I've used the 25-06 in a Browning A-bolt for over 20 years on Mule deer, White Tail and Pronghorn with great results. Am presently shooting 110 grn ELD-X at 3120 FPS and getting .44 MOA at 100 yards, love this little rifle!
Had my 25-06 since 2007. Incredible performance and accuracy. Never cared to try any 6.5 Creedmore when I can drop 95% of small to medium game with it. Sold my 30-06. Nice video. Maybe more people will recognize this old cartridge for what it is
The 25-06 has been overlooked and somewhat scoffed at for a long time, in my opinion because the ammunition industry did not have the powders or the bullets we have today. Now, today, we have something to work with that can put shame on the 6.5 and 6.8's that everyone is excited about. Try this set up, 25-06 with 1 in 8 twist, 24 inch barrel, 100 grain bullet.
@@danellebarnette6380 Hand load produces 3300 feet per second. Rifle is set at +3 inches high at 100 yards, Game King bullet, Dead on at 303 yards and - 3 inches at 345 yards. Great load for a great gun, very flat shooting.
@@richardstone5241 nice i have a savage axis 25-06 that I purchases last year. I've taken only one deer with it with 90 grain hornady CX at 135 yards. I'm wondering about the barrel length. Savage has 22" barrels, do you think that it would matter in my situation because all my shots will be under 200 yards.
@@danellebarnette6380 Howdy Danelle, no, it will not matter that much, 20 yards less at best and GOOD for you on getting that deer. I am truly impressed. You're a woman after my own heart!
I've been using the 25-06 from when it was first legitimized by Remington. My first rifle was a Remington 700 BDL in the early 70s. My second was a Winchester M70 and my last and present one is a Browning B78 that I bought in the early 80s. All 3 guns shot sub half inch 100 yard groups. My best group was with the B78 on a dead calm day of a 3 shot group of .70 inches at 254 yards (my main zeroing backstop). The reason for changing guns was getting the most comfortable fit for me. As it turned out all 3 guns preferred full power loads pushing a 100 grain Sierra SPBT and IMR 4831 to an average of 3442 FPS (B78) through a 3 screen Oehler chronograph. For me, from the consistent performance through 3 different guns has shown the inherent accuracy of this caliber. Though I have used it for deer (100 Gr Nosler partition) up in Northern Ontario; where I live in Southern Ontario only shotguns and muzzle loaders are allowed for deer. Of all the guns I've got, this is the one that I use for coyotes. 400 to 500 yard shots are not uncommon and still very lethal. I've have, or have had, everything from regular 22s up to a M70 458 Win Mag. Another old cartridge overlooked is the 45-70. I have a Browning 1885 with a 28 inch barrel that is my favorite for hunting up north, pushing a 350 grain Hornady to 2300 fps, making it good for just about anything in North America, including the bite-back group. Of course in that case, it's a single shot, so you have to make it count, or else. Just an aside, I do prefer single shot rifles, as I believe as it has in my case, make you a better shot. JMO
My Ruger M77 Mk2 in 25-06 is a beast. 75gn Vmax reloads are the tightest shooting round given the 1-10 twist. Sub 0.5 MOA with 26" varmint barrel at 3500 fps. Smokes everything it hits.
Thank you for the great video. My son was shooting the Savage Axis in .25-06 and we could not get it to shoot constantly. Switched up to a Mossberg Patriot in .25-06 and this rifle is a tack driver with Hornady 90 grain copper ammo. It dropped 80 lb hogs at 80 yards with no issues. This is a great round for hunting.
Good video. The .25-06 is a hugely underrated cartridge and is absolutely relevant. As others have said, best suited to 24" of bore. Mine shoots that 117 Sierra into .36 MOA with a 53.0 grain charge of H4831. It looks like the factory stuff you were shooting did fine and I'd use the 100 grainers for medium game and the 87 grainers for varmints. The 100 grain Nosler Ballistic tip is also a potent deer slayer. I've run up to a 120 grain Partition but prefer pills in the 115-117 grain class. Have fun!
I have a savage axis 25-06. I shoot the Hornaday 117gr American whitetail rounds and get sub 1" MOA. I have shoot out to 500 yards with good grouping with it.
I added a clamp-on WITT MACHINE muzzle break to my 1987 Browning A-Bolt (factory buttplate) to tame it down. Now I can shoot an entire box and it's recoil feels like a .243.
I have a Sako A7 soft touch in 25 06. I haven't had any issues with accuracy in the 117 or 120 grain. I used a Sierra gameking in 117 on a buck 3years ago that blew a coffee cup size hole on exit. Love the calibre for deer and antelope. Flat shooting, fast and low recoil, what more could you want.
I'm running a stock 20" barrel on mine and getting under 1/2 groups at 100 yards with a 117 grain SST load. Now granted I do load my own with AA4350 powder
I have been wanting a .25-06 for some time now. Need to pull the trigger on one soon! Ruger m77, old Remington 700, or a Browning bar. I tend to go towards classic wood stock "fudd guns" if you will. Thanks for sharing the video with us! Just subscribed
There’s nothing fuddy about wooden stock guns , they are the classics that represent the traditional American heritage behind hunting . When the day is over in the field , the admiration and appreciation of the craftsmanship and elegant style will bring you much more satisfaction and joy than synthetic stock rifle . I absolutely hate synthetic stocks rifles and own nothing but wooden stocks . Nothing like blued steel and walnut on a hunting rifle .
