308 ammo question

R

Rhuarc

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I am looking at buying some bulk 308 ammo, and I have come across some good deals on Lake City, PMC, and American International. I prefer to avoid really dirty ammo unless the price is just too good to pass up. Have any of you used any of these three ammos (PMC, Lake City, Amer. Int. or some other brand worth looking into), and what are your suggestions?

P.S.
Let me add Prvi partizan to that list.

Thanks in advance.
 
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Welcome to the show :)

I have shot a few of those ammos and they all went bang .

What type of gun are you going to be shooting this ammo in ?

What kind of accuracy are you hoping to achieve with said gun and ammo combo .

I ask cus I thought I'd be ok just having one box of good match ammo with me and shooting the cheap stuff most of the day . I was wrong , I hate shooting 3 inch groups when I know my rifle and I can do better . @ 100 yards a 3" group means you will most likely hit what ever you are aiming for but you start shooting longer ranges and that 3" group opens up to 10" , 15" and even 20" groups it's not so fun any more .

In short all that stuff is good for plinking with a AR 10 and alike but if your going for real accuracy . Like all ammo you will need to buy a little of all of that stuff and find out what works best . All of my guns no matter what caliber love Federal Gold Metal Match . I often can find 308 for under $25 and have bought it as low as $19 a box .
 
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I have shot most that you mentioned, and the only that I *might* use again was Prvi's match ammo. Out of my Remington 700, that was the only ammo that kept even close to 1.5" groups. The others all stayed around 3-4" at 100 yards.....

And all of that out of a gun that will shoot .5-.75 MOA with Federal Match ammo with boring regularity.

I ask cus I thought I'd be ok just having one box of good match ammo with me and shooting the cheap stuff most of the day . I was wrong , I hate shooting 3 inch groups when I know my rifle and I can do better . @ 100 yards a 3" group means you will most likely hit what ever you are aiming for but you start shooting longer ranges and that 3" group opens up to 10" , 15" and even 20" groups it's not so fun any more .
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Exactly. And for me, the price of FGMM ammo is about $22/box, where the other stuff is from $15-$24..... Doesn't make since for me to not use the match ammo.
 
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Thanks to you both for the replies. I'm using both, a Howa and a Mossberg as my 308 rifles. I haven't fired enough rounds through either to decide which I prefer at this point. I have Bushnell 6-18 X 50 scopes on each. I'm looking for an all-around best bang for the buck ammo as long term security ammo. And yes, I guess I'm falling into the same trap as you, Metal god, in that I want a cheaper, but very reliable (if not as accurate) bulk ammo with as much really good ammo as I can afford, as I can afford it, ammo.

Again, thanks for the replies. TBH, you both may have steered me away from this tactic and to instead go with a good ammo all the time, and just not have as much of it.

BTW, allaroundhunter, I have heard really good things about Lake City. Are you saying that it's basically on the same level as Brown Bear or Tul?
 
Good, accurate, cheap, fun. Reloading is the only way to go. You can start with a single stage and make very accurate, inexpensive ammo. Get a kit.
 
BTW, allaroundhunter, I have heard really good things about Lake City. Are you saying that it's basically on the same level as Brown Bear or Tul?
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As far as accuracy? In my experience, yes they are pretty similar. That ammo is made for people wanting to have plinking ammo, but aren't desiring great accuracy from it.

But it is cleaner than BB/Wolf/Tula. Another plus is that you can sell Lake City brass to reloaders, whereas most reloaders avoid steel cases.

If they have any Match ammo, I have never seen it so I can't speak to that. The only LC ammo that I have used is their 149 gr FMJ rounds. The price of those is about $48/40 rounds so it is not significantly cheaper for me to shoot than the match ammo that I run instead.

However, every gun is different and yours might like it.

Here is some pretty affordable .308 "Match" ammo. I am not sure how well it shoots, but I might pick some up soon:

http://www.freedommunitions.com/category-s/1881.htm

*Can you post a link to the American International ammo? I don't think I have ever seen any of that.
 
Check out ultramax ammo. They load a 165gr speer btsp that holds moa out to 300yds...havent shot it farther. Sportmans guide sells it at $81 for 100rds. There are cheaper rounds but they wont shoot as good and it bothers me seeing a sub moa rifle shoot 2moa or worse because of cheap ammo.
 
Saw Lake City M80 ball at $740 a case.

I gasped out loud.

Anybody remember the 200 round South African battle packs? Wish I had bought more of that when I had the chance.

I'm reloading mine for 30 cents or so apiece (not counting or amortizing the brass or tooling).
 
I used to shoot the Ultramax 165 BTSP exclusively in my Mauser 308 HB utility rifle(this term is more pleasant than "sniper" rifle). Coyotes out to 400 yards were in serious trouble. I've switched to handloads using Nosler 155HPBT which are a little more accurate and have better ballistic properties. The surplus M80 ball I've tried may or may not give reasonable accuracy. I can't remember which source(maybe South African) gave excellent accuracy but it WASN'T Pakistani.
 
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