264 Win Mag

[Jinx]

I haven't been a member long, but I love the site. Lots of info and helpful member. I have a 264 Win Mag Sako and want to start experimenting with long range shooting.

How should I start out to see how much it falls over a distance and how do I calculate wind drift. This may sound stupid but what is meant with MOA?

Thanks

 

[johnnyk]

Jinx,**** There are a few things we (you and us) need to know in order to get you on the right track. Are you shooting factory loads or your reloads? What is the velocity of the bullet? If a factory load, you can use the mfg's figures, but sometimes they're not quiet exact. Depends on their barrel length as opposed to real-world barrel lengths. If you're reloading, then you need to chronograph the load in question. Get an average of say 10 shots and then this figure can be plugged in to one of the many ballistic programs available most anywhere, including here at LRH. This computer program will give you the drop/velocity and energy at any given range. In addition to the velocity you can plug a wind speed and direction into the program and get the drift of the bullet caused by said wind. You can also put other limiting factors in there like barometric pressure, temperature, humidity and altitude. This is all good info to know.**** I used to set up a 4x8' sheet of plywood, start out at 100yds, shoot at a painted circle and keep backing up in 100yd increments, until I ran outta field. Usually around 600yds in N.C., where I was from. My point of aim (poa) was always at the painted circle, but my bullets point of impact (poi) was always different (lower) as I got farther away. I recorded my findings and committed these to memory. This was way before PDI's and user friendly ballistic programs.**** This article explains MOA and other things better than I can........

Mil-dots and Minutes-of-angle - From a Technical Perspective

I hope this helps you and gets you going in the right direction(s)..JohnnyK.

 

[jwp475]

MOA stands for Minute Of Angle. A cirlce is divided into 360 degrees and each degree is diveded into 60 Minutes, so a Minute Of Angle is 1/60 of one degree.

A computer based ballistics targeting soft ware program is the best way to predict drop and the scope settings for a specific wind value

 

[MontanaRifleman]

Getting a ballistic software program and pocket calc would be the best way to go, but here's an online site that shold get you pretty close with your 264 WM.

External Ballistics Calculator

There may be other online sites that are as good or better, but this is the one I play with.

Plug in the numbers, then test and verify them on the range. You may have to make adjustments to your BC (balistic coeficient) to match your actual shooting results.

There's a lot to know and learn and the farther you shoot the more there is to know.

Have fun, I'm just a beginner too.

 

[Jinx]

I am starting to reload, so will have to get a chronograph and see at what speed am I shooting.

Thanks a lot for the help!!!

 

[jmason]

Here's a liitle detailed read on MOA.

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f26/what-does-minute-angle-mean-8729/


Good luck!