Long range shooting caliber choices

[Lennyjoe]

Let me start by saying that I blame this whole dilema on Len In Phoenix!!

Last Sunday I was up shooting with other THR folks in Buckeye and while I was there I got to do something I have never done before. Long range shooting. I tried Len In Phoenix's .223 Savage and loved it every time I heard the gong sing out at 400 yards. I even shot my Olympic arms PCR-1 and hit gongs out to 200 with open sights. Bout 1 in 3 shots at 200 yards wiht the Oly rifle.

Now Im hooked.

So, that leads us to this thread. What caliber do I choose for long range work.

I have a 30-06 for deer hunting and possibly Elk (with hotter 180gr loads). One day I want to go Pronghorn (antelope) hunting as well as coyote plucking. My buddy Don picked up a .223 for long range work and we reload together. I on the other hand want something a bit more than the .223

So I was thinking maybe 22-250 or on the heavier side a 25-06 just in case I do get an opportunity to hunt them grassland skiddish animals. I also read where the 25-06 might work on long distance deer shots. Not sure I would use it on Mule deer but it should work on the small Whitetail we have near the border.

Platform would be a bolt action rifle with or without the varmit barrel. I would prefer the heavier barrel if I go with the 22-250. I also reload so ammo wouldnt be a problem.

Where do I go from here. Only rifles I have owned in the past were in 30-30 and 06 and I havent done any long distance shooting prior to last Sunday.

Lets hear it from all the different angles. Varmit, small deer, antelope, coyote, long distances, reloading and platform choices.

 

[Onmilo]

.300 Winchester Magnum is still a standard by which other calibers are judged in serious long range target shooting.
The .30-06 in capable hands will still give a show to 1000 yards.
.338 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnums have a following.
There are several wildcat calibers that are becoming popular.
Of course the .50 Browning rifles are growing as a long range shooting sport but, while they can beat almost everything for ranging capability, gilt edge accuracy is still a project 'in the works'.

 

[duckslayer]

With proper bullet selection, the 25-06 will have no trouble taking down a mule deer. It shoots quite nicely over long ranges, too! How long is long range for you, and what are you wanting to shoot at that range?

 

[TexasRifleman]

Go watch an NRA Highpower match. You'd be amazed what 30-06 can do in a 60 year old Garand at 1000 yards. 06 also leaves you enough energy to take game at that distance.

 

[30Cal]

Just about anything designed since 1900 will shoot pretty flat out to 300yds. After that, you will probably need to add some elevation regardless of what you're shooting (plus the wind starts to matter after 300).

 

[Jon Coppenbarger]

If you are hunting withit I would think you would stay with the 308,30-06,300 mag,7mm or 338 or a number of others it really I do not think would matter much.

Now for long range the 6mm are becoming the hot cartridge like the 6br or the 6.5x284 .
The 308 is still used in palma matches and the .223 actually finished in the top 20 in long range last year.

for hunting just stick with the basic calibers.

 

[Lennyjoe]

Im actually looking for a cartridge that wont beat me to death (like the 300) if Im shooting at gongs 500 yards out. Say 100 rounds per session.

The 30-06 is gonna be my primary hunting rifle for Deer and Elk.

Just looking into getting a varmit type rifle for coyotes, jackrabbits and fun shooting at gongs.

 

[cola8d8]

For long range I would suggest something that would shoot heavy 30 cal bullets fast but with this comes more recoil. Out to 500 and with lower recoil I dont see any problem with the 25-06. There is a wide range of factory loaded bullet weights in this cartridge.

 

[duckslayer]

I have a Remington Sendero in 25-06. It is very accurate, especially with the right handloads. Recoil is almost negligible, because the rifle is pretty heavy. For a varmit/gong/deer gun I don't think you can beat that caliber. You can get bullets from 60 grains up to 120 grains, which would cover all those uses pretty well. .257 Roberts, .257 Wby, etc would all function well also for all those uses, but the 25-06 factory ammo is much easier to locate and much less expensive.

 

[R.H. Lee]

How's the 6.5 X 55 Swede for long range?

 

[Mike Hull]

RileyMc- How's the 6.5 X 55 Swede for long range?

Works great, as does the 260 Remington. The biggest problem using a factory 260, is that the fastest factory twist seems to be 1-9. You need a 1-8 to take advantage of the heavier match bullets.

You can get that by having the gun rebarreled, but a lot of people don't want to mess with that.

 

[Gewehr98]

Watch what the long-range target folks are using.

That includes the benchrest gang.

Chances are, you'll find a bunch of 6.5x284's, and 6.5-06 variants out there.

They take advantage of the exceptional ballistic coefficients on 6.5mm bullets like the Lapua Scenars and Lost River brands.

You don't need the recoil of a big belted magnum and heavy .30 caliber bullet to make accurate, high-energy shots way out there. It's why I went with a 6.5-06 for my own 1000+ yard Interdiction Rifle.

