Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles .308 Win. Terminal performance on game?

Having never ventured out of my comfort zone (long action standards/magnums), my interest in the .308 Win. has recently been peaked.
I've just never owned/hunted with ANY short action cartridges. With a new piece of property to hunt this year (pastures/gas pipe lines/heavy timber/box stands) I'm beginning to see the merits if a compact rifle that can still reach out. It's amazing how much more maneuverable a 22" barrel is than a 24" barrel in a box stand.

I've long since though a .308 caliber/165gr BT (or similar) would be pure lightning on whitetail and hogs....and it has been from several .30-06's I've used.

I simply have ZERO "on game" experience with the .308 Win., but I'm WANTING to love it.

Would like to know your experiences with it and what you feel is its maximum effective range on deer and such.
I have a feeling the .308's MER will considerably farther than MY maximum effective range.

Schooly

Schooly,

Just got my .308s last year and haven't gotten to bag any (big) game with them yet, but seeing as this the Internet I won't let that stop me from voicing an opinion!

Simply put....308 Winnys kick ass. Bullets are so good nowadays and it's so hard to get a .308 NOT to shoot great, just pick one and go.

Many on here have killed much game with the 'lowly' 7.62 up to and including elk, moose, and bear.

Check out this thread about what is not even generally considered a 'hunting' bullet. Pat (Scenarshooter) lays down the knowledge...

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthread.../1/Expansion_characteristics_of_t#UNREAD

Pretend it's 30-06, you will never be able to tell the difference.

I've killed four whitetails and three dogs with the 308. Put a good bullet in the right place and it does the job just fine. I'd say it's range limits are more shooter's limit's than the round's. What I'm trying to say is the 308 Winchester is good on game way further out than most, myself included, are capable of shooting.

The .308 165 grn Nosler Ballitic Tip, at 2700-2850fps is, IMO, the best whitetail bullet out there. .308...30-06...whatever.

Same, same, you -- more importantly the game -- won't know the difference.

I'd not shy away from most cup and core bullets of 150,or 165-grain from the oh-eight. They do just fine (Hornady Interlocks in particular).

I used the 30-30 for about 15 years before I started to play with other chamberings. I Got a .308 tikka and it was a wand of death. As long as I hit where I aimed it was over and quite quickly. I have loaded my .308 with 150 hornadies and great sucess on deer. I have also used the 165 barnes xlc with great success. I haven't notice much difference between it and the 3-06 so I would say have at it.

I bought a Ruger RL77 in 308 to "back up" my 270 and for humping the mountains or crawling thru stuff as it handles about like a 22. With 150s it is a real deer killer and with 180s an elk killer.
Longest- a mulie at 350 yds with it and a cow elk at 300 yds.
When going hunting, it is always along as a back up or as the primary weapon of choice. I have used quite a few other calibers also, but it is as good an all around as there is -up to dangerous game IMO.
Tim

My hunting camp partner and I have killed a few deer and hogs with the 308. On the larger side were a couple of 200 pound bucks, big for our area, and a hog that pretty near pegged the 300 pound scale.

Bullets used include the 165 Hornady SST, 165 Sierra BTHP, old 165 grain Ballistic Tips from when they came in hundred count boxes, late model 150 Bal Tips, 150 Interlocks, 150 Speer boat tails, 150 Core Lokts, 168 Berger VLDs, maybe a couple of others.

It's quite effective.

The SST has been a great performer for me as well. Highly accurate out of several .30 calibers I've loaded for it.

Notably, one of the largest racked whitetails killed in TX, in 2010 was taken by a friend of mine who put a SST into the deer's boiler room at 'bout 175-yards. My claim to fame is that I'd worked up his load, but he reminds me -- at every opportunity -- that he turned me onto the SST's.

Yep. I lump them both together when talking deer and hogs. There is just something about a good 165gr bullet at 2,650-2,850 that gives reliable performance, lots of damage to vitals, and generally good (and short) blood trails. It is a "sweet spot" regarding killing mojo on animals of that size, although it could likely be considered by some to be excessive to some extent.

Have to agree with digger 44`s above comment which about sums it up pretty well.

Think of the 308 as just a shorter versioned 30-06, which ballistically in velocity terms is about 95% of the 30-06.

The game you`re talking about won`t know the difference upon impact.

Don`t own a 308 myself but know a few that do. They all love theirs.

A more compact rifle chambered in a 308 will be a very sweet and handy rifle.

You'll love the .308. I'm amazed that you're even asking questions about on-game performance. Search for "scenarshooter" and see what he does with a .308 Win and 155 gr. Scenar bullets. He also uses a .260 Rem - the high B.C. version of the .308 win. It won't disappoint, I guarantee it.

I'm pretty sure the .308 is a passing fad, though the fIve score of deer, groundhogs, coyote and other fauna laced with it by my kith and kin over the past 40 years have found it quite terminal.

