Good 165 grain for elk? Other Q's.

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1) I'm looking at reloading strictly 165 grain ammo for my 30-06. I'm tired of re-sighting my rifle for elk and deer. What is a good 165 grain bullet that is not too expensive that has great penetration. I am primarily concerned with elk. Most of my shots are under 100 yards but there is an occassional 300 in there.

2) Any suggestions on powder for the 165. (I shoot a Remington 700 30-06)
Also hoping to keep the expense low.

3) Suggestions of FPS for elk hunting applications? This year I will be hunting with a batch of 180's at 2700 fps. With 165's I was thinking about 2800 fps...if my gun likes it.
 
1) Barnes Tripleshock 168's

2) IMR 4895....or if you like ball powder, then Win 760

3) Winchester start load is 47.3 gr of 760....they show a max of 52.5 for 2665 and that bullet weight. I don't have any IMR data handy, however. BTW, the pressure for that load was less than 48,000 PSI....but you need to find the powder that works the best with that bullet and rifle combo...

Try out H-322, H-335, Winchester WXR, Varget, IMR 4350...the list goes on and on, bro...

YMMV

D
 
Nosler partition or win/nosler CT failsafe.


I like reloader 22 in the 06 behind the nosler Bt for a deer load, I generally use about 58.5 grains in my rifle YMMV and get a good reloading manual for your own info, not a max load but in my gun max loads open up the groups



In another vien, how about going to all 180 grainers?
partitions for elk

BT's for deer and antelope.
 
I like 165gr Speer Grand Slams and Re22 powder in my 300WM for an all-around big game load. I've yet to recover one of those bullets from either a deer or elk (or antelope) I've killed, so I can't say what kind of weight retention I'm getting. But the animals have gone down quickly and I've never found bullet fragments in the meat. I'm not loading my 300WM to max either - I'm pushing a little under 3000fps average. I get the best accuracy out of it that way. Then again, it could be me flinching when I load it too hot. I'm not all that recoil sensitive, but I'm not immune to it either. With your 30-06, you should be able to get within a couple of hundred fps of what I'm getting out of my 300WM.
 
I can tell you one to avoid - the Nosler 165 BT. I used it - my advice would be to avoid it - ruins too much meat.
 
) I'm looking at reloading strictly 165 grain ammo for my 30-06. I'm tired of re-sighting my rifle for elk and deer. What is a good 165 grain bullet that is not too expensive that has great penetration. I am primarily concerned with elk. Most of my shots are under 100 yards but there is an occassional 300 in there.

I really don't think you gain a lot switching from 180 grain to 165 grain bullets. But since you say "elk" I recommend a premium bullet. The Barnes TSX, the Nosler Partition Jacket, or the Winchester Fail Safe.

2) Any suggestions on powder for the 165. (I shoot a Remington 700 30-06)
Also hoping to keep the expense low.

Try H414 or WW 760 (these are basically the same powder). These should give you around 2900 fps in your .30-06.

3) Suggestions of FPS for elk hunting applications? This year I will be hunting with a batch of 180's at 2700 fps. With 165's I was thinking about 2800 fps...if my gun likes it.

As I said above, you should be able to get close to 2900 fps -- depending on barrel length, etc. With any of the bullets I mentioned above, this would be fine.
 
I wouldn't shoot less than a 180 in '06 for elk and would think long and hard about a 200 grain bullet.

Sure a 165 will work, but a 180 is a better choice IME.
 
So, how many of you would change to all 180 grain bullets as opposed to all 165 grain?
I want my gun to shoot the same trajectory no matter what I am hunting. I thought of going with 165 to flatten it a hair (for deer & those long elk shots) and figured it was still enough grain for close elk shots.
 
I use IMR 4350 under 165's for deer. Pushing 2900fps out of a Savage 110.

Plan for me is to work up a good 180gr load with premium bullets for elk.

The 165's I'm using (Sierra Gameking) for deer doesn't offer enough controlled expansion and penetration for elk IMO.
 
