Your best Cheap .308 Recipe.

greg11

greg11

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I just bought a .308 and I'm just crunching the numbers here.

Assuming 180 grain bullets (of basically any brand), I'm looking at a cost of approx $800/1000 rounds if my math is correct.

Of course, I could step down to a lighter bullet and reap a bit of savings there, but I have a 1:10 twist Savage Precision Carbine and I was thinking it would be fun to use the heavier projectiles.

How do some of you guys find your accuracy holding up with the light bullets at ranges of about 500-600 yards? Any good?
 
Higginson has regular Hornady 180 gr BTSP for about $34 /100 so $340/1000. While maybe not target grade still good bullets if your rifle likes them. In 308 I like 165 /168 grain bullets good compromise in weight/velocity. Takes up less case room more room for powder. Just my .02.
 
I am having great luck with 168gr Hornady hpbt , 43.5gr of H4895, CCI 200 rifle primers. I am not a big fan of IMR-4895, to course a powder, just doesn't meter well for me. I use norma brass and it is pricy, I got a great deal on it here on the EE. Look through some of the threads.

The idea is quality not quantity, your savings on hand loading is that your tailoring the load to your rifle, as well it allows you to match your loads to each other for consistency. For the same idea you would only really need 200 brass and then reload them 3 or 4 times to get to the 800 or a 1000 actual shots fired. Did you account for this? Reloading is not a matter of cheaper it is a matter of getting better.
 
165s work best out to 600 yards BTSPs for hunting if you can get 168s in BTSPs they are top of the shelf in a 308 we use them in our savage 99c 1:10 4 groove 22 inch and 99f 1:10 6 groove 22 inch my model 88 win 1:12 4 groove 22 inch and my NO4 MK1* in 7.62/308 4 groove 1:12 30 inch.
For target shooting 168 BTHPs work the best.
 
You may want to test your gun first to see what bullet it shoots best before buying a wack of bullets.Then go from there.I take it it will be used on caribou, moose and or bear? VARGET is a great powder in the .308 Win..............Harold
 
Mine is a very different load for the .308, I use any one of about 12 different cast bullets, hard cast, gas checked, from 180 to 220 grs. and 28 grs. of Varget, prolly costs about 2-3$ to do a box of 20. This is an accurate paper punching load that i use for CB BR at 100 and 200 yds. production class. Another version of this load uses 18 grs. of IMR 4759 powder for more savings.
 
The biggest variable is the cost of the bullet. Excluding it, you are looking at roughly

5 cents for a primer
20 cents for powder ($30/lb * 45 grains / 7000 grains/lb)
10 cents for a case ($1.00 for a case, amortized over 10 firings)
------
35 cents.

Put a 40 cent bullet on this and you have 75c/round. Put a 25c bullet on it and you still have a 60c round.

If you are planning on doing a lot of shooting on the range, I would recommend that you mostly shoot target bullets. Even if you also use your rifle for hunting, it probably makes sense to use good accurate target bullets for most of your range shooting. While target bullets can be difficult to find at many gunstores, and oftentimes more expensive than plinker-grade hunting bullets, with careful shopping they can be had for not much more than the cheapest hunting bullets you can buy anyway.

I and many others shoot 155 target bullets out to 1000 yards. Your 20" barrel rifle will lose a bit of speed compared to a 30" target barrel, but to get good results out to 600-700m from your rifle is a gimme.

Heavier bullets will have slightly more recoil but its certainly not a night and day thing (a 180 grain bullet will have about 8% more recoil than a 155; a 210 grain bullet will have about 16% more recoil). If you think shooting heavier bullets will be fun, you should absolutely go ahead and give it a go.

Heavier bullets are somewhat more expensive (there's a certain proportionality between a bullet's weight and its price), but again not a night-and-day thing.

If you'd like to load up a few rounds using several different match bullets (e.g. 155 Sierra Matchking, 180 Sierra Matchking, 190 Sierra Matchking) give me a call and come on by some evening.
 
ben hunchak said:
Mine is a very different load for the .308, I use any one of about 12 different cast bullets, hard cast, gas checked, from 180 to 220 grs. and 28 grs. of Varget, prolly costs about 2-3$ to do a box of 20. This is an accurate paper punching load that i use for CB BR at 100 and 200 yds. production class. Another version of this load uses 18 grs. of IMR 4759 powder for more savings.
Click to expand...

Where do you get your .308 gas checks? Which mold do you find works best?

I cast for .45acp and 30-30. The only problem I've had is at first I didn't know about gas checks and I was firing 30-30 without them. My groups were about 2 feet wide at 25 yards!!!!! Hahaha...

All I did was switch to blue dot and started just shooting these really light pistol velocity loads with my 30-30. Great for plinking.

I've yet to buy gas checks. Are they pricey? Are they a pain in the butt to install on the base of the projectile?

With your gas checked .308 casts, what kind of groups are you seeing at 200 yards? Have you pushed them further?
 
I have about 12 molds for the .30 cal. and all are gas check, for the .308 mentioned earlier, my best accuracy has been about 1/2" at 100yds, on a good day. The Eagan MX-3 is tops, but is not avail. and is a collectors item. Next is the Lyman #311644 a 190 grain spitzer, both are cast out of pure Linotype, sized to .310" and gas check is seated on Star equipment. I have tried higher speeds but accuracy seems best at 1900-2100 fps. In my other .30 cals. like my .30 BR. other bullets do better like the Saeco #315 which is an Eagan copy. All loads have little or no runout by using Co-ax reloader, Redding Comp. dies....but I still insist on using the Vickermann in-line seater.
My costs above do not include a cost for the brass, which i have a ####load of, or any of my reloading equipment.
 
My Powder Puff Load
Almost no recoil

Hornady .30 cal M1 Carbine bullet or 100gr Short Jacket bullet
28gr H4895 powder
CCI Large Rifle Primer

Cheap to shoot. 50 yd accuracy
Regards, Henry
 
For short range plinking up to 200 yrds, the Sierra 125 PSP is very accurate, cheap and has no recoil.

For cheap and accurate hunting ammo, the Hornady 165gr PSP (Pointed Soft Point - Boat Tail) give accuracy almost as good as match bullets.

Have not played with 180s.
 
My personal load for .308Win is:
Fed Case
Win LR Primer
IMR 4064 = 42.3gr
Hornady 165gr BTSP

Now if you want cheap:
scrounge brass from local range, use cast lead bullets, buy powder and primers when on sale by the case.
 
I agree with Ben. If you want cheap and good, cast is where it's at. I'd widen the choice down to 150gr, and whatever your bullet weight, try a starting load of 16 gr of H110. .30 cal gas checks are .308 size, cost less than a nickel, and are easily seated with a Lee bullet sizing die. Probably either .309 or .311. Also, if high velocity isn't of utmost importance to you, a number of my .30 cal. rifles show a preference for 20 :1 lead and tin. Look at bullets, whatever weight that have long bearing surface, preferably most of it grease grooved(not necessarily all greased) and possible to seat to touch rifling.
Best of luck.
Grouch
 
My hunting load in my M88 is Hornady match cases (found a whole whack in the bin at the range, once fired) :D.
Fed 210 primers
165gr Hornady SP interlocks.
43.5gr H4895.
Does the job, though not a plinking load.
 
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