Hey guys i got my axis in .308 for christmas i cant wait to shoot. just wondering what grain bullets you use and whats a good round? im gonna shoot 400 yards and hopefully 1000 someday. So whats the best all around bullet 155 168 or 175 grain i hear most people prefer 175 over 168 but i havent heard much about 155 all help is appreciated. I have more access to 400 yards so thats what im gonna be shooting 99% of the time but i will be shooting 1k someday.
Not sure the axis is a benchrest type rifle, but I would start 168. Seems to be a popular choice. I shoot 150 in my bull barreled mauser but that's just what it seems to like. So far shooting my axis it seems it would be difficult to use for long distance stuff (even with my modded trigger pull). Ymmv I guess.
Well the proper ammo depends on a few factors. I see that your axis is a 1-in-10 twist barrel which means it should stabilize most all bullet weights you would want to shoot out of it. If it were me and I didn't reload I would use the FGMM 168gr for shooting out to 700yds & the FGMM 175gr to make it out to 1K. Now, that being said if you don't reload now you should consider it to get the most out of your rig. If I was reloading (which I do) I would load up Hornady 168gr AMAX on top of Varget for 0-700yds and (my personal load for my rem 700 .308 which has been to 1K) 178gr AMAX, over varget. Now the heavier bullets can be shot at any distance if you only want to shoot 1 type of round, which I recommend.
I have a model 14 american classic in .308 with a 1 in 10 twist. First thing I did when I received my gun was to to the barrel break-in via the suggestions on Savage's website. I did this with Remington core-lock in 150 and 180 gr. I then bought some more ammo, Hornady Superformance 168 gr., Winchester Supreme ballistic tip 168 gr., Federal Premium Nosler Partition 180 gr., Federal Premium Boat Tail soft point 165gr. I shot all of these bullets at 100 yrds in 3 shot groups numerous times and on different days. I was using Caldwell Rock front rest and sand bag on the rear. I was having the best luck with the 168 gr. bullets with Hornady and Winchester Supreme's shooting shooting around 1.25 to 1.5 in. groups. The 150 gr. and 180 gr. bullets would be the worse at around 3 in. groups.
I thought that this gun should shoot better so I decided to try some different ammo. I bought some Barnes Vor-tx 168 gr. Tipped triple shock and this was the load that my gun loves. It will shoot .5 in groups if I do my part.
You probably will have to try different ammo to see what your gun will like. They are all individuals. But mine shot the 168 gr. bullets with the most consistently.
I shoot Federal 168gr BTHP Sierra Match King factory loads out of my FP. .5 moa groups at 100 yds is not unusual if I’m doing my part. I have shot this same load out to 500 yards without any problems. I use the same load in both my .308 bolt guns... Both rifles shoot consistenly..
Cypher;
If you need a match bullet, you should try several different one to find out what your rifle likes best. The rifle you have will handle anything from 155gr to 185gr.
The best bullet right now for .308 is any that you can find. I've had good luck from 150 grain to 175 grain.
Thanks for all the help and iam going to start reloading real soon and im gonna start shooting 150 grain to 180 grain and see whats best, Im gonna start reloading whatever works best. Ive heard from most people that 155, 168, and 175 are the best so ill start with those first. They also said that 175 is what pretty much replaced 168 since its superior in all ways mainly past 700 yards is the true?
Also what about the 178 grain Hornady Amax bullets?
I've started using some on-line calculators to help in the hunt for good loads; also they help understand to some degree the relationship between bullet size, weight, velocity and rifle twist in achieving optimal stability (precision and accuracy).http://anarchangel.blogspot.com/2007...mythology.html http://kwk.us/powley.html
Last edited by thermaler; 01-22-2013 at 02:52 AM.
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
The 178 Amax is fine if your rifle likes them.
The deal with the 168 vs. 175 pertains to the Sierra MatchKings. The 168 Nosler & Berger are both very good options. The 168 SMK was developed for use out to 600 and so the 175 SMK has replaced to long range work.
My SASS sure likes 'em : )
Last edited by thermaler; 01-22-2013 at 08:39 PM.
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
I like the Berger 168s. They provide a nice balance of velocity and b.c. and work great on game if you ever need them for that as well.
