Recommend the most American made 30-06 for an elk hunt

[308sako]

Ruger 1A marked "Made in the 200th Year of American Liberty"
cal. . 30-06. Like new condition very decent walnut, I'll have to get some pictures up.

 

[jwood1284]

Pre-64 M70 all the way. .270, .30-06, .300H&H, your choice although the former two are more affordable and easier to acquire. Several years ago I found my “forever rifle” at a pawn shop in the form of a 1956 M70 fwt. 30-06. All original and in good condition, 2018 price too!

It wore a Lyman All-American 4x, although cool in its own right, utter garbage by today’s standard just as @Terry Cross said. I re-torqued everything, cleaned the barrel, and checked the headspace before loading up some 150gr softpoints and shooting them into 1.5” off a bag with the Lyman and original aluminum buttplate…ouch. Into the back of the safe it went.

Fast forward a few years, hunting/target rifles have come and gone, but the pre64 has always stayed. I was unsure of what to do with it until I found a pre-inlet stock for it in McMillan’s bargain bin. Buying this stock jump started my mental build up. Full teardown, ultrasonic cleaning, packed the wood FWT stock away, assembled with parts bin mounts, and a Burris FFII 3-9x40. When I stepped back from the bench I said “Holy shit. This is it”.

The McMillan and scope upgrade took the same 1.5” load to an inch, and is a hell of a lot easier on the bum shoulder. The rifle is just under 8lb all up, and the 150s are tame in this setup. I’ll get Chad at LRI to bed it, and tune the trigger before working up a load with 168gr TTSXs. I’d like to go on an elk hunt at least once in the next 10yrs, and hopefully an African plains game trip when I retire, one certainty is this rifle will go with me if these wishes come true.

There are several solid choices presented in this thread that meet your criteria. I’ve made my case for the pre64, so has Terry, and several others. Whether you keep it original, go full custom, or just upgrade the ergos and fine tune like I am… you can’t do wrong with the Rifleman’s Rifle.

 

[smithjd]

Excellent thread. I have a 1954 era Winchester M70 in 30-06 with a Canjar single set trigger. I upgraded the 4x scope to a Nightforce NXS 2.5-10x32. Going to do some load development with 168 gr TTSX as soon as I get my bench back together. Have a Wyoming hunt booked in 2025…

 

[texastonk]

I might have missed it but did the OP pick and purchase a gun?

 

[Dead Eye Dick]

I might have missed it but did the OP pick and purchase a gun?

I got lazy and did not read pages 2 & 3 and knew it was a stupid mistake.

 

[texastonk]

Ya just went back Mod70 feather weight.

 

[TheBigCountry]

Pre-64 M70 all the way. .270, .30-06, .300H&H, your choice although the former two are more affordable and easier to acquire. Several years ago I found my “forever rifle” at a pawn shop in the form of a 1956 M70 fwt. 30-06. All original and in good condition, 2018 price too!

It wore a Lyman All-American 4x, although cool in its own right, utter garbage by today’s standard just as @Terry Cross said. I re-torqued everything, cleaned the barrel, and checked the headspace before loading up some 150gr softpoints and shooting them into 1.5” off a bag with the Lyman and original aluminum buttplate…ouch. Into the back of the safe it went.

Fast forward a few years, hunting/target rifles have come and gone, but the pre64 has always stayed. I was unsure of what to do with it until I found a pre-inlet stock for it in McMillan’s bargain bin. Buying this stock jump started my mental build up. Full teardown, ultrasonic cleaning, packed the wood FWT stock away, assembled with parts bin mounts, and a Burris FFII 3-9x40. When I stepped back from the bench I said “Holy shit. This is it”.

View attachment 8308631

The McMillan and scope upgrade took the same 1.5” load to an inch, and is a hell of a lot easier on the bum shoulder. The rifle is just under 8lb all up, and the 150s are tame in this setup. I’ll get Chad at LRI to bed it, and tune the trigger before working up a load with 168gr TTSXs. I’d like to go on an elk hunt at least once in the next 10yrs, and hopefully an African plains game trip when I retire, one certainty is this rifle will go with me if these wishes come true.

There are several solid choices presented in this thread that meet your criteria. I’ve made my case for the pre64, so has Terry, and several others. Whether you keep it original, go full custom, or just upgrade the ergos and fine tune like I am… you can’t do wrong with the Rifleman’s Rifle.

What McMillan is that? I have a Pre64 270 in the safe that I’m gonna tune up next year to be my main hunting rifle and what you did to yours is exactly what I wanna do with mine.

