.308s in my life.

[Scott Tschirhart]

The .308 and I go way back.

H&K 91

Once I was emancipated and started to earn my own money, I read a great deal of Mel Tappan and decided that I really needed an H&K 91. It was the early 1980s and surplus German ball ammo was so cheap.

I shot it many thousands of rounds and eventually took it to a rifle class with Chuck Taylor. Great gun but it was challenging to shoot over a high volume, multi-day course. Some positions were more forgiving than others.

Two of my close friends also had H&K 91s and both of them broke windshields on their trucks from the inside. Ejection was vigorous!

I sold that rifle for much more than it was worth. I went on to shoot Galils, FALs, and M1a rifles. One of my favorites was a Springfield Tanker Garand. I don’t remember why I don’t have that one anymore.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Ultra Light Arms:

I was spending my vacation time with Peter Kokalis and accompanying him to the Soldier of Fortune conventions in Vegas. I was the liaison with the Clark County Sheriff’s Department and enjoyed certain privileges.

Pete had an Ultra Light Arms rifle built by Melvin Forbes and has a 2-7 Leopold mounted low on the receiver. I can’t tell you how many rounds I shot through that rifle. It was light, accurate to a fault. It might have been a little too light for field shooting.

I coveted that rifle, and I know that’s a sin.

I liked it much better than the battle rifles I was shooting.

But on a police officer’s salary it was simply unobtainable.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Heavy barreled Remington 700s.

I went through a period of time that I shot factory and custom 700 Remington heavy barreled .308s and high power scopes.

Some of them were very accurate. They were easy to hold on target. They were very easy to load for. Thousands of rounds went through those barrels.

The best of the lot was a Hill Country Rifles gun that was remarkable. The weight controlled the recoil and I really learned to dope wind and work with the cartridge over several hundred yards.

But I always remembered that Ultra Light Arms rifle and these rifles were relatively heavy and you could use them from a fixed stand, but they were not ideal as stalking rifles.

Then I picked up a short barreled Remington 788 that shot every bit as good as the heavy barreled rifles.

I had to re-think my preferences.

[AJMD429]

.
It’s always strange when you have a target grade rifle set up that may be excellent but then some lightweight little Gun comes along that does just as well. I suppose that the lightweight ones typically wouldn’t be as good as the barrel heated up or whatever but for most of us the first shots really the only one that matters much, and that’s gonna be from a cold bore.

The first supressed gun I ever fired was an HK91, and I was wearing an oversized lined flannel shirt with a belt going through loops to keep the shirt snug at the waist, and had my four month old first born child inside sleeping. The guy who was working on my mom’s septic system next-door came over and interrupted my gardening so I could give him the check and he asked if I had ever fired a suppressed fire on because he was actually a licensed manufacturer of suppressors at the time.

With subsonic ammunition, I didn’t even feel her flinch.

[AJMD429]

.
Mel Tappan’s ‘Survival Guns’ book was practically a Bible of sorts for the guys I hung around with in high school.

We would dream of someday owning a massive collection of six or eight firearms and trying to figure out what ones would be the most strategic to have to cover all of the needs and contingencies.

[Scott Tschirhart]

The Scout Rifles:

I took my first class at Gunsite and became convinced that they had some of this stuff figured out.

I began to read more of Col. Cooper’s writings on rifles and particularly about his Scout Rifle ideas.

I built a Scout Rifle based on a Remington 600 that never was quite satisfactory. There was always something that was not quite right leading to inconsistent zeros.

I bought one of the Styer Scout rifles and that was very consistent but its balance and stock just never felt right.

The Ruger Scout Rifle:

Then Ruger made the Scout rifle. I bought one and shot the heck out of it. It wasn’t really very accurate, but it was comfortable and consistent.

I ended up floating the barrel and glas bedding the action. I replaced the trigger with a Timney. Now we were cooking with gas!!! This gun was dead nuts reliable for several years and I killed all manner of game with it.

The Remington 150 gr Core Lokd factory load hit to the same point of impact as the Winchester white box ball load. Very nice.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Then I lost faith.

I was happy with the Ruger Scout until I went to double check my zero this summer. The rifle fired as I thumbed the safety forward. Then it fired when I closed the bolt.

Obviously the trigger mechanism was not properly holding the striker to the rear.

I took the gun down and adjusted the weight of the spring to make it more reliable. But after several hundred cycles, I still am leery about it. I’ll play with it some more but I just don’t trust it.

