Finally got the big gun out for some long range

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esheato

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Took the 338 out to the long distance range. Wanted to see what she could do.

HS Precision HTR, 338 Lapua, left handed, urban camo stock, NF 20 MOA base, Badger rings, S&B 5-25 with P4F reticle. Load is a 285 Hornady BTHP, 83.3 H1000, 2600 FPS, OAL puts it a couple thousandths into the lands. Using fireformed and neck sized Lapua brass.

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We started at 1000 yards, connecting pretty good too. Used the SHOOTER Android app and it was working perfectly. Hardly any wind either. All in all, a good day for rifle.

Targets were a 12x20 66% IPSC target and a 12x12 piece of steel. Both are AR500. The square was hung on chains and the IPSC has a pivoting base to absorb some of the energy.

After we got bored at 1000, my shooting buddy asked me if I wanted to try farther. Well, the property only extends to 1560 yards...."Yeah, sure, let's go to 1500." Sooo, from one end of the property to the other, we set up shop. It's kinda funny actually, at the 1500+ range, cars driving by on the road can see us shooting...but they can't tell what we're shooting at. :D

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SHOOTER tells me to dial 17.2 mils and .6 mils of windage. I dial the knobs and line up the gun. By this time of the day, it's 11am, in W. Texas....temp was already 91 degrees. The target looked like a small wobbly colored blob (I had painted it neon pink). The edges of the target just faded into the hillside.

First two shots were a miss...but not by much. Less than a foot off the target. Hmm..ok, this is promising.

I connected on the third shot. Flight time was just a tad over 2.5 seconds. Long enough for me to reacquire my sight picture and take a breath and then watch the bullet hit.

I did a little happy dance then popped off shots 4-10. No dice. Shot 11 finally connected again.

After two hits, I decided to call it quits. Not a sniper by any means, and I'm still learning, but I can't complain. First time that gun has seen more than 200 yards.

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Lastly, 0630 setup was a bit early for the kiddo...good thing I brought his chair for him. ;)

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Ed
 
Not buildings, just corrugated metal structures for some shade. See, that's the local gun club. The target is 80 yards beyond the back edge of the range...and the bullets never go over the range...they just parallel the backstops of the facility.

I see you're in Texas...finding an area long enough to see your target and shoot without the mesquite is seriously tough. We're shooting down a dirt road on the edge of the property....right up along the fence line.

Property owner and club management have signed off on it....stipulations are that we do it in off peak hours. No problem there...out at 6am back by 10-11am.

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Very cool and good job! I hope tho have the equipment and skill to do that someday! 300 is the best I can find around here.
 
Muah-hahaha that's GREAT! I'm glad you mentioned that you are taking a bunch of precautions because at that distance someone on a quad could come flying out and intercept a bullet. Nice shootin'... let's see some paper punched at 1000 with that setup... I wish I could try it sometime!
 
Nah...it's private property...completely fenced and we lock the gate behind us. Nobody is out there but us. I've shot groups at 1k with my 243 AI...but not this gun....yet.
 
esheato, I got an open pasture I run cattle on, nothing but coastal and it is over a mile from the gate to the property line which is a creek with more open land behind it, so I could shoot as far as you, like I said I cant see that far anymore, my best rifle for that distance would be an M1A I just bought. cant wait totry it at 300 or more yards, but open sights.
 
Sounds perfect TexasPatriot. That M1A is gonna be awesome for 500 and in.

I noticed a lot of the long range shooting videos in Nevada have nice smooth land and then mountains for backstops. The brush around here really makes things difficult.

1500 really wasn't that bad...next time I'll have to shoot it first thing in the morning though. The mirage was brutal at 11am.

I do have some other goals in mind, but I need to find a new place. First, I want to up my hit percentages...2/11 isn't where I want to be. Today was a test of capabilities...I definitely want hits within the first two shots, no matter the distance. Then I want to take it out to a full mile (1760 yards), then 2000 yards.

Might need some bigger steel too. 12x12 is a bit small for those really long shots.

I figure I got plenty to keep me busy for at least a year or two....
 
Hey Esheato have u tried the 300 grainers yet out of that SWEET rig?! Nice optic too!!!!!!!!
 
man, that looks like fun and that is a great looking rifle

you lost me on the fire forming though... what was the brass before? isn't it 338 LM?
 
I tried Sierra 250s, Berger Hybrid 300s and lots of Scenar 250s without much luck. My issue was consistency. One group would be a .400 CTC and the next would be a 1.2".

