how far will a 25 06 shoot?

[joed]

It may be you have the scope mounted to far back or there could be a problem with relief, hard to say.

I would not get rid of the .25-06, it's my favorite cartridge, has been for 35 years. I just wish I lived out west where I could use it for bigger game. In OH I'm limited to varmint hunting with it.

 

[johnnyappleseed]

joed if you wish you lived out west then start making plans

i moved from okla to wyoming in 2000 at age 45 and don't regret it a bit

if you want to make a switch then do it before you get too old

 

[joed]

joed if you wish you lived out west then start making plans

i moved from okla to wyoming in 2000 at age 45 and don't regret it a bit

if you want to make a switch then do it before you get too old

I have already started looking at my next move, just not sure where. Been looking at everything around where your at down to TX. Decisions.

 

[GlockNation]

260

I'd get the AR10 in 260 if you want long range and good performance on game

+1 on that

C-grunt knows what he is talking about. You can't beat the 6.5 for balance. IMHO.

 

[helotaxi]

I'd get the AR10 in 260 if you want long range and good performance on game

+1 on that

C-grunt knows what he is talking about. You can't beat the 6.5 for balance. IMHO.

The 6.5 Creedmoor is better suited to the AR10 than the .260 is. Magazine length restricts the .260 and the Creedmoor has no such issue.

 

[Sheepdog1968]

Personally, I think any shot when hunting beyond 300 yards isn't something to brag about and should truely be avoided. I think it becomes to easy for a small varriable change and then you have a wounded animal that will run off and die a slow painful death. Again, this is my personal opinion and I'm sure folks will disagree on this.

 

[joed]

Personally, I think any shot when hunting beyond 300 yards isn't something to brag about and should truely be avoided. I think it becomes to easy for a small varriable change and then you have a wounded animal that will run off and die a slow painful death. Again, this is my personal opinion and I'm sure folks will disagree on this.

I agree, my only long shots are at varmints anymore. If I can get a 600 yard shot at a groundhog I'll take it. Larger game animals are a different story.

 

[David4516]

"with a cheap Leupold scope"? I didn't know there was such a thing. Guess it depends on how you define "cheap".

Also, how would going from .25-06 DOWN to .243 help you at long range? I'd say stick with what you've got.

 

[Kachok]

The .243 loaded with good long range bullets will totally hold it's own against the 6.5s in high crosswinds. With the high BC bullets, the 6.5's you mentioned simply give up too much velocity to the .243 for a marginal gain in BC. Look at what the long range match shooters are using and you'll see a lot of 6mms that essentially use a wildcat to duplicate the ballistics of the .243. The .260, shooting a 140 Berger Hybrid at 2800 fps exhibits 4" more wind drift (and 33" more drop) at 1k than a .243 shooting a DTAC 115VLD at 3000 fps. Most any respectable long range cartridge will make the .25-06 look like a joke in the wind, but the .243 is a very, very capable long range cartridge and the 6.5mms while capable in their own right struggle to keep up. The idea that they make the .243 "look silly" in the wind is just, well, silly.

Honstly what factory rifle will stabalize 115gr .243 DTACs? NONE!! Sure you can do a full custom job but even then I'll take the 6.5mm. While I am no expert on the 260 Rem I do know you can push 140gr VLDs to 2950fps in a 6.5x55, no 243 load I have ever seen will touch that at 1000yd. Besides the mid range 6.5s will give you a noticable increase in barrel life even if you could push a 243 to shoot the same trajectory/drift. There is a reason why the 6.5s have performed so darn well at long range matches over the past century, and continue to today.

 

[AABEN]

i've got a tack driving winchester 25 06 sporter with a nightforce f1 mildot on top of it. i haven't shot any big game past 200 yards with it, but i shot a prairie dog at 450 yards with a cheap Leupold scope once with the same rifle. anyway i'm thinking about getting rid of them both to get a 243 ar built and a lighter scope. i plan to use match bullets and try to hit stuff out to 1000 yards. before i start wheeling and dealing, i could get a kenton industries turret and experiment with it for long range. what would you do?

The 25.06 will out shoot the 243 at a long range! I have never shot to kill over 500 yards!! With my 25.06 and never over 300 yards with my 243. If I can't get any closer than that I let it go for I do not want to wound one and not find it. That is a waste!!

 

[helotaxi]

I do know you can push 140gr VLDs to 2950fps in a 6.5x55, no 243 load I have ever seen will touch that at 1000yd.

