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Recently my sister got herself a new .308 rifle. She's so happy about it. It can even drop a bear! She wasn't sure if it was more powerful/accurate than my .30-06. When it comes to ballistics there are all kinds of variables. The type of powder you use, the size/type of bullet, the slope of the shoulder, and other such variables can affect the quality of your cartridge.

.308 Winchester is the successor of the .30-06 Springfield. The two have similar properties. They use the exact same diameter bullet .308 inches. If you were to hand load both cartridges you could use the exact same bullets let's say for example 150gr Sierra Gameking FMJ. You can also use the exact same powder let's say IMR4895.

We have the same bullets and powder so once the bullets leave the barrel it's a matter of which bullet is going faster. That determines which one will have a further range and hit harder on impact. From my loading charts the 30-06 should have a velocity of about 3000 fps while the .308 Winchester should have a velocity of about 2600 fps meaning the 06 will shoot further, maintain energy better at distance, and hit harder. The .308 will have less recoil though and since it uses about 10% less gunpowder will be less expensive to hand load.

This is all just theoretical with my understanding of physics. Force = Mass*Acceleration. If both cartridges have the exact same mass and are the same type of bullet the only other variable is the acceleration or velocity. This just determines qualities of the cartridges themself. Accuracy can vary based on the gun itself, the shooter, and external variables such as wind.

Because of the similarities though we can share loading equipment to make ammo. She needs her own cases and dies to load them. The press, scale, and other tools are pretty universal so it's a no brainer she could use those too. The bullets and powder being the same is a big help too. You can use a wide variety of different powders in rifle cartridges. The powder I use was specifically designed for the .30-06 and seems pretty good for .308 as well.