Good all around Colorado hunting rifle (for new hunter)
- Thread starter daveit
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I love the 30-06. I like being able to toss in some surplus ammo and shoot cheaper than .223. Toss in the reduced recoil rounds with light bullets and you can take care of smaller game. Toss in the middle weight bullets and deer are no problem. Load them heavy and take anything left. At the bench recoil can seem bad but I have never in the field found recoil out of a 30-06 to be anything significant. As soon as I'm off the bench, even at the range, recoil seems mild.
The 7mm08 has ~90% power and ~40% less recoil compared to say like a .30-06/.270
Look at federals data.... 2900 ft/lbs vs 2400 ft/lbs
2400 divide by 2900 = 82% - so not ~90, more like ~80%
As for recoil
19 ft/lbs vs 12 ft/lbs
12 divide by 19 = 63% - so very close to 40% less recoil
Besides energy and recoil - both have nearly identical drop, wind drift, and muzzle velocities. All my comparisons are done with 140 grain 7mm bullet and a bullet of the same design in the .30 caliber 165 grain - I looked out to 500 yards. At 1000 due to the 7mm bullets higher BC who knows what performs better.
All that being said, I currently use a .30-06 and I know its overkill (dead is dead though
and I think the 7mm08 is a great cartridge with excellent ballistics and killing power that comes in a light recoiling short 20" barrel configuration. People are getting 2700 fps out of 20" barrels with 140 grain pills, some are getting 3000 fps with 120 grain pills from a 20" barrel. Anyhow I do currently use a .30-06 and will continue to use it, however I would prefer a 7mm08 as a primary deer rifle and keep my .30-06 on reserve for the larger game.
Look at federals data.... 2900 ft/lbs vs 2400 ft/lbs
2400 divide by 2900 = 82% - so not ~90, more like ~80%
As for recoil
19 ft/lbs vs 12 ft/lbs
12 divide by 19 = 63% - so very close to 40% less recoil
Besides energy and recoil - both have nearly identical drop, wind drift, and muzzle velocities. All my comparisons are done with 140 grain 7mm bullet and a bullet of the same design in the .30 caliber 165 grain - I looked out to 500 yards. At 1000 due to the 7mm bullets higher BC who knows what performs better.
All that being said, I currently use a .30-06 and I know its overkill (dead is dead though
and I think the 7mm08 is a great cartridge with excellent ballistics and killing power that comes in a light recoiling short 20" barrel configuration. People are getting 2700 fps out of 20" barrels with 140 grain pills, some are getting 3000 fps with 120 grain pills from a 20" barrel. Anyhow I do currently use a .30-06 and will continue to use it, however I would prefer a 7mm08 as a primary deer rifle and keep my .30-06 on reserve for the larger game.I do agree that 7mm08 is more than enough as a primary deer round. The problem comes when you start adding bigger and bigger animals into the mix. That's why having a bunch of rifles is a good thing. I would have 10 rifles all do one specific thing very well than one rifle do everything decent. More fun shooting more rifles.
JerryD,
According to Remington's data, 140gr 7mm-08 has 88% of the ME of 165gr 30-06 at the muzzle and exceeds the KE of the 30-06 slightly before 400 yards. This is for CL PSP. http://www.remington.com/products/a...ve_ballistics_results.aspx?data=R7M081*R3006B
So, it depends upon the load data you're comparing. So, I'd say 80-90% of the "power" of the 30-06 is a fair estimate. This holds even comparing the 140gr 7mm-08 to the 180gr 30-06 load.
According to Remington's data, 140gr 7mm-08 has 88% of the ME of 165gr 30-06 at the muzzle and exceeds the KE of the 30-06 slightly before 400 yards. This is for CL PSP. http://www.remington.com/products/a...ve_ballistics_results.aspx?data=R7M081*R3006B
So, it depends upon the load data you're comparing. So, I'd say 80-90% of the "power" of the 30-06 is a fair estimate. This holds even comparing the 140gr 7mm-08 to the 180gr 30-06 load.
EdD270
Member
I lived and hunted in CO for 14 years, took elk, deer and antelope. I don't like recoil so I use a .270 Win. with appropriate bullets for the game. I agree that the .30-06 is the best all-around caliber for North American game, but I prefer the .270anyway. If recoil is a serious problem for you, get a good Savage or Remington bolt action rifle and put a Sims Vibration Labs "Limb Saver" recoil pad on it. A quality scope is a plus, but go with 2-7x or 3-9x, and plan to spend more for the scope than for the rifle.
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