So i was wondering how versatile the .308 is...i was looking at one the other day and was told that it is an amzing deer gun which i believed, but i also heard that it was an ok gun for Alaska..maybe not the greatest, but it had enough oomph totake down a caribou reasonably well, and it was a little light for moose, but a well placed shot could dispatch one quickly..how true is that?..could a.308 be that versatile?
Yes and no!, with the right bullit you could probably take down a moose with it, but I would opt for something that carries a heavier bullit and still has some energy behind it over some distances. I would hate to know I spent all that money to go up north and could possibly come back home emty handed due to lack of penitration.
.308, 180-grain Barnes TSX, and if you get two shots off well placed, you should be in fine shape.
I would prefer a 30-06 for moose, but the .308 would work fine.
.308 would be great for elk under 250 yards, though using the bullet I mentioned.
I don't think you need to worry about losing a moose as long as your shots are well placed, and you choose the right bullet, if the Barnes TSX doesn't work, try a Nosler Partition, or Swift A-Frame.
It don't take a lot for caribou as they're not really large animals. The .308 is good there.
It'll also do fine with moose.....but as previously mentioned....use a premium bullet to insure good penetration.
I'm not at all a .308 fan as the 30-06 is quite available and ammo is everywhere (as are the .300 mags) that I can't see owning a .308.....but it's adequate for sure.
A heck of a lot of big game have bitten the dirt due to a well placed .30-30 so thge .308 is quite a bit more than that.
My big game rifle is a .308, many many deer have died from it, 4 bears and 2 moose. Put the bullet where its supposed to go and it will die. Moose camp of 8 guys,, half use 06 the others are 308's,, never had an issue of not enough bullet.
Grizzly and Polar Bears are about the only Game in North America that the 308 would not be an excellent choice for. Out to 300 yards the 308 will hokd its own against any 30 caliber riflen the hunting fields.
I wouldn't be scared to tote a 308 chasing anything in North America. That being said, there are better choices for the big bears, but I personally wouldn't feel under-gunned with a 308. For moose and bears your shots are usually under 200 yards, most the time under 100 yards, so I'd pick a 200gr Barnes FB TSX.
I've never hunted moose but from everything I've read they are not particularly hard to kill so a .308 is fine for them. One nice thing about a .308 is they don't have a lot of recoil so most people can shoot them accurately which is a lot more important than haver a larger caliber that you can't shoot accurately.
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I hunt the west exclusively where long range shooting is a given, and I have purchsed and shotseveral rifles and calibers through the years including the 06, 7 rem mag, 300 win mag, and 270. Ihave since taken to carrying a 308 almost exclusively (latest is a Weatherby Vanguard SMOA synthetic and stainless w/ a LoapoldvarixIV 4.5 x 10). With the newer amunintion i.e. - Hornady light magnum,the 308 and the 06 are identical - 3,000 fps for a150 grain out of a 24" tube. "Factory"difference is - 308 = 2,820 vs 06 =2910. So, pretty much a push there as well, out to 300 yards +/-.However, I did purchase the300 for bear, elk, and larger game simply because I can generate more energy with heavier bullets. Irregardless, I would be unafraid of anything short of big bear with the 308, but I would probably shorten my "comfort" distance down somewhatfor large framed animals.Oh, and boy oh boy is is ever asweetheart to shoot.
Also, about calibre, energy, accuracy, sightings, etc, the following links are two of theverybest I have ever read,and theyvery much mirror how we have approached thing son our ranch and with our hunters. http://www.kifaru.net/cartpwr.htm http://www.kifaru.net/posimag.htm
good ole .308
