25-06 Redcuced Loads

[MR. SCOOTINN]

Hey all..I am in thr begining stages of buying a rifle for my 10 year old girl.I was thinking of a 243,as I want her to develop good shooting habits,She is doing very good with the 22mag right now.I want something she can use for deer hunting & all around hunting.I have a 25-06 & just love it..So i was thinking of trying some reduced loads,My goal is Low recoil = to a 243 but still efective for hunting.Any sugestions out thier?..

 

[DS7418]

Do you reload at home?

 

[MR. SCOOTINN]

Do you reload at home?

Yes I reload.To make it clear..I am looking at putting together some reduced loads myself ..Not purchaseing them.Thanks

 

[DS7418]

I use H4895 powder.
Take the max load grains listed for your bullet weight.
Use a 90 or 100 gr bullet.
Then multiply X 68%.
That will give you a reduced load,, that will work on deer out to 150--200 yards.
Recoil will be close to a 243 or 30-30.

 

[MR. SCOOTINN]

so for your powder 4865 with 100gr bullet ,is 44.5,so the
reduced load would be 30.26 grains?..

 

[DS7418]

It is H4895 powder.
If the max charge is 44.5
Then ,,YES the reduced load would be 30.26gr.
This recipe will work with any rifle caliber where Hodgdon has H4895 listed as a usable power for that caliber.
like 30-06,,308,,25-06 ,, etc.

 

[chuckdog]

The 4895 powder is one that allows you to go as low as about 60% or anywhere in between and still get predicable pressures and reliable ignition. According to what she's comfortable with, and the accuracy you get. I've been loading reduced loads for kids about 4 years now. I'm using IMR 4759 to load 7-08 and 308 to very comfortable, very accurate and effective deer loads. I've been loading 125gr Nosler BT @ 2350 for the last 3 years, and they have with the aid of shooters about your girls age accounted for several deer. The first was @ 130 yds. 4759 is a very bulky magnum pistol powder that is best for loads reduced lower than you would with the H4895. I think the Lee load manual list some of these, plus Hodgdons online has a section dedicated to youth loads. Good Luck, it's a lot of fun.

 

[Twenty five ought six]

I don't post reloads on-line.

Several years ago, there was a fad of reloading the .25-0 with .25 cal. pistol bulltets (.25 ACP) to provide a "survival round" for small game getting.

The point being that the .25-06 (and most other rifle rounds) can be loaded to very low levels, and the loads are available from established sources.

 

[hitchin]

The reduced loads are not the problem in my humble opinion. I would be concerned withe the overall length of the rifle for a young one I am six feet tall and the long length action plus the 24 inch barrell adds a bit of unhandiness to the rig. with that said my 700 bdl with 120 grain sierra boattail h.p.@ around 3000 fps has accounted for some spectacular kills.

 

[Dub]

Such a big unknown with the kids and getting something that "fits" them be it the load or gun.

I've got an 11yr old whose getting a plinker .22 for Christmas and got a youth model 20gauge 2 years ago. That 20 gauge was huge on him at the time, though.

 

[chuckdog]

The Ruger Compact in .243 fits my Granddaughter perfectly. The newer ones with the LC6 trigger are the way to go. Hers is stock @ 3lbs. The Weatherby Vanguard youth is a standout performer too. I'm loading the start load of Varget with 95/100 gr bullets @ 2850 fps or so. Both an 8 and 12 year old girl shooting this load fine.

 

[bighonkinjeep]

I built a 25-06 for my son at that age. Since girls are usually average a little larger than boys at that age I don't think the recoil will really be that big of an issue. I do know that overbore cartridges like the 25-06 in general are much more finicky about reduced loads. Please dont go below any published minimums. I know from first hand experience how dangerous this can be.
The guys over at ramshot powders helped me with reduced load data for several overbore cartridges. I'll send contact info via PM