Going long....

[tarosean]

I recently had a little bug implanted in me doing a little long range shooting a few weeks ago with a friends 338 Lapua. While I am not really interested in that particular caliber, ($) The itch just is not wanting to go away.
On another forum someone planted a lil seed about 17HMR too.
So now I am at a sort of cross roads.

200yrd Rimfire

+ cost
- no customizing a load.

or

1000yd Centerfire.

-not available at my Gun Club/Range. A few within 1-2hr drive.


Thoughts? I dont think I would do formal competition as I prefer fast paced (USPSA)... just something different for fun...

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Seems like you already have the answer.

You've posted a nice, simple evolutionary path though missed the 300, 500 and 800 (yd/meter) steps.

.22 long range is wonderfully cheap and rewarding to a degree. It is absolutely a case of "diminished returns" and usually accelerated at that.

The 1000 yard quest can be disheartening due to expense and/or unrealized expectations if one goes straight to that range. Costs not only come in the form of initial buy in but in a lot of cases they return early in the form of accelerated failures or short equipment life-spans (barrels, cases...) with the more "hot-house" loadings.

My take: Take .22 out to its limit for you then concentrate on military - specifically USMC standards of upper level marksmanship then go on from their if you find yourself unfulfilled.

Gun shows are littered with the cast off high end long range lasers after the previous owner dove head-long into the deep end of the pool without exploring the shallow end first.

Todd.

 

[tarosean]

You've posted a nice, simple evolutionary path though missed the 300, 500 and 800 (yd/meter) steps.

Used to routinely shoot at 300. prior to that ??? we didn't have laser rangefinders back when I was a youngin. It was measured in minute of bicycle. lol. But the 1000 yard shoots I took were definitely my farthest.

 

[dubbleA]

Shooting a rim fire, be it a .22 or 17 at distance will help teach you a thing or three reading conditions and doping. It's a great way to learn and do it cheaper than using a center fire. A CZ or Anschutz bolt gun along with a nice optic and some match grade ammo is what I would suggest to get started with.

 

[js8588]

Get something in 6.5. 300 win mag ballistics, none of the kick.

 

[CarJunkieLS1]

If you are going long range hanloading is a must. It is not an option. As far as caliber a lot of the long range guys I know are going to a 6mm Creedmore (not 6.5 creed more) they shoot 600-1000yds regularly.

 

[WestKentucky]

If you want to jump in at the 200-500 yard range nearly any .243 will do. That round along with a few others are notably inherently accurate...that one just happens to be plentiful as a gajillion kids first deer rifle so they are available in all grades, from all makers, all the time. All that competition means one wonderful thing...cheap.

I went the 17hmr route and was very much unhappy. Gun was plenty accurate and was very cheap to buy and cheap to shoot, but wind was very very noticeable on paper due to that light bullet. I sold that gun with intentions of a light caliber coyote buster but spent the money elsewhere.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I wouldn't buy something I couldn't use at home until my range bag was full of guns to use there. Go rimfire.

 

[tarosean]

^^^ Kind of why I am leaning more towards the Rimfire.



How accurate do you guys think this chart is???

 

[allaroundhunter]

I've built up a little 10/22 to be a nice little paper puncher to about 150 yards. It will shoot sub - MOA that far, but only if I do my part with reading the conditions and use good ammo.

I also shoot 1000 yards, and am having my Remington 700 rebarreled to 6.5 SLR to be able to push it even further.

I really enjoy shooting a sub - MOA group at 150 yards with my 10/22, and it is certainly a rewarding challenge; but hitting steel at 1000 yards and beyond is more enjoyable to me. Now my goal is to be shooting 1/2 MOA groups at 1000 yards and beyond with the 6.5 SLR. It certainly won't be easy, but that is the fun


ETA: the trajectory of that chart looks to be about right; for the .22 lr, at least.

