Best single bullet in 308?

[coug2wolfs]

Has to be between the 150 grain and the 165 grain.  I hear more about quick kills with the 150 stuff in the 308.  Let's hear from you folks...

Thanks

[Zachary]

Hey Coug, glad to have you back.

You are right about the 150s generally providing quicker kills.  The reason for this, as you would suspect, it because the higher velocity promotes quicker expansion than the slower, and heavier, 165s.

However, it all depends on what you are shooting.  If it is 150 lb whitetail deer, then I can recommend the 150.  However, if you are talking about hogs, then I would recommend the 165 because of their greater sectional density.

Of course, the most accurate bullet generally helps me decide which weight to use. :wink:

Zachary

[Mikey]

Hay Coug - I dunno.  I prefer the 180 grainer in all my 30 bores, whether 08, 06, or the various European calibers I've loaded and shot.  I feel the 150s move too fast and result in a lot of tissue (meat) damage.  I have also seen 150s fail to penetrate properly after impacting bone, or spread bullet fragments throughout.  

Lots of folk talk up the 165s - halfway between the 150 and the 180.  You can load the 180 in the 06 up pretty hot, and it is good enough for just about anything you can hit with it.  With the 308, you can also hot-rod the 180s but in one remington I had, the only 180 that would shoot accurately was a slow moving accuracy load.  Even so, it penetrated far better than any of the 150s I've used and did not result in a lot of tissue damage or lost harvest.  In fact, you could eat right up to the hole as they used to say.

Just my 2 cents worth.  Mikey.

[Advocate]

A friend who is a .308 afficionado has experiemented with 130 and 140 grain Barnes X bullets in his  Tikka.  Says he gets great velocities and violently  flattens deer.  The Barnes X bullets are reknowned for weight retention, which means that a 130 grain bullet that retains 90% of its weight is heavier than a 150 grain bullet that retains 50% of its weight.   He says they shoot good in his Tikka and he is a big believer in them.  For what it's worth, he's an experienced hunter and shooter with more than 30 years' experience.  

He recently  got an 18.5" .308 Remington M-788  in  a swap. He's going to rechamber for the AI version and try it with light weight Barnes X bullets.

[longshot]

For the best single bullet, I would have to say that Sierra 168 gr. Boat Tail Hollow Point takes the cake, hands down.  Killer accuracy, Killer expansion, Killer bullet. :grin:

[Tracker]

I would have to vote for the 165 Nosler Partition.  I have taken deer, bear, and elk with this bullet with near perfect results on all occassions.  It will not knock them down like my .264 win mag.  but you will never loose a solidly hit animal due to poor bullet performance like I have had with fast flying light bullet.

[Big Tom]

:grin: I've shot several deer with .308 and .30/06 with 150s and 165s. The best Ballistic coefficient choice for the .308 is the 165(by the book), but in my 40 years of shooting lots of Eastern whitetails(under 100yds) I know the 150s expand faster with more trauma, causing greater damage and quicker kills.
The 165s will work fine but are better suited, in my opinion, for larger prey or longer distances where speed and energy are reduced, say 250-300yds. on big Muleys, Caribou, Elk etc..

[Ronald J. Snow]

I have shot 24 deer with the Speer 150 grain spitzer bullet (#2023) and only one has required a second shot.  I handload that bullet in the 308 to 2600 fps.  I cannot say how many deer my brothers have taken with that same loading over the years.

[Pluto]

I shoot a T/C encore and have found the 150grain soft nose to be the bullet of choice. I have taken many deer with this round and when hit they have never moved again. Man it just knocked them down. Now the longest shot has been 140 yds. I donot know if greater distances play any part with this round.
Good luck! More importantly find what your gun shoots best a well placed shot kills more deer then a bad shot with the largest magnum available.

[TopGun]

165 Nosler Balistic Tip for everything and including deer. 165 Sierra SBT for hunting anything else. If you just want to shoot 1 hole groups at 100 yds, and 1" groups at 200, shoot a 168 Sierra Match BTHP over 42gr 4064! It's my accuracy load in my M1A and my M700 Varmint. It shoots the same in my Encore pistol!  Ya gotta love teh 308!  The MilSurpAmmo shoots great too! hurtenberger, Austrian, South African..even the Brit....they all shoot very well.