"Proper" .308 grain?? Bear with me.

[azkcr]

Howdy gents.
I am just now getting into distance shooting as a challenge (string and stick guy mostly. Current "distance " rifle shooting for me is ~200yrds deer hunting).

I just got a 26" .308 1:10.
I don't have any .308 rounds yet and would like to know what you recommend for an "out of the box weight" for longer distances. I don't reload YET.

I've been reading and researching, and will continue to do so.
I'm just trying to get a good idea down for future bullet stocking.

Any advice, no matter how simple it might seem is greatly appreciated.
From bullet weight, technique, what not to do, etc.
I wanna learn!!!

 

[Koinonia]

Grain weight is important, however, the Ballistic Coefficient is more so. You can het away with almost all the bullet weights with a 1-10 or 1-12. The higher the BC, the further off your max supersonic range is.

 

[azkcr]

Ah. Supersonic range. Something else I have learning recently.
So how critical is supersonic range? Going from super to sub will mess with badly enough to change he path?

Will the lighter grain have a higher BC and longer super range? Or other way around?

 

[Koinonia]

Well, the thing with supersonic, is that the majority of bullets are not designed to make the change frim supersonic to transsonic, and have a very serious effect on the longer range accuracy.

Generally speaking, the longer you can get the bullet in any given caliber, the better it will deal woth cutting through the wind and break through the transonic barrier. For my 26"1-12 rifle, i use a speer match bthp, at 168 grains with a bc of .534, and get decent groups. I have also had some success with a Hornaday 208grain amax, with a bc of .648.

Its really in how you work up your loads to begin with, and getting as fast of velocities out of the muzzle without being unsafe, or ripping appart the bullet.

 

[azkcr]

Aaaah. Hence why hand loading helps.

I am realistically just trying to work up 500-600yrds.
I wanted to get my ducks in a row as far as weight goes before I started buying bullets.

 

[benenglish]

I wanna learn!!!

You came to a good place to learn. There are folks on here who know a great deal about this subject.

 

[Koinonia]

In that case, it is hard to go wrong with Hornadys loadings with the 168 grain sierra match king, or the 175 grain black hills. Expensive, but good ammunition.

 

[azkcr]

You came to a good place to learn. There are folks on here who know a great deal about this subject.

I just started on the forum and like it. You don't get verbally assaulted if you ask a stupid question (maybe a slap on the wrist). I try not to ask newb questions or some that are easily researched. But this topic is so difficult and has so many variants that I am getting confused easily. Lol

In that case, it is hard to go wrong with Hornadys loadings with the 168 grain sierra match king, or the 175 grain black hills. Expensive, but good ammunition.

I think I will try for the 168s. I'll probably buy both and see how they fare.

Now I really want to start getting my reloading stuff kicked off. Dang $....

 

[Younggun]

I'm shooting spear 169gr HPBT right now because I was able to get then when nothing else was available.

At 600 yrds I doubt anything you find will go sub sonic. But you will find that some billets will deal with wind better.

I recommend getting the "Ballistic" app. It has an expansive billet library and lets you compare how different billets deal with the elements. Just use your reloading manual for a ball park velocity.

 

[azkcr]

I think I will look into getting that app.
I've been (trying) to keep up with the 1000yrd for $1000 thread. I recall it being brought up in there. Or maybe not, I've read so many threads trying to pick up some info

 

[Younggun]

No app will tell you exactly where a bullet will go, but it's a real handy tool for getting close and tracking progress at the range.

 

[azkcr]

^ agreed.
That's what erkked me about my ar15. I haven't really tracked any progress or anything.

 

[ROGER4314]

I shot many matches at 200 and 600 yards but not beyond 600. The 600 yard firing line sees a lot of 168 grain Sierra Match Kings in 30 caliber. 1:10 is the "go to" twist rate in 30 caliber. It's not the ONLY twist rate but it is the most commonly used. So....you made a good choice!

Incidentally, I have done very well with 69 grain Sierra Match Kings in .223 at 600 yards.

(Now this is a secret) I actually won prize money several times at 600 using 55 grain Q3131 .223 right out of Wally World!

I used a 1:8 twist rate Bushmaster A2 20" with iron sights with the 69 grain bullets but that twist gave me miserable results with 55 grain bullets. I shot the 55 grain bullets out of a 1:9 twist Colt and Olympic. Both are A2 and 20" rifles.

Flash

 

[TundraWookiee]

I'm shooting spear 169gr HPBT right now because I was able to get then when nothing else was available.

At 600 yrds I doubt anything you find will go sub sonic. But you will find that some billets will deal with wind better.

I recommend getting the "Ballistic" app. It has an expansive billet library and lets you compare how different billets deal with the elements. Just use your reloading manual for a ball park velocity.

To clarify, he meant bullets instead of billets...I'm assuming autocorrect was involved. Like he said though, at 600 yards your primary factor will be wind deflection as no .308 round I am aware of will break the transonic-barrier at that range.

As someone else who has also been focusing on this aspect of shooting recently, I've found this guy's videos to be very informational and in-depth. https://www.youtube.com/user/TiborasaurusRex?feature=g-subs-u

 

[azkcr]

Tell me your secrets!!
I didn't think 223 could reach like that. I guess it could, just wouldn't be as effective.

 

[Younggun]

I also meant 168gr instead of 169.

I watched a couple of his videos. He gets a little "operatorish" at times but the info is good so far.

 

[TundraWookiee]

I also meant 168gr instead of 169.

I watched a couple of his videos. He gets a little "operatorish" at times but the info is good so far.

Yeah, intro's are a little excessively long as well but its a full series for free and seems to be better than most of the other content I've found on youtube thus far. SHLowlight has some good videos as well.

I searched and searched for that "Ballistic" app the other day only to realize its iOS only. I guess I'll just buy Shooter and give it a try.

 

[PhulesAu]

This may be of assistance when looking at ammo, since you know twist rate and barrel length. most factory ammo is tested with a 24" barrel. Lilja Precision Rifle Barrels - Caliber and Twist Rates

 

[ROGER4314]

I didn't think 223 could reach like that.

Heck, yes! The .223 is very effective at 600 yards from prone and iron sights! Twist rate is crucial. Please note that I added some to my post about 600 yard .223 shooting. The BEST results at 600 were with 69 grain MK's and 1:8 twist. The worst results I had at 600 were using a 55 grain and 1:8 twist. That was the worst match that I ever shot! 55 grain with 1:9 twist is also a winner.

All that being said, the 30 calibers buck the wind better. You really need to read the wind flags with a .223. The 600 yard bullseye is about 36" in diameter and the "X" ring is the size of a grapefruit.

Flash

 

[azkcr]

Wind resistance is a must around here. Lol.
I'm excited to get started practicing/experimenting/learning. I'm going to concentrate on ~300yrd for now.