Best 30-06 Hunting Rounds

I am looking to reload for my 30-06. I recently purchased a master kit rock chucker supreme. I am looking for combinations that work well as far as powder and bullets. I am also looking for once fired brass . Any combinations you could provide for a 30-06 would be sppreciated. Right now I have 4 pounds of H4350 but sm open to other powders also. Just looking for an accurate and lethal round.

178 gr ELD-X

Max out on H-4350, maybe ease past max.

Recoil is going to be peppy. I'd rather shoot a .300 Win Mag.

200gr accubond is also a lethal combination if chasing larger game than deer

The hook is set and you’re gonna blow a bunch of cash looking for the best load for your rifle.

I like 4350 but you’ll have to experiment some

I’m a fan of a 150 Gameking and 4064. My rifle happens to like 47.5 grains. It’s not the fastest load, but it’s the most accurate.

Skip the once fired brass, unless it was fired in your rifle.

Lapua and Norma make good brass in .30-06, which will last many reloadings if not resized too much. Buy some headspace guages and only set the shoulder back 0.0015 - 0.002”. Quality brass, carefully prepped is the foundation on which good loads are built.

Barnes TTSX are my favorites for hunting, the 150 grain 0.010” off the lands should work well with the H4350. Many people like Nosler products, the Partition is still very popular. The Sierra Game King is another that is easy to make run well.

FJG, a guy just starting off will have a much easier time with a tangent ogive than a secant ogive.

OP, if someone with experience reloading lives near you, ask for help setting up the dies and adjusting everything initially and life will go smoother.

Read at least two different manuals on reloading, one of which should be by the bullet manufacturer you decide to use, before doing anything, buy good calipers and use them.

The stickies at the top of this section have lots of helpful information.

Welcome to a rewarding and enjoyable facet of hunting.

Is there any classes you recommend

I think FJG works with folks one on one. The NRA has a mettalic reloading class and theirvwritten materials tend to be very good, but instructors can be very uneven.

The best thing is to spend time reading and reading some more. The Sierra Manual was helpful to me starting off as was the Hornady manual. Read the “how to” sections up front. The stickies in this section are full of good info.

There are some good videos on youtube including from some of the reloading equipment manufactures and suppliers. Trust most of these getting started than a lot of the guys that post videos. Sinclair reloading videos linkb Brownells youtube video link

The tips and tricks thread in the stickies above has some useful information and links to some good videos on the subject. A new to reloading person can pickup some things from the new to reloading thread aboe as well;

Jeffbird has some good advice in the post above as well. If you can find a mentor that can walk you through it that will help as well. At one time Cabela's stores did reloading classes sometimes but not sure about these days but it would not hurt to check. They are basics but can answer lots of questions.

This place can be a good one to ask questions about reloading on, There are some very knowledgeable folks on this site.

The old saying that if a 30-06 won’t shoot a 165 grain bullet accurately with 58 grains of H4350 there’s something wrong with the rifle has merit. I usually use a GameKing with that specific charge, but about any 165 will work well. This specific bullet weight and powder is as good a place to start in an ‘06 as any. Good luck!

Just looking for some good loads to try as s beginners load. I am willing to try anh powders and bullets

I concur with Scott, pick a 165 of whatever you like, the Nosler Partition is a classic choice, the Nosler Ballistic Tip is popular, the Sierra Game King should be accurate. With monometals such as the TTSX, drop down a notch lighter, so the 150. Any of those should get you going and work well for you.

H4350 is a great choice.

Spring for a box of Lapua brass, which removes some brass prep. Good brass really helps. For primers, Federal or CCI are a good starting place.

Worked one up with my brothers 30-06 using 180 grain partitions and H4350, got 2 pretty good loads.

I have a set of dies, 50 pieces of new brass and a few pieces of once fired. If you want them PM me your address and I'll send them to you. I've always had some help along the way so I try to help where I can.

165gr nosler t with 4350 has been my go to hunting combo for years now.

I use a Hornady 180 BTSP over 47.1 hrs of IMR 4895.

H4350 is all I use now. 150, 165 or 180. 56 to 60 grains, depending on bullet. Barnes and Swift bullets require a lower charge per bullet weight in my rifle.

I use 165gr Hornady SSTs and Sierra Gameking HPBT. My go to powder is IMR4064 followed by Varget and IMR4166. 30-06 is easy to load for and shoot.

Or in my case, a lot.

I know how to reload accurate ammo, but am tired of buying jars of powder that doesn't work in my '06. I've gone through probably 10 different powders.

Maybe powder choice is not the issue?

I have loaded for the 30-06 for close to 30 years. Honestly if you are shooting deer/pigs at 300-350 yards and closer you don't need to get fancy at all. As others have said some type of 165 is usually right in the zone, although I have killed a bunch with a 150, and if you think you may be going to shoot game in the elk class then I would just go to a 180 and use it for everything. As far as bullet type it is really hard to beat a Sierra Game King or one of the older style Hornady spitzers, or a Partition. I'm not a real fan of the SST myself it seems to be harder to make them shoot than just a plain old lead tipped bullet. Ballistic tips generally are pretty easy to make shoot as well. Any of those should work. Pick one your rifle likes and kill stuff.

