Long Range Hunting Cartridges

[caribou]

I clean my bores each and every time I take them out, shot or not.
I live in the wet, out in a boat or across it as snow and ice, with swirls of fog and salt spay galore. Its ironic, but since we get less than 10inches of rain (takes more snow to make an inch of rain) every year were technically a 'desert'.

As much as I can, if I have the spare shell, and a loud noise wont bother game, I take a ''fouling shot'' and make sure my sights are on. At camps , I place a 8 inch steel gong or 3 at varies numbers of paces...''Arshins" ? (right LOL!) and have at it.
Any way, thats because back when I shot at paper targets alot more than animals, my 'clean/cold' shots were usually a couple inches higher than those that followed and I saw them as my 'spoilers' so , in the sake of fairly long range accuracy, I shoot a fouler.

Since I shoot alot of corrosive, taking care of any bore properly is simply routine.

 

[Llama Bob]

I believe that rather than blaming a bullet designed to expand rapidly at lower velocities, it could be said that such bullets have a time and place and without proper understanding of how the bullet is meant to behave, poor results are likely. Similar to expecting a Barnes to not pencil through at 1600 fps, the hunter should have a good understanding of the limits of their gear, an ablr reducing wind drift and allowing more accurate placement on a deer's vitals is certainly not something to be derisive of, likewise an oryx smashing through everything solid or squishy at point blank range has its place too. Neither are bad but I would use neither where the other belongs.

The issue is that their terminal mechanism is incredibly dependent on a narrow velocity window. By trying to extend their reach, they've become too soft/frangible and don't have a bonded jacket to hold it all together except the ABLR (where it doesn't work very well for some reason - bonding process???). I've never seen a hunter that had dedicated low speed (or different bullet) short range ammo in the gun, and then swapped in the long range stuff if a shot presented itself. People just see the high BC and get all excited without thinking about what will happen.

Something like a 6.5 or 7mm weldcore out of a good sized case will have great terminal results with expansion and total weight retention muzzle to 600y That's farther than you can generally reliably call wind on a first shot anyways. So there's no need for anything higher BC - you can't make use of the slightly higher impact velocity anyways because you can't 100% hit your target.

 

[MCMXI]

@MCMXI was working with a 6.5PRC build I think, havent heard much about it recently.

I've taken a break from load development due to other pressing issues but do have four barrels inbound. Two of the barrels are 20" and threaded 1/2-28 so I plan to remove the current barrel and screw on one of the 20" barrels to see if that helps. I'll be shooting with a SilencerCo Omega can attached. Overall I've been less than impressed with the results to this point, particularly shooting Hornady's 143gr ELD-X and 147gr ELD Match factory loads. Despite getting low ES numbers with handloads using Hornady bullets I still haven't seen anything special out of the rifle/cartridge combination. I will update my thread when I have more to report.

 

[cheygriz]

Harry Callahan

• A man's got to know his limitations.

 

[Frostbite]

Well, Llama Bob, I don't know if it qualifies, but my father used to load two Soft Points followed by two Bronze Points in 180 grains in his 30-06 many years ago. That being said, I don't remember him talking about a shot passed 300 yards, which doesn't mean it never happened. He did brag about shooting nail heads with the same rifle at a hundred yards, though. Imagine, from a semi... He is not known to be a liar, even if he's a dentist!

 

[94045]

For 600 yards and deer size game you could do alot worse than the 6.5 Creedmoor. It would be just the right compromise of effectiveness, efficiency and recoil for me.

For Elk at at 1000 yards I think I would want something like a .338 Lapua.

Disclaimer: I've personally went the other direction and take most of my deer at under 100 yards using old obsolete calibers and iron sights.

 

[Nature Boy]

I've personally went the other direction and take most of my deer at under 100 yards using old obsolete calibers

Like the .308

Me too brother

 

[Jessesky]

For 600 yards and deer size game you could do alot worse than the 6.5 Creedmoor. It would be just the right compromise of effectiveness, efficiency and recoil for me.

For Elk at at 1000 yards I think I would want something like a .338 Lapua.

Disclaimer: I've personally went the other direction and take most of my deer at under 100 yards using old obsolete calibers and iron sights.

I’m all for that. I like the 38-55

 

[BigSteve57]

I guess it depends on your definition of long range...

I have a Montana Elk hunting trip coming up and I chose .300 Win Mag. for that.
It's my understanding that 300+ yard shots are common there but I don't know how far a shot I'll get.
Part of the choice for .300 Win Mag is that it's commonly found.
I want to be able to walk into a hardware or sporting goods store and get ammo if I'm out of town.
I've never even had a chance at big game at that range and shooting game past 300 yards boggles my mind.

The longest shot I ever took successfully HUNTING was 260 yards on a whitetail deer - that was with 30-06 in Eastern PA woods area where shots are usually in the 50 yard range. I also did a couple of 250 yard shots in Africa with .375 H&H magnum and 30-06.
For varmints like groundhogs I've gone to 400 yards with 22-250.

 

[d2wing]

7.62X54r. through an M-39 Finn Mosin...........Wolfing.
You can see how ''wide open'' my Tundra is, as trees only line our Rivers.

In the background are 7 dots, actually Muskox that were about mile away from us and attracted the Wolves in the first place.
My camoflauge is ''Muskox pattern'' LOL
View attachment 809124

http://vid53.photobucket.com/albums/g71/edwardhailstone/Wolfin-1.mp4

http://vid53.photobucket.com/albums/g71/edwardhailstone/Wolf.mp4


Shots that day, and others, were 400 to 700 yards, open sights, rather steeply down hill. Its a sort of ''trap'' Eskimo exploited, and in days gone past, they drove Caribou up hill into snare traps and caght dozens at a time. The terrain feature is still there and Caribou still run from Wolves up hill, so I simply glass and wait, shoot and drive down to get 'em... ''Kungatallik"" or ''On High'' in English.
On level ground, I probably wouldnt Take a shot past 500 yards, but sometimes I still do.
Wolves will run 45mph, but in a straight line, so they are 'still' sorta for a few seconds at a time while moving directly away.
When running oblique, I simply ''swing through'' like shooting Geese overhead with a shotgun, and since I used the rifle and same ammo for many years, alot of my lead on moving targets is simply instinct.

Not many of us acquire that kind of skill as it requires a great deal of practice. But it is entirely possible for a reasonably talented person. I was trained in the quick kill method and was also trained to be an instructor with several types of weapons. Modern people rely on technology but the human brain's ability to perceive conditions and learn to make very accurate calculations is amazing given enough input given the person has good eyes and other talents. That type of shooting is no longer taught as far as I know.
My choice in weapons would be a Remington 700 in 7 MM mag with a Leupold scope. I have had that rifle but passed it on. Now I shoot a Tikka 7-08.