A rifle with a faulty trigger can get a man killed.

It’s not the cartridge. It’s not really the rifle. It’s how I feel about it.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Ruger 77 Hawkeye Compact.

My new rifle is a Ruger 77 Hawkeye Compact. Stainless with a laminated wood stock but much lighter and handier than my Ruger Scout.

It also seems to shoot Remington factory 150 grain ammo into the same group as Winchester white box at 200 yards. Shoots into 1.75 inches at that range from a rest supporting only the forend. I’m betting it will shoot better.

It’s not a lever gun, but it’s as handy as a light saddle gun.

[JBowen]

My first 308 was a short barreled 788. Shot very good. Arkansas had a law back then that you had to have a 243 or smaller caliber center fire to shoot coyote and like a dummy I traded it off for a NEF 243. Many years later I have Savage 11 and a Winchester 100 in 308. Neither is as accurate and handy as that 788.
A 308 Winchester is a good all around cartridge that should be in everyone’s battery of guns.

JBowen

[Scott Tschirhart]

I still have thousands of rounds of surplus ammo and plenty of Remington and Winchester factory ammo.

The .308 makes a lot of sense. Even when ammo was scarce, I could always find .308 on the shelf…,,and I couldn’t find.30-30 ammo anywhere.

[COSteve]

My first and still favorite .308 was my M14 in the Army. It was the first peep sighted firearm I ever shot and it took me until qualification day to learn how to use the sight. I was fortunate to qualify expert with it once I just let my eye find the center and relax when aiming. I've got an M1A now in honor of that rifle with NM sights and it's my favorite semi-auto. My other .308 is a beautiful 1959 Winchester model 88 that I think is the best looking levergun ever produced.

[Scott Tschirhart]

I’ve always thought a Savage 99 carbine in .308 would be a great hunting rifle.

[JBowen]

Ruger 77 Hawkeye Compact.

My new rifle is a Ruger 77 Hawkeye Compact. Stainless with a laminated wood stock but much lighter and handier than my Ruger Scout.

It also seems to shoot Remington factory 150 grain ammo into the same group as Winchester white box at 200 yards. Shoots into 1.75 inches at that range from a rest supporting only the forend. I’m betting it will shoot better.

It’s not a lever gun, but it’s as handy as a light saddle gun.

That is a nice and handy looking carbine.

JBowen

[JimT]

I have only had 2 .308's in my life.

1966 I was issued an M14. I really liked that thing.

1995 (or close to then) I bought a Savage .308 ... shot it for a couple years and sold it to a friend. An accurate rifle but the .30-30 Trapper Model 94 was much handier and did everything I wanted to do with a rifle. I am not knocking the Savage. It was well built and had no bad habits. I just like leverguns better.

[blackhawk44]

I had a first year Remington 700, 308 that I regret selling a friend. First year 700's all came with 20" barrels only (no magnums that year) with a contoured, checkered steel butt plate. With a K4 Weaver in Conetrol mounts it was a joy to carry and handle. Replaced it in 1974 with a used two year old Browning BLR that I topped with a Leupold 4x M8 in Leupold rings. It shot so well I never tell others how well, just say under an inch, just to save the arguments.

[Lastmohecken]

The .308 has been my favorite caliber for 30 to 35 years. I have used a lot of others, but I always came back to it. My grandfather swore by one in an old Winchester 100 semi-auto for many years. But I was a .270 guy for a lot of years, until I bought a new Browning BLR leveraction in .308 Win. I wasn't really excited about the caliber but that was the best caliber available in the BLR at the time, and the only one on the shelf at a local gun shop. So, I bought it, and once I sighted it in and figured out how well it shot and dropped deer, I was hooked, but I got to admit, being a leveraction, cinched it for me, after I had a trigger job done on the rifle and the stock shortened about a half inch. It's still my go to rifle to this day. But I have owned other .308's and still do from a couple of FAL's to a Browning BAR that was my grandfather's in his later years, and a couple of very short and light bolt actions.

I still like to fool around with other rifles and calibers, but the .308 has been my go-to rifle for many years. I have killed lots of hogs and coyotes, probably over a 100 deer with it, but I lost count a long time ago.

[jeepnik]

I only own one .308. I grew up with the 06 and for a go to bolt gun it will be a leftie 700.

