.308 elk hunting

[dogz]

excellent, might play with seating depth...

 

[VLD Pilot]

I got an elk hunt coming up in November and the gun I'm taking is a .308 Winchester with a 22in barrel. I have Varget powder and BR-2 primers that I am using. I have Barnes 168gr ttsx, 200gr Hornady eldx, 185gr Berger classic hunter, and Barnes 180gr ttsx. I've ran tests with the Barnes 168gr ttsx and I've gotten the best accuracy with 40.5 gr of powder and a OAL of 2.800. The only problem with that is I only get a muzzle velocity of 1514 fps. I want to be able to take a shot out to 500 yards max, and by max I mean absolutely last resort. Mostly I want to plan for a shot below 350. Now I know people will say to just bump up the powder, but I am a firm believer in accuracy and shot placement over things like fps and kenetic energy. I also know that fps and kenetic energy aren't irrelevant and do play a large roll in ethically harvesting an animal. The problem was as I went up in powder my .211in group went to a .847in group. Just wanted some opinions on the best option.

Bad Chrono. Gotta be. I shoot 168s around 2880 with 46 grains of Varget. 26" barrel but you'd only lose maybe 100-125 fps with a 22". You should be in the ball park of 2500-2550 with 40 grains. You have plenty of room to load a hotter round even at 2.8

 

[ButterBean]

I know everyone has said the .847 group isn't bad, but for me it's a confidence thing. The more accurate my rifle can be the more I trust my shots. Also this is a once in a lifetime hunt for me and the more confidence I can have in my gun the better I feel about having a successful hunt. For 436 I have a savage 110 with a proof research carbon barrel.

It's still Sub MOA and good to go,

 

[436]

I know everyone has said the .847 group isn't bad, but for me it's a confidence thing. The more accurate my rifle can be the more I trust my shots. Also this is a once in a lifetime hunt for me and the more confidence I can have in my gun the better I feel about having a successful hunt. For 436 I have a savage 110 with a proof research carbon barrel.

That's strange, if you loaded a 168gr bullet with 40.0gr of Varget you should be getting about 2500 fps of velocity, either your scale if off or your chronograph is off, you do understand that copper bullets take different load data than copper jacketed bullets? But even with that, your velocity is nowhere near what it should be with 40.0gr of powder. Go back and double-check everything.

 

[cohunt]

If you want to hunt out to 500 yards-- you need to practice out to 500 yards-- or more

If you have shot out to 500 yards then you could calculate your speed by using your true drop numbers to see if your chrony is even close.

What are your drops at distance?

 

[nksmfamjp]

I hate to rain on your parade, but those all coppers need more velocity than that. 1500 or 2500….way too low to expand …..what bullet weight gets you 3000fps? 130gr should get you decent performance to 400 Yds.

 

[ButterBean]

I hate to rain on your parade, but those all coppers need more velocity than that. 1500 or 2500….way too low to expand …..what bullet weight gets you 3000fps? 130gr should get you decent performance to 400 Yds.

Barnes ttsx minimum is 1800fps

 

[VLD Pilot]

22" barrel with 168s is a great combination. Using a good charge of Varget or RL15, that combination is deadly. Velocities will be around 2700+ easily.

 

[VLD Pilot]

Elk at 600 yards is no problem with a 308 win with 185 Berger's. Nearly 2000 fps impact velocity and 16-1700 fpe on impact gets It done (6000' asl). Those numbers were with my 26" barrel. Since I've been running 22" barrels and 150-168s.

 

[the blur]

How do the Barnes 168gr ttsx work on Elk? I never hunted with all copper.

 

[bamban]

22" barrel with 168s is a great combination. Using a good charge of Varget or RL15, that combination is deadly. Velocities will be around 2700+ easily.

Or 2000 MR. I am running the 168 Hybrids at 1000 yard paper punching through my double lug. Velocity is just shy of 2800. Safe in my purpose built double lug M1A. YMMV.

Never tried the 168 Hybrids on game, they may perform as well as the 215 if the terminal velocity is right on.

 

[ducky]

How do the Barnes 168gr ttsx work on Elk? I never hunted with all copper.

I can't tell you on that particular bullet, but the 120 TTSX out of 7-08 is deadly on elk. The 165 TSX at 06 and .300 WM velocites also has worked very well on elk for us. We've had a hard time capturing a bullet in the off side, those that we have look text book from what Barnes promises will happen.

 

[wyogeargeek]

How do the Barnes 168gr ttsx work on Elk? I never hunted with all copper.

I have had outstanding performance on elk with them. The same with 130 gr. out of my 270 Win. I have never recovered a bullet, ranges from 50 to 400 yards. Did recover a petal on the close shot. For the most part dropped them right there.

 

[Pacecount]

I've killed cow elk and mule deer with the 168 Barnes on a 16" barrel as far as 478 yards... 2450 FPS at 30 degrees and 10k elevation. My self imposed limit on that setup is 500 yds…. Bullet exits every time w proper shot placement.

if you are looking to go farther my opinion is you need a higher BC.