Powder tried so far has been RL19, H1000, Retumbo, US869, Ramshot Magnum, VV N560, VV N165, IMR 4350. Haven't tried 4831SC yet. I've got 8lbs of H1000 though...figured I might as well find a load for it.

The 285s are finally giving me consistent sub-MOA.

Scope is pretty sweet. Ridiculously clear. I can dial all the way out to 1750 yards with the 20 MOA base on it. I have a 40 MOA base coming Monday though. Should get me even farther. Now I just need to find a place that I can get to 2000.

Brass has always been 338 LM...I bought some new and some once fired military stuff. All Lapua headstamped. Fireformed as in, fired in my chamber once, then neck sized and loaded. If I buy once fired, I FL size first, shoot, then neck and load. If I buy new, I just neck, shoot, then neck and load again.

Ed
 
awesome! glad to see you got it to reach out there. makes me itchy for when my .308 gets back (though I won't be trying a full mile!)

so you said you weren't happy with 2/11, what will you be happy with? Also, is that just google maps you used to get that picture or is that the shooter program?
 
2/11 seems crappy to me, but most people don't post how many times they miss. ;)

I don't know if I could ever depend on first round hits, but I'd be ok with 1/3, 1/4. Also, the target I was shooting was 12" square. Normal man chest width is 18" wide. Maybe my standards are too high? As long as the misses are close then it's just a matter of wind here in W. Tx.

No, Google Earth. But you could put Google Earth on your phone and do the same in the field as long as you have a connection.

SHOOTER is located here: http://shooter.kndy.net/ or on the Android Market. Plenty of screenshots too....best $10 you could spend!! I promise.

While we're talking apps, if you want to do the long distance field shooting, another great one is RANGE CARD. It plots your location on a map similar to Google maps, then you can drag the map so a separate location and it'll calculate the distance between the points. Since my expensive Leica rangefinder only does 1200 yards (on a good day), this app is indispensable. Especially for the long range stuff.

Ed
 
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and since my less fancy bushnell will only do 900ish on a real good day, it sounds like money well spent! so long as it has the data for out in the middle of nowhere...

good luck getting to your goal. it's hard for me to say your standards are too high a) becuase I'm not a 338 expert and b) I think my standards are probably too high as well. I'd like to be 99% on a 12" plate at 800 yards when my rifle gets back.

But hey, an endless pursuit of perfection is probably what precision long range is all about right?

Then the other half of me is just thrilled to be shooting the distances I always dreamed of as a kid, misses or no.

again, nice rifle
 
Looked like a fun time. I think you need larger steel for anything past 1,000 yards. I am looking to get a 18x30 piece of steel, but that thing is going to weigh around 50lbs.

I'm sure the mirage was bad in the TX conditions...I know it can get back here in PA, so I can imagine it being worst in TX.

I am looking forward to taking my TRG42 out...I don't know if I can get 1,500 at the farm, but it's going to be at least 1,00 yards.
 
Nice rifle and some great shooting. My family use to have a farm that would handle some 1200 yard plus shots, but dang it we sold it. My long range days are limited.
 
Been shooting her the last two weekends too.

Last week, we took my buddies sons out who had previously only shot to 200 yards. Put them on steel at 500, 1000 and 1500. One of them had a second round hit at 1500 yards. Absolutely made his weekend.

Today I managed two sub MOA groups of 8" at 1k and multiple hits on a new piece of steel at 1500. My buddy even pulled off a shot at 1500 using a 30 year old Win Mod 70 in 270 Win. Granted it took him a while, but I saw the target swing with my own eyes. Elevation on the 135 Matchking handload was 56 MOA. He dialed 30 and held into the reticle an additional 26 MOA.

Unfortunately, I totally forgot to take any pics.
 
With the right equipment (optics!!) and a cartridge capable of getting out there, it's really not that difficult.

First round hits are still my weak spot and I'd like to be better at reading the wind, but then again, who wouldn't?
 
I'm very envious of that range, although the heat would kill me. I haven't seen a 80* day yet this year. I think first round hits well come as you develop more dope on the rifle. I'm still dreaming of 1k range, I'm lucky to find 5-600 yds with in a few hrs drive.

Nice shoot by the way.
 
Got her out again...put 13 shots in a row on a piece of steel at 1k, including the first round. Steel was large (2x2) but all 13 were in the bottom right corner. Probably 10-12" spread, strung vertically.

We shot 600, 700, 900 and 1k (800 yards is in a depression and we can't see the target). Solid hits at all distances. It's getting easier.......
 
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