.308 vs 30-06

[Kilo Charlie]

Sounds like the OP has chosen a rifle. And yeah, .308 vs .30-06.....tomato, tomatto.
A 3-9 optic will do nicely. 3X is still good up close in the deep dark woods (doubters, try it with an unmounted scope at say, 15 feet in your yard.) and 9X will provide ample magnification for long shots. I do not personally like 50mm objectives, 40 mm is enough for me. I don't find the extra few percent of light-gathering power terribly meaningful. To get an optimum 7mm exit pupil, (objective lens dia. divided by power) a 40 mm scope must be set to 6X, and a 50 mm scope to 7X. Those settings will gather all available light.
I'd prefer a lower-mounted, handier scope than that extra 1X power, especially since I don't want to shoot a looooong way in dim conditions.

[Fishy Wishy]

.30-06 Shoots heavier bullets (case capacity), and has the edge over 300 yds, can shoot loads faster if reloading.

.308 shorter case/shorter action (possibly) reportedly more accurate, reportedly less recoil.

All else equal.

Most people won't notice any difference...nor will their target.

FW

[bird blaster]

As others have stated - both are equally good choices. Took my moose and bear with the 308 this year.

Bringing back the 30.06 next year mostly to have the ability to shoot heavier bullets without losing as much FPS as the 308 due to case capacity. I will miss the short action of the 308 though...

There are so many great calibers to choose though....I would be looking at the 7mm offerings.

[jarret]

Is 7 mm larger then 308 I don't know a whole lot about rifles we mostly use shotguns since I'm in southern Ontario

[trimmer21]

Is 7 mm larger then 308 I don't know a whole lot about rifles we mostly use shotguns since I'm in southern Ontario

7mm (.284) is smaller than .308. In MOST areas of southern Ontario,the largest caliber we can use is .270 (.275 to be exact),however,there's still one or two townships that still have the old "shotgun only" by-laws on their books.

[skypilot]

7MM, as in a 7mm mag is an excellent caliber. It has good energy out a long ways and does well if you aren't recoil shy and if you purchase optics with real good eye relief. Failure to do so almost guarantees a scope cut above the eye.

[Mdiddi]

Hawk man made a good reminder for me. Might get 270 first then still set on 06. 270 can open some other areas if invited.

[35wailin]

The .308 was developed by the US military as an equivalent to the .30-06. They're almost identical in ballistics,so,take your pick. They're both excellent for hunting out to 300M. Military around the world still use them as sniper rounds out to 1KM.

The US military developed the .308 to duplicate the .30-06 ballistics with the 150 grain bullet they were using. With that bullet weight, they are ballistic twins. As bullet weight increases, the extra powder capacity of the '06 rises to the top and the '06 can be loaded with 220 grain bullets, where the .308 cannot. For bullets up to 180 grains or so, it would be a toss up. .308 rifles will be slightly shorter and lighter than an '06, but I think the difference would be negligible. If you are hunting bigger stuff and want the heavier bullets, then the '06 is the way to go.

[MikePal]

Since it was only touched on, I'll mention that the 8mm is the metric equivalent to the 308/30-06 It's usually only found in a 170 gr, when you can find it, so a bit heavier and slower, but makes an excellent bullet choice for hunting pretty much all big game out to 200 yds.

...but what makes it superior is that it's shot from guns using a Mauser blot action..far superior to anything made now a days

[line052]

HOrnaday makes a 220gr and Spire bullet, mostly used for match ammo. Great weight for reachinging out. With the C3 sniper rifle (.308 Match Ammo)I used to shoot competition at 1000M and have shot up to 800M in Bosnia.