5.56 vs 6.8 vs .308

[RHalle]

I was wondering what everyones opinions were between these rifle cartridges. Obviously there are tradoffs between ballistics and lethality, but if you only had one rifle caliber to choose which would it be? Let's assume this we be for taking down objects from 100 to 400 pounds.

I think my vote is for the larger .308, but to be honest I don't have much experience with the other two.

Opinions???

[RHalle]

Oh, yeah. Other popular caliber's are ok to disscuss as well. These were the first three that came to mind for general use.

-Ryan

[Scott H]

Not sure about the 400 lb animals, but for the smaller end of that range, I'd be inclined to think that the smaller calibers are more than enough.

Maybe Cleck or somebody can answer this, but doesn't the .308 have the trajectory of a football? I've always preferred rounds with the flattest trajectory possible.

[M S]

I have only had experiance with the 5.56 and .308, and I know both will take down very large animals if the set up is good and so is the shot. With all of the reading I have done on the 6.8 I will tell you that when I get the money, I will be getting the 6.8 conversion for my AR. Keeping it this in mind though, the US Army and Marine Corps have been useing the .308 cal since Vietnam in their Sniper weapons. Many calibers have come and gone, but the .308 is still the most widely used. Not saying that it won't be replaced someday, especially with the nice rounds like the .300 that are gaining popularity.

So anyway, very I am interested in the 6.8.


You might want to look at the 50 Beowulf too http://store.50beowulf.com/

[RHalle]

The 6.8 is definetely intriguing. But the .308's widespread use and proven reputation makes me feel a little more comfortable. I sure would like to play with the 6.8 and see how it shoots though.

Like I said if you could only pick one, which would it be?

-Ryan

[Cleck]

To start over and pick one only? 6.8.

It would be fun to check out and it is a bit of a compromise between both cartridges. It isn't too big for anything and it can drop North American game easily.

The .308 is extremely popular and therefore extremely well tested and can be tailored for exactly what you want. However, yes, the trajectory is like a football! I still think it is my favorite though. I would only go 6.8 because I could have the compromise of shooting it out of a smaller AR-15 and being able to shoot rapidly.

The .556 is ok at best. I know some people love it, but even they say "it is enough of a round for what you need", well if it is enough, how about a little more?

Drawback of 6.8.... who knows when they are going to stop producing it? At least with .556 and .308, they are going to be made for a LONG time since they are both NATO rounds.

[Scott H]

I think that somebody pointed this out to me in the past.....

It IS worth taking this into account, but how many rounds have ever been compmletely discontinued? At worst they get hard to find and expensive. And if you handload you can usually keep going long after boxed ammo gets scarce.

[Ron D]

If I had to choose One? It would probably be a 30-06. AND I would reload for it. With the huge selection of bullet weights and types I would be able to come close to matching the performance of just about anything from the high end varmit cartidges (22-250) to the the low end 300 mag rounds (300 win). I define performance as 1) Getting a load to fly straight 2) FT/LBS of energy on the target.

If I can't reload I'd probably use a 7 Mag.

[Nicholas_S]

never shot a 6.8 but i would much rather have acuracy over power. but to each his own i suppose.

[Cleck]

Originally Posted by Nicholas_S

...rather have acuracy over power...

Oh, we remember the .380 conversation!