Saiga for Banging around gun

[2cool]

I'm thinking of getting a banging around gun for fun at the range that could do duty as a hunting arm for hogs and deer. I've read good things about a Saiga in .308. What is the general consensus on these guns. Are there any trouble spots to watch for, and what would be a reasonable price?
On another related note, how much more trouble is it to reload for a .308 vs. pistol rounds? I have a Lee turret press, do their rifle dies do as well as their pistol dies?

Thanks for your input.

 

[Shaman]

How far are you shooting? I would suggest you take a look at how far you are shooting, and how accurate the Saigas are, and maybe consider going with the 7.62x39.

A 4 MOA gun is worthless at more than 200 yards for deer or pigs. More umph and $ of the .308 may be wasted.

 

[OVERKILL]

Well, they make a cartridge that is, from a bolt gun, very accurate, not so accurate, LOL! Seems like a waste to me

I agree with Shaman, if you want an inexpensive and relatively inaccurate gun, you are probably better with 7.62x39. Leave the .308 for a gun that can properly shoot the cartridge IMHO.

 

[zerosoma]

Banging around? Mosin Nagant.

 

[bubbatime]

7.62 x 39 is what you are looking for. You might actually be able to afford to shoot it. Good hunting bullets in that caliber too. My favorite pig gun is a lever gun in .35 Remington.

 

[salv]

A Marlin 336 in 30-30. Cheap ammo compared to other rifle rounds, and plenty of power for pigs and deer out to 200 yards.
If semi-auto is a must, the Ruger Mini-30 in 7.62x39 is nice.

 

[Robenstein]

best bang around gun I ever bought was an SKS. If you can still find one cheap that is what I would pick.

 

[hatt]

Saiga .308s are pretty expensive from what I've seen. I'd build an AR before messing around with one. SKS sounds pretty good for what you're looking to do.

 

[strat81]

Originally Posted By: 2cool
On another related note, how much more trouble is it to reload for a .308 vs. pistol rounds? I have a Lee turret press, do their rifle dies do as well as their pistol dies?


Generally, a bottleneck rifle case will require case lube while sizing and trimming after sizing. The amount of trimming required varies from gun to gun and load to load.

You will have to remove the case lube after sizing. After trimming, you will most likely have to chamfer and debur the case mouth, depending on the trimmer you use. Brass with crimped primers will require the crimp to be swaged or reamed out.

So, it's a few more steps for rifle, but they're not terribly difficult. Like anything else, $$$ will buy you gadgets to make it go quickly.

For rifle sizing dies, I recommend the RCBS X-Die. No need for constant trimming with the X-Die.

 

[bubbatime]

After looking at Saiga pricing, I would realistically look at an AR-15 instead.

If you must have a bigger caliber than .223, you can get 6.8, 7.62x39, and .300 blackout, which all would be great deer/pig calibers. I would lean towards the .300 blackout since you can use the same magazines and the only thing different is the barrel and ammo. Plus, you can swap on a .223 upper and have two guns in one.

.300 Blackout ammo, which is basically a .223 case stuffed with a .308 bullet. Similar ballistics to 7.62x39.

 

[Astro14]

Depends on budget. My DPMS LR-308 (in carbine size) is a great all around rifle. Plenty of power for hunting/PD. Ammo is reasonable (seriously, my LGS is selling 200 rounds of Prvi Partizan for $155... much cheaper than any of the boutique AR calibers). Very reasonable recoil, quick handling, compact, very accurate. Only drawback is that it retails for about $1200...but it's worth every penny....

http://www.dpmsinc.com/AP4-308762-NATO_ep_125-1.html

The Gen 2 version looks even nicer than mine...

http://dpms-gii.com/full.html#configurations

 

[strat81]

I forgot to add... I've owned an AK before. I do not regret selling it during the 2013 Banic. Too crude for my tastes. Iron sights sucked. Poor optics mounting choices. Lousy accuracy. Garbage trigger. Action sounded like it had rocks in it.

I'd much rather have an AR, SCAR, Tavor, M1A, or a bunch of other guns.

I fail to see what role a Saiga .308 would fill. Too inaccurate for target shooting. Poor scope mounting choices for hunting. Too expensive for plinking.

 

[Robenstein]

Another option could be to go a bit more old school and get an M1 Carbine. Plenty of commercial mil spec ones. I have a plainfield carbine that has been fun and reliable. Not quite the knockdown power but with a paratrooper stock swap it would be compact, light, and soft shooting.

 

[hatt]

ARs are so far ahead when you factor in everything it's hard not to go that route. You can come out with a pretty solid gun for $600 these days. .223 isn't .308 but for messing around at the range it's fine and with proper ammo for hunting hogs and deer it's fine.

 

[Robenstein]

Originally Posted By: hatt
ARs are so far ahead when you factor in everything it's hard not to go that route. You can come out with a pretty solid gun for $600 these days. .223 isn't .308 but for messing around at the range it's fine and with proper ammo for hunting hogs and deer it's fine.


If your state allows 223 for hunting that is. I will say that some do not as they do not consider it a substantial enough round. In that case an AR in 7.62x39mm might be a better choice as its pretty much equal in performance as a 30-30 out to 150 yards.

 

[hatt]

Of course you have to follow the local laws. Some states don't allow hunting with a rifle.

99 times out of a 100 these "do all" rifles everyone asks for end up doing one thing and the person would have been better off buying a gun, or guns, for the intended purpose. For general hunting duty you can buy the low end bolts for the major manufacturers, or a used .30-30, for cheap and will get you along just fine in that area. Then buy a beater AK to blast away at the range.

 

[strat81]

7.62x39 ARs are a no go. Poor reliability due to the shape of the round which dictates that mags should have a near-constant curve which the AR magwell does not allow.

6.8SPC is a good choice for deer hunting with an AR.

 

[bubbatime]

Many states consider feral pigs a nuisance animal. They don't require a hunting license and you can use whatever caliber you want (including .223)

If your state allows, .223 will be just fine, plus the ammo is a lot more affordable.

Also, a 12 gauge shotgun with slugs is affordable and works great too.

 

[Robenstein]

Originally Posted By: strat81
7.62x39 ARs are a no go. Poor reliability due to the shape of the round which dictates that mags should have a near-constant curve which the AR magwell does not allow.

6.8SPC is a good choice for deer hunting with an AR.


My friend had a problem for a long time with 30 round AR mags in 7.62 until he used C products mags. Also, depending on state regs you are limited to the rounds in the mag for hunting so you would not need a curved mag if you are limited to 5 or 10. There are also AR lowers that are modular and will accept AK mags.

 

[hatt]

That's the first documented case of CProducts products fixing anything.