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What I have learned so far.....

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  • Mullet Hunter

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    Several people, including myself have expressed interest in shooting long range. Me I basically started trying to reach on out their a few months ago, and I by no means am a Carlos Hathcock... I have learned several lessons during my adventures trying to shoot the distance. One is start small, I started with a 300wsm, a week later I was shooting a .338 lapua. I cannot get anywhere close to the potential of the 300wsm let alone the lapua "may never" I also learned quickly that long range shooting ain't cheap... The bigger the caliber, the more expensive it is to shoot. So why shoot a $8 round of .338lm 400yrds?? It is a huge waste of money. I stopped shooting the cannon and it is currently being shot by someone that can almost shoot its potential, and can afford to shoot it. He will more than likely own it when the new rifle comes in. I ordered last Friday a .308, it's cheaper to shoot, and it is a very flat round even out to 900yrds. Their are several on this forum that have rang the bell at 1000 and their are many more that are capable.

    I have been shooting with several guys that are very talented, it would seem that I'm the regard of the bunch. Their is a great teacher in the group with some real "experience" that has showed us all a lot about long range shooting techniques, and I am great full to have him show me the ropes...

    The best thing I have found to learn some of the basics is to build you a "baby sniper rifle" I have 2 ruger 10-22's built with bull barrels, trigger jobs, bipods, and mildot scopes. We practice ranging, bullet drop, wind/weather effects, and shooting technique with our .22's out to 200yrds. It's cheap and it is fun. So if you think you want to shoot long range then don't buy a rifle that is out of your league. Fact is you are not gonna be able to shoot any farther with a .50bmg than you are with a match .223 for a while... Just my observations...

    Their is nothing funner than shooting "or watching" a deer it the back of a peanut field at 450-500 yards with a range finder, and a spotter telling you where your bullet is falling. You can do the same thing with squirrels a pile of corn and a savage bolt .22 at 200yrds and its almost as rewarding

    You can also do it with paper...
     

    Alientaz

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    Mullet hunter,

    I am building a 10/22 for the exact purpose you speak of in your post. I have also pick out the next step in the evolution a.308. Would love to pick you brain about a baby sniper setup, if you are willing to help a somewhat newbie? Thanks
     

    Mullet Hunter

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    Mullet hunter,

    I am building a 10/22 for the exact purpose you speak of in your post. I have also pick out the next step in the evolution a.308. Would love to pick you brain about a baby sniper setup, if you are willing to help a somewhat newbie? Thanks

    I like you am a noob in the world of long range also. I have helped build several rifles and will help with that as much as I can... Shoot me a pm and I will try and be some help to ya.
     

    Longbow14

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    I would love to learn long range shooting, I have dreams of elk and sheep in my head. I plan on purchasing a nice Cz or other 22 trainer and working till i feel comfortable enough to shoot my bigger irons at some distance. at the moment i'm at 100yrds max but thats probably also because i can't seem to find anyone who wants to player spotter.
     

    Alientaz

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    Longbow,

    Anytime you need a spotter let me know. I am looking at buying a starter spotter scope and would be willing to help you out. Just pm me and we can setup a time and place.
     

    ilintner

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    Interesting stuff Senor Mullet... Glad that you are making use of the new section :smile:
     

    wildrider666

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    I wish you great success. You appear to be well on the way. The thread has some issues. People waste money building 10/22. Everyone know you get better accuracy with a bolt gun then a semi auto. You can throw a $1k in a 1022 and it will outshoot most standard bolts. If you do the same to that bolt gun it will leave the 10/22 in the dust. Just a fact. Same with larger caliber guns. With the exception of Service Matches there is no point to put money in a long range semi-auto.

    As you can't reload the .22, I hope you did a lot of experimenting to find which one delivers the best accuracy. If your lucky a bulk load will deliver the best. Even though .22 is cheaper overall, if you do not use what works best in YOUR rifle you will limit you growth with this venue. You should be able to put 5 in 5 in @125 meters and most should be within 2.5 group. .22 Are neglected. You need to clean as you go or your results will suffer.

    I strongly agree your wasting money shooting the big boys while basic long range skills are being developed. .308 Is a fine choice as there is significant reference material for this rounds use at long range.

    If you don't roll your own (reload) you will not reach full potential for the rifle you choose. If close is good enough for you then you will be fine with factory "match" ammo. If you want to optimize everything you must build ammo to match your chamber, free-bore, twist and bullet weight. Note: do not discount heavy bullets based on 100 meter group size. Check heavies at 200 (It takes longer for them to fully stabilize). Everything must be exactly the same. Same lot of cases that have the same capacity. Weigh your match bullets, you will find these will vary.1 to.4, separate these into groups and load as groups. You will build you "match" loads and use the rest during practice. these will still be 50% better then commercial loads.

