IT WASN’T LONG AGO that AR-10-style rifles chambered for 7.62x51mm NATO were a topic of debate and admiration at shooting ranges and around campfires. Even Grandad, with his distrust of the “plastic” AR-15, could get behind Eugene Stoner’s .30-caliber platform. Afterall, the .308 Winchester — the 7.62’s commercial counterpart — was a descendent of the two-time World War winner, the .30-’06 Springfield. As a military cartridge, the 7.62 NATO saw action in M14 rifles and M240 machine guns, among others, while the .308 Win. has been feeding Winchester Model 70s (and every other bolt action) since the early 1950s.
In the realm of personal-defense and self-reliance, Gunsite founder Col. Jeff Cooper championed the .308 cartridge as the ammunition for his Scout Rifle concept, an all-purpose bolt action. Among preppers and…