Lighter .30-06 loads

[olchevy]

I love my rifle to death and it will remain my main hunting rifle till I die someday, but as of late I feel the standard 150 and 180gr loads are a little much for our Georgia deer. I don't shoot super long range, longest shot being 250yards but the average is 30-100yards. My local processor said he gets handloads from a gunsmith that are 125gr. And said they are a lot cleaner kills on the whitetail with out all the extra.

So I ordered me some Sierra Pro-Hunter 125gr.SP to try loading up.

Anyone have any good recipes for 125gr. Out of a .30-06?

Also I would like to make lighter recoiling ones as well for when my fiancée hunts with me.

 

[BHJ]

Here's the best reduced recoil link I know of.
https://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/H4895 Reduced Rifle Loads.pdf

Just be really careful with other "internet" Data and never go below published minimums.
I found out about this the hard way and created some unsafe magnum loads that would hang fire. Click 1...2...3...BOOM by trying to simply reduce the charge below a book minimum.
It isn't just as simple as reducing the charge of most powders.
Also be aware that as bullet weight goes down powder charge goes up in order to generate the necessary pressure.
Lighter bullets have a trade off that may or may not result in a felt difference at the shoulder.
Also different guns like different loads and some just dont seem to want to shoot the light bullets for beans.
I have used the Reduced Hodgdon data in .308 with some 130 TTSX bullets and it works very well and the loads were very accurate in my rifle. After seeing how well one of my rifles liked this light bullet that didn't like other light bullets I stepped it up a bit.
The 130 TTSX can also be safely loaded to smoking fast velocity in .308 with different powder and shoots like a laser beam to most practical hunting distances'
Good luck and I think the Hodgdon data is about the best thing going unless you just wind up buying Factory Remington managed recoil or one of the other factory reduced loads.

 

[olchevy]

That's a perfect place to start and that is the powder i use typically. Thank you for that!

 

[1006]

I cannot give you a formula with 125's, but I have used Reloader 22 with 150 grain bullets with very accurate results and soft recoil.

I have also found that any published starting load is usually noticeably lighter recoiling than the max load.

My gun is a 24 inch barreled 30.06.

 

[GeauxLSU]

Instead of guessing, I'd just go with the ones that have bullets supposedly purposely designed for proper expansion at the lower velocities. http://www.remington.com/products/ammunition/centerfire/managed-recoil/managed-recoil.aspx

 

[fathersam]

one thing i never ungerstand why people worried about recoil? if you do not like the recoil choose lighter caliber. more hitting power comes with more recoil. reducing the load to manage the recoil is like buying a cadillac and putting a 4 cylinder sentra engin in it. just buy the damn sentra.

 

[MuleShoe]

55 grains of H-4831 will run about 2500 FPS and pressure is 30,000. I use 125 Gr. With Winchester WLR primer. Have used Nosler and Remington bullets.

 

[olchevy]

one thing i never ungerstand why people worried about recoil? if you do not like the recoil choose lighter caliber. more hitting power comes with more recoil. reducing the load to manage the recoil is like buying a cadillac and putting a 4 cylinder sentra engin in it. just buy the damn sentra.

Reading is fundamental.

 

[olchevy]

Got the bullets in, I'm gonna work up some loads, see how they do then hopefully give them a test run on one more doe or buck before the season is out.

 

[toobaroque]

Here's a good guide for you.

Remington Factory Loads.