Memorial to 30-06

plainsdrifter said:

swede bolt

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I'm going to need to know a little more about the Swedish bolt gun. Me gusta.

Laphroaig said:

Jack wrote favorably about cartridges other than the .270

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Indeed he did. He thought very highly of the .280 Ross. Elmer? He always preferred the larger calibers with heavier bullets. His favorite round for the Big Five was the .577 3" Nitro express, At least for the pachyderms.

But guys, there are a LOT of members here who are saying "Jack who? Elmer who? A lot of the gun writers from the first half of the last century are unknown to our younger shooters. And that's too bad. Elmer Keith had a kind of salty, direct way of telling a story. In "Sixguns," he tells the story of a horse that had a large sack with something in it strapped to the saddle. The "something" was a large eagle that a cowhand had managed to capture by throwing a blanket over it. The eagle wasn't too happy about the situation, so it sunk its talons into the bag... and the horse's rump. Keith resolved the situation by "Putting a few rounds into the bag to sort of limber up whatever was in there."

Wouldn't get away with that today, Elmer!!!

Scout21 said:

I'm going to need to know a little more about the Swedish bolt gun. Me gusta.

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OK if you must. heh heh
She's a Husquvarna Vapinfabriks AB 30-06 Nitro, safe queen, I got from a client. I thinks she was made in '59ish. Period Redfield scope. Pretty mint condition. She sports the royal crown roll mark.
Oh yeah, one of the first light weight barrels. Very light rifle.

.30-06 was what my dad always hunted with when I was a kid (a Remington 742), and was always what my brain by default associated with a hunting rifle, so the first rifle I ever bought was a .30-06 Savage 110 that I still have.

I've since added 3 more to the stable - a sporterized 1903 that was just too beautiful to pass up, an M1 Garand (because WW2 ), and a Savage Axis (Boyds hardwood stock version) that I got when Wal-mart had them clearanced for $79 with a $50 rebate.

IMHO it has one of the most broad useful ranges (as far as animals you can effectively use it on) of any cartridge. Yeah its a bit more than you need for deer but it works great on them and it can go quite a bit bigger if need be.

This one had Canadian property marks. Must have been WW2 lend lease



I believe the Canadians milled this notch, to distinguish the 30-06 Enfields from the 303 Brit versions.



Not mine, but saw it at the range. This M1917 went through a rebuild line at Odgen Arsen in WW2, and inspected by Elmer Keith



I totally bought into Captain Edward Crossman's hosanna's about the M1903 rifle, and I had to have several.

plainsdrifter said:

I have 3 '06
Didn't intend it to happen but it did, one 03a3, one lever and one swede bolt.

View attachment 1086224 View attachment 1086225 View attachment 1086227 View attachment 1086228

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That is a really nice 1895. Very Cool!

I shot a couple of boxes 340 left.

My two are both service veterans.

This came with the 03a3. The guy used to have an M1 Garand. Missed out on that sale but got ammo.

I see a lot of old friends in the above pictures. The 30-06 is a classic cartridge that just "gets her done". I grew up reading those old gun writers and enjoyed their many different personalities. I met Bill Jordan once at the Tulsa Gun Show and have an autographed copy of one of his books.

I have 5 rifles chambered in 30-06. A couple of Garands, a Winchester 1917, a Remington 03A3, and a nicely sporterized K98 Mauser. It’s one of the all-time great cartridges, and brings just as much to the table today as it did 100 years ago.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?
One of my favorites rem long range 30-06

Just 6!

First was a Interarms MkX in .30/06. Was looking for a .270 (read a LOT of JOC circa ‘67 til he retired. But, .270 eluded me). Purchased 1975. Killed first 11 deer with the’06. Rebarreled to .338/06 in 2003. Restored to .30/06 in 2020. Still shoots sub MOA 5rds. It prefers 165-180gr bullets. BUT, it weighs 10lbs with scop, sling, 5rds ammo.

#2 is a favorite. Colt Light Rifle by Saco of Maine. Clone of a Forbes Ultra Light long action. Weighs 7lbs with Talley rings and Leupold 3-9x VX1. Near 1/2 MOA 5 shots.

#3/4 M1 Garands. My older brothers Faux National Match competition rifle. Other is a CMP “Special “ I bought for CMP Garand matches. Under 2 MOA, either Rifle.

#5 is the doppelgänger of the 03-A3 ‘43 Remington my dad carried in WWII. It too is a tack driver! Target photo is a sighter, then 4 after 2clicks right. 155gr AMax over 48.0gr H4895 in match prepped ‘67 Lake City match brass.

#6 is a 1918 Eddystone M1917. I call it “Brutus”. 11lbs, 26”bbl. gets 3,100 FPS with Hornady 150gr Superformance SST ammo, 2,800fps with factory 180gr Federal blue box. Under 2moa.

What about a 25-06 Remington? The next step.
I have an Zestava Interarms Mark X

I have a long love affair with the old 30-Gov't-06, but on only one rifle. This old Remington 700 put a lot of meat on Dads table and mine:


It currently wears a Leupold 3x9-40, but the old peep stayed on it for a lot of years. I've sort of retired it in lieu of my 243, but it's my go-to rifle when I want to make darn sure I bring home meat. It's never failed me so far.

Mac

plainsdrifter said:

What about a 25-06 Remington? The next step.
I have an Zestava Interarms Mark X

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My best friend/hunting buddy has one he bought in early’80’s. With a Sierra 120gr GameKing over 43.0 gr of IMR4320 shoots 1/2” groups at 100yds. I have MkX’s in .30/06 and .270. All have factory Wilson barrels and are tack drivers. I bought the .270 11yrs ago and have shot less than 150rds through it. I’d venture it has less than 250rds total ! It was new circa 1975!

Rifles sold for less than $150 new. Weren’t appreciated!!!

plainsdrifter said:

What about a 25-06 Remington? The next step.
I have an Zestava Interarms Mark X

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I have a Savage 110 in .25-06. It has a 24" heavy barrel and is the most accurate rifle I have ever seen.

Nothing better to knock something down than an ought 6. The cartridge served America in four major wars, yes even in Vietnam. That is something to write home about.

As an Adviser, I was issued an M2 Carbine. It got wrapped around a tree, and I bummed an M1 rifle from the ARVN unit I was advising and carried that for the rest of my tour. If you know how to use it, the M1 is incredibly effective.

Ah yes, the caliber of the Free World. I own two 30-06 rifles. This 1943 Reminigton '03A3 and a 1917 Gew 98 that has been beautifully sporterized and rebarrelled in 30-06.

I guess that I've picked up over a dozen '06's.
Lessee: an '03. a couple of '03a3's, a couple of '17's, an M-1, an Interarms Mauser, a Sears Model 53 and several others... .

I've gotten rid of almost all of my guns, generally keeping - at most - one example per caliber. The .30-'06 has been an exception, and here are two of my favorites.


This one is a Ruger "Express" rifle purchased new in 1989 or so. It was my main hunting rifle for many years, and I could never part with it.




And this one is a new-to-me Garand, with a late-war Springfield action. It is the first semi-automatic rifle I have owned in decades - and the first semi-auto I have ever owned which was chambered for a useful cartridge! I went a little overboard loading "M2 Ball" for it, with about 500 rounds in clips ready to go, including the 192 in bandoliers. It is comforting in these trying times!