.243 vs. 7mm-08 vs. .308

[Principal Skinr]

I'm thinking about a Remington R25 and they come in these three calibers. What are the advantages or disadvantages of each, and which would be best for the widest variety of game? (How big an animal would each be good for taking?)

I'm leaning toward the .308, but want opinions of experienced hunters and shooters. I might have an opportunity for a used .243, and that has me thinking, too!

 

[turnandshoot4]

The .308 is always cheap. Well, cheap-er to shoot.

 

[smokingman]

You can not go wrong with a 70 or 700 in 270win for nearly all game in America.

 

[Principal Skinr]

You can not go wrong with a 70 or 700 in 270win for nearly all game in America.

The R25 only comes in the calibers mentioned in the title.

 

[sloughfoot]

Since you can't hunt deer with a rifle caliber rifle in Indiana, it depends on what you want to do with it. Are you going on safari to Colorado?

243 will take deer size game easily, but barrel life is relatively short compared to the other two. Low recoil, 3 or 4 bullet weight choices.
Brass can be made from 308 brass. Good caliber for recoil sensitive person.
You could use this rifle for prairie doggin in South Dakota or deer hunting in Michigan.

7mm-08 will take deer size game easily. Very popular cartridge for silhouette competition. 3 or 4 bullet weight choices. Brass can be made from the 308 brass. Again light recoil, maybe not the best choice for varmint shootin. Good barrel life.

308 is a great all around cartridge. many bullet weights available. Barrel life is very good. Accuracy is generally very good. Loads are set in stone, no surprises.

I would lean toward the 308 too, but I don't think you would lose too much with the 7mm-08. Ultimately you get to choose

I don't know about the reliability of the R25 platform. It is based on the AR10 sized receiver and hopefully Remington got it right. I don't like the way the AR10 type rifle feels, but that is JMO

 

[turnandshoot4]

The R25 is based off the DPMS rifles.

 

[kludge]

I'm thinking about a Remington R25 and they come in these three calibers. What are the advantages or disadvantages of each, and which would be best for the widest variety of game? (How big an animal would each be good for taking?)

I'm leaning toward the .308, but want opinions of experienced hunters and shooters. I might have an opportunity for a used .243, and that has me thinking, too!

My vote is for the 7mm-08. IMO it is the most versatile of the three, if not the most versatile rifle cartridge on the planet, especially if you handload. (flame suit on) Bullet weights mimic the ones used in .308 (100gr~180gr) but have better ballistic coefficient in the same weight, meaning they shoot flatter and retain more energy past 250 yards. Used judiciously the 7mm-08 is good from varmints to moose. The .243 is good for varmints up to deer. Being from the same parent case all have great accuracy, but 7mm would have a bit longer point blank range, and some claim it is even more accurate than the .308.

7mm-08 vs 308 - Google Search=

Above are the results of a google search 7mm-08 vs 308.

The .243 is good if you want a light kicking deer rifle/varmint combo, great for a youth's first deer rifle. The .308 is not usually though of a varmint rifle, but 110gr bullets are available.

If I could only have one hunting rifle for everything it would a 7mm-08. The .280 Remington (7mm Remington Express) has a lot of die hard afficianados for the same reasons.

 

[Principal Skinr]

I'm not really planning for deer in Indiana, with its goofy gun rules. I'd probably go with a shotgun with slug. I would do deer in another state. I'd love one day to go for elk or moose or something like that, so would the 7mm-08 or .308 be able to take something large like those? I'm not worried about recoil. From what I've read, the R25 doesn't have a lot of felt recoil in any of them. For varmints, I already have an R15 in .223, so I'm covered there.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

If you want to take larger game....Moose and/or Mule Deer, elk etc etc etc...

Your three choices WILL do the job. But they must be almost perfect shots every time.

Those three chamberings will probably be considered too small for most bigger game...especially the .243.

If you know that you'll be hunting larger game, I'd pick which ever will give you the heaviest projectile....prob. .308, right? Plenty of things on the internet of Elk kills using .308.

Plus, as has been said, the .308 will probably be the easiest to find and buy.

-J-

 

[chipdog4]

I've heard that you can't use lighter weight bullets in the .243 because it won't cycle reliably. I don't have my AR10 in .243 finished yet to confirm.

I can't see a use for a 7mm08.

The .308 is limitless. Huge range of bullet weights and types.

Since the R25 is a DPMS, there are more cartridge choices there.
260 Remington, 6.5 Creedmore?, 338 Federal

 

[ruger7722]

they are all great calibres.you could not go wrong with any of these.308 would probably be best for larger game and retain its value in the long run.i think 243 would be the coolest of the bunch.easier to get bullets for these two

 

[Principal Skinr]

I think the .308 is going to be the way to go. Now I just have to find a Remington R25 in that caliber. This will probably be really tough.