I grew up shooting the .308 because it was the caliber of choice for my father. His rifles was a Savage 99 and the .308 was chosen because it was the "best" round available in a lever gun. That rifle (and it's owner) were legendary in our part of the world.
My first rifle (a "family" gun obtained when I was 10) was a Mossberg 800 in.....308! I proceeded to reduce the whitetail population for the next few years until I could buy my own rifle.
My choice was the .30-06, which I believed (I was young) to be a step up from the .308.....which I KNEW worked wonderfully on deer/hogs. In truth, there was not a shot taken with that .30-06 (and some 200+ kills) that I couldn't have made with a .308.....and I'd have never have known the difference. The .30-06 is often suggested as the perfect single cartridge for taking all North American game....and it is. However, I suggest that this same statement could easily apply to the .308 as well.
The .308 is perhaps the "best" whitetail round ever invented. It has enough velocity to shoot flat out to 400+ yards. Yet it doesn't have so much velocity as to require "special" bullets at close range and keeps recoil at a mild level. It hits hard, kills quickly and leaves a great blood trail.....unlike other smaller bore cartridges. The .308 is perhaps the most inherently accurate (and yes I do believe some rounds ARE inherently accurate) rounds ever designed.
All of this is true, but what makes the .308 the "best" is that it is short enough to be chambered in any action type one wishes. Bolt, single shot, pump, semi-auto or lever guns all are chambered in the .308. It is short enough to work in them all and even save a few ounces in weight in a short-action rifle for those who think this is important. The same cannot be said of the .30-06....or any magnum length round.
I now own many, many rifles, but the .308 keeps showing up due to the rifles it's chambered in (and it's known effectiveness). Some come and go, but at present I own a Ruger Mannlicher carbine in .308 (short and light), a Winchester 100 and a Savage 99.
There is the REAL reason the .308 is the "perfect" deer cartridge.......it fits in the Savage 99 and the .30-06 doesn't!
Last edited by TexasRick; 10/20/14.
