Need some advice

W

wyshadow

New member
I bought a Savage 12 FV .308 from Cabela's sale last year. My intend on this gun is to mostly have a 500 yard target shooter (90%) and may take it out prairie dog and coyote once in a while (10%). I may also finally try deer hunting because I would finally have a larger caliber gun. I already have dies for .243 and my plan was to rechamber the gun to .243 but I'm hesitant to take on this project. I looked up different barrel makers and may go with a Shilen if I decide to go this route.

I have watched and read everything I could find about this two calibers and it seems like the .243 is a better round for long distance shooting (less wind drift) and small to medium game hunting. The pluses I have found for the .308 is it has a massive bullet choice, larger variety of species to hunt (don't think I'll hunt anything bigger then deer but you never know), higher KE, and a better BC down range (I know some could argue the .243 has a better BC)

If I decide to stay with the .308 and buy a set of dies, is the .308 accurate enough to shoot soda cans (or prairie dogs) out 500 yards? Or is the .243 better suited?
For back ground I do have an older savage 22-250 and I shot hundreds of bullets through this gun. I have pillar bedded, bedded the stock, free floated the barrel, and installed a timney trigger on this gun. I have load data on 45 grain, 50 grain, and 55 grain bullets for this gun. The gun prefers the 50 grain bullets and I know my bullets drop. The sad part of all this work is I can only shoot this gun out to 300 yards accurately with such a light bullet. At 500 yards my groups are about 1 to 2 feet and that's in light wind. Hence the reason I got another gun.

Is the .308 a good round or should I plow ahead with getting a .243? If I buy another barrel, I would want it be a .243 since I already a dies for it. (my older brother has a .243 and I worked up a load for him but I only shot it out to 100 yards)
 
The 308 Winchester is not any more "inherently" accurate than the 243 Winchester. Go with what you want and develop the load(s) you want to shoot. Either will fill your desires fine, though I do have a preference for the 243 in this situation.
 
The .308 will do what you want to at 500 yards (and beyond). However, it has more recoil than the .243 which will make for an unpleasant day in the p-dog fields. The .308 has an unlimited array of bullet selection as well and a much better barrel life than a .308.

Have you considered a 6.5 Creedmoor? That may offer the best of both worlds.
 
Originally Posted By: Hunt

Have you considered a 6.5 Creedmoor? That may offer the best of both worlds.

I have thought about the 6.5 but like I said, I would rather buy a set of dies or a barrel and not both a barrel and dies for another caliber because I will then have a .308 barrel I will never use and a set of .243 dies that only gets used once a year when my brother needs some bullets made for deer season. If I buy a .243 barrel, the barrel will be a aftermarket high quality barrel.
 
Only solution to this problem is to buy (or build) another gun and have both! Hahaha

In all seriousness, both the 308 and 243 will do what you want them to. I've killed deer with a 243 before. Both will be as accurate as the loads you work up for them. The 243 might be slightly more accurate simply because custom barrels are generally more accurate than factory ones.

Just because you worked up a load for you brother doesn't mean it'll work in your gun. You'd have to start from scratch and see what your rifle likes.

Really though... building a gun based on dies you have is kinda putting the cart before the horse. You're talking about a $1000 barrel job because you own $50 in dies. You'd be better off to pick a caliber you really want and buy another set of dies for it.
 
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Originally Posted By: Clocked92

In all seriousness, both the 308 and 243 will do what you want them to. I've killed deer with a 243 before. Both will be as accurate as the loads you work up for them. The 243 might be slightly more accurate simply because custom barrels are generally more accurate than factory ones.

Just because you worked up a load for you brother doesn't mean it'll work in your gun. You'd have to start from scratch and see what your rifle likes.

Really though... building a gun based on dies you have is kinda putting the cart before the horse. You're talking about a $1000 barrel job because you own $50 in dies. You'd be better off to pick a caliber you really want and buy another set of dies for it.

Clocked92,
I do know I would have to make a different load for my next gun. This is one of the many things I enjoy about reloading. Reloading different bullets with two grain increments and heading to the range and seeing what results I get is what I really enjoy doing.
How can buying a gun base on a set of dies you already have a bad thing? I think it saves me money by going this route. In this case, I lucked out a .243 makes a good long distance shooting round. (from reading and watching stuff on the internet. I don't knew much about the .243 at more the 100 yards)
 
Having a set of reloading dies and no rifle to use them for sounds like a totally rational and reasonable excuse to buy a new rifle. It has worked for me just fine several times in my life.
 
243 will be great. You can get a barrel for your savage for around $350 and that would be a drop in barrel at your choice of twist. There are many barrel companies out there. Find one you are comfortable with. Don't hesitate to call them and ask questions.
Good luck with the project and let us know how it works out for you.
Jerod
 
If recoil is not a factor, I would shoot the snot out of the .308 barrel. You can sell or trade the dies you have and get the ones you need. Then decide which way you want to go.
 
We have built four 20 Practicals off the Savage 12 FV rifle. We use the Shilen drop in barrels out of Northland Shooters Supply. They are great to work with. The bolt face will match up perfect for the .243. With the 10 twist barrel you'll be able to shoot a very wide range of projectiles. They also offer a large array of barrel contours. Savage FV's come in a Varmint contour which is a heavy barrel that some do not like to carry when you're taking that long walk on a deer hunt. Sounds like you may need to rifles. Something to hunt big game and one to punch paper or those skinned critters. What a dilemma ? I'd go with the second rifle.
 
