# 30.06 history question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 2, 2001, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490 "2001-03-02T13:20:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/1 "2001-03-02T13:20:17Z")
Looking into the history of the 30.06 Springfield rifle, especially as it relates to the U.S. Military, can anyone set me in the right direction? ---
**Author:** ![Turbo\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@Turbo\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turbo_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/2 "2001-03-02T13:38:35Z")
Pretty decent write up here that might help ya out. [http://www.wwa.com/~dvelleux/m1903.html](http://www.wwa.com/~dvelleux/m1903.html) ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/3 "2001-03-02T14:09:21Z")
Thank you dawg, do appreciate it, as does my reporter. ---
**Author:** ![Turbo\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@Turbo\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turbo_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/4 "2001-03-02T14:46:36Z")
r…re…report… report…\… I can’t even say the word. Did I just unknowingly contribute to a slam piece on the 30 06 or a movement on the banning of Springfield rifles? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/5 "2001-03-02T19:42:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Turbo Dog \* > \*\*r…re…report… report…\… I can’t even say the word. Did I just unknowingly contribute to a slam piece on the 30 06 or a movement on the banning of Springfield rifles? 🙂 \*\* Dunno if anyone could slam or ban (Hey! That almost rhymed!) the ‘03 Springfield. Such a _lovely_ shootin’ iron. And it’s a bolt-action, so no-one’s gonna be able to do an ‘assault rifle’ piece on it. 'Course, I’m biased… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2001, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/6 "2001-03-02T23:50:55Z")
I like my 30 caliber Springfield rifles a bit more newfangled so I’ll keep my M1 Garand. By goverment definition the internal magazine and en-bloc clip make it **not** an assault weapon but folks that had to face them down might say otherwise. Mine was built in the real Springfield Armory in '43 and rebuilt during the Korean conflict before I got it through the civilian marksmanship program. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2001, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/7 "2001-03-03T00:04:11Z")
No such case. In our town, (1,200 living, breathing human beings on warm days) the local museum, a little store front on Main Street, run by a number of delightful little old ladies who make up the Historical Society, is featuring “weapons of war,” this month, and they had a dummy granade, a bayonet, a walkie-talkie, a couple old shell casings and three or four old Springfields donated for the show. I put a rookie reporter (half my staff) on the story of the show and suggested a sidebar on the 30.06s. She and pretty much everybody else around knew nothing about the history of the pieces. So I turned to the Teeming Millions. Understand that they are even going to let her shoot one of them (a rifle, not a member of the Teeming Millions). Sorry if I caused a heart attack or something. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2001, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/8 "2001-03-03T00:04:19Z")
TV, something I should have added is that the military rifle is **never** referred to as a 30-06 (thirty, ought-six) as that is only a correct designation for commercial ammunition of the same type. The rifle is simply a springfield or oficcially US rifle, 30 caliber of 1903 shortened to '03. The rifle and ammunition were designed in 1903 and there was a minor change to the ammunition in 1906, hence the popular 30-06 name. The military never used the term 30-06, the ammunition was simply thirty caliber, US and it was used in other rifles such as the BAR, '41 Johnson, M1 and Browning machine gun. When the M-14 came along with a somewhat different 30 caliber cartridge it was referred to as metric, 7.62mm NATO, commercially the .308 Winchester. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2001, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/9 "2001-03-03T00:16:01Z")
Well, that explains why she couldn’t find anything by searching for “springfield 30-06 military history”. Do appreciate it. Keep your powder dry. ---
**Author:** ![Turbo\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@Turbo\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turbo_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2001, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/30-06-history-question/56490/10 "2001-03-03T01:06:16Z")
Yup… the 30 06 Springfield is a cartridge and the 03 Springfield is the rifle 🙂 Sounds like a cool event there. Local Historical Societies can be better than a most large metro museums. I love em. And though the Springfield is a great rifle, I too love the Garand. But then again, I love the M14 too. Come to think of it, there really isn’t a military rifle that I truly dislike. Even the most beat up Arisakas and Enfields I ever saw had a certain beauty to them in their own right.