Long range caliber
- Thread starter Ro1911
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Ok before I say anything, I want to give my disclaimer: I am not a long range shooter, have only ever shot at 1000 yards one time, fired a grand total of two rounds, only one of which hit the target. That said I have a pretty good grasp on ballistics and reloading. Just take everything I say with a grain of salt...
Ok with disclaimer out of the way, here is what I'd do:
Since you are most likely NOT going to shoot bad guys or animals, just targets, you probably don't need .30 caliber. I noticed serveral other members suggest 7mm or even 6.5mm, and I think that's a good idea. I personally am a big fan of .280 remington (basically a 7mm version of .30-06). A 160gr or 175gr bullet in 7mm will have as good or better BC than a heavier bullet in .30 cal would. Basically you'd get similar preformace in terms of trajetory but with less recoil. You will get a little less foot-pounds of energy on the receiving end, but that shouldn't matter if you're not hunting.
I know your counter for this argument is "but I already have a bunch of .30-06". Well unless that .30-06 ammo you've got is "match grade" stuff, I doubt you'll use it at that distance anyway.
Also somebody in an early post mentioned the Sniper 101 series on youtube. I've watch some of it (not the whole thing because it is very long), and it's good info as far as I can tell. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwG-D0HjCBQ
Last thing I will mention, and others have said this too, is that you should get into reloading if you haven't already. You can really customize your loads to your particular rifle if you reload, this will be a big help I would think...
Ok with disclaimer out of the way, here is what I'd do:
Since you are most likely NOT going to shoot bad guys or animals, just targets, you probably don't need .30 caliber. I noticed serveral other members suggest 7mm or even 6.5mm, and I think that's a good idea. I personally am a big fan of .280 remington (basically a 7mm version of .30-06). A 160gr or 175gr bullet in 7mm will have as good or better BC than a heavier bullet in .30 cal would. Basically you'd get similar preformace in terms of trajetory but with less recoil. You will get a little less foot-pounds of energy on the receiving end, but that shouldn't matter if you're not hunting.
I know your counter for this argument is "but I already have a bunch of .30-06". Well unless that .30-06 ammo you've got is "match grade" stuff, I doubt you'll use it at that distance anyway.
Also somebody in an early post mentioned the Sniper 101 series on youtube. I've watch some of it (not the whole thing because it is very long), and it's good info as far as I can tell. Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwG-D0HjCBQ
Last thing I will mention, and others have said this too, is that you should get into reloading if you haven't already. You can really customize your loads to your particular rifle if you reload, this will be a big help I would think...
@david4516
I don't like any of the non 30 caliber cartridges it's my own weirdness, when the zombies rise up I think they'll want to meet 30 caliber bullets, if you buy that I'll sell you another lol. I have a handloading setup and half of the thing with the 3006 is I will never have to buy brass, I have a BAR and a 1919a4 in addition to m1s Springfield 03s and others, I have enough 3006 brass to last a lifetime. Sorry I wasn't clear on the fact that I do/can hand load, I just prefer new factory loaded stuff for things other then precision loads, it's a little bit of a quality thing but it's a big time thing, I don't have the time to reload all the 5.56 I shoot and 3006 I save in hopes that one day I might be able to have the time to load it all up, but I figure loading up 20-100 custom long range loads is doable.
I don't like any of the non 30 caliber cartridges it's my own weirdness, when the zombies rise up I think they'll want to meet 30 caliber bullets, if you buy that I'll sell you another lol. I have a handloading setup and half of the thing with the 3006 is I will never have to buy brass, I have a BAR and a 1919a4 in addition to m1s Springfield 03s and others, I have enough 3006 brass to last a lifetime. Sorry I wasn't clear on the fact that I do/can hand load, I just prefer new factory loaded stuff for things other then precision loads, it's a little bit of a quality thing but it's a big time thing, I don't have the time to reload all the 5.56 I shoot and 3006 I save in hopes that one day I might be able to have the time to load it all up, but I figure loading up 20-100 custom long range loads is doable.
USSR
Member
If you want precision long range loads, you will end up buying Lapua brass. Your milsurp or run-of-the-mill commercial .30-06 brass simply ain't gonna cut it for precision long range loads. After bullets, quality brass has the greatest impact on accuracy with precision rifle loads. Just MHO.
