18 in rifle

[Tmm1270]

New here so apologize up front if this is in wrong section….

Want to build new rifle . The way we hunt, short barrels are way easier to get around. By the time you hang a suppressor on there, you’re back to traditional length overall .

Have always been a 308 guy

So my question…. Is there any round, out of an 18ish in barrel, that will be a noticeable bump up in energy , but not a complete waste of unburnt powder?

A 300wsm comes to mind, but again , shorter barrel, so may be a waste of time even thinking about it

 

[44thStateSender]

I guess it's going to depend what you want to hunt, and at what distances. What is sufficient for one guy may not be for another. Mission drives the gear.

300 WSM and 7 SAUM would both be winners through a short barrel if the reloading was done correctly, though I wouldn't go less than 20". You're giving up a great deal of velocity in doing so.

I have a 300 WSM with a 22" tube pushing a 178 grain ELDX @ 2990 with H4350. My 7 SAUM has a 20" tube and it pushes a 168 grain Berger @ 2920 with H1000 (oddly enough).

If you're insistent on going super short, I'd look at building a 7 SAUM and possibly even putting a monolithic copper bullet in it. That's just a guess though. My advice would be to remain >20"

Good luck with the build!

 

[Tmm1270]

Good point incomplete info given .

In theory , anything deer elk ect , related . 500yds tops for sake of argument.

 

[Slowshot18]

The mystery and myths around short barrels is entertaining….. you hear people say “I want to have an efficient cartridge, don’t want unburnt powder going out of my barrel, might as well shoot a 308”, blah blah blah.

Since when did a majority of rifle shooters become extremely concerned with efficiency, especially with rifles? Are all these people riding around in smart cars or bicycles and living off of solar panels and no HVAC or heating in their homes?

Rant over.

If you want superior ballistics over your 308 with the magical short barrels, the larger the case capacity, the faster the bullet will go in a short barrel or long barrel. I’ve had enough magnum and non magnum barrels from 16-20” in length.

A ballpark estimate to assume loss of speed per inch removed can be 25-35fps. This is all dependent on the barrel, cartridge, bullet weight etc. A 300 prc shooting a 245 berger is going to have a different loss of speed per inch than a 257 wby.

If you want more punch than punch than your 308 and want to stay in a 30 cal, a 30-06, 300wm 300wsm 300prc will all shoot the same weight of bullet faster than a 308 can in the same length of barrel due to the increased case capacity.

 

[Tmm1270]

Also aware 308 is more than enough for what I’m talking about doing. As an example, shot a nilgai a couple weeks ago . Great shot, absolutely killed him like it should have. But if you’ve ever spent anytime in south texas brush country, tracking blood trails through mesquite, isn’t the most fun a guy can have at night . So it got me to thinking about break both shoulders kind of energy

Hope this makes sense

 

[Slowshot18]

Also aware 308 is more than enough for what I’m talking about doing. As an example, shot a nilgai a couple weeks ago . Great shot, absolutely killed him like it should have. But if you’ve ever spent anytime in south texas brush country, tracking blood trails through mesquite, isn’t the most fun a guy can have at night . So it got me to thinking about break both shoulders kind of energy

Hope this makes sense

I spend a lot of time in stx myself. Been on some nilgai hunts on one of the Kennedy pastures. A 300 prc with a 225 Eldm is one of the most destructive combos I’ve seen on game. They will punch through a leg bone and then blow up inside the animal and often times no exit. If you miss you shot placement by a few inches, the eldms will more than make up for it with the wound channel inside the animal. When I want clients to anchor animals so I don’t have to crawl through black brush thickets, I prefer for them to have eldms.

 

[Tmm1270]

You speaking my language sir… thank you for the insight

I’m not always clear in my putting my thoughts down in writing. So apologies to anybody I may have upset with “dumb questions “

I’m aware that more powder , regardless of barrel length, will push the same size bullet faster . I’m also aware of diminished returns. At some point, the juice isn’t worth the squeeze . So I’m trying to figure out where that point is . I used the wsm, as an example.

Thank you for replies so far

 

[khart_6882]

7mm rum? But hold onto your hat when you squeeze that trigger


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Slowshot18]

No dumb questions asked thus far.

I used to run a 30 Sherman mag (300 prc ai) in a 20” barrel. A group of outfitters that I use in west Texas run 18” 6.5 prcs and have started to add in a few 7 prcs as of this year. With the short barreled 6.5 prcs, they’re taking down free range audad, elk, and mule deer out to 700 yards. I asked why they didn’t use bigger cartridges and they said recoil management for their clients. Then after that I started reading all the shit people kill with small cartridges here on Rolslide. Let’s just say the biggest cartridge I use for hunting now is a 6.5 prc. Recoil management is a real thing and being able to pump more lead quickly if the opportunity arises.

 

[brucevalley20]

I have also been intrigued in the 18 inch barrel length I have been thinking about a 7 saum for a couple of years, I have a barrel ordered so I’m going to give it a try. I’m hoping to get 2800 fps with 168 Berger hunt vld. I have a 20 inch 308 that shoots 168s at 2585 so it would be a significant increase in performance with a shorter and lighter package.

 

[44thStateSender]

I have also been intrigued in the 18 inch barrel length I have been thinking about a 7 saum for a couple of years, I have a barrel ordered so I’m going to give it a try. I’m hoping to get 2800 fps with 168 Berger hunt vld. I have a 20 inch 308 that shoots 168s at 2585 so it would be a significant increase in performance with a shorter and lighter package.

You'll likely get 2800. Shouldn't be an issue

 

[brucevalley20]

You'll likely get 2800. Shouldn't be an issue

Thanks I figured that would be achievable I don’t want to have an unrealistic expectation. I have a couple of powders I will play with and see what the results are. The main two being n560 and h4831sc