ID_shooting
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In 1903 a new rifle for the U.S. military was adopted, the 1903 Springfield. This rifle was chambered in a mediocre cartridge know as .30-03 or .30 caliber 1903. This round used a heavy 220 grain round-nosed bullet and because extremely high pressures were needed to push it out of the barrel at an effective rate (2300 fps), the bore of the rifle had a tendency to overheat and erode at accelerated levels. In addition to poor internal ballistics, the .30-03 had the poor ballistic co-efficiency of rock and was not known as a stellar performer at long ranges. Due to its many shortcomings, this cartridge was very short lived and only saw service for 3 years before it was replaced by the Ball Cartridge, caliber .30, Model of 1906 (.30-06).
The .30-06 was slightly shorter than its predecessor and used a much lighter 150 grain bullet. It also used a new bullet design known as “spitzer.” This bullet was developed by the Imperial German Army and employed a pointed nose and greatly increased a bullets ability to overcome drag during flight. This new design allowed for far greater accuracy and longer effective ranges then the now antiquated round-nose bullets.
Since there were many thousands of 1903 Springfield rifles in use it was decided to refit them for the new .30-06 rather than designing a new rifle for deployment. The 1903 Springfield saw service in various renditions from 1903 to 1940 when it was replaced by the M1 Garand service rifle. It served with the M1 until 1954 when the M14 was introduced. It its 51 years of service the .30-06 saw us through WWI, WWII, and Korea.
Due to the success of the .30-06 it was quickly adopted into civilian life and a solid sporting and hunting round. Questionably the most popular rifle cartridge in the U.S., every major rifle maker, ammunition supplier, and reloading company in the world produces equipment and supplies specifically for it. Additionally, the .30-06 carries a near cult-like following amongst sportsmen and shooters around the world.
The .30-06 holds many distinctions:
*First Spitzer-based cartridge for the U.S.
*Longest service live of any service rifle cartridge to date.
*Leader in sales of both rifles and ammunition in the U.S.
*Capable of taking any game in North America.
*Has been hunted with around the world.
*Usable with a large range of bullet designs.
*Most popular chambering in the U.S.
*Can be found in any store in the U.S. that sells ammunition.
*Loaded from 110 grain varmint loads clear up to 220 grain dangerous game loads.
Even though the .30-06 is 100 years old this year and many believe it is on the way out, I predict it will be along time before it will be replaced.
The .30-06 was slightly shorter than its predecessor and used a much lighter 150 grain bullet. It also used a new bullet design known as “spitzer.” This bullet was developed by the Imperial German Army and employed a pointed nose and greatly increased a bullets ability to overcome drag during flight. This new design allowed for far greater accuracy and longer effective ranges then the now antiquated round-nose bullets.
Since there were many thousands of 1903 Springfield rifles in use it was decided to refit them for the new .30-06 rather than designing a new rifle for deployment. The 1903 Springfield saw service in various renditions from 1903 to 1940 when it was replaced by the M1 Garand service rifle. It served with the M1 until 1954 when the M14 was introduced. It its 51 years of service the .30-06 saw us through WWI, WWII, and Korea.
Due to the success of the .30-06 it was quickly adopted into civilian life and a solid sporting and hunting round. Questionably the most popular rifle cartridge in the U.S., every major rifle maker, ammunition supplier, and reloading company in the world produces equipment and supplies specifically for it. Additionally, the .30-06 carries a near cult-like following amongst sportsmen and shooters around the world.
The .30-06 holds many distinctions:
*First Spitzer-based cartridge for the U.S.
*Longest service live of any service rifle cartridge to date.
*Leader in sales of both rifles and ammunition in the U.S.
*Capable of taking any game in North America.
*Has been hunted with around the world.
*Usable with a large range of bullet designs.
*Most popular chambering in the U.S.
*Can be found in any store in the U.S. that sells ammunition.
*Loaded from 110 grain varmint loads clear up to 220 grain dangerous game loads.
Even though the .30-06 is 100 years old this year and many believe it is on the way out, I predict it will be along time before it will be replaced.
