When I hunted the NW corner of Co. for Elk, I lived w/a 7MM Rem
Mag and a 300 Win Mag..both were great at range, and proved it many times over..If you just want to bang targets,irregardless of
some folks opinion, the 308 will do it w/aplomb daily and for less bucks and effort than any of the other calibers..Don

I wouldn't say less effort since it has a tendency to be affected by the wind a good bit more than most of the calibers listed above. For me the less I have to worry about perfect wind holds the better. Unless you were considering cost and availability of ammo then yes the 308 isn't bad but 6.5 CM is a bit cheaper than FGMM which seems to be a standard in off the shelf ammo.

I'm with dee 100%

I've shot enough .308 rounds to know it can give new, or even experienced shooters, fits when it comes to wind holds. OP mentioned 1000 yards. Well the .308 will have a 1.0+ Mil variance at 1000. That's a 3 foot difference from on density altitude and temp to another. The elevation correction you got a hit with last month may cause you to miss high or low this month depending on conditions. The wind hold you used last month may not work at all this month.

I'm not hating on the .308. It hits hard, its a killing machine and it is very consistant to 500 yards for just about any type of environmental conditions. But the game is much harder 700 yards and out with the .308 the 6mm 6.5s and 7s are a better choice. And you don't "need" a .30-06 bolt face to get it done, especially someone new to getting the fundamentals of marksmanship as perfect as possible. Learn to properly drive the rifle with something that doesn't recoil too much, then move up to a long action or magnum.

I started with a .22-250 and got out to 600 yards with it, then moved to a .308 and worked out to 1000. Looking back I would've saved quite a bit of time, money and frustration had I skipped the .308 and went to the .260 I'm currently shooting. My experience with the .260 has been a pure joy compared to the .308

i read this thread and I agree with it all pretty much 100%

I would look at the 260 or 260 AI if you reload..

there are many many options... trust me a 300 win mag or 260 are tough to beat.

what is the barrel life of a 308 vs 260?

3500-4000 260 up to 7000-8000 on the 308.

I can hit .22 cases at 30 meters with my open sight single shot .22 I,m not new to shooting long range I have shot steel plates at 500 yards with nothing more than a 25-06 hunting rifle I'm looking for a badass gun and round that will get me out farther not a pellet gun.

Well now your speaking my language... first question do you reload?

Do not but indend too

Accurate barrel life f a 260 will be around 2000 to 3000 rounds. I've seen them go out at 1100 rounds and last up to 3500 rounds. Most shooters with a 260 shooting comps replace a barrel when accuracy falls off, which is about 2500 rounds, give ot take a few rounds.
308- I've seen 10K rounds and still shoot 1/2 moa. Around 8K rounds would be a good average.

In that case; 6.5mm barrel with 1:8.4" twist chambered in .260

H-4350, Berger 140 gr target hybrid making 2700 to 2850 fps.

I just did my first step of load development with that bullet and it is impresive!

Run the numbers in JDM Ballistics and see what you get, bet you're impressed as well.