Ammunition Choices for the Savage .308: Match, Hunting, and Practice Loads

The Savage .308 is a popular rifle among hunters, competitive shooters, and range enthusiasts. Choosing the right ammunition can really affect how well your rifle performs and how accurate it is. In this article, we’ll look at the best ammunition options for match shooting, hunting, and practice with your Savage .308. We’ll explain what makes each type of ammunition good for its specific use.

Key Factors in Choosing Savage .308 Ammunition

• Intended use
  • Match shooting: Precision and consistency are very important
  • Hunting: Expansion and stopping power are crucial
  • Practice: Affordability and reliability are key
• Bullet weight (usually 150-180 grains)
  • Lighter bullets for smaller animals and shorter distances
  • Heavier bullets for bigger animals and longer distances
• Bullet design (e.g. boat-tail, hollow point, soft point)
  • Affects how the bullet flies, how accurate it is, and what it does when it hits
• Recoil tolerance
  • Think about how comfortable the shooter is and if they can shoot again quickly
• Required accuracy
  • Match-grade for competitions, standard for practice
• Cost considerations
  • Balance between how well it works and how much it costs

Match Ammunition for the Savage .308

For competitive shooting, accuracy is super important. Match-grade ammunition is made very carefully to be as precise and consistent as possible. These bullets are made with special care, using exactly measured powder, high-quality primers, and bullets designed to work well over long distances.

Match bullets for the Savage .308 usually weigh between 168 and 175 grains. Heavier bullets can fly better over long distances, keeping their speed and power better. Match bullets often have a boat-tail design, which helps them fly straighter and resist wind better. Popular types include hollow point boat tail (HPBT) or full metal jacket boat tail (FMJBT) bullets, which are known for flying really well.

A top choice for match shooting is the Federal Premium Gold Medal Match .308. This ammunition is made to be super precise and usually costs about $29.99 for a box of 20 rounds. These cartridges use 168-grain Sierra MatchKing bullets, which are famous for being consistent and accurate. They leave the gun at 2,700 feet per second, which is a good mix of speed and stability. The Gold Medal Match line is known for being made very carefully, which is really important for hitting small targets at long distances.

If you want to make your Savage .308 more accurate, using match-grade ammunition is a great idea. It costs more, but the results can be amazing for competitive shooters and people who want their rifle to be as accurate as possible. Many shooters think the better accuracy and confidence they get from using match-grade ammunition is worth the extra cost.

Hunting Ammunition for the Savage .308

When you’re hunting with a Savage .308, picking the right ammunition is really important to hunt ethically and effectively. Hunting bullets need to expand reliably when they hit an animal, creating a bigger wound to stop the animal quickly and humanely. These bullets also need to go deep enough to reach important organs, making sure the animal is killed cleanly, even if it’s a big or tough animal.

For hunting, bullet weights usually range from 150 to 180 grains. The best weight depends on what animal you’re hunting and how far away you’ll be shooting. Lighter bullets (150-165 grains) might be better for smaller deer or when you want the bullet to expand faster. Heavier bullets (165-180 grains) are often chosen for bigger animals like elk or moose, where you need the bullet to go deeper.

Two popular and effective choices for hunting with the Savage .308 are:

• Nosler Partition: These bullets have a unique two-part design with a softer front that expands quickly and a harder back that doesn’t expand as much. This helps them stay together and go deep, even in big, tough animals. The Partition is known for working well on many different sizes of animals.
• Hornady InterLock: These bullets have a special ring inside that keeps the core and jacket together. This design makes sure the bullet expands reliably but doesn’t fall apart, so it keeps its weight and goes deep. The InterLock technology works consistently on different kinds of animals.

When choosing hunting ammunition, think carefully about what kind and size of animal you’ll be hunting, and how far away you’ll usually be shooting. Different bullet designs work best at different distances and on different sized animals. For example, bullets that expand quickly might be great for deer at medium distances, while bullets that expand more slowly might be better for elk or bear at longer distances.

Practice Ammunition for the Savage .308

For regular practice at the shooting range, you don’t always need or want to use the most expensive match or hunting ammunition. Practice ammunition is made to be affordable and reliable, so you can improve your shooting skills without spending too much money.

Most practice ammunition for the Savage .308 uses full metal jacket (FMJ) bullets. Unlike hunting bullets, these don’t expand when they hit something, but they’re much cheaper to make. Practice rounds usually have bullets weighing between 150 and 165 grains, which fly similarly to many popular hunting loads.

