308 factory ammo.... Any cheap ammo shoot 1 moa ?

[NDAR15MAN]

folks. I am just getting into long range shooting and have been posting a lot of questions. I want to thank every one for answering my questions. Great patient people here. I am thinking about trying 1 more time and buying a cheaper 308 cal bolt gun. 1 1/2 ago bought the cheap savage axis but could not get it to shoot under 3 inch groups at 100 yards with a nice scope even with Boyd thumb hole stock. Have had excellent success with their 223 ( 3/4 groups out of box ). heavy recoil for me with 2 torn rotator cuff surgeries under my belt and poor groups caused me to sale the 308 to a friend who beded rifle and put new trigger in it and it shoots 1 moa with factory ammo for him but he put a lot of work into it. I just dont have time and skill to modify a gun. I do not reload and at my age will not be. Looking for a cheap factory 308 ammo for cheaper gun. Want to shoot 1000 yard target shooting. Not competitor shooting just on neighbors farm.
Question.... Is there a cheap factory 308 ammo that will shoot 1 moa with a Ruger predator , savage axis or FV ( if I could find one in stock at cabelas ) or a Ruger predator ? I am not talking about the 4 big ammo companies like Remington , Winchester , federal , Hornaday. I am look at a brand of ammo that is $10.00 to $15.00 for a box of l20 rounds (60 cents a round ) I would buy in bulk and maybe save a little money. Could some of you share some of your success stories if there is such a thing as a lower priced factory 308 ammo that will shoot 1 moa if I was lucky enough to get a good barrel on one of these guns. Brand and gr of bullet would be great info. Factory ammo only. Thanks. Martyd

 

[walt willis]

Federal seems to work well in most rifles, but you should try many brands to see the best for yours before you spend on a full case of ammo.

 

[Homerange]

Those that use my range to sort out a new rifle will often turn up with a number of brands of ammo and shoot the groups needed to find those that suit their rifle for sure. I suggest you follow this path too but in saying that a word of warning: manufacturers do change loads from time to time, be it powder, brass, primer or projectile differences between batches who knows, but these traps are there for reloaders too.
I've got buddies that don't reload and once upon a time used nothing but Remington Corelocks but can't get any grouping from them these days.
And others that turn up with the latest whatever performance factory loads that spray all over the place.

If you want long term consistent accuracy: reload.

 

[ireload2]

I think you are looking in the wrong place for factory ammo information.

 

[jonbearman]

One type that seems to shoot well for what they are is the federal blue box cheapo 150 grain soft points and they are fairly hot too. Try them and you will see what I mean. I used them in 4 different rifles as a test only and they were way less finicky than the more expensive rounds by the same manufacturer.

 

[walt willis]

Those that use my range to sort out a new rifle will often turn up with a number of brands of ammo and shoot the groups needed to find those that suit their rifle for sure. I suggest you follow this path too but in saying that a word of warning: manufacturers do change loads from time to time, be it powder, brass, primer or projectile differences between batches who knows, but these traps are there for reloaders too.
I've got buddies that don't reload and once upon a time used nothing but Remington Corelocks but can't get any grouping from them these days.
And others that turn up with the latest whatever performance factory loads that spray all over the place.

If you want long term consistent accuracy: reload.

I agree! listen to the top shooters and they all seem to test and load their own ammo.

 

[brantfredrickson]

Took some Privi Partizan 308 match ammo and set the cartridge base to ogive length to 2.210 with a bullet seating die. Had to lengthen some with a bullet puller before seating them to length. All where under 1.5MOA and many under 1.0MOA at 100 yards. Not much work for those numbers. Did that for a 300 rounds. Privi Partizan is about 60 percent of the Federal Gold Medal Match cost. Buying a Hornady OAL gauge, calipers, Lee Challenger Press, bullet seating die, and inertial bullet puller is a about a $150 investment. I’m surprised that more people don’t do this. The only negative is that easy to slip into reloading your own from there.

 

[jlow]

Honestly, you are looking for cheap ammo that shoots well for 1,000 yard target shooting...... Not to disappoint, but it’s a bit of a dream. First, the stuff has to group reasonably well but on top of that, at 1k, MV variations will certainly come into play… I think this is an exercise in frustration. If this can be done, few would be reloading.

 

[Laurie]

We only occasionally see this stuff in the UK although it's manufactured by RUAG, a German / Swiss combine.