No one has ever heard of Gamekings. The 165 and 150 have worked well for me. They cost hald as much as noslers... yada yada yada. They Hold weight as well as BT's in deer and shoot better groups in my 30-06 and 300wsm. I live in the souheast so no elk for me. They do a great job on deer so should preform well on elk.
 
But of course Joemidd...I use 180 gr. BTSP Sierra over H4831SC for my .30-06. :D And I wouldn't go any lower then 180 gr. for elk either... :scrutiny:
 
I used 165 gr bullets for years then switched to the 180 because anything under 100 yds the bullet was coming apart. But once you got past 100 yds the bullet performed excellent. These are Sierras spitzer boattails. I have also switched from IMR4350 to H414 and have seen my group tighten up and velocity increase.
 
I don't think there is any doubt that ballistically the 165 grain bullet is probably the best balance in the .30-06, that doesn't necessarily translate into the most effective hunting bullet. I like the 180 grain as the best all-around hunting weight, and prefer the Nosler Partition Jacket.
 
I would say the last place to save money on a hunt is on the bullet....it is the only bit of equipment we buy which actually kills the animal. i am all for shooting a cheaper bullet for practice, but price should not be your main consideration when it comes to selecting bullets for the actual hunt.

As for what type or weight of bullet to choose, how about a 165grain barnes X or TSX? Barnes suggest that you drop down a weight to what might be considered "uaual"....so if 180grain conventional bullet is the norm for an elk load in the 30-06, going to a 165grain Barnes X fits in with what you wanty and what Barnes recommend...
 
I would say the last place to save money on a hunt is on the bullet....it is the only bit of equipment we buy which actually kills the animal. i am all for shooting a cheaper bullet for practice, but price should not be your main consideration when it comes to selecting bullets for the actual hunt.

Amen! Nor should changing zero be a problem -- after all, you're going to zero anyway before you hunt.
 
I don't know anything about this with direct information.
But I am going elk hunting this year for the first time.
I have read all over the internet looking for consensus.
I have talked to the elk hunters at work.
I am making the best guess I can, based on the folklore I have recieved.

I will be trying out Nosler partitions and Barnes tripple shocks at the range.

Which erver shoots best will be what I hunt with.
 
Interbond

Since nobody else has mentioned it, I will. If you want to hunt with a 165, what about the Hornady Interbond? My tests, and experience with it have been very positive! When it first came out, I did expansion tests with the 165, shooting into water filled gallon milk jugs at 100 yds. I used my 300 WSM, velocity was at 3050 fps. Here’s a few pics of the results;

Box.jpg

2_image1.jpg

image7.jpg

Weight retention was between 80 and 85%, expansion was all over .800. Penetration was always into the third jug. Since water leaves no wound channel, I had to take notice of the damage to the jugs. The first one usually came apart in multiple pieces. The second one was split in half, the third simply had a hole with the expanded slug inside it. Here’s the set-up;

set-up.jpg

And the aftermath;

aftermath.jpg

The box is full of rags to catch any bullet that made it through all 4 jugs or skipped out the side.

In use, I shot a small yearling buck last year, the bullet hit high and went between the last 2 ribs. I clipped the back lobe of the left lung, the front of the liver and the underside of the back. Range was around 140 yards. Not much of a test, as the deer was small and with a broken back he dropped at the shot., What WAS apparent is that the interbond opens quickly and does a lot of damage, WITHOUT a lot of bloodshot meat!.

In another rifle, my nephews .280, using the 139 IB, he shot 5 deer with that combo, all dropped at the shot, not one had any bloodshot damage. I didn’t get to see any of the post mortems, but did see them hanging for butchering. One adult doe had been hit from at least 200 yds, behind the last rib, quartering across the chest cavity forward to exit the right front of the chest, enter and smash the right front leg and exit! He said he scooped the lungs out by the handful.

What was said about the Barnes triple shocks, holds true for the IB. You can drop down to 165, benefit from the superior ballistics and still shoot through an elk. I hear how tough elk are. Having never hunted one, I only have skepticism about that claim!
 
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