 

[jwood1284]

What McMillan is that? I have a Pre64 270 in the safe that I’m gonna tune up next year to be my main hunting rifle and what you did to yours is exactly what I wanna do with mine.

It’s the “pre64 Monte Carlo” pattern.

 

[TheBigCountry]

It’s the “pre64 Monte Carlo” pattern.

Perfect thank you

 

[jwood1284]

Most blinds to feeders distances were around 65 yards. This particular pig was the largest in the group and when I hit it broadside with a 168gr Barnes Tipped Triple Shock it barely reacted to the extent my buddy thought I may have missed. As it ran I fired a second shot while it was moving and that's the shot far back in the gut. I was hoping the follow up shot would anchor the animal, but it didn't go another 10 into the brush and the first shot had clearly done its job.

Teddy,

A TTSX at .30-06 velocity at that distance most likely passed through without expanding, or blew up completely. Slow them down for close range, or try a cheap lead core 150-165gr bullet on those pigs.

 

[Mars87]

I know I’m a couple months late but fuck it. Nothing is more American than a M70 in 30-06. New Haven built of course.

 

[teddy12b]

Last week I had lunch with a friend of mine and was telling him about the new rifle and hunt. He thought he had something similar from his father in law that he kept in the back of his safe that he never shot. Over the weekend sends me pictures and turns out its a '56 -57 serial number in mint condition that's probably had a box or two of ammo through it in 30-06. I told him he just found a diamond laying on the ground and to make sure he and his son hunt with it before passing it down to his grandson. That rifle would easily hunt in the hands of four generations and beyond.

 

[teddy12b]

I thought it'd be fun to post a little update. I have had the rifle bedded by a guy recommended to me from a nationally ranked PRS shooter. I'm not a bedding expert, but if my buddy says he's good then that's good enough for me. From the outside the rifle still looks like a straight up factory Winchester 70.

I had a chance to sneak off to the range and was really hoping to shoot the rifle at extended distances to get everything synced up with the Kestrel and make sure everything was trued up at distance. The biggest problem I had was that I only had 15 rounds of ammo remaining for the rifle. I thought I still had another box of 50 laying around but I was wrong. The load I am using is a 168gr Barnes TTSX, and it was really just something that I threw together for the hog hunt last fall. I really wanted to see how this ammo grouped at distance, and at the range I shoot at there's some very generous steel plates at 500 and 600 yards. I fired two shots confirming zero at 100 yards aiming at the upper left corner of the red square and to my surprise I got two hits I wouldn't complain about and figured with the limited ammo it was time to do what I went there to really do. The rifle fed and performed flawlessly, and everything felt good. I casually plinked a shot or two at 200, 300, 400 as those are basically no-brainer distances. My scope is limited to 10x, so I couldn't see as well as I'd have liked to when I went to the 600 yard plate. What I saw when I got there shocked me. There were two of us there who'd shot the plate and the other guy was using an AR-15 and confirmed which group was his when we went to go paint the targets. You can also tell by the smudges which group was made by a barnes bullet, but I'm sure everyone here already knows that. Anyway, the pictures speak enough for themselves. If I'm being honest, for a hunting rifle I'd have been more than happy with the top group on the plate for a hunting rifle shooting 30-06 at 600 yards. I was so shocked by the group of the three hits on the plate from my 30-06 that I put my thumb next to it for reference. Now I know I haven't done the full workup on load development, and this are very small sample sizes of groups that happened one day so this could absolutely be a fluke. On the other hand, I think this shows a lot more potential than I had ever hoped for out of a factory rifle in a walnut stock. That's the good news.

The bad news is that the elk hunt won't happen this year. We had 13 points in our group of three when applying in Wyoming, and we didn't get drawn. Oh well, we'll keep trying until we do get drawn. That just buys me more time to get this rifle dialed in and have everything tuned up and ready to go.

 

[stonestorm]

If looking for USA made Ruger Hawkeye would be my choice.

 

[308pirate]

ETA:
I suppose there's always the Weatherby MkV, though I cannot speak to country of origin nor abide a Monte Carlo stock design (particularly on a rifle chambered for a Wby Magnum).

Throughout its history the Mk V has been made in Germany (Sauer), Japan (Howa), and the USA (Saco Defense) in that order.

They're still made here AFAIK but I'm not sure if Saco is still the manufacturer.

 

[Xycod]

Rem700 bdl, New Haven Winchester , ruger one, and if you want current US made maybe a Weatherby 307 or Mk5.

