308 vs 7-08 for all round hunting...

Damage is done and a new M70 Featherweight in a 7-08 is sitting in the safe....just need to pick up some bases so I can mount up the scope.
 
popper said:
Cherry picking indeed - the best 7-08 load from the manual with a random 308.
Let's compare to a 175 gr 308 load (since your bullet is 175 gr):

175 GR. SIE HPBT Hodgdon CFE 223 .308" 2.800" 45.5 2612 49,600 PSI 47.5 2752 60,400 PSI

you have close to 200 fps advantage at the muzzle which translates to good 15% energy advantage for 308 which is quite significant.

And there is still advantage past 300 yards btw...
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It's my suspicion that anybody preaching ft-lbs of energy is basing their opinion on theory alone, with little field experience with both cartridges to back up their comments.

Bullet performance, BC, and velocity are what count, not kinetic energy or vertical drop at range.

People who substantiate that one cartridge is better than the other, are likely basing their opinion on a difference in bullets used in those chamberings, not the cartridges or calibers themselves.

Use a similar bullet in each, and I'll bet you won't be able to tell the difference when killing game.
 
Ardent said:
Heavy bullets are still important, despite what people will tell you wonder bullets (with which I also hunt almost exclusively, Barnes for me) don't replace sectional density. They compliment it, rather.
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Meh, YMMV, but I've seen too many light-for-caliber Barnes bullets go stem to stern on large animals, to totally agree with that comment ;) If you're getting exit holes 99% of the time, where is the need for deeper penetration (the only terminal benefit to heavier bullets)?
 
harv3589 said:
Damage is done and a new M70 Featherweight in a 7-08 is sitting in the safe....just need to pick up some bases so I can mount up the scope.
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Nice... I looked pretty hard at the new model 70's as well. My gunsmith says they're better than the pre 64 70's :nest:

I'll bet anyone a box of doughnuts that she wont be disappointed. Any takers?
 
Jordan Smith said:
Meh, YMMV, but I've seen too many light-for-caliber Barnes bullets go stem to stern on large animals, to totally agree with that comment ;) If you're getting exit holes 99% of the time, where is the need for deeper penetration (the only terminal benefit to heavier bullets)?
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African game being brought into the discussion in 3, 2,1....

;)
 
Jordan Smith said:
It's my suspicion that anybody preaching ft-lbs of energy is basing their opinion on theory alone, with little field experience with both cartridges to back up their comments.

Bullet performance, BC, and velocity are what count, not kinetic energy or vertical drop at range.

People who substantiate that one cartridge is better than the other, are likely basing their opinion on a difference in bullets used in those chamberings, not the cartridges or calibers themselves.

Use a similar bullet in each, and I'll bet you won't be able to tell the difference when killing game.
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So are you saying if everything is the same for comparisons sake, & that unless a bullet hasn't enough power to penetrate, then the obvious winner is the one that starts out making a bigger hole :D
 
Jordan Smith said:
Does it? How much harder? What real-world experiences have taught you that the .308 hits harder than the 7mm-08? I'm really curious.

Handling heavier bullets is a moot point with today's deep-penetrating options. I dare you to send a 140gr TSX from a 7-08 through a couple of moose shoulders, and then say to me, with a straight face, that you wish the 7-08 could handle heavier bullets better ;)
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Handling heavier bullets is a very legitiment advantage.
You may use & prefer premium bullets but in the real world more hunters actually use factory standard soft point cartridges, & more reloaders actually use standard soft point bullets. I have never used one of the so called "premium" bullets & have never, yet, had the need for one!
Maybe when the $$ of premiums matches the price of standard bullets I'll get excited & try them.;):)
 
A 160gr 7mm bullet penetrates every bit as well as a 180gr .308", all else being equal. Likewise, a 175gr 7mm vs. a 200gr .308", etc. Can't see the .308 Win shooting bullets over 200gr, personally. Heck, I've had great luck with 150 and 165gr standard C&C bullets in the .308. Of course, they do nothing for me, now that I'm using the 130gr TTSX... ;)
 
senior said:
So are you saying if everything is the same for comparisons sake, & that unless a bullet hasn't enough power to penetrate, then the obvious winner is the one that starts out making a bigger hole :D
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Nope. I'm saying that if a 7mm bullet and a .308 bullet are of equal bullet design, SD, etc, and they both expand properly and hit the same vital organs, you won't see a difference between them that you can consistently attribute to the chambering or caliber.
 
Jordan Smith said:
On the other hand, there's nothing wrong with a short-action 7mm that is soft to shoot, and sends a 120 or 140gr TSX/TTSX at around 2900-3000fps. In fact, it works a lot like the .308 Win firing a 130gr TTSX at 3000fps ;)
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I did use that exact load on a whitetail this year at a pretty good distance and it worked well, but on elk after that it was a bit light for my liking. I've since loaded 165's and 180's and prefer those. If I have to go into the 130 gr. range, I'll just use the 270 WSM.

I also loaded some 220 RN for spring bear. Close range they should work well, loafing along at around 2300-2400 fps. Wouldn't that be a cool load for the 7-08 !!! Too bad 175gr. is about the heaviest readily available bullet. :(

But back to the original topic. Why was the 7-08 better than the 308 again? I forget................... :D
 
To give you a perspective guys:
308 caliber is just as smaller than 338 as 284 (7-08) is than 308 but I don't see many people arguing that 308 bullets have the same terminal performance as 338 ones...

Oh now I expect people to start arguing that a 30 cal 150 gr or 165 gr TSX can do everything 225 gr 338 cal can...
 
Actually, .308" is 0.030" smaller than .338", and .277" is 0.031" smaller than .308", so that is a closer comparison than 7mm vs. .308.

It seems to me that people have been arguing that .270 kills just as well as .30-caliber for quite some time... ;) :D
 
I use a Sako A7 in .308 for target shooting and also big game hunting. I do reloads but for hunting I use 150 grain Nosler Custom Trophy Grade ammo. They shoot awesome and fly to 3000fps with tons of power. It's accubond tip will bring down any type of big game be it Elk, Moose or deer. It's all about shot placement. I love the accuracy of it as well.

So for me it's a .308 caliber, I have shot 7mm08 as well which is owned by my hunting buddy and he uses his own reloads and brought down a nice white tail doe this past season at over 300 yards, so a 7mm08 will do just as good.

But anyhow go for a .308 as everyone says, since ammo and reload stuff is available easily.
 
My one and only venture into large animal shooting was in Normark over 20 years ago. I used a 140gr Norma soft-point 3/4 on into the chest cavity of a ~900 pound elg, shooting an elderly Swedish m/96-38 like the one I bought last month but a lot more dinged up. Open sights at around 70m and it went down on its knees and never moved from the spot.

I was VERY impressed with the 6.5x55 SE.

tac
 
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