One Bullet for .308

[Deadshot2]

If you had to pick ONE bullet for .308 and it had to do everything from putting meat in the freezer to target shooting at LR, what would that bullet be?

I realize that different bullets excel in certain tasks yet fall short in others but what ONE bullet would do the the best job across the spectrum.

Is it a 185 gr Berger VLD hunting bullet or a 178 gr Hornady A-max? What else?


For the sake of this thread let's assume the rifle is a .308 Bolt Action with 1:10 24" barrel which should be fairly common.

Any brand, any weight, any style, which would do the best in all categories from hunting game to sniping zombies.

 

[Aimsmall55]

185 juggernaut will do the job

 

[Victor N TN]

175 / 178 But why? Do you only eat 1 meal all the time? I use lighter loads for playing at the range. But lead tipped (usually Nosler Partitions or Barnes X) for hunting.

 

[Deadshot2]

But why?

Because that was the intended purpose of this thread.

It's just a discussion.

 

[BullzeyeNJ]

175 SMK or 178 A-max

 

[oldfudd]

If only one allowed, I favor the 180 gr Nosler Ballistic Tip.

 

[Victor N TN]

175 SMK or 178 A-max

I agree.

 

[I Am Hero]

I'm a die hard 168gr BTHP for .308, but that's just me.

 

[BoilerUP]

208 Amax.

 

[elfster1234]

Amax amax amax

 

[RyeDaddy]

I'd pick the 168 Amax(with the 178 close behind it). Cheap, easy to load, accurate and deadly on game. Not the best for everything, but a good compromise as an all-around.

 

[hamstur]

Sierra Gameking 180 SBT

 

[Emouse]

AMAX in 178 or 208 flavour,..failing that 175 SCENAR L.

 

[Niles Coyote]

My one bullet choice is one of these two depending on which 308 I am using, 168 Berger classic hunting hybrid and the same but at 185 grains. Both surpass my old standby, the 175smk.

 

[dondick]

178gr Amax , I have had good luck with this bullet .

 

[308Gunner]

I used to change bullets from 155 up to 185 but I just load 175SMK it works for hunting not the best but it works.

 

[roggom]

I would say 175 SMK or 178 Amax, but lean more to the 175 SMK as it can be found very cheap for pulls and blems.

para ejemplo


https://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/26343

 

[TacticalBoltKnob]

178 Amax. No doubt.

 

[Hondo64d]

Currently using the 155gr Scenar for everything. Could happily do the same with any of the Berger hunting VLDs or classics from 155 to 185gr.

John

 

[horstie]

My vote goes to the 178 A-max.... I use it for deer hunting , steel and targets works well on all three...

 

[Recreational Shooter WA]

175 SMK,

Great bullet that isn't too expensive and can be seated at magazine length.

 

[Hondo64d]

True on both counts, but for me, they haven't impressed the wild hogs nearly as much as the VLDs have for me.

John

 

[kalindark]

huh, one bullet to do everything?

210 berger hunting vld..... do a ladder with varget and a GAP thunder ranch.

Out of a 22" barrel and titan brake, I need 11.7 mils to a 1000 yards. Subsonic? Maybe. But who the hell cares
if I can consistently hit what I'm aiming at. Performed my ladder at 200 yards and got 1/2" groups.

You asked for one bullet, not the cheapest, or most available.

 

[Clark]

I have (13) 308s.
I have a 308 reamer and lots of bolt actions and stocks lying around, so I could make plenty more.
Most of these rifles only get to go to the range once.

Given any unknown 308, the best 5 shot group at 100 yards will probably be with a 110 gr Hornady Vmax 2.815" [jammed into the lands] and 45 gr 4895 is a wimpy load ~ 3,000 fps ~ 43kpsi.

Most any 308 from the pawn shop; semi auto, bolt action, lever action, falling block, break action, or pump will shoot this. Just clean all the Copper out of the bore before you go to the range.

 

[Sethshaun]

175 smk or 178 amax I love both

 

[trauma1]

175 smk or 178 amax I love both

Obviously a trend here. Which for elk/deer/martyr driving at you, eyes wide open .....


Trauma1

 

[Tristian19]

178gr Amax , I have had good luck with this bullet .

+1

 

[Tristian19]

175 smk or 178 amax I love both

I shoot both equally same.

 

[Bear24]

178 amax is my choice too, out of my 24" FN it reaches 2730fps and will get out to 1k and still kill medium sized game at 600y

 

[Rprecision]

175 SMK or 178 Amax

If you took out the LR aspect it would probably be the 155, although I would rather smack a hog with a bigger bullet.

