30 Gibb's, 30-06 AI, or just stay 30'06

CYanchycki

CYanchycki

Club Coordinator
Okay guys.

I currently have a Rem 700 .270 Winchester that according to the barrel markings dates it to December of 1965. I was born March of 1966. This is what prompted me to pick up this used rifle from our local gun shop along with the decent shape it was in.

The kicker, it is a .270 Winchester.

My Dad being an avid hunter in his day shot a 30-06 from the very early 70's. He was talked into it by a brother in law. I believe he paid 72.00 Canadian dollars for a Midland. This rifle has shot more whitetails than a dare say. Thus growing up in the family I was talked into the 30-06 is the caliber to use. Back in the day the selection of bullets was bar none the best. I used to shoot a Sako M995. That rifle shot amazingly for a factory rifle. I sold it when I discovered this Forum and Bench Rest. I was stepping away from my love of hunting to pursue this RIDICULOUS hobby......LOL

Anyway, getting back on topic, I want to rebarrel the Rem 700 to a BELT LESS 30. I have a buddy who shot a 30 Gibbs. He said it was a hard hitter. People are telling me to stay away as it is a pain to make brass. Really not. I was told to do a 308 Norma. I want to stay away from a belted case. The other option, a 30/06AI. From what I have heard and read the gains of the AI are not like is seen with a 280 AI.

Give me some insight/ thoughts.

I know Jackie has done up a 30-06 that appears to shoot lights out. German Salazar shot one in competition, but from what i have researched he is no longer shooting and any of the info he used to have in his blog is now gone.

I want to shoot 180gr bullets as I feel that is plenty of lead in North America.

Share your thoughts with me.

P.S., have a lot of 30 cal bullets that are sitting idle at this time.....

Calvin
 
30-06 still friggin' rocks....ya cain't really beat it on a .473 bf and it'll recoil to the raggedy edge of tolerance in a hunting rifle. You can call it a "long action 300WSM" accurately.

And I do own a trued, blued, screwed-N-glued fully tattoo'd 30-06AI
 
Al

alinwa said:
30-06 still friggin' rocks....ya cain't really beat it on a .473 bf and it'll recoil to the raggedy edge of tolerance in a hunting rifle. You can call it a "long action 300WSM" accurately.

And I do own a trued, blued, screwed-N-glued fully tattoo'd 30-06AI
Click to expand...


Would you mind sharing with me some info on the AI versus the stock '06.

You can privately if you choose.

cyanchyc@mymts.net

oh and from Canada to Al.......

THANK YOU

LOL

Calvin
 
You're no real Canuck....that's "THANK YOU EH"

LOL

No secrets to impart...but owning both I can say with certainty that the 30-06AI ain't no faster than the plain jane aught-six. IMO the only reason to "improve" the case is to make it harder to slip in the sizing die. You've really got to be careful to keep the shoulders of the cases degreased on the -06 or they'll grow horrendously due to the shallow shoulder angle. I normally improve my cases to 35* for this reason but in the case of the 30-06 I had mine ground at the traditional 40* in homage to my man PO, and because the shoulder is short enough that it doesn't bounce like say a 243AI or a 22-250. (BTW, IMO the single case MOST suited to Improving is the 22-250......as it is it's a serious slug...... sticky, nasty and slow...... but with a body taper reduced to .01/inch and a 35* shoulder it becomes useful) The 30-06AI is dead easy to get the shoulder to hold, eliminating case growth entirely.

BUT

I really did the 30-06AI because it looks cool..... I gotta' lotta' AI's from back when I was cooler.

When loading the 30-06AI the only real change is that it takes a skosh more powder to achieve the same velocity with light bullets and it'll get you maybe 25-30fps with heaviest.
 
with modern powders and modern bullets,
one can nearly match 300 win mag with an '06.

i would go straight 30'06..no head aches and lots of
options.

go there and do not look back.
 
There is certainly nothing wrong with a standard '06.

This is four 5-shot groups with mine at 100, and a 500 yard group.

That 178 grn AMax is going out at 2875 FPS. Now, unless elk, caribou, mule deer, white tails, or just about any thing in North America has became bullet proof, that will get the job done.

Recoil? I must admitt, Sitting down at the bench and shooting 5 shot groups is not over bearing, but it will get your attention.


http://benchrest.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=18761&stc=1&d=1482378518

http://benchrest.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=18761&stc=1&d=1482378518
 

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3006

I looked in an old hornady rag I had layin around and it said a 180 gr. .308 at 2800 fps. has 3100 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy. A ton and a half. That oughta put the hurt on anything in north America. Doug
 
i just got the new hornady loading book and they stop at 2750
with the 175/178/180bullets.
not sure an elk could tell the diff
 
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Thanks guys......

Will stay with the '06........

Next step will be to settle on a reamer....... Advice?????

Jackie, the reamer you are using, is it possible to get a pic of the print or print number? Also wondering where the bullet sits in the neck using the 178 A-Max? I would likely lean towards Nosler's or Barnes for the hunting bullets. Plan to stay with 180's give or take a bit......

How about you AL? same questions......

I have had best luck in the past with RL22 and H4350............
 
Cain't go wrong with std 06

in a hunting rifle. I have my FILs old FN made 06 and it has shot a pile of deer and two moose. The 200 Nosler partition and 55 grains of IMR 4350 is just awesome on moose within 150 or 200 yds...one shot at about 60 the other this year at 140. For deer, 150 grain Nosler BT or any good, not too tough a bullet for that matter. If I was ever going to rebarrel a 30-06 it prolly would be to 35 Whalen cartridge provided the gunsmith could make it feed reliably.

I do have a Browning 308 Norm Mag and it is an awesome shooter for longer ranges and/or heavier bullets. It belts you in the recoil department tho. But as I'm sure you know when you are shooting game I can't hardly remember a time when I can even remember the recoil.

Regarding the belt, IMO if you setup your sizing die to not push the shoulder back or back much...just enough to be able to close the bolt easily, then the belt will headspace the round with no issues at all. Why are you anti belt? Good luck with your rebarrel project.
 
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After living in and hunting in both Alberta and British Columbia and owning both the standard 30-06 and the Norma .308 Magnum, my vote would be for you to choose the standard 30-06!!! I do nave a .30 Gibbs that I built awhile back but have not shot it as yet.

I found that large game in both providences very easy to kill!

Good luck,

leomat
 
zeke mccune said:
After living in and hunting in both Alberta and British Columbia and owning both the standard 30-06 and the Norma .308 Magnum, my vote would be for you to choose the standard 30-06!!! I do nave a .30 Gibbs that I built awhile back but have not shot it as yet.

I found that large game in both providences very easy to kill!

Good luck,

leomat
Click to expand...
I completely agree. The animal would not know the difference.
 
The thing

I notice about really big game, like moose, is that they are seldom one shot and down. Often the first shot is a fatal one, but tell that to the moose. Two bulls I've been lucky to get were 3 or 4 shots. My feeling is if they are standing, shoot. Last thing I want to do is have an 800 lb moose run half a mile into a logan, then die. The 06 is great, but a rifle firing the same bullet a few hundred fps faster is not hindrance. There is nothing wrong with being somewhat over gunned, nothing at all.
 
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