Great video, thank you. I love my M77 25-06; it is my go-to gun for everything I hunt except elk, for which I use my M77 77mm Rem Mag. I much later purchased a M77 in 223 for little bitty critters, but my 25-06 is the rifle I use the most. I was more surprised than I should have been on the difference in destruction of the water jugs. E = mv^2, so although the 25-06 may use lower mass bullets, velocity is much higher, so energy is greater with the 25-06. That energy goes into ripping up the water jug. It still surprises me to visually see the results. Joe
I had an older Ruger Model 77 in 30-06 with a tang safety that shot best with the cheaper, non-fancy Federal Power Shok ammo. If I could shoot a group around 1", then I know the rifle and ammo are good.
Got lucky just a few weeks ago and scored a Ruger M77 25-06 with a varmint barrel! Have not shot it yet and hoping it is a tack driver. Soon as I get some new brass and bullets I will start doing some handloads to see where her sweet spot is!
.25-06 has been around for a long time. Mine was in a Stevens 200 with a 22-inch barrel. I ordered a 24-inch barrel for it so it could stretch its legs with slow powders and it's even more accurate. I think the caliber need at least a 24-inch barrel. Agreed that mostly 1 in 10 twist rates that are available don't do the .25 any favors with heavy bullets. Mine shines with 100 and 115 grain ballistic tips (when I can find any) for accuracy at the 1in10 twist rate.
for mid-long range popping paper this is definitely fast and straight. but for paper targets or normal hunting up to deer size, say out to 200yds, the other smaller .25 cartridges are probably more practical. say 25-45 sharps, 257 kimber or wadever, they use 1/2 the powder, like 24-28 grains, so we get to load 2 smaller quarter-bore cartridges out of a single 25-06. with 223 or rem mag casings readily available, and they are also getting the job done. most ppl dont hunt over 200 yds anyway... it's just a matter of practicality and costs.
Been using 25-06 since 1977 never been under gunned on anything up to and including Elk. A 110 Accubound or Similar bullet is great ammo if Elk is on the menu I use Barnes x bullets
I'd been using 117 grn Hornady SST for many years until I looked up the ballistics of the 110 grn ELD-X. The 110 is far superior because of its higher BC. It comes out faster at muzzle velocity, retains its velocity better due to the high BC, thus hits harder at longer ranges and is less affected by the wind. It dominates over the 117 grn. Try them. You will be amazed and you wont go back.
@ohiojeep101 There's nothing wrong with the bullet, but you are right in terms of availably. They are extremely hard to get hold of. For that reason, I rechambered in 6.5-06. Same case, but has the benefit of ELD-X bullets and better availability
That looks like a pretty good round. I wonder how large of a game animal you can reliably use it on. Heck, my mother used to hunt whitetails that feasted in cornfields with my grandfather's old Remington pump action 25 Remington.
I shoot mine off a bipod and a bag. I bought that same setup on sale at a black Friday at bass pro. The way I shoot off a bipod I always shoot 5 rounds at just under an inch. In my opinion this is much better medicine for long range than the 6.5 creed. Its accurate and has more energy. Good video.
Factory velocities are done with a 24 inch test barrel which has a much tighter bore than a factory barrel. Do not count on matching them with a factory rifle unless you put an after market barrel on it.
I haven't been able to shoot rifles for a considerable time because of a back injury that led to a unstable back for a long time. Now looking for a rifle with less recoil than the .270. I had shot a 25-06 25yrs ago and they were still considered a target round. The newer rifles have 22" barrels mostly, doesn't it require 24"-26" for it to perform? Any suggestions for a caliber for deer, hogs and antelope? (Central Oklahoma, out to 300yds)
The longer the barrel the better for the 25-06. 6.5 is a great round with lower recoil than .308. I might even go for an ar 20" barrel and 300 blackout with supersonic ammo. Slap a 1-8 variable optic on that bad boy and you have versatility out the wazoo without the recoil. TFW my friend!!
Fps stated on box cannot be taken as actual. Most manufacturers use a 24" barrel (minimum) to establish fps, some use 26". The Savage Axis is produced with a 22" barrel. USE A CHRONOGRAPH or a ballistic app to determine fps (100 yard zero & 300 yard range to establish inch drop on same aim point) via changing inputs to match 300 yard numbers. REMEMBER the results are ONLY for that combination...., change ammo (even if same bullet weight) & you'll have to reestablish "dope").
Looks like you aren't letting your barrel cool between shots, that will throw you shots pretty badly. My Savage 110 gets hot fast and will throw the 4th round every time from it.
Is it relevant? Is that a serious question? No it’s not relevant you should send me yours so I can dispose of it for you. Catch on? It’s been around since the 20’s. Welcome to the club though. You shouldn’t let your barrel get that hot, if you’re seeing quick silver through your scope imagine how hot your throat is.
Why use a bench rest to shoot from..why not shoot it like you wood in the woods..or you gonna take it with you while in the blind.. I put bipods on all my bing bangs so i can get the same from the woods as i would from the range..
Slim I think your just talking wishful thinking it's not getting more popular I think it's dying out you don't see the guns in stores or the ammo very often .and Winchester came out with a 25 wsm about 20 years ago and it just didn't sell so it died on the vine to bad because it's a good round but today it has to many as good or better rounds that are already selling
