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308 rifle for LR hunting....

22_250

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
May 20, 2010
114
0
42
Midland, TX
New to the forum and looking for advice on a 308... I am interested in purchasing a rifle for long range hunting 6-700 meters +. I would pefer to shoot heavier bullets such as 170gr. A-Max from past usage in other calibers, however. A call to Hornady informed me that I would have to have a ten twist barrel. Any recommendations on Rifle make as I would like to keep the puchase under 1K. Or has anyone had good experiences and accuracy with the heavier bullets in a lower twist rate barrel??
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Hunting with a .308 to 700+ yards?
What game animal?
Sounds a bit unethical to me.

You would be far better off with a 7mm WSM or 7mm RM loaded with Berger 168 grain hunting VLD's for that kind of range.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Give Mike R. at Tactical Operations, he can build you what you need.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

It is all about shot placement, I have killed several deer at 500+ with a 22-250, reloads with 70gr bullets. I guess I am really wanting to know if bullets over 170 grains can be shot accurately and consistently from a 308, 26" barrel with a 1:12 twist.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

You might give the 7-08 a look. Much better ballistics out of the same case. The 162 Amax or 168 Berger at around 2700 retains alot more energy.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Just shoot the 168gr Amax out of it. I have shot them to 1k, but they are starting to wobble a littile. At 600 or 700 yards they are fine, and I cut my 26" 1 in 12 twist sps varmint, down to 20", still shooting the 168's.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Don't think you would have much problem with a .308 out to 1000 yds. They are shot in matches all the time out to 1000. Look at the .300 Win Mag for long shots. Good Luck
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: pwc001</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Just shoot the 168gr Amax out of it. I have shot them to 1k, but they are starting to wobble a littile. At 600 or 700 yards they are fine, and I cut my 26" 1 in 12 twist sps varmint, down to 20", still shooting the 168's. </div></div>

I have been looking at this rifle too, did you replace the factory stock?
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

With correct bullet placement, 600 M is within the effective range of a 308 with the right bullet.

Hornady may have given you some conservative advice. While 1/10 twist is a better choice for heavy bullets in 30 cal, 1/12 will easily stabilize the 178 A-Max, 190 Berger, 200 Accubond, and all are excellent LR hunting bullets and will be stable out of a 1/12 twist barrel past 1000 yds.

A 24" barrel will give most of the velocity the 308 case is capable of, but if you want to end up with a 20" barrel, look at the sps Tactical, as it comes with a better stock.

TC
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

I know for a fact that 200 grain bullets wont shoot out of my 1:12.... When you get into the 180+ bullets, sometimes they won't stabilize, so you just gota try them out. Anything under 180 will work for sure.

As for hunting bullets, I really like the 175 berger hunting VLD's. I put down a doe just over 400 yards with it and did some pretty good damage.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

I just shot a nice SE Alaska black bear with my .308 - Shooting .168grn Barnes TSX.

Was a 200 yard shot standing off hand in extremely low light conditions. Hit it just behind the shoulder going through both lungs and the top of the heart. Hit a rib on the way out and kept going.

Ran about 15 yards and let out the death moan.

I dont think there is a better bullet than the TSX...
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Bullet stability and accuracy are two different considerations.

If the bullets don't hit the target sideways...they are stable, but if an individual rifle doesn't shoot a particular bullet well it may be due to a number of factors.

It is always a good idea to stick with the bullet/load your rifle likes. The 175 Berger VLD is a good LR bullet to add to the list, and the 185 and 155gr should be on there as well.

For light skinned game any of them will work and one of them should be a winner in the accuracy department.

TC
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Try a Savage model 10FCP. It is a bit heavy for stalk hunting, but it's worth it to know you can count on your equipment. It has the Accustock with the aluminum bedding system, Accutrigger, and a 1:10 twist rate. I bought mine for less than $800. It is my hunting and target rifle, it should do what you want it to do.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Halligan</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Try a Savage model 10FCP. It is a bit heavy for stalk hunting, but it's worth it to know you can count on your equipment. It has the Accustock with the aluminum bedding system, Accutrigger, and a 1:10 twist rate. I bought mine for less than $800. It is my hunting and target rifle, it should do what you want it to do.</div></div>

Bought the said rifle for the purpose of target/open prairie hunting. I'm working on bullet choice too. I'm leaning toward the berger 155 hunting vld, nosler 180 BT, nosler 165 AB or ???. I still have to test reloads. It will be fitted with a sandstorm and is otherwise stock. So far, I have been very happy with it. It shoots 1/2 MOA with FGMM and the barrel fouls very little.

I did have to spend about 2 hours helping the stock fit correctly to the action. There were some aluminum burrs, the bolt handle touched the stock and the tang was not floated. I wasn't very happy about that, but very happy with performance.
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: gun fever....</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: pwc001</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Just shoot the 168gr Amax out of it. I have shot them to 1k, but they are starting to wobble a littile. At 600 or 700 yards they are fine, and I cut my 26" 1 in 12 twist sps varmint, down to 20", still shooting the 168's. </div></div>

I have been looking at this rifle too, did you replace the factory stock? </div></div>

yes, McM A5
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

I think it starts to get a little on the borderline of unethical when you move past 500 yards... but thats just me.

The bullet starts to take a rather steep curve as it goes on.

A few things to take into consideration

- Will the hunting projectile you use have enough velocity at x given range to effectively expand

- Will such a long range shot have the bullet actually hitting the target with a downward angle potentially missing a good vital shot (both lungs and heart)
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

In my point of view,

the 308 Win has not enough steam to make ethical kills beyond 500 meters,

have you actually looked at the angle of trajectory at inpact at those ranges for a .30 cal bullet,

the slope is profound.

a target that is 15 inches wide will be completly missed with a error in judged distance or diff in trajectory/adjustment by as little as 30 meters,

that is pushing it to far, even a 243 AI with a 107 grain bullet is better at that range and so are many others like it.

Why handicap yourself out of spite or just pure resolve?

/Chris
 
Re: 308 rifle for LR hunting....

Ian McMurphy culled deer at 500 yards with a .308. Using a repeatable scope with come ups is the best way to go, and of course range finder, etc.