I'm thinking of taking my son to RSA this summer, will be his first, my third, and planning and using one of our .308 winchesters.

I use the Hornady 150 gr SST here in Texas on whitetail, axis, aoudad, fallow, hogs, etc; but am thinking I need a heavier grain and maybe tougher bullet for Africa?

I was thinking the Hornady Superformance ammo - comes in SST, Interbond, or GMX - all in 165 grain.

Thoughts?

Why not a 180 or 200?

My PH liked the 165 grain Barnes TSX in his 30-06. I'm sure the Hornady GMX would work well too.

You do not have to go to 180 or 200 for penetration with the TSX or GMX in these calibers. My son used a 130 grain TSX in a 6.5x55 and it went through everything he killed.

Thanks - I was thinking the GMX in the Superformance load. Looks like a tough bullet.

FWIW my wife used 165TSX on her zebra in her 308 and I used it on the small stuff (warthog, impala, bushbuck). Worked fine.

Thanks!

If I was going on a plains game hunt with a .308 Winchester I'd be loading the 165 A-Frame and I'd do so with confidence!

I haven't used a .308 in Africa, but a friend who hunted S.A. plains game used a .308 borrowed from the guide. It was loaded with 165 grain Nosler Partitions which his guide used and swore by for EVERYTHING. He took all five or six head of game he shot at with this load, including kudu and wildebeest, and all were sure kills that left little to doubt about bullet performance.

Personally, I think that bullets heavier than 165 grains are pushing the envelope for the .308. I believe that it will do just as well, with better trajectory and ample penetration, using 150 grain premium bullets like a Nosler Partition or Accubond or any of a number of others. I don't have any experience with your Hornady SST, but if you're taking things like axis and aoudad with it, then it is adequate for African game of similar size.

180 and heavier bullets take up a lot of powder room in the .308 with its short magazines, making it difficult to get the velocity you need for a reasonably flat trajectory and ample impact speed. I'm not saying that the 180 grain is a choice that won't work, it's just that a lighter bullet may offer some advantages. Similarly, the monometal bullets are long for caliber and take up a lot of room in the short .308.

quote:

Originally posted by Austin Hunter:
I'm thinking of taking my son to RSA this summer, will be his first, my third, and planning and using one of our .308 winchesters.

I use the Hornady 150 gr SST here in Texas on whitetail, axis, aoudad, fallow, hogs, etc; but am thinking I need a heavier grain and maybe tougher bullet for Africa?

I was thinking the Hornady Superformance ammo - comes in SST, Interbond, or GMX - all in 165 grain.

Thoughts?

+1 on Stonecreek's post.

I take from your post that you either do not reload or intend to use factory ammo.

In that case, and assuming your son will be shooting things up to wildebeest-size, from what I have seen you want to be thinking about 180 grain and up for cup and core bullets and 165 grain for premiums.

I don't have much experience of African plainsgame, only have been once, but since there were four of us was able to see a fair amount of game shot by four bullets. I shot 180 gr interlocks @ 2550 and they put down down everything to Blue wildebeest with one shot from various angles. Retained weight was about 40-60%. The lowish velocity was not a problem as most shots were below 150 yards and zero'ed 1.5" high at 100 yards is point blank to 220 at least.

A mate used 168 grain TSX for everything up to Eland on another trip and whilst he said it was a bit light for the eland but handled everything else very well.

From the Hornady lot I would say go for the GMX or accubond depending on the main target species or any box of 165 grain premiums.

Personally I'll be taking 168gr TSX next time.

Personally I'm not a fan of the "expanding monolithics" (ie, TTSX, E-Tip, etc.) in the 308... I just don't think it has the gas to open them in a meaningful way past 400 yards max.

The beauty of the 308 is that it's not hard on conventional cup and core bullets.

If my 308 didn't shoot the 165 Accubond or 165 Partition I'd use the 168 Ballistic Tip... that bullet has a VERY stout jacket.

If your hunting bushveld I like this load and its a great price right now!

http://www.grafs.com/retail/ca...duct/productId/16724

Shot a lot of stuff with this bullet and has always worked too!

http://www.grafs.com/retail/ca...oduct/productId/4199

I like 180's they seem to shoot good in my rifles and the range in Natal/Limpopo/type bushveld is rare to extend over 150 yards. If hunting the east cape or Plains you may want to just stick with the 150's that shoot good!

