Hello from Scotland~

I have heard very good things of 180gn RN bullets in the .308 Winchester,i shall have to try them.

What about 200gn or 220gn or even 250gn ???

What rate of twist is required and how do they perform ??

What uses could they be put to ??

Would be intersted to hear...........

Regards Englander

I tried the sierra 220 gr rn in a Ruger M77 ultralight, 20" barrel, and I don't know the twist. I used RL 15, H 4350 and VV N 550, and bascially all loads were achieving 2150 fps and 3 shot 1" 100 yd groups. My thought was to have a heavy bullet load for large animals inside 100 yds. Then I built a bigger gun

Honestly, I don't know that the heavy bullets have much of an advantage. The same rifle pushes 180 gr bullets 2550-2600 fps, and IMO, anything I'd use a .308 for would be well handled by a 180 gr bullet, and added 400 fps makes for a much longer effective range.

Most 308's are made with a 1 in 12 in twist.This will stabalize bullets up to 200 grs with no problem . Most of the other 30 cal rifles have 1 in 10 twist which will stabalize heavier bullets such as the 220's and even 250's.

Englander, I used to shoot Hornady 220 grain RN bullets in my pre-64 Win. M70 Featherweight that had a 1/12" twist. My load was 48 grains of Norma MRP, and the MV was in the vicinity of 2300 FPS. It was very accurate, and proved to be a real killer of whiotetail deer at ranges up to 150 yards. There are those who claim the 220 is too heavy for the .308 Win. Don't you believe it!!

I'm with Eldeguello. I did some tinkering with 220 gr. Sierra round nosed bullets in two Winchester model 70's, one a pre-64 Featherweight, the other a Youth Ranger that has been restocked to fit me. The pre-64 averaged .55 inch and the Y/R 3/8 inch. velocity was 2300 FPS with W-760.
I also have a 30-06 with a custom barrel with a 1 in 12 inch twist. It too will stay inside an inch.
Anybody that says a 1 in 12 inch twist won't stabilize a 220 gr. round nose is full of it. I haven't tried a lonf spitzer boattail though, and they may not work out.
The late Karamojo Bell thought that the .308 with either a 200 or 220 gr. full metal jacket would be the perfect rifle for his style of elephant hunting. Notice, I said "his style".
Them that sez they won't shoot should try it first. Inquiring minds find out all kinds of intersting stuff.
Paul B.

I think the way to improve the performance of the .308 for larger game is to use the 180 grain Failsafe bullet. It goes all the way through Wildebeest and Gemsbok, breaking shoulders as it goes, and leaving 1" plus holes through the vitals. Can't ask for much more.