.308 win bullet selection for new reloader
- Thread starter Bowmannate2000
- Start date
Redmt
Well-known member
I load for several different calibers and was thinking that the .308 is the least picky about what goes down the barrel. 22-250 with 1:14 twist is like a bitchy teen age girl. 6.5 Squeezemoor is like a mid 30's divorce. Hard to please. The .308 is sorta like the mid 50's house wife. It can deal with most anything and make it work very well.
44hunter45
Well-known member
This
I've killed a bunch of deer and elk with Sierra GK as fast as I could push them in 6.5s. They frag. Lung cavity complete jelly and the animals drop Dead Right There. This is how my 264 Win Mag got the name "DiRT"
I have also had a dramatic failure to penetrate with the SST out of a mundane .30-06 load. The bullet did not fail. It did exactly what the engineers at Hornady designed it to do. The trick is to get them to frag after they have gone through the rib cage. I've learned to avoid frontal and high angle shots with the frags. And bones. You wait for your shot and put it in the lungs broadside.
If you are a brush gun guy who takes quick, high angles shots, the frags are not for you. This, BTW, is the very reason my dad bought his 742 Rem. The Core-Lokt is great in this application, as are the bonded cup&core like the Speer Hot-Cor. I've had them do well up to about 2900fps
I used cheap Core-Lokt and Speer Hot-Cor boattails for decades in a couple .30-06 rifles. Complete pass through on deer, found under the offside hide on elk. Every one I ever recovered was a perfect mushroom, if that's a thing. I really haven't replaced those loads, but it's on my list. Its hard to see the point in cooking up a gee whiz premium load for a Remington 742 at 2600fps. Sadly, the Core-Lokt component bullets are like buying gold now. $55/100 on the Remington website, but perpetually out of stock. The gougers on Gunbroker are asking insane prices.
For the OP -
Learn the design logic of the bullets you choose. Some are designed to frag and some are designed to hold together and expand. Both paradigms have merit. Your hunting style will be a factor in choosing the right bullet.
Every bullet has an engineered optimum functional velocity. More importantly, they have a MINIMUM functional velocity below which they are likely to pencil through with little tissue damage. The frag type generally work as designed at slower velocities. This is important if you are taking longer shots. You have to know how far from the muzzle that particular hand load will fall below that value. That should be considered your max range. In practice that is father than most of us can shoot accurately, but it is a thing. This is why they also may "fail" for close up shots where are close to the muzzle velocity of your load. One instance is below the designed velocity, one is above.
Mono's are the same. If you stay within the designed velocity specs, you will be fine. I personally get a lot of bullets at gun shows, but I avoid buying older "Gen 1" monos. The difference between the early version and the latest tech is huge.
Look for a bullet that is designed for your hunting style and the velocities you expect from your loads. A .308 Winchester may not drive a 180+ grain premium to its optimal design velocity over a long enough range in open country. This ignores another level of discussion about Ballistic Co-Efficients (BC) and external velocity.
The long range hunting game has driven demand for high BC bullets. That does not mean that a good old flat based round nose doesn't kill animals dead right there. I have a nostalgic fondness for ugly, heavy round nosed bullets. The BBW's of the hand loading world.
I hope this helps with your selection process. If you stay in the design spec of your selected bullet, there may be several offerings from different brands that fit the bill. Do your research, and then go find whatever is left on the shelves that day.
6mm Remington
Well-known member
165 gr. Accubond using the same load as you use for the Ballistic Tip. They might very well shoot to the same POI as well as being very accurate. If so you can then use the BT's for practice, coyotes, etc.
As you can see opinions vary. My preference is for bonded or mono bullets and I have had lots of success with them. Cup and core can work but not my preference.
I tend to use Barnes TTSX or Nosler Accubond or Partitions. I have also used Hornady CX. I normally pick a bullet based on what is available and the cost compared to other options. At realistic hunting ranges for most of use I’d say 150 grain mono or 165/168 grain bonded or controlled expansion would be good places to start.
Ringbill27
New member
I’ve got a pretty accurate and spicy load using the Barnes 130gr TTSX and BL-C2. 3150fps.
Redmt
Well-known member
I looked at your load in the Barnes data. It certainly seems like a middle of the road recipe with 46gr. compressed load max. I see also that Barnes recommended the Varget powder as their favorite.
Hit pressure out of my rifle before getting to Barnes published load max.
Redmt
Well-known member
Do you know what speed your getting out of it?
I've worked on a load for a Ruger Predator.308 off and on for the last couple years. I haven't found anything I really like but then I haven't tried any of the lighter bullets.
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