.308 Ammo for Practise
I have always used name brand over the shelf ammo for deer hunting but have never ordered any ammo online.
Since i bought a .308 i am more than amazed at the availability of low priced ammo for target shooting in this caliber.
If i were to purchase some bulk .308 ammo would you guys be so kind to direct me to what is good brands and what to stay away from since so much of this ammo seems to be foreign made.
Since i generally use 150 grain bullets for hunting deer i would prefer to stay in that range of bullet weight.
I also notice some manufacturers use steel casings instead of brass.
Why??
Any suggestions or warnings will be appreciated.
mike
Since i bought a .308 i am more than amazed at the availability of low priced ammo for target shooting in this caliber.
If i were to purchase some bulk .308 ammo would you guys be so kind to direct me to what is good brands and what to stay away from since so much of this ammo seems to be foreign made.
Since i generally use 150 grain bullets for hunting deer i would prefer to stay in that range of bullet weight.
I also notice some manufacturers use steel casings instead of brass.
Why??
Any suggestions or warnings will be appreciated.
mike
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The Australian surplus seems to be the best out there for me. I get sub MOA accuracy out of my bolt rifles, and about 2-3 MOA out of my FAL's. This is as good as I can handload for them. Try Dansammo.com He has very fair shipping cost, and cheap ammo. The Portugeese, South African, and Santa Barabara aren't bad either, just no quite what the aussy is. All of these can be purchased for arround $.15-20 per round. All are 144-147 grains so it shouldn't effect your point of aim too much.
My border collie is smarter than your honor student.0 -
Unreal Richbug.
Just this past Sat. i was talking with a guy with a Steyer in .308 and he was the one who suggested i order online.
But guess what??
HE emphatically stated the Aussie ammo was not worth a damn but the Portugese was the top of the stack!!
Go figure.
He also claimed he bought some Israeli ammo and he had several cases that ruptured causing him to have to replace his ejector on his brand new Savage rifle.
I certainly dont want something like that.
mike0 -
For every person you talk to you'll get an opinion. Some match up others don't. Also different rifles like different ammo.
The Aussie and S. African stuff isn't bad, especially for general plinkin and practice.
Hit a couple gun shows and you may score some US surplus at a good price, also will give you the opportunity to try a box or 2 of other stuff including the E. Europen stuff. Through use you can find what your rifle does best with and then watch for good prices.
Of course you could load your own and know exactly what your dealin' with.
If you only have time to do two things so-so, or one thing well ... do the one thing!0 -
He is flat wrong. Tell him to send his aussie My way. It is made by a company in Australia Called MULWEX who just happens to be the company that makes VARGET powder for Hodgdon. Varget IMHO is the best medium burn rate powder period. The port is OK, but is 15 years older that the oz, and not quite as hot, and some has hard primers. The only real junk out there right now is the Indian, it can be identified by being packed in 10 round plastic sleeves. It really isn't terrible except for the fact that 10-20% of the rounds are really F'ed up(neck sealant slobbered all over the cases, misseated bullets crushed cases, bent necks, inconsistant seating, etc). If I am just blasting stuff inside 25 yards I will use that, just have to watch the ammo as you are loading the mags. Indian is cheap @about .10 a round, they all go off, but where they are going is the question.
My border collie is smarter than your honor student.0 -
I agree with richbug. I shoot an M1A and an AR-10 and have the same results he does. Also would caution about the Indian ammo. I did buy Australian that came in cardboard cartons with the plastic wrap as described on the Indian. The cartons are clearly marked as Australian and the headstamp has an AAF. As to the Styer you speak of, I had a Steyr Scout and was unimpressed with the overall accuracy and the stiffness of the bolt. I suggest buying and trying before stocking up. Also the ammo we speak of is Berdan primed so unreloadable. The supplier I buy from says the Australian will dry up in about six months. He buys by the shipping container full. 0 -
If you are shooting .308 at 25 yards I'd say anything would work. Personally Lake City ball ammo is some of the best practice ammo out there...especially the 1964 stuff. Also Lake City Match 168 grain is as good as any Match ammo you can buy....ok maybe Federal Gold Medal is a little better at twice the price. Check with the CMP ammo sales throughout the year..Sometimes when the Army unearths some Lake City ammo stored in BFE for thirty years it shows up on the CMP website. Simply great ammo...no other way around it. Also any profit by the CMP goes to making out National Championships better and better. Beach 0 -
for those that know me, im the the kind of guy that likes to dig a little deeper with my replies. for instance, what will you need the dirt cheap 308 ammo for, deer hunting? rule of thumb is, practice with what you use for the real thing. beachmaster will attest that it makes no sense to go to the range to practice 600yd match with a 147gr bullet out of an M21 when 168gr's are needed. so, if i may, are you just looking for something cheap to burn up or whats the need? if the need is for deer, practice with the bullet you will use when it counts. if you practice with one and use a different one on hunt day, once you change a variable, all your practice goes out the window. find a brand and stick with it regardless the cost. (this is where our posters inputs come in and help.) hope i helped with some 'other side of the coin' insight. btw.....steel cases are cheaper to mfgr. thus the reason they make them. odds are they are berdan primed too.
former air operations officer SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2. former navy skeet team, navy rifle/pistol team member. co-owner skeetmaster tubes inc.. owner/operator professional shooting instruction.0 -
Good reply Bobski.
Actually i would never even consider using FMJ bullets for deer hunting and wanted the ammo simply because it's cheap to use on the range.
Practice makes perfect you know.
I just needed others input on what did and did not work well.
Any how i always shoot 2-3 boxes of shells in the type i use for deer hunting a couple of weeks before the season opens.
Ammo availabilty of just this sort has also won me over to the .308
mike0
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