Originally Posted By: coal farmerChange the 22-250 to 243. It would just be a barrel swap.
Then you would have what you want.

coal farmer,
you hit the nail right on the head. I was thinking of the something. Here's my plan: Im going to swap out the 22-250 barrel to a sporter contour .243, buy 308 dies, and buy a boyds stock for the 308. I have tried to looking on Boyds website but I couldn't find the right stock for the 308. Will have to call them up.

I have put through about 10 rounds to sight in the 308 with some cheap federal ammo and there is a big difference in recoil compared to my 22-250 but I took the hits like a champ and it wasn't bad at all.

Any recommendations on who makes affordable high quality after market barrels? I have looked at Shilen and E.R. Shaw. May lean towards the E.R. Shaw barrel because they seem like they have good reviews, less expensive, and the barrel comes with barrel nut wrench.
 
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When people tell you how easy a barrel swap is on a savage, they dont always mention what all is involved to do so...safely. if it is your first swap, then headspace go and no-go guages are a must. These can cost anywhere from $25-50 each. Also you will need a vise and a way to hold either the barrel or the action to loosen/tighten the barrel nut. You will also need barrel nut wrench which does come with the e.r. shaw kit...but if purchased seperately costs around $40. Just a few things to consider.

I have the same rifle in .308 and I dropped it into a choate tactical stock. After 90 rounds down the pipe it has finally settled in and is shootng nicely, but I wouldnt take it to the prairie dog fields...go for something in the 20 cal or 22 cal range....i have a 204 in 12FV and love it.
 
Originally Posted By: BluedogWhen people tell you how easy a barrel swap is on a savage, they dont always mention what all is involved to do so...safely. if it is your first swap, then headspace go and no-go guages are a must. These can cost anywhere from $25-50 each. Also you will need a vise and a way to hold either the barrel or the action to loosen/tighten the barrel nut. You will also need barrel nut wrench which does come with the e.r. shaw kit...but if purchased seperately costs around $40. Just a few things to consider.

I have the same rifle in .308 and I dropped it into a choate tactical stock. After 90 rounds down the pipe it has finally settled in and is shootng nicely, but I wouldnt take it to the prairie dog fields...go for something in the 20 cal or 22 cal range....i have a 204 in 12FV and love it.

Nailed it. Swapping barrels is relatively easy if you have all the equipment. It’s the initial investment in a barrel vise, barrel nut wrench, and gauges that sucks. I also agree that the .308 would be a poor choice for prairie dog shooting compared to a .243 or some smaller calibers. At the end of the day I want to see the prairie dog explode from being hit by a varmint bullet designed for that purpose. The .308 doesn’t offer the best options for varmint hunters as far as bullets or ballistics. Fast, flat shooting bullets are the way to go and the .243 crushes the .308 in that respect. I had a savage 10 FP-HS in .308 and came to the conclusion that it was far from ideal for prairie dog hunts and not really competitive in long range shooting anymore. Pulled off the barrel, sold it, and put on a shilen in .223 that murders prairie dogs with 53 gr v-max for much less the cost of shooting the .308. I have no regrets. My advice would be to go the .243 route with a shilen or criterion barrel. I know the er Shaw looks like a great deal, and it might very well end up being an accurate barrel, or it might not. Typically when it comes to barrels you get what you pay for most of the time. Some of the cheap ones might end up shooting lights out but it’s very unlikely you are going to have a barrel from a more reputable maker shoot poorly. One more thing. If you have any intention of taking whatever you choose praire dog hunting I wouldn’t get a sporter barrel.
 
chz,
Thank you for a well thought out reply. Gives me more things to think about again. Well [beeep], looks like i will have to go with a .243 varmint barrel with the 22-250 action but that will have to be later on. The reason I wanted to go with the sporter contour barrel for the .243 is the 22-250 is a sporter and I don't think anything bigger will fit in the stock. Will have to shave off more wood off the factory stock if I went with a heavy barrel. Right now I'm going to go ahead with getting a boyds stock for the 308. I ordered 308 dies yesterday and it should be here tuesday. Too many options to think about. Now I'm wondering if it was a good idea on buying the .308. Life was a lot simpler. Powder burners are much harder to choose from then it is for air rifles. So many options and it seems like most calibers overlay each other on performance. For air rifles, a .25 can do almost everything a .22 and .30 can do, and if you just wanted one pellet that could do 90 percent of everything you want to do, a .25 will get the job done.
 
the .243, 308 , and 22-250 accuracy has to do with the barrel. if you get Krieger barrel any of those calibers will shoot groups smaller than a soda can at 500 yards.
 
What about a factory take off .243 barrel for the savage?
I bought a Model 12 .22-250 from a member on this forum for $75 i think it was. Took the .223 barrel off my model 11 and put the .22-250 barrel on and a .473" bolt head. Head spaced it with 3 pieces of brass i had fired in my other .22-250 and resized in my FL die. Used a piece of tape (0.002" Thick) on the base of the brass and that was my nogo gauge.

.308 is one of my favorite rounds because of the bullet selection and barrel life. I put a AR10 together in .308 and it shoots very well out to 850 yards with 178gr ELDX and out to 500 yards with 125gr TMK.

IF you do buy a new barrel look close at the twist and what bullet you want to shoot in the .243.
 
Originally Posted By: Winny FanHaving a set of reloading dies and no rifle to use them for sounds like a totally rational and reasonable excuse to buy a new rifle. It has worked for me just fine several times in my life.

He11....a hand full of brass is reason enough for me.
 
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