308 ?
- Thread starter teamglock
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TexasRifleman
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Something like the Hornady 110gr TAP would be a great choice in .308
Heavier bullets at close range would not be my choice, mainly because of the penetration issue. You're gonna punch a hole in walls no matter what you use with .308 but the superlight bullets will minimize that.
Heavier bullets at close range would not be my choice, mainly because of the penetration issue. You're gonna punch a hole in walls no matter what you use with .308 but the superlight bullets will minimize that.
BammaYankee
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Slamfire (or anyone for that matter):
Would you say ammo such as Remy Core Lokt soft points are as good (if not better) than say Hornady TAP for home/ personal defense if you go with a .308?
Would you say ammo such as Remy Core Lokt soft points are as good (if not better) than say Hornady TAP for home/ personal defense if you go with a .308?
jerryrigger
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im not sure how well this would work, i guess it would likely depend more on your rifle than anything else, but i would say you may want to try some glasers and see if they will feed in your rifle. theyll stop pretty much anything at hd distances, shouldnt be too fast, and because of their design you will likely have to worry less about over-penetration and really not at all about your bullet not expanding on impact, as it acts more like a shotshell. theyre expensive, but you only have to buy enough to make sure they feed reliably in your rifle and then to have some on hand at home. theyre not the most practical round, so you wont have to worry about using them for anything else really, and hopefully you will never have to actually use any of them at all. at close range though, there isnt much that is will stop anything quicker short of the 12ga, and in a scenario where you might have to use them, that is probably the most important thing.
Tarvis
Member
Depends on who you're talking to. I read an article somewhere about AR's surpassing a shotgun for the HD role. I live in a semi-rural area so over-penetration isn't really a concern as much as in the city, but everything has its trade-offs.
I thought I had read something today about some new 308 caliber bullets that had varmint bullet characteristics: it completely disintegrated upon hitting a target. IIRC, it was marketed towards LE applications.
I had a .308 for HD for a while, but i didnt really feel comfortable with it in the HD situation. It was with a saiga with a 16" barrel (mucho recoil)..as they mentioned i worried about the neighboors, as well as muzzle flash/noise inside my small house.
I now feel most comfortable with my 9mm handgun for close-quarters inside my house, and if i venture outside ill be taking my ar-15, while i leave my wife with a remington 870 in a secure spot in the house, as she calls the police.
I now feel most comfortable with my 9mm handgun for close-quarters inside my house, and if i venture outside ill be taking my ar-15, while i leave my wife with a remington 870 in a secure spot in the house, as she calls the police.
The 308 is a bit much but if it is what you have use some of the lighter weight softpoint bullets for rapid expansion.
The .223 rounds from a 16"-18" barreled rifle such as an AR or mini-14 are looking pretty good from reports I have read and from informal experimenting I have done. The soft points are very effictive when you hit your target and reportedly break up when hitting sheetrock or other building materials. Supposedly better than most handgun ammo or buckshot. When you consider the greater mag capacity and virtually non existant recoil I think it is a real contender to replace the shotgun as a home defense long gun.
The .223 rounds from a 16"-18" barreled rifle such as an AR or mini-14 are looking pretty good from reports I have read and from informal experimenting I have done. The soft points are very effictive when you hit your target and reportedly break up when hitting sheetrock or other building materials. Supposedly better than most handgun ammo or buckshot. When you consider the greater mag capacity and virtually non existant recoil I think it is a real contender to replace the shotgun as a home defense long gun.
Pigspitter
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If you make a centermast shot at HD ranges with a .308Win loaded with expanding bullets, whomever you shoot is going to die. It might not be instantaneous, but they will unless there happens to be a combat medic on hand.
24kshooter
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If you live in an urban enviroment with neighbors or have other family members in the house nothing beats a pump 12 ga. for safety IMO.
Thernlund
Member
Pfff. If you had a line of 4 or 5 guys coming in your front door all in a row, a single round of .308 would do the trick.
If they were in body armor, maybe two rounds.
-T.
If they were in body armor, maybe two rounds.
-T.
SimpleIsGood229
Member
I second TexasRifleman's suggestion of the Hornady 110 gr. TAP. It'll do just fine. Load up and quit worryin'!
W.E.G.
Member
I would expect the concussion of that round indoors to kill in front and maim behind.
I guess it depends on your family and neighbors. Wallboard will hardly even slow a .308 hunting load down. Now, if you're a single guy living out in BFE, then that's probably not an issue. On the other hand, if you have a big family and you live in an apartment building, then the .308 is probably less than ideal.
KBintheSLC
Member
If you have no other choice, I say it's better than nothing. Go with the lightest, fastest rounds you can find... hopefully the bullet fragments instead of exiting your home and ending up in the neighbors house. The 308 is probably my favorite anti-personnel caliber, but it tends to work best in a war zone where over-penetration is less of a concern.
Remington 870 Express... sweet combat shotgun for under $300.
Remington 870 Express... sweet combat shotgun for under $300.