Ed

quote:

Originally posted by Brad:
Personally I'm not a fan of the "expanding monolithics" (ie, TTSX, E-Tip, etc.) in the 308... I just don't think it has the gas to open them in a meaningful way past 400 yards max.

The beauty of the 308 is that it's not hard on conventional cup and core bullets.

If my 308 didn't shoot the 165 Accubond or 165 Partition I'd use the 168 Ballistic Tip... that bullet has a VERY stout jacket.

If you're shooting beyond 400 yards in Africa, you better find another PH!

quote:

Originally posted by Blacktailer:

quote:

Originally posted by Brad:
Personally I'm not a fan of the "expanding monolithics" (ie, TTSX, E-Tip, etc.) in the 308... I just don't think it has the gas to open them in a meaningful way past 400 yards max.

The beauty of the 308 is that it's not hard on conventional cup and core bullets.

If my 308 didn't shoot the 165 Accubond or 165 Partition I'd use the 168 Ballistic Tip... that bullet has a VERY stout jacket.

If you're shooting beyond 400 yards in Africa, you better find another PH!

That's a correct statement if I ever heard one!

Within 200 yards

I live in SA and I hunt with a 308 W amongst other chamberings.

If you give us an indication as to the area and species that you intend to hunt you will probably get better input and suggestions.

I have used my 308 successfully on several species, although I generally use larger calibers for the bigger stuff if not at bushveld (short) range.

I general I agree with Stonecreek who makes good suggestions. For anything up to about 150 yards I like the 180gr at 2500 fps - even the humble Hdy IL works at that velocity.

For longer range I prefer to flatten the trajectory a bit and would prefer 150gr (2850 fps) or 165gr (2700 fps or so), probably leaning towards the 150's unless animals like Blue wildebeest were on the list. I do not view the 308W as an Eland caliber, but I know they are used by some. Some also drive with bald tyres...

I also do not favour a bullet that is too tough for the 308. The "toughest" I would choose is a partition, or maybe one of the better expanding bondeds like an Accubond. So basically I agree with Stonecreek, but I have some local experience. I intend to try the Hdy IB sometime soon as well.

Give us some more details if you have them.

I hope you have a great trip!

hard to beat a 150 partition for anything a 308 is used for

I'd suggest the Black Hills Gold 168gr TSX load. We use it for everything from coyotes to bull nilgai and elk. Accuracy has been excellent in (8) different rifles, sub moa, and penetration is 3' in the elk and nilgai. Out of 20" guns it chronos at 2650 fps. Recovered bullets are 99% weight and more than 2x diameter.

Perry

One more for the Swift A Frame 165

165 TSX or TTSX. My dad shot the TSX in his .308 this past Sept in Zim and it was an excellent performer. Pulled a couple out of large plains game animals that looked like a Barnes add and still weighed exactly 165 gr.

Inside 200 yards 165 or 180 Game King work well with the speeds of the 308. For such a trip using a 308 mine would be loaded with 165 or 180 Accubonds or Interbonds. Not because the Game King couldn't get the job done, but the added piece of mind of the AB and Interbond would be welcomed.

On my three trips for plains game animals, I used the 165 Gameking (<300lb) or 165 Trophy Bonded (>300lb) in my 308Win. 50 to 60 shots = 50 to 60 dead animals including culls and camp meat kills.

I like the following weights for 30 cal bullets:

308Win 165gr
30/06 180gr
300mag's 200gr

So do a lot of gun writers, it's a matter of balance with good sectional density's vs. velocities.

And BTW; I have never lived in a trailer in the woods and I have shot more than whitetail's...

f224 has good advice I think.

my brother got five for five one shot with his 308 scout rifle. used high energy federal loaded w 165 grain tbbc.

Andy

150 gr TTSX is excellent in the 308. Get it close to the lands & accuracy is unbelievable. The new TTSX has a massive hollow point under that tip & will open perfect at ANY range your going to be hunting at.

165 Accubond is simply a great all around projectile for a 308.

165 or 180gr Nosler Partition or A-Frame

I like 165s in the 308 also. I've used the 165 grain Hornady BTSP Interlocks exclusively in NA and haven't had a failure in 35 years.

quote:

Originally posted by Lloyd Smale:
hard to beat a 150 partition for anything a 308 is used for

Well, you could be using the Partition Gold. No longer in production, but I scored 100 of 'em yesterday on Gunbroker. The kids .308 seems to like 'em. Think the original paritition, but on steroids.

