Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters So Why the 308?

I shot my first big game animal with a 308 Winchester forty years ago when I was 12. It was a winter caribou from the Nelchina herd on the Tok Cutoff. I was using those old Winchester 165grain silvertip bullets. I shot it at about 40 yards and it went down right there. I have had many over the years but have not hunted one extensively since then. I do have several including tackleberry and 99 deluxe versions. The caliber works very well in a kimber boilerplate rifle and it really provides all that one would need. My father started hunting with a 308 Winchester in a Mossberg 810 that didn't even have a scope and shot a mule deer with it before he came to Alaska. He shifted over to a 300 Win once he got here in 1977.

My cousin by marriage has filled a huge shop and his house with a 308. It is a Browning A-bolt with a very old leupold 3X9 variable scope. It might be his only rifle. He has two supercubs and a 36ft long ocean cruiser with big Volvo Twins so he does have toys. He has shot several 9+ Brown Bears on Hitchenbrook Island and shot an extremely large 9ft Grizzly (still considered a BB because less than 100 miles to Coast) near Tonsina Lake. He has never entered a single one of his dall sheep but he has at least 10 that would book. The last big one was 177 at 44 inches by 14.75 inch bases about 10 years ago. He works for Uncle Al on the SERV boats and has plenty of time to hunt and has stuff to locate big critters. He also has at least 10 big Sitka Blacktails out of the 30 or 40 that he has taken that would probably go book. However, he isn't interested in putting his name in any book. It just goes to show you that a 308 can be one and done rifle.