308 good for bige game like elk ?

[tikka]

i was just wondering what people think about the 308 used for big game such as elk and moose. and out to what distance.

[brotherjack]

It's probably not overkill, but it's certainly big enough. As to distance - assuming a nice clean broadside to quartering away shot - whack him as far away as you feel confident you can hit em where you're aiming. If the shot offered is less ideal (ie: need to put it through a front shoulder on the way in), if you kept it inside the 300 yard mark, and use a good bullet, I'd expect things to turn out just fine.

Personally, the only thing I've ever shot elk with is a 303 British - quite a bit less power than the 308. Worked just fine. :)

[ROM]

The 308 works very well on big game under 200 yards. Over 200 the odds shrink very fast on moose and elk. Flukes happen but the .308 is best on big game with a 180 grain at under 200. Deer are fine up to 300 and beyond if you can hit them reliably. Bullet drop becomes a problem after 250 in my experience.

Older rifles may not shoot hot 308 loads well. Newer rifles may benefit from Hornady magnum loads or federal premiums to extend the effective range by 40 more yards.

R

[mikek blacktail]

works great on all game just use the proper ammo. have never had an issue with mine dropped my moose just fine a few weeks back.

[mikek blacktail]

the only moose I've shot at along distance ,Iwas using federal 180 nosler partitions and all three were pass throughs ,if you can hit them accurately it's good out to four hundred in hitting power

[harder rd]

I'm hunting with a winchester modle 70 308 for all my hunts. I have never shot an elk , but have shot many moose. The longers shot I have made on a moose was 295 yards( down hill). My 180 grain winchester rounds from walmart hits 14 "s low @ 300 yards . and drove throught the moose and stoped inside the hide on the other side. needless to say I would not try to shoot passed 300 yards with this setup . But it has been done the 7.62 mm round has been used for years as a sniper round . In the right hands will hit its mark well over 300 yards ,but I wouldn't do it . not on an animal anyway.

[boxhitch]

A recent gun rag writer stated he felt an animal would not know the difference between a .308 or a .300 Win Mag out to 300 yards. The stats prove it out. Less energ, more bullet drop, but incrimentally so, and enough to do the job.
But IMO there is no room for error at longer ranges. The winmag does have that added insurance.
So what kind of hunting do you do ?

[Vanguard]

I dont know about a hunting rifle, but my m14 can do the job out to 500 yards with open sights.a .308 is good for anything in North America. I personally do not go pass 165 grain bullets. 150 grains is where i have it, and it does the job on anything. Im sure all the m14 owners on here know how it is, great calibre.

[JRG94]

about 6 years ago i watched my mom shoot a moose at around 450 yards with a 308 and it blew the bottem quarter of the heart off and then exited with a 180 grain

[doubled]

Plenty big enough, just keep your shots below 300 yards unless you practice alot at further distances and KNOW how far your bullet drops. This is the case with all calibres however.

[elkdom]

I dont know about a hunting rifle, but my m14 can do the job out to 500 yards with open sights.a .308 is good for anything in North America. I personally do not go pass 165 grain bullets. 150 grains is where i have it, and it does the job on anything. Im sure all the m14 owners on here know how it is, great calibre.

M14, about the last quality rifle the Americans equiped thier men with, after that???? the AR15,?? gee's at first chance the GI's would toss them in the rice paddy and pick up a AK 47 from a dead commi and get down to some bussiness! so much for modern american military know how!!


And yes a .308Win ( 7.62 nato ) will kill moose and elk effectivly out to 3 hundred yards with good ammo and good placement, a lot farther if your competant!

[guest]

I personally love the 308. I have taken several moose, deer, bear and Elk.
I hand load a 165 gr. partition with it. I's been great out to 300yrds.
Even took a buck over 400 but I know full well it shouldn't be practiced.

It is really close to the 30/06 with stats.
It's more about placement of the bullet and I do recommend staying inside of 300 yards.

Love my 308's.
C/T

[todbartell]

if I hunted with a 308 and going after elk or moose I would load 150 gr at 2800 fps. Such a combo should work well out to about 350 yards. Past that most bullets wont consistently expand fully. My choice would be a 150 gr Barnes X or Nosler Accubond. The 308 comes close to 30-06, but its not the same. If you have a 30-06 bolt action with a long throat which allows you to seat the bullets out a bit, you can push a 180 grainer to 2800 fps...a 308 will just not keep up with that.

308 is a hunters cartridge, good for stalking game. If you're more of a shooter, a 300 Win Mag or 300 Ultra would be a better bet ;)

[boxhitch]

308 is a hunters cartridge, good for stalking game. If you're more of a shooter, a 300 Win Mag or 300 Ultra would be a better bet :wink:Great line, TB
I've seen quite a few, ok lots, of hunters willing to try a shot at an unfamiliar, uncomfortable range with their big magnums, instead of wanting to climb for another hour for a sure 100 yard try.
Hunters vs Shooters

[timberhunter]

X ten on the hunters vrs shooters comment.

