<Tr> <Td> 220 gr (14 g) RN </Td> <Td> 2,500 ft / s (760 m / s) </Td> <Td_colspan="2"> 2,981 ft ⋅ lbf (4,042 J) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Test barrel length: 24 inch (61 cm) Source (s): Federal Cartridge / Accurate Powder </Td> </Tr> <P> The . 30 - 06 Springfield cartridge (pronounced "thirty - aught - six" or "thirty - oh - six"), 7.62 × 63mm in metric notation and called ". 30 Gov 't' 06" by Winchester, was introduced to the United States Army in 1906 and later standardized; it remained in use until the early 1980s . The ". 30" refers to the caliber of the bullet . The "06" refers to the year the cartridge was adopted--1906 . It replaced the . 30 - 03, 6mm Lee Navy, and . 30 - 40 Krag cartridges . The . 30 - 06 remained the U.S. Army's primary rifle and machine gun cartridge for nearly 50 years before being replaced by the 7.62 × 51mm NATO (commercial . 308 Winchester) and 5.56 × 45mm NATO, both of which remain in current U.S. and NATO service . It remains a very popular sporting round, with ammunition produced by all major manufacturers . </P> <P> In the early 1890s, the U.S. military adopted the smokeless powder . 30 - 40 Krag rimmed cartridge . The 1894 version of that cartridge used a 220 - grain (14 g) round - nose bullet . Around 1901, the U.S. started developing an experimental rimless cartridge for a Mauser action with box magazine . That led to the 1903 . 30 - 03 rimless service round that used the same 220 - grain (14 g) round - nose bullet as the Krag . The . 30 - 03 achieved a muzzle velocity of 2,300 ft / s (700 m / s). </P>

What the difference between a 30 06 and a 30 06 springfield