Why choose 308?

[rmkey]

I don’t know a lot but the 6.5 has greater sectional density and likely great performance on game. But then I am just a target shooter. I have three 6.5s and one 308. On the other hand 308 ammo is available everywhere.


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[Will]

I can say I prefer 308 as I just went through the conundrum of 308 and 6.5.. Broke my heart to walk away from the tried and true 30.06 because well it is what I grew up shooting and in my mind it will always be the best round for hunting. 308 seemed to me to be the next best thing as most rifle makes have walked away from 30.06 in their higher end rifles. I figure 500 yards is about the longest I would ever take a shot at an Elk or deer as past that I worry that if I miss a bit and don't kill the animal and it gets away to suffer and die slowly. My next rifle will probably be a Savage Ashbury or a Ruger precision in 6.5 creedmoor to be a range princess.

[tb80]

Thanks for all the input. It is very helpful.


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[RustyShackle]

I don’t believe the 6.5CM is going to be a fad. It has gained too much momentum to simply go away. Heck, it far outshines sales against the Winchester short magnums and they’re still around and doing well. I think it will continue to see good sell numbers and factory ammo selections will likely get better. When I first started shootings the 7mm-08 there was very little available in factory ammo, now it’s almost everywhere you go. Simply put they are more efficient than a .308. However you are still likely to find better selections of factory ammo in the ol reliable 308 than 6.5 or 7-08.

[Stumpkiller]

I don’t know a lot but the 6.5 has greater sectional density and likely great performance on game. But then I am just a target shooter. I have three 6.5s and one 308. On the other hand 308 ammo is available everywhere.



As a target shooter you might appreciate that .264" bullets have relatively less wind drift vs. the .308. Sometimes about half as much.

The 6.5CM will last because it fits well in a AR platform and has a lot of factory fodder available. But in a short bolt action rifle the .260 Rem is still a good alternative for a reloader (who doesn't want to search for brass after every shot).

Happily - they're both good!

[Spring1898]

Well I hope you bought something, because as far as I know the 2017 promotions are over and no 2018 promotions have replaced them yet.

If you already have 6.5 and 7mm-08, I would rule both of those out immediately and expand the experience to new calibers.

For a new kid-friendly rifle (assuming you don't reload yet), a .243 is great rifle which ~20% less felt recoil than a similar 7mm-08, and ~40% less than a 308. Should be good for deer comfortably to 200m.
(That said, as a skinny kid I found .30-40 krag carbine, just under 308 in recoil, with a metal buttplate comfortable to shoot, but that was up north with heavy jackets.)

Between 308 and 30-06, I prefer 308.
But for a pure hunting rifle for an adult who won't notice a slight increase in recoil I would have to recommend 30-06 as it is more versatile and gives you a little extra punch at higher bullet weights. Unless we are talking varminting, I don't think you will ever find that 30-06 is a real limitation in anything. Plus you have easily available factory loads from 120gr - 220gr. It covers all of your NA large game hunting needs from now into the future.

I like 308 because it can do pretty much anything, but a 30-06 will do everything. If I could only have one 30 caliber rifle, it would be 30-06.

[tb80]

Really interesting read everyone. I really appreciate all the input. I decided to not go the 308 route at this time. I actually picked up a savage 17 hmr. I thought since my kids still have a few years until they can shoot a full sized rifle it would be a good rifle for them to learn and practice on. That being said, I am saving this info because in another year or two I will be looking at these different calibers again to try to figure out which one to buy.


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[Deadshot2]

For a new kid-friendly rifle (assuming you don't reload yet), a .243 is great rifle which ~20% less felt recoil than a similar 7mm-08, and ~40% less than a 308.

A good muzzle brake will do the same.



I like 308 because it can do pretty much anything, but a 30-06 will do everything. If I could only have one 30 caliber rifle, it would be 30-06.

And with the new barrels and bullets we have today one doesn't need to view the 30-06 through the same lens we used for all the Mil-surp '06 rifles/ammo that were so plentiful from the 50's on.

I will always own a 30-06 along with my other caliber rifles.

[psharon97]

From what I've seen from the OP is he wanted to take deer at at a max range of 300 yards. At that range, the ballistic advantage offered between the 308 and the 260 will be negligible for real world. Granted the 308 will drop a lot more and will not be as forgiving in the wind as compared to a 6.5mm cartridge. The 308 will require more practice if you want to shoot and ethically kill deer at that range.

But that's not the biggest advantage of the 308, when comparing to the 6.5mm cartridges. The biggest advantage is I can go to just about any small town store and still be able to buy 308, 30-06, 30-30, or 270. That is the advantage with these cartridges.