I showed you a .243 load that can touch that. A 115gn DTAC @ 3000 fps exhibits a whole 0.1" more drift and 13" less drop at 1k. That comes with less recoil as well. By the time you buy the bullets to shoot out a .243 barrel, you're in for more than the barrel just in projectiles. Nevermind powder, primers and brass. The 6.5 is a great caliber, but so is the 6mm. The 6mms are the dominant cartridges in competitive circles at this point for a reason.

 

[Kachok]

I showed you a .243 load that can touch that. A 115gn DTAC @ 3000 fps exhibits a whole 0.1" more drift and 13" less drop at 1k. That comes with less recoil as well. By the time you buy the bullets to shoot out a .243 barrel, you're in for more than the barrel just in projectiles. Nevermind powder, primers and brass. The 6.5 is a great caliber, but so is the 6mm. The 6mms are the dominant cartridges in competitive circles at this point for a reason.

You might need to run that ballistics calculator again, mine says you are way off on that 13". Mine has them at 248" and 251" respectively with a 200yd zero, and the windage favors the 6.5mm by a whole 2" in a 10mph crosswind. Drop is less of a concern anyway since that is a well known variable, wind gusts and can be moving at different speeds at range. That is why long range shooters focus much more on BC then uber high speeds. Think about it when was the last time you say a .17 fireball at a 1000yd match? 6mms are a fine choice no doubt, but for world class downrange ballistics I'll take a 6.5mm by a slim margin. Less drift, less barrel wear, and harder hitting if you use it for hunting too.
Don't get me wrong, I am no 243 hater by any means, I carried one on my first deer hunts many years ago and have enjoyed them ever since, great little low recoil gun.

 

[Picher]

The F1 is supposed to have a 3"+ eye relief. There's no way you should have gotten hit by the scope, if mounted properly and you took a good shooting position. The .25-06 does not recoil 3 inches, no matter what you feed it!!!

The .25-06 is a great cartridge and it's doubtful that switching to another caliber with less recoil (for your long range medium game killer needs) will provide a noticeable improvement in killing power and notable reduction in apparent recoil unless in a semi-auto, or with a muzzle brake, and/or with a Limbsaver recoil pad.

My advice is to keep the scope, but move it forward to provide 3" clearance, and install a Limbsaver or comparable recoil pad.

If you want a lighter-recoiling rifle for target shooting, the .223 Rem is the best, .260 Rem is good, but 6mm PPC is best. If cost and availability are issues, stick with the .223 Rem.

 

[helotaxi]

You might need to run that ballistics calculator again, mine says you are way off on that 13". Mine has them at 248" and 251" respectively with a 200yd zero, and the windage favors the 6.5mm by a whole 2" in a 10mph crosswind. Drop is less of a concern anyway since that is a well known variable, wind gusts and can be moving at different speeds at range. That is why long range shooters focus much more on BC then uber high speeds. Think about it when was the last time you say a .17 fireball at a 1000yd match? 6mms are a fine choice no doubt, but for world class downrange ballistics I'll take a 6.5mm by a slim margin. Less drift, less barrel wear, and harder hitting if you use it for hunting too.
Don't get me wrong, I am no 243 hater by any means, I carried one on my first deer hunts many years ago and have enjoyed them ever since, great little low recoil gun.

I've run the numbers several times on different calculators. The results are close enough to the same that it doesn't matter.

Long range shooters look for the best combination of high BC, high velocity and low recoil. An uber high BC alone won't mean a low wind drift. Wind drift is a combination of high velocity and high BC. The .243 offers a great balance of both with lower recoil than the 6.5s. If it were all about BC, everyone would shoot a 7mm, .338 or .50 of some sort since those all offer better BC bullets than the 6.5. The 6.5 has a slight advantage over the 6 in BC, but the .243 and other hot 6's offer the velocity. Both matter. So does recoil.

 

[Kachok]

I've run the numbers several times on different calculators. The results are close enough to the same that it doesn't matter.

Long range shooters look for the best combination of high BC, high velocity and low recoil. An uber high BC alone won't mean a low wind drift. Wind drift is a combination of high velocity and high BC. The .243 offers a great balance of both with lower recoil than the 6.5s. If it were all about BC, everyone would shoot a 7mm, .338 or .50 of some sort since those all offer better BC bullets than the 6.5. The 6.5 has a slight advantage over the 6 in BC, but the .243 and other hot 6's offer the velocity. Both matter. So does recoil.

Never noticed any difference between the recoil of the 243s I have shot and the 6.5x55s. I don't care what any recoil calculator says I have 20+ years expernce shooting both. Both are capable of one hole accuracy at 100yd and and dropping deer like a bad habbit out past 300yd, that is all that mattes to me.

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Get that scope pushed forward I hunted with a 30-06 for decades and had no scope in the face issues.