New guy Looking for advise

Status
Not open for further replies.
A

asharris7

Member
Joined
Jan 12, 2009
Messages
38
Hello all,

I am new to this forum and to hunting rifles in general. I do however have experience with AR's and handguns since I was in the US Coast Guard. I am looking forward to all the knowledge that this forum has to offer! I just bought my first hunting rifle the other day and I am trying to find out if I need to make any mods to what I bought. Any advice is welcome, thanks to all.

Set up: Tikka T3 30-06
Nikon Buckmaster 3-9 x 40.
Talley one peice LW rings.


Side note: what is the best hunting brand and grain for whitetail?
 
My family's history with the '06 goes back some 75 years, and I guess the 99% majority has been with 150-grain bullets. :)

I generally sight in for 2" high at 100 yards, which is right at dead-on at 200 and about six inches low at 300. Unless the hunting is in pretty wide-open short-grass country, the great majority of all deer are shot inside of 200 yards.

Your rifle will tell you what brand it likes best. I've never felt the need for any premium bullet, and on whitetail it doesn't seem all that critical. I've loaded with Hornady Spire Points, Remington Bronze Points, and Sierra soft points. They all work. Lots of folks swear by the Remington CoreLokt.

Your rig sounds righteous. Just remember that when actually out there playing with Bambi, keep that scope on 3X for the wider field of view. It's embarrassing if it's up on 9X and all you see is that there's something brown in the way. :D (I've had that happen.)
 
Thanks for the replies! I did so much research on rifles my eyes were about to bleed! Yes, it would have been nice to have had a Kimber 8400 but I felt like the tikka would be a good "bang for the buck" rifle. <-pun intended BTW). I found the Tikka for $478 the scope for $150 and the talley's for $39.
 
Absolutely nothing wrong with what you've got. No modifications required. First-rate rig.

Most any common factory 150-grain should do you just fine for deer and antelope. Premium 180s would be a better choice for elk or moose (e.g. Nosler Partition).

You did good. Enjoy.

Best, Ops
 
You did just fine (better setup than some I know). I use the Remington Cor-lokts out of my 06 and have never had a buck get away from me yet. As far as grain, half were taken with 150's and the other half with 165 which is what I shoot now as most of the areas I hunt are Mule deer, not that the 150 can't take Muley's, they can and have outta my gun. Heck a buddy of mine dropped a 350lb black bear right in it's tracks with his 06 and a 150gr Cor-lokt.

Good hunting :D
 
I did buy some of those Federal Power shoks in 150 due to the price. Are the Remmy's priced around the same as these.
 
I would say you'll need a good sling, and a decent case. I use both soft and hard cases. Soft ones for short trips not hauling around a bunch of people and other gear and hard one when I am.
 
Federal Power points are dirt cheap and work great on White tail. I think they are about $13/ box at Wal-Mart. With a 30-06 the ammo vs. White tail is not so critical. You just have to do your part.
 
Welcome to THR. Make yourself at home.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with your rig! There will always be naysayers as to your gun, be it make, caliber, or even color stock! Don't trouble yourself with others, just zero it in, then go hunt Bambi.
(Heckuva deal on the scope, BTW)
 
ashharis- welcome my friend

Welcome aboard.
Your rifle set up is excellant. I would suggest a decent sling. a nice wide neoprene one. that way you can carry it about all day.

As for ammunition.. if you don't reload then the brand of 150gr soft points your rifle shoots best with will be good. I have shot a lot of deer with 150 gr federal blue box (powershok i think they are called) but the remmies will probably be as good. Like i say it depends on what your rifle likes.

if you take up reloading it will open the possibilities for you - but ammo prices for you guys in the US are very low


interlock
 
Asharris7;

I agree wholeheartedly with Art. I've been using the .30-06 for decades myself, it's an excellent choice & is perfectly capable of doing the job provided you do yours. I've got Tikka's, Nikon's, and love Talley rings, you did good, very good.

Yes, by all means get a good sling. Go to turnersling.com & get information. They specialize in the 1.25" military type leather sling. And please believe me, a good sling is far more than a strap to carry your new rifle with. The Turner site also has excellent information in the proper rigging and use of the sling. Learn to use it & and there's no need to spend the money & pack the weight of a bipod.

Then practice, practice, practice. Do the homework at the range & the field test is an A+!

900F
 
If you're not reloading, you'll have to try a box of as many brands and bullet weights as you can to find the ammo your rifle shoots best. The .30-06 loves 165 grain hunting bullets. A 165 will kill any game you care to hunt, so they'd be a good place to start. A 150 will do for deer, but having your rifle sighted in with 165's will have you ready to hunt any game.
Once you find the brand your rifle shoots best, sight in, off a solid bench, 3.5" high at 100. That'll put you on target out to about 300 yards with no hold over. You don't need premium bullets either.
Most assuredly buy a sling. A T3(a top notch rifle) weighs a bit under 7 pounds. That gets heavy at the end of the day. A sling leaves your hands free too. Uncle Mike's sells a dandy ballistic nylon sling that won't cost a big pile of money.
 
Provided your not going to be stalking Orcas or Yeti's, there isn't a thing in this country that the .30-06 isn't good for,. I don't buy into this "better caliber" nonsense in terms of being able to definitively say that one particular cartridge is so much better than another when it comes to hunting. Certainly, the .30-06 isn't the only game in town, but it is ridiculous to say that there is some wonder-caliber out there that is better. Jillions of stone-dead game animals over the course of it's 103 history would probably miss the subtlety of the argument.
 
Thanks for all the reassuring comments fellas. Are there any tricks to mounting the new rings or the scope? I assembled everything last night and it seems that all is well (ie. Rings to receiver, scope to rings) Only thing that was a pain was tapping out those pesky plastic inserts that came o the Tikka.
 
Also.....



Guys thank you all for your kind responses. I tell you, some other sites that I go to ( at least for handguns) the people are very snobby in their selections and if you do not like what they like then you are rubbish. This is a very refreshing site being new to hunting rifles. It's cool of you guys to make it a very safe enviornment and make noobs feels like there is no stupid question lol.

Slings: I will do my dilligence in researching the best sling for the money and let you guys know what I decided on. (suggestions are still welcome).

Grain: I think I will try out some 165 grain and see what happens. This seems to be a great all around grain.

Thanks to all!

Aaron
 
Slings: I will do my dilligence in researching the best sling for the money and let you guys know what I decided on. (suggestions are still welcome).
Click to expand...

I personally use the Butler Creek neoprene sling, cuts the felt weight by A LOT. I highly recommend it!


Toby
 
I'm loading some 165 grains in my 300 Win Mag this year for deer season.

Can't go wrong with a 30-06, one of the best all-around calibers ever designed IMO. You'll be happy with the knockdown and range the 165 grain bullets will give you.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

A
  • Locked
Looking for advice
Replies
24
Views
727
asharris7
A
A
  • Locked
New hunter here/and 1st hunting rifle
Replies
3
Views
357
tango2echo
T
U
  • Locked
the perfect 30-06 for hunting
2 3
Replies
52
Views
3K
dprice3844444
D
S
  • Locked
Most accurate 223 rifle?
Replies
19
Views
4K
rattletrap1970
R
C
  • Locked
Scope ring height?
Replies
7
Views
1K
coyotesniper
C
Back
Top