308 : What direction should I take?

[MarshallDodge]

I would like to get a rifle chambered in .308 . I currently have a Remington 700 VLS in 6mm that I have gotten board with. It is an OK shooter (I really have not spent a lot of time on the bench to find the perfect load) that I used to take a prarie dog at 350 yards about 7 years ago. Since then it has been on one other hunt but most of the time I shoot my 700 VS in .223.

Should I:
A. Rebarrel the 6mm for 308?
B. Sell the Remington and buy a DPMS LR308?

What is the typical cost for a target barrel and rebarrel job?

 

[Karbon]

B. sounds like the route I'd run with.

my .02...

 

[MatthewVanitas]

I'd go with B, since your other 700 VS seems to fulfill your paper-punching and varmint needs. Having two very similar rifles in different calibers seems just as likely to "bore" you as the 6mm did.

Not to hijack, but have you considered buying a $350 (or whatever they are this week) Rack Grade M1 Garand from the Civilian Marksmanship Program ( www.odcmp.com ) and spending $200 or so to get it rebarreled to .308? Would be distinctive, take affordable ammo, and cost a fair bit less than your DPMS. Just throwing that out there.

-MV

 

[colt.45]

you could always get an m-1a

or you could buy a decent barrel for your 6mm for around $300 from here http://www.thebarrelman.com/ but i think you would need a new bolt.

 

[Preacherman]

308 : What direction should I take?

Preferably downrange...

Seriously, though, I'd first decide what you want to use the rifle for. If it's just for paper-punching, with an occasional hunt thrown in, you can get a perfectly good bolt-action .308 for well under $500. If you want to use it for SHTF-type scenarios, or defense of your home, then something in a semi-auto military-style weapon would be more appropriate (although .308 is rather too powerful a round for urban use, IMHO, unless you can call your shots very accurately indeed and don't have to worry about innocent bystanders beyond your target).

For myself, my .308's are for hunting and paper-punching, so I've not bothered to go for a high-capacity autoloader (although I do have a Saiga .308 sitting in the gunsafe, just for a fun gun). I have a couple of Scout-style rifles, one a Savage, and the other a converted 7.62x51mm. Lee-Enfield, as well as a Savage Model 99 to satisfy my love of lever-action rifles. Any of these will do fine for target practice and hunting.

Once the use is more tightly defined, you'll know which rifle would be most suitable.

 

[USSR]

MD,

A high quality barrel chambered and installed by a good smith will cost about $600-$650. Most smiths will guarantee .5MOA groups at 100 yards with quality ammo.

Don

 

[mustanger98]

MidwayUSA sells M1 Garand barrels in .308 for about $150-200. Then whatever the gunsmith charges to screw it in and headspace it and get the timing right. I don't think a M1 would ever get boring. CMP is a good route; I know this from experience.

M-14 is good. Takes 20rd GI mags that cost more than the Garand's en blocs. It's a superb weapon according to my 2nd cousin who's a former Marine and Vietnam Vet.

Then, there's this- a 18.4" barrel on a 98 Mauser reciever- that just came to my attention a few minutes ago, but it's from Mitchell's. It's a matter of what is the gun to the individual and put their advertising aside.

http://www.mitchellsales.com/rifles/m63 tanker/index.htm

 

[MarshallDodge]

Thanks for the replies so far.

To answer some of your questions:
MatthewVanitas- I already have a Garand and an 03-A3

Colt45-Why would I need a new bolt?

Preacherman- I mainly want a paper puncher that is accurate out to 500 meters. I like medium to heavy guns that can be bench rested.
I agree, 308 is too much for urban use. I have a 16" AR for that purpose and would only use it if the target was out of pistol or shotgun range.

I want to go with the 308 over the 6mm because of it's inherent accuracy and ability to buck the wind. I like the AR platform because I have two of them and am very familiar with the setup but I am comfortable with shooting either the 700 or an AR on the bench.

Mustanger98- I like that Mauser but for $500 it's a little steep IMO.

 

[deadly50bmg]

B. but instead of the DPMS LR308, look into a nice M1A.

 

[MatthewVanitas]

To answer some of your questions:
MatthewVanitas- I already have a Garand and an 03-A3

In that case, I change my recc to a definite "any AR-10" variant. I'm just not quite sure how a .308 Rem700 will punch paper any better than a .223 Rem700. Punched is punched.

M1A is awfully close to an M1, but a AR-10 is a pretty strong contrast to an AR-15. I don't know much about them, but I do like the old-school look with the charging handle under the carry-handle.

-MV

 

[mustanger98]

In that case, I change my recc to a definite "any AR-10" variant. I'm just not quite sure how a .308 Rem700 will punch paper any better than a .223 Rem700. Punched is punched.

It's true that "punched is punched", but in this case it's not the ability to make holes so much as the ability to put those holes so close together. Well, I'd say we all know that. With that in mind, I recall one of my times hanging around the gun shop... this time I was listening to a LEO type talking about his Rem700 .308... he said he shot it across the bench with de-linked surplus machine gun ammo and it grouped tight. Then, he said he broke out the Gold Medal Match and put two in the same hole. That was his brag, anyway.

M1A is awfully close to an M1, but a AR-10 is a pretty strong contrast to an AR-15. I don't know much about them, but I do like the old-school look with the charging handle under the carry-handle.

Well, the M1A is so close to a M1 because John C. Garand was in on development of the M-14. I'm on another board or two where AR-10 has been discussed. (I didn't get to studying the AR-10 as much having opted for the M1, so I don't know all the pros and cons of the AR-10.) I've heard if an AR-10 fails to cycle (stuck case in chamber) and you must clear it in a hurry, you have to smack the buttplate on the floor and nobody wants to do that for fear of busting up the stock and recoil buffer assembly. I haven't seen this; I just heard it from a guy who said he saw it, so you might take this part with a grain of salt. Also, I've heard because the AR-10 was never USGI, you can't buy USGI parts for it like you can with the M1 and M-14.