MOA and a little less speed. With a range finder and a scope with dots or dials flat trajectory is less important.

Are you pretty consistent under 1 MOA at 500 yards for 3 shots?

I don't know of any 30-06 (except one) that'll put its first three shots in 1/2 MOA (2.5") at 500 yards. They've done that at 100 yards, but accuracy typically degrades as range increases.

That exception is one shooting Winchester 190's with reduced loads leaving at typical 308 Win muzzle velocities.

I would suggest you give Speer, Hornady, or a Sierra 125-130 grain varmint bullets a try.

That was my 30-06 goto coyote load here in Kansas for a long time before I got a 22-250.
And it is a bang-flop load as far as you can see them!

You can get about 3,000 FPS out of them, which gives you a pretty flat trajectory.
200 yard Zero.
- 22.3" drop at 400 yards.
-46.4 drop at 500.

Yes, Slightly worse then the heavier match bullets.

But the varmint bullets will disintegrate on ground contact.

Instead of ricocheting into the next section and center-punching somebody's prize bull right between the eyes!!!

rc

I'd be thinking 168 grain match bullets with IMR4064. Still drops about 49.8" at 500 with a 200 yard zero.
However, like Bart B says, Wiley is a very small target, even at 300 yards. Wouldn't even consider it with a stock M700. Do the trigger and bed it, if you haven't already.
Llamas apparently deal with Wiley forthwith when herded with other domestic beasts.

A friend tried Sierra 168 HPMK's in his .300 Win Mag on coyotes. They put a 30 caliber hole in them; no expansion at all. He switched to Sierra 165-gr. HPBT's; they pink misted the coyote's location.

Good point RC!

I second RC's recommendation.
Before Bart. B. began imparting his knowledge here , I was of the opinion that the only advantage the .308 had over the '06 was a different throat design and reduced case capacity to improve efficiency with mid-rate burn powders.

I still believe such. The .30/06 IS the superior hunting cartridge. Not just My opinion. But I've digressed.
Try either the 125gr Sierra PtSpt or the new 125gr Hornady SST. Powder isn't really critical. IMR 4064 is my favorite, but there many new entrants lately, most derivatives of benchrest competition, such as H322, Benchmark, IMR8208, not to overlook AA2520, AA2495, and on and on.
I've seen 3,200 fps with 125's and from 26"bbl, 3,300 is possible. I suggest starting with 52.5gr IMR4064 and work up to 55.0. Accuracy trumps velocity.
Where pelts are valuable, try the Hornady 150gr FMJ. It's giving me sub 2moa out of two different M1's, sub MOA from a b/a sporter.
Inside 500 yds, a 125-150gr bullet will shoot flatter, past 500, a 165gr and up will do better with less wind drift. However, a coyote at 500yds is a tough target. In my neck of the woods, you'll rarely see one past ~300yds due to cover. Most coyotes are killed incidental to other hunting. A shotgun with turkey load kills many!

Leave us not forget H4831SC for those 165 grain bullets. Excellent combination.

I especially like Sierra's 165 grain HPBT.

155 amax would be a fairly cheap, but well built bullet.

You might want to give 125gr Nosler B.T's a try with Re-15 .