30-06 Accuracy load.

[MattSako]

Hi, ive been trying recently to cook an accuracy load for my 30-06 for hunting with 165 gr Nosler accubond... tried few load with RL 19 with poor result... im about to try few load with RL 15 and will also order some Viht N150.

If anyone have good suggestion or a good load to share feel free it would help me spare quite a lot of time consuming at the range hahaha...

Thanks a lot for the reply.

[NBFK]

57.5 grains of imr 4350 look in a manual first that's a max load. All guns handle pressure different.

[wolf308]

54.5 gr of rl 22 in an model 70 30-06 with sierra 180 gr gamekings. lowish velocity of 2400 fps but stoopidly accurate, could load up more probably get 2600 fps,

[iceman99]

You'll likely be able to find a more accurate hunting bullet however, 57.0 grains of imr4350 would be the powder charge I'd check out.

[catnthehat]

Your OAL will make a bigger difference in accuracy than the power charge will
Before you go to a max loading , stay one or two grains off at least and do a ladder test, loading 5 of each length changing the OAL and about .040 in .010 increments.
Cat

[densa44]

Cat is right. I didn't think so until I tried it. The OAL makes a very big difference, I'd guess more than the powder.

[ontario gunner]

Im shooting Hornady brass with CCI large rifle primer, 56.5 gr of H4350 with 165gr interlock .030 off of rifling... into a golf ball consistantly at 200 yards.

[whitetailhntr]

Try imr 4350, for some reason it is consistently the most accurate powder in many different 30-06 I've seen or owned. Trying different aol's as cat said will also make a big difference, likely more than the powder charge.

[catnthehat]

To put accuracy ;loading in perspective, precision shooters constantly "chasing the throat", or checking the OAL and making sure the bullet stays the same distance from the leade as the chamber gets eroded from shooting.
Some guns don't change that quick while others have to have the OAL of the cartridge adjusted more often.
This depends on many factors, but suffice it to say, the more overbore the case, the faster the throat will erode.
It is not unusual for serious shooters to re-barrel every every year to keep their rifles competitive within their particular discipline, such as Palma or BR shooting.
Hig volume varminters often are in the same boat!
My 6.5Badcat ( 6.5WSM wildcat) had a full four inches of throat GONE in 2,500 rounds.
it was still accurate for 500 meter hunting , but as an unlimited class rifle rodeo gun it was done.

I'm not sure how many sullijr has down his Ruger No.1 Badcat, but I'm pretty sure it is getting up there as well!
Cat

[HunterDave]

56.5 gr imr 4350 with a 165gr nosler bt bullet from a Savage model 111..........I never had a reason to try another powder.

[tchardy1972]

I also use IMR 4350 with 165 speer grand slams.

[Big Daddy Badger]

Wow..tall order.

First...different rifles often prefer different loads even if they are the same make model etc.

For what it is worth when I start working up loads I check around to see what powders seemed to be used in the greatest number of loads. OR I try to reverse engineer something from a factory round that works well.

Since I shoot a lot and want to extend barrel life I do not make up max or hot loads. Besides...faster isn't always better...ask any woman.

Anyway my usual date during hunting season is a Parker-Hale 1200 Superclip in 30-06. The barrel is hand tuned in a barrel press I built myself. Oddly...I could never find a factory load in 165 grain that would perform well but after trying everything on the shelf...I did find that Winny 150 gr Power Points or silvertips (silver box) overlapped quite nicely.

So using the above methods I managed to find 2 loads that the rifle liked quite fast. I have also used these in other rifles and found they also did reasonably well with em.

Here goes and good luck.

Winchester Brass
Winchester Large Rifle Primers
150 gr Sierra Game King
48 grains H-4895

(This load can also be reproduced using Nosler 150 Accubonds)

and

Winchester Brass
Winchester Large Rifle Primers
180 gr Hornady SST
46 grains H-4895

Both loads have worked well on the range (MOA to 200 meters) and hunting. In the 3 years since I started using them I have dropped 16 deer with the 150s and used 19 rounds to do it. The extra shots were due to poor shot placement and all of those animals were down but not yet dead. All initial shots were within 300 meters. The furthest any animal traveled after the 1st hit was 200 meters and most dropped in their tracks.

I have only taken 2 animals with the 180s...both were deer at about 200 meters and they dropped dead in their tracks.

I do find that Sierra Game Kings tend to fragment a bit more than I like but SSTs seem to hold together very well and I use them in several other rifles.

Adjust for OAL as described by the fellas above. It DOES make a big difference.

Hope this helps a bit.

[Hjortejeger]

Bullet:165 gr Nosler Accubond
Powder: Vihtavuori N150
Start load: 50 gr
Col: 82 mm (3.228)

[Jerry D]

IMR 4350 is quite popular... I happen to use it too with 165's... My load is 56.5 grains. Max in my book is 57.0