Why not the .308?

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

BIGDADDYLONGSTROKE

Member
Joined
Feb 24, 2006
Messages
496
I just recently starting to get into big game hunting now that I have moved to Montana and I have been told not to use the .308 that to use .300 win mag or bigger, I dont know why not. I have had alot of luck with the .308 as far as accuracy and dependability, though I have never killed anything with it, so even though bullet technology has come along way I was wondering if some one could tell me why this is not a good round for elk and moose if it seems to do fine on good size deer?
 
The .308 will do just fine. Lotsa folks have killed lots of elk with them. I'd be a bit conservative about how long a shot I took, though. As a generality, bullets designed for deep penetration through heavier animals are best, so the .308 is a bit limited.

I'd guess that the Federal Premium High Energy would be very good for elk. Most any common loading for hunting oughta work just fine for mulies.

Art
 
I have killed elk with a 308 so has my Dad my Son and so forth. The world seems to think a 30-06 is AOK for elk then why not 100 FPS less or thereabouts too? We are conservative in how we shoot animals, more in placement than in distance but as in all things there are reasonable limits.

Knew of a deer shot 7 times with a 300 mag before they killed it, so IMHO it has a bunch more to do with who is behind the gun than the caliber.
Try to not listen to the naysayers, hunt with your 308 and enjoy yourself
 
What part of Montana? I'm in Helena and have been using 308 with no problem. A friend bagged his elk last year with a 6.5x55.

Picj something you shoot well with. A 308 in the boiler room is far better than a 300 magnum that misses. I don't know what iot is with this magnum fever, but I've been thinking about going to 260 myself.

Killed with a 308 at 325 yards. One shot and it didn't even take another step.

deer.jpg
 
My little model seven ain't no heavy barrel monster, just a little hunting rifle. But, it's very accurate (1 MOA) and will take any elk that walks inside 300 yards with a well placed 140 Barnes X bullet. I think those guys you talked to are smoking crack, personally.

I've got a 7 mag, retired it when I got the .308. :D I probably would take the 7 if I got an elk hunt, but only because I have it. If I didn't have it, I'd hunt with the .308. If the hunt was rough country and a lot of climbing on foot, I'd probably take the .308 anyway. It's a lot lighter and easier to tote.
 
Gun Tech

I live in Missoula currently, and thanks for the info from all I think im gonna go with the .308 ammo is plentyfull almost anywere you go and alot cheaper.
 
Put one round where it counts and go ask said animal if they would have died any faster if the bullet was going any faster..........................;)


Just watch for them 4 legged ones with teeth and claws :what:

Tony
 
I think your chances of stumbling into a grumpy bear are higher in Montana than most lower 48 locales is why you get that advice. You might encounter a Grizzly in that country and I think this is mostly where that advice comes from.

Hunting in Eastern Oregon this weekend we found several bear poop piles that were the largest I have ever seen. Not that I've seen a whole bunch, but these piles were very, very large compared to what I typically see. About twice the normal black bear scat. But then again, it's fat packing season for him and there are lots of apples, plums and elderberries on the property we were hunting. I chose to keep carry the 180 grain pills, overkill for deer, but seeing that bear poop, I put them in just to make myself feel a little better.

That said, the only thing I would consider for the .308 is a heavier bullet for more penetration should a bear come into play. But, like most game animals
 
My younger brother has hunted almost exclusively with a .308 all over the west, east, north, south, ect.......

He has taken down 3 elk with 4 shots with his .308. Never recovered a bullet.
How dead is dead???

The only advantage to a "magnum" is that it extends your "useful" range 50-75yds.

When ever I go back to hunt "out west", I'll be taking my Rem. mod7 in 7mm-08 in spite of owning a .257wbymag and a .300RUM. My best friend took it in Oct.'05 to Colorado and took a 6x6 elk that weighed a "measured" 1,200lbs (has a picture of it hanging from the scales- I didn't believe it either!!!). Only one of 4 rounds he put into it was recovered -not the Nosler 140gr Part. I sent with him to hunt with, but a Sierra 140gr FB that was for "checking zero"- it lodged under the hide on the far side- not a failure!!!). (Kept shooting at guides insistance- all four shots individually would have taken the elk.)

Later in camp, all the guides and half the hunters tried to "buy" the gun from him. Two borrowed the gun for the rest of the hunt. (11lbs vs. 7lbs makes a difference at 10,000' and walking 10-12mi per day !!!!).

Use a Nosler 150gr Partition over either RL-15, Varget, or H4895- whichever your gun prefers and use the .308 with confidence. A 165gr if you "insist"; my brother dosen't like them because they don't shoot as well from his rifle and aren't as flat shooting to 300yds.

