If you only could have one...

[jayjay1]

...caliber, which one would it be?

(All others than .223 Remington pls, which I already have.
And no "Magnum" kind ones which feed up the barrel to fast.)

So, which one?

[dk17hmr]

For what purpose?

[jayjay1]

As an "good-for-all" caliber.
Weapon posess is restricted over here, you can´t have unlimited numbers.

Should have a short system.
Should be able to ring the bell at 600yds. + x.

Just because of availability and so on, I would go with the .308 Win., but am thinking there are nowadays "better" calibers out there.
Calibers which have a better performance over distance and a flatter bullet travel.

Thought about the 6.5 Creedmoor too, but then read in several tests, that the .308 Win. outperformed it in terms of accuracy.
Only a little bit, but really, on all comparisons I´ve read so far, the 308 was a nose above.

Maybe you bring some complete other calibers on the table, I don´t have to much experience in the rifle world, do shoot pistols much more.

[dk17hmr]

308 is a solid performer. Flatline 198gr bullets will turn it into a 1 mile cartridge. 178gr eldx at 2775fps for hunting will kill well passed the distance you should be shooting in the field.

Pretty much any centerfire will hit steel at 600. I don’t know what’s available there for components 6mm, 6.5mm, 7mm, and 30 are pretty common here for long range. Pick a cartridge that will push a higher bc bullet in the 2800+ fps range and run it. I have lots of options and couldnt pick one and only one currently.

[GARD72977]

308 all the way!

[Drm50]

It would be a 30cal for sure. 308 or 3006? I think if only one rifle it would be a 300 Win mag. It can
be loaded across the scale for 30cals. Smaller than 30 cal or larger wouldn't be as easy to find the
range of bullet weights to cover all situations. 300 mags aren't my favorite rifles but I have to admitt
they are the most useful if you are limited to one gun.

[murf205]

jayjay1, you will get a lot of advice and for sure the 308 is not a bad choice, but remember this, a 30-06 will do a bit more without straining and handle heavier bullets also. If you are thinking of hunting larger game animals, the 30-06 with 200gr or 220gr gr Nosler Partitions is a powerful combination. For target work it is great with high ballistic co-efficient bullets that you can seat farther out in a long action rifle. I have nothing against the 308 but I have found the 06 to be a bit better and it is a world wide standard that you should be able to find components for in your country. Phil Shoemaker, who owns Grizz Skins of Alaska Guide Service in Alaska said that the 30-06 is never a bad choice and he has seen everything imaginable used on hundreds of Grizzly bears, so he knows what he is talking about.

[castalott]

It would boil down to ammo availability and /or component availability if you reload. You might want to go for a powerful caliber since you have a 223 for plinking but be warned the powerful calibers can sometimes be unpleasant to shoot.

Since you posted on a cast bullet forum, you must be wanting to do that too. I would stick to 30 caliber and the choice would be between 308 and 30-06. This gives you many options on components and molds.


Whatever you choose, the Best of Luck to You.


( Glucklich Auf! ) (Is that right....my memory is old.....)

[jayjay1]

For the component availability over here in Western Europe, someone should go with one of the NATO calibers for sure.

223 Rem or 308 Win are really available everywhere, bullets and cases, all over the place.

.30-06 is a bit more rare, the hunters here are using the 8x57 IS, like always the old military cartridges, where hundreds of thousand weapons are around, become a hunting caliber.
In the USA the .30-06, in Germany the 8x57 IS, Sweden has its 6,5x55 and the Swiss 7,5x55, and so on.

I do have a .30-06, an old US Model of 1917, which I´ve used in ordonance competitions for some years, this beauty will leave me for the new rifle I´m asking here right now.
So recoil is not the problem for me.

The biggest game we have over here, are the European hogs, which are somewhat bigger than the North-American what I know.
So the .300 WM might be a bit of an overkill, well no, it is an overkill for here.

Yes, under pure reasonable motives the .308 would be the winner probably, and may be it will be it finally.
It is a fine caliber, no doubt about it, but I thought about having a bit more flat trajectory would be nice.

That´s why I was looking for a bit a more "modern" caliber like the 6.5 Creedmoor, and if someone could tell me what the next middle class NATO caliber would be, I would go with that one without any doubt.
In my opinion the .308 has passed its zenith since some time.
But only, nowadays nothing at all is for sure, so no one knows anything - and - components for the .308 are widely available here.

