25-06 pet loads

H

Hog head

New member
So, Santa clause brought me a new browning x-bolt in 25-06, and I need a good place to start with my hand loads. I’m looking for varmint and deer/antelope loads and anything special with loading for this rifle as I have not dealt with a 25-06 before. I don’t have a preference for bullet or powder flavors just your go to rounds. Thanks for the help
 
Haven't experimented much with my 25-06 Rem Sendero. Started with a common and recommended powder, IMR 4831, and Hornady bullets from their old 87 gr. SP, 100 gr. SP, and 117 gr. SP and BTSP. All with RP cases, RP 9 1/2 primers. My rifle shoots all the weights very well while some will show a preference for lighter or heavier bullets. Mostly targets but it has dispatched a few coyotes with the 87 SP. Don't want a lot of load workups start with IMR 4831. One of the most popular varmint bullets seems to be Nosler's 85 gr. Ballistic Tips with IMR 4350 powder. Many good powders for 25-06 plus great bullets. I'm mostly a Hornady fan and IMR 4831 and IMR 4350 that I use in other calibers works fine in my 25-06. Santa was good to you this year!
 
I myself like the Sierra 90gr BlitzKing for coyotes.
RL17 works well with these.

For heavier bullets, Alliant PP4000 gets the nod.
115gr Berger VLD Hunting work well with minimal meat damage if put in the boiler room. Massive internal damage!
 
Back when I used a .25-06, I had very good results with the Speer 100 grain BTSP and IMR 4831 on antelope and mule deer.:)
 
Think the powder I settled on was R22. Bullet is 117gr Hornady spire point. 90gr bullet may work well on coyote's but may well be a bit soft for deer and antelope unless you like looking a blood shot meat. the 117gr bullet will kill any coyote that ever lived very dead!
 
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All my 25-06's did well with 4350 powder and 100 grain Hornady sprial points (no longer made). Ground hogs and deer didn't do so good. The 100 grains would have enough velocity at the barrel to out run the heavier bullets at distance.
 
Back in the 70s when the 25-06 was a newly "legitimized" wildcat, a good friend got a model 700 Varmint, and loaded 87gr HPs over a case full of IMR 4350. Saw him blow a woodchuck apart at a measured (later) 517 yds.

Decades later, the .25-06 that finally fell into my lap wasn't a pure varmint rig, but a converted 03 Springfield with a medium heavy barrel and a varmint style stock and a VERY light trigger. :D

I don't use it often but its a freakin laser beam flat shooter (or nearly so it seems). Did learn one thing, not all 87gr HPs are created equal. And in my area aren't common on the shelves, 100, 117 and 120s are everywhere but the pure varmint slugs, not so much. (yes pre-internet days).

the bullet I got (Hornady, if I remember right) had a warning in the box, not to exceed 3400fps. This is a couple hundred fps short of what the 20-06 can do. SO check CAREFULLY when choosing a varmint bullet. Right bore size and weight are only part of it.

The .25-06 was, for some time, the definition of an overbore cartridge. Slower powders work really well, and of course individual rifles vary so what performs best in yours is something you learn by testing different ones.
 
scatterbrain said:
All my 25-06's did well with 4350 powder and 100 grain Hornady sprial points (no longer made). Ground hogs and deer didn't do so good. The 100 grains would have enough velocity at the barrel to out run the heavier bullets at distance.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking the difference between the old spire point bullet and the newer interlock is the interlock. I do have a very old box of 180gr Spire Points and they do look different!
 
44 AMP, remember the Norma 205 powder? I had a 26 inch barreled Ruger at that time and I could get the 100 grains to over 3500 FPS.
 
CAUTION: The following post includes loading data beyond or not covered by currently published maximums for this cartridge. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Neither the writer, The Firing Line, nor the staff of TFL assume any liability for any damage or injury resulting from use of this information.

Still have a 25-06 Rem. Although my 270 win gets the most use. As I recall the hand load for my 1/4-bore -06 is strikingly faster in velocity than my 270. A figure close to 300 fps faster at muzzle which makes it a meat destroyer with the wrong bullet seated.
1/4 bore 06 is a smokingly-hot wildcat and one ignored/ slighted by many weapon & cartridge writers. "Probably because the 1/4 bore dates back to 1919."

So.
I only shoot 100 Gr bullets thru my 25. I found them to be assumely accurate for my purpose.

Staying on point:
Here's my favorite 1/4 bore reload:
100 gr Sierra_ new Federal Brass_ Federal LR primer
57.3 4831 IMR rifle powder. (NO substitutions.)
 
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I played around with mine after I rebarreled it with a 27" tube. I was getting the 120 berger VLDs to 3200-3250 fps and very accurate. Now I only load the 87gr over IMR4350 and those are exiting the barrel around 3450, easy on brass and also very accurate.
 
I've owned and shot a .25-06 for over 40 years. I use mine mainly for groundhog hunting in OH. The 2 bullets I favor are the 85 gr Nosler and the 90 gr Sierra. For 20 years my main powder was IMR4350. It worked well with all bullet weights which was why I chose it. I tried a lot of other powders but always came back to IMR4350.

The past 20 years I've switched to RL19. With this powder I see 3600 fps (24" barrel) and better accuracy than I did with IMR4350.

I still like IMR4350 with the heavy bullets but I don't shoot a lot of those anymore. If I start shooting the heavies again I would want to visit RL22 or something slower.

One thing about the .25-06 that I discovered fairly quickly is this cartridge is at its best at or near max loadings. Drop the charge by 10% and you won't get great accuracy, velocity will drop to .257 Roberts levels.
 
I had a Ruger 77MKii in 25-06 for several years. For medium game the Nosler Accubond over Retumbo was a flat shooting hard hitting combination. I also took some critters with 100 gr. Ballistic tips over IMR4831 running close to 3300 fps. Have fun! 25-06 is a great cartridge and as said above, it's ignored by gun folks of all stripes and sneered at by many that have some sort of grudge against it.
 
I've been shooting a 25.06 for many years with excellent results on game. It's a fast flat shooting cartridge with mild recoil that hits the target hard. My pet load is a Speer 120gr Hot-Cor behind RL22. My other two favorites are the Sierra 117gr Pro Hunter and the Nosler 110gr Accubond also behind RL22. I've used lots of different powders with good results but the most accurate and consistent for me with the 25.06 has been without a doubt RL22.
 
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