So I'm seeing more and more short 308s in my neck of the woods seems odd

[yocan]

I just became aware that the military built an SAR25 in 14.5 and I know a few guys that loved a 16" scar heavy, which always seemed odd to me. Well I"ve been seeing more of them and just got offered one with a larue 14.5 barrel for a really good pricepoint. So maybe I just don't get it butwhat are some pros to a shorty 308?

Basically can someone explain the thought process of wanting such a short 308 from a functional standpoint or is it merely a because I can option. I get why you want the blackout at that length (or shorter)

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

Don't need a long barrel for 5-600 an in. The 7.62x51 & .308 offers an abundance of projos to include many specials that are not speed dependent. Plus easier to hump & employ a shorter stick. You can pick up the speed diff somewhat, by using different powders.

 

[TonyAngel]

I just became aware that the military built an SAR25 in 14.5 and I know a few guys that loved a 16" scar heavy, which always seemed odd to me. Well I"ve been seeing more of them and just got offered one with a larue 14.5 barrel for a really good pricepoint. So maybe I just don't get it butwhat are some pros to a shorty 308?

Basically can someone explain the thought process of wanting such a short 308 from a functional standpoint or is it merely a because I can option. I get why you want the blackout at that length (or shorter)

It depends on the use case. If you think about it, a 20" barrel length is the "best" barrel length for a 5.56, but barrel lengths between 11.5 and 16" are more popular because they are handy and usually get the job done. Same thing goes for .308. Heck, if I needed more than my 11.5, I'd gladly take along a short .308 rather a long 5.56 if I needed more umph.

 

[theLBC]

if you don't want to stock too many different calibers, having a more compact platform for .308 is workable and effective option.

 

[TonyAngel]

if you don't want to stock too many different calibers, having a more compact platform for .308 is workable and effective option.

And they are the ultimate in cool factor. For me a .30 cal just has this mystique about it. Its a pretty hard hitting round that seems to have an inherent accuracy. Every .308 I've owned has shot to some degree of very well.

 

[diggler1833]

I just became aware that the military built an SAR25 in 14.5 and I know a few guys that loved a 16" scar heavy, which always seemed odd to me. Well I"ve been seeing more of them and just got offered one with a larue 14.5 barrel for a really good pricepoint. So maybe I just don't get it butwhat are some pros to a shorty 308?

Basically can someone explain the thought process of wanting such a short 308 from a functional standpoint or is it merely a because I can option. I get why you want the blackout at that length (or shorter)

- Maneuverability, especially in/around vehicles.
- Sufficient combat ballistics to about 600 meters.
- Cool factor for a lot of dudes.

^ Really, the first two make a world of difference if you're jumping in and out of equipment (and especially with gear on).

I'm not in the short-barrel camp, but that doesn't mean that I don't see why others are. I have two 18" .308s that I use for nighttime thermal hunting, and think that it is about the ideal barrel length *for me. That extra 3.5" of barrel gives me around 75 more useable yards for hunting terminal performance IME. YMMV.

 

[CaptArab]

Hang a 8" 16oz can off the end of a 20" barrel large frame then get back to us if it still doesn't make sense.

 

[KYAggie]

Hang a 8" 16oz can off the end of a 20" barrel large frame then get back to us if it still doesn't make sense.

Exactly! I guess that could work if you are shooting off a tripod at hogs at night, but otherwise, give me a 16” barrel and a short flow through can.

 

[diggler1833]

So is a short barrel with can, hearing safe? Or will the user still need to wear ear protection?

 

[CaptArab]

So is a short barrel with can, hearing safe? Or will the user still need to wear ear protection?

I've been way down the rabbit hole of gas gun tuning and even the most well tuned is too loud for my preference.

All my auto loaders get ears, even for a hunt.
Musicians ear pro (etymotic er20s) is good enough to shave off 10-15 db without altering sound quality or conversations. Also the peltor in ears off the PX are good.

Occasionally I'll pop a possum with naked ears but I try to grab the suppressed 17 T1X for that.

Some people might be okay with the port pop. I try to save the hearing cause I love pickin' bluegrass more than shooting.

 

[Jack_L]

So is a short barrel with can, hearing safe? Or will the user still need to wear ear protection?

Nobody wants to talk about it, but pretty much no supersonic ammunition through a suppressor is truly hearing safe. Per NIOSH and OSHA impulse noise above 130 dBA is cumulatively damaging. Small volume suppressors, supersonic ammunition, and hearing safe do not occupy the same Venn diagram. But, with professional users, hearing protection/comms are worn in environments in which violence is a possibility, as there are all kinds of other loud things going on, therefore a 130 dBA suppressor really isn't needed. Short cans are for people that are going to wear at least one level of hearing protection during use.

