'Best' cartridge for long range?

milemaker13 said:

Lol, I'm so funny sometimes right? That .338 ammo gets up there huh? Hahahaha, pretty sure thats off the table. And the size of that monster... again, if I'd looked at ammo b4 posting i wouldnt have posted! Thanks all the same- back to cruzin the used racks for a nice 30-06!

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30-06 not a great choice its not modern case and Efficient compared to the newer ones like 308 and 6.5 cm etc
30-06 best bullet for long range is 168 gr, i only buy the rifles chamber for them is because old school rifles are so cool otherwise buy a 308 or 6.5 cm

The preeminent US Match bullet of the post WWII period was the 173 gn FMJBT, developed at Frankford Armory, as loaded in .30/06 National Match ammunition and later in 7.62 (as the T275 International Match and later the original M118 load).

Sierra's designer felt that the performance could be improved with a bullet jacketed from the base rather than the nose, leaving the core short of the nose to form a small cavity behind the hollow point, and with a slight change to the taper of the boat tail compared to the Frankford Armory bullet. The result was slightly lighter than the FA bullet, ending up at 168 gn. Named the 168 gn International (later MatchKing) debuted very successfully in Free Rifle competition in 1959, and its popularity spread to long range and benchrest competition, and eventually to use for military sniping. Other manufacturers also offered bullets of the same weight to compete.

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Just paper punching, of the group the 6.5CM is probably your best bet. Good, fairly inexpensive ammo. Relatively low recoil, good ballistics for longer shooting.

All options are a compromise in some way, shape, or form. The 6.5 CM seems to be the pick of best set of compromises for the average long range shooter.

Define long range? The 223 will be OK out to 500-600 yards and be the cheapest option to buy and shoot. The 308 will get you close to 1000 and 30-06 a bit farther.

For punching paper it is hard to beat 6mm or 6.5CM for 1000+. The 300's and 338's trajectories aren't that much different, but they shoot bigger, more expensive bullets that hit big game harder at long range. They also kick a lot harder.

The 6.5 CM offers the most balanced performance. It is the only option where reasonably priced rifles and ammo are available off the shelf. With factory ammo it will remain supersonic out to at least a mile, good handloads will get you to 2000 yards. Recoil is hardly more than 243. If you do decide to hunt with it expect performance comparable to 308 or 270. In other words any animal in North America.

i like 6mm and 7mm cartridges. like jmr40. said what is long range.

Do you have any long distance ranges within a reasonable drive where you can shoot on a regular basis? To spend big money on a long distance capable rifle and be limited to 200 or 300 yards may not be very satisfying especially considering the cost of ammo. I've not shot a 338 but have been on a shooting bench next to a guy shooting one. At a range where I shot, with a max distance of 300 yards, a guy came in with a 338 and a 300 Winmag and sat at the bench next to me, I didn't appreciate it when he fired. The blast from the recoil brake is quite strong not to mention the loudness of the round. Might not win you many friends at the range. The 6.5 CM has proven to be an excellent long range round and the ammo cost is a bit more reasonable. The 6.5 performs well at 1,000 yards and is used quite a bit in the competitions that shoot at that distance.

No one has brought up .224 Valkyrie. It is an amazing round,
I got the chance to shoot a friends out to 400yds and wow!! amazing round. I enjoy shooting my 6.8scp too.
The Valkyrie is better at longer distances.

A friend has a 338 Lapua in a chassis mounted rifle , nice but I don't want to feed it. 300 WM seems to be a go to with some of the military. The 223 is as cheap as you can get for shooting, I have a Ruger Predator and my son has a AR, he also has a AR 10 in 308, also cheap to shoot but not as cheap as the 223. My choice for long range is the 270 Win. In my opinion ( and I own one ) it is as good as the 6.5CM and I don't have to wear funny clothes or smell like incense. The 270 has been around for a hundred years and done a lot of game harvesting. Do some searches on 6.5/270 comparisons, you will be surprised. You can get a Weatherby/Howa from $500 or so up to $900 or so. Go to a gun shop or two and shoulder different brands then choose the best fit. You can buy after market chassis if the one you want does not already come that way. The caliber choice is the easy part. Sign on to the forum Sniper Hide and get more confused. Good luck.

jmr40 nailed it, “define Long Range”

I’ve heard new shooters refer to 100 yards as Long Range, at our range a lot of guys call 300 Long Range, but that’s max distance.

At a friends farm I’m working my distance up and right now 500-600 is a long range for me, however my dad always referred to 800+ as Long Range, which I think most in the shooting world concur.

My current pick is 6.5 CM

Don't forget 50bmg for 1000yrds +.

6.5 Creedmoor

The best cartridge for long range is the newest of course.

It's common knowledge that when a new cartridge is introduced, each of the older cartridges suffer a 25% decrease in accuracy.

308 for 800-1000 yards it work for the military and hunters.

wow no one has mentioned the great 243win using 100gr sierra sp bullets and Winchester 760 powder! I guess it's outdated??

7MM Remington Magnum.
Super powered, fast, accurate, easy to reload, much better than 30.06// 6.5 anything// 308//.
Once it is set up for reloading it is a LOT cheaper than the MONSTER MAGS & can knock down
anything in North America.
But I still love the 30.06 anyhow.

This is my personal experience and I am very much still learning but I shot my first Precision Rifle Competition this past weekend. I have not shot over 300 yards in a few decades. For hunting I rarely shoot over about 120 yards and for 3-gun here in the East I have never encountered more than 300 yards. I use to shoot Service Rifle Matches over at Camp Perry in the late 80's and even then I have never shot more than 600 yards . With a good 200 yard zero and some good chrono data, I was able work up dope that got me hits on 2-3 MOA size steel targets out to 1000 yards. I was using a 20-inch 6mm Creedmoor in a Remington 700 chassis gun shooting Barnes Precision Match 112gr OTM. Managed to finish in the top 25% in my first match. Very pleased and had a ton of fun.

6mm and 6.5mm Creedmore both were well represented at the match. There was also a few 6mm Dasher and 6mm BR shooters. One guy shooting a 223 and several 308 rifles. There were also several wildcats like 6mm SAUM and a few others I don't remember.

rdnktrkr said:

Don't forget 50bmg for 1000yrds +.

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That's howitzer range for me. If it's 1000 yards away, I can hide from it or walk closer. Depending on what it is.

milemaker13 said:

So for my simple 100 yrd useage a beat up old .223 is good enough. Ok.

Yeah, but... what do howitzer rounds cost? Lol.

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Don't know. I'm practicing the walk closer method until I win the lottery.

milemaker13 said:

So for my simple 100 yrd useage a beat up old .223 is good enough. Ok.

Yeah, but... what do howitzer rounds cost? Lol.

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More than 50 BMG which Is an excellent long range cartridge. But cost is steep, the guns are big, and they’re not very practical. But man are they cool!

So are we staying practical, or going off to the cool on a big tangent?