30.06 thru 1/4" steel plate?

[26Ford]

The other night on TV, they guy from Red Jacket got together with the guy from American Guns in Colorodo and here is my question.
You all know I'm very humble in my being honest regarding lack of knowledge with long rifles and thier ammo. That said I do know metals, and have a small piece of 1/4 steel plate in my hand right now. I regularly shoot some pretty big bore hand guns, so this type of ammo I know a little bit about.
Well these guys back up from a big plate of 1/4", I thought they said 20 yards, but looked like 20 feet. When they said they were going to shoot thru this steel, I thought, oh boy these guys have a death wish, the camera men too, and anyone within ricochet range of a 30.06.
They run a mag's worth of ammo thru the steel, and I mean THRU the steel like a soldering iron thru lexan.

Was that real?
Thank you. 26

 

[john traveler]

Absolutely real. .30-06 M1 and M2 ball would have no problem at all penetrating 1/4" steel plate. Armor piercing ammo penetration is much much greater.

Even on the USMC LAV-25 series of light armored vehicles, the armor is only 5/16 steel plate and only rated to resist 7.62x39 combloc ball ammo.

 

[OKFC05]

You betcha, and I have piles of scrap 1/4" steel pistol plates shot full of holes by morons with ARs, AKs, and whatever other centerfire rifle they thought "wouldn't hurt steel" to prove it.

I guess they couldn't read the "NO RIFLES."

 

[Smith357]

The steel was probably just a soft hot rolled A36 type steel and not a high quality armor plate like AR500

 

[arizona98tj]

If the question is will a .30-06 punch a hole through 1/4" steel....yes, it certainly can. Not all steels are created equal. Steel used for firearms targets are usually AR-500. Shooting steel core bullets makes it easier to penetrate a steel plate as well. The training facility I go to does not allow any bullet to which a magnet will stick....whether that is a steel alloy jacket or a steel core. They have lost too many expensive steel targets in the past because of students shooting them with the wrong type bullets.

As for the distance you quoted, you would not find me shooting a center fire rifle that close to a steel target.

 

[Fredo Batali]

26Ford,

Yes, that was very real. Actually a 30-06 round will punch through 1/4" plate quite a bit further away than 20 yards. It's suprising how powerful a standard soft point rifle bullet is. Kind of makes you reconsider what you use for "cover" when someone is shooting at you with a rifle.

De Oppresso Liber

 

[Troystat]

Bullet type matters a lot, back when I was young and stupid not old and cranky like now. I set up as a target at about 50 yards an automotive flywheel that was less than 1/2 thick if I remember and shot at it with a 30-06 with 150 grain soft point ammo and it did not go through the steel or what ever the metal was. Remember kids it's much better to watch somebody else do these "Experiments" on Youtube than to do it yourself.

 

[26Ford]

Thank you everyone!! I would have lost a lot of money if I was to bet on that scenario. Thank you 26

 

[tgd31968]

I watched too.
I wouldn't swear to it but i thought he said it was ap anyway.
Certainly wouldnt have much problem at that distance, ap or fmj.

 

[Iggy]

Interesting video High speed film.

1 million fps Slow Motion video of bullet impacts made by Werner Mehl from Kurzzeit - YouTube

 

[RalphK22]

You realize a 30 06 is traveling around 2X faster than a .357, .41, or .44 mag?

 

[stevebarracuda]

I have personally shot 30-06 AP ammo thru 1" mild steel plate. It must be shot from "straight on" also it will penetrate 3/4" plate at a slight angle.

 

[Steve C]

Bullet type matters a lot, back when I was young and stupid not old and cranky like now.

Probably had more to do with the angle of impact as steel will deflect a soft nose bullet that doesn't strike near perpendicular. I remember seeing a high speed photo in one of the gun mags many, many rears ago of a soft point from a 30-06 that had just passed through a 1/4" (maybe 1/2") steel plate.

 

[brucev]

Plain Jane .30-06 ball is nice stuff. It will make nice round holes in a lot of things. Once upon a time I was given a nice piece of T-1 steel plate that was 5/8" thick and about 14x16" on the sides. I set it up at the 100 yd. line and when back to the firing line. I loaded my M-1 Garand up with some nice M-2 ball (.30-06 150 gr. FMJ) and popped the plate. That M-2 round drilled a hole completely through the T-1 plate. I've got a number of cases of M-2AP. That stuff is positively amazing. It gives new meaning to the term penetration. Wonderful stuff. I think with a M-1 and a couple of bandoleers of M-2AP there nothing that walks in North America or even darkest Africa that one could not settle down... just put the pumpkin on the fence post and light it up! JMHO. Sincerely. brucev.

 

[grendelbane]

An interesting thing about rifle bullets is that their penetration actually improves the farther away you are from your target.

Not to ridiculous distances, of course, but the bullet is better stabilized at 100 yards than it is at 20 yards. I wouldn't want to be 20 yards away from a piece of steel being shot anyway.

 

[Troystat]

In my fly wheel penetration "test" I did try to keep everything at a right angle but point taken I know that armor is much more effective if rounds hitting it do so at an angle.

Thanks

 

[spaniel]

I've shot through a thicker (1/2in?) mild steel I-beam center with the lowly 30-40 Krag. We hit the same beam with muzzleloaders and a 44, all they did was blow the rust off the surface. Barely a dent.

Conversely, a .30-06 loaded appropriately to shoot out of my Garand with similar soft point bullets to the 30-40 Krag mentioned above will crater AR400 pretty well at 100 yards, but not so badly that I won't keep shooting at it there (with the 300WM I have to back off to 200 yds or I'd chew through the plate in a few rounds).

The alloy makes all the difference.

 

[Rangel]

Usually, I'm on the M&P forum, but somehow got linked to here. While its' not about .30-06 steel plate penetration or lack thereof, this link at the bottom was interesting to me, showing how when it comes to various ammo's ability to penetrate (or not penetrate) different materials, there are some real surprises. (at least to me) I have more respect for a 12 gauge shotgun slug than I used to!

As for steel plate, as mentioned--there's sooo much variation in steel strength and quality, Rockwell hardness and brittleness for starters.

The Box O' Truth - The Box O' Truth

also (edit)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSGqze_Oy6E

 

[watergun1929]

Steel Plates

In my younger (and stupider) days I had fun pulling AP bullets from 30-06 rounds and loading them into 300 Weatherby cases. Shoot through 18 inch oak trees, motor blocks, any size steel plate. It was a hoot!

 

[much ado]

steel plates

Back in the 80s,I owned a Sako L61 in 30-06.At my club(Cavalier R&P Club) I shot at what was said to be a piece of cold rolled steel 3/4" in thickness at 200 yards with a handload of H205 powder and a 165 spitzer.It made swiss cheese of that plate.Note:mine were not the first through it...there are definitely differences in steel.