I want to find a good quality round in .308 for hunting moose, deer and black bear in Ontario. I want to look for something better than the pointed softpoints like the Remington Core-Lokt or Winchester Powerpoints. The bullet should be something good by hornady, nosler or barnes made for hunting big game in the 150gr to 180gr area. Who makes a good .308 round that I can look for over the counter that doesnt cost a fortune, I dont mind spending a little more over the Core-Lokts prices but $50 for 20 rounds is out of the question. Thanks
Good .308 round for hunting?
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blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
Winchester Silvertips?
Federal Fusions or Winchester Powermax, although marketed as a rapid expansion deer bullet should still perform well on moose as they are a bonded bullet.
All of these are marginally more expensive (think $25) a box.
Federal Fusions or Winchester Powermax, although marketed as a rapid expansion deer bullet should still perform well on moose as they are a bonded bullet.
All of these are marginally more expensive (think $25) a box.
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Nothing better than Federal Premium Nosler Partitions 180 grains. About $40 a box and worth every penny for hunting. The regular Federals are about $20 a box and I use these for target practice. They act the same in my Winchester 88 so I don't have to resight in my gun when changing between the two. Go for the Federals and don't look back.
(Donning Kevlar and ceramics)
There's nothing wrong with any of those bullets. They're great.
But somebody needs to convince me that nobody took deer or bear or moose or elk or antelope before they were invented...
...waiting to be convinced...
...still waiting...
Time's up - the reality is that millions of deer, moose and bear have been taken with simple cast bullets, ones that expanded little if at all, ones that shed bits and pieces, ones shot by old-timers who couldn't have even spelled 'controlled expansion' or 'ballistic coefficient'.
My point is that placement is far more important than the hi-tech developments many of us try to substitute for learning to shoot. Find a load that your rifle can shoot well and you've probably given the rifle all it needs to put Bambi in the pot. The rest is up to you and Mr Trigger Finger.
There's nothing wrong with any of those bullets. They're great.
But somebody needs to convince me that nobody took deer or bear or moose or elk or antelope before they were invented...
...waiting to be convinced...
...still waiting...
Time's up - the reality is that millions of deer, moose and bear have been taken with simple cast bullets, ones that expanded little if at all, ones that shed bits and pieces, ones shot by old-timers who couldn't have even spelled 'controlled expansion' or 'ballistic coefficient'.
My point is that placement is far more important than the hi-tech developments many of us try to substitute for learning to shoot. Find a load that your rifle can shoot well and you've probably given the rifle all it needs to put Bambi in the pot. The rest is up to you and Mr Trigger Finger.
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
I agree 100%
Myself and my father in law are the only ones at our moose camp that use premium bullets. We've never had the opportunity to actually shoot moose with them as the other guys using "cheap" ammo always kill the moose first.
Considering what is spent on hunting overall, spending an extra $20 on a box of ammo seems pretty minimal if you really don't want to use the basic stuff. Your only other options to get premium ammo are to either tool up for reloading yourself or find a buddy who will let you use his equipment and just buy dies and supplies. Then plan on a round or two of load testing with a couple of different powders and bullets.
You are really asking for everything and that really isn't too realistic. "I want premium ammo that works great in my gun and doesn't cost significantly more than the cheap stuff."
OP, if I were you, I would simply pony up the extra $$ to buy a couple of boxes of premium ammo and enjoy your hunting.
I also agree with the above comments on premium versus basic cup and core bullets. If you keep velocities down with a 165gr or 180gr load in the .308, any bullet will put meat on the table the same if you do your part.
Mark
You are really asking for everything and that really isn't too realistic. "I want premium ammo that works great in my gun and doesn't cost significantly more than the cheap stuff."
OP, if I were you, I would simply pony up the extra $$ to buy a couple of boxes of premium ammo and enjoy your hunting.
I also agree with the above comments on premium versus basic cup and core bullets. If you keep velocities down with a 165gr or 180gr load in the .308, any bullet will put meat on the table the same if you do your part.
