.308 load recommendation for hunting/defense

[coldcase1984]

I think the factory Barnes 130 TTSX load at nominal 3125 FPS would make for faster splits and bears would swear they were 150s.

Just too bad there's no one factory loading 110 TTSX...

[El Cid]

What about the Remington 150gr CLUB (Core Lokt Ultra Bonded) round the feds use in their gas 308’s?

[Crazy Dane]

What die brand do you use for the rifles? And your press?

Often I have wondered if choosing the 30-06 instead of .308 would give the hand loader a ballistic edge. Any comments?I realize that the .308 permits having a shorter action.

I use Lee dies and load on a 22-year-old Lee 4-hole turret used as a single stage press. I probably should replace my 20 year old dies this year, the last batch of ammo I loaded had some tolerance issues that I attributed to die and press wear. The die replacements will be Lee and will be set up for the Breech Lock Challenger that I have.

This depends on what the intended use will be. The .308 has the advantage up to 150 grain bullets, velocities will be equal to and sometimes better than, while burning less powder than the 06 and 165/168s are on par. The 30-06 starts gaining the advantage with 180 bullets and up. I would be comfortable taking any game in North America except brown/grizzly bears with any of my .308 rifles and 165/168gr ammo. My dad took a cow elk with the 165 Accubonds that I loaded for him. His first shot was at 390 yards, and he got a second in at 425 or so, one was complete pass through, and the other bullet was found under the skin on the offside fully mushroomed out.

The next debate is short action vs long action guns, short actions are touted to be more accurate, long actions are heavier etc. I solved this by going to single shot H&R Handi rifles. I have a Ruger M77 Ultralite with a 20 inch barrel and the Handi rifles with a 22 inch tube are shorter overall.

[Crazy Dane]

The recommendation is requested for a factory load, that will be reliable in a SCAR H and Browning semi auto, able to harvest deer to caribou sized game, while being able to penetrate the skill of a grizzly.

The Federal Barnes Tripe Shock and Fusion seem interesting.

308 Win 165gr AccuBond Trophy Grade Ammunition (nosler.com)

[Colt191145lover]

I have been impressed with the 165 Accubonds in the 308, we have taken 4 elk at ranges 100 - 300 yards and have never recovered a bullet. We have shot 8 deer with it as well with great success.

[okie john]

Often I have wondered if choosing the 30-06 instead of .308 would give the hand loader a ballistic edge. Any comments?I realize that the .308 permits having a shorter action.

With handloads, the 30-06 will beat the 308 by ~175 fps, but you need to test those loads in the hottest weather you expect to see in the field. For instance, I’m hunting in Texas next month. It will likely be over 100F. We have what passes for a heat wave in Washington this week, so I’m clocking loads to ensure that they’re safe--some powders will take pressures into the stratosphere in summer heat if you're not careful.

I’ve owned and worked with dozens of 308 and 30-06 rifles over the years. I've found two differences that matter:

• It's about as easy to find a 0.75 MOA (or better) 308 load as it is to find a 1 MOA 30-06 load.
• Some guides will welcome a hunter with a 30-06 but scoff at one with a 308.

I’ve thinned my hunting-rifle herd to a Winchester Model 70 in 30-06 that I got from a friend and a Remington Model 700 in 308 that I bought from a big-box store. Optics are identical. When I got the chance to hunt deer on short notice a few years ago, I took the 308 because I was low on 30-06 ammo and I had enough 308 on hand for the train-up and the hunt itself. These days, I choose the 30-06 because my friend died and I miss him.

That’s as good a reason as I can think of to pick one over the other.


Okie John

[OlongJohnson]

With handloads, the 30-06 will beat the 308 by ~175 fps, but you need to test those loads in the hottest weather you expect to see in the field. For instance, I’m hunting in Texas next month. It will likely be over 100F. We have what passes for a heat wave in Washington this week, so I’m clocking loads to ensure that they’re safe--some powders will take pressures into the stratosphere in summer heat if you're not careful.

Also be careful about how it's stored and carried. Ammo that dwells in a hot vehicle or has the sun on it can get considerably hotter than ambient temps.

If you decide to hit the range after work and leave the range bag in the trunk of your car all day, you'll be glad you're shooting the USP when you notice how much more juice .40 S&W seems to have this time out, and only realize why after a couple mags. Hypothetically, of course...

[okie john]

Ammo that dwells in a hot vehicle or has the sun on it can get considerably hotter than ambient temps.

That's actually part of my evil plan. It's only going to get up around 90 this week so I have the ammo and my range bag in the trunk right now, with an REI mini-thermometer on the range bag.


Okie John

[okie john]

Started a new thread to redirect drift: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....79#post1377879


Okie John

[Ed L]

Consider trying the Federal 165 Trophy Copper .308. It is another monolithic bullet like the Barnes TSX. I have tried it in my AR10. I think the ballistic top helps with feeding with autos. It is not too long so it will probably fit in all mags. Its BC is .503 which beats the hell out of the TSX BC of .398. It is slightly faster out of the muzzle vs the TSX at 50 fps. It is also cheaper by $0.10/rd.

In 2016 or 2017 I was writing an article for SWAT magazine about the Knights SR-25 Advanced Combat Carbine in 7.62 NATO, I vaguely remember being told to avoid ballistic tip ammo because the tips might break off when being cycled through the action and fed into the chamber. Theses broken off tips might find their way into other parts of the action and cause a malfunction. This would seem to be a problem for a semiauto .308 weapon when the action cycles that would not apply to a bolt gun.