20" Bartlein barreled custom build, 1:10 twist. Deer and exotic hunting out to 300 yards (primarily). Looking for something that is known to do the job but should have great accuracy potential.

I've got these on the short list so far...

165 Nosler Ballistic Tip
168 Barnes TTSX
168 Berger VLD Hunting
180 Barnes TTSX
180 Nosler Ballistic Tip

Barnes 150 TTSX runs at about 2900 fps if you want heavier the 168 TTSX seems to be a good choice for game .  I don’t feel like I gain anything going from 168 to 180
If you try a box of the factory 150 you can decide if you like them then build to match that load .

Nosler accubonds have been good for me.

Attached File


Pulled from a 400 lb elk.

I'm not up to speed on Nosler.

Ballistic Tip
Accubond
Partition

My rifle loves 180 Nosler Ballistic Tip

Some claim the accubond is not the most accurate, I don’t know.
They do 1.5 or 2” for me in a cheap dpms.  Minute of elk for sure.

Attached File

Sierra 165 gr Game King is another one to try.  I haven't tried their Game Changer bullets yet (tipped Game King).

The 150 grain Nosler Spire Point is the absolute BOMB for medium/big game.

Try the Makers 200gr REX for 308 subs.   Its fearsome

What I’m struggling with…is there are probably way more effective .30 bullets than non effective for 308 Win.

I’m just looking for something that I can expect 3/4 MOA or better.

The 165 BallisticTip has been my go-to deer bullet for years. Very accurate but it makes a messy wound. I wouldn't trust it to anything heavier.
I may try the 168 grain tipped MKZ bullet from CavityBack here soon. I have no reason to change but it looks interesting.

Ordered the Nosler 168 Grain AccuBond LR to try out. I have heard great things about it, especially the reduced velocity for expansion over conventional AccuBond.

My two cents...

Im a diehard Nosler fan.  Used them for years.  In a 20" 308, a 165 Ballistic Tip is damned near perfect.    Ive used them for 30 odd years and flattened a boatload of deer and a few caribou.

With that said I dont recommend them:  Nosler can't seem to reliably keep bullets on the shelf.  And there is no use spending hundreds of dollars in load development and a fair bit of barrel life working up a load, only to find that the bullet you need isn't available.

It gets worse:  Nosler is reliably priced well above the competition.  And there is only half as many bullets in a box.  A buddy, just this week, had four boxes of .308 dia Nosler partitions come in.  Thats only two hundred bullets.  The price was $308 plus tax.

In 1985, when I started reloading, Nosler offered the Ballistic Tip and the Partition. Nothing else worked as well, and these were unique products.

Its not 1985 anymore.  If you need tough and deep penetrating, the partition isn't your only option.  You can now opt for Barnes TTSX, Hornady Interbond, and others.  And EVERYONE makes a high BC plastic tipped bullet:  Sierra TGK, Hornady SST, etc.

In my experience, a 20" 308 is kind of mild with regards to velocity.  The Barnes offerings are excellent bullets, but they like speed.  With low muzzle velocities in a 20" 208, often mid 2600's, impact speeds at 300 yards are starting to be quite low, and the Barnes just do not open as hard as I want.  I'll readily use a TTSX in my 280 Ackley or a 300 mag.  I think they are a serious mistake in a short 308

I've had my best luck with the 165 Nosler Ballistic Tip.  In my opinion (take it for what its worth) a light construction fast opening bullet works better when muzzle velocities are mild.  I had many many one shot boom-flop Hammer of Thor kills with this combo.  But, since Nosler simply cannot extract their head from their anus, I've moved to replacements.  I have zero issue using other available options.  Instead of ballistic Tips, I now use Hornady 165 SSTs.  in the 308.  Hornady 143 ELDx in 6.5 creed.  I also have no qualms about Sierras tipped game kings...

I have no personal experience with them but a buddy who has reloaded a couple hundred thousand rounds in his life speaks very highly about Sierra's strange little 165 game king with the cruciform hollowpoint too.

There are lots of excellent bullets.  Unfortunately, a lot of people are going to recommend "Bullet X" or "Bullet Y".  Yup. Those are fan-freaking-tastic in other cartridges that go faster, be they 270, 30-06 or your favorite magnum.  they can even work okay in a 24" 308 at ranges of 100 and 150 yards.  But a 20" 308 takes a already mild cartridge, dials it back to mid 2600's, and at 250 yards impact speeds are now mild enough you're on the expansion threshold.  and the end result is predicable...  "Everyone recommended these bullets, but I had to shoot my deer three times, nearly lost him, and post mortem seems to look like they failed to expand".

3/4 MOA.  You better try them all.

Is that too much to ask for out of an LRI built custom (Defiance, Bartlein, TriggerTech, bedded McMillan)?

