The humble 308 Win still a classic Bushveld caliber

[John Telford]

Their was a time in South Africa where hunters and shooters generally chose from 4 calibers if you were looking for a new rifle ie 3006 ,308 , 270, 243. Most hand me down rifles were usually.303 Brit or 7x57 mauser. Few hunters had a .375 in the safe.
During the last 20 years Or so many new calibers have become available to the general hunting public. We have seen the short magnum craze, the 6.5 mm craze from Grendel to Creedmore to Lapua etc.
so imagine my surprise when all 5 hunters sittting around our camp fire during a hunt last season in Limpopo were using the good old .308win.
Makes included Savage,Remington, Brno and Blaser. Some old some new.
When asked why each hunter had chosen this particular caliber the consensus was that it was a caliber they had grown up with and it had worked for Pa.
I guess the more things change the more they stay the same! It would be interesting to hear from other hunters what the go to caliber is in their areas.

 

[roverandbrew]

30-06 seemed to be a bit more popular where I was raised in the mid-Atlantic states than the 270 or 308. I use a 30-06 for most everything in the US and my plains game.

 

[Newby]

With Sambar hunters in southern Australia, 30.06 would be top dog by a good margin, but 308 is also popular.

 

[DieJager]

Most popular here are the .308, 30-06, .243 and the 7x64. Except some odd fellow who uses a .375 . That odd fellow beiing me.

 

[Major Khan]

During the time of my career as a professional shikaree ( 1961 to 1970 ) ... American calibres reigned supreme . Continental calibres remained very much over shadowed . And British calibres were completely DEAD .
The following calibres were the MOST popular , among my clients :
> .22 Winchester magnum rim fire
> .22 Hornet
> .243 Winchester
> .270 Winchester
> 7 mm Remington magnum
> .30-30 Winchester
> .308 Winchester
> .30-06 Springfield
> .300 Winchester magnum
> .300 Weatherby magnum
> .338 Winchester magnum
> 9.3×62 mm Mauser
> 9.3×74 mm Rimmed
> .375 Holland & Holland magnum
>.458 Winchester magnum
> .460 Weatherby

7×57 mm Mauser and 8×57 mm Mauser calibre rifles were fairly popular . However , these were all older ( Pre World War 2 ) fire arms , or sporterized World War 2 military surplus fire arms .

But back in those days , I observed that the. 30-06 Springfield calibre was infinitely more popular than the .308 Winchester calibre . The .308 Winchester calibre was treated a little , like " The New Kid On The Block " . The .30-06 Springfield and the 220 grain Winchester Silver Tip soft point cartridge was so universally popular ... that even most of my ( younger ) Continental clients adapted it .

 

[Frederik]

John,

Before the demise of PMP I think their top seller calibre in ammo was 30-06 or 308 can't remeber which was no.1 but 3rd was 303 Brit and then 243win. So looking at the ammo sales from PMP 308 is still tops and out there being used.
The 6.5 mm craze was moslty caused by target shooters.

 

[CBH Australia]

I would say .308 is common in Australia. I have 2 I have had others.
Partly it may be because of military ammo availability.
Partly Full Bore target shooters adopted the .308 fo the competition, they may have been using .303 earlier our predecessor military round..
Many shooters use them on pigs, bulk ammo, cheap rifles, some use pump actions.
The volume leads to more ammo availability and cheap rifles leads to why not have the .308 then for us.
.223 is a similar story for Australia.
May others have a place and a following like .243, .270, .300wm, 30-06 are he common ones coming to mind.
Many Australian shooters over say uh, 60 may have had an e military 303 in their time. They are still kicking around. I had one briefly and I m only48.
I think I will always have a .308 but I cannot describe why I feel it does not have a classic appeal or prestige or something.
.308 is versatile, available and economical as opposed to buying cases or ammo for a rarer variation. It is useful and proven but it just seems common, does anyone get that or understand my reasoning?

 

[Bonk]

I grew up in the midwestern United States during the 70's and the 30-06 reigned supreme. The new kid on the block was 7mmMag. There were still a lot of 30-30's in use but mainly because they were handed down from the previous generation. Anybody buying a new rifle usually bought an '06 or a new fangled 7mmMag. I suppose I'd heard of 308 but I never gave it any thought.

