.308 Winchester vs 7.62 NATO

[BaronW]

If I bought a .308 rifle, like a Saiga, would it be able to shoot military 7.62x51mm ammo? If I bought a 7.62 NATO rifle like one of the Enfields at aimsurplus, would it be able to shoot .308 Winchester rounds? I've head conflicting answers from various sources.

[grammaton76]

I think that of the two, the 308 Winchester is the one your rifle has to be rated at in order to shoot both calibers.

If your rifle is only rated for 7.62x51mm, it may not be able to stand up to 308.

I could be wrong here, and would welcome corrections if I am.

[Librarian]

One opinion: Fulton Armory. An extension of that at Gunzone.

Seems to be headspace differences.

[Surveyor]

The general consensus seems to be that shooting 7.62 is okay in a .308 weapon, but not vice versa.

Here is the latest thread to discuss this.

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=51165&highlight=.308+7.62+NATO

BTW, we may soon have a new forum for new members to ask for clarification on old questions like this. Untill then, you're stuck using the search feature.

[BaronW]

So... a rifle in .308 should be safe to shoot 7.62x51mm, but the other way around could be risky without checking headspace first?

[oaklander]

I think the issue has more to do with the chamber pressure on .308 - which is allowed to be higher.

[E. Fudd]

Fwiw, I've had serious extraction issues with fired 7.62x51 cases from my .308 Rem. PSS and 7600's, whereas fired .308 Win. cases extracts fine. Required some serious banging on the bolt handle to eject the empty on the PSS and vigorous pumping on the pump action .308.

[thefinger]

From what I understand it is a problem with the pressure created by the round and the hardness/softness of the brass. I know that shooting .308 in a weapon designed for 7.62NATO can cause the case to rupture because the softer brass of the .308 cannot withstand the same pressures that the 7.62NATO brass can. Cheap surplus is hard to come by these days, but even the "expensive" surplus 7.62NATO is still just about the same price as new .308 (unless you want match grade). So I'd say just go for some nice surplus ammo and save the new .308 stuff for your new Remington 700 Police model that you've had your eye on for so long..... oh wait, thats me.

[xLusi0n]

For precision rifles, you should have it headspaced for your round. Remington 700 PSS is 308 from the factory. Figure out what kind of ammo you're going to shoot and go with that.

I shoot .308 Black Hills 175 BHTP so all my rifles are chambered for that and not 7.62. I could use 7.62 (and have with M1118LR) and it did work, but not recommended. Esp for accurized rifles.

[Omega13device]

This has been discussed a lot on the M14 Forums as well and one of the things that came out of that is that the Springfield M1As are headspaced so that they can shoot either 7.62 NATO ammo or good commercial .308 ammo. A card is attached to the rifle that says as much, and also gives the headspace for that particular rifle.

This does not necessarily apply to other 7.62 caliber rifles, and I would have any rifle you're unsure about checked by a competent gunsmith.