Powders are pretty easy too. I have used a bunch of different ones. H-4350 is good, and the old IMR 4064 is a good powder in the '06 as well. I would have to double check, but for years I shot a 165 SGK with IMR-4064, and pretty sure that charge weight was 52 grains. Kind of more an old school load, but it shoots well in a lot of different 30-06's, and it works.

Having said all that, since I bit the LR bug I have changed up my load, and really my whole setup. Now I am shooting a 178 ELDX pushed by RL-16. Velocity is 2835 fps out of a 22" barrel. It will hold 1000 FPE out to 920 yards, and shoots really well out of my rifle.

Me and my family (my father & his brothers) have been loading Sierra 165 GR BTHP with IMR 4350 pushing the max grains. We use this on whitetails .. perfect medicine!!

Reloder 16 is the cat's meow for the 30-06... as Jp says it works well with the 180-200gr and for LR I too have found it excellent.

What kind of rifle and barrel are you using? Right now I am shooting factory hornady sst 165 grains out of a savage with a 22 inch barrel. Just want an all around good accurate round out of my rifle . Our longest shots we make is 400 yds. Also wondering why RL16 for long range. I keep hearing all the different powders and just confused on what will be best for m uh purpose and setup

Accuracy, not hunting, 48grs IMR4064 with 180 gr Match King. But, barrel length can matter when precision shooting.

I think this was directed at me. My 30-06 is a Pre-'64 Win M-70 featherweight, with a Shilen barrel chambered and installed by Jon Beanland. I stayed very close to the original barrel contour. Barrel is cut at 22", and I have a Silencerco Omega on it. RL-16 is one of the newer temp stable powders. Very close in burn rate to H-4350, it is very comparable. I haven't used in in a lot of applications yet, but it seems to be working very well in the '06.

A temp stable powder means that the burn rate does not vary (as much) with temperature. So, whether conditions are cold or hot, the burn rate, and therefore bullet speed, is more consistent. That makes a difference in long range shooting, not so much at shorter and moderate ranges. It can have other advantages too, such as with a load that was developed in moderate temps here in the US, and then taken to Africa and used in blistering heat. That could cause some overpressure issues if a reloader was not paying attention.

Honestly though, for 400 and in I would just use a good cup and core bullet, 165-180 grain, and a temperature stable powder (not because you NEED a temp stable powder, but if it works good, why not?) Burn rate right around that H4350, RL-16, or IMR 4451 range. It isn't hard to make an '06 shoot with a combo like that. That combo will also kill pretty much anything you want to shoot with it, elk size and down. Brown bear and moose I would step up to a 200.

Could yall please advise me the best brass and bullets to use. I am also looking for best dies to use and any tools that will help me. Willing to buy any used tools available but I have limited funds to spend

With factory ammo, it's shot the best with 165 grain ammo, so that's all I've reloaded with. I guess I could try some different weights.

My favorite general purpose reloading dies are the Forester. They cost about twice what the cheaper dies run, but they are good dies that load straight ammunition. Nearly any other brand that uses an expander ball I have had trouble at one point or another with the expander ball pulling case necks out of alignment. So far, due to the design of the Forester, I have never had that trouble with them. Just adjust the height of the expander ball inside the die according to the instructions and you should be good.

https://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/4630

If you don't have all the tools to really uniform brass, like a neck turner, primer pocket unifomers, all that jazz, then personally I would just bite the bullet and get 100 Lapua cases. It is good brass that even though it costs more will be about as uniform as you can expect out of factory brass, and will last good. Norma usually makes pretty good brass too. Anything else is just pot luck and will need to be uniformed IMO. I "think" that Norma makes the Nosler brass as well, but I haven't used any of the Nosler.

Bullets start with a 165 Sierra Game King or a 165 Nosler Ballistic tip. Both of those are usually easy to make shoot good.

165 Game Kings for over 200 yards, 200 or under love me some Pro Hunters.(150 gr) I rarely load a compressed load, but I do like to fill the case.

For Whitetail, the old '06 I inherited from my dad absolutely loves the Sierra GK 150gr over 60grains of IMR4831. Once the brass is trimmed I can pretty much just fill the case with powder, level it off with a butter knife, tap it down a bit and seat the bullet. This a compressed load near max, so start low and work up. I have never chrono'd the load, but it is more accurate than I am, and pure death to a whitetail or hog.

What is the goal of your loading? Are you wanting good quality hunting ammo? Match grade ammo for shooting long range? Cheap plinking ammo?

No offense, but many on here have a one track mind and "best" is debatable and almost never fits in with "limited funds".

Keeping money in mind, if your looking to reload quality hunting ammo just about any once fired or new Remington, Winchester, etc. brass will do the job, the H4350 powder you have is great and i'd look for some 165-180 grain sierra game kings or prohunters and go to town. RCBS, hornday, lee all make more than serviceable cost effective dies.