Prime Ammunition 175gn HPBT likely made by RWS and if so the brass is very high quality for when you do get around to handloading. Prices are low by UK standards, but you may think differently in the USA. Reports are pretty uniformly good on it. (Likewise Prime's 6.5 Creedmoor and 260 Rem 130gn match, both loaded by Norma of Sweden, another RUAG company. I wish we could get these two 6.5s, but they all go to you guys in the US.)

Assuming the bullet is the 175gn Sierra MK, that's almost as good as you're going to get in a reasonably priced factory product, although it'll barely suffice at these MVs at 1,000 yards.

Avoid the 168gn Federal GMM and PPU cheapo copy if shooting beyond 600 yards, certainly 800. These 168s are short-range bullets and at lowish MVs are subsonic from around 800 and often unstable too.

 

[jlow]

He is looking at "a brand of ammo that is $10.00 to $15.00 for a box of l20 rounds"..... Just saying....

If that is possible, I might actually consider not reloading and that is saying a hell of a lot!

 

[Laurie]

He is looking at "a brand of ammo that is $10.00 to $15.00 for a box of l20 rounds"..... Just saying....

As you've already said though, that's a pipe dream.

 

[dcali]

Not gonna happen unless that 1000 yard target is huge - like a 40-50" steel plate. Don't even waste your money trying. $.60/round is just not going to work. Reduce you distance and you can still have fun, but 1000 will just be a frustrating waste.

 

[Laurie]

Not gonna happen unless that 1000 yard target is huge - like a 40-50" steel plate.

More like a Dutch Barn door if the wind is blowing at all.

Seriously, I've seen too many guys turn up as visitors to my club at 1,000 yards F-Class comps with 24 or 26-inch barrel Remingtons and PPU 168gn match or similar. Whoever is unlucky to be partnered with them (remember, no string shooting in the UK, two or three on the mound shooting alternately with a shot to be taken in 45 seconds) having their match totally disrupted as the RO (line officer in the US) is constantly called to get the target pulled, then the target is usually dropped to let them shoot at things on the sand with people at both ends of the range trying to spot any bullet splash. With 6-MOA square size target frames, even when they finally get a hit, their groups dispersion is so large, and wind effects so significant, there is no guarantee they stay on target. Very soul destroying for the individual, very disruptive to serious competitors.

 

[Tommie]

I'd bet EVERY factory .308 ammo load will shoot MOA. Even the cheapest stuff. The hard part is finding the gun that likes a particular recipe.

 

[dryhumor]

I'd bet EVERY factory .308 ammo load will shoot MOA. Even the cheapest stuff. The hard part is finding the gun that likes a particular recipe.

Winner winner chicken dinner.


You might look here to get some idea as to what is out there.

http://ammoseek.com/ammo/308-winchester

 

[dcali]

I'd bet EVERY factory .308 ammo load will shoot MOA. Even the cheapest stuff. The hard part is finding the gun that likes a particular recipe.

I think that's optimistic, but It might be fun to run some fmj bullets through an unlimited bench gun and see what the inherent limitation of the bullets are.

 

[jlow]

I think that's optimistic, but It might be fun to run some fmj bullets through an unlimited bench gun and see what the inherent limitation of the bullets are.

I’ve shot Winchester white box 147 grain .308 ball ammo through my Accuracy International AT’s barrel during a barrel break in. This barrel has a hard time shooting any reasonably good ammo more than MOA but with the Winchester, it was like 1.7 MOA at 100 yards. I am also sure the MVs were all over the place.

 

[NDAR15MAN]

Thanks for the heads up and not beating me up on this crazy question ha ha ha. Like I said just learning and never reloaded and don't think I will. It seems though if a guy wanted to shoot 1000 yard targets just for fun , no competition shooting the best deal going would be buy a Ruger predator 6.5 Creedmoor or savage axis. I guess a lot of guys are getting moa out of Hornaday factory ammo to 600 yards. Not sure what it will do at 1000 yards. I might change my thinking on the cal gun I buy. Martyd

 

[chkunz]

I am late to the party, but the answer to your question is...no.

 

[jlow]

Thanks for the heads up and not beating me up on this crazy question ha ha ha. Like I said just learning and never reloaded and don't think I will. It seems though if a guy wanted to shoot 1000 yard targets just for fun , no competition shooting the best deal going would be buy a Ruger predator 6.5 Creedmoor or savage axis. I guess a lot of guys are getting moa out of Hornaday factory ammo to 600 yards. Not sure what it will do at 1000 yards. I might change my thinking on the cal gun I buy. Martyd

A 6.5 CM shooting Hornady ammo will allow you to do reasonable well at 1k, but it is not the dirt cheap ammo you were thinking about....