Factory Ammo Suggestions

[Hunter-Habib]

I’m personally quite content with the 220Gr Remington Core Lokt factory load. Not the most modern by any stretch of imagination, but they work.

 

[Luger00]

My Savage 30-06 is deadly with either Winchester Power Points or Remington Core-Lokt using 150 gr soft points.

 

[dchum]

168 Barnes ttsx is perfect in the 30-06

Head to Namibia in a few weeks with my 06’ and two boxes of factory Barnes

 

[Nhoro]

I use a variety- I have been using PMP brown box ammo (South African brand). 220 gr and 180 gr. Same point of impact or at least within an inch.I would use them on zebra.I have Hornady Interlock 180 gr They throw agroup about 2” high and 2’ right of the PMP ammo.I am not sure I would use them on wildebeests or zebra, they will work behind the shoulder but it is not really worth the risk.Bigger animals I would look at Swift A frame or TBBC or TTSX or Oryx and 180 gr. You don’t really need huge range so trajectory is not your primary concern. Big bullet idling along is reliable and A frame are brilliant as are the rest that I mentioned. Lead based bullets are usually more forgiving on accuracy and velocity so try them first.

 

[rookhawk]

Looking for a starting point for 30-06. I understand each rifle will be different but looking for suggestions on bullet type and weight for plains game hunt. I am not a re-loader so looking for off the shelf or even going with custom loads. Thanks in advance!

A friend of mine was in your situation. He bought the Swift A-frame factory 30-06 loads. Probably the most potent factory load you can get for doing serious damage to plains game you can get out of a box. Not cheap, but worth it.

 

[DillonG]

Had to go wrong with Swift or Barnes. I’m a big fan of Accubonds though. You can’t go wrong with anything that has been mentioned in previous comments.

 

[jb1069]

You guys are a wealth of information!! I now have plenty of homework. Thank you to everyone.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Looking for a starting point for 30-06. I understand each rifle will be different but looking for suggestions on bullet type and weight for plains game hunt. I am not a re-loader so looking for off the shelf or even going with custom loads. Thanks in advance!

@jb1069
If you can get hold of them some nice 220gn Remington corlockt or Barnes TTSX supreme ammo.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I've had great success with most anything out of the Federal Premium products that have quality projectiles loaded. My current go-to are
1) Federal Terminal Ascent
2) Federal trophy bonded

Hornady Superformance has also been reliably accurate and perform well for me on medium game (deer, hogs, pronghorn).

value priced ammo that works fine for practice or to save $ when Shooting hogs/coyotes/etc. has been Hornady American Whitetail, Federal Power-Shok, Remington Core-Lokt.

Pick up a few different offerings and grain weights to see if your rifle shoots one better than another, then dial it in from there.

Adjacent note: my go-to round in my 25.06 is Hornady Superformance 117gr SST. It is extremely accurate and works for all critters i would shoot with that caliber. But to save some $, I often use the Hornady American Whitetail 117gr soft points with near identical point of impact (slightly less accurate) when I'm not "trophy" hunting.

@Tbitty
I use the 117gn SST in my 25 at 3,360fps and everything I hit with that falls down on the spot or a short death run and usually with a good blood trail.
Bob

 

[BeeMaa]

My wife and I each have a 300WM and found that the 165 grain Barnes TTSX is the most accurate for our barrels. About .5 MOA at 100 yards if I do my part.

Others I tested were the Swift A-Frame 180 & 200 grain, Barnes TSX 150 & 180 grain and the Norma Oryx 180 & 200 grain.

It's not a 30-06 but it's close. The lesson here is that wether you reload or not, it's being able to deal with all the R&D it takes to find what works. Work slow and methodically. You can burn up the ammo that's not as good for practice. The key is to start with PREMIUM quality ammo to begin with, and save the Nosler Partition for plinking.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Watch this video, particularly between 5-6 minutes. This is testing various 270 ammo.

@375 Ruger Fan
My sons 308 loaded with 50gn of CFE223 and 150gn accubonds groups 0.3 inch 3 shot groups and everything he shot in Namibia including oryx was on the ground in very short order. Never recovered one.
In the 06 any of the Nosler custom load accubonds would be fine

 

[R eight]

I like using 180 grain pills in my 30/06’s.

