RE: Marlin 308 Express
I am afraid this cartridge has a limited future. It is a proprietary cartridge, loaded with a proprietary bullet &
special powder, which apparently has to be compressed
with special machinery inorder to fit into the case, such as is done with the Hornady Light-Magnum rounds.
Handloaders will not be able to match the velocities
attained with the manufactured round, which is a drawback. I am also not sure other rifle manufacturers
will make the rifles in this caliber since they have the .308 Win.
The pity is they didn't chamber the .307 Win. on which the new cartridge is based, with the new polymer tip
bullet. This was an excellent round which also had the advantage of being handloaded using .308 diesand a 30-30 shell holder. My .307 handloads with 3031 powder shot sub MOA groups @ 100 yds.
From what I understand Marlin didn't offer the .307 because it would haverequired using a stronger receiver which is what Winchester did. This is one of the main reasons the .307 failed.