 

[diggler1833]

Much appreciated for the input gents.

I somewhat figured so. I know they aren't when they're 18-20", and only get louder as the barrel gets shorter. It was somewhat of a rhetorical question... but I wanted to ask just in case as I'm not as knowledgeable as I pretend to be in front of my wife.

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

So is a short barrel with can, hearing safe? Or will the user still need to wear ear protection?

Unless you have the ability to kill the port noise, ears will be needed.

 

[houndog]

Recently bought a LMT .308 upper. Original upper came with a 13.5" barrel. Then went out and bought an 18" barrel. Have only shot the 13.5" barrel so far, and it is a ton of fun. Have a KGM suppressor on the front and a 1-8x LPVO. Shooting 8" steel plate at 25-75 yards offhand with scope at 1x is a ton of fun. Yeah, it's pretty heavy and had more recoil and I'm definitely much faster with a short AR15 and a dot, but you get a very satisfying thud when you hit the steel. And I feel like I could easily take this out to 400 as well. So while there are definitely better options if you're shooting at CQB distances, and better options if you want to go out to 600-1000 yards, this does offer some versatility in a relatively short package.

And eventually I'll swap in the 18" barrel and a 3-18x scope and shoot at longer distances.

 

[cas6969]

Hang a 8" 16oz can off the end of a 20" barrel large frame then get back to us if it still doesn't make sense.

Only the answer if they're actually doing that. Some guys just like turning powder into noise and flame.

 

[CaptArab]

Only the answer if they're actually doing that. Some guys just like turning powder into noise and flame.

Yep- if no can I'd stick with 24" bolt guns and 18-20 inch gas guns.

Not into the whole flash-bang thing, personally.

 

[supercorndogs]

Smallify the case some, use a long bullet with good sectional density. 16" 223s, 6 arc, and 6.5 grendel aren't to bad on the ears with a suppressor. O don't think anyway. I shoot lo g barreled bolt actions with suppressors with ear plugs too. I was suprised at the bark and blast of my 18" 308, way more than my 21" 6 creed and 21" 280. Both of which are far and away superior in the wind.

 

[OREGUN]

I’ve had all my rifles cut down to just a few inches of barrel length. It’s so much more nimble when I’m tactically egressing my vehicle on the way to slice the pie from the special operator/edc seating section of the diner. It’s all very tier.

 

[Gtscotty]

I’ve had all my rifles cut down to just a few inches of barrel length. It’s so much more nimble when I’m tactically egressing my vehicle on the way to slice the pie from the special operator/edc seating section of the diner. It’s all very tier.

Woah fella, that may work for you and your high speed low drag needs, but some of us have a different standard. I need all 26 inches of my rifle barrels to squeeze that last 10 fps out of my .308 so I can hold my crosshair on fur, confident that when my Corelokt strikes home on that doe 100 yds from my heated stand, it will do so with MAXIMUM knockdown power and that I won't have to get off my 4 wheeler and chase a wounded deer all over hell and tarnation!

 

[dms416]

Woah fella, that may work for you and your high speed low drag needs, but some of us have a different standard. I need all 26 inches of my rifle barrels to squeeze that last 10 fps out of my .308 so I can hold my crosshair on fur, confident that when my Corelokt strikes home on that doe 100 yds from my heated stand, it will do so with MAXIMUM knockdown power and that I won't have to get off my 4 wheeler and chase a wounded deer all over hell and tarnation!

Damn…hittin the whole bingo card there.

Quick Corelokt story. I was away in the police academy in the 2000s when I bought my first AI AW as a present to myself. I was so excited to shoot it I bought the only 308 on the shelf in the area since all my good 308 was away at my dads farm….Corelokt. Still shot sub-moa and for one fleeting second I thought maybe it might not be shit ammo after all. So yeah 20 rounds of Corelokt were the first rounds down that virgin AW Border barrel and it was still better than anything my stock Rem700s were doing.

 

[SRPowah]

Most of the shooters I personally know with short (13"-16") .308s like the tacticool egress/room clearing fantasy shit. None of them own suppressors. I would pay to see how they handle the concussion if they lit one off in a shoot house.

I started using short barrels on almost all calibers 10 years ago because it made getting my rifles in and out of tractor cabs easier due to the decreased length and weight. That was regardless of a suppressor being factored in. As far as ballistics, its not like you need a 175gr SMK moving at 2800 fps for a 300 yard coyote...

 

[dms416]

That was regardless of a suppressor being factored in. As far as ballistics, its not like you need a 175gr SMK moving at 2800 fps for a 300 yard coyote...

Man that’s gonna be like a 1.4 mil hold outta shorty. Gots a sayin round these parts…if it ain’t Mach 4 it’s out da door.

