Obviously I’m not fritz but I’m curious, what’s the application for this one?
I had a Stoner SR-25 Match made in 93 and in 2010 I’d bought a DPMS Panther but no matter what I tried I couldn’t get it to shoot as well as the Stoner, and before I compressed the first vertebra & found out I had osteoporosis, I bought a SiG 716 DMS and it’s not very close to the Stoner in accuracy ... then I built one in 6.5 Creedmoor ... and fritz was immensely helpful, espically in selecting a Long Range scope.

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Originally posted by Sammael:

quote:

Originally posted by fritz:
I steer people away from 308, regardless of the application.

fritz, can you elaborate a bit?

I own a couple AR-10s in .308, and I'm thinking about a third... should I be looking at this from a different perspective?

If you already own a couple of 308 ARs and you're happy with their performance for your applications, then there probably isn't a good reason to change calibers. You're invested in ammo (either factory or hand load), you know the ballistics, you're comfy with the way they shoot.

The 308 is really quite accurate with the right loads. Lots of factory ammo options and it is relatively easy to tune your own loads. Tons of good 308 bullets on the market. The caliber does a lot of things well. Factory ammo can be reasonably priced.

But there are newer variations of the 308-ish case capacity chamberings which do just about everything better, using smaller bores. Less recoil, flatter flight, less wind drift, higher kinetic energy at 400-ish and further yards. What the 308 does offer is longer barrel life, greater muzzle energy, and the ability to shoot much heavier bullets -- as compare to 6mm through 7mm bores.

So for the shooter who wants their first short-action center fire rifle, and who wants to step up from 223, I recommend looking at the 6.5mm options. Now for someone who only hunts relatively large North American game at relatively shot distances, the 308 makes more sense than 6mm to 7mm bores. However for such hunters, the 338 or 358 bore variations may make even more sense than a 308.

FWIW, I started down the precision rifle path with a 308 bolt action, which I still have. Then I picked up a bolt action 6.5 Creedmoor, and later added an AR-10 in 6.5 Creedmoor. I shoot for accuracy at distance, just so my application is clear. To me, 6.5CM is a competition round and 308 is my practice/training round.

Eventually I hope that some company will produce 6mm Dasher factory match ammo. If/when that occurs, at my next reasonable 308 barrel change, I plan to dump the 308 permanently for a Dasher. Bottom line -- I'm looking for lower recoil, flatter trajectory, and less wind drift. YMMV

But for you, if 308 works, there probably isn't an overwhelming reason to change.