 

[Lennyjoe]

There's a 1,000 yd match Sunday at the Tucson gun club near 3 Points. I think I'll go out and watch it to see what the big boys are using.

I'm seriously contiplating the 22-250 round.

 

[Camp Cook]

I purchased a laser range finder several years ago and am able to do a lot of long range practice. Of my different rifles I use my 6mm-284 the most for this but have trouble not using my 280 Rem or 308 Norma Mag or 300RUM or 375RUM actually I even use my 45-70's. Lots of fun with any type of gun or caliber that you have.

 

[Jake in TX]

Give the 6.5x55 a serious consideration. The stock Swedish mausers had a twist of 1 in 200mm, just a little less than 1 in 8 inches.

Jake in TX

 

[sumpnz]

The M96's have a twist of almost 1:7.5". You probably should look into something like a 6.5mm rifle, whether the Swede, .260Rem, 6.5 Grendel or one of the many wildcats like 6.5-06. You practically can't beat the BC of the 6.5mm bullets (unless you step up to the .338 and .50 calibers). Though if you really want to go long range with a 6.5 the Swede's (M96's that is) have the advantage of a faster twist rate than most others. Even most commercial 6.5x55 rifles have a 1:8-8.5" twist (CZ lists the twist rate of my 550 at 1:8.6"). Still plenty fast, but still won't stabilize the heavy 155-165gr bullets as well. If you stay at or under 144gr the 1:8-8.5" twist should still work very well. Luckilly in that sense, the match grade bullets from Lapua top out at 144gr. And for the most part, the heavy bullets are usually round or semi-round nose designs anyway - not especially suitable to 1000 yards hole punching. If you wanted to rebarrel a gun you can buy barrels in 6.5mm with twist rates from 1:8-10" IIRC.

 

[Ankeny]

The long range rifle craze is driving my Game and Fish buddies nuts because of the increase in cripple rates. A lot of people have forgotten about only taking ethical shots, limiting shots to the hunter's known effective range, etc. The trend to calibers like the .300 Ultra Mag, .30-.378, .338 Ultra, etc. gives some (emphasis on some) hunters the notion they can whack an antelope at 800 yards. The fact is, it takes a very gifted rifleman to make a humane shot reliably under field conditions at extreme long yardage.

I have shot a .22-.250 for decades. My most recent .22-.250 is a Kimber 84 with a 26 inch stainless barrel sporting a 6.5X20 scope. The rifle shoots very well indeed and shows an affinity for the 60 grain Berger bullets. Still, for clanging steel way out yonder, I would rather have something like an AR 30 in .338 Lapua.

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I know a group of target shooters who all swear by their Remington varmint guns in 22-250. They like to knock over spent .45 ACP cases from 200 yards out. It's kinda disturbing to see what these guys can do with their rifles. That'd be a good choice.

Personally, I'd go with a 308. Recoil has never really bothered me, and I already have a few rifles in 308. It may not be enough to hit stuff out past 1000 yards, but that's OK with me. I can't see anything that far away, so I have no business take shots out there.

If you already have a .30-06, that'd be a good choice. You should be able to find a good varmint gun in that caliber. 30-06 can become pretty impressive when fired from a long barrel.

 

[Black Snowman]

I really like the balistics and accuracy potential of the .243 WSSM for a long range cartridge that can also load up for small to medium game. Looks funny but will stay supersonic with 105 gr bullets out to 1200 yards.

 

[Lennyjoe]

I just purchased a Savage 12FLV bolt action rifle with Accu-trigger and 26" heavy barrel in 22-250 for $435.

Only thing I have to say now is that if the wife sees what I have spent in weapons the last 2 weeks Im gonna be divorced for sure.

 

[artherd]

Congratulations! The good news about your new disease is, there's no cure!

Your .30-06 will perform to 1000yds just fine (with 190gr SMKs and handloads. Factory Federal Gold Medal Match is good for about 800yds IIRC.) Maybe bed the action, etc. (take it to a smith and tell him you want as close to a 1k yd gun as he can get.)

Get a *great* scope for it, and maybe toss on a harris bipod (they really are very light and not at odds with field/hunting use. Plus they're detachable.)

I love my .338 Lapua Mag and .50cal beyond 1k.

 

[vmfrantz]

long range cal. 30-378

It was designed for the 1000 yard shooting, and moves a 250 grain bullet around 3000fps. No I dont own one but would love to

 

[Gewehr98]

.30-378's serve several purposes, yes.

1. To enhance one's recoil sensitivity.

2. To keep the barrel makers in business. You'll be needing their services.

3. To keep the powder manufacturers in business. 115 grains at a time.

4. To convert money into noise. I sold 14 pieces of once-fired .30-378 Weatherby brass for $20.00. New brass goes for $32.00 per 20 pieces. Factory fresh ammo goes for $75.00 per box of 20 rounds - that's $3.75 a round! Compare that to .50 BMG ammo at $1.99/round.