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

Most of the shooters I personally know with short (13"-16") .308s like the tacticool egress/room clearing fantasy shit. None of them own suppressors. I would pay to see how they handle the concussion if they lit one off in a shoot house.

Professionals (AKA rednecks) don't clear rooms with shoulder weapons. They throw in frags & W/P and wait outside sipping on umbrella drinks behind belt feds, while fire does the leg work. Work the brain, not the back,...

 

[Makinchips208]

Basically can someone explain the thought process of wanting such a short 308 from a functional standpoint or is it merely a because I can option.

Same reason people run carbureted SBC.

 

[hlee]

Stick the muzzle of an unsuppressed 26” rifle into a concrete culvert and touch one off. Then do the same with a suppressed 16” rifle and let me know which was less unpleasant.

Or shoot under a metal roof with either and let me know which makes you feel flash-banged after a few rounds.

PRS is fun, but there’s a few stage designs that kinda suck to shoot. I’m not saying I’d take a 16” rifle to a comp. But, suppressed guns are more pleasant to shoot with ears than unsuppressed rifles.

 

[Zigjib]

As an Australian.... can you people please stop talking about suppressors?

Even my internal monologue has tinnitus.

 

[sloporsche]

Same reason people run carbureted SBC.

doubtful they use point ignition though

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

doubtful they use point ignition though

HEI here, but a old dual point & all else required is in the tool box just in case.

 

[sloporsche]

HEI here, but a old dual point & all else required is in the tool box just in case.

i had a few mallory's in my day ,never had an issues with them

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

i had a few mallory's in my day ,never had an issues with them

Had one about 1970, it worked great. When the Unitized point sets came out we would start the engine at 32* of dwell then raise it to 46* an reset the timing to 37 total, cut about 1/10 off the ET's. Then reset the dwell back to 32 otherwise she would not start. Fun times back then,...

 

[sloporsche]

Had one about 1970, it worked great. When the Unitized point sets came out we would start the engine at 32* of dwell then raise it to 46* an reset the timing to 37 total, cut about 1/10 off the ET's. Then reset the dwell back to 32 otherwise she would not start. Fun times back then,...

if i look around i think i still got a red plastic advance gauge tool

 

[Gunfighter14e2]

if i look around i think i still got a red plastic advance gauge tool

Never used one of those, always did mine on a Sun Dist machine. Loved that old Sun stuff.

 

[Fig]

I don't have Litz level evidence, but it has been my personal experience that shorter barrel rifles are considerably easier to load for than long barrels. Just like a heavy barrel reduces whip and makes it easier to tune the ammo for percision, so to do do short barrels whip less and have a wider accuracy band.

Not much of a .308 guy outside of gassers, but my buddy needed money and wanted to sell me a rifle, so I bought his 16" Remington 700 SPS to help him out. Didn't even look at it much, but the first thing I noticed when I got home was the the barrel wasn't straight in the Hogue, free floated, factory stock. It wasn't touching and a dollar bill slid smoothly down it's length, but definitely crooked to the naked eye...WTF. Here we go I thought. Do I really want to spend a bunch of time fooling with this thing trying to get it to shoot straight, or just give it to the LGS on consignment?

I just grabbed a box of .308s loaded to mag length for AR10s just to see how badly it shot. The shitty Nikon scope was way off, but after getting it sighted in I was shocked. Thing shot very straight and shot sub moa at 100yds for over 20 rounds. 1.5 MOA for 30 shots on basically factory ammo (hand loaded). I strongly suspect that despite the shoddy QC of this Remington that part of the reason it shoots so straight with no tuning the ammo or anything (might as well be factory ammo) is that short barrel is more forgiving. That is not the first time I've had a shorter barrel give great precision without a lot of effort.

I have a low speed, high drag lifestyle, and could give a shit about all the benefits of a shorter rifle in terms of tieredness. I do think that up to a point the shorter barrel in high recoil rifles are just easier to wring precision out of. That it's a heavy contour for a factory rifle helps, and making it shorter means you're not adding a ton of weight to have a heavier contour for hunting with it.

I like them. If I was going to buy a factory rifle I would pretty much only buy one with a shorter and heavier contour to maximize my chances of getting a shooter. Again, this is all anecdotal and I am not running double blind tests, but this has been my experience. Take it for what it's worth.

 

[91Eunozs]

Man, everybody getting all wound up over someone else’s opinion…feel like I’m back in the Bear Pit! LoL

Use case drives it for me… 16” pencil barrel gets me the “minute of pig” accuracy at 250 yards or less that I need, while also making it much lighter and more handy while pushing through the thick scrub cedar brush that passes for forrest land around here.

I haven’t taken an actual shot on game past 200 yards or so in years.