.308 ammo decisions, have a few choices

[elvis christ 451]

Since I'm already pretty well stocked on 7.62X39, I figure I better start collecting .308. I prefer to buy ammo that I'm going to stash away in bulk sizes, but don't want to buy a bunch of stuff that won't cycle or will malfunction when I finally decide to break it out, for whatever reason (ie civil unrest, zombie epidemic, or sheer unavailability when I want to go shoot). Right now I'm sitting on one 200 round portuguese battle pack that I picked up at the last gun show, but would like to acquire about 800-1200 more rounds, as it seems .308 is becoming more and more scarce. Also, I don't really have the cash to drop on a 1000 case, so I'm leaning toward the 200 or 500 round packs.

 

 

That being said, I've found some pretty decent deals (comparatively) on the silver bear 145 grain, but have heard some say that they have stovepiping or other ejection problems in the saiga .308. I've been shooting monarch steel case from academy through it with no problems, so I figure wolf will do the job just fine, as I'm pretty sure it's the same thing. I could be wrong, but it looks like every other round of wolf I've ever shot.

 

I can get the SA battle packs for $72 shipped, which would be good to stash away, and I've never heard anyone say anything bad about this stuff.

 

I've also been looking at the Barnaul .308 steel case, which looks like what I've been shooting. It' pretty cheap, and they sell it by the 500 round case, which is really what I'm looking for right now.

 

 

CLIFF NOTES:

 

I'm looking to buy some bulk .308 to put away, and while I'd like to have a really decent stash, right now I'm looking to buy about 500 rounds. I've narrowed my choices down to these:

 

Silver Bear - Pros: super cheap. Cons: looks different from the steel case I've been shooting and I'm hearing mixed reviews.

 

SA battle packs: Pros: brass case, reloadable, comes in sealed packages, probably better quality than the steel cased varitety. Cons: Comes in 140 round packs and a bit expensive (compared to the other stuff I'm looking at.)

 

Barnaul: Pros: Cheap, available in 500 round increments, and looks like the steel cased stuff I've been shooting. Cons: Probably not the highest quality, can't seem to find anything else wrong with it.

 

Okay, so my cliff notes need work. All input welcome, thanks for your time.

[Genocide 0]

Damn brother, you should've started collecting .308 two years ago, would've saved you tons of money.

 

Silver bear and Barnaul are almost identical, buy which ever you can find cheapest. Wolf is also good but most places have backorder.

 

SA battle packs are great but about the only place that has a half way decent price is AIM, they also have the Lithuanian packs which are good.

I recently bought 1400 rounds of paki .308, very dirty but good plinking ammo. Got 1200 rounds of L1A2 mildly dirty, all my .308's LOVE it.

 

Search around, scrounge many different forums and websites, thats my main source for surplus 762 nowadays.

Edited May 8, 2008 by Genocide

[Elkhound 91]

Damn brother, you should've started collecting .308 two years ago, would've saved you tons of money.

 

Silver bear and Barnaul are almost identical, buy which ever you can find cheapest. Wolf is also good but most places have backorder.

 

SA battle packs are great but about the only place that has a half way decent price is AIM, they also have the Lithuanian packs which are good.

I recently bought 1400 rounds of paki .308, very dirty but good plinking ammo. Got 1200 rounds of L1A2 mildly dirty, all my .308's LOVE it.

 

Search around, scrounge many different forums and websites, thats my main source for surplus 762 nowadays.

 

 

I'm in the same boat, starting late buying .308. I appreciate the info you guys have provided about buying from discount places. I have started buying in bulk and it sure makes a difference. In fact, I think I need to order some today. I tried buying a bit here and a bit there. I think that strategy is fine and it is easier on the wallet, short term, but you end up paying a rather high price and it takes a long time to get any appreciable accumulation.

 

WJ

Edited May 8, 2008 by WarriorJudge

[elvis christ 451]

Yeah, I wish I had started buying it earlier, but I didn't have a .308 and I was finishing college so funds were tight. Hell, my buddy told me that a couple of years ago he traded 3000 rounds of .308 round for round for .223, because it was so cheap and he had a mini 14. He's kicking himself now.

 

I also heard that the gun show is coming to town next weekend, but even there I saw people selling the SA battle packs for $90 or thereabout. I haggle a guy down to $100 out the door for a portuguese battle pack, and that's all I have right now. The reason I like those things is because it deters my temptation to loot the stash and shoot it. You know what I'm saying, out of sight, out of mind.

 

Anyway, thanks for the advice, I may just break down and buy 5 of those lithuanian battle packs, shout a few of them, and save the brass and buy a reloading machine, eventually. Another friend of mine wants to go in 50/50 on a nice one, so maybe I'll look into that.

[getitat 609]

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

[elvis christ 451]

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

 

Link to OMC? I'd like to check that out, thanks for the heads up. How does the Lake City ammo shoot? Also, how many times is alright to reload a shell? I imagine until it splits, but I don't know.

