30.06?

[RogerOrange]

Can't wait for the Springfield my father in law is going to give me in July :-)

[Calif Hunter]

I started with .30-06 rifles and have never hunted with a .308. I have only had 1 .308 rifle and I didn't keep it very long. I have a sporterized 1903 that will hit right at 3000 FPS with 150 gr bullets (and puts them into 5/8 inch consistently at 100 yards) and handle 180s just fine for bigger game. I just never saw a need for a .308. Now if I had started with a .308, I probably would never have gotten .30-06.

[lastinline]

Everyone has pretty much summed it up very well.
I have been hunting with it for a long time, using several 700's. It has never failed me yet. Just because something is old (close to 120 years!), does not mean it is obsolete. A few years ago I inherited from a life-long friend a very nice three digit Winchester model 70 in .30-06 that has traveled the world numerous times, and taken literally hundreds of large game animals in many countries and here in the states. It still shoots very well, and my son used it to harvest his first wild boar.
I like the .308 also, but I don't see it as better. Just a shorter action developed for use in machine guns, but well adapted for use in other actions as well. My Speer reloading manual from 1979 notes that the military originally developed it as the T-65 cartridge in 1955.

[w210838]

I think when people talk about 30-06 vs 308 they are comparing 30-06 150 grain ball ammo and 150 grain 308. For that senerio they are pretty equal but the 30-06 can definitely out perform it with today's powders !

[russ69]

The 30-06 has been used for target competition since it came out in the Springfield rifle. In the sixties it was very popular for highpower and long range shooting. It is still a good 1000 yard target rifle caliber and a good cartridge to throw heavy 30 caliber bullets a long way without moving to a magnum. The 6.5mms have taken the top place for 1000 yard shooting but it's still a very good cartridge. It's far from being obsolete.

[Bhobbs]

I stick with .30-06 because I hand load either the 208 a max or 215 hybrid for it. If I didn't, I would go .308 due the amount of factory match.

[NYT]

Not true. I can't do this with my 24" .308 sniper

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=1037030

30.06 will push the same .30 caliber projectile quite a bit farther then the .308 win. I think of my 30.06 loads as magnum .308's.

me too, my marine vet grandfather explained it the same way.

[Cowboy T]

Well, I've shot all three of those rounds, too. Here's my take.

All of this is assuming bolt or lever rifles, BTW; no semi-autos.

Nothing wrong with any of 'em. I have both .308 and .30-06. Like 'em both, shoot 'em both. I bought 150gr and 178gr bullets for the .308. But the 208gr A-Maxes and 210gr Berger VLD's were bought with the .30-06 in mind.

As handloaders, we can download it to whatever we need. You can make some .300 WM loads that are just like M1A-friendly .308 loads, or all the way to full-tilt. Handload well, and it'll shoot well. But brass does get more expensive.

Brass for .308 and .30-06, on the other hand, is as plentiful as lying politicians. Enough has already been said about .30-06 brass availability. Regarding .308, I managed to score some Lake City brass, and it's pretty good stuff.

So, which to pick? If you want just one and only one, I'd say .30-06 for the versatility. Fortunately, good rifles are like reloading presses; we're not limited to just one. :-)

Like Divernhunter said, Ford/Chevy/Dodge.

Now, for semi-auto tacticool rifles, I'd go .308. The mag wells just get plain too big if you're talking about detachable magazines.

[Kestryll]

The 30-06 will push a 190 Sierra at close to 3000 fps with RE22 and no 308 I have ever shot will even come close to that.

Now that makes sense, I could not understand how the 30.06 could only 'match' a .308 under handloads. It sounded too much like saying a .357 Magnum could only be handloaded to the same level as a .38Spcl.

I shoot 30-06 routinely in 1000 yrd match shooting. I can push a 178gr amax at 2940fps and a 208 grain Amax shoots at 2711fps very accurately. I shoot as well as the 338 lapua or 6.5 guys and often better. 30-06 does lots that a 308 can't do, like keep my 208 grain supersonic past 1500 yrds. That and it comes with less component cost and wear than a 300WM. Plus I get to sass all the magnum guys when I ping the X ring at 1k. That being said I also shoot it in my 1960 Win 70, my 1903 and my friends remington 700.

I have come to really love the '06, however I do have a 338 Lapua for when I really just have to shoot to 1 mile.

Supersonic at 1500!? Cool. That's another one I have read that kind of confused me, several people saying the 30.06 would drop subsonic before 1000 yards and be more affected by the transition so the .308 was better.
Which again made no sense to me.

Not true. I can't do this with my 24" .308 sniper

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=1037030

30.06 will push the same .30 caliber projectile quite a bit farther then the .308 win. I think of my 30.06 loads as magnum .308's.

Damn! Now that is a nice shot!
I like it, it's a .308 Magnum!

I think when people talk about 30-06 vs 308 they are comparing 30-06 150 grain ball ammo and 150 grain 308. For that scenario they are pretty equal but the 30-06 can definitely out perform it with today's powders !

That might well be a large part of why there is so much conflicting info and opinions floating around.

[CaliforniaSon]

I started off a 30-06 fanboy when I was young. My daddy shot one, his daddy shot one, etc...

The question is, what are you comparing them as? I saw a couple people mention the 150gr vs 150gr, if that is all you ever plan to shoot and you only plan to hunt in CA and maybe OR, then sure, it is just as good and it is a little cheaper.

Personally I have and still do shoot both and I find them both equally enjoyable and both perfectly capable. Keep in mind though as another person pointed out, the 30-06 has probably killed more creatures (and people) in the last century than the .308 will in the next 2, only because it was -the- go to round for everything and was used in 2 major wars ( WWI and WWII) and two major conflicts (Korea and Vietnam) by not only snipers but also infantry and some of those rifles (and rounds) are still being used today.

The .308 stepped in with the intro of the M14 and revolutionized the semi-auto market as well as the hunting and sporting markets because it help the same round (150gr .30cal) as the M1 garand and 1903 (or similar rifles) but was a much shorter action and a much lighter cartridge.

really, it is 6 of 1 and half a dozen of another as far as opinions go, but I have to agree that the 30-06 is long from being 'obsolete' or 'replaced' by -any- caliber, if for no other reason than it can shoot anything from a 110gr projectile to a 210gr projectile and still holds an amazing punch even at greater distances.

[M1A Rifleman]

The 06 and 308 are similar at closer ranges and for the lower weight bullets, but the 06 can run heavy bullets such as 220 grain better than the 308, which may make it better for the largest of game. When splitting these hairs, a big game hunter would be better served with a caliber larger than an 06.

[8mmFMJ]

Taken directly from Lyman's 49th edition reloading manual.

I use 4895 for so much let compare that to the 2 calibers using the same exact bullet.

.308 Win, 150 JSP, 2.735OAL, MAX-45.0gr IMR4895, 2777 FPS

30.06 Spr, 150 JSP, 3.200OAL, MAX-51.5gr IMR4895, 2959 FPS.

[toby]

You don't need one.

[mosinnagantm9130]

.30-06 > .308

[keep_ur_powder_dry]

K,

I shot 2 bucks, one with .308 and one with .30-06...both were dead as doornails.....similar shot placement and yardage.

I'd be guessing as to which caliber performed better.

My preference is .308
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