First deer rifle I had was a 788 Remington in 308 win 18 inch barrel it killed like a lighting bolt. I shot 180 Hornady rn in that time frame moved to 165 Nosler bt and haven't looked back. I have tried bigger I have tried smaller always came back to the 308 win. Today I deer hunt with a Stevens 200 in 308 win. It still kills like lightening. I have killed an elk with the 165 bt dropped like a rock. It will kill anything in north America. So go for it.

Just think of it as the .30-06 lite.

My grandpa and my younger brother both shoot .308s, they kill deer just as dead as the bigger .30s with a little less recoil. I really want to try out my 99e .308, but I keep loaning it to a buddy that can't swing a rifle right now.

I ain't shot anything larger than Rocky Mountain mule deer with my Featherweight .308 Win. They didn't have good feelings for it. In fact, they stopped feelin' anything.

Buy a .308 Win. It's a cartridge that will work as advertised.

ColdCase1984,

Yep, I gotta agree. The .308 Win ain't nothin' more that a fadin' fad. Why with it's impeccable record of success, its availability in every rifle configuration available, its incredible accuracy, its ability to surpass advertised velocities, I just can't imagine a reason to own one, and I sure as hell can't figure out why I didn't buy one long before I did. Except for big Alaskan brown bear, there ain't I thing I wouldn't hunt with mine.

Dead is dead, and the .308 Win will reduce all North American big game to freezer meat.

Hey Dude,

My turn to buy lunch.

I didn't know how much I was going to appreciate a compact & lightweight hunting rifle until I bought a Featherweight in .308 Win.


Take care,

Tom

Nannie killin' fool I am...

In the past 50 years I've used rifles chambered in 308 Win to shoot and kill many animals in 4 continents. I've killed many deer, antelope, elk, caribou, black bear, all the European species of deer and hogs, African Kudu, Zebra, Gemsbock, blue wildebeest, wart hog, waterbuck, bushbuck, jackels, coyotes, feral donkeys and wild cattle as well as wild boar. Five deer so far this year (2013) with two different 308s.

I'm taking a Sako A7 in 308 win to RSA in Jun as my lite rifle for the third time. In the field you will not know the difference between a 308 win and a 30-06. If you reload Varget and a good 165 c&c will be your friend.

Slightly to the left there is a tiny picture of dead deer. It was taken with the .308 also in the picture. The deer is laying in its tracks when hit with a 150 gr Sierra Game King at 304 yards. The buck the year before was taken with one shot at 286 yards. These are the only 2 animals I have taken with my .308 that I have hunted 3 seasons.

I believe you will like it just fine.

KC

In my younger days I shot about 35 Texas whitetail deer with a 308 Remington 600 Mohawk with 150 gr Remington Coreloks. With only two exceptions, all were DRT with large exit holes. The other two didn't go far. Most shots were less than 100 yards. I have since used many other calibers with good success and still use the 308. The 308 is an ample and efficient cartridge.

I have also shot two bull elk wih a 308 at 300-plus yards. I made follow up shots on both of them; one after great shot placement, the other with poor shot placement. Neither were going anywhere but I didnt want to take any chances on losing them. The 308 is ample for elk and the shots, while long, were pretty destructive. It hammers whitetails.

I shot a few whitetails with mine and I never had a problem killing everything that I shot with it, a 165 accubond at 2850 would probably kill anything without a problem in our country

Own 2 .308's. A Browning X-Bolt, shoots my handloaded Hornady 150g BTSP into 1" No critters have even got outa sight after being shot with it. Also own a Ruger M77 Mk. II RSI (LOVE THIS RIFLE) shoots handloaded 165g NBT's into +/- 1" and SLAMS deer and pigs. Farthest anything has gone after being hit by this combo is about 20 yds.

Got it. Take away 50-75 yards of what you are comfortable with in using a .30-06 and you have a .308. Exception may be the 200grain offerings. Even then it will probably work if aimed well. The bullet doesn't know if it left a .30-06 or .308.

A fast .308 is a slow .30-06.

Not even 50-75 yards.
There's only 4 inches of drop difference at 500 yds using the exact same bullet in each.
I shoot 165 in my 308 and 180s in my 30-06.
The 06 has some weight advantage, so it may hit a little harder BUT they shoot almost EXACTLY the same trajectory wise.
Pick one you can shoot accurately and go hunt.. There's no appreciable difference.

'Terminal' is a good way to describe the .308's performance on game. Not many by some standards, but I've killed well over 20 deer with it, of all sizes, and only once needed a second shot. I've used 150's, 165's and 180's, and all worked very well, and I've never recovered a bullet. I've currently settled on the 165 partition as my 'go-to' bullet. while my longest shot at a deer with a .308 is about 85 yards, I would have no issue using it out to 200, my self imposed limit on shots. Were I a better shooter on game, or if I had chances to shoot longer, I would trust the round out to 350 or so. Also, I wouldn't hesitate to hunt Elk with my current load.

digger44,

I couldn't agree more. When I wanted a lightweight rifle, I damned near went with an '06. It has a bigger case. It shoots a heavier bullet (220 grain). And only Marilyn Monroe was more widely known.

