308 Win - 168 gr (A Max, SMK and ELD-M)

[Canhunter35]

Buy a box of superformance match with 168s and a box of regular match with the 168s from hornady and see how they shoot, I'm sure one will be decent. Yeah the eldm is the heat tip version of the amax

 

[Don A Parsons]

I like the 178gr ELD-X & M's.

Very consistant,,, but then again,,, what bullet is not well delivered from a 308.

Find one or two bullets that you'd like to test,,, see which ones groups the best.

Then get out there and kill $4!X,,, Ha

I call my two 308's "short case 30/06's."

Easy on powder, nill for recoil and anything goes.

 

[xsn10s]

Do not reload. Would need factory ammunition. Would be nice if my target ammunition and hunting ammunition could be the same.

From my research, the A Max/ELD-M are basically the same and perform better on game than the Federal 168 gr GMM?

Thanks

How far do you target shoot? If it's a the same distance then match vs hunting is irrelevant, just pick what hunting ammo is accurate in your rifle. IMO. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/5...tion-308-winchester-178-grain-eld-x-box-of-20

 

[mobenzowner]

Sorry for sounding judgmental, but I would buy target ammo for target and hunting ammo for the whitetails. It wont be hard to find a load for each that gun will shoot well.

 

[okie man]

I was looking at ammo at candles the other day and they had 10 different 308 loads on the shelf. You can surely find something that will be fine

 

[BoomFlop]

I realize there are plenty of options, but I was looking for more specific information as to what bullets perform better on game and if certain factory loads are notoriously more accurate.

 

[Doom2]

Chances are the 168 A-Max or the SMK are going to be the best target bullets and for factory loads the Federal Gold Metal Match With the 168 SMK will set the standard. Remington 308's have a long leade chamber and chances are the ELD's won't like the jump to the lands.

For hunting I would look at a 165 Nosler BT.

Search on Federal Premium Bullet Breakdown an see the video on some hunting bullet test.

I would not recommend the match bullets for hunting.

 

[MudRunner2005]

My first custom .308 Win loved Hornady 168 BTHP Match bullets. It also loved the factory Hornady TAP (red box) 168 BTHP ammo. Stuck them all into 1 ragged hole. They were a "target" bullet, but I shot a few deer with them, and they worked good with good vitals shot placement (rib shots only, no shoulder shots). But being that they're a "target" bullet, I can't really recommend them. Try the Berger 168 VLD's or the 180 Elite Hunters.

My 5R .308 Win loves everything from 168 to 215 bullets. It really likes the Nosler 168 and 175 Custom Comps. I have been wanting to try to the Berger 180 Elite Hunters, but haven't got around to it.

Varget, CFE 223, BLC-2, LeverEvolution will all work well.

I highly recommend Lapua brass.

 

[TG-5150]

I realize there are plenty of options, but I was looking for more specific information as to what bullets perform better on game and if certain factory loads are notoriously more accurate.

This isn't going to be a popular post but I would never advocate the use of a target bullet on a big game animal.
The .308 is one of the cartridges you can find lots of premium ammo for. The Hornady Superformance 165's shot extremely well in both my .308's.
Federal Fusion 165's are also a very accurate round and all you need for whitetail.
If it were me, and I had to shoot factory ammo, I would buy a box each of a few different brands/loads and see what shot best in my particular gun.
Good Luck

 

[Shane Lindsey]

Try this. I load my own but these are pretyy easy to tune, so they are probably a good fit for mass produced ammo. I picked up the 185s to see if they were going to be an option. We'll see in a few months one the rifle is back. If these don't work, try a Federal loaded Game King. They seem to shoot very close to the FGMM loads.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/5...winchester-168-grain-classic-hunter-box-of-20

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/4...winchester-185-grain-classic-hunter-box-of-20

 

[BoomFlop]

How does a Berger Classic hunter compare to the Hornady ELD M/A Max?

 

[Shane Lindsey]

I am not the technical expert but,
Berger penetrates 3 inches ans comes apart making mincemeat of vitals.
ELDX has the interlock on the inside keeping the jacket from coming completely apart making for more retained weight.

Can't speak to on game performance of the ELDX, but shot a doe last year with the Berger 180 EH and it did it's job. Didn't go more than 25 yards or so. Insides were pretty messy.

 

[birdiemc]

I havent put any of the barnes tsx through my current rifle, but have shot a bunch of deer with a friends 308 who loads his own tsx. I started out trying to play with the eld-x because it was the newest bestest thing, but I'm kinda leaning toward looking into the TSX or TTSX for myself which can both be found factory loaded. I'm also thinking about the Nosler Partition (also available in a factory load). No personal experience with them yet but they seem to be highly regarded, and of course any bullet you bring up somebody will have lost a deer with and somebody else will have killed countless so it's not a question that can really ever be settled.

 

[Shane Lindsey]

If monos is an option, I have tried a few, Barnes TTSX, LRX, Cutting Edge, and now the Hammer Bullets. Hammers were very easy to load in my 30-06 and 300 WM. Haven't worked the 308 enough yet.