Mark
^^^ I cerntainly agree you don't need a premium bullet for big game in Ontario. However I use the Winchester Accubond with the polymer tip for actual hunting. Only because the soft tips were getting bent from being chambered/un-chambered (you know like when you unload when you get on the ATV, come back to camp for lunch or end of the day) The damaged tips caused mag feeding problems. So, it's more for the durability of use then any kind of overly superior performance on the game hunted.
"...because the soft tips were getting bent..." That doesn't matter. The only part of the bullet that does matter is the base.
"...Who makes a good .308 round that..." If you're not reloading you'll have to try a box of as many brands and bullet weights as you can to find the ammo your rifle shoots best. The price means nothing. Neither does a premium bullet. The deer/bear/moose won't be any deader.
"...$50 for 20 rounds is out..." Premimum bullets mean premium prices. Federal uses other peoples bullets. 165 gr Barnes BTS ammo runs $42.99 plus taxes at Cabela's Canada. Gamekings run around $30. Nosler BT's $34. Shooter's Choice, pricey to start with, wants over $50 for Remington and Winchester premium brands.
You can forget the 180's. A 165 will kill any game you care to hunt. Let you use one load/brand for everything.
"...Who makes a good .308 round that..." If you're not reloading you'll have to try a box of as many brands and bullet weights as you can to find the ammo your rifle shoots best. The price means nothing. Neither does a premium bullet. The deer/bear/moose won't be any deader.
"...$50 for 20 rounds is out..." Premimum bullets mean premium prices. Federal uses other peoples bullets. 165 gr Barnes BTS ammo runs $42.99 plus taxes at Cabela's Canada. Gamekings run around $30. Nosler BT's $34. Shooter's Choice, pricey to start with, wants over $50 for Remington and Winchester premium brands.
You can forget the 180's. A 165 will kill any game you care to hunt. Let you use one load/brand for everything.
I've used the premium expensive rounds and the cheaper 'lower end' rounds.
I have plenty of premium rounds left and they stay in my locker. My 'go to' is federal blue box. Kills them just as dead and as good as the rounds that cost double or triple. But I guess thats because as always nothing trumps SHOT PLACEMENT!
YMMV
I have plenty of premium rounds left and they stay in my locker. My 'go to' is federal blue box. Kills them just as dead and as good as the rounds that cost double or triple. But I guess thats because as always nothing trumps SHOT PLACEMENT!
YMMV
About the only time I've really noticed a premium bullet perform better is if you have to make a "marginal quality" shot, ie: the only shot you get is at the south end of a northbound deer, or some other combo of bad angle, some premiums will penetrate better with less meat damage. Downside is on a average good shot, the bullet just plows right through the critter. Really, any decent bullet will do. The trick is to play with a couple of loads and see if your gun is fussy or not, the odd one will be. Otherwise, to quote a popular gun mag writter:
"Enough of this ballistic masturbation!" In a 308, the odds of over taxing any of the "standard " bullets is pretty damn slim. Shot placement trumps damn near everything.
"Enough of this ballistic masturbation!" In a 308, the odds of over taxing any of the "standard " bullets is pretty damn slim. Shot placement trumps damn near everything.
Take good a look a Trophy Bonded Tip
Take a serious look at Federal 180gr Trophy Bonded Tip.
The bullet can't fail, is super accurate, offers very high ballistic coefficicent and is not available to reloaders!
The only problem with Trophy Bonded Tip ammo is finding it for sale
Alex
Take a serious look at Federal 180gr Trophy Bonded Tip.
The bullet can't fail, is super accurate, offers very high ballistic coefficicent and is not available to reloaders!
The only problem with Trophy Bonded Tip ammo is finding it for sale
Alex
- Location
- windsor,ontario
any soft point will do im now switching over to some cast bullets(cast soft points with a pure lead nose and linotype base) my mold has a flat nose so with that it should work good
Use Hornady Superformance
If you really want to "stretch" your .308 performance to 30-06 level (and even a little bit further) use the Hornady Superformance SST, GMX or Interbond. SSTs are the cheapest and you should be able to find them for about $30 per box.
If you really want to "stretch" your .308 performance to 30-06 level (and even a little bit further) use the Hornady Superformance SST, GMX or Interbond. SSTs are the cheapest and you should be able to find them for about $30 per box.
x2. These are proving to perform way above their expectations.