Old Grump
Member
My bull barrel 308 is short enough but any gun that can hit a silhouette target at 800 meters isn't a gun I am going to shoot in the house, not even loaded down. Any shotgun 20 gauge on up in pump action or semi-auto will be better. Remington, Mossberg, Winchester, it doesn't matter. I also have a nice browning and 3 double barrels but the Mossberg gets my vote as my favorite just because its the one I use the most so its more natural to use. Used shotguns cost considerably less than new and unless it was a competitive trap shooter or a hunter who spent more hours in the field than he did on the job chances are they won't have been used much. The only one I have showing a lot of wear and tear is the old farmers single shot break action shotgun in 12 gauge, not a gun you want for SD.
The ONLY ammo I would consider for urban defense in a large rifle (and I'm going to go ahead and include 5.56 even though it's a pipsqueak it will shoot THROUGH a house) would be a lightweight frangible round like a Glaser (which are made in 5.56 and 7.62). Even Hornady's TAP ammo will overpenetrate in humans and sheetrock when propelled out of a rifle.
IMO: In a HOUSE, where other people live (in my case that would be my wife & kids) there is no single better home defense weapon than a shorter bbl'd shotgun loaded with #4 or #6 heavy bird shot. At 21' (which is probably farther than you'll shoot someone in your home) the pattern is dense enough to disembowel (or any other nasty chosen target) a perp yet the lighter shot will lose that majority of its energy going through sheetrock. It might put an eye out but the liklihood of birdshot killing an innocent in another room due to overpenetration of a wall is HIGHLY unlikely. I have a pistol-grip stocked, 18" bbl'd, Remington 1100 with a SureFire light loaded with 7 rounds of #6 Remington 2 3/4" "Nitro-Mag's." These were THE duck load back when we could use lead and still do a great job on squirrels and pheasant as well as nefarious characters within your home...
Anybody remember Joe Piscopo's character in the 80's movie "Johnny Dangerously?" "It's an .88 magnum...It shoots through schools..." Not quite as funny as it was back then because of...well..you know... But still pretty relevant when you're talking about home defense.
-J. Burnett
IMO: In a HOUSE, where other people live (in my case that would be my wife & kids) there is no single better home defense weapon than a shorter bbl'd shotgun loaded with #4 or #6 heavy bird shot. At 21' (which is probably farther than you'll shoot someone in your home) the pattern is dense enough to disembowel (or any other nasty chosen target) a perp yet the lighter shot will lose that majority of its energy going through sheetrock. It might put an eye out but the liklihood of birdshot killing an innocent in another room due to overpenetration of a wall is HIGHLY unlikely. I have a pistol-grip stocked, 18" bbl'd, Remington 1100 with a SureFire light loaded with 7 rounds of #6 Remington 2 3/4" "Nitro-Mag's." These were THE duck load back when we could use lead and still do a great job on squirrels and pheasant as well as nefarious characters within your home...
Anybody remember Joe Piscopo's character in the 80's movie "Johnny Dangerously?" "It's an .88 magnum...It shoots through schools..." Not quite as funny as it was back then because of...well..you know... But still pretty relevant when you're talking about home defense.
-J. Burnett
ronto
Member
308 is a bit too much...
Check out your local pawn/gun shops for a good used 12ga pump...I prefer the Mossberg 500. With any size Buck Shot, you'll have to try real hard to miss the BG.
Check out your local pawn/gun shops for a good used 12ga pump...I prefer the Mossberg 500. With any size Buck Shot, you'll have to try real hard to miss the BG.
TooTaxed
Member
The .308 is far too powerful, even with soft point bullets...the bullets not only will go through several interior walls, but also exterior walls as well (other than brick). Your family, neighbors, bypassers outside and in passing vehicles may get hit...which would be very inconvenient for you.
Go for a shotgun first, pistol second...but use soft lead or fast-expanding hollow point bullets to cut down on wall penetrations.
Suggest you plan in advance a particular safe place to fire one aimed shot when you are certain you have been invaded...say a certain place in the floor where damage and chance of ricochets is minimized. Studies of jailed criminals in penetentiaries revealed that if they know their intended target is armed, they will leave...quickly! They don't want to get shot, and the noise alerts neighbors and brings police.
Go for a shotgun first, pistol second...but use soft lead or fast-expanding hollow point bullets to cut down on wall penetrations.
Suggest you plan in advance a particular safe place to fire one aimed shot when you are certain you have been invaded...say a certain place in the floor where damage and chance of ricochets is minimized. Studies of jailed criminals in penetentiaries revealed that if they know their intended target is armed, they will leave...quickly! They don't want to get shot, and the noise alerts neighbors and brings police.
Yes, any .308 bullet made for deer hunting is going to penetrate too much. However there are loads built just for defence that won't overpentrate at all or near as much.
That's the Hornady TAP/FPD ammo http://www.hornadyle.com/products/detail.php?id=72&sID=79 Click on the load to see how far they penetrate in gel.
The 155 AMAX (thin jacketed target bullet) is THE best defence ammo in .308 and one of the best in any caliber. For the country like I live in it's the one. For more densly populated areas the 110 (varmint bullet) might be better, Neither is going to overpenetrate much.
You have a .308, you have one of the best man stopping calibers. No need to get anything else unless you want less recoil, noise, a lighter gun, or just want something else.
I am assuming that you have a glock since your name is teamglock, and for HD purposes I would go with that over a .308 for all of the reasons listed above. Work on getting your self a 12 ga and then your HD needs will be met. I would use the .308 lastly of the three.
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