The rifle would most probably be something like a "Jeff Cooper project".

@castalott:
"Glück auf!" would be the right term, but you might set an "ue" instead of the "ü" ...

That´s what the miners in the Ruhrpott said to each other instead of hello and good bye.
Translated purely it would be "Luck up!" what might not make a lot sense.
The meaning is, that one miner wishes the other, that he will come up savely from the mine next time he is going down.

But that was only used in the area where the big mines were, in the Middle West of Germany, other areas have their own "blessings".

[Shopdog]

7-08 would work here in the Virginia mnts.

[Earlwb]

Well one can't go wrong with the 6.5 Creedmoor. It would make for a nice all around cartridge to use. Yes the .308 Winchester is good, but the 6.5 Creedmoor is more modern. One thought is that maybe the 6mm Creedmoor would be really good too. Both are excellent long range hunting or target shooting rounds. But the 6mm CM has a slight edge for long range shooting.

[castalott]

Now there is a good idea... If you reload you can make 7mm/08. Even back in the early '50s' it was better than the 308 by quite a bit. You could have the best of both worlds.... I suggest a search on 'how to' to see if you want a project like that...

[charlie b]

If you are getting rid of a .30-06 then I suspect you want a smaller dia bullet?

I had a Rem 788 in 7mm-08 many years ago. A great caliber and all of my brass was resized military. If you wanted, you could go with the .260 Rem which is basically a 6.5-08. With the right twist barrel it is as good as the 6.5CM. Of course the 6.5x55 is also an option for that dia bullet.

[rbuck351]

If I could only have one it would be a 358 Norma as I reload and can form cases from other easy to get cases (here). Bullets are available from 110gr pistol bullets to 300gr solids. In your case, I think the 6.5x55 Swede would make a lot of sense or the 7x57 if ammo or components are available to you. If you reload and components are available the 7mm Rem mag would be a very good choice as you wouldn't have to load it to barrel burning velocities.

[Bigslug]

I've got a bit of a love-hate thing with the .308. It's main advantage is it's ubiquity, and it does come in some handy little rifles, however. . .

I've been finding the short action for which it was designed a bit of a liability. First, it doesn't have the poweder capacity or throw weight of the '06, and I've run into seating depth difficulties with the longer, modern, high-BC bullets - once you find the best seating depth for accuracy with some of these plastic nose tips, your round is often too long to fit a magazine designed for 150 grain ball ammo.

For cast bullets, you've also got some limitations on mold availability. The NOE / Ranch Dog tumble luber is the only slug I know of designed specifically to keep all it's lube grooves inside the short neck of a .308.

No. . .if I've got to have just one, it's going to be a .30-06. Long neck and long action to take a wide range of bullet weights, can hunt pretty much anything, and proven in distance competition.

[roverboy]

I'd go with the .308, because I have the dies, suitable powder, bullets, etc. It can be loaded down for smaller game with lighter bullets, and loaded to full power for medium game. Good cartridge and accurate too.

[Drm50]

I with draw the 300Win mag if largest game will be boar. My favorite BA is a Win m70fw 308, pre64
that I got NIB in 64. To be honest the biggest game I have shot with it is deer, but a lot of them. My
longest shot was 250yds. For years I used 150gr bullets. I changed to Speer 130gr HPs in late 70s.
Bullet has been prooven to be extremely accurate and flat shooting. More than enough bullet for deer
sized game. My Hawg killing has all been with 30/06 with 180gr bullet out of a old 95 Win, just because that's what it shoots best. I did kill one with 44mg pistol, both cartridges are more than
capable of doing the job. So inside you boundaries and taking the political and availability of components the 308 is the best choice.

[Shawlerbrook]

These questions give me a chill up my back, because I hope I never have to choose just one. But I’ll play. You can’t beat the old 30 06 for a wide spectrum of loads and ammo available at any general store that sells ammo. A 12 ga. shotgun is also sort of a Swiss Army knife of weapons. I would need much more information to narrow my choices any further.

[Texas by God]

I can feel the heat already, but I would pick the 8 mm Mauser cartridge over the 308 or the 30-06. In fact, I have. Must be the German in me!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[castalott]

You'll not feel the heat from me ...8mm .... and 7mm are good cartridges.