.25-06 Remington
During the 1920's, a number of wildcatters
worked with the
.30-06 case
necked down to .257" caliber. To name a few, there were the .25 Niedner,
the .25 Griffen & Howe, and the .25 Whelen. All were similar in powder
capacity, and all were handicapped by the lack of slow burning powders. It
was not until DuPont introduced
IMR-4350 during the early 1940's
that the .25-06, as it became more commonly called, began to exceed
.257 Roberts
performance by an amount worth talking about. Then, during the late 1940's,
B.E. Hodgdon introduced
H4831 to handloaders
and the .25-06 took off like a scalded dog. In 1969 Remington took note of
all the noise wildcatters were making with the cartridge and domesticated
it.
Everything including accuracy, recoil, trajectory, and down range punch
considered, the .25-06 comes awfully close to measuring up as the all time
ideal cartridge for hunting deer and pronghorn in open country. Probably
the worst that could be said of the .25-06 is that it operates best in barrels
no less than 24".
Even though the .25-06 was originally developed as a varmint cartridge, it
is a little too much of a good thing for that purpose. As a big game cartridge,
it is most often associated with Western shooting but many Eastern hunters
who shoot deer across timber slashes and cultivated fields consider the .25-06
to be the final word in cartridge design.
For shooting deer sized game the 100 grain spitzer is an impressive performer
but really doesn't offer anything not offered by the 6mm cartridges. The
120 grain bullet is what separates the .25-06 from the rest.
H4831 is the powder
that made the .25-06 what it is today and the owner of a rifle in this caliber
will do well to give it a try. Other good .25-06 powders are H450, H4350,
H414,
IMR-4831,
IMR-4320, and
H1000.
Source: Hodgdon Data Manual, 26th Edition
Historical Notes:
The 25-06, originally a wildcat cartridge, was picked up by Remington and
added to their commercial line late in 1969. The wildcat version dates back
to 1920, when it was introduced by A. O. Niedner. Remington has stuck to
the original configuration of simply necking down the
30-06 case.
The remington Model 700 series bolt action rifles were the first to be offered
in this newly adopted caliber. At the present time Remington, Intraarms,
Ruger, Savage, Winchester, Weatherby, Sako and almost every other manufacturer
of bolt action rifles offer at least one version in 25-06. In addition, the
Ruger single shot is available in this caliber. Since its commercial
introduction, the 25-06 Remington has become a very popular number.
General Comments:
The 25-06 was probably the finest of the 25 caliber wildcats. It emergence
as a standard factory load has been welcomed by many. As a varmint cartridge
with the 87 grain bullet it is said to be unsurpassed. However, a comparison
of factory ballistics and a little chronographing can be most informative.
Comparing factory data, we see that as a varmint cartridge both the
6mm Remington
and 270
Winchester beat anything the 25-06 can offer in every category that matters.
Amazingly, in spite of its much smaller case, the
6mm Remington
100 grain load is only marginally behind the 25-06 120 grain load in retained
energy at a long range. There really isn't any comparison between hunting
loads of the 25-06 and the
270 Winchester.
Chronographing results suggest that factory data is equally representative
of what each can realistically do. So just exactly what does the 25-06 offer?
Evidently something, because many laud the 25-06 as among the best. Federal,
Winchester and Remington offer this caliber in several bullet weights.
Source: Cartridges of the World
| 25-06 Remington Reloading Components & Accessories | |
Hornady Shell Holder #1
 |
 RCBS Case Trimmer Pilot, 25 Caliber
 |
RCBS Precision Mic, 25-06 Remington
 |
RCBS Ammo Box (#86903) |
| 25 Caliber (.257) Bullets | |
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