Factory Federal 175 Terminal Ascent shoots just under 3/4 MOA.

The good old fashioned 150 Hornady interlock will do everything you mentioned in your original post.  I have always gotten great accuracy from it.

I’ve had good luck on deer with the 168gr A-max. Probably wouldn’t use it for elk sized game, but it has performed great on deer.

Hornady 178 grain ELD look promising.

IDK, never owned a custom build.  3/4 is damn good for a hunting rifle.  I wouldn’t mind just using the Terminal ascent bullet if you are going to reload anyway.  A good load might even tighten that group up.

Barnes 130 TTSX for deer sized game.  

the speer 150 grain tnt has performed really well for me

Basically every single bullet will "do the job" in a 308, except maybe the few varmint bullets which are for varmints. There is a difference though. Like most, I used to shoot 150gr in 308. I used to shoot the Federal 150gr soft point, and when I started reloading I started with the Hornady 150 gr SST. Both killed whitetail. Both also left horrendous wounds. If you want to drop animals on the spot, or just as quickly as possible, those are great. I didn't like it at all. Besides the offside often being a 3" gaping hole, there would be random pockets of blood and bruising, plus bullet fragments way away from the wound. I have seen a number of deer shot with other 150gr bullets too, and they all act similarly. What I have not seen is something like an Accubond. I do not know how a bonded bullet would do. I hear great things about the accubond.

I don't know that I ever hunted with a 165 gr bullet in a 308.

I started getting really good results with 180gr bullets, and of course decided to hunt with them. Immediately I found what I consider ideal performance with the Hornady 3070, a 180gr SP flat base. I have not tried the 3072 boat tail version yet, but I can't imagine it's much different. The 180gr interlock basically plows a 3/4" to 1" hole through. I've shot a number of white tail. I shot a cow elk about a year and a half ago. I even shot an antelope last fall with it. Whitetail were from 30 to 150 yards. The elk was about 180 yards. The Antelope was about 225 yards. All identical performance, minimal damage besides the main wound channel, no random bullet fragments. Some dropped on the spot, The elk kind of dropped, but managed to kick and roll into a ditch, I think the antelope ran the farthest (or at least the fastest), he made it a good 75-100 yards.

For inside of 300 yards, I don't see much reason to worry about really streamline bullets. That 180gr flat base interlock has a better BC than the majority of 150 gr boat tails, and many 165's too. For whatever reason, some people have it in their head that lighter bullets work better on lighter animals. I know I wouldn't want to shoot an antelope with a 150gr SST. While I have not tried them in the 308, Barnes and other copper bullets can work, but I'm not sure I'd try a 180gr Barnes in a 308. The copper bullets work really well within their parameters, but they require higher speeds than lead bullets. When you get much below 2200 fps impact, then sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. Speed is definately a good thing to have with copper bullets. If I were to use a copper bullet in a 308, I would definitely try the 130gr TTSX. It sounds light, but they hold together great. They do not at all compare with a 125 or 150gr lead bullet.

So this is just my opinion. Skip the 180gr TSSX. I think the 168gr Berger VLD would not only be unnecessary, they are well known as a frangible bullet. Great for dropping animals fast if you want that though. I might try the 165gr Accubond, rather than the ballistic tip. I would definitely give the Hornady 180gr Interlock flat base 3070 a try though. You might be surprised how good that bullet shoots. It's one of the most forgiving I've ever tried.

The ttsx’s and add accubonds to the list.

I’ve used 168 NBT and 165 Speer hot-cor and both have given golf ball size exits at 200 and 240 yards. Nosler is on crack with their prices these days. Speer is definitely cheaper and they easily shoot sub MOA with 45gr Varget.

308Win can use just about any bullet on the market and be deadly.  

It's not a high velocity monster that tears cup and core style bullets to shreds, but it's not so slow that it will have issues with all copper mono either.  


Essentially, put any decent bullet in the boiler room and it's going to die.  I don't think bullet type/structure is all that important for this particular caliber.  Unless you start getting into either very large or small for caliber animals.  Just find something you like, can reliably get your hands on, and shoots well out of your rifle.

Yep.

The 150 ttsx is PHENOMINAL

So are the 150 grain Sierra Gamekings and the 185 grain Berger Hybrids

Lapua scenar 155gr BTHP. It’s a match bullet but kills deer dead. Phenomenal BC for the caliber and weight.

Also consider Badlands lathe turned projectiles. The BC is absurd. That’s all my buddy uses for various hunting calibers.

https://badlandsprecision.com/product/308-175gr-bulldozer-2/

I was a Partition fan until I started using TTSX's.  Javelina, hogs, elk.  They work great.

The good old fashioned 150 Hornady interlock is hard to beat.  I also like the 150 SST.