why no .30-06?

[Denis]

As the others said, .308Win provides most of the functionality of .30-'06 in a smaller lighter package.

Otherwise, it depends what you mean by "modern". The FN Model 49 is a very fine autoloader indeed, and I have one in .30-'06. They can still be found in new condition. Browning also makes the "longtrac" BAR chambered for .30-'06.

[Netpackrat]

Given the similarity between the .30-06 and .308 there isn't really any point.

so how much of a difference is there between the two?

perhaps the better question, why do they both exist if they are so similar?

The .30-06 can handle heavier bullet weights than .308, which can be useful if hunting heavier game animals such as moose or bear. There may be restrictions on using those heavy weight bullets in a given semi-auto rifle, however. Loading bullets heavier than 180 grains in the .308 cartridge can result in problem with excessive pressure.

[SeekHer]

ahhh ha :idea: :idea: :idea: ... as someone that does not own any centerfire rifles yet, things sometimes dont add up... i havent had much exposure to rifle shooting first hand...

.30/06 Pros
Bigger case so more powder can be put in but more importantly longer bullets (Usually heavier) with a better BC can be used...240 gr was the largest I know of and a 210 gr for the .308...
Has slightly more power (energy) then the .308 but dissipates it quicker because of poor powder burns…

Cons
That big case means lots of powder, means more expensive but also the case design does not lend itself to great accuracy because of all that powder to burn...the .308 is far more accurate because of the shape of the case which allows for a more consistent burn which leads to better accuracy...
Accuracy is defined by consistency, same bullet, powder, primer, seating of bullet which all cause the barrel to resonate (vibrate) to the same frequency each time which means one hole groups...

General Info
Being that it really is a dedicated American cartridge, obtaining them outside the USA is harder, not impossible, just harder—they’re there but not the selection you have CONUS and really expensive to boot…About what Euro cartridges are like here…How many 8mm, 9.3mm, 10.3mm or 11.4mm rifle rounds does your favourite gun store(s) carry?

Back in the 1960s any Canadian store would have .303 British in maybe 8 different packagings by four or five different makers and Mil-Surp…So many because it was our national cartridge, what our military used! Look on the gun racks and you’d find 25 or 30 SMLE rifles of all vintages there with probably three or four cases on the floor and you’d see maybe 2 or 3 Springfields—which had probably been racked there since just after The Great War…In the High Arctic you’d find 12 bore Goose loads, .22 LR, .303 British and .250 Savage (.250/3000) best seal caliber ever—and that’s it.

At any gun store in Europe you’d have 6.5x55mm, 7.62mm, 7.92mm, 8mm in abundance but hardly any .303 British or .30/06 Springfield, because they were their countries national cartridge that their military used…

There wouldn’t be many 6.5mm or 7.7mm Arisaka rounds on either continent nor in Japan with their gun laws imposed upon a losing nation…I love a sniper variant of the Type 97 in 6.5mm…

It also didn’t help that their were only two mil-surp rifles available in .30/06 one, bolt action in two variants (1903A1/3 and P17) and two, the Garand which few people bought as a deer or just plain old hunting rifle (there weren’t that many Johnson rifles to begin with)…The bolt actions, including Mauser, Mannlicher and to a lesser degree the Carcano and Mosin-Nagant were used more for wildcatting then as pure hunting guns—the lever action still ruled as the hunting gun until just after Korea…

Used for /06 family rounds of .25/06, .270 Win and .35 Whelan that made it into the mainstream and thousands of others that didn’t…the .308 brought us the .243 Win, .260 Win, 7mm-08, .325 Win and .358 Win and others as well that didn’t make it to mainstream…

[Denis]

General Info
Being that it really is a dedicated American cartridge, obtaining them outside the USA is harder, not impossible, just harder—they’re there but not the selection you have CONUS and really expensive to boot…About what Euro cartridges are like here…How many 8mm, 9.3mm, 10.3mm or 11.4mm rifle rounds does your favourite gun store(s) carry?

Tell it, brother! I just paid through the nose for .308Win hunting loads, but at least the gunsmith had some in stock; I'd probably have to order softpoint .30-'06 loads specially (although I can usually find some full metal jacket for target practice).

I had to buy enough .308 that I can zero my scope with it - ouch! I was hitting dead on POI + 3 inches with 147 grain FMJ bullets, but discovered on the last outing to the range that the 180-grain softpoint hunting loads don't strike the same place at all (not even close enough for guv'mint work) The heavier projectile causes different vibrations in the light sporter barrel, I suppose...

Off to the range now, to turn money into noise, and (hopefully) to get the scope back on target. Every cloud has its silver lining, and all that...

[mekender]

thanks for the education...

i always hear how great the garand is... and have always wondered... if that is the case, why is the cartridge no longer used?

[esa5444]

Despite the fact that Garands are getting pretty pricey these days, they made something like 5.6 million of them, so they are not all that rare; finding a Garand to buy is not very hard, and I wager most people would take the M1 Garand over a commercial semi-automatic, especially since you can get the Garand cheaper. Of course, mounting a scope on an M1 is more or less out, but, that is to some degree compensated for by the fact that the M1's sights are damned good.

Also, the cartridge is still used. It's probably one of the most popular, if not the most popular, rifle round in the United States. Our military stopped using it, but frankly, the only people who still use 100+ year old rounds in their infantry rifles are communists anyway.

[blackeagle603]

Beat me to it NPR.

Heavy bullets in the 30-06. Pretty much have parity up to 180 grains. You get into bear country and that 220 grain Barnes starts looking real attractive.

[cu74]

Beat me to it NPR.

Heavy bullets in the 30-06. Pretty much have parity up to 180 grains. You get into bear country and that 220 grain Barnes starts looking real attractive.

And you just hit the "problem" with the Garand - 180 grains is the practical maximum unless you replace the fixed gas cylinder with an adjustable one. IMHO, the biggest advantage the .30-06 FN-49 has over the Garand is it's adjustable gas system.

I suppose there is a maximum load for the FN-49 as well, but only in semi-auto mode. If need be, you can "open up" the gas system and use it as a single-shot in "hand eject/load" mode......

[Denis]

I suppose there is a maximum load for the FN-49 as well, but only in semi-auto mode.

If need be, you can "open up" the gas system and use it as a single-shot in "hand eject/load" mode......

This confused me no end when I got my FN-49. The gas adjustment was wide open, and the rifle was in strictly single-shot manual ejection mode. It took a fair bit of fiddling with the gas port to get things just right, but now it feeds and ejects correctly, and drops the used brass where I can reach it. Being able to adjust the vigour of the auto-loading action is a nice way to avoid too much battering.

[cu74]

I suppose there is a maximum load for the FN-49 as well, but only in semi-auto mode.

If need be, you can "open up" the gas system and use it as a single-shot in "hand eject/load" mode......

This confused me no end when I got my FN-49. The gas adjustment was wide open, and the rifle was in strictly single-shot manual ejection mode. It took a fair bit of fiddling with the gas port to get things just right, but now it feeds and ejects correctly, and drops the used brass where I can reach it. Being able to adjust the vigour of the auto-loading action is a nice way to avoid too much battering.

Heh - I had similar confusion for the same reason. My knowledge of the FN-49 was pretty close to zero and I thought I had a real problem with my "new" rifle . It was quite a relief to discover that adjustable gas port........