.308 vs bears

[todbartell]

who needs a penis when you have a huge magnum

[brian]

308 is a pretty kick-ass cartridge. Also I don't know if you have read that PDF about bear defence someone posted recently. If you haven't try digging it up. Against what most would consider common knowledge the 300 win mag was not recommended for short range bear defence. The reasoning being the velocities it was pumping out challenged the limitations of the bullets design and the result was excessive fragmentation and poor penetration compared to lower velocity rounds. So in a nutshell they say that counter intuitively the 30-06 is better suited to bear defence than the 300 win mag. I imagine this would hold true for the 308 as well. So go buy it and have fun and then only worry about the bears if you happen to have one charging you.

[Foxton Gundogs]

308, not MY first choice in a non Mag. cal. BUT a Mod. 740 in 308 was the first rifle I ever bought waaayyyy back in 1959 and I can't count the number of bears I've killed with it, the didn't seem to care it wasn't a big magnum they just died. If you like the gun and it fits BUY IT!

[srupp]

HMMM I personally do not like the .308 however that is a personal opinion..now with that out of the way..

I have seen lots of bears shot..and so far they are just as dead when shot by a .308 with premium bullets, on deer they are very effective..saw a deer go down in only 5 shots with a .308..OK the first 4 where clean misses by a buck fever lad..lol

If a sliver slinger can take down a moose..so can a .308...lots of selection of bullets..

not recomended for grizzly..

cheers
Steven

[new hunter]

I'm sure that .308 is a very effective cartridge , but why not pack an extra hundred fps with the 30-06 . I wanted a .308 as well when I bought my rifle , but one of the guys at spud valley told me he shoots a 30-06 and has no issue with the recoil or weight {similar build to myself }. In case your wandering I wegh a bout 145#.
I shoot a savage 111 in 30-06 pushing a 150grn , and like I said , its a very comfortable gun . I also worry about bears a bit , so the extra capacity in the 06 is fairly raessuring . 30-06 is not necessarilly the best for large brown bears , but it is a little more suitable than .308 , and definitely more so than a 30-30.
point is 30-06 and 308 are fairly smilar packages in bullet weight recoil , price and rifle weight [As far as I know } , so why not go with the bigger cartrige , even if the difference is marginal .

[REMINGTON JIM]

hello I've been talking to a friend and he said get a .300 win or a 7mm to hunt with because the province is overrun with bears. I really want this .308 i'm looking at and i've heard it can take down a moose (with the right shot placement). I was talking to my dad last night and he said someone he knows who hunts takes down blackbears with a .308 all the time. So I'm a little torn now, the gun I"m looking at is a Rem 700 VTR which is a really nice accurate gun, light, short.. basically everything i"m looking for in a rifle, but it doesn't come in .300 or 7mm. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.. thanks

Your friend may need a 300 or 7mm mag to kill black bears - but i`have killed a few along with many others with the 308 win you need good ammo ( quality bullets ) and it kills fine ! Buy it - you will like the rifle and most 308 wins shot very accurately - Good Luck

[Weatherby Fan]

My first rifle was a Parker&Hale .308, my first animal taken with that rifle was a Bull Moose and my 2nd animal was a 4 pt Mule Deer,both 1 shot kills at 200 yds
With all of the quality bullets being loaded today you will have no problem hunting anything in BC
No worries if the rifle feels good to you and you have your heart set on it go get it !
Happy Hunting
WF

[.330 Dakota]

The 308 is an excellent killer, being from Northern Ont, I have seen more moose fall to the 308 than any other cartridge. It was and still is the number 1 seller back east. One reason being the Remington 740 autoloading rifle, as this was a favourite in the deer woods.
I had a buddy with a model 100 Winchester in 308, and it was a rare non-jamming model..hmm
Anyways I was with him once and watched him drop a 50 inch bull at 200 yards with 1 shot...308..180 grain factory ammo.
Buy your gun and enjoy it

[BCBRAD]

team that 308 up with Varget powder and a 165gr TSX and no reasonably placed shot will allow an animal to walk. On the other hand I've always found the 308 Win had a nasty kick for its size, much prefer the 30-06.

[boat tail]

I currently shoot a winchester modle 88 lever action .308. I find it very unpunishing to shoot. Very accurate, and love the variety of grades and grains the bullets come in. I'd buy .308 all day long !!!