Whats the furthest shot you'd be comfortable taking with your rifle on medium-large sized game?
What about with an open sighted gun?
What caliber/power scope?
I lasered the bulls below at 514 yds. It was very tempting as the bull on the right was very large, but common sense took over. I'd have had to shoot over a shallow canyon which affects trajectory, and to me the winds in the mountains at 11,000' feet are extremely shifty and difficult to judge.
Minutes after these bulls fed into the timber, another came out at a hair over 350 yds. I don't have a bipod, shooting sticks or any other such aids, so I hesitated to shoot. But I assumed the prone position, wrapped up in my sling just like I do when shooting prone in High Power, allowed for the 16" or so drop and let fly:
35 Whelen, 4X Burris scope, 225 gr. Barnes TSX a little under 2700 fps. NEVER felt like I needed more magnification. Given that this particular scope is extremely clear and the rifle incredibly accurate, I have tons of confidence when shooting it, but I still realize its limitations.
Last year I took a shot at a buck right at 400 yds. with my .308 Scout rifle and its 2.75X scope. I could easily see the buck though the scope though it's "underpowered" by todays standards. I missed due to the fact that I really rushed the shot.
I have a 600 yard range/target here at the house and it's really no big deal to hit the 36" gong with open sights at that range
provided the wind is steady. If the wind is gusty or variable, it's quite another story.
I think if people actually did more shooting at long range OTHER than from a benchrest, they'd be better able to understand just how difficult shots over 300 yds. can be.
35W