That said, I use a 7.62 NATO for a bit and found it both accurate, and more importantly, reliable. That was an M-14. And while I have a Garand the 06 just really isn't suited, for me, for a semi auto. Hence the Scout Squad.

As to a "scout" rifle I figure a good semi auto is better than a bolt gun. Push come to shove a simpler to operate action would be my preference. I took a serious look at the SOCOM when it came out, but it seems the Scout Squad balances better. A Leupold Scout scope is ideal. Nothing electronic needing batteries.

There are likely more precise rifles, but honestly I'm not good enough to get that little bit of improvement out of them.

[Scott Tschirhart]

There are likely more precise rifles, but honestly I'm not good enough to get that little bit of improvement out of them.

There’s a lot of truth in this statement.

[wvfarrier]

I love 308. Its my primary rifle caliber for most things.

I am using a Zermatt TL3 with 23" PVA barrel for all my long range shooting. My working load is a 200gr accubond at 2804fps (yes you read that correctly) with Alpha SRP brass. It will shoot 1/2 MOA all day long

[Steve in MO]

I've only got 2 .308 rifles in my safe anymore. A Remington 600 that I turned into a pseudo-Scout rifle, and a PTR-91, which is a copy of the HK 91. I got it to write an article and liked it so I bought it. I figured having a .30 caliber battle rifle on hand might be a good thing.

[GunnyMack]

I had a couple '06s early on, bothe went down the road. Not living in a rifle state i didn't need a rifle other than a groundhog gun. Of course 22s!
Once I got to gunsmith school that changed. From 17Rem to 338 WM but not a thing in 30.
Roll on another 25 years and I traded into an Armalite AR10T. Its a great shooter but I hate chasing brass!
A few years later a neighbor says 'here you need this, I have 2 of them' he handed me a post 64 model 70 in 308. It has a sporter barrel , wood stock which i swapped out to a Hogue over mould, better ergonomics, a Vortex ( think 6-24x) 20mil base. It shoots quite well for that light barrel.
Am I a 30 convert? Nope but I appreciate what the 308 can and does do.
I need to find a load for it but just about every load I've tried in it has been accurate enough.

[BobM]

I vaguely recall having a Ruger 77V I bought as my agency had one as a sniper rifle. After being issued a 700P I sold that Ruger and bought a MkII All Weather 77. I bought a 700 LTR that shoots very well. I sold the All Weather 77. Around ten years ago I bought a S&W MP10 that I’ve shot steel with out to 600 yards. I decided I wanted something lighter in case I wanted to hunt so a few years ago I bought a Ruger Predator in 308 and put it in a Magpul stock. It’s my current favorite, shooting more accurately than an inexpensive rifle should.

[AJMD429]

Then I lost faith.

I was happy with the Ruger Scout until I went to double check my zero this summer. The rifle fired as I thumbed the safety forward. Then it fired when I closed the bolt.

Obviously the trigger mechanism was not properly holding the striker to the rear.

I took the gun down and adjusted the weight of the spring to make it more reliable. But after several hundred cycles, I still am leery about it. I’ll play with it some more but I just don’t trust it.

A rifle with a faulty trigger can get a man killed.

It’s not the cartridge. It’s not really the rifle. It’s how I feel about it.

Are you sure it wasn't a SIG 320 rifle-version of some sort...??? That is scary for sure. I don't think I could trust it ever unless I found a clear and definitive issue and was sure it was fixed.

But I don't think I could sell it unless I made sure it was going to be fixed. Maybe return it to Ruger and tell them to keep it (hoping they'd give me credit towards a future purchase or something, but mostly being glad to get rid of it.

I have a Savage bolt action with threaded muzzle in 308 that does have a kind of not-great plastic stock, but so far it seems to shoot well.

[GunnyMack]

I suspect the Timney trigger got some Texas dust, dirt, grime in it. Pop the barreled action out and soak the trigger in a paint thinner then blow it out with compressed air. Apply a dry lube to prevent gumming up again.

[Scott Tschirhart]

I suspect the Timney trigger got some Texas dust, dirt, grime in it. Pop the barreled action out and soak the trigger in a paint thinner then blow it out with compressed air. Apply a dry lube to prevent gumming up again.

I did all of that. Didn’t help. I then turned the adjustment screw in until there was more tension pushing up on the seat.

[Scott Tschirhart]

But I don't think I could sell it unless I made sure it was going to be fixed. Maybe return it to Ruger and tell them to keep it (hoping they'd give me credit towards a future purchase or something, but mostly being glad to get rid of it.

