Surplus .308

[KahrMan]

I haven't bought any in quite a while. Does anybody have any good sources? What is surplus .308 currently running?

The reason I am asking is I just bought some .50cal ammo and there was a flyer in the box. It had some surplus .308 for $230 for 500 rounds. Is this a good deal?

Thanks

[towerclimber37]

surplus .308 is getting mighty expensive and mighty scarce! I've heard reputable sources say to stay away from the south african stuff..there are a few places to find it but I couldn't tell ya right off the top of my head. I'll look around though.

it used to sell for around .55 cents a round, now it's between .65 and .90 cents a round.

[KahrMan]

The price on the flyer puts it just under .50 cents a round but I think it is South Afican ammo. Whats the problem with South African ammo?

[Guest Mugster]

I was shooting this last week:

http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/Lithuanian-308-Battlepack.html

It shot darn well. And appeared accurate as any ball, although we only shot on iron. I didn't clock it, but the recoil was about what I remembered.

[KahrMan]

Here is the ad for ammo I found

SA308 South African 308 143gr FMJBT $10.50/20 or $230/500 This ammunition uses the same components as the South African Military Grade ammunition, with the exception that the primers are not crimped or sealed, and the bullets do not have the tar mouth sealant. This ammo uses the small copper jacketed - lead core bullet as the military ammo and the velocity is the same or maybe a little higher. (2749 FPS - Consult the PMP ammo website.) This is Premium ammunition, Brass cased, Boxer Primed NON-CORROSIVE (100% Re-Loadable which is a HUGE plus in todays market). This ammunition comes in 20 rnd boxes in 500rnd cases (25 boxes to a case).

[Guest Mugster]

Yeah, I dunno...I was eyeballing that myself. You might buy a box or 2 from wideners as i think they have it and test it before going all out would be my advice.

[KahrMan]

I was shooting this last week:

http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/Lithuanian-308-Battlepack.html

It shot darn well. And appeared accurate as any ball, although we only shot on iron. I didn't clock it, but the recoil was about what I remembered.

That right at the same price and still good for 6 years.

[KahrMan]

Yeah, I dunno...I was eyeballing that myself. You might buy a box or 2 from wideners as i think they have it and test it before going all out would be my advice.

This ad is from Wideners.

[Guest FroggyOne2]

Just be aware that that S.A. 308 ammo will shoot better in a 12 twist bbl than a 10 twist. So if you buy some and your bbl is a 10 or a 11 twist and it don't shoot decent in your gun, you will now know why.

[Guest Mugster]

That right at the same price and still good for 6 years.

6 years? 30 caliber in a sealed pack should be good long after your taking a dirt nap.

Midway has this, but its not reloadable, and it has a steel jacket with nada over it. I bet it penetrates pretty well though:

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=945421

[KahrMan]

6 years? 30 caliber in a sealed pack should be good long after your taking a dirt nap.

Midway has this, but its not reloadable, and it has a steel jacket with nada over it. I bet it penetrates pretty well though:

http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=945421

The link you posted says the ammo is certified for 10 years and is 03/04 production.

So I am guessing that it is actually good for longer than 10 years?

[Guest Mugster]

Small arms ammo doesn't have a shelf life. I guess it could be made with some kind of "green primer" that degrades over time, but I'd have to highly doubt it with military ammo. I think a certification on the lifespan of ammo is horse*&%^ until proven differently.

They were selling lake city .30-06 ball at the CMP here recently with a 50's stamp on it. It was preferred for the garand shoots as far as i know.

[towerclimber37]

I was shooting this last week:

http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/Lithuanian-308-Battlepack.html

It shot darn well. And appeared accurate as any ball, although we only shot on iron. I didn't clock it, but the recoil was about what I remembered.

Mugster has the right of it. I know a fella who works at the armory personally.

they don't sell crappy ammo...unless they TELL you it's crappy ammo...and say that you can use the brass to reload or whatever..

I've heard that the SA battle pack ammo has had problems with reliability..etc..but that may be some horror story.

buy a couple of boxes and try it out and let us know what the deal is!

Mugster, if you call in your order, ask for Kevin, tell him Elliott said hey!

Mark@sea has known him a bit longer than I have..they went to sea school together...that was over 20 years ago.

Edited July 14, 2008 by towerclimber37

[Guest Mugster]

Small world.

Well, I piggy backed off of another guy to get one last time. I'm trying to figure out if i'm better off just buying components or getting a large lot of this ball to get ahold of the brass. I might wind up getting a case, i dunno yet.

For a few bucks more the prvi 168gr match looks pretty good too.

[towerclimber37]

yes it does!

I'd be all over it and say let's go in on a case...but I just made a promise not to spend money on bulk ammo purchases unless my wife agrees to it...I think I've spent about 6500 bucks on gun related stuff this year...so much so that I had to agree to not buying a firearm for 365 days if she let me get my ishapore Enfield...

she'd have my guts for garters..

[Guest Mugster]

Hahaha.

[TNRobocop]

I want to say that AIM or one of the other surplus places had the 140rd SA battle packs for around $70 shipped IIRC.

[Jasongar8]

In my opinion South African is the best surplus .308 out there. I have never heard of anyone having problems with it. I have shot 10,000+ rounds of it threw 1919a4's in about 3 years and havent had ANY problems. In 2006 we were buying it for $180 per 1250 rounds but now those days are gone, expect to pay .50 cents per round and higher for any surplus .308.

-Jason G

[towerclimber37]

In my opinion South African is the best surplus .308 out there. I have never heard of anyone having problems with it. I have shot 10,000+ rounds of it threw 1919a4's in about 3 years and havent had ANY problems. In 2006 we were buying it for $180 per 1250 rounds but now those days are gone, expect to pay .50 cents per round and higher for any surplus .308.

-Jason G

see? THAT'S why we talk about this stuff

[Guest Revelator]

I just bought 4 of the 140 round SA packs from AIM. That's 560 rounds, and with shipping it came to just under $260. I checked on Widener's and for 500 it would come to about $270 with tax and shipping (to me here in Memphis). That's almost $.10 more per bullet, which adds up when you're talking about hundreds.

[Magiccarpetrides]

I bought the case size from AIM ~900rds so I could get the cool container lol. Havent got to shoot any yet though. Still finishing off the Lithuanian. AIMs probably one of my favorite places to purchase ammo.

[Guest Mugster]

Hey, you guys that got the SA surplus from aim, let us know how it shoots. Its the cheapest out there. Not by much, but like the other guy said, it adds up.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I just received August 2008 catalog for Midway USA. Right on the front cover they have .308 surplus. $109.99/200 or $529.99/1000. That's for 147gr FMJ.

[Guest Mugster]

I just received August 2008 catalog for Midway USA. Right on the front cover they have .308 surplus. $109.99/200 or $529.99/1000. That's for 147gr FMJ.

It's got a mild steel jacket on it too. I'd be leery of it if you have an accurate rifle you want to protect the barrel as much as you can. For a plinker, I doubt it makes much difference.

[Magiccarpetrides]

I shoot a Saiga .308 so I could care less as long as it has a jacket ;-D I will let you know when I get to shoot some SA. The Lithuanian shot great.