Can 308 do everything you need a rifle to do under 600 yards?

[General RE LEE]

Wow, you might as well use a FMJ at longer range and call it a hunting bullet! If you think a 175 grain bullet at the muzzle doing 2550 is going to do anything but poke a hole, probably in and never come out, at any distance beyond 500 yards, where it is already down to an anemic 1700 fps, your talking more wounded game than will ever be possible to recover than using a 223 @ half that distance.

Then in reality, your talking having good enough accuracy to hit a 2 to 3" kill zone, that means you need .5" at 500 yards from that load, with absolute perfect doping and execution with no human error from the hunter??

Take that to 600 yards, and even if the hunter was super human and could execute perfect shot placement the load isn't capable of that kind of accuracy and at now around 1500 fps a Ruger Blackhawk in 30 carbine is a better choice if it's used inside 50 yards?? Something I know no capable handgun hunter of trying to do!

My opinion the 308 is better suited to 168 or 150 grain bullets, with fairly capable success under 500 yards. Yes in a perfect situation, and conditions, 500 yards would be a possible situation on game deer size or smaller. To expect anything more to me is wishful thinking.

I also will saying after 7 decades hunting, I would never limit myself knowing the conditions and circumstances encountered in real life huning to set out intending on using a 308 with the best loads, for anything larger than deer beyond 400 yards. But I'm not confusing target practice, with real world big game hunting! This is just how I would handle this proposed scenario, but to each their own, I just have to allow a tiny bit for my practical abilities, since I am just hair less than perfect with execution in the field. I like to be practical.

This post and you're 7 decades of hunting tell me in your mind you know probably know everything and not open to learning about new technology.

There are BC hunting bullets designed to open at velocities below 1800 FPS. Also there are ballistic apps available to everyone that show their bullet's velocity at different ranges. Also, scopes now have very reliable turret systems and rangefinders have gotten really good. Long distance shooting ranges continue to pop up around the country.

A lot has changed in technology and gear in the past 20 years.

 

[Bobcatter]

This post and you're 7 decades of hunting tell me in your mind you know probably know everything and not open to learning about new technology.

There are BC hunting bullets designed to open at velocities below 1800 FPS. Also there are ballistic apps available to everyone that show their bullet's velocity at different ranges. Also, scopes now have very reliable turret systems and rangefinders have gotten really good. Long distance shooting ranges continue to pop up around the country.

A lot has changed in technology and gear in the past 20 years.

No such thing was said, I understand exactly what he's proposing, Not 30 cal, but have run the Berger EH's and at under 2000 fps I'm not impressed! I have way better choices even at those higher velocities.

I think your putting more into what was said than I posted. It is a very low percentage one can expect at best for kills out past 500 yards, that should be obvious. Only an idiot would say it's impossible! Trust me I build two or three rifles on a slow year, seldom in the same calibers. Maybe this is why I understand how poorly a selection this would be for over 500 yards on any big game!

Much LOWER SUCCESS rate than I would accept. But at my age I probably have far fewer opportunities left at my age than the younger hunters that have it all figured out! It is also why understand how much better one has with more apropriate cartridges, let alone bullets!

 

[med358-boise]

Love Thomas Sowell, a brilliant man. Cheers

You can tell a lot about person by the way they respond to facts and data. While I don't agree with Bertrand Russell about every thing he said, he was spot on with this one:

"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts".

 

[JAYgs8163]

No such thing was said, I understand exactly what he's proposing, Not 30 cal, but have run the Berger EH's and at under 2000 fps I'm not impressed! I have way better choices even at those higher velocities.

I think your putting more into what was said than I posted. It is a very low percentage one can expect at best for kills out past 500 yards, that should be obvious. Only an idiot would say it's impossible! Trust me I build two or three rifles on a slow year, seldom in the same calibers. Maybe this is why I understand how poorly a selection this would be for over 500 yards on any big game!

Much LOWER SUCCESS rate than I would accept. But at my age I probably have far fewer opportunities left at my age than the younger hunters that have it all figured out! It is also why understand how much better one has with more apropriate cartridges, let alone bullets!

If you've not used, and have no experience on using the 308 on game beyond 500 yards, then this comment is nothing but opinionated keyboard ninja garbage, "this is why I understand how poorly a selection this would be for over 500 yards on any big game!"

We kill deer size game often with the 308 beyond 500 yards with the longest shot being 691 yards. Numerous deer size game and smaller have been killed between 500-691, never loosing an animal or having a bad experience. Knowing your weapon and its capable killing distance is key, having capable loads developed for what you're hunting is next, of course this all comes after the dedication to practice with your rifle at distance. Anyways, unless you've put the time in, studied the loads at distance and practiced, you don't "understand".

To answer the OPs question, no it can't "do everything under 600". It's a very broad open ended question.

 

[Greatgrandad]

If you've not used, and have no experience on using the 308 on game beyond 500 yards, then this comment is nothing but opinionated keyboard ninja garbage, "this is why I understand how poorly a selection this would be for over 500 yards on any big game!"

We kill deer size game often with the 308 beyond 500 yards with the longest shot being 691 yards. Numerous deer size game and smaller have been killed between 500-691, never loosing an animal or having a bad experience. Knowing your weapon and its capable killing distance is key, having capable loads developed for what you're hunting is next, of course this all comes after the dedication to practice with your rifle at distance. Anyways, unless you've put the time in, studied the loads at distance and practiced, you don't "understand".

To answer the OPs question, no it can't "do everything under 600". It's a very broad open ended question.

To some, your and other peoples real world experiences and decades of success does not matter. Only their opinion matters. The op was about "under 600 yards", and even with that, many of us and others have good success well beyond that.

If they knew it was a 308 shot at them, I guess all those game animals and varmints would have never died.

 

[JAYgs8163]

To some, your and other peoples real world experiences and decades of success does not matter. Only their opinion matters. The op was about "under 600 yards", and even with that, many of us and others have good success well beyond that.

If they knew it was a 308 shot at them, I guess all those game animals and varmints would have never died.

As I said, his question is very open ended. I wouldn't shoot a Water Buffalo with a 308 at any distance but I would numerous other critters.

 

[436]

US Army E-6 Jim Gilliland, in September 2005, made a shot at 1,250 m (1,367 yds) twice the distance we are talking about taking game with roughly the same round, but... different, there are actually better bullets for use these days on game, was there some luck involved, well of course there was that 1367 yards with a 7.62x51mm NATO had to have a little going down range. I've shot a lot of 1K comp over the years with the .308 Win, so I think we can all agree that the .308 Win has still got it at 1K with a good rifle, load, and shooter. As for the M1A it might not be the best pick for 1K shooting overall, although mine is exceptionally accurate, well under 1 MOA at 100 yards, and as a rifle, it is a monster at 800 yards in. I've killed a couple of Deer in Winchester Idaho well over 400 yards with it, and if I had to reach out to 600 yards and under, I think the outcome would have been the same... if I put my shot in the chest A-zone on the animal. Back to my point, I hunted with a friend who also hunted with an M1A... "like minds many times hunt together"... I guess. Anyway, he's taken far more Deer than me in Idaho, and a few very nice Elk with his .308 Win M1A, and at least one I know of was rocking the 550-yard mark, a very nice Cow... he's more a meat-hunter, no animals got away, all were harvested from those two M1As. Don't get me wrong many, many cartridges can, and do, do a better job I'm sure, but... believe me the old .308 Win like many other old cartridges still have what it takes within the parameters we've been speaking about. Just my 0.2 Cheers