[AbeKuyper]

newbie wanting experienced shooters' thoughts on bullet options

 

[Kryten67]

advice

Hello, My advice is to get a box of 20 of each and go and shoot. My money is on the box of 168 grain. You should also make sure that they are Hollow Point Boat Tail or HPBT.

 

[KYShooter]

For cheap ammo that keeps hits within target black, use the 147 grain. For ammo that hits precisely where you aim, use 168 grain. Benefits vs. cost kind of thing.

 

[AbeKuyper]

For cheap ammo that keeps hits within target black, use the 147 grain. For ammo that hits precisely where you aim, use 168 grain. Benefits vs. cost kind of thing.

thanks for the heads up!

 

[charlie98]

145-150grn bullets are so much cheaper, especially if you buy them in bulk, than the 168's it's really hard to spend the extra money for general purpose ammo.

145's $249/2k

http://www.wideners.com/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=7239&dir=278|281|727

168's $359/2k

http://www.wideners.com/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=8440&dir=278|281|727

GI1

 

[Trung Si]

I tend to use 147s to 150s up to 300yds from there on the 168 is Superior and the 175 even Better especially in the Wind!

 

[Duane Rine]

That's like asking what kind of hammer should i use. Depends on the outcome you want. i have used 147's out to 1000 yds. BUT ! In high power competitions i'll switch back to 168's just because of the tighter groups. 147's are relatively easier to find,and the 168's are getting pricey. Which ever you choose, stock up and set your sights accordingly or write your sight settings under your buttplate.

 

[30Caliber]

Sort of apples and oranges. The 147 is fodder and the 168 is match.

You can sometimes find decent 168's for fairly cheap. Keep an eye out at Midway and shootersproshop for Noslers.

The Speer 125gr TNT is a pretty inexpensive bullet that is super accurate--good enough against the wind out to 200yds. It has far less recoil than the other options too.

 

[cmore]

Im a newbie broke college student and have been using bulk PMC and Magtech 147 gr b/c they are cheaper and not expecting great accuracy, if I have my scout sighted in with those and change to the 168gr should I sight in my scope again?

 

[danthman114]

i would go with the 168 for anything out to 700. past that go with 175.

 

[Snow]

I tried the HPBT 168 grain, (reload) surplus 147 grains, and reloaded 155 grains for 300 meter contest.
I choose the 155 grains HPBT Sierra Matchking for reloading and shooting contests at 300 meters. I will switch to the 2156' 155 grains, with a lighter load than the 2155 grains.
Snow

 

[JayKosta]

147 FMJ bullets function fine, and accuracy with them is OK - they will hit at about where you aim them.

168 HPBT bullets also function fine, and accuracy will be excellent - if they don't hit where you aim, it's not the bullet.

When changing from 147 to 168 (or other bullet type/weight), the exact zeroing of the sights will be slightly different. But out to 300 yards they will all hit about the same.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

 

[AKA Hugh Uno]

unless I was reloading for a belt-fed machine gun, the chances that I would waste my personal time, money, primers, powder, range time, etc. on ANY full metal jacket bullet (GI or commercial) is (very) close to ZERO percent.

Intentionally "creating" a 2.5 to 3MOA round when for a few pennies more per round, using (various) commercial hunting bullets or match blems, one can reload/create a round capable of shooting much closer to ONE MOA is what I would (charitably) call "dumb."

 

[DavidinMD]

CMORE: You will have to reset the sight. 168s drop different than 147-150s.

 

[Zander]

unless I was reloading for a belt-fed machine gun, the chances that I would waste my personal time, money, primers, powder, range time, etc. on ANY full metal jacket bullet (GI or commercial) is (very) close to ZERO percent.

Intentionally "creating" a 2.5 to 3MOA round when for a few pennies more per round, using (various) commercial hunting bullets or match blems, one can reload/create a round capable of shooting much closer to ONE MOA is what I would (charitably) call "dumb."

Agree if the benefit exceeds the marginal cost.

• What manufacturer, weight, and type would you recommend ?
• Where do you do most of your purchases?

 

[cmore]

DavidinMD: will that matter out to 300 that much? I have a vortex pst 1-4 on it basically for shooting feral hogs.

 

[24kshooter]

newbie wanting experienced shooters' thoughts on bullet options

You have many different .308 cal bullet options for many applications. Bullets vary in weight, manufacturer, structure and so forth. Do you reload or are you going to use commercial ammo ? Accuracy, hunting, cqb, long range shooting are applications to be considered before we even discuss the nuances of your rifle.

 

[AKA Hugh Uno]

Agree if the benefit exceeds the marginal cost.

• 
  [*]What manufacturer, weight, and type would you recommend ?
  [*]Where do you do most of your purchases?

since I am not a long-range shooter (not anymore anyway) and I have lots of odd-lots of various hunting bullets (and plenty of match bullets), I reload just about any of the bullets you see below (and some not pictured). You can see I picked up 700-800 Hornaday 168 Match bullets (for 10.00 per hundred a couple years back). If I was limited to just one bullet (again, not for longer ranges), I would pick the 130 Hornaday SSP (single shot pistol flat base--no longer made, unfortunately) or equivalent bullet (125-130) from Sierra, etc.

I am an "opportunistic" buyer of bullets. Deals are (were anyway) everywhere. Some of the best are "old codger" tables at small(er) gunshows.

 

[Wayne M]

I tend to use 147s to 150s up to 300yds from there on the 168 is Superior and the 175 even Better especially in the Wind!

Yep! Inside 300 yards there's not enough difference to make the extra cost of 168 or heavier worth the money.

 

[hammonje]

168s punch one holers. You will not get that with a GI 147 gr projectile. The jacket is not consistent enough. Imagine a top spinning at 100k RPM. If something is marginally off at the edges it won't spin right. Either will a bullet.

Anyone claiming that 147 gr projectiles shoot as well as Nosler or SMK 168s hasn't shot them much. It's not even close. Spend the money on superior projectiles. Nosler is fantastic and every bit of SMK at a cheaper price point. I use them since I proved the point to myself. Loaded a magazine with 10 each for 20 rounds. All grouped together.

I prefer Nosler 155 CC for general purpose, intermediate range loads. If out at 600 I am rolling 175s.

168s are hard to beat except out at 600 and beyond. I prefer the lighter recoil of 155 though for general shooting. The cost difference is not worth the loss in accuracy potential. Noslers can be bought for $230/k from Midsouth Shooters Supply. They may be backordered but Midsouth is quite quick compared to others.

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=0011565934