Head-to-Head: 308 -vs- 30-06 (Which is better?)

Comments · 415

• GU

  @guyminer2384 · 1 year ago

  Gavin! You did my video you bum!  ;)  Good stuff - I love using each of them. Wore out several 308 Win barrels over the years at 6,000+ rounds each with match shooting and SWAT sniper practice. Hunted with the 308 a little. Hunted with the 30-06 a lot and wow... We've got articles about punching 165 and 180 gr hunting bullets out at excellent velocity, and taking game with the good ol' 30-06 - I was impressed with the accuracy of your Savage with the 130 gr Barnes TTSX bullet we tested a couple of years ago, .4" groups at 100 is terrific! Love 'em both. I'll do some more 308 and 30-06 videos as well. They're great cartridges.

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• US

  @useruser400 · 1 year ago

  I have both calibers. &nbsp;Based on my empirical evidence and post mortem interviews with the carcasses, I learned that whatever you kill cannot tell which &nbsp;cartridge you were using. So use what you love, not what someone tells you to love. Most importantly, be safe handloading larger case capacities!<br><br>The .308 only won favor because the military (after a half century) finally asked some serious questions about the technical wisdom of using the .30-06 as their standard round. “If you’re doing the same thing you were doing ten years ago, you’re doing something wrong.”<br><br>Whether this was just because some Army engineer drank enough coffee one morning or the Army brass realized that the Commies had developed a pretty effective rifle round that didn’t require all of that case capacity, I can’t say.<br><br>But it was quickly apparent to the Army that the old way of doing business was not the best way of doing business. And they didn’t have to look too far for the proof. &nbsp;The venerable 300 Savage was right at their fingertips. <br><br>Eureka! &nbsp;We can get nominal .30-06 performance by using a better designed 300 Savage round. (They weren’t wrong. I’ve got a 300 Savage too. It’s a great round.)<br><br>This did not obviate the effectiveness or desirability of the .30-06. It only meant the Army couldn’t justify the extra weight and rifle materials required to continue using that caliber. It just made no sense. <br><br>But handloaders rejoice! You can get magnum performance &nbsp;with the extra .30-06 case capacity. &nbsp;And those old priceless .30-06 rifles are still in the hunt - and will be for another hundred years. <br><br>But to be fair, I’m still taking my short-action &nbsp;AR-10 to the woods for killing pigs. Life is about trade-offs.

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• LO

  @lourensrudman5435 · 1 year ago

  I have a 308 hunting rifle it was gift from my friend, many moons ago. He hunts with a 30-06, we never in more than 25 years of hunting together found a reason to favour one above the other. How ever if I have to advise a new hunter on buying his first hunting rifle it is 30-06. The 30-06 is just so versatile and it just packs a slightly harder punch than the 308.

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• GL

  @glennllewellyn7369 · 1 year ago

  The 30-06 is a hand loaders dream.<br>Depending on a rifles chamber, throat and free bore you can go waaaaayy over book.

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• CO

  @Cowboy.underwater · 1 year ago (edited)

  If you use modern brass and rifles, 30/06 at 62-65k psi is head and shoulders above the 308, especially in the 175+ bullet weights.<br>The 308 is also an awesome caliber though, if you don’t hand load, and don’t need the extra power, just go 308.

  81

• NO

  @north61 · 1 year ago

  I have used both for 40+ years. &nbsp;At the same pressure the 30-06 jumps forward a bunch especially with heavier bullets, where you get even more case capacity advantage with the 30-06 loaded to 3.340 as bullet impingement is a bit less with long bullets than it is with the 308 at 2.825. &nbsp;20-24% more capacity gives yo 4-5% more velocity with 30-06 which at 3000fps level means 120-150fps more. &nbsp; My son just took a Dall Sheep 4 days ago on our annual sheep hunt here in the Yukon. &nbsp;Forbes 24B in 30-06 got the job done at 300 yards, easy-peasy.

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• AL

  @AllisChalmersMN · 1 year ago

  I own rifles chambered in both but I sure do love the 30-06. It’s just a classic!

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• BI

  @bigdaddybadger · 1 year ago

  .30-06!!! Third comment backs up 1st and 2nd comments!

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• NA

  @NadAttom · 1 year ago

  Great Video. I have and like both but I prefer my 30-06

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• JF

  @jfox71 · 1 year ago

  I am a 308 guy. I put together a super lightweight hunting rig with a banish backcountry suppressor. I chose 308 for a little less weight and a little less recoil. So far it has been fantastic taking game.

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• DA

  @David-4570 · 10 months ago

  Head to head, the 30-06 is an overall better cartridge. <br>For a 1 gun for hunting scenario, the 30-06. &nbsp;It shoots a wider range of bullet weights. &nbsp;It shines over the .308 with 180-220 grains, for elk and bigger game. &nbsp; <br>When I am elk hunting, I use my 30-06&apos;s with hand loaded &nbsp;200 grain Swift A-Frames, over my .308&apos;s.<br>However, for a versatile, jack of all trades, SHTF, the .308 Winchester. &nbsp; It will shoot the 150 and 165 grain bullets just as well as the 30-06. &nbsp;One can also get by shooting 180-220 grains in the .308 Winchester.<br>Yeah, they might be slower, but they can still get the job done with-in normal hunting ranges anyway. &nbsp;But, one can also load them sub-sonic for an AR, for two-legged defense. &nbsp;<br>Also, more gun platforms for the .308 Winchester; bolt guns, lever guns, AR&apos;s. &nbsp;<br><br>For all practical hunting purpose, the majority of people are not shooting past 400 years, so to me, posting charts of how the 30-06 is &quot;flatter&quot; at 1,000 years is irrelevant, unless one is shooting long range competition.

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• KP

  @kpatukas · 1 year ago

  30-06 Sako. 165 gr hpbt. 4064 powder. 1-inch 5-shot groups at 200 yds.

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