What is the Better All Around Caliber- .308 or the 30-06?

Question

Say you were using it for elk, moose, black bear, deer, and some other smaller game like coyotes and bobcats. I just want to hear opinions and reasons for those opinions. If you think another caliber is better suited, tell me.

Answer 1

You have gotten some good answers so far. I own both. IMHO, the performance of both rounds is close enough that it really doesn't matter.

Both rounds are tried and true rounds for killing humans and animals. In Vietnam, both the 308 Win/7.62 NATO and the 30-06 were used in sniper rifles.

In the hands of a skilled person, both can be shot out to 1000 yards. For hunters shooting up to 300 yards, either one will work just fine.

Based on my experience, anything one cartridge can do, the other can do. The only edge I would give to the 30-06 is that it seems to handle 200gr bullets a little better than the 308 Win. Conversely, the 308 Win is built on a short action rather than a long action, so the rifles tend to be a little lighter which can be a huge advantage if you are hiking the plains or in the mountains.

My father grew up in Alaska and killed everything there was to kill in the state with a 250 Savage in a Savage 99. With good shot placement, some patience, and good quality bullets, either the 308 Win or the 30-06 can kill anything in North America (NOTE..I said it can kill anything...there are much better choices for the biggest of North American game).

If I had to choose between the 308 Win and the 30-06 and could only choose 1, I would opt for the 30-06. The main reason I would choose the 30-06 is due to the wide selection of ammo as well as the availibility of ammo around the world.

If I were only going to handload and not worry about commercial ammo, I would opt for the 308 Win. When handloading, you can load the 308 on the hot side to close the velocity gap between the two cartridges. Also, there is a large supply of one fired military brass on the market for the 308 Win that can be bought cheap. I have almost used military brass exclusively in my 308 Win and it has worked great.

In my younger days, before I "graduated" to magnum rifles, I carried a 308 Win semi-auto when I hunted deer in SE Alaska in areas known for big brown bears. My round in the chamber was a 165 gr Nosler ballistic tip followed by 4 rounds loaded hot with 200 gr Nosler partition bullets. I always felt comfortable in my ability to drop a bear in a shot or two with the 308 if need be.

Answer 2

Anything the 308 can do, the 30-06 can do a little better. The only reason for the 308 is that it feeds in autoloaders better than the 300 Savage (which, by the way, is how it came into existence in the first place). If you're building a lightweight mountain rifle, and really trying to save every inch and every ounce, the 308 is a fine choice. Otherwise, for hunting rifles for medium game, the 30-06 is the better choice, though it's so close that it's almost meaningless
The answer about the 308 having better range, by the way, is just plain silly. How could the exact same bullet travelling at a slightly higher velocity have a shorter range? And the 30-06 will handle the heavier bullets better if you want to step up to slightly larger animals.

Answer 3

When it all comes down to it there is no real big difference between the 3. The 06 does have a little more top end power but its a very minor difference. 270 and 308 both have a bit less recoil. Actually both the 308 and 270 were created for the same purpose 06 performance with less recoil. Handle rifles chambered in all 3 and pick the RIFLE not the caliber!

Answer 4

here is the deal
30-06 is as a rule of thumb 100 fps faster than the 308 not much of a difference

The 30-06 can shoot really heavy bullets really fast the 308 tops out at about 173 grains for max performance i think while the 30-06 can push a 220 grain bullet 2,750 fps (more energy and range)
what happens is the bigger bullet takes up room where the powder is supposed to be in the 308 while the 30-06 has a lot more room (more powder) so it can be loaded to a higher speed
The 308 has about half of the recoil of a 30-06

The 308 will work for most of your applications but i would never use it to hunt dangerous game but i probably would use the 30-06 either
If your going to get into hand-loading go with the 30-06 because it will really shine but if your not go with the 308 because it wouldn't be much behind the 30-06 as far a factory loads go

Answer 5

It's really hard to say which gun is the best all around gun because they simply havent made one yet. Which gun is better suited for hunting depends on what you're hunting for. Like what DJ said, the 30-06 has more "knock-down force" than the .308, but the .308 is a faster bullet with a slightly longer range. So if you were going to hunt big game up close (Within 200 yds) then the 30-06 would be the way to go. I personally wouldn't use the .308 on anything larger than a deer.

Answer 6

There's a reason the USA military went from 30-06 chamberings to 7.62 (.308) chamberings. The .308 is by far the better round here, while i do agree with DJ above, the .308 is more than capable of taking any north american game animals humanely.The 30-06 may deliver more kinetic energy at longer distances( well over 600 yards) but how many ethical hunters are willing to risk a shot at that distance? The 308 is the PERFECT north american hunting cartridge.

Answer 7

The .30-06 would be better. It's a little more powerful than the .308 and has a wider variety of factory loads you can buy. You can get bullet weights from 55 grain accelerators all the way to 220 grain round points with the .30-06.

Answer 8

OK, you have heard one side, now please hear mine.

I personally do not like the 30.06 or .308 !! These calibers are designed around taking out humans. Their development was aimed around the wars and they did an excellent job for that !

Humans in comparison to Elk, Moose, Black Bear & Deer are extreamely weak. These animals dont fall down crying because they got shot. They also dont bleed nearly as easy as us.

For these type animals, I would go with a .300 Weatherby Mag or the smaller .300 Winchester Mag. Either of these can handle the same weights as the .308 & the 30.06 plus some. To be honest the deer and black bear wouldnt need a heavy round, but the elk and moose would. I dont like to go looking for my game for 3 miles after I make a nearly perfect shot. I also know that its fact that most wont make a perfect shot, thus the .300 Mags come into play. You can be off just a bit and your game will be somewhat close to where you shot it.

Im a Bigbore nut, so I hunt with larger guns that most. Im also not an idiot so you wont see me using those bigbores on small game. I have .204's and 22-250's for that. I just dont think it makes scense not to go with something big enough to make up for error that your going to have reguardless how good you think you are.

Just my thoughts. BTW, I own all of the calibers we are talking about here.

Good Luck & Happy Shooting !!!!!!

Answer 9

Sounds like you are in a bind... for the elk, moose and bear, I say 30-06. But for the rest, and general all-around use, I'd stick with the .308

Answer 10

The 308 is simply a 30/06 utilizing next generation powder to achieve the same velocity. Being shorter it functions with less wear and bolt travel in semi-auto and full auto weapons; not to mention you can carry more ammunition in the same size storage space vis a vis logistics. The 30/06 was adopted by the military in 1906; hence the 06 behind the 30. It utilized one of the first smokeless powders; and I have read that the original supply of powder was stored and tested every year to determine deterioration. To date it still performed at 99% of its original numbers; not bad for something made 101 years ago. For general purpose uses I prefer the 30/06 since you can tailor a greater variety of reloads with it; plus the fact I like my old Garand and P17 and 03/A3; all of which are chambered for 06. I also like my M1A and HK91 in 308; but whats not to like?