I can’t sell it. My good friend from Gunsite, Ed Head, signed the stock. Ed has gone to his reward but I have his Milt Sparks teaching rig from Gunsite. Ed helped design the Ruger Scout and the rifle is dear to me.

[Drawdown]

Im not a 308 man only by circumstances! I got started with used guns i got, 30-30 and 30-06. Have recently went to a Rem 700 270Win, again a used rifle that fell in my path,bi couldn't refuse. Im glad i did, its a great deer cartridge!
My brother just this summer, got a Rem Limited Classic 700 in 308W. Made in 2005, the last year Rem sold their Limited Classics, which each year from i think? 1981, the Limited was sold in one cartridge only, a different cartridge each year, and ended with the 2005 in 308.
But when he got it,vi scoped it, Zeroed it. Using factory amm9, its easily the most consistently accurate rifle i ever shot! I used two factory ammos, but the plain ole Hornady American Whitetail 150gr SP, I shot several 3/4" groups, that rest on my 4w best i could@ 100yds. I fell in love with that rifle! Im already a 700 lover, a 270Win and 30-06 myself. And his, in that Classic American Walnut, red Buttpad, is for sure as pretty a rifle as ive seen, exception being a few high $ customs! The rifle had only been fired a few times! He got a Special Rigle in that one! Also the 2005 308W's being by far the fewest number made of all the years of the Limited Classics!

[Streetstar]

The .308 and I go way back.

H&K 91

Once I was emancipated and started to earn my own money, I read a great deal of Mel Tappan and decided that I really needed an H&K 91. It was the early 1980s and surplus German ball ammo was so cheap.

I shot it many thousands of rounds and eventually took it to a rifle class with Chuck Taylor. Great gun but it was challenging to shoot over a high volume, multi-day course. Some positions were more forgiving than others.

Two of my close friends also had H&K 91s and both of them broke windshields on their trucks from the inside. Ejection was vigorous!

I sold that rifle for much more than it was worth. I went on to shoot Galils, FALs, and M1a rifles. One of my favorites was a Springfield Tanker Garand. I don’t remember why I don’t have that one anymore.

Ive got the cheaper PTR variant --- its currently my only .308 ---

Nice at the range and accurate despite a very heavy trigger, but the ergonomics are cumbersome for me ---- i never pistured it as an "overwatch " or precision rifle so it wears a red dot ---

length of pull is oddly long and it makes me -- not so excited - to shoot it, although i love the cold war lineage and early HK mystique

[GunnyMack]

Scott, call or email Timney. They might send you a new trigger or want yours to work on/ figure out what went haywire.

[Scott Tschirhart]

Scott, call or email Timney. They might send you a new trigger or want yours to work on/ figure out what went haywire.

It seems to work fine now. I just haven’t shot it enough to trust it. I’ll get it sorted out sometime.

[JMick]

I'm a pretty big fan of my GSR it's put elk, deer, antelope and with reduced loads a grouse, some rabbits and a turkey in the freezer. I have the Leuopold 1.5x5 Firedot scout scope on it.
It still has the factory trigger in it.

[OldWin]

My first .308 was an early shotgun safety Ruger International. It had a Canjar trigger and a Leupold 2-7 compact. It was short and light but didn't shoot that great. It was also the worst kicking rifle I ever owned for some reason. I swapped it for a model 70 XTR Featherweight in 30-06. I still have it to this day. Wonderful rifle.

Like Scott, I shot my way through the cheap surplus ammo era with battle rifles. First an M1a, then I added the Scout version. I loved them both, and sent a lot of lead downrange. Usually leaving the brass right on the ground because the ammo was so cheap.

I've always liked the scout concept. When the Ruger came out, there were none to be found in these parts. I had some time that winter, so being a machinist and having a gunsmith buddy, I built one from a Bubba'd 1943 Smith Corana 1903A3. It came out really well, but about 2 weeks later I found a Ruger GSR and bought it. Mine shoots very well with a 150gr Sierra over IMR3031. It shoots very close to M80 ball, of which I still have quite a pile.
I won an aftermarket trigger in a drawing about 10 years ago. It gave an excellent trigger pull, but after a while it developed an issue. If you ran the bolt hard, once in a while it would drop the sear. I promptly re-installed the factory trigger and the issue stopped.
Aother mod was adding the Ruger synthetic stock once they became available. It shaved .75lb and made it super handy. I also removed the Ruger flash hider and installed an AR10 example. This allows me to use AR15 muzzle covers and keep snow and water out of the barrel.
This is easily my favorite non-lever rifle. I still do most of my hunting with levers, but the GSR is a constant companion as a truck/Jeep/tractor/4 wheeler rifle. It's very practical, and could easily fill my "only rifle" role.....but won't.