 

[Terry Cross]

Nostalgia is where you find it. The only thing that would make this thread any better would be pictures of some old hunting hardware.

Different pony each day but this was my ride before daylight every day and back to camp after dark. Pre-64 Win in 300H&H sitting in that fancy scabbard.

Ride for about an hour and a half, tie up horse and on foot to climb some more.
Yellowstone lake is straight ahead past the first peak line.

Last day of a 6 day hunt.
After putting him down, it took 1hr 15 min for me and my guide get to him.
We couldn't take time for any real glamor pics.

My guide with my bull. We were both sick as a dog with bad colds.

We were through getting him pieced out and ready by the time the camp hand made it to us with the mules. He couldn't bring the mules in through our stalk route. Took him about 2 1/2 hours to get to our GPS pin from the camp.

We really didn't leave much for the bears.

Stopped for a break coming through the corner of Yellowstone on the ride out.

^^^^^
THIS is why I wanted a "classic" rifle for this hunt.

 

[Long Range 338]

Great pics @Terry Cross

 

[Terry Cross]

Great pics @Terry Cross

Thanks. I took a ton of pics with my phone but most are just scenery that isn't pertinent to the thread. I can just say it was the trip of a lifetime even before I killed my bull.

Also the toughest sustained physical thing I've done. Actually this is what made it all the more sweet and is why I joined the hunt.
Actual hunting. No guarantee of a shot and not even a guarantee of seeing a shootable bull.
We worked our asses off.
It took a couple of months for my feet to get right again.

The way is should be.

 

[Long Range 338]

Thanks. I took a ton of pics with my phone but most are just scenery that isn't pertinent to the thread. I can just say it was the trip of a lifetime even before I killed my bull.

Also the toughest sustained physical thing I've done. Actually this is what made it all the more sweet and is why I joined the hunt.
Actual hunting. No guarantee of a shot and not even a guarantee of seeing a shootable bull.
We worked our asses off.
It took a couple of months for my feet to get right again.

The way is should be.

Yeah, the elevation is no joke. At least you had horses to cover most of the miles, they really make a hunt enjoyable. Which side of the park were you hunting?

 

[264win]

Thanks. I took a ton of pics with my phone but most are just scenery that isn't pertinent to the thread. I can just say it was the trip of a lifetime even before I killed my bull.

Also the toughest sustained physical thing I've done. Actually this is what made it all the more sweet and is why I joined the hunt.
Actual hunting. No guarantee of a shot and not even a guarantee of seeing a shootable bull.
We worked our asses off.
It took a couple of months for my feet to get right again.

The way is should be.

I have a pre 64 in 300 H&H that I inherited from my grandfather ( where I also inherited the hunting/ shooting gene ). It was his go to rifle for decades.
I am planning a very similar trip with that rifle, and hoping for a very similar experience. Hard work, spectacular scenery, good company and with a little luck a nice bull.

 

[Terry Cross]

Yeah, the elevation is no joke. At least you had horses to cover most of the miles, they really make a hunt enjoyable. Which side of the park were you hunting?

Off the Southeast corner of the park.
We put in at the Shoshone River.
Trail went through corner of the park and back out again into Shoshone National Park to their camp.

Used Hidden Creek Outfitters. They run more than one camp out of their Cody office. You want to book the smaller premier camp.

That camp is a way harder ride (32 to 34 miles one way on horse) but they only take one group of bow hunters in, break a few days and then one group rides in for opening day of rifle season. After that, they break that camp down until the next year.

 

[Aftermath]

Different pony each day but this was my ride before daylight every day and back to camp after dark. Pre-64 Win in 300H&H sitting in that fancy scabbard.
View attachment 8431194

Ride for about an hour and a half, tie up horse and on foot to climb some more.
Yellowstone lake is straight ahead past the first peak line.
View attachment 8431189

View attachment 8431190

Last day of a 6 day hunt.
After putting him down, it took 1hr 15 min for me and my guide get to him.
We couldn't take time for any real glamor pics.

View attachment 8431203

My guide with my bull. We were both sick as a dog with bad colds.
View attachment 8431219

We were through getting him pieced out and ready by the time the camp hand made it to us with the mules. He couldn't bring the mules in through our stalk route. Took him about 2 1/2 hours to get to our GPS pin from the camp.

View attachment 8431208
We really didn't leave much for the bears.
View attachment 8431213


Stopped for a break coming through the corner of Yellowstone on the ride out.
View attachment 8431215
^^^^^
THIS is why I wanted a "classic" rifle for this hunt.

View attachment 8431221

That must have sucked miserably.