text: With "hot" handloads and a rifle capable of handling them, the .30-06 is capable of performance rivaling many magnum cartridges. However, when loaded more closely to the original government specs, .30-06 remains within the upper limit of felt recoil most shooters consider tolerable over multiple rounds, unlike the magnums, and is not unnecessarily destructive of meat on game such as deer. With appropriate loads, it is suitable for any small or large heavy game found in North America. The .30-06's power and versatility (combined with the availability of surplus firearms chambered for it and demand for commercial ammunition) have kept the round as one of the most popular for hunting in North America.
  Performance
  The .30-06 cartridge was designed when shots of  were expected. In 1906, the original M1906 .30-06 cartridge consisted of a , flat-base cupronickel-jacketed-bullet. After World War I, the U.S. military needed better long-range performance machine guns. Based on weapons performance reports from Europe, a streamlined,  boattail, gilding-metal bullet was used. The .30-06 cartridge, with the  bullet was called cartridge, .30, M1 ball. The .30-06 cartridge was far more powerful than the smaller Japanese 6.5×50mm Arisaka cartridge and comparable to the Japanese 7.7×58mm Arisaka. The new M1 ammunition proved to be significantly more accurate than the M1906 round.