What is the best round for up to 800 yd shooting?

.308 doesn't have the best ballistics but it is pretty much the standard. You will practice more with it than you will with more expensive calibers. Fairly light recoil too.

I would probably choose the .308 as well.

wow, are there some variables here. Cost, accuracy, ballistics, availability, handloading, recoil? these are just some of the things to consider. I think if you figured in all the above, you would proly go with a 6xc, or maybe a 260, or even a 243. for straight, over the counter pills, and not wanting to spend a ton of money on ammo, then you would maybe be right, unless you can get 270, 30.06, 243, 7.08, or 243 ammo cheaper, and get more accurate.
and the 6.5 swede, I'll throw that in as well.

I ordered a Savage Weather Warrior chambered in 7mm-08 last week. I felt that it would make a good hunting companion to my .300WSM. I hate to admit it, but the 7mm-08 seems to beat the .308 everywhere with less drop, less drift and more energy. The .308 is a great round and I have no intention of getting rid of mine just yet, but the 7mm-08 just seems to do everything better and with less recoil.

.308 at 800? barrel/ 30-378 for serious work in real life

I believe 800 yards is considered to be about the maximum effective range of the .308. Sure there are people and rifles out there that stretch that out another few hundred yards but thats really pushing it.

For the "best" I would have to go with something like the .260 or that new euro caliber that Zak Smith did an article about a few months ago. Im basing that totally off of what I have read.

If it were me I would go with a .308 because it can do it and Im not good enough to outshoot that cartridge. Though a .300 win mag would give better ballistics and is fairly easy to find.

at 800 yards your optics are more important than the chambering. most any centerfire chambering is very capable of shooting for groups at that range.

personally, i like the 7-08 for most target shooting at range purposes, but also have a 308 i'll stretch beyond that routinely.

+1 on optics ive never done much long range shooting. My longest shot was around 400 yds. accross the snake river canyon at a rock chuck and that was done with a 270.

308 is fine at 800yds, and plenty of good reasonable match ammo for 308 off the shelf.

.50 bmg.

.308 or .260 Rem.

I chose a .243, but many of the 6mm and 6.5mm rounds will give improved ballistics and softer recoil than the .308. The only reason to choose .308 is if you are going to shoot in F-TR class which is limited to .223 and .308.

I believe 800 yards is considered to be about the maximum effective range of the .308. Sure there are people and rifles out there that stretch that out another few hundred yards but thats really pushing it.

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He didn't say for strictly shooting at 800 yards. He said for up to 800 yards. Big difference and for that, the .308 is perfect IMO.

It depends what you need it for. If you need something standard, something you can find commonly loaded match ammo for, and factory rifles, for example, the .308 Win is a pretty good place to start. While I would give it the edge, personally, I know there is evidence to suggest that as a pure target round, the .223 from a heavy-barreled fast-twist AR loaded with those heavy 77+gr OTM rounds can actually outperform the .308 out to 800 yards.

If you are considering pure ballistic performance with no thought given to cost or availability, then there are numerous 6mm, 6.5mm, and 7mm cartridges that can easily outperform the .308 out to 800+ yards with less recoil, due to the efficiency of their cases and/or projectiles. Consider the 6.5 Grendel from an AR-15 platform, or an AR-10 chambered for either .260 Rem or 6.5 Creedmore.

.260 rem, 7mm-08 rem, .270 win, .308 win, ..... I think the quality of the rifle and the ability of the shooter would matter more then what caliber you choose.

browningguy said:

The only reason to choose .308 is if you are going to shoot in F-TR class which is limited to .223 and .308.

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Don't forget PALMA shooters ... they shoot a .308 with a 155gr bullet at 800, 900 and 1000 yards!! Their 10-ring is 20" in diameter.

at 800 yards your optics are more important than the chambering.

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Optics? How about iron-sights? ;-)

I can still shoot the NM course with my M-1A, but may be upgrading my "optics" to bi-focals, soon!

most any centerfire chambering is very capable of shooting for groups at that range.

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Indeed.

(I do like the .50 BMG answer, tho'!)

I hear some do well with the 45-70. Not me.

+1 on .308 win

As far as availability of ballistics data, you sure can't beat the 308. It's not really the ideal round IMO though.

I'd prefer a 270 in non-magnum calibers.

7mm Remington Ultra Mag has a very flat trajectory but the 300RUM probably would be better as far as bucking the wind. Both will kick the crap out of your shoulder. And pricy at more than $3 a shot.

I think the 300WM is a good compromise between good ballistics and not too much recoil. Quite a lot of data on it as well and a wide variety of off the shelf ammo available. Plenty of reloading data to help bring down the price of your ammo.

Obviously the 50BMG is going to blow away all of the above stated but I wouldn't want to pay the ammo bill nor do I want the sore shoulder at the end of the day.

223 wylde chamber 1/7 twist barrel.

.50 BMG would be a good choice.

As has been mentioned, there is no best, but some of the better choices would include the .308 win, .260 rem, 6.5x55mm, .243 win, 6mm rem, .25-06 rem, .280 rem, .270 win, 7mm rem mag, 7mm-08, etc.

The .308 is an excellent choice if you're starting out at long-range, since there are lots of accurate rifles and off-the-shelf match ammo for it.

What you need to do at that distance?? For punching paper and even some mild steel plate .308 Win will do it...very versatile caliber, easy to find match ammo..

Hunting?? (granted an ethical hunter should never attempt that kind of long shot...still some do it and it's not illegal...it's up to you..) Then you need to step up to a 300 Win Mag, 300 Wby or, for even more thump at extreme ranges, 338 Win Mag.

The 300 gr, .338 Sierra Match King is an exceptional long range bullet.

All these chamberings are fairly common and you can buy very accurate rifles for them at reasonable prices (below $1000)