.308 Semi-Auto Rifles

[Skiprr]

It dawned on me that a few of us were kinda sorta hijacking the "Pictures of Your 'Black Guns'" Topic after LCplMustafa first wrote that he'd been considering buying a Patriot Ordnance .308, a rifle I haven't been able to get out of my mind since I shot one in early March.

Well, the lucky LCplMustafa did order himself one of these beauties, while I'm still debating with myself over parting with the bucks. So I'm sure we'll soon see actual pictures of his new rifle in the pictures Topic.

I'm interested in the .308 in part becasue of the relatively ample ammo supply. I'd like a semi-auto in a larger caliber than .223, and I know there's bound to be a separate Topic soon for AKs and the almost ubiquitous 7.62x39.

So I thought the .308 (and its near-twin, 7.62x51)--the round itself, rifles that shoot it, and accessories for them--deserved its own Topic.

[gmckinl]

Go here to check out 7.62 ammo availability and pricing...

http://rifle-company.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=431

The going rate now for 3rd world plinking ammo seems to be around fifty cents a pop.

[Skiprr]

Additionally, if anyone know someone who is giving away a bunch of .308 rds, let me know.

If I knew that, I'd be a lot closer to ordering my own POF .308.

But since I really seriously have had my eye on the rifle for two months, I added the .308 to a spreadsheet I keep. A couple of times per month, at downtimes, I'll surf online ammo sources and record the prices. Some will say I could make better economic use of that downtime by using it to get into reloading than surfing for commercial prices, but there ya go.

Since you'll have a new rifle arriving soon , I thought I'd mention what I've seen out there so far for ammo pricing. Just a note that I don't bother pricing steel-cased ammo...at least not yet.

Best price I've found was at AIM for a limited supply of South African surplus: 147gr FMJ, lead core, copper jacketed; brass case and they say it's Berdan primed, non-corrosive. Sealed in waterproof battlepacks of 140 rounds each, they're selling them for $59.95 per pack, or 42.8 cents per round. But it's surplus, so you really don't know who made it, and was supposedly manufactured in the late '70s to early '80s.

Next-best surplus price is from Pro Load Distributors for Lithuanian surplus 7.62x51 NATO. $515 per case of 1,000, or 51.5 cents per round.

I'm really doubting this one, but I haven't checked further. Georgia Arms shows Winchester 150gr FMJ (their part number G308BCAN-1000) for $485 per case of 1,000; 48.5 cents per round. Something tells me this is not Winchester factory ammo, but a Winchester bullet loaded by someone else into something else. Dunno. But I'd sure call to get confirmation before I ordered.

The best price on identifiable manufacturer commercial ammo is from Sportsman's Guide for MAGTECH FMJ, 150gr, Boxer primed. They have it for $124.61 / 200 rounds, or 62.3 cents per round.

A lot of stuff clusters right in there between 62 cents and 75 cents per round, which is where I think the bell curve is right now for commercial FMJ ammo. Manufactures in there, other than MAGTECH, include Winchester, Prvi Partizan, Sellier & Bellot, and American Eagle.

Best pricing so far on a step-up for match/hunting ammo is Federal Fusion from Sportsman's Guide or Natchez Supplies, and Hornady TAP from Ammunition To Go. The price point for this kind of JHP or Ballistic Tip ammo seems to be between 98 cents and a $1.30 per round. Premium top-end hunting/defensive ammo seems to have a price point between $1.50 and $2.50 per round (with COR-BON DPX coming in at the high-end of that spectrum.

Not an exhaustive survey, but I've priced 47 different types of .308 ammo so far. YMMV. Regardless, it won't be cheap to run that new rifle you're about to get. And trust me, as light as that trigger is, and much as the piston reduces recoil, you'll feel like you're throwin' popcorn .223s down range...until you count up what you spent on ammo. If some of the surplus stuff will run fine in the rifle, the cost won't be too bad. A quick 200 rounds with the DPX, though, could set you back 500 bucks.

[melkor41]

I had a cetme rifle that had just about every part that would interchange with the hk91 and g3 swapped over, so it was more hk than cetme

I loved that rifle, but had a bad financial situation and had to sell it. Everytime i go to a gun show and see those rifles i start to work my finances in my head to figure out how to get another one. 7.62 NATO is an excellent round, ammo is relitively cheap and very accurate.