As an impressionable young man I thought I wanted a 7mmMag. It was the latest and greatest cool caliber. I wanted a Weatherby 7mmMag but somehow I ended up with Remington 700 30-06. My guess is money, or more appropriately a lack of money, was the deciding factor.

My introduction to 308 was 7.62x51 in the military. I lumped it into the same category as 5.56. It was a military caliber used in military rifles. I never really considered it a hunting caliber. Yes, you can hunt with it but that's not what it was originally designed to do. The fact the exact same thing could be said about 30-06 completely escaped me.

Fast forward 30-40 years and I have a different view of the 308. I now appreciate it as a terrific all around hunting caliber and I own a nice CZ550 chambered in 308. It isn't a rifle I typically take hunting because I still prefer 30-06 but if all I had was that CZ 308 I'd be completely confident hunting almost anything almost any where.

BTW, after 40+ years I've still never owned a 7mmMag or a Weatherby.

 

[Ryan]

It's turning into a classic in Alaska too. In the past the classic general purpose rifle up here would have been the 30-06. But I have a lot of friends who hunt with a 308 Win and they have a lot of moose, caribou, sheep, blacktail deer, and goats in their freezers using it. I know of more than one hunter who started here with a 338 Win Mag or even a 300 Win Mag and now carry a 308 Win around most of the time because it kills everything just as well with cheaper ammo and lighter recoil, often in a lighter rifle. Start slogging across wet tundra with a full pack and that last one becomes a big seller. Its use in the military, competition shooting and good marketing have played a big part in its popularity, but it's performance in the field has kept it there. And this is coming from someone who owns two 30-06 for hunting.

 

[Longwalker]

I started out hunting with a .303, and upgraded to a .308 which was my only hunting rifle for many years. I have since come to appreciate many other cartridges, but the .308 serves well for hunting everything here, including moose. It is still the cartridge I suggest for anyone starting out hunting Canadian game. Accurate, powerful enough, easy to shoot well, and inexpensive to use. I am not one who always believes "more is better" so do not find more powerful cartridges any practical advantage for the majority of my hunting. The .308 is very often " just right".

 

[BeeMaa]

When we went to Africa, our PH had two rifles...one in 458WM the other a 308WIN.
I asked which he used more and immediately he said the 308WIN.
Culling, varmints and everything else short of backing up clients on DG.
He said he puts at least 3 or 4 times the ammo down the 308WIN vs the 458WM.
Cheaper (which is a very real concern over there) and much more available.

This tried and true cartridge is the choice of many professionals.
Not just the ones in military uniforms.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

With Sambar hunters in southern Australia, 30.06 would be top dog by a good margin, but 308 is also popular.

Newby
My son swears by his 308 with 150grain accubonds or 140 outer edge for most things including plains game in Namibia

For pig goats and fallow deer he favours the 150SST.
My personal go to rifles are my 25/303 Epps Newton improved for most game and my 35 Whelen with 225grain accubonds or Woodleigh bullets at 2,850 to 2,950 fps for everything including plains game.
The last sambar stag I got was with a 270 Winchester which is more than enough. If it was legal I would use my 25 for them as the 35 would be far to much but it would be fun.
Cheers mate Bob

Black wildebeest whelenated with a 225 grain accubond.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I would say .308 is common in Australia. I have 2 I have had others.
Partly it may be because of military ammo availability.
Partly Full Bore target shooters adopted the .308 fo the competition, they may have been using .303 earlier our predecessor military round..
Many shooters use them on pigs, bulk ammo, cheap rifles, some use pump actions.
The volume leads to more ammo availability and cheap rifles leads to why not have the .308 then for us.
.223 is a similar story for Australia.
May others have a place and a following like .243, .270, .300wm, 30-06 are he common ones coming to mind.
Many Australian shooters over say uh, 60 may have had an e military 303 in their time. They are still kicking around. I had one briefly and I m only48.
I think I will always have a .308 but I cannot describe why I feel it does not have a classic appeal or prestige or something.
.308 is versatile, available and economical as opposed to buying cases or ammo for a rarer variation. It is useful and proven but it just seems common, does anyone get that or understand my reasoning?