I haven't hunted with a 308 for years. Up until this year when I picked another 308 up. My little ruger compact in 308 has fired 3 shots at 3 different animals this year. 3 one shot kills, with no follow up shots needed. My brand new tikka t3 300 short mag is sitting in the gun cabinet, and I'm pretty sure its going to stay in the closet for a long time too.

90% of hunters/shooters can't pull off a shot farther than 150 yards with confidence. Mostly due to recoil and lack of trigger time.

Load up some rounds for the 308 shoot it lots, and be confident in your shooting capabilities. There's no substitute for getting first hand experience with your gun. The internet is a great tool, buts there's too many expert internet hunters out there. Some that are willing to give advice that have probably never taken a shot at game. Get away from the keyboard and get on the trigger.

Take Mark (bartell) for an example. Funny as hell online. But from his write ups, he does the research and gets the trigger time. He doesn't need someone to tell him a caliber is good. He proves it to himself. As in the fireball and flat top thread.

Prove the 308 is good to yourself first with testing. Then make your own judgement if it will suit your hunting needs.

Marc S.

[fozzy]

Good advice timberhunter and bartell :) The 308 is just fine for Elk and Moose. My goto for many years was a 308. Now that the rightfull owner (my wife) is using it more I've moved on and bought my own 308. She shot her Moose this year with the 308 and one shot was all that was needed using a 150 Accubond.

[tikka]

i curently have a 300wsm in a tikka. it jumps like a ******* maybe because of its weight, but my friends browning and sako do not seem to jump as much. i was just wondering on the 308 because of its lighter recoil and thinking it would be beter to practice with and need be i can shoot bige game with it too. i want to shoot more but the 300 wsm is not cheep to shoot. and i have a bit of a twitch problem and practising with a heavy recoil gun is not going to fix that. any other rifle calibers in particular that would be good to paractice with that could still be used for hunting.

[todbartell]

243, 6mm, 257 roberts, 25-06, 257 Wby Mag, 260, 6.5x55, 270 Win, 7mm-08, 7x57, 280, 30-06

[Rob]

Sounds like you should get rid of the 300 short mag and buy something you'll enjoy shooting. Ive got a Rem 700 Mtn rifle in .260 rem, light recoil and its a blast to shoot. Dont need a big caliber to kill stuff, just gotta be accurate, and you wont be with a gun you dont like to shoot.

[hunter1947]

Tikka the 308 is plenty of gun to take moose ,elk and deer down ,its the bullet placement that counts with any gun you use ,good luck at the rifle you choose.

[308Lover]

Wayne has it right. I have shot many moose (one shot only most times) using 180 grain silvertips. Spine shot above the hump dropped them instantly. Elk are no problem either, but if it's long-range open-block hunting, I'd carry a few Federal Hi-powers for an extra kick. Can't beat 308 for accuracy--if you can shoot--then this rifle is awesome.

[Salty]

You can't go far wrong with a 308. My dad shot truckloads of game with his years ago when he guided. With off the counter wincheapster ammo he killed everything from the biggest of BC moose on down.

Now adays its only better. As Bartell said back there 150gr is probably the optimum. I use a Ruger in 308 for deer and I've settled with 165gr interlocks. I get better than book velocity, past 2700 ft/s, how much I won't say. ;) But I will say give H 380 a try!

So anyways with this load I'm just under 2" high at 100, on at 200 and just under 8" low at 300 yards. If that's not a 300 yard deer rifle I don't know what is. I'd shoot a moose at that distance too under ideal conditions. ..

[newhunterette]

daughter was given a 308 as a gift and she shot it first time this season - she got herself a moose - no problem

[todbartell]

daughter was given a 308 as a gift and she shot it first time this season - she got herself a moose - no problem

you mean it was her first shot ever out of that gun and she bagged a moose? :D

[steelheadSABO]

200 yards its probably one of the best for moose elk

[moosinaround]

200 yards its probably one of the best for moose elk
I think my 300 win mag is better at 200 yrds than the 308! Especially for moose or elk! moosin

[killman]

I think my 300 win mag is better at 200 yrds than the 308! Especially for moose or elk! moosin

Ya but mine is bigger than yours.:biggrin:

[Gateholio]

Not my first choice for grizzly, but for anything else, I'd be happy to use a .308 with a 150gr TTSX

I won't of course, since I am a cartridge snob, but I *would*:p

[1/2 slam]

Nope won't work. You can't kill a thing with any les than a super whiz-bang ultra magnum:mrgreen::wink: As the other have said........do you job and it's fine.