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25-06

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Woody72 View Drop Down
Optics GrassHopper
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Joined: November/06/2005
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Woody72 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: 25-06
    Posted: November/06/2005 at 10:16

 I am currently building a 25-06. Ive seen that there are several Varmint guns in this caliber. I am going to go on my first Varmint hunt next year. What are your thoughts on the 25-06? What ranges would you be comfortable with? The scope I'm going to use is a VX111 6.5-20 LRT. Is this a good Varmint scope for the money? Thanks

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Dale Clifford View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dale Clifford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/06/2005 at 14:12

The 25 cal. series of bullets are not good choices for varmit. Sure they will work but so will a sledge hammer. The B.C. are not satisfactory until one gets to the 120 gr. wt. range. In addition the 55 gr. or so powder will heat the barrel prematurely. What kind of varmits? Are you reloading or factory? While the recoil is not severe, rapid sight recovery or shot recovery is impossible. A 130 gr. 270 would be better if you must stay with a 30-06 basis case.

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Jeffro3006mag View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jeffro3006mag Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/06/2005 at 21:03

 The 25-06 is a excellent round for deer and occasional coyote hunting. Dale brings up a very important piece of the puzzle when he mentions the B.C. I have a Savage Tactical in that caliber that shoots wonderfully, but out to about 500yds they start to tumble. As a member of VHA (Varminter Hunters Association) I have talked to alot of people and they all tell me the same thing. btw.... I also use a Leopold 6.5X20 Var-X 3 EFR scope, which means that Leo that you were mentioning should work beautifully. I would however look at a different caliber. But thats just my 2 cents.

Takecare and be blessed-Jeff
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Woody72 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Woody72 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/07/2005 at 19:30
 Thanks guys. The reason I was wanting to go with the 25-06 was because I have a Remington .270 collecting dust right now because I never use it. I recently found out that on the hunt we could shoot as far as 1,000 yards. I shoot rifles alot and I have been known to make shots thats made people around here talk but, Im not a 1,000 yard shot. I am from North Louisiana I can tell you what to use on deer and Ive been on a few Elk hunts. The smaller cal. bullets that are used on Prairie dogs are new to me. It takes great skill to shoot as far as you guys do and Im excited that I am going to take on this challenge. So now that Ive gotten that out of the way what cal. do you think and Im pretty sure that 6.5-20 VX-3 isnt going to be up to par either. Thanks in advance.
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Jeffro3006mag View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jeffro3006mag Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/09/2005 at 10:03

 If money were no object....Nightforce. It just doesnt get any better. I am currently looking for a scope to throw on a 22TTH (22X6mm, or 6mm case necked down to a 22). Either way this thing is hot. A friend of mine owned it before I bought it and said that it only got better at longer ranges and heavier bullets. I would like to use it at 500-700yds if at all possible. Putting a scope on that has been quite a chore. Im limited to under 500.00 and its going to need ALOT of magnification.

 

                                                                                                      Takecare-Jeff

Takecare and be blessed-Jeff
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Dale Clifford View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dale Clifford Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/10/2005 at 09:31

Actually a regular 270 cal. makes a good 1000 yd. gun. It is not so much the caliber as the total set up. To me at least, Nightforce is the best, however a Leo 6.5X20 is totally adequate. Nightforce and Leo high mag stuff 8X32 are very large and awkward, if this not a problem great. All long range shooting is "platform" shooting, so the cheek scope alignment is critical, as is the trigger, (usually replaced with a Basic rifle or Jewell). A good coverage of long range type shooting and hunting go to the Leija barrel web site (check spelling). The type of long range shooting is important as there are all types. I have a Armalite AR-10 in 308 that is a really good 1000 yd gun. The differences are the speed in coming on target, time between shots, just about any game you want to play. Just hitting the target isn't that hard. The do it all day long in Long range NRA with iron sights.

Jeff, the ability to shoot the good stuff in 22, 69 gr thru Berger vld will depend on your twist rate. If it is not at least 1 in 9 forget it. My current 223 WSSM in coyote is 1 in 10 and will barely stabilize 69 at 3600 fps. And you do not need a lot of magnification, around 10x is a enough. Look at the 6.5x20 by Nikon around $400 and will do anything the high price spread can do.

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joed View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote joed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/20/2005 at 08:32

I've owned and shot a Remington 700 VS in .25-06 for 27 years.   Finally had to send it out for rebarreling.   The .25-06 is one fantastic long range cartridge.  With light bullets it's a spectacular varmint cartridge, with heavier bullets it's good for deer sized game. 

 

I used mine for groundhog hunting in OH.   My favorite bullet was the 87 gr Sierra and I shot this one almost exclusively.   I tried the 75 gr bullets for awhile but found them lacking at long distances.   My rifle has a 24x fixed power Leupold mounted on it.   If I can see a groundhog it's in mortal danger no matter what the distance is.   This rifle will easily make shots out to 500 yards.  It is also the hardest hitting of all the varmint cartridges.   Anyone who has used it for hunting groundhogs can attest to that.

 

You can talk about the BC of a bullet all day but for varmint hunting it's tough to beat that 87 gr bullets performance.  If you compare the BC of that 87 gr bullet to the BC of 55 gr bullets in .22 caliber the 87 gr wins hands down.   The 87 gr bullet also offers something the heavier bullets don't and that is they will disintegrate on contact and not richochet.  

 

Recoil with a .25-06 is manageable.   Yes, it will be tough to get a followup shot but to be honest I never needed one.  

 

Can't comment on your choice of scope though as I'm not familiar with it.   For long distance shooting I prefer fixed power scopes.

 

The drawback to the .25-06 is that the barrel heats up fast.  Heat can destroy a barrel.   I never let mine get hotter then what I could rest my hand on comfortably.  That limits the gun to no more then 5 shots before stopping to let it cool.

 

How good is the .25-06?   Well, when it came to rebarreling my old rifle it got a Krieger barrel and you can guess what caliber.  Never even considered another cartridge.



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sscoyote View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote sscoyote Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/23/2005 at 23:54

Just went out with my handgun shooting partner several weeks ago who broke the record for the longest handgun shots ever made (prairie dogs) twice in 2 days with a couple XP's. The 1st was a 1590 yd. shot <10 shots with a 6-284 XP/115 DTAC bullet, and when the bullet exited the dog it took some guts with it, believe it or not. The next day it was an 1800 yarder he hit <25 shots. with an extremely specialized XP 6.5-284 setup/140 A-Max.

 

When it comes to scopes for this kinda long-range game he was using an 8.5-25X 30mm tubed Leupold LR with the TMR reticle/target turrets for the 1590 yarder. This is the scope i would suggest for what you're trying to accomplish. It's not terribly big and unwieldy, and i think it has about 90 MOA of adjustment in it, with a great long-range tactical reticle. The nice thing about this scope system is it has a lot of flexibility built into it, and is tailor-made for the long-range game.

Steve
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