    The single shooters reference book I strongly recommend is The Ultimate Sniper by Major Plaster, Paladin Press. This is the finest and most complete work available to Civs.

    IMHO
     

    Richard J.

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    You will spend most of your time at a reloading bench. You will end up with a lot of burning ammo. It is not as glamorus as some people think. It starts out as a lot of fun, but like I said you will live at the bench. Now is not a good time to be looking for componets for reloading. You need to buy cases, primers,bullets,powder in bulk to keep everything the same. You will have to weigh everything. Good luck.

    RJ
     

    Pompnewbie

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    I am working on a "22 sniper trainer" now actually, I am also a member of the escambia river gun club if anyone wants to team up for some shooter/spotter work,
     

    SAWMAN

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    IMO....firstly...you don't buy a gun that you don't reload for. That would be like buying a car that you could not afford gas for. The $8.00 per shot thing for the Lapua makes me nauseous. Whatever chambering you decide on,even the 308Win needs to have a reloading setup for it. The store bought 223/5.56 and the 308Win long range stuff is pricy. But to the reloader that buys in bulk, the price per shot comes waaaaay down. Primers by the thousand,powder by the keg,and bullets by the 250,500,or 1000rd pack brings down the price of the individual round.

    Just guessing but you could probably shoot a high quality 308Win long range load for $.65 -- $.85 per shot....maybe cheaper. Good idea starting with the Ruger 10/22. Hitting smallish targets at 200yds is quite a challenge. The velocity(actually,time of flight)and the distance is something that you can use to carry over to the centerfire 600yds+ thing. --- SAWMAN
     

    oneshot

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    For all of the above reason, is why I got a Kimber Gov. Md. 82. have been trying all typs of 22 ammo, as I only have 200yds to work with. I also have a 10/22 fixed up. I also load for my 223's and 308;s I hand loaded over 500 rds one to take to National in Ohio, hand weighted each load, I have had to go to useing glass because of the old eyes, but still like to shoot the long distance. Plan on going over to the K&M open house to see what it is all about. Just my 2 cents jj
     

    SAWMAN

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    For a gun such as the 82 it would greatly help if you sorted your ammo by rim thickness. Since the 22LR headspaces on the rim this would help to get the most potential outta your gun.

    I use a simple little tool produced by Neil Jones(Neil Jones Custom Products,Saegertown,Pa. 16433. It slides back and forth and you can sort by rim size by simply dropping a rd into the gauge and sliding the bar over. After using this system it amazes me just how different all 22LR ammo really is. There are more costly gauges on the market however I shoot a Ruger 10/22 and find that this product is all I need. Now a Kimber 82...well......... --- SAWMAN
     

    oneshot

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    I have used one of them before, Also a lone with checking rim thickness you can weigh each rd sort them by weight too A buddy of mine in mobile is the nationals small bore champion. I try and to Liston to him. But I just can't get to his level. Just my 2 cents jj
     

    M.O.A.

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    Darn fine observation Mullet. My GOTO gun out to 800yds is a remington model 700 that started life as a stock VTR. Longest cold bore shot on a live target to date is a whitetail doe at 1246 yards with a .338 Lapua. In the interest of honesty i had tried that shot on a plywood target about 100 times and flagged the spot to shoot. it DID NOT however amuse the guys at the club when i brought in a dozer to clear a shooting lane across the creek bottom. LMAO. its just math and physics. Chronograph your handloads, load to super tight tolerances, mic and weigh each projectile and repeat. its amusing to me that it takes an hour to load 1 round and a millisecond to send it. would love to shoot .308's with you guys one afternoon.
     

    wildrider666

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    For all the .22LR folks who are extending their range, here is a great tool. What it does is measure rim thickness which will affect the rounds headspace in your chamber. Your sort your ammo by rim thickness then test shoot batches for group size. Once you find the rim thickness that delivers the best results sort all your 22LR. Keep the GOOD Stuff for you long range efforts and plink with the rest.

    http://www.bullseyegear.com/bullseyepistol/product.php?productid=262

    Here is a cheap and functional home-made version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DXMLhHV4SM

    Enjoy
    WR
     

    Blackeyes

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    I'm just getting into LR this year, but I love it. Not running anything exotic, just a .308, but I've shot it out to 1K so far, but mostly out to 850 yds.
    My mini LR practice gun is a .17HMR bolt Savage with a decent trigger.
     

    Alientaz

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    Where is a place around Santa Rosa/Okaloosa county that you can shot LR, that does not require a membership?
     
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