When To Choose A .308 Over 5.56?

[markm]

5.56mm carbine - 300 meters to contact. Good selection of defensive loads.

5.56mm rifle - 500 meters with a decent selection of loads. 600 meters for punching paper with match ammunition.

.308 - out to 500 meters with ball ammunition. 1000 yards with match ammunition.

I stopped hunting years ago, so I can't comment on the effectiveness of using either caliber on game animals.

I agree with this. Ammo can extend the range of the given caliber. And in the case of 5.56... not only in accuracy, but in effectiveness if something like the 77gr OTM is shot.

[caporider]

Personally broke it down for my own rifles/uses as:

0-200 yards - 5.56/.223 general purpose

0-400 yards - 6.8 SPC hunting, general purpose

100-600 yards - .308/7.62 longer range shooting, hunting

I have a great fondness for all three calibers (still new to the 6.8 as well), and am in no way trying to imply that these are their only ranges and/or capabilities, just my own personal views and setups for them and their uses for me alone.

I've gone back and forth on the .308AR thing in a BIG way over the years, having owned and shot everything from a 22" LR308 with bull barrel to a 16" KAC EMC and even a 14.5" AR10C and pretty much everything in between. Overall weight, lack of commonality among manufacturers, and the varied "tuning" from different manufacturers (e.g. EMC only for current milspec M80 or match grade stuff, AR10A4C super overgassed, etc) pushed me off that train. I'm also glad I'm not beta-testing stuff like the Aero Precision 308AR lowers that don't play well with existing mag releases. I'm currently in a "wait and see" mode as the new DPMS G2, MP10, etc, find their way in the marketplace.

These days, I basically use 5.56 for pretty much everything 0-300 yards, 6.5 Grendel for 0-600 yards, and 6.5 Creedmoor in a 22" bolt gun for long range stuff. If hunting it would be a toss-up between 6.5 Grendel and 6.5 Creedmoor, depending on the game and field conditions. But my 5.56 guns are the 90% solution for sure.

ETA: as markm points out, ammo is a big factor for sure when shooting 5.56.

[Failure2Stop]

Jack: did you sand your URX 4 rail covers? They certainly appear to be KAC but have a different texture.

Those are prototype keymod panels, pocketed for grip-tape.
I am 99% happy with them.
The only thing I would change if possible would be to make them more readily adaptable for different lengths, but since the outside border is raised to prevent them from drifting/slipping they don't take to chopping well.

[rcoodyar15]

this is my toy

20140523_190246_resized.jpg20140523_190246_resized.jpg20140523_190246_resized.jpg

I have another 5.56 that is my SHTF gun but really is is just another fun gun

My hunting guns are all bolt action. For serious work it is the only way to go.

[markm]

I've gone back and forth on the .308AR thing in a BIG way over the years

The .308 LMT MWS was about the best AR 308 ever... with the only downside being weight. We ran Pappabears without a complaint for quite a while.

But really... It didn't do anything for us that a 5.56 wouldn't. (now if we were shooting at live threats out at long ranges... yeah... I'd want that extra thump... but for regular target shooting... not needed)

The 5.56 is often sold short by shooters I think... When weather permits, I want to do some frag tests at 500 and 1000 yards with 77 gr OTMs.

[ColtSeavers]

I've gone back and forth on the .308AR thing in a BIG way over the years, having owned and shot everything from a 22" LR308 with bull barrel to a 16" KAC EMC and even a 14.5" AR10C and pretty much everything in between. Overall weight, lack of commonality among manufacturers, and the varied "tuning" from different manufacturers (e.g. EMC only for current milspec M80 or match grade stuff, AR10A4C super overgassed, etc) pushed me off that train. I'm also glad I'm not beta-testing stuff like the Aero Precision 308AR lowers that don't play well with existing mag releases. I'm currently in a "wait and see" mode as the new DPMS G2, MP10, etc, find their way in the marketplace.

These days, I basically use 5.56 for pretty much everything 0-300 yards, 6.5 Grendel for 0-600 yards, and 6.5 Creedmoor in a 22" bolt gun for long range stuff. If hunting it would be a toss-up between 6.5 Grendel and 6.5 Creedmoor, depending on the game and field conditions. But my 5.56 guns are the 90% solution for sure.

ETA: as markm points out, ammo is a big factor for sure when shooting 5.56.

I completely agree with you, markm and others that using heavier/better bullets than 62gr ball can and does greatly increase the performance and range (especially in conjunction with a longer barrel) of the 5.56/.223.

For me personally though, once I started looking at building an AR for that end with that ammo use in mind (longer range shooting and hunting), I instead switched to 6.8 SPC for the same reason for better performance for the same price (build and ammo wise).

I also must agree that I am a bit put off by the selection of .308 ARs for the same reasons you are and that I too am keeping an eye on DPMS' s GII. My go to .308/7.62 rifle is a 20" heavy barrel bolt action currently.

Again, I'm not trying to knock any of these calibers, these are just my own personal reasonings.

[markm]

I also must agree that I am a bit put off by the selection of .308 ARs for the same reasons you are and that I too am keeping an eye on DPMS' s GII. My go to .308/7.62 rifle is a 20" heavy barrel bolt action currently.

I was blown away that there was a functional .308 AR (the LMT MWS mentioned above). If I didn't have many weekends witnessing the gun running like a champ, I wouldn't believe it.

[ColtSeavers]

I was blown away that there was a functional .308 AR (the LMT MWS mentioned above). If I didn't have many weekends witnessing the gun running like a champ, I wouldn't believe it.

I will start to look into that one as well. Thank you for the heads up.

[Koshinn]

The .308 LMT MWS was about the best AR 308 ever... with the only downside being weight. We ran Pappabears without a complaint for quite a while.

But really... It didn't do anything for us that a 5.56 wouldn't. (now if we were shooting at live threats out at long ranges... yeah... I'd want that extra thump... but for regular target shooting... not needed)

The 5.56 is often sold short by shooters I think... When weather permits, I want to do some frag tests at 500 and 1000 yards with 77 gr OTMs.

I came to the same conclusion actually... I haven't used my MWS in maybe half a year, if not more.

The MWS also chews and dents brass like crazy. It's a very reliable and accurate, but heavy, AR308. But I just don't need it when 5.56 does everything I want... namely, kill paper and home defense within 100m.

[markm]

I will start to look into that one as well. Thank you for the heads up.

Kind of pricey and pretty heavy were the only downsides. You could hit Pappabear up for more specifics, but it was boringly reliable and shot Sub MOA with Match kings.