School me on .308...complete rookie here!

[oldpink]

Federal Gold Match 168 gr. Shot great out of my AR-10 and my Remington 700, both 1:10 . Winchester 180gr softpoints worked well also.

That'll probably work really well for target shooting, but no hunter would ever recommend it for deer.

 

[singlesix]

That'll probably work really well for target shooting, but no hunter would ever recommend it for deer.

Where did I recommend it for hunting? Too quick to jump on your soapbox.

 

[oldpink]

[...]
I want an economical round for plinking and maybe deer. I'm not sure about distance. 100-150 yards should be adequate. I'm not looking to do any Canadian sniper antics.

Is there an all around round? Honestly, I'm clueless and would appreciate some advice from learned INGOtarians familiar with the subject.

TYIA,

Stocks

Where did I recommend it for hunting? Too quick to jump on your soapbox.

The OP mentioned it, and he specifically mentioned ammo for both target and hunting.
Chill, dude.

 

[sheepdog697]

I would suggest buying atleast 5 different boxes of ammo in your price range and seeing what your gun likes. What shoots great in my gun might shoot awful in yours. Federal gold medal match 168gr smk is pretty much gold standard for RELATIVELY inexpensive factory loaded ammunition. Obviously if you plan on hunting id recommend staying away from match ammo. Hope this helps.

 

[sheepdog697]

Exactly
They also keep the core on the jacket (or have no core at all, as with the TTSX, SST, and other similar types) and greatly improve your odds of properly anchoring your deer from unusual angles (quartering away, for example), while guaranteeing reliable expansion out far and staying together for very short ranges where a cheap game bullet could fragment and let the deer run a good distance before dropping, leaving a good portion of the venison bloodshot and inedible.
Being cost-conscious with ammo is only rational, but the average deer hunter won't be shooting more than two or three rounds per deer, so trying to economize even with hunting ammo makes about as much sense to me as trying to economize on defensive loads.

this is also a valid point.

 

[two70]

Exactly
They also keep the core on the jacket (or have no core at all, as with the TTSX, SST, and other similar types) and greatly improve your odds of properly anchoring your deer from unusual angles (quartering away, for example), while guaranteeing reliable expansion out far and staying together for very short ranges where a cheap game bullet could fragment and let the deer run a good distance before dropping, leaving a good portion of the venison bloodshot and inedible.
Being cost-conscious with ammo is only rational, but the average deer hunter won't be shooting more than two or three rounds per deer, so trying to economize even with hunting ammo makes about as much sense to me as trying to economize on defensive loads.

Did you mean GMX instead of SST? The SST is definitely not a bonded bullet. It was the SST that convinced me to switch to TSX bullets for deer on my .270 WSM after seeing two of them blow up(one of which failed to exit) on a Texas whitetail. I was never in any danger of losing that buck but had he been able to make it into the brush the sparse blood trail from having only an entrance wound would have made it very difficult to recover him.

As for being cost conscience on ammo/bullets, I understand the desire to save money where possible but this is not the place to seek savings in my opinion. I suspect many hunters shoot less than a box of ammo a year and the vast majority shoots less than 3-4 including sight in a practice. When you consider the cost of hunting licenses, hunting gear, gas and your time involved, saving an extra $25-$50 by buying cheaper ammo seems to be the very definition of "penny wise and pound foolish" to me.

 

[oldpink]

Did you mean GMX instead of SST? The SST is definitely not a bonded bullet. It was the SST that convinced me to switch to TSX bullets for deer on my .270 WSM after seeing two of them blow up(one of which failed to exit) on a Texas whitetail. I was never in any danger of losing that buck but had he been able to make it into the brush the sparse blood trail from having only an entrance wound would have made it very difficult to recover him.

As for being cost conscience on ammo/bullets, I understand the desire to save money where possible but this is not the place to seek savings in my opinion. I suspect many hunters shoot less than a box of ammo a year and the vast majority shoots less than 3-4 including sight in a practice. When you consider the cost of hunting licenses, hunting gear, gas and your time involved, saving an extra $25-$50 by buying cheaper ammo seems to be the very definition of "penny wise and pound foolish" to me.

Yeah, that should have been about GMX bullet.
I also forgot to mention Nosler's E-Tip as a third monolithic bullet.
Have to agree that the TTSX (165 grain .308 caliber), at least on its first outing last year with my home-rolled .30-06 ammo, proved decisive; one shot and the buck was down inside 50 feet, and the bullet expanded properly before exiting, just as it should.