So welcome aboard! Dig the call sign!
When I loaded for my dad’s 30-06 BAR I treated it as any bolt rifle. They aren’t weak and will take whatever you throw at them. I loaded 180 ABs with H4350 and RL16. Any normal powder for the 180 in the 06 will work fine.
Case dents in the mouth happen...
Congrats on the deer! With the way the bullet is blowing through it just may not be that huge in expanded diameter so you get amazing penetration and good expansion, just not huge expansion that seems to help out deer down faster. Hard telling exactly but the end result looks great from here.
They do. They just call them the Combined Technologies. You can catch them as 2nds once in awhile. Agreed on the greatness of them.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010461790?pid=708720
I’ve used a bunch of Speers over the years. Most recently the 180 FN in my TC 35 REM pistol and the 200 grain Spitzer in my 338 Federal. They work great in my opinion and the price is right on them.