Edited May 8, 2008 by elvis christ

[elvis christ 451]

Did a search, Outdoor Marksman Corporation? I looked at it, but there seems to be an issue with their hunting website, it won't let me scroll down, it's acting crazy. I'll try it from the computer at work when I get in this morning.

 

Edit: Figured it out, you have to select your warehouse, or it won't let you scroll down.

Edited May 8, 2008 by elvis christ

[nalioth 405]

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

 

Link to OMC? I'd like to check that out, thanks for the heads up. How does the Lake City ammo shoot? Also, how many times is alright to reload a shell? I imagine until it splits, but I don't know.

It shoots fine. Our boys ( and girls ) are using it to good effect in the middle east today.

 

...but if you reload the empty casings, it's no longer Lake City ammo, is it?

[getitat 609]

Hello, elvis christ

 

The NATO stuff is heavier-walled brass, slightly smaller ID but more reloads. Only available from the West Coast warehouse.

guido

 

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

 

Link to OMC? I'd like to check that out, thanks for the heads up. How does the Lake City ammo shoot? Also, how many times is alright to reload a shell? I imagine until it splits, but I don't know.

[Elkhound 91]

Hello, elvis christ

 

The NATO stuff is heavier-walled brass, slightly smaller ID but more reloads. Only available from the West Coast warehouse.

guido

 

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

 

Link to OMC? I'd like to check that out, thanks for the heads up. How does the Lake City ammo shoot? Also, how many times is alright to reload a shell? I imagine until it splits, but I don't know.

 

Not to hijack the thread, but to move it in a slightly different direction, what do you guys recommend as very good .308 ammo? If I am only going to fire a few rounds of .308 every now and then, so price is not a consideration, what is the cleanest and most accurate .308 ammo?

 

 

WJ.

[macbeau 902]

This Guy Does a pretty good job of tracking who's selling .308 and what the current prices are. He updates it about every week-to-10 days...

 

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

[elvis christ 451]

Thanks for all the responses y'all. A few months ago, I was talking to a friend of mine that knows a lot more about guns and general gun stuff than myself, and we were discussing buying a good reloading machine, I think it was called a multi-stage reloader. But if we get that, I will definitely be buying reloading supplies instead of ammo. I talked to him today, and we pretty much came to an agreement to go in on one when our stimulus checks get here.

 

Damn it US GOVERNMENT, stimulate me already!!!!

[jnrockwall 0]

Hey guys. I'm new here, so this is my first post. I need some help on 7.62/308. Basically, here's the story. I collect military stuff, and I came across an ammo can with 205 WW2 .30 cal links (belt fed machine gun). What I would like to know is which 7.62 am I looking for? I know it's NATO. But is it 7.62 or 7.62x39? I just want to string these links together for shitz and giggles really... I don't own a 308/7.62 of any sort. I am a 5.56 kinda guy. I have a Vietnam era M-16. Also, I have been checking out these places you all have mentioned for cheap ammo. I am not seeing it. I don't know if I just don't know how to use the search engine of the websites or if I am an idiot. 5.56 is easy to find.

 

What I would like to find is 140 round battle pack and 2 20 rnd boxes of tracer rounds. I would like to build the belt back to "original" as possible. The problem is I am not looking to spend $150 to do this. I could have sworn last week I found a place offering 140 rnd battle packs for $45 and 20 rnd tracer ammo for $10 or $12 a box. Maybe I was dreaming, or maybe it's just all gone? I found some for $67 and $69 but the shipping is obscene. How is it a 1000 rnd case weighs 60 pounds in a wood case and a 140 round battle pack weighs 12.22 pounds?

 

Anyways, if you can help me out, I would appreciate it.

 

j

[elvis christ 451]

.308 is 7.62X51, if that's what your looking for. If you can find that place that was selling the battle packs for $45 definitely post that link up here, but I have a feeling you may have imagined it.

 

Here is a link to ammoman.com. He has the most consistent best prices as far as I've found, everything is including shipping. Just click on the .308/7.62X51 in the blue box at the top.

 

http://ammoman.com/index.htm

[vujade 0]

maybe not the best but i get the blue box Monarchs from Academy. It's $8.99. Atleast it's new stuff and accurate enough for me (out to 100 yards only) Prices... it's gone up in the last few weeks. I was $7 or $8 last month.

 

man, is there any sign for hope that prices will go down? everything says otherwise. Still, i'm looking for a little hope out there.

 

I wish I got into this sooner...

[saigaboy 0]

Hello, elvis christ

 

The NATO stuff is heavier-walled brass, slightly smaller ID but more reloads. Only available from the West Coast warehouse.

guido

 

Hello

Not to hijack your thread, but FYI OMC has Lake City 7.62 NATO (Mil-Spec .308) once-fired brass for $35/200 (I just picked up 4K for $700 + $50 shipping)

and you can obtain excellent Remington Core-Lokt 165 gr. bullets for about $365/2000 (as I recall). Do the math, borrow a press and score powder/primers and you've got serious stashage! And, some very accurate ammo.

 

JMHO....

