.308 or 30-06

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bdplumbing

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Looking for some suggestions to the age old argument... 30-06 or .308.
I've heard from friends that 30-06 is more versatile due to the availability in grain. Which makes it more ideal for what size game you want to hunt.
I also know that I've never heard of a .308 owner who regretted his/her purchase.
I live in a place with lots of deer and the occasional moose, so versatility is definitely important on that front.
I also want to consider things like cost and availability of ammo. Aswell as longevity of suggested brands.
Looking for all the help I can get! I'm a new gun owner on civilian side so I'm looking for as many suggestions as possible

thanks guys
 
If you're planng to reload, an argument can be made for 30-06, but - that aside - a 308 Winchester and a short action offers more of almost everything else, including a broader range of commercially-available ammunition, and much greater compatability. To me, and especially for a "new gun owner", it makes sense to take into account the present and future commonality of parts and ammunition; there's nothing wrong with 30-06 and a long action, but 308 Win and a short action has the advantage here (in my opinion).
 
bdplumbing said:
Looking for some suggestions to the age old argument... 30-06 or .308.
I've heard from friends that 30-06 is more versatile due to the availability in grain. Which makes it more ideal for what size game you want to hunt.
I also know that I've never heard of a .308 owner who regretted his/her purchase.
I live in a place with lots of deer and the occasional moose, so versatility is definitely important on that front.
I also want to consider things like cost and availability of ammo. Aswell as longevity of suggested brands.
Looking for all the help I can get! I'm a new gun owner on civilian side so I'm looking for as many suggestions as possible

thanks guys
Click to expand...
The only argument is listening to every ones opinion.
There is the internet for one to glean over for hours and hours and learn what one wants to accomplish.
You will go broke listening to every ones opinions about what You need.
I started by reading gun magazines and tried many of what they recommended.
Anyways, get ready for the onslaught of information and opinion.
I'll chime in with my thought and it is a Remington 700 in 30:06.
 
I have both in identical rifles both scoped with identical scopes. I reach for the 30-06 a little more than the 308. I like to hunt using my own reloads, and reload for both, but find the 30-06 a tad more versatile in powder selection. The 30-06 does have an advantage in velocity and case capacity but aside from that I would choose either one with a rifle purchase.
 
Hard to think it will ever matter in a hunting rifle whether you have a 308 or a 30-06

Or what action you use, plenty of great rifles out there. Too many to insist on one type out of anything but personal preference.
 
buddy’s hand load 308 are faster then other buddy’s factory 30/06,
I’m gonna get a 30/06 someday and reload for it, I’m just not that old yet,,
 
Of course there's gonna be the guys completely disregarding the question and suggesting some other obscure cartridge that's "better in every way".

Only opinion I have on the .308 vs .30-06 debate is: If Garand, must be -06.
 
Middle 85 Finnlight 30-06
Bottom 90 LS 308
Couldn’t imagine selling either from my collection. Love both equally
 

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here's my .02

I am not a hunter. My experience is in firearms instruction, long range shooting, anecdotal information, wound ballistics testing and studying publications from the IWBA/Doc Fakler/DocGKR/Duncan MacPherson. Tissue is tissue, bone is bone. Some bones are larger than others - especially when comparing human vs animal.

With that said. 308 will easily penetrate 18-23 inches depending on the bullet configuration. Most deer will need about 10-12 inches to hit vitals.
https://www.ballisticstudies.com/Knowledgebase/Tables.html

Personally, I would chose 308 over 30-06 every time for a few reasons
- less recoil
- shorter bolt movement for a follow up shot
- slightly cheaper to operate (although ammo prices are kind of stupid now - but if you reload, you will use less powder).
- surplus ammo can act as a training round - the number of hunters I see buy a box or two of 20 rds and it lasts them the whole season boggles my mind. Little to no practice time - shooting standing/kneeling/prone/barricade (aka supported). It's like shooting 3-7 shots to zero and a few practice shots is enough to be competent.

Based on years of firearms instruction, I would prefer to see someone practice a reasonable amount prior to hunting season to ensure a best chance shot.

I have also had hunters tell me that the extra 200 fps you get from a 30-06 will be valuable if you don't get an ideal shot. Not sure how I feel about that, because the temporary cavity in the 30-06 won't significantly bigger than the 308's. The permanent cavity is a 30 caliber cavity - regardless of cartridge - what may differ is the penetration depth. I have heard more than one hunter use 30-30 for moose. If 30-30 is adequate, then so is 308.

In the end, I would suggest the smallest caliber capable of penetrating to the vital structures with the least recoil and the cheapest training ammo available.

so, once again, I am not a hunter, if you are a hunter and think what I am saying is a load of bupkis, then I get it and I will say YMMV.

Boltgun
 
I’ve ordered more cases of .308 in both FMJ and Gold Match than all other chamberings I’ve ever owned. That also means I’ve fired more rounds of .308 in my life than any other centerfire rifle. To me, that indicates it’s useful to keep around.

So my choice is the .308, not because it’s the best at anything, but because it’s the most versatile and readily available. It’s one of the few chamberings I’ve never been able to eradicate from my cabinet despite having ballistic duplicates I like more for their cachet like the 7x57.

It also happens to be a pretty solid middle ground when recoil, capability, and the range of hunting rifles from 5lb mountain rifles, to short barreled carbines, to semis, to heavy target style rigs is considered. It’s the jack of all trades, master of none chambering. And that’s not a slight.
 
I like short action and less recoil too. I haven't hung onto either very long but have had them in the past. I have gone back to adding a couple 308's to the safe which I think will stay around now. They aren't heavy and I sure wouldn't want any more recoil. 20" barrels suite the 308 well also but prefer longer in the long action cartridges. I like shorter girls too.
 
I have owned both and went with the 308. I like the shorter action. Both will kill critters dead with proper shot placement both have a good selection of bullets.
 
my take on it is 30-06 if you want to use monometal bullets for hunting
them monometals need every bit of velocity you can squeeze out of a cartridge
 
It pretty much comes down to two things:
1: bullet weight
2: action length

308 is pretty close to 30-06 (going off book max loads) up to 165 grain bullets. Once you go past that (180’s and up), 30-06 really pulls away from 308 in terms of performance.

If you don’t care about action length, then 30-06 is fine. If you want a short action, then 308 is the way to go.

In identical rifles 30-06 will have slightly more recoil, enough to worry about? That’s up to you.

Ammo selection is pretty close most places, yet some places have more of one than the other. 308 probably has the edge in surplus ammo availability.

They’ve both been around forever and have claimed a lot of game.
 
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