.30-06 question

[JParr90]

Hey guys im new to the forum but have been a lurker for awhile now. I have a question. I have a Weatherby vanguard stainless/synthetic in .30-06 and it is a wonderful gun. However I also like to varmint hunt (gopher mostly) and I cannot afford a second gun at this time. I was wondering has anyone heard of or used a load with maybe a really light bullet for the '06 case? I understand that caliber is completely unnecessary for these kinds of things but i am trying to work with what i have. Essentially turning my big game rifle into a gopher gun through the use of a really light round. Thank you for your time.

[jack404]

.308/.22 saboted round may do what you wish

http://www.sabotreloadingpro.com/.30_06




Oh and welcome to the forum JParr90

[carver]

I say shoot the ammo that your gun likes the best! It doesn't matter to you that the target gets destroyed, it's a gopher, your not hunting meat for the table. I have shot many rabbits, and squirrels with the old '.06, and I eat them, head shots. If you are accurate enough to hit a gopher, then shoot what gives you the best group. Sabot bullets for the '.06 start at around 55gr, and go up, they ain't cheap!

[CHW2021]

Your best answer is to go look on the shelves at the local gunshop or sporting goods store; there are many different loads available for the 30-06 ranging from reduced recoil to heavy game factory ammo. Your rifle will probably tell you which load it likes, look at the boxes and buy the bullet weight you want to try (or a few different ones) and go to the range. You can go to the ammo manufacturer websites to get an idea of the variety available and the velocities of the factory loads.

You will probably want to see what is a stock item for your local store before you set your heart on a certain ammo.

Have fun, the variety of loads is what makes the 30-06 so versatile.

I would shy away from the accelerators never seen anything better than shotgun pattern groups out of them.

Look for something like the 125gr Remington ammo
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/341...oint-box-of-20

[JParr90]

Hey thank you guys for all the replies you are all very helpful. I think i may try the 125's and see how it likes those. So far i am very impressed with the gun. I found 5 or 6 very random re-loaded rounds just laying around my father in laws reloading room and my vanguard shot those in just as tight a group as my factory 180 loads.

[3/2 STA SS]

I could have sworn they were going to outlaw the sabot rounds because the police can't get any markings off the bullet after it is fired or am I just crazy.

[BobMcG]

As you've probably noticed, for the most part heavier bullets tend to run more expensive than lighter bullets and varmint hunting tends to demand more bullets than big game hunting. So it's up to you how expensive you want to go with that aspect.

That aside, I used to hunt woodchucks with a model 70 Win. in .308 using 110gr bullets with great effect.

[JLA]

Gotta advise against the Sabot accellerators. I never had much luck with them in the accuracy dept. I personally would load 110 gr Sierra gamekings to about 3300 fps. Its still gonna be way way too much gun for a P dog or a gopher but itll do. and accuracy should be decent out to 200 yds.

[3/2 STA SS]

I have used 150 grn. bullets out to 300 yards on ''dogs'' so it will work.

[jbmid1]

You can easily load a 30-06 cartridge for virtually any game in the world.

[ms6852]

Gotta agree with JLA. I've used a 30-06 for 45 years for hunting. I would reload the 110gr. working up a load from minimum to about 10% of maximum allowed. Do a ladder test at 200 yds or 300yds ideally, and see what load your rifle likes.

I had good luck with speers 110gr HP. The sure did make a mess of ground squirrels back in ca.