CBH
Chris
The 08 doesn't feel like that but that's a good thing as you said, cheaper ammo and rifles. Win win.
Mate I'm over 60 a mind still love my old 303.
These young fellas with their 308 Ruger gun scouts with their 10 shot mags are 40 years behind us old fellas with cut down 303s. We were doing the same back in the 70s an older than me were doing it well before that.
Good on Ruger they reinvented the wheel.
Mate if you want different and effective get something with a 5, like the 25 or 35.
I know you have a 375 classic so your part way there you just need A 25.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

Their was a time in South Africa where hunters and shooters generally chose from 4 calibers if you were looking for a new rifle ie 3006 ,308 , 270, 243. Most hand me down rifles were usually.303 Brit or 7x57 mauser. Few hunters had a .375 in the safe.
During the last 20 years Or so many new calibers have become available to the general hunting public. We have seen the short magnum craze, the 6.5 mm craze from Grendel to Creedmore to Lapua etc.
so imagine my surprise when all 5 hunters sittting around our camp fire during a hunt last season in Limpopo were using the good old .308win.
Makes included Savage,Remington, Brno and Blaser. Some old some new.
When asked why each hunter had chosen this particular caliber the consensus was that it was a caliber they had grown up with and it had worked for Pa.
I guess the more things change the more they stay the same! It would be interesting to hear from other hunters what the go to caliber is in their areas.

As some of my friends would say, "The wee-oh-eight. A nice little round that wants to be a .30-06 when it grows up."

 

[MS 9x56]

When I was growing up we had to use shotguns with slugs for deer so the only rifles I used were 222 and 22 or for varmints and ground hogs. When the regulations were changed I bought a Savage 99 in 308. The rifle killed everything I pointed it at satisfactorily. When my son got old enough I bought him a Savage 99 in 300 savage. They worked very well for deer. Then I ran into a 500 lb will boar who did not take kindly to being poked with that 308. I topped off the magazine and took up the trail. I saw him laying facing away from me at 40 yards. Thinking he was dead I hollered to my friend that I saw him. He then jumped to his feet swapped ends and charged me. I put 5 rounds of 180 grain round nose cor-locs into him dropping him literally at the end of my gun barrel. Later after cutting a path to get a 4 wheeler to him we were discussing the charge with our camp mates. One said "I didn't think that was you shooting as it sounded like a semi-automatic." I answered it is amazing what you can do with a lever action given the proper motivation. When I got home I told my wife I need a bigger gun. This began my 35 caliber affliction. I still have the 308 and still use it for deer. My son took the other direction with a 25-06, 7-08, and 6.5 creedmore. As for me I am quite happy with my 9x56, 35 rem, 35 whelen, 358 win, and 9.3x62 thank you. When you absolutely positively need it dead right now, I know I can count on them with a minimum of fuss.

 

[IvW]

7x57mm

 

[RayAtkinson]

The 308 is certainly top notch, the 30-06 is a tad better and much better with heavier bullets, both can do the same job..My personal choice is the 7x57 for no other reason than I have hunted all over the world with it and never a complaint.

 

[RayAtkinson]

I thought I replied to this thread, but dont' see that anywhere???
At any rate it would be hard to beat the .308, it will do what the great 30-06 will do..I use a Savage 99F 308 for a saddle gun hunting deer and elk, its light fast and handy, kills well with a properly place bullet...otherwise I use the 30-06 or 7x57 as a rule, all good calibers as are many others..My go to deer rifle is often the 250-3000..

 

[shark_za]

Classic should never be confused with common.

 

[mdwest]

Classic should never be confused with common.

Classic: Judged over a period of time to be of high quality.

While not as old as other options.. I'd say the 68 year old .308 Winchester has been around long enough and certainly has a standing track record that validates quality. By the definition of the word, the .308 Winchester is in fact a classic (Automobiles in many countries are classified as "classics" after just 20 years. Many books that were authored in the 1960's are classified as "classics". "Classic Hollywood Cinema" describes movies made between 1910 and the 1960's... Why would a nearly 70 year old rifle cartridge that is still used extensively for the OP's stated purpose not be a classic?)

While some people prefer other cartridges for PG bushveld hunting, no one is going to say the .308 doesnt do a fine job against the majority of PG available across Africa at the ranges that typical clients shoot at in the bushveld..

So... yep... a classic... in every sense of the word..