Don
"
Yes. ^^^^ I use Lapua for .223, 6.5x47, .260, and .308. The only reason I don't have it for 30-06, is that I couldn't find any at the time I was looking. It's very consistent brass.
I've watched this thread with all sorts of opinions and revelations... I say, buy what you need and want, use what you have, and gain the experience through using it.
Life is short, do it.
BTW, Berger bullets are good.
Yes. ^^^^ I use Lapua for .223, 6.5x47, .260, and .308. The only reason I don't have it for 30-06, is that I couldn't find any at the time I was looking. It's very consistent brass.
I've watched this thread with all sorts of opinions and revelations... I say, buy what you need and want, use what you have, and gain the experience through using it.
Life is short, do it.
BTW, Berger bullets are good.
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jerkface11
Member
You don't have to buy lapua to get good brass. You just have to be willing to neck turn and sort by weight.
USSR
Member
Sounds good on paper, but I tried this by neck turning and sorting by weight some of my brass, and it shot nowhere's near as good as out-of-the-box Lapua brass. There's a reason why all the guys on the LR firing line use Lapua brass.
Don
Potatohead
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Wow, interesting thread fellas, thanks for the info. Is the Lapua brass available?
In stock at Brownell's for $1.10 per
http://www.brownells.com/reloading/...ingfield-100-ct-sku749007657-36933-70862.aspx
Potatohead
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thx hoo
morcey2
Member
Anything is a more useful hobby than golf.
The closest thing I have to a long-range rifle is a couple of 30-06s. I'm building a 6.5-06 or 280 Rem for long range hunting. I have the donor rifle, but haven't settled on which one to do.
In the realm of brass, I use milsurp 30-06 cases, PPU in 7x57,8x57, and 7.62x54R, and winchester/remington across the whole gamut. Then I picked up some Lapua 7.62x54R cases (headstamped 7.62x53R because they're Finnish) when they were on sale last year. The quality difference between it and other new brass was obvious and significant. Have I broken down and bought Lapua for all of the loadings that I load for? No. Or not yet.
Of the 4 you originally asked about, I'd go with either the 30-06 or 300 WM. I'm not a big fan of magnum rifles at this point, but I've shot the 300WM and it's not too bad. Not something I could do for an extended sitting, but not bad.
Matt
With the proper bullet weight you can get out to 1400 with the 308. I use 208gr AMAX pushing just under 2600 from my 26in barrel. It's a hot load for sure and a bit over max loading but it can be done. I regularly shoot out to 1000 yards using 190 Sierra MK.
Sheepdog1968
Member
I've been doing some bench rest matches monthly for about a year at 200 yards. A good friend of mine from high school also does these matches. He likes to shoot further out and has done a few clinics at one of the local long range clubs. His 308 ran out of steam around 900 yards. He upgraded to 300 Win Mag.
If I were to do it over again, I would likely choose a 300 Win Mag over the 308 for the added range and balancing the cost of ammo. I should also point out, I am thinking of this as a range only purchase and not the one rifle that does it all. I would want it heavy and scoped suitable for the distances.
As for recoil, Savage had a range day not that long ago where you paid a few dollars and got to shoot a few rounds from some of the rifles. Their 300 Win Mag in the fancy chassie had less recoil than my 308. This was due to weight. The 300 win mag rig weighed in at something like 25 lbs whereas my 308 rig likely comes in around 10 or 12 lbs.
If I were to do it over again, I would likely choose a 300 Win Mag over the 308 for the added range and balancing the cost of ammo. I should also point out, I am thinking of this as a range only purchase and not the one rifle that does it all. I would want it heavy and scoped suitable for the distances.
As for recoil, Savage had a range day not that long ago where you paid a few dollars and got to shoot a few rounds from some of the rifles. Their 300 Win Mag in the fancy chassie had less recoil than my 308. This was due to weight. The 300 win mag rig weighed in at something like 25 lbs whereas my 308 rig likely comes in around 10 or 12 lbs.
I think the 280 Rem is the best being with a 26-28" barrel you can propel the magnificent A-Max 162 grain at 3000 fps with a .629 BC and shoot flatter the 300 mag with more barrel life less powder recoil etc. and the guys saying I have tons of 06 brass they can be sized into 280 anyway
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