.308 Recommendations?

[Galbraith]

I've been thinking about trading in some guns to get myself a good bang for the buck .308. I'm not particular about platform type. I don't necessarily want a precision rifle setup, I want it to be more of a battle rifle setup that fills a wide variety of roles such as hunting, defense, target shooting(400yrds might be maximum practical range)....etc. I will probably mount either a RDS, or a 1-4 RDS. I've used some ARs(fluted chambers),M14s, and G3s(fluted chambers) and found them to be too hard on brass. I reload, so I need a setup that is easier on the brass. This could potentially be a higher shooting volume rifle like I would a 5.56 AR, so decent barrel steel and even a chrome lined bore would be awesome. Any help in pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated.

[HCM]

I've been thinking about trading in some guns to get myself a good bang for the buck .308. I'm not particular about platform type. I don't necessarily want a precision rifle setup, I want it to be more of a battle rifle setup that fills a wide variety of roles such as hunting, defense, target shooting(400yrds might be maximum practical range)....etc. I will probably mount either a RDS, or a 1-4 RDS. I've used some ARs(fluted chambers),M14s, and G3s(fluted chambers) and found them to be too hard on brass. I reload, so I need a setup that is easier on the brass. This could potentially be a higher shooting volume rifle like I would a 5.56 AR, so decent barrel steel and even a chrome lined bore would be awesome. Any help in pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated.

A 5.56 with prior ammo choice will do everything you describe.

The only reason for a bigger caliber might be if you state does not allow centerfire .22 for big game hunting.

6.8 and 6.5 Grendel both have pros and cons.

Another option might be a high quality AK in 7.62x39 like an Arsenal SAM 7. They are surprisingly accurate with good ammo.

What AR uses a fluted chamber ?

Re optics. A good rule of thumb is 1x per 100 yards to hit targets, HOWEVER, to positively ID targets under real world conditions you need 1.5x to 2x per 100 yards.

Manually operated (bolt guns, lever guns) etc are ok in a pinch but they are not “battle rifles” in the 21st century. Think fighting vs shooting.

If you want a modern .308 the answer is an AR-10 or a SCAR. A decent AR - 10 is pricey but not as pricey as a SCAR. In AR-10s you get what you pay for. Even reloading shooting out a .308 barrel is a lot of $$$ in ammo. Likely several times the cost of the gun. If you can afford to shoot out a .308 barrel barrels are a consumable.

[HCM]

Another option is the new Galil. ACE .308 - takes Pmags, optics friendly, and feedback so far has been good.

[El Cid]

I’ve been please with my LaRue PredatAR but if I wanted a .308 today I’d get a Daniel Defense.

[drummer]

The .308 AR10 decision is not easy. There is no easy answer. There's cheaper with some reliability gamble and there's more expensive. Take your pick. The LMT is probably the best middle of the road option. I've suggested the Larue kits to a couple of people but have no personal experience with them. For what they're going for, they may be the best sub-$2k option. I do find that lack of M-Lok and short handguard irritating but it's not a dealbreaker.

Keep in mind, for what you'll spend for a middle to top end AR10 you could buy a top notch bolt gun and maybe have money left for an optic.

Go over to the non-.223 subform at m4carbine for some good discussion on .308 autoloader options.

[JRB]

I have one of these Troy 308 AR's and I've been very pleased with it:

https://www.primaryarms.com/troy-ind...if-38r-16bt-00

1.5-2 MOA rifle easily when I do my job, but I haven't yet tried top-shelf ammo to do a proper accuracy test. I have had no reliability issues, but a close friend of mine that opted for a somewhat more expensive M10A1 (comes with a Geissele trigger and some other nice upgrades) had some double-feed and ejection issues with his in the first ~150 rounds, but we culled a magazine that was a repeat offender and he didn't have any more issues.

It is easy on brass and has very soft recoil for a .308 of that weight and size. I've shot a bunch of surplus FNM 7.62 NATO out of mine and it had no issues, I've also shot some hotter .308 and while ejection moved predictably with the higher pressures, it was still soft on brass and I had no reliability issues with it. I haven't yet tried steel case, mostly because I'm fortunate to be sitting on a supply of old FNM milsurp from years ago.

I'm currently around ~500-600 rounds through mine, and I've used it to take feral hog on two occasions, one shot kills. It uses Pmags very well and it also likes the Brownell's steel mags. I've got a Primary Arms 3x ACSS optic on it for now, and at this point I'm strongly considering higher quality glass for it, likely a 1-6x variable of some kind. The factory trigger isn't great but it's far better than a typical M16 trigger so I'm happy enough with it. Some friends and family are much more sensitive to shitty triggers.
My one and only real gripe is that the factory handguard rail isn't Mlok or Keymod.

So far, the only modern semiauto 7.62x51/.308 rifles that I'd hold in higher esteem start around 2x the price of this Troy. (SCAR 17S, HK MR762, LaRue, etc)

[ASH556]

Really good advice posted so far; especially the part about sticking with a 5.56/.223 with quality ammo. That's where I ended up after spending several years jumping back and forth between various AR10 (sic) platforms and bolt guns.

However, if you really want a .308 semi and you don't want to break the bank, the Smith M&P10 strikes a pretty good balance. It's not a precision gun (barrel profile) but mine would put 3 inside a 3/4" paster before it got hot. Once it got hot, it was a 1.5" gun at 100yds with match ammo (FGM) and good glass (I had everything from a TA11 ACOG, to a 2.5-10 Nightforce, to a 6.5-20 Leupold and others on that gun).

It wouldn't run suppressed if that's in your criteria. Barrel profile also lends itself to significant shift from suppressor weight, which I also experienced.

On the up-side, it handles really well (feels more like a carbine than a rifle), has cool ambi controls, and was reliable other than when trying to suppress.

Here's mine in its heyday with a couple groups:

[ragnar_d]

What AR uses a fluted chamber ?

Larue rifles with the "XTRAXN" and POF.

[P.E. Kelley]

Full disclosure. I am associated with Savage Arms and had some input in the MSR10 line design.

With that said and without reservation the MSR10 in 308 has proven itself an excellent performer.

Here is a short video of the gun in prototype.



This gun has several podium finishes in major 3 gun events.

[idahojess]

Really good advice posted so far; especially the part about sticking with a 5.56/.223 with quality ammo. That's where I ended up after spending several years jumping back and forth between various AR10 (sic) platforms and bolt guns.

What kind of fore-end did you put on your M&P? You had to change the gas block, right?
I really like mine, but I've never gotten it dialed to that tight of groups -- which may be a shooter issue as well.

I like the looks of the side charging handle on the Savage as well -- I wish they put that on the lightweight hunter model.