Relentless
New member
I want my next rifle to be a bolt action but I cannot decide what I want it chambered in; .308, 30-06, or .300 Win Mag. Will be happy to answer any questions to help me decide.
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Cant Decide :(
- Thread starter Relentless
- Start date
handlerer2
New member
Search any of them, there are many threads on this topic.
Pond James Pond
New member
.308
Cheapest to shoot. Plenty of availability. Easy to reload for.
I mean it is not as if it is significantly better than the others it just seems to be the easiest to cater for...
Cheapest to shoot. Plenty of availability. Easy to reload for.
I mean it is not as if it is significantly better than the others it just seems to be the easiest to cater for...
I have all 3. (my 300 is the WSM version, but I've had the 300WM in the past)
Honestly, the 308 is by far the best of the bunch and I hunted mostly with 30-06 for 40 years. Modern 308 loads beat WW-2 era 30-06 loads by 100-200 fps. You can always improve on 30-06 as well, but if 1950's 30-06 loads set the bar for performance then todays 308 will too. The 30-06 is a great round, but I'll take a more compact rifle and less recoil over the very slight gains in bullet speed.
The 300 doesn't offer any advantages until you start shooting at game larger than deer at ranges greater than 400 yards. No reason to put up with the recoil otherwise.
Honestly, the 308 is by far the best of the bunch and I hunted mostly with 30-06 for 40 years. Modern 308 loads beat WW-2 era 30-06 loads by 100-200 fps. You can always improve on 30-06 as well, but if 1950's 30-06 loads set the bar for performance then todays 308 will too. The 30-06 is a great round, but I'll take a more compact rifle and less recoil over the very slight gains in bullet speed.
The 300 doesn't offer any advantages until you start shooting at game larger than deer at ranges greater than 400 yards. No reason to put up with the recoil otherwise.
In my younger days, I felt the need for as much power as I could control. Age has tempered that need. I don't need or use the 300 mag much anymore. It's only purpose for me now is the unlikely chance I get to make another elk or moose hunt. For general use, either .308 or 06 will handle most anything that comes up and is far easier to shoot.
I used a 300 Win mag target rifle until I could no longer handle that recoil and can truthfully say, the 300 is twice as difficult to shoot with match grade accuracy as a .308.
I used a 300 Win mag target rifle until I could no longer handle that recoil and can truthfully say, the 300 is twice as difficult to shoot with match grade accuracy as a .308.
PatientWolf
New member
I voted 30-06.
I have and use a .308 and think it is a great cartridge, actually first choice in our deer camp.
The only reason I gave the '06 the nod was because when you couldn't find ammo on the shelf it was easier to find 30-06 than .308. Will we ever be in that situation again-who knows, but there are more people buying the .308 than the 30-06 in my experience.
I have and use a .308 and think it is a great cartridge, actually first choice in our deer camp.
The only reason I gave the '06 the nod was because when you couldn't find ammo on the shelf it was easier to find 30-06 than .308. Will we ever be in that situation again-who knows, but there are more people buying the .308 than the 30-06 in my experience.
Art Eatman
Staff in Memoriam
Knowing the proposed use would be a big help.
.300 magnums are often times more than what is needed unless you spend a lot of time hunting elk and larger animals. For hunting purposes the .30-06 is rarely a bad choice and can handle anything the majority of hunters pursue in North America. The .308 handles the same hunting situations as an 06, but is a better option for target shooting.
johnwilliamson062
Moderator
308.
It can do almost anything a rifle can do, even if not well.
The 30-06 will fade and be dominated by 308. It will almost certainly be around through my lifetime(as long as any cartridge is still there), but as more and more AR-10s get into the market, reliable supplies of military surplus 30-06 is gone, etc. etc. 308 will take its place on the factory commercial ammo market and with factory rifle chamberings. 100 FPS or not. It will take time, but it will happen.
It can do almost anything a rifle can do, even if not well.
The 30-06 will fade and be dominated by 308. It will almost certainly be around through my lifetime(as long as any cartridge is still there), but as more and more AR-10s get into the market, reliable supplies of military surplus 30-06 is gone, etc. etc. 308 will take its place on the factory commercial ammo market and with factory rifle chamberings. 100 FPS or not. It will take time, but it will happen.
brasscollector
New member
I voted 308 because that is likely the most practical choice. If the OP is planning on hunting in AK or taking long-range shots out west I would suggest the 300WM, but only if.