Good choices for practice ammunition include:

• Winchester White Box: This is a popular and affordable option that’s good for general target practice. It works consistently and doesn’t cost much, making it great for when you want to shoot a lot.
• Remington UMC: These rounds usually cost about $19.99 for a box of 20 and are known for being reliable for practice and casual competition shooting. The UMC line is pretty accurate for its price, which is why many recreational shooters like it.

The Remington UMC .308 Winchester ammunition, for example, has 150-grain FMJ bullets that leave the gun at 2820 feet per second. This combination gives a good mix of power and accuracy, similar to many hunting loads. It’s a great all-around choice for getting used to your Savage .308 at the range, working on your shooting basics, or getting ready for hunting season.

Factors to Consider When Choosing Ammunition

When picking ammunition for your Savage .308, think about these important things:

• What you’re using it for: The main reason for your shooting (match competition, hunting, or practice) should be the most important thing when choosing ammunition.
• Bullet weight: Think about how the bullet weight affects how it flies, how it transfers energy, and how much the gun kicks. Heavier bullets usually keep their energy better at longer distances but might drop more.
• Bullet design: Different bullet shapes (like boat-tail, hollow point, soft point) affect how the bullet flies and what it does when it hits something. Choose a design that matches what you want to do.
• How much kick you can handle: Think about how well you can handle the gun’s recoil, especially if you’re shooting a lot or need to shoot again quickly.
• How accurate you need to be: Match-grade ammunition is more precise but costs more. Decide how accurate you need to be for what you’re doing.
• Cost and availability: Balance how well the ammunition works with how much it costs and how easy it is to find where you live.

Remember, the best ammunition for your rifle might be different from what works best in someone else’s Savage .308. Things like how long the barrel is, how much the rifling twists, and other characteristics of each rifle can affect how ammunition performs. It’s a good idea to try several different types and brands to see which ammunition shoots most accurately and consistently in your specific Savage .308.

Customizing Your Savage .308 for Better Performance

While choosing the right ammunition is really important for getting the most out of your Savage .308, you can also make changes to the rifle itself to make it work even better. Some effective ways to customize your Savage .308 include:

• Getting a better stock: A high-quality aftermarket stock can make the rifle more stable, comfortable to hold, and easier to shoot accurately. Look for ones with adjustable cheek rests and length of pull to make it fit you perfectly.
• Installing a better trigger: A crisp, adjustable trigger can really improve your accuracy by making it easier to shoot consistently. Many shooters think this is one of the most important upgrades you can make.
• Adding a good scope: Investing in a good scope or other sighting system that’s right for what you want to do can really help you be more precise and find your target faster.
• Using a muzzle brake or suppressor: These devices can reduce how much the gun kicks and jumps when you shoot, letting you shoot again faster and making it more comfortable to shoot for a long time.
• Bedding the action: This process makes sure the action (the part that holds the bolt and fires the bullet) fits perfectly in the stock, which can make the rifle more accurate and consistent.
• Upgrading the barrel: While this is a bigger change, replacing the factory barrel with a match-grade or fluted barrel can make the rifle more accurate and help it cool down faster between shots.

These upgrades can really improve your shooting experience and help you get the most out of your carefully chosen ammunition. By fine-tuning your Savage .308 to fit your specific needs and preferences, you can create a highly personalized and capable shooting system.

Conclusion: Finding the Right Ammo for Your Savage .308

The Savage .308 is a versatile and capable rifle that can do well in many different kinds of shooting. By carefully choosing the right ammunition for what you want to do, you can really improve how it performs:

• For precision shooting in competitions, use high-quality match-grade ammunition to get the tightest groups possible.
• When hunting, choose bullets that expand reliably and go deep enough to ethically harvest the animal you’re hunting.
• For practice and fun shooting, use affordable FMJ rounds that let you shoot a lot while still being pretty accurate.

Remember that finding the best ammunition for your particular Savage .308 often means trying out different kinds. Keep good records of how different loads perform in your rifle, noting things like group size, where the bullets hit, and how much the gun kicks. This information will be really helpful in figuring out which ammunition works best for your specific gun and how you shoot.

With the right combination of ammunition and practice, you’ll be able to get the most out of your Savage .308, whether you’re competing for top scores, hunting in the field, or just enjoying a day of precision shooting at the range. The versatility and accuracy of the Savage .308, combined with well-chosen ammunition, give you a great foundation for success in any kind of shooting you want to do.

To learn even more about making your Savage .308 even better and see advanced customization options, check out this detailed guide on customizing your Savage 110 in .308. It’s full of expert tips and insights to help you take your shooting to the next level, letting you fully realize the potential of this excellent rifle.