Dr T
Member
How much better is the 308 Winchester than the 30-40 Krag as a hunting cartridge.
As I prepare for the hunting season this fall, I have been contemplating the rifles with which I have hunted. In an earlier discussion, the consensus of the contributors was that one of the key factors was the comfort of the hunter with the rifle.
That said, I have killed a fair number of deer with the 30-40 Krag and the 308 Win. My hunting 308 is a Ruger Frontier with a conventionally (not scout) mounted scope with a 16.5" barrel. The Krag has a longer barrel (I haven't measured it in the last 40 years, but I seem to recall that it is about 21") with an extractor mounted peep sight. With my handloads for the old Springfield, I suspect that it and the Ruger are about the same velocity given the same weight of bullets. Both rifles are handy, and point nicely.
One major difference is that the Krag is rimmed and has a case that is more tapered than the 308. This not so much a factor now, but in days of yore, it made the cartridge more easy to chamber and extract in less than ideal conditions (take a look at the 300 H&H and its child the 300 Weatherby Magnum and you will get the idea).
There is no question that the 308 is a superb hunting round. It has a huge variety of factory loads and is available world wide. But, the 30-40 Krag is also a superb hunting round. The Krag Rifle has the smoothest bolt action I have ever used, and is far easier to load and unload than any rifle with a fixed magazine that I own. However, the action of the Krag is far weaker than the Ruger.
So, at the end of the day, the 308 Win in the Frontier gets the nod over the old Krag. But it is a decision born of convenience (availability of lots of factory ammo with acceptable accuracy and better sights for aging eyes), not on the paper performance of the cartridge. Because, at the end of the day, as hunting rounds they are pretty close in performance.
As I prepare for the hunting season this fall, I have been contemplating the rifles with which I have hunted. In an earlier discussion, the consensus of the contributors was that one of the key factors was the comfort of the hunter with the rifle.
That said, I have killed a fair number of deer with the 30-40 Krag and the 308 Win. My hunting 308 is a Ruger Frontier with a conventionally (not scout) mounted scope with a 16.5" barrel. The Krag has a longer barrel (I haven't measured it in the last 40 years, but I seem to recall that it is about 21") with an extractor mounted peep sight. With my handloads for the old Springfield, I suspect that it and the Ruger are about the same velocity given the same weight of bullets. Both rifles are handy, and point nicely.
One major difference is that the Krag is rimmed and has a case that is more tapered than the 308. This not so much a factor now, but in days of yore, it made the cartridge more easy to chamber and extract in less than ideal conditions (take a look at the 300 H&H and its child the 300 Weatherby Magnum and you will get the idea).
There is no question that the 308 is a superb hunting round. It has a huge variety of factory loads and is available world wide. But, the 30-40 Krag is also a superb hunting round. The Krag Rifle has the smoothest bolt action I have ever used, and is far easier to load and unload than any rifle with a fixed magazine that I own. However, the action of the Krag is far weaker than the Ruger.
So, at the end of the day, the 308 Win in the Frontier gets the nod over the old Krag. But it is a decision born of convenience (availability of lots of factory ammo with acceptable accuracy and better sights for aging eyes), not on the paper performance of the cartridge. Because, at the end of the day, as hunting rounds they are pretty close in performance.