(P.S.) "whayyyyyyyy back when" There was an episode of the old "American Sportsmen" TV show that had Fess Parker (played Daniel Boone on TV series) hunting with Fred Bear (Bear Archery) and Curt Gowdy(sp?) for Grizzley in Alaska. Fred took one arrow to put down a nice grizzley. Fess Parker took two shots with 180gr Winchester Silvertip .308 to bag his.

The .308 will do the job if you do yours.
 
To All

Thanks for the info, I figure if all else fails I can give it to the wife as a deer gun and get something bigger. Yes a excuse to buy yet another gun:). Again thank you for the info.
 
When I got an elk rifle a couple years ago I finally decided on .300 WSM. It is a great gun, but whenever I think of the ammo prices I wish I had gone with .308 or .30-06.

My brother wanted to get a .22-250 for an elk rifle because that is what he watched his friend use to take down an elk. The bullet landed in the heart, and what else was the elk going to do but die? I suggested he may want to go a little bigger than that.

My grandpa loved his .308 for elk.
 
Good vs. better and what are friends for?

tell me why this is not a good round for elk and moose if it seems to do fine on good size deer?
Click to expand...

I'm just in the process of customizing a light compact .308 Win that I'll probably hunt elk with for the next few years. However, my criteria wasn't to build the best elk rifle, but rather to build a light compact practical rifle that was good for backpacking and getting as far from the roads as an old guy can do on foot. Deciding to start with a short action tilted the scales towards a .308 pretty quickly. One reason I didn't go with one of the new short magnums is becasue I want to do a lot of off season practicing and fun shooting with relatively inexpensive surplus ammo.

Were I to pick a caliber that's best for elk and moose, exclusive of all other criteria and considerations -- there are better calibers that shoot a little heavier bullets a little faster.

What's the role of a good friend -- to provide practical common-sense advice or to help build the rational for buying new guns?

If you really want a new rifle and don't mind carrying a 9 pound rifle, I'll be happy to help you buld a case for buying a .338 or 8mm magnum for elk? However, I'd appreciate your assurance that your neighborhood arms race is not reducing the quality of life for the women and children. The proud role of the rifle is to put healthy protien into the mouths of children not take food out of the mouths of children.

I really want at least four more rifles and I'll keep asking friends for advice until I have those four additional rifles. Fortunately, I pretty much already know the specific friends who will give me the advice I want for each new rifle that I intend to buy.
 
I think 308 win is fine for deer and that is what I am planning on using this year. Last year my son and I used my model 7 in 7mm-08 took two deer neither ran off.
 
.308 , no problem for elk, or even moose. Use premium bullets, and stay inside 250 yards or so. Place your shots, and the result will be fond hunting memories that last a lifetime...
 
I killed my first elk with a 308. (It was a big cow) She was dead when I got to her. I wouldn't hesitate to kill anything in the lower 48 with the .308, except maybe a Griz. Mags are great for people who can handle them or need them, but I don't. My dad loves his .300, but I am way to recoil sensitive to shoot anything over 30-06, nor would I ever need anything bigger. In fact, I would bet I am overgunned for I use it for. The .308 and 30-06 are so close for non-reloaders it is funny, and the vast majority of people think the 30-06 is a suitable cartridge for elk and moose. Keep shots within reasonable ranges and you will be fine.

That said, I think that the .308 is not more popular is because it is so close to the 30-06. The '06 had many more years out in the market over the .308, so people just prefered it and didn't see the need to swith to a slightly slower round. Mags beat it because the are "better" (faster, flater, etc.) Not necassary, but provide a significant difference ie selling point.
 
.308

i use my dads .308 and it works just fine. two years ago i shot a mulie and it dropped where it stood. this year im trying for a cow elk with the .308. if shot in the critical area from a nice distance it will do the trick. thumbs up to the .308 ! - Eric
 
The 308 topping out with a 180+ grain bullet should do just fine for you on moose and elk; and will probably do bear work acceptably but if you're specifically hunting a big brown or grizzly, I would not personally venture into the woods with anything under a 325 WSM or 338 Winchester weighing in at least 220 grains.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

S
  • Locked
.308
2
Replies
28
Views
2K
Guiding101
G
L
  • Locked
308 For Elk
Replies
12
Views
2K
learningman
L
L
  • Locked
Sierra Game King for elk?
Replies
17
Views
9K
Andrew Leigh
Andrew Leigh
V
  • Locked
Upper limitations of the .308 win cartridge?
2 3
Replies
52
Views
7K
T.R.
T
NickEllis
  • Locked
.308 for Mule Deer and Elk?
2 3 4
Replies
78
Views
12K
quicktime
Q
Back
Top