I’ve used Federal premium with the 180 Nosler partitions. Accuracy was excellent with the first two batches I used (200rounds per batch) and of course the partition bullet works well. Third batch I bought was disappointing….accuracy was very ordinary.

I’ve also used Norma Oryx and Alaskan in 180 grains on pigs and reds. Accurate and killed well.

My last trip to Canada, at the end of COVID, I had trouble sourcing ammunition. Found a batch of Sako 180 grain Super hammer head. Accurate and worked fine.

I used to be a fan of Remington core like but the last few batches I’ve tried were pretty ordinary.

I reckon anything loaded with a premium 180 grain bullet, that shoots well in your rifle will be fine. Of course if you like the solid copper stuff then choose a 165 or 150 grain bullet.

Bullet recovered from my moose shot at around 140 yards.

 

[coreydb]

Any expanding bullet 165gr to 180gr. You have a plethora of number one selections above from which to choose! Pick any one and enjoy your hunt!

 

[CJW]

The key is to start with PREMIUM quality ammo to begin with, and save the Nosler Partition for plinking.

Just to stir the pot a bit.

Marketing is the only reason some don't consider the partition or accubond PREMIUM bullets these days.

 

[375Fox]

Just to stir the pot a bit.

Marketing is the only reason some don't consider the partition or accubond PREMIUM bullets these days.

Usually premium bullets are associated with high weight retention. The partion and accubond give very consistent results, but both will shed a lot more weight than the bullets that are typically classed as premium. Both would be good choices for 30/06 though for medium game.

 

[CJW]

Usually premium bullets are associated with high weight retention. The partion and accubond give very consistent results, but both will shed a lot more weight than the bullets that are typically classed as premium. Both would be good choices for 30/06 though for medium game.

Exactly my point. They perform consistently at a high level on medium AND large game but they're not considered premium by some just because they don't produce pretty high weight retention mushroom pictures. They perform differently, though with a purpose, so some consider them inferior.

 

[375Fox]

Exactly my point. They perform consistently at a high level on medium AND large game but they're not considered premium by some just because they don't produce pretty high weight retention mushroom pictures. They perform differently, though with a purpose, so some consider them inferior.

You could make that argument for 30/06 or 308 velocities on medium game. Shoulder shots at higher velocity on more heavily built game premium bullets show why they are superior.

 

[CJW]

You could make that argument for 30/06 or 308 velocities on medium game. Shoulder shots at higher velocity on more heavily built game premium bullets show why they are superior.

@Bob Nelson 35Whelen can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he shot Accubonds at a very high rate of speed out of his whelen and reported feet of penetration. Also, you don't get much heavier built than a moose and plenty of them have succumbed just fine to the old partition, AB or Scirocco.

 

[Hififile324]

Every gun and ammo combination is a law unto itself! You need to test several loads and determine for yourself what is the most accurate in YOUR rifle. Also test for smooth feeding and chambering, positive extraction and ejection. I have seen ammo where the rims sheared off due to cheap soft brass and a thin rim, leaving the case in the chamber. Not a good thing on a $10K hunting trip!

Also consider availability, both here in the USA and your hunt destination. Not all brands are available in Africa.

I am a handloader. But I take Federal Premium Terminal Ascent ammo on my hunts. I can get plenty here for practice and sight in, and they sell it where I hunt!

Good shooting!

 

[375Fox]

@Bob Nelson 35Whelen can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he shot Accubonds at a very high rate of speed out of his whelen and reported feet of penetration. Also, you don't get much heavier built than a moose and plenty of them have succumbed just fine to the old partition, AB or Scirocco.

You might not get much heavier than a moose, but nearly all African game I’ve shot is heavier framed than equivalent size North American game. Also shot placement in North America is ideally behind the shoulder and shot placement in Africa is directly on the shoulder because vitals are further forward. I was impressed on my last hunt how plains game reacted to Accubonds but they are relatively soft bonded bullet. If I had to shoot an eland at 50 yards or less I wouldn’t have the confidence with that bullet as something like a Barnes, trophy bonded bear claw, or swift A frame at 300 win mag velocities. Premium bullets will hold up to most any situation. Accubond and Partion kill very well inside their performance window but are lacking in certain situations. For the OP with 30/06 and standard PG they’d be a good choice though.