Any real advantage to the 30-06 Encore Pistol over the 308?

I currently reload for both in long gun; so I'm mainly looking to see if a large enough performance gain is available on the short 15" barrel, atleast enough to justify the increased powder consumption on the 3006.

the gains will be roughly the same as in a longer barrel but with that said you can't go wrong with either. The 06 will give you the option for heavier bullets and may be a little better if your going to hunt anything bigger than deer.

Couldn't have said it better, exactly what I was thinking..

I have both, but my .308 barrel is rarely fired. I admit that is more a matter of personal preference, than cartridge ability. If you are never going to shoot bullets heavier than 150 gr., the .308 will suit your needs. The '06 has a definite edge with 165 gr. plus bullet weights. The extra case room in the '06 will also allow you to load slower burning powders without heavy compression. I have killed ten deer with my '06 since I have owned it, and it has become my go to caliber in the Encore. Another advantage recently discovered is that I found 30/06 cases to be more available than .308 when searching for components.

30-06 will benefit by about 100 FPS with most bullet weights, though some factory loads will be pretty close to same velocity.

My preference of the two would be the 30-06.

I also have both, they SHINE in a Encore, you get both range and power.

What do you intend to use it for?

Whitetail. Varmint. 300 yard max. Mainly looking to get something to use for hunting over older cutbacks in paper/lumber country. As well I'm look to quell the curiosity of the bottleneck round in a pistol. Most likely will be shooting 165 gr ballistic tip nosler's as I have a few hundred on the bench. My logic is telling me that 308 win with faster burn rate powders should net me a more productive load in the shorter barrel then 20% more slower burning powder in a 30-06 for a 3.5% velocity boost.

I have several .308 based handguns and none of them have ever let me down. Never had a 30-06 based handgun but only because the opportunity never presented itself.

If you like the idea of a .308....then get it. If you want the 30-06 then get it. I know folks that use 165gr class bullets in the .309JDJ...the .309 is basically a rimmed .308W for the Contender platform.

The 308 case size is quite efficient with the shorter barrels. In an Encore I would go with the 307 Win, just for the rim. Nothing wrong with the '06 either, as said, especially if you are going to throw heavier slugs as a rule.

If "efficiency" is a great concern, the the 308W wins hands down.

However, personally, I don't let efficiency dictate what I choose for a cartridge.

I normally have a velocity goal in mind with a certain bullet weight, which is influenced by the distance/range at which I want the gun to be capable of killing game.

At 300 yards, there isn't enough of a differnce in the two rounds to really argue over. Though the 30-06 will be faster, and flatter shooting. If handloaded the 30-06 is certainly better ballistically.

I have shot 308W, 307W. Impr., 30-06 JDJ, 30-06 AI, 30-280 AI, 30-338 WM all in Encores. The 30-338 WM is by far the faster of all of those. It also consumes the most powder.

And that's fine with me. It pushes the bullets out the barrel at a speed the others can't match. Certainly the others are more efficient, but in my case, it's not a concern.

So, you really just have to satisfy yourself on cartridge choice. After all, your spending your money.

In my 308 Win, the best I could do from a 15" factory T/C barrel was 2484 FPS with a Nosler 165 BT, pushed by Varget. Any faster, and I'd get pressure signs. It would also do 2588 FPS with Nosler 150 BT's.

My 30-06 JDJ, 30-06 AI, and 30-280 AI were all considerably faster than my 308 Win.

I haven't owned or shot a straight 30-06 Spr in a 15" bbl, but the 30-06 JDJ would push Nosler 150 BT's to 2915 FPS, 165's at 2715 FPS, and 180's to 2600 FPS (maybe faster, but I stopped there).

The 30-280 AI barrel I have will push 165 Nosler Accubonds a solid 2750 FPS using Varget. Using RL17, I've seen an even 2800 FPS, H4831sc has pushed Nosler 165 Accubonds to 2822 FPS. I've never shot any other bullet from it other than 165 gr.

Now, my 30-338 is quite another animal: Berger 175 VLD's at 2846 FPS.

And accurate to boot.

I know your primarily interested in the 308 vs the 30-06, but I've simply listed the above to show that the larger rounds will indeed beat the 308 ballistically. However, they do so less efficiently.

So, in the end, it simply comes down to what you want.

Regards,
Rog

Rog if you don't mind, how did the 30-06 AI fair in the line up.

My MGM 15" 30-06 AI actually faired quite well.

Depending on specific powder and charge weight, and using only 165/168 grain bullets, it chrono'd anywhere from 2650 FPS (Berger 168 VLD & RL17) 2722 FPS (H4350 & Hdy 165 SST) to 2747 FPS (RL17 & Nosler 168 BT).

I didn't shoot the 30-06 AI a lot as I sent it back to MGM to be turned into the 30-280 AI (so I could simply neck up the Nosler 280 Ack Imp brass...).

It was only marginally slower in some loads than the 30-280AI, and 30-06 JDJ.

My 30-280 AI is at least a ballistic equal of the 30-06 JDJ with out the case forming hassle. I've been pretty pleased with my 30-280 AI.

However, I think my 30-338WM is turning out to be my favorite Encore barrel. It has raw speed, plenty of attention getting recoil and accuracy and the least amount of case forming hassle.

Regards
Rog

I have both, but my .308 barrel is rarely fired. I admit that is more a matter of personal preference, than cartridge ability. If you are never going to shoot bullets heavier than 150 gr., the .308 will suit your needs. The '06 has a definite edge with 165 gr. plus bullet weights. The extra case room in the '06 will also allow you to load slower burning powders without heavy compression. I have killed ten deer with my '06 since I have owned it, and it has become my go to caliber in the Encore. Another advantage recently discovered is that I found 30/06 cases to be more available than .308 when searching for components.

If you go with factory ammo and use the 308 Win, then Hornady's TAP ammo with the 168 grain bullet is great on game.
This is with a 14" barrel-Range 350 yards from the sitting position:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFafJpKGCMs&list=FLfEoqqK-q7iARmKwk742NZg&index=4

I love my 30-06 Encore. It drives tacks with 150gr ballistic tips. I though about a .308 barrel but there isn't anything it can do that a 06 can't and as others have already pointed out, the 06 will handle heavy bullets better. reflex264

Most don't need heavier bullets or the capability for further shooting.
He can't go wrong the other way, unless recoil sensitivity comes into play.
FWIW a 168 A-max does good at 350

and I have no doubt further.
But with 308 brass being hard to find the 30-06 may just be the cat's meow!

30/06-No such thing as killing something too dead!

I've got the .308 and a buddy has the .30-06. Recoil feels about the same but in my mind there is a bunch of wasted powder and extra flash w/ the .30-06 in a 15" barrel.

Do you have either 308 or 3006 right now as a rifle? If so, just mate it with an Encore barrel. Say you already own a 308 and have all of the reloading components. Well go with a 308 barrel. If you have the same in 30-06, then get a 30-06 barrel.

I have a factory 30-06 barrel and it shoots very well. I just haven't had too many opportunities to take it out in the field. But if I ever go out West, I do believe it will be the one.

I've gone with the 308 Winchester. It didn't come easy either.

I reload for both, the 308 won out for the ability to use faster powders more efficiently. It also allows me to stock less powders, as I order in 8 pound kegs when I purchase and prefer common powders between cartridges I load.

Congrats on making a decision.

I don't think you'll be disappointed. It's a fine round and it'll take care of anything to care to shoot.

Excellent!