I hunt in western states. I have yet to run across an '06 hunter who has used a bullet weighing more than 180 grains. When you examine ballistic tables for comparison, at 300 yards or so, where bullets intersect with big game, there's no difference between the two cartridges.

After carefully analyzing all important criteria, I came to the conclusion that the .308 Win was actually superior to the '06 for hunting western big game. And if you were to check, you'd find a lot of western big game hunters hunting with a .308 Win. Whereas three decades ago other cartridges were all the rage. Seems as though the 7MM Rem Mag was the magnum of choice, & the .270 Win and '06 were the standard cartridges of choice.

When I was younger, I had no problem carrying a heavy rifle up & down the Rocky Mountains. Too many shoulder surgeries caused me to look for a lightweight rifle. One of my more bright moves was buying a Featherweight in .308 Win. However, I would have been just as happy with a 7MM-08 Rem.

One of the best Teachers I ever had was a HS economics teacher named Charlie Jeffers. Not only was he a great teacher but a hunter as well and lectured our class on the value of a good 308 rifle. Never forgot those lectures

I seem to see a pattern in your posts LOL

Mo better .... keep your 30-06, pretend its a .308Win AND use the $$$'s saved on MORE hunting! (or split the savings with the MRS essentially buying you more hunting time).

Teddy Roosevelt used a Springfield .30 Gov't extensively in his trek thru Africa. IIRC he stated satisfaction with the standard military ball on critters up to cow elephants; both he and his son using this tool to pierce their thick, grey hide. For the heavy bulls he preferred his double. At the time the .30 Gov't was essentially a .308 Long.

What's left of a deer's heart after a 180 Partition from a .308 Win. went through it. It's lethal.

I have killed some really nice 200+ lb bucks with 125g Sierra's loaded to the tilt with Win 748 at 3100-3200 fps and a goodly number of does.

Keith,

How fast does a 125 grain .308 bullet shed velocity? I have always used 165 grain bullets because supposedly they retain velocity. But maybe I'm wrong.


Thx,

L

Howdy, Schooly. I have had the opportunity to hunt a fair bit with the .308 Win including a couple of African hunts and IIRC four Sask whitetail hunts from tree stands and box blinds. I used different .308s, but most game was shot with my Steyr Scout and 180 gr loads. I like the Win FailSafe, Norma Oryx, and the Barnes TSX versions.

I have shot to 400 yards on square ranges with the .308/180 gr loads, and performance at range depends more on scope capability to get a good hit. The .308 can kill them as far as you can hit them. Most of my game hits are between 75 yards and 175 yards though. I like the Leupold 2.5-8X VX3 scope for hunting.

I have used barrel lengths from 18" to 21.75", and you are right about ease of use with these compact rifles --or should I say carbines.

After I got a chronograph, I compared my .308 & .30-06 rifles, each loaded with the 165 gr bullet.

Each rifle shot roughly 2750 fps...

About the only real advantage I see with the .30-06 is that it handles the heavy bullets better. With the 165's at least, my rifles offer identical ballistics. On deer, mule deer & whitetail, the bullets typically penetrate right on through, leaving a very dead deer behind. Normally I use the 165 Ballistic Tips anymore, though I've used several different 165's over the years.

How far? Dang... Quite a ways I suppose!

Either cartridge is good for anything I hunt.

Regards, Guy

The 308 is one of my favorite rounds. Super easy to load for.

I've killed killed coyotes, antelope, whitetail, mule deer, and elk with it. Farthest kill was an antelope at just over 400 yards and a bull elk at just over 300.

I load up a good 165/168 for everything.

A .308 with a 125gr at 2350 fps equals a 7.62x39 ballistics. My daughter has killed everything she's pointed at with that load. My son was shooting a 150gr Hornady at 2650fps, again, everything dropped quickly. My .308 sluts around with every bullet on the shelf and critters keep falling over. It just plain works. Both of my kids are shooting full power now, I've offered different guns if they wanted to swap. They both turned down the offer, they seem to think there's magic in that bullet... I didn't tell them any different.

Several years ago my hunting partner and I both killed bucks on the same day in New Hampshire. My friend checked his in first. One of the questions asked by the clerk was what caliber rifle did you use. My friend said .308. I checked in mine and when asked the caliber I said .308. The clerk looks up and says "what's with you guys and .308s? When I asked why, he said "I've checked in 10 deer this morning and 7 of them were killed with .308s". I told him you've answered your own question, THEY WORK.

It'll work to way out there. Hope (wife) shot a decent 5x5 bull in NM in 2009 using a 7-08ai (slightly more than a std 7-08) at 318 yards. We've shot 7-08 (and ai), 308 win and 284 win almost exclusively to take over a couple dozen deer at varying ranges in the past several years. Longest shot on deer was 260 yds using the 308 win in 2011 on the only day I got to hunt that season. It'll kill 'em out to further than I can shoot 'em.