+1 : )Originally Posted by stomp442
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
Just out of curiosity I whipped out my axis 308 and started the preliminaries of doing some loads for it (I haven't loaded for it yet). Using my OAL gauge and comparator--the very first thing that becomes apparent to me is that of you want to seat anything like the sst/interlock or triple shock closer to the lands you're going to have cannelures on the bullet sticking out well past the case neck. The usual Internet verdict seems to be that it doesn't make that much difference--but I'm wondering if, on the balance, the benefits of seating the bullet longer are negated by having the cannelure exposed during bullet launch??
Upon further investigation--I just realized that the grooves on solid bullets like the Barnes are not actually cannelures (sure looks like it) but are there on purpose to assist in passage through the bore and reduce fouling--but the question is still the same for jacketed/bonded bullets.
Last edited by thermaler; 01-24-2013 at 08:35 AM.
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
For long distance you need a bullet with good BC and form factor, which excludes the Barnes. Look at 175 gr and heavier VLD, SMK, and AMax to see what works best for you. Instead of buying 100 (if you can find them) you can get sample quantities to take a quick look. I can run the 175 SMK in my factory mag with no problem.
maler;
If you are going to be feeding from the magazine then you will have to seat to whatever length that allows. It usually has little effect on real world accuracy though so I don't sweat it.
I've checked against the stock mag and It doesn't seem to be an issue --gobs of room to spare, my guess is bullets positioned almost full-length to where they would actually engage the lands would fit--though I won't do that.
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
Thanks for all the help guys im gonna shoot/reload 155, 168, and 178 grain hornady amax bullets. What reloading book do you guys recommend?
Also how far should i seat the bullet on those above? What powder? And what primers?
Im new to reloading i just got a hornady lock n load classic kit with a automatic powder dispenser so i cant wait to start reloading haha any and all help is appreciated.
Last edited by Cypher; 01-24-2013 at 11:25 PM.
Get a book for each of the powders and bullets you'll be using. Most of these companies have data online now.
I like to seat close to lands and work back until I find a sweet spot. As for powder Hodgdon, IMR, Ramshot, and Reloader are the most common with several different offerings. You'll have to play with them to find the best one. On primers, I like the CCI BR2 but Winchester WLR and Rem 9 1/2 work well.
Just be patient on the hording and panic buying of supplies. It will all settle down after a while.
Awesome thanks for all the help!
Varget is quite popular for the 308 and I like it for 6BR and 223 as well; as mentioned Hodgdon has a thorough on-line loading resource you can access. If you want to invest more, Quick Load software is very nice and offers search functions to id all powders and grains to match a given pressure, velocity, etc; personal and published experience is the calculated velocities are very accurate too.
my 30 inch with 1 -10 prefeers the 200 grain or the 190's at 800 yards..Sierra brand that is
Last edited by acemisser; 01-25-2013 at 01:55 PM.
Speaking of differences between manuals--I'm loading some Barnes TTSX 168 and 180 Accubonds with IMR 4064 ; measured CBTO they are almost the same length (I'm doing about 2.265 for a .03 jump off lands in my axis 308). The Nosler manual clearly states 104% compressed load at 44 gr--while the Barnes manual says nothing but max load at 46 gr. I know the long cut leaves a bit of room for compression--but I stopped the Barnes at 44 because I could clearly feel the pressure difference building when mounting the bullet. I know that bullet is going well past the shoulder inside the case--even though I'm seating the bullet long compared to "normal" factory COAL. I don't feel confident enough to push compressed loads at this point.
[B][COLOR="#FF8C00"]Shooting--it's like high-speed golf[/COLOR][/B]
Here are the old and current .308 service match loads. I bet most .308's shoot these well.
M852 Match Load: Sie 168 Match King 42.0 gns IMR4895
M118 LR Load: Sie 175 Match King I believe the powder was 44.3 gns RL-15; this was reduced to 43.1 gns in late '03 or early '04
Mk316 Mod 0 Load: Sie 175 Match King 41.75 gns IMR4064; rumor is the current Federal Gold Metal Match Load uses this.
The Sierra 175 Match King was developed as the 168 MK groups were opening up beyond 800 yards as the bullet's velocity dropped. It was felt the 175's design would overcome this. If you have the time, there's a few articles which show the history of the service cartridge match loads and their development.
http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com...nge-match.html
http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com...-match_04.html
http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com...mmunition.html
Links 2 and 3 provide the most info for the .308.
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