 

[CB900F]

Tarosean;

There are a number of .22lr rifles available today that can reliably shoot to MOA at 100 yards. It's generally conceded that the most cost effective option there is a CZ gun. The .22 is a far more versatile round than the .17HMR in most experienced shooter's opinion, including mine. Two hundred yard competitions for .22 have been held for well over a hundred years. There's a wealth of knowledge there if you care to tap into it.

For a centerfire long-range platform, that's again very versatile, I'll strongly second the above suggestion to go with a 6.5 Swedish Mauser. For a good solid gun that should need very little work to produce excellent results, the Tikka Super Varminter would be the first place I'd look.

900F

 

[nissantech]

I was reading what everyone has to say and it is a lot of information. I can tell you I own .22lr, .17hmr, soon to come 22-250, and 7mm. I love the .17hmr and if you have not shoot it then go do it now. Love that round! I also am looking to shoot 1000 yards and started to build a 7mm but stopped and got the 22-250 so I could get more experience with reloading and work on my marksmanship. It is not the cheapest thing to do but I think I will enjoy shooting a gun with little kick, so I can see the impact, and build up my reloading experience. I have also invested lots of money over the years building up my reloading equipment,so be ready for that. Like I heard one person say" you don't reload to save money you reload to try and make each round exactly the same to get exactly the same results". By the way I am so excited to get my 22-250!

 

[ford8nr]

How accurate do you guys think this chart is???

I'd have to look back at my doping card for .22 silhouette but from memory it looks close.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Because the longest available range around where I live is 200 yards I went with the rimfire. I'm shooting a heavy barrel Savage .22LR rifle @200 yards and I am getting very good at it. IMO a .22LR @200 yards is every bit as challenging as a large centerfire @1000 yards.

 

[Trent]

Long range shooting is a reloading game first, and a gear game second. You can't do well with factory ammo; I've seen plenty try, and leave disappointed.

If you're in to load development (you listed - for rimfire because you cant tweak your loads), long range gives you more bang for your buck, because of the extra range trips for load development, and the extra thought process going in to finding a load that'll fit the harmonics of your rifle perfectly.

It's the part I love about f-class, really. I've seen plenty of guys take an off the shelf Savage or Remington 700 and do very well, after they took the time to do load development.

A good scope is something you MUST invest in though, if you are going to do it. Everything else is really secondary - you have to have a scope that is going to give you absolutely precise parallax control if you want to have the best results.

I ran a Leupold for years, and years, with good results, but went Nightforce about 2 years ago. Love the damn thing. Expensive but very much worth it.

So.. a decently good rifle to start with, load development, and scope.. it's not cheap.

But it's rewarding, for me anyway.

I also enjoy smallbore though.

If you are going to go the rimfire route you might want to do a 22 so you can participate in smallbore matches, I don't believe they allow 17's...

 

[splattergun]

I think stretching the distance I can accurately shoot my beat up old standard model 60 Marlin is a hoot! I've learned a lot about Kentucky windage and elevation popping at a box beyond a 100 yards. I don't claim to be in ArchAngel's league. A 1 moa at 200 yards is still my Holy Grail.
OTH, I'm getting better at 500 yards with my 30-06. 600 yards is my next step.

 

[Loc n Load]

Rifle shooting

Valid points in previous posts.....I shoot rifles every week, with a group of retirees that retired from the same line of work as myself....we have a 1000 yd range and one week we will shoot at 100 yds with our pet 22 rifles...another week 200-600 yds with 223's or whatever and then like today, 1000 yds with our 50 bmg's....we also shoot a mix of dedicated long range set ups such as the 6.5 Grendel in Ar's and a mix of 6.5's, 338's 300 win mag's etc....all of us have been shooting for 40 yrs plus and precision rifle shooting was an integral part of our professionals lives for years....bottom line is: It is all good. I think a solid back ground in affordable small rifle work will benefit you more than anything - then you can move up to longer ranges with the appropriate gear & skill sets....long range precision shooting with CF requires high quality ammo, high quality optics, a suitable rifle / caliber combo, and most importantly a skilled dedicated shooter.