The cartridge for the next 30 years….

[elkguide]

The answer is always the .300 Win Mag.

 

[Jcvr]

308 / 30.06 / 300wm
708 / 280 / 7mag
this would be the circle I’d personally be looking at and would most likely land in the middle with the ’06, but none of them would be a wrong choice

 

[Dennis]

300 Win Mag

 

[OKHunter84]

I just recently bought Tikka T3x lite in 300wm and put a proof research 7 prc barrel on it. Wanted to try that caliber out and it's easy to go back to 300wm if availability becomes an issue for 7 prc. My dad has always used 30-06 and it's hard to argue against.

 

[JjamesIII]

Aside from nastalgia- why on earth is the 308 even being considered relevant??? We might as well discuss the merits of the hawken over the kentucky long rifle.

308 as a trainer- sure. You will gain a huge appreciation for wind calls/range. The 308 sucks ballz in the wind, drops like a bowling ball, and delivers terribly anemic energy on target when it finally decides to show up to the party.
Inside 300 yards, who cares what you chose- but recommending a guy going into the gun shop for “one gun” to hunt with for the rest of his life and reaching for the 308 in today’s market is laughable.

 

[grfox92]

.308 or 7mm08

Sent from my SM-G990U2 using Tapatalk

 

[cal30_sniper]

Aside from nastalgia- why on earth is the 308 even being considered relevant??? We might as well discuss the merits of the hawken over the kentucky long rifle.

308 as a trainer- sure. You will gain a huge appreciation for wind calls/range. The 308 sucks ballz in the wind, drops like a bowling ball, and delivers terribly anemic energy on target when it finally decides to show up to the party.
Inside 300 yards, who cares what you chose- but recommending a guy going into the gun shop for “one gun” to hunt with for the rest of his life and reaching for the 308 in today’s market is laughable.

Agreed. An earlier poster remarked it’s hard to argue against .308. No it isn’t. The easiest argument against .308 for hunting is that .30-06 exists. For plinking, target shooting, defense, survival, etc there are other arguments in favor of .308, but not for hunting.

.270, .30-06, 7mm Rem Mag all make a more compelling case as a default all around hunting round.

The one advantage I could see for .308 is maximizing shorter range energy delivered from a 16-18” barrel for dedicated compact use with a suppressor. That’s a pretty niche case though.

 

[ORJoe]

The one advantage I could see for .308 is maximizing shorter range energy delivered from a 16-18” barrel for dedicated compact use with a suppressor. That’s a pretty niche case ththough.

Most people who go down that road should find their way into the Energy is a Useless Number camp.

 

[OrangeMan73]

The one advantage I could see for .308 is maximizing shorter range energy delivered from a 16-18” barrel for dedicated compact use with a suppressor. That’s a pretty niche case though.

...aaannnndddd that's where I land.

 

[Mtnmilsurp]

6.5x55…134 years old and still the best all around chambering.

 

[IDVortex]

6.5x55…134 years old and still the best all around chambering.

About 10 years ago I actually wanted to build a 6.5x55. Still might one of these days.

 

[OKHunter84]

I'm not a 308 guy but this dude has a ton of videos where he's killing quite a bit if critters with sub sonic 308 from a short barrel. Pretty entertaining stuff.

 

[grfox92]

Aside from nastalgia- why on earth is the 308 even being considered relevant??? We might as well discuss the merits of the hawken over the kentucky long rifle.

308 as a trainer- sure. You will gain a huge appreciation for wind calls/range. The 308 sucks ballz in the wind, drops like a bowling ball, and delivers terribly anemic energy on target when it finally decides to show up to the party.
Inside 300 yards, who cares what you chose- but recommending a guy going into the gun shop for “one gun” to hunt with for the rest of his life and reaching for the 308 in today’s market is laughable.

The fact that your bringing energy into the conversation shows what you have no business offering such a strong opinion.

Terminal velocity out of a .308 with 150 to 168 grain modern bullets taps you out at around 550 to 600 yards. The amount of people who can effectively shoot game animals at 600 yards is probably less than 1% of hunters.

So, based on those two quick facts, I would say a .308 would be a fantastic do it all hunting cartridge.


Sent from my SM-G990U2 using Tapatalk

 

[cal30_sniper]

Most people who go down that road should find their way into the Energy is a Useless Number camp.

Don’t disagree at all on the energy statement.

The increased bore diameter with similar cartridge capacity does help with a bit more velocity from a short barrel. Aka, 260, 7mm-08, .308 with 140-160gr bullets results in velocity favoring the .308 even with poorer BCs. For really short barrels that aren’t looking for long range wind bucking, it has a slight advantage.

It’s a pretty unique niche, and you give up a lot in wind drift compared to more ballistically efficient cartridges (like a .243, 6mm CM, .260, or 6.5CM).

 

[JjamesIII]

Agreed. An earlier poster remarked it’s hard to argue against .308. No it isn’t. The easiest argument against .308 for hunting is that .30-06 exists. For plinking, target shooting, defense, survival, etc there are other arguments in favor of .308, but not for hunting.

.270, .30-06, 7mm Rem Mag all make a more compelling case as a default all around hunting round.

The one advantage I could see for .308 is maximizing shorter range energy delivered from a 16-18” barrel for dedicated compact use with a suppressor. That’s a pretty niche case though.

The only reason to buy a 308 is for a prepper to consider ammo sources in a shtf situation. As soon as nato ditches the musket, that will make it even less relevant. The only reason I have an ar10 in 308 collecting dust lonely corner of the safe.

 

[TaperPin]

The best indicator of future performance is past performance. The 7 mag has been an easy to shoot consistent killer for the last 30 years in a light rifle, so I’d just keep using it.

Range finders and reliable scopes have made wind calls the weak link in the chain (other than the shooter’s ability) - a 300 mag will have less wind drift than a 308, and a 7 mag will have less wind drift than 7mm08.

 

[cal30_sniper]

The only reason to buy a 308 is for a prepper to consider ammo sources in a shtf situation. As soon as nato ditches the musket, that will make it even less relevant. The only reason I have an ar10 in 308 collecting dust lonely corner of the safe.

Good hunting ammo is pretty cheap also. It was a solid option for 16yo me. These days, I’m building a 25-284. Money in the pocket changes perspective

 

[pbroski]

If you handload, 7 saum. If you don't, 280 AI. Best balance of shootability vs trajectory without going too small. 6.5 PRC also good.

 

[JjamesIII]

The fact that your bringing energy into the conversation shows what you have no business offering such a strong opinion.

Terminal velocity out of a .308 with 150 to 168 grain modern bullets taps you out at around 550 to 600 yards. The amount of people who can effectively shoot game animals at 600 yards is probably less than 1% of hunters.

So, based on those two quick facts, I would say a .308 would be a fantastic do it all hunting cartridge.


Sent from my SM-G990U2 using Tapatalk

It’s physics man- a TON of better cartridges out their that will deliver vastly superior performance in literally every metrics. I’m not saying your 308 is not lethal….. it certainly is. But the round is dead, when we compared it to more modern designs. Definitely not a top choice for THE one and done rifle to hunt with as was the op’s question. Can you concede to these points?

 

[JjamesIII]

It’s physics man- a TON of better cartridges out their that will deliver vastly superior performance in literally every metrics. I’m not saying your 308 is not lethal….. it certainly is. But the round is dead, when we compared it to more modern designs. Definitely not a top choice for THE one and done rifle to hunt with as was the op’s question. Can you concede to these points?

And to add….energy is irrelevant in terminal ballistics . You’re done, bro.