 

Respectfully posted,

guido2 in Houston

 

Link to OMC? I'd like to check that out, thanks for the heads up. How does the Lake City ammo shoot? Also, how many times is alright to reload a shell? I imagine until it splits, but I don't know.

 

Not to hijack the thread, but to move it in a slightly different direction, what do you guys recommend as very good .308 ammo? If I am only going to fire a few rounds of .308 every now and then, so price is not a consideration, what is the cleanest and most accurate .308 ammo?

 

 

WJ.

 

I have shot silver bear through the 308 ver 21 and it worked +/-.

 

One problem, was I have had a few FTF and when I pulled the bolt back it acted as if it was stuck. So I would pull the mag out and see that the soft tip lead nose would impact on bolt and deform. A few times the actual bullet would get pushed back into the case. Of course, I would toss those. Also note that it is 140 grain round when some say a heavier bullet works better in saigas. If you want some ctd has it.

 

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/AMM690-3247-123.html

 

Ammo .308 Silver Bear 140gr Soft Point 20 Round Box

Item #: AMM-690

Our Low Price: $6.97

Value: $9.94

Your Savings: $2.97 (29.88%)

 

 

OR

 

 

If you want very accurate ammo and don't mind paying the price then you have to try:

 

308 Winchester Gold Medal Centerfire Rifle Cartridge, 175-Grain Sierra MatchKing Boat-Tail Hollow Point Bullet, 2600 fps, 20 Rounds Per Box

Item #: 67462

Our Low Price: $34.80

Value: $36.25

Your Savings: $1.45 (4.00%)

 

My savage loves this stuff.

 

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/67462-7015-123.html

Edited May 11, 2008 by saigaboy

[saigaboy 0]

Just found a better price:

 

308 FEDERAL MATCH 175 GRAIN

BOAT TAIL HOLLOW POINT

GOLD MEDAL MATCH

 

FREE SHIPPING

 

Part Number #308-FED175-200

 

$260- 200 rounds

( ONE CASE )

 

Other folks have already ref this website.

 

http://www.ammoman.com/index.htm

[Elkhound 91]

Just found a better price:

 

308 FEDERAL MATCH 175 GRAIN

BOAT TAIL HOLLOW POINT

GOLD MEDAL MATCH

 

FREE SHIPPING

 

Part Number #308-FED175-200

 

$260- 200 rounds

( ONE CASE )

 

Other folks have already ref this website.

 

http://www.ammoman.com/index.htm

 

 

I have not looked at the link yet, but that price sounds very good. I have ordered a few (40) rounds of Hornady TAP for the Ver21. I will be interested to see how it works compared to some of the other ammo I have. It is pretty darn pricey, but some of the .308 at the gun shop is flat out ridiculous. I can't remember which brand they showed me when I asked for some good .308 ammo, but whatever they brought over to me was $58.00 or so for 20 rounds. It passed on that. The Hornady is about $28.00 for 20.

 

You were right about the Ver21. She is a nice looking rifle. It feels very good in my hands. I am looking forward to trying it out. I am glad you convinced me to buy it. lol

 

WJ

[saigaboy 0]

I have not looked at the link yet, but that price sounds very good. I have ordered a few (40) rounds of Hornady TAP for the Ver21. I will be interested to see how it works compared to some of the other ammo I have. It is pretty darn pricey, but some of the .308 at the gun shop is flat out ridiculous. I can't remember which brand they showed me when I asked for some good .308 ammo, but whatever they brought over to me was $58.00 or so for 20 rounds. It passed on that. The Hornady is about $28.00 for 20.

 

You were right about the Ver21. She is a nice looking rifle. It feels very good in my hands. I am looking forward to trying it out. I am glad you convinced me to buy it. lol

 

WJ

 

I am glad you like that Ver 21.

 

I really enjoy this forum. I have learned a lot from you guys since I have joined.

 

I think at some point I need to start reloading to save some $$$. The only problem is that I hear that hobby eats up tons of time.

[elvis christ 451]

I am glad you like that Ver 21.

 

I really enjoy this forum. I have learned a lot from you guys since I have joined.

 

I think at some point I need to start reloading to save some $$$. The only problem is that I hear that hobby eats up tons of time.

 

From what I understand, if you get a multiple stage reloader, you can basically crank out ammo pretty damn fast. That's the way my buddy described it and convinced me to go in with him on the reloader, so we'll see, as soon as I get my stimulus check.

[HillBilly2 9]

The best deal on the market right now is the new South African at Wideners. $460 per k and its reloadable.

 

If your gonna get a progressive reloader, go Dillon and never look back. All the other manufactureres make really good machines, the only thing is, They are not a Dillon.

[wally 2]

AIM has tha SA battle pack (140 rds) for $59.99 thats $419 for 980 rds

[buckandaquarterquarterstaff 5]

Reloading to save money. I thought that once myself...

 

The only problem with trying to save money by reloading is that you are instantly master of all things, and not a mere consumer anymore. It's more addicting to make better ammo then cheaper ammo. When you figure out how to cut group sizes way down, it almost always involves more time, more money, or both.