.308 300 and 600 yard bullet selection for targets

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blarby

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Title pretty much says it all.

I'm seriously considering entering competiton using the ol' .308.

Ruger 77 MK II, 1:10 twist.

I'm used to hunting bullets. This gun eats 180 gr hunting bullets very wel, but....

Hunting and competition are surprisingly, demanding of different bullets.

So....

The 155 gets great reviews for palma- but I'm not shooting 1k yards anytime soon.

For those of you that target shoot in .308, what would you recommend for the ranges specified.

I'm pretty much settled on winchester brass, and either RL15 or 4895 for powder, if that helps.

Thanks !
 
I'm looking at this too. I use Win brass as well, but am thinking of Lapua or Hornady.

I've done a workup with 155 SMK Palma with pretty good success.

I'll definitely be following this close.
 
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No... I'm just getting started in this quest.. I've only shot the 168 gr Hornady HPBT Match and various hunting bullets like the Sierra & Nosler Ballistic tips over both Varget and Win748... I'm just a rookie but I found the videos from TiborasaurusRex to be interesting..
 
The A-Max is supposed to be pretty good as far as accuracy. I'm thinking about getting some of those and trying them out. BC and SD is supposed to be good.

Have either of you shot those?
 
If you are shooting no farther than 600 yards, the 168SMK or the more affordable 168gr Nosler Custom Competition bullets will work just fine. When I was shooting in 1,000 yard F Class competition, the bullets used at that range were usually the 155gr Scenar or the 175SMK. One time I was spotting for a guy who tried using the 168SMK at 1,000 yards - it was ugly! One additional piece of advice, buy good brass (Lapua). While a quality bullet has the most impact on accuracy, the second-most is high quality brass. Good luck.

Don
 
I would use the 175 gr Sierra Matchking. The 168 grain Sierra is very good up till about 600 yards but if you decide in the future you want to compete or shoot out to 1000 they aren't a great choice. Standardizing on the 175 will simplify your load development and give you about the best long range performance you can expect out of .308. The 155 Palma bullets can reach out to 1000 but wont buck the wind as good as the 175's. They were designed for international Palma shooters who shoot out to 1000 yards but are limited to .308 caliber as well as bullet weight that cant exceed around 155 grains.
 
RE15 and either a 168 gr or 175 gr SMK.

The 168 or 175 gr Bergers are great bullets as well. I use the 175 gr VLDs and they are fantastic out to 1,050 yards.
 
I stick with the 175 SMKs...at all ranges. If you have a 1:10 twist, the 180 SMKs should also do well. As stated above, try to stay with one bullet that will shoot well across the range...175 SMKs will do this from 100 yards out to at least 1000 yards. You won't save much money on 168s...they cost the same or about the same as 175s, within a penny or so per round, and as they go transonic approaching 1000 yards, they begin to tumble and keyhole...I have experienced this first hand.

Reloder 15 is a good choice, but so is IMR 4064, Varget, IMR 4895, Win 748, AA 2520, and several other powders.
 
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Looks like 175 SMK's its gonna be, after a bevy of reco's from folks whose opinions I trust on the subject.

Now to get some.

Asked and answered !
 
How would the 208gr BTHP Match from Hornady workout in a 1:10 twist, over IMR4895? Just wondering.

In theory, the 1:10 twist should be able to stabilize a 208gr bullet.

Was thinking about trying some of these out, for the same reason as blarby, in long distance shooting.
 
How would the 208gr BTHP Match from Hornady workout in a 1:10 twist, over IMR4895? Just wondering.
Click to expand...

I don't think you'll get enough velocity from 4895 to take advantage of the BC. You might could make it work w/ a slower powder.

My favorite .308's are 155gr a-max & 4895 and 178gr a-max & Varget (Rx15 would probably give similar results).
 
jwrowland77 said:
How would the 208gr BTHP Match from Hornady workout in a 1:10 twist, over IMR4895? Just wondering.

In theory, the 1:10 twist should be able to stabilize a 208gr bullet.

Was thinking about trying some of these out, for the same reason as blarby, in long distance shooting.
Click to expand...

You won't get the velocity that you need. Those are good .300 win mag bullets or subsonic .308 rounds.

If you want heavier than 175 gr about 185 is the highest you can go and still get the necessary velocity.
 
How would the 208gr BTHP Match from Hornady workout in a 1:10 twist, over IMR4895? Just wondering.
Click to expand...

As previously stated, not enough room for powder to get it going at a reasonable speed. However, PM me and I will give you an honest 2700fps (26" barrel) 190gr Sierra MatchKing load (not with IMR4895).

Don
 
After testing and shooting in 600 and 1000 yard matches, I have been using at 600 yards a 175 SMK 41.5 grains H4895 LC cases, CCI #34, or 175 SMK 42.5 grains AA4064, LC cases, CCI #34. I have shot out to 1000 yards a 190 SMK 42.0 grains IMR 4064, Fed cases, Fed 210S. I have had enough sticky extraction that I cut that to 41.5 grains IMR 4064. I am also shooting a 175 SMK with 44 grains Varget.

All of these loads are maximum to over maximum loads, expect a case life of around three to five reloads. Do not copy these loads and expect not to have some blown primers.

96ReducedRugerM77afterGlassbeddingD.jpg
 
FWIW, the 190SMK load in .308 is:

Hornady Match brass
Fed 210M primers
Sierra 190gr MatchKing bullet
47.0gr VihtaVouri N550 powder

In my 26" barreled FN SPR, I got 2700fps with no high pressure signs. This load was run thru QuickLoad beforehand and found to be within pressure specs with the listed components.

Don
 
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