Next show I AM going to pickup a ar-10 receiver from lonestarwholesale and start building one... only way i can get another .308 right now

[KBCraig]

Best price I've found was at AIM for a limited supply of South African surplus: 147gr FMJ, lead core, copper jacketed; brass case and they say it's Berdan primed, non-corrosive. Sealed in waterproof battlepacks of 140 rounds each, they're selling them for $59.95 per pack, or 42.8 cents per round. But it's surplus, so you really don't know who made it, and was supposedly manufactured in the late '70s to early '80s.

AIM is generally accurate with their descriptions. Definitely more than Century.

If it's actually of South African ("PMP") manufacture, it's good stuff, assuming it's been properly stored. The second-best .303 British (second to Greek HXP), was late '80s South African. Clean, well made, accurate, absolutely reliable FMJ.

Kevin

[Skiprr]

AIM is generally accurate with their descriptions. Definitely more than Century.

If it's actually of South African ("PMP") manufacture, it's good stuff, assuming it's been properly stored. The second-best .303 British (second to Greek HXP), was late '80s South African. Clean, well made, accurate, absolutely reliable FMJ.

Shucks. Now I may have to buy at least some of it even though I don't have the rifle yet. It's about 10 cents per round cheaper than anything else I've seen so far. I'm encouraged that it's been stored since day one in sealed, vinyl battle packs; and besides, the late '70s and early '80s were good years for me.

Thanks for the opinion, Kev.

[The Annoyed Man]

AIM surplus has the Prvi Partizan .308 168 gr HPBT "Match" for $12.95/box of 20, or $12.50/box of 20 if you buy 10 boxes or more.

It is brass cased, copper jacketed, reloadable boxer primed, and non-corrosive. It does not shoot nearly as well as premium domestic brands of .308 match grade ammunition out of my Remington 700 VSF, but it is not absolutely terrible either. Call it decent plinking ammunition. That works out to either 65¢/round or 62.5¢ per round, depending on your quantity - which seems not a bad price at the current going rates for non-milsurp ammo.

[Mike1951]

Just got this from The Armory:

http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_sc/s ... ition.html

200 rd Lithuanian battle packs.

1-2 @ $104.90 (0.525)
3-4 @ $99.90 (0.50)
5+ @ $94.90 (0.475)

Also, the South African surplus is great stuff. I stocked up when it was readily available. The way Aim parses it out occasionally makes me think they're sitting on a warehouse of it somewhere. But you can't count on finding it when you need it now. Battle packs at shows sometimes go for $75 or more.

ETA

Just found this. 200rd Prvi M80 battle packs @ $94.00 each

http://www.wideners.com/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=7240

[dukalmighty]

I still have about 1400 rounds of milsurp i paid about .10 a round for brass case boxer primed when i finish shooting it i buy bullets and reload it.I'm sure i can reload for under .20 a round.

There is one other thing when ordering ammo online there is a $20.00 hazmat fee and shipping so if you don't order a fairly large quantity it gets real expensive

[Mike1951]

There is no HAZMAT fee on ammunition. Primers and powder only!!

[Skiprr]

Well, I broke down and ordered some of the South African surplus from AIM. I guess I really will have to dig out the ol' checkbook and order myself the rifle now.

BTW, it may not be maintained--and even if it is, it'll only be when I'm actually in shopping mode--but I've posted my recent search for .308 ammo if you folks want to take a look at it. It's sorted by cost-per-round, lowest to highest. Each entry includes a link to the seller's Website.

[308nato]

Man it was not that long ago that I was buying 140 rd battle packs for about 20.00.
glad I stocked up.

[Skiprr]

Man it was not that long ago that I was buying 140 rd battle packs for about 20.00.

Yeah, really. I wonder what this South African manufactured ammo went for shortly after it was produced around 1980?

And, folks, I got my first bad firearm news of the week. I finally broke down and pulled the trigger--so to speak--on ordering the Patriot Ordnance Factory .308 I want. Other than the cost, that's not bad news. The bad news: "Expect a six- to nine-month wait from the manufacturer." The demand is far outstripping the factory's ability to produce 'em.

I know there may be some in dealer stock somewhere to be had faster, but I'll get a better deal ordering through a friend. So I guess I'll wait; he'll place the order Monday and give me an idea then of the expected wait time. At least I'll have some ammo for my Christmas present when it finally gets here.

Meanwhile, I'll have to content myself with pictures and a range report from LCplMustafa when his POF arrives.