Europeans have been hunting with the 6.5x55 for decades and it clearly has enough horse power to take down reindeer and moose in Europe.

[want2ride]

Since the 6.5 Creedmoor has been the best selling cartridge for many years now, pretty much every store is going to sell 6.5 Creedmoor hunting rounds. so that arguement is pretty much put to rest.

[Steak n eggs]

6.5 creedmore has never been close to the best selling rifle cartridge let alone best selling over all cartridge. It’s just been an upcoming round in the past few years.

if we were discussing 300 yards max... the .308 is going to have negligible drop or drift compared to the 6.5 but it’s going to have more energy... the 6.5C doesn’t start to takeover the .308 until outside of 500 yards and even then the .308 retains a small advantage in energy.

[want2ride]

6.5 creedmore has never been close to the best selling rifle cartridge let alone best selling over all cartridge. It’s just been an upcoming round in the past few years.

if we were discussing 300 yards max... the .308 is going to have negligible drop or drift compared to the 6.5 but it’s going to have more energy... the 6.5C doesn’t start to takeover the .308 until outside of 500 yards and even then the .308 retains a small advantage in energy.I was reading another website and a Savage rep said that the 6.5 Creedmoor was the best selling center fire cartridge over the last few years. Do I have a source? No, I think it was on Snipershide that I read it, but I am not sure. It was last summer.

[Steak n eggs]

I have no idea what exactly they were discussing but I’d be surprised if it was in the top 10 rifle cartridges... .223 would definitely be at the top.

[want2ride]

Where did you get your data, or is it just a guess?

[SageRat Shooter]

I have no data either... just observation... It makes sense though.... As I used to be able to find H4350 without any problem for loading my 30-06. Fast forward to present day and the last 3 years.... H4350 is now called "UNobtainium".

And when I ask why no one can find, get, or order any for me, the response is "The 6.5 Creedmoor match shooters are buying it all up". and if they're sponsored, then it goes straight to them. I don't know how much fact there is the statement, but it sure is difficult to find more than a pound or two anywhere.

[Deadshot2]

I have no data either... just observation... It makes sense though.... As I used to be able to find H4350 without any problem for loading my 30-06. Fast forward to present day and the last 3 years.... H4350 is now called "UNobtainium".

And when I ask why no one can find, get, or order any for me, the response is "The 6.5 Creedmoor match shooters are buying it all up". and if they're sponsored, then it goes straight to them. I don't know how much fact there is the statement, but it sure is difficult to find more than a pound or two anywhere.

If one were to look into the smokeless powder manufacturing process and how much lead time there is in getting a batch of powder into containers and on the shelves there would be no more mystery to where all the powder is. Powders are "batch built" and with all the different products, some are only made at certain times of the year, maybe only on certain years.

If the manufacturer guesses wrong on how much powder they will be able to sell in a given period of time the whole system gets turned on it's head.

You mentioned buying H-4350 for your 30-06. For many years that was about the only use for it. As hand loaders started using it for other calibers, many of them newcomers to the scene, the bottles started disappearing from the shelves at a faster rate than forecasts predicted. Due to the nature of powder manufacturer the retailers couldn't just order more as the factories may have the next run scheduled for 18-20 months down the road.

This is just the problem with one powder that suddenly became popular. Now multiply it by all the different powders we've had a hard time getting of late.


Oh yeah, I believe Military production is taking more precedent than any competitors.

[Stumpkiller]

According to Chuck Hawks


USA (Averaged 2015 sales rank)


.223 Remington
.308 Winchester
.30-06 Springfield
.30-30 Winchester
.270 Winchester
.243 Winchester
7mm Remington Magnum
.300 Winchester Magnum
7.62x39mm Soviet
.22-250 Remington

[Steak n eggs]

^^^^^^ Sounds about right.

[Deadshot2]

According to Chuck Hawks

What's strange about "Chuck's List" is that I rarely see about half those calibers at the range where I shoot at least 1 day per week. The first three are popular as are the last three, especially #9 with all the AK47 owners around.

Very common at our local ranges are the 6.5 Creedmoor and almost an equal number of 6.5X47.

More than just a few Blogs and Magazine writers are calling the 6.5 Creedmoor the "Hottest Cartridge Today" so I'd say "Chucks List" is a little out of date.

FWIW, the only people locally that seem to shoot #4, 5, or 6 are the hunters that drag their rifles out in the early fall and bring them to the range to sight them in for hunting season.

[BB68]

Not everyone goes to the range. Nor would I put any stock into a written infomercial. Until my kid wanted a gun for Christmas I had never heard of a Creedmoor. Also consider that was a 2015 list.