Another vote for the 165 A-Frame, used them for years in my '06.
Partition is good choice.
Have to admit I've went to the 165 ttsx in my '06, the ttsx have been tighter grouped and accurate in my rifles.

I would strongly recomend either a 165 Swift A-frame or the 165 Nosler Accubond. No other choices compare to that level of performance for the .308 Winchester.

RWS 184 grain EVO

tough deep penetration at 2542 fps / 2640 fpe

RWS Site: 308

quote:

Originally posted by mwm464:
150 gr TTSX is excellent in the 308. Get it close to the lands & accuracy is unbelievable. The new TTSX has a massive hollow point under that tip & will open perfect at ANY range your going to be hunting at.

Here's a 150 TTSX I recovered from a cow elk. Shot was 225-ish yards, rifle was 308 Win.

Personally, various friends and I have witnessed this sort of performance with Barnes bullets. Mostly the "expanding monolithic's" work well, but sometimes they don't.

I really can't see the need for them out of a cartridge like the 308 Win. But to each his own.

I think I'm going to go with an Interbond, Scirroco, or Accubond.

Went to South Africa for the fourth time this past August. I used a .308 with commercially loaded Federal Fusion bullets in 165 grn. Several springbuck, warthog, blesbuck, wildebeest and gemsbok all fell to a single well placed shot. Shots ranged from 65 yards to over 200. All shots were pass throughs except for the gemsbok at about 200 yards. I have also used 165 grn Hornady Interlocks in the past on African game with great results. In my experience, the .308 is great with 165 grn bullets of good construction. I would not hesitate to use it on most plains game. That being said, in my opinion, I would not want to use it on eland, although it would work with a tough bullet and a good broadside presentation.

One thing I found very interesting about the Fusion loads is that while they worked very well in the .308 (held together and penetrated perfectly) my friend used then in his 7 mm Rem Mag and they blew apart terribly. His animals all died, but on his warthog and hartebeest, the penetration was barely adequate and there were only small remnants of the bullet to recover. With the .308, all shots were nice pass throughs and the one bullet I recovered from the gemsbok was a picture perfect mushroom. To me, that is pretty good evidence that the fusion bullet does not handle 7 mag speeds but in the .308 speed range, is just great.

quote:

Originally posted by Brad:

quote:

Originally posted by mwm464:
150 gr TTSX is excellent in the 308. Get it close to the lands & accuracy is unbelievable. The new TTSX has a massive hollow point under that tip & will open perfect at ANY range your going to be hunting at.

Here's a 150 TTSX I recovered from a cow elk. Shot was 225-ish yards, rifle was 308 Win.

Personally, various friends and I have witnessed this sort of performance with Barnes bullets. Mostly the "expanding monolithic's" work well, but sometimes they don't.

I really can't see the need for them out of a cartridge like the 308 Win. But to each his own.

A bent bullet is typically indicative of the lack of stabilization. The TTSX is awfully long.

Perry

I've never had problems with any of my rifles & TSX / TTSX out to 600yds. Your bullet almost looks like it keyholed with the semi horizontal striations & tip & pedal being pulled to one side. I would agree with possible stabilization issues (all my .30 cals have a 1-10" twist) or maybe catching some grass / brush prior to impact? Very interesting...

150 gr Noz PTG. Bow to stern on a blacktail buck at 150 yds. .308 Win, 22" bbl, MV around 2,700 fps.

quote:

Originally posted by MuskegMan:
150 gr Noz PTG. Bow to stern on a blacktail buck at 150 yds. .308 Win, 22" bbl, MV around 2,700 fps.

Can't argue with that.

I was thinking about the Federal Fusions as well.

Normally I shoot 150 grain Hornady factory SSTs in my 308s here in Texas - knocks everything down and dead. And very accurate. However, concerned these might not be tough enough for wildebeest and kudu. Certainly would be fine on Impala, Springbuck, Hartbeest, etc.

I also shoot nothing but 150gr Part. Golds in my .308's for hunting. I was able to buy a couple of thousand when word got out they were no longer to be made. These should last me 'til I croak.

Remington Core Lokt 150's worked fine for me.