[Scott Tschirhart]

I won an aftermarket trigger in a drawing about 10 years ago. It gave an excellent trigger pull, but after a while it developed an issue. If you ran the bolt hard, once in a while it would drop the sear. I promptly re-installed the factory trigger and the issue stopped.

This is exactly what happened with mine and I may do exactly the same thing and reinstall the factory trigger.

[wvfarrier]

I shot this doe last year at 524 (+/-) yards with a 20" 308 (Zermatt Origin) using the 195 grain sierra matchking moving at 2750fps. She dropped.in her tracks and then slid down the hill, stone dead. The report.was so far away, the other doe herd never even stood up from where they were bedded.

[Scott Tschirhart]

The .308 has enough power for just about anything at an appropriate range. I have a friend from South Africa that killed an amazing number of Cape buffalo with a .308 bolt gun.

I’ve never had the opportunity to hunt Cape buffalo. But the fact that someone else has done it makes me happy.

For my part of the world it’s plenty.

[AJMD429]

I can’t sell it. My good friend from Gunsite, Ed Head, signed the stock. Ed has gone to his reward but I have his Milt Sparks teaching rig from Gunsite. Ed helped design the Ruger Scout and the rifle is dear to me.

Wow I see what you're up against.

If you have a local gunsmith you really trust, or if you are comfortable disassembling and troubleshooting it, maybe by replacing the factory trigger (especially if you could verify the fault is in the trigger upgrade) that would be cool - if not, maybe send the action (keep the stock) to Ruger for repair, and then see if they can make it work 100%. Even if they had to replace it, you could at least put the new action in the stock...

As to the adequate power of the 308 - remember the 30-06 bullet can be stopped by a collar bone...

[Scott Tschirhart]

As to the adequate power of the 308 - remember the 30-06 bullet can be stopped by a collar bone...

Yeah, something just seems wrong about that.

[ollogger]

I ve had 3 99s & one 88 in 308, now have a model 70 in the newer feather weight, it is a real gem

was out shooting prairie dogs the other day with it, out to 300 yards it does good, after that
its operator error dont worry i still have lever guns from 22 mag to 45-70


ollogger

[GunnyMack]

Just a tad over gunned for pasture poodles but I used a jhp, 110gr from my last '06 before I sold it on the dog towns- no doubt you hit one!

[OldWin]

I won an aftermarket trigger in a drawing about 10 years ago. It gave an excellent trigger pull, but after a while it developed an issue. If you ran the bolt hard, once in a while it would drop the sear. I promptly re-installed the factory trigger and the issue stopped.

This is exactly what happened with mine and I may do exactly the same thing and reinstall the factory trigger.

I bet it will solve the problem. These rifles are too good not to use.
I have the Leupold scout scope in QD rings on mine. I also have an Aimpoint T1 with a throw lever. I can swap between either and the irons in the field. It may not me 500yd accurate, but in my locale it doesn't have to be.
If you aren't satisfied with accuracy, a lot can be gained by playing with the action screw torque on these rifles.

[COSteve]

The .308 is a great caliber and much more flexible than many think. I've played around with handloads using both 110 grn and 125 grn bullets to use hunting Antelope in Wyoming. I tested some in my 1959 Winchester 88 levergun last summer at my range at 6,100 asl with a temp of 84° and they produced the following chrono data:

110 grn Sierra SPT: 49 grns of H4895 produced a velocity of 3,217 fps, 50 grns of Benchmark produced 3,321 fps and 52 grns of TAC produced a whopping 3,437 fps!
125 grn Sierra SPT: 49 grns of H4895 produced a velocity of 3,131 fps, 47 grns of Benchmark produced 3,191 fps and 51 grns of TAC produced a whopping 3,231 fps!

And I've got other loads I've developed with 150 grn, 165 grn, 168 grn and 175 grn bullets for larger game and they chrono'd well too. Of note, my 168grn Hornady HPBT bullets are very accurate in my 88 out to 300 yds.