 

[Bender]

175 SMK. I just ordered 1k of them. I better like them!!

 

[Tristian19]

175 SMK. I just ordered 1k of them. I better like them!!

Do you know which powder you plan to put under them?


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[JaysonF]

178 match for precision and 178 amax for killin'
That way you won't have to change much.

 

[Bender]

Do you know which powder you plan to put under them?


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I have three I like. IMR 4064, H4895 and Varget. I only have one pound of Varget though. That stuff is unicorn dust.

 

[Deadshot2]

I have three I like. IMR 4064, H4895 and Varget. I only have one pound of Varget though. That stuff is unicorn dust.[/b

That's no lie.

I managed to buy a case of IMR-4064 and am more than pleased with it's performance. If Varget ever does show up in quantities enough to make it appear on local shelves again I may just ignore it in favor of the 4064.

Another powder from IMR that I like a lot and have been able to work up some fast (2700 fps with 178gr A-Max), accurate (sub 1/2 moa) loads with is their 8208 XBR. I see it available more often than Varget. Have shot it from sub freezing temps to near 100 degrees and it doesn't seem to vary in accuracy.

 

[BoilerUP]

Another powder from IMR that I like a lot and have been able to work up some fast (2700 fps with 178gr A-Max), accurate (sub 1/2 moa) loads with is their 8208 XBR. I see it available more often than Varget. Have shot it from sub freezing temps to near 100 degrees and it doesn't seem to vary in accuracy.

The general consensus with XBR seems to be that it burns too fast for optimal velocity with 175-class bullets, but is optimal for 155s. What length barrel got 2700fps with 178s, and did you see any pressure issues?

 

[richidaho]

Love the Berger hunting VLD 185gr knocks elk down.

 

[Tristian19]

I have three I like. IMR 4064, H4895 and Varget. I only have one pound of Varget though. That stuff is unicorn dust.

Sounds like a good three to me.

I had good success with 4064 under 175 SMK's (and 178 AMax's) out to 1000 in my CZ 750 .308. I have but yet to try Varget as I'm saving it for my .223 rig. Not sure when I will come into more.

 

[yej0001]

I may have chance to buy a bunch of Sierra 190 BTHP MatchingKing at discounted price from an elderly gentleman who used to load for 300 WM. Is Sierra 190 too heavy for 308 Win? My two 308 are 1:11 and 1:12 twist. I don't have 300 WM currently

 

[Deadshot2]

The general consensus with XBR seems to be that it burns too fast for optimal velocity with 175-class bullets, but is optimal for 155s. What length barrel got 2700fps with 178s, and did you see any pressure issues?

A 24" Benchmark 5-C. No pressure signs at all.

 

[sakobob]

178 bthp

 

[Bender]

A 24" Benchmark 5-C. No pressure signs at all.

I will add XBR to the list.

 

[tylerw02]

I usually try to use the best tool for the job. So I'd just have two kinda of bullets. I don't hike in my running shoes. I will say I've had great luck hunting with Berger VLDs at long range. They suck up close though.


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[loudandproud]

I use a Sierra 180 grain Sierra Gameking.

It has perfomed extremely well in both my 30-06 and 308 build.

Cheap... plentiful... accurate...and pounds through a shoulder blade with authority, super sonic to 1000 yards. What more do you want?

 

[trauma1]

This is great information. Dies this web site have a "polling program/ audience response system". Where you could vote and show the data?


Trauma1

 

[STLSteve86]

175 SMK or 178 A-max

Agree!


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[Matno]

Interesting. I know people hunt with the SMKs, and I love the 175s for their accuracy, but I don't think of them as an all around bullet. A-max or Berger VLD get my vote.

 

[Aimsmall55]

You guys keep saying the 175 smk. While I admit I've shot a few deer with it, I also learned a valuable lesson. Shot an 8 pt at 17 yards with a FGM175 smk right in the shoulder. Deer did the death kick and I thought all was well. Long story short.... My dad and his buddy stumbled on him 3 weeks later .... Cause of death ... Infection. He was 1/2 a mile away. The AMAX and the Bergers are a different story. DEADLY on animals just as well as they are on targets. Although the Berger fragments like razor blades in some cases and holds pretty well in others... and the amax mushrooms and retains a good bit of its weight , the smk kind of just withers apart. I wouldn't shoot a deer with them again unless it was straight between the eyes. ( smk actually works then )

 

[roggom]

^^^, there is some truth to this scenario, but in reality there is no need to use one bullet for everything. You can get a box of accubonds, partitions, or even some good ol' internocks that will last a lifetime of deer or hog hunting. If anyone is going to use one bullet and one load, it is wise to understand the limitation to range, velocity, and expansion.

 

[itsa30wait]

165 gr nosler accubond = sweet titties