Relentless
New member
Thanks for the help guys. The proposed use is mostly long range steel target shooting
The only real decision is do you want a long action or a short. The .308 and .30-06 are virtually the same otherwise. Half inch of case length and about 100 fps with like bullet weights is the only difference.
As to the magnum, there is no game in North America that requires a magnum of any kind to kill cleanly. Including big bears.
So you can pick the rifle first and toss a coin.
"...The 30-06 will fade..." Just like the .45-70?
As to the magnum, there is no game in North America that requires a magnum of any kind to kill cleanly. Including big bears.
So you can pick the rifle first and toss a coin.
"...The 30-06 will fade..." Just like the .45-70?
Thanks for the help guys. The proposed use is mostly long range steel target shooting
Hard to beat a 308 from the three choices listed for that purpose until you get beyond 800 meters. The 300 Win Mag is hard to keep up with at long distance.
Jimro
How long a range?
And I disagree with the 30-06 ever fading. Frankly its being resurrected by some of the new powders that easily put it in the 300 WM area without that brutality of the 300 WM (R-15 and particularly R-17)
Me? I would go with a Savage special order Bull or Varmint Contour (aka Savage Varmint contour which is a very heavy barrel but not a bull) in 30-06.
Get a second barrel for 308 if you want (you can easily single load 308 through the Savage long action)
I have both setups, 308 is fun to shoot 100 yds. You want to go 1000? Then the 30-06 can be loaded up to do that.
Both are easy on barrels if you shoot a lot.
I have been shocked at how load limited a 308 is compared to a 30-06.
Nothing against it, great to 600 yds, more, 30-06 all day long.
Build wise I would go with the Savage BTH, 24 or 26 inch 30-06 Savage Varmint Contour.
And I disagree with the 30-06 ever fading. Frankly its being resurrected by some of the new powders that easily put it in the 300 WM area without that brutality of the 300 WM (R-15 and particularly R-17)
Me? I would go with a Savage special order Bull or Varmint Contour (aka Savage Varmint contour which is a very heavy barrel but not a bull) in 30-06.
Get a second barrel for 308 if you want (you can easily single load 308 through the Savage long action)
I have both setups, 308 is fun to shoot 100 yds. You want to go 1000? Then the 30-06 can be loaded up to do that.
Both are easy on barrels if you shoot a lot.
I have been shocked at how load limited a 308 is compared to a 30-06.
Nothing against it, great to 600 yds, more, 30-06 all day long.
Build wise I would go with the Savage BTH, 24 or 26 inch 30-06 Savage Varmint Contour.
johnwilliamson062
Moderator
The 45-70 did fade and for the exact reasonsand over about the same time frame I expect the 30-06 to fade. I doubt it will come back like 45-70 has done as the 308 pretty much matches it. 45-70 came back because money was dumped into the 444 and a lot of people realized the 45-70 was already there. it was possible to handgun hunt with one in many states, and a bunch of other oddball reasons. Even then, the 45-70 being shot now is not the one shot almost 150 years ago. The difference in pressure is as significant as the diference in case length for 30-06 and 308."...The 30-06 will fade..." Just like the .45-70?
The 460 SW is a lot farther from 45-70 than 20-06 is from 308, but if the 454 Casull or 460 SW was on the market in 1970, I doubt the 45-70 would have come back. I'll go ahead and say that as iconic as the 30-06 is, the 45-70 is timeless.
Blindstitch
New member
I know a lot more people who have 30-06 compared to 45-70. If it fades it's going to take a while since a lot of northern Wisconsin gas stations stock 30-06 for hunting more than anything else.
I'm in the same conundrum 308 vs 30-06. I reload and have a set of unused 30-06 dies but no rifle for it. Seems the choice is short or long action.
I'm in the same conundrum 308 vs 30-06. I reload and have a set of unused 30-06 dies but no rifle for it. Seems the choice is short or long action.
Thanks for the help guys. The proposed use is mostly long range steel target shooting
If long range includes 1000 yrd and up, from your list, I would go with .300. If you are open to other options for truly long range I would also look at .338 Lapua. If it is just going to be a long range target rifle I would also get either caliber in a heavy gun, maybe in the 12 pound and up range.