Thread: best 308 projectile for shooting sika at close range

Different calibre but my PH supplied Hornady SST load for the 7mm in Africa, 10/10 culls went to be proccessed.

Love the 308...loved Sako 123gr factory ammo and reloads using 150gr Sierra Pro hunters....

Greetings @Sid,
I was just out in the shed putting some loads together for my little .308 Bergarra single shot. I bought the rifle a couple of years ago for something that I could carry in my pack and the loads were intended as bush, semi open country Sika. As the loading progressed I thought this is what Sid was after. So this is my load CAC cases FL sized and neck annealed. Federal 210 primer and 41 grains of AR2206H powder. The projectile is Norma 150 grain. These days it would be classed as semi pointed. The loads should chronograph around 2,500 fps from the 20 inch barrel. Now this is an old Fudd's load and is likely not what you want but it is probably all that you need. The CAC cases are over 40 years old but are about the same weight as current Winchester brass. A suitable alternative to the Norma is the Hornady 150 grain round nose.
Regards and Happy Hunting Grandpamac.

Make sure you hit the shoulder and you won’t have any issues with damn near any projectile in the .308. Keep the shot well forwards and there will be plenty of resistance to get the bullet opening up. Rear lung shots on a light deer can let a bullet ‘slip through’. Will kill, but slower than if you ‘take the wheels out’. Save mucking round with different ammo too….

All .308 bullets will kill a deer dead at short range.

I use a 150 grain Interlock and I shoot most of my deer at around 10-90 metres. I have also been known to use an 180 grain round nose.

Originally Posted by Sid

Yeah i think the trouble is americans shoot bigger animals so their ammo is tailored to that..... i want to shoot small sika and leave a huge exit hole

OK you asked for it so I will answer it.....you want huge exit hole??? speer 130grn HP all day long..... they nicknamed handgrenades for a reason.
speer 150grn btsp if you can find them will be good too. the 125grn NBT are wicked in .308 and hold together slightly better than the speer....

Originally Posted by JohnDuxbury

All .308 bullets will kill a deer dead at short range.

I use a 150 grain Interlock and I shoot most of my deer at around 10-90 metres. I have also been known to use an 180 grain round nose.

yes you hua....you talked me into it and now I just cant go past them LMFAO....the 180grn hornady round nose are VERY soft and expand well.the bog std winchester 180 power points are the ducks nuts for bush load if you want factory...I only went with the hornady as couldnt get the others as component... shot 70lb boar through head into neck/shoulder and retrieved projectile 111grns as said they are SOFT...SOFT =GOOD.

Cast Hollow Points, cheap, accurate at that range, deadly effective and available, 151 gn from @shooternz

Better still, 158grn cast HP or flat nose out of a Rossi Puma 357Mag. Light to carry. Deadly up to 100m.

If you are able to get hold of them, the 155gr Scenar is what I use solely. The base will most times pass through no matter what it hits. The front end turns into a rotory hoe. There are large threads on Long Range Hunting about how well they work as a hunting projectile. I have found they work about as well as you could hope from any bullet.

Originally Posted by WOPASS

125gn Sierra ProHunter
perfect bullet for what you want to do.

edit to add: got a decent load for this if you want info send a message

I’ve using 125gn ProHunters for years on Sika they are the bees knees
Used them on anything to be fair from Thar to Fallow

Originally Posted by Shootm

I’ve using 125gn ProHunters for years on Sika they are the bees knees
Used them on anything to be fair from Thar to Fallow

Here’s a few that have been recovered from animals

Originally Posted by Shootm

Here’s a few that have been recovered from animals

Attachment 193420

Its pretty hard to go past a Sierra Prohunter or Gameking or Speer BTSP for that matter, theyve all got a decent sized exposed soft lead tip that gets the expansion started. They all just work.