Effective Range of 16"BBL .308?

[ST911]

I was wondering if anyone knows the effective (ability to knock down a BG)range of a 16" bbl .308 rifle? I am trying to decide if I need one .308 rifle or an SBR and a .308 Rifle.

16" and 18" barrels on hunting and tactical rifles have been harvesting game and addressing threats for quite some time. Load selection for the application becomes more critical with the shorter barrels, but they are quite serviceable.

[Sid Post]

Get an SBR AR-15 for it's handling qualities. Personally, I think 6.8SPC or 6.5Grendel in a 10.5" configuration is the sweet spot between 55gr 5.56 and larger stuff that way over penetrates.

[KevinB]

The good Doc has some data about 155gr and 178gr 7.62x51mm ammo that will not over pen...

[SHIVAN]

Here is a good one courtesty of DocGKR and Tactical Forums:

[cgdonley]

With 155gr & 168gr TAP which are by far the best defense loads you should feel prety good to 400yrds with a 16" tube after that the bullets aren't likely to fragment as designed. Go to tacticalforums.com terminal effects forum and search before posting. Dr. Gary Roberts( DocGKR) is an expert in the field of ballistics.

[sigmundsauer]

A better way to answer the question is to address the effective range of a 16" .308 at battlesight or field zero. Just because it can technically shoot 600 yards doesn't mean your carbine is set up to do so for utility work. I think a practical 16" .308 is a 200m gun. 250m on the high side.

Tim

[cgdonley]

A better way to answer the question is to address the effective range of a 16" .308 at battlesight or field zero. Just because it can technically shoot 600 yards doesn't mean your carbine is set up to do so for utility work. I think a practical 16" .308 is a 200m gun. 250m on the high side.

Tim

I must disagree with you on the 250m range. After all a 16" 5.56 AR has a 200m fragmentation effective range with MK262 MOD1. The TAP ammo for 308 will fragment at some fairly low velocities and will certainly be effective at ranges over 200m. I know what your saying and I agree a 200m shot would seem about right for a carbine. I'm just pointing out that if you had to engage at distances beyond those normally encountered this ammo would perform out to 400m. if you could deliver rounds on target. I'm really not sure if the original poster wanted to know about the weapons platform or ammo?

[SHIVAN]

I think a practical 16" .308 is a 200m gun. 250m on the high side.

An 11" AR-15 is a 250m carbine.

[sigmundsauer]

Without knowing the intent of the original poster, I personally don't want a rainbow trajectory in a carbine, despite if the ammunition is capable of fragmenting or simply poking holes. Clearly a .308 is not short on power, I am more concerned about probability of hit and precision. There is a certain threshold that each much determine for themselves. A bullet that must be pitched a half-foot or more above sightline to achieve longer range hits is not practical for me.

Tim

[SHIVAN]

How badly does something need to be shot at extended intermediate distances??

A 16" .308 carbine is useful at most intermediate distances, if needed. Personal preference and configuration notwithstanding.

If I had a .308 16" carbine, I'd not hesitate to launch rounds at someone shooting at me, even at 400yds - 500yds.

Hell, I killed an antelope at 308yds using a 22" .308 Win and 150gr SST Light Mags. Zeroed at 200yds, the drop I had to compensate for was approximately 7.5". MV = 3000fps. An easy holdover at the top of the buck's back.

Consider this, the span between the bridge of a man's nose, and the center of his chest cavity is ~12-16". If you aimed at the bridge of his nose at 300yds, and you have 10" of drop, you should hit him just below the juncture of his neck and upper chest.

5.56 or 7.62 there will ruin his day for a good minute.