A Serious Question

[quandary]

There have been some awesome responses to my OP and I thank everyone for their input!

However, I kinda/sorta/ maybe shoulda added to my list……no mufflers or muzzle brakes! Obviously the intent, though I failed to express, is ……this was focused upon hunting rifles, maybe not those rifles that are fired/shot hundreds if not thousands of rounds per year!


"My OH My"……how might that have changed the responses !/? memtb

When I am hunting, unless its in Canada, there is always a "muffler" on my rifle. Which I assume is a suppressor.

 

[K.E.C. Darkside]

Tag I'm in. This will probably go 10 pages.
memtb Serious.

memtb Serious.

 

[memtb]

You should probably think about getting a 6.5 creedmoor.

With the primer shortage, maybe…..no, never mind! memtb

 

[Guy M]

When I am hunting, unless its in Canada, there is always a "muffler" on my rifle. Which I assume is a suppressor.

Ruh Roh... Suppressor illegal in Canada? Good to know...

Guy

 

[Wilderness Blacktail]

Regarding the needed accuracy for a given range, I like to base this on the longest range that I can consistently put kill shots on a small target in a given field position with a wind speed up to ## mph.

So for me I consider my "got em range" to be 650 or so. At that range I can spot a target, range it, quickly get into a somewhat prone position- over rocks, n between logs n crap and with my rifle on my pack and a coat or something used as a rear support- n put a first shot kill on a small (4-5" max ideally) target n hit within minute of deer lung the first shot.
I almost always send AND hit with second bullet as fast as i can send it making any wind or elev hold adjustments as needed.

I hunt in very mountainous country with lots of tricky and changing winds n Im always alone. So doing it this way I am as realistic as I can be about max ranges. I found beyond 650, wind miscalls or changes matter enough that I could get a bad hit.
I also try n get my heart rate up and mimic hunt excitement, outta breath etc and be aware of that factor.

Sitting shots over tripod or a standing pack sometimes i adjust max range unless i can wedge myaelf against something n be totally steady.

Regarding groups at 100, i dont put much stock in em because I dont have a range with level ground, benches n such. To shoot 100 at our rock pit its uphill just enough not to go prone. If my table/bench groups are around 1" or less and I can hit consistently at my long ranges in field conditions and positions thats what matter to me.

I bust rocks out to whatever range I feel. Longest so far 1084.

I can do it with almost any normal rifle. Dont have any customs. My current heaviest is a Xbolt HCLR that i chopped to 20", 6.5creed. With scope its lil heavier than i like but I am just as good with a T3X superlight .284win with carbon stock.

 

[ARlife4me]

@ 600 yards the moa @ 100 would need to be ~5/8" to equal 4" @ 600 yards as that seems to be the normal kill zone size. if kill zone size is different then adjust to whatever the moa would be @ 100? cartridge should meet whatever animal you're shooting at that distance. thin skinned animals could have a cartridge of most any .473" faced cartridge small than 308 in short action. at 600 yards you wouldn't need anything over 10x, so optics would be light. the only animal i've shot @ 600 yards was a p-dog. it was shot with a pre64 mod70 264wm using superX brass, 61.3gr of imr4831 and sierra 140sbt. worked real well

 

[Turpentine21]

There have been some awesome responses to my OP and I thank everyone for their input!

However, I kinda/sorta/ maybe shoulda added to my list……no mufflers or muzzle brakes! Obviously the intent, though I failed to express, is ……this was focused upon hunting rifles, maybe not those rifles that are fired/shot hundreds if not thousands of rounds per year!


"My OH My"……how might that have changed the responses !/? memtb

I'm with you on the no MB requirement. I can't stand the things.

 

[quandary]

Following along on this thread leads me to believe there is a general misunderstanding of what a rifle system's "MOA" is and what it actually means in relation to real world hunting. This is obvious to many here but for the sake of clarity. MOA as used here is the measure of group size, in other words extreme spread. Think of it as cone of fire. For example if you have a 1.5" MOA system at 100 yards it does not mean that a bullet will land 9" from your aim point at 600 yards. It means, assuming your sample size was large enough when you zero'd your scope, there is a high probability that the bullet will land no further than 4.5" from your point of aim, using MOA as a rough calculation of Mean Radius. For most North American large game animals, assuming your aiming in the correct spot, it is highly probable that you will double lung the animal you are shooting at 600 yards down range with a 1.5" "MOA" rifle. That animal will be killed humanly.

For me "Mean Radius" is a much more meaningful measure than MOA as it translates better in real world application. Mean Radius, MOA, what adjustments you need to make to sight in your scope are all easily determined using 4DOF with Group Analysis activated. I have found it to be extremely helpful in developing loads and getting a proper zero set on my scopes.

 

[Turpentine21]

@ 600 yards the moa @ 100 would need to be ~5/8" to equal 4" @ 600 yards as that seems to be the normal kill zone size. if kill zone size is different then adjust to whatever the moa would be @ 100? cartridge should meet whatever animal you're shooting at that distance. thin skinned animals could have a cartridge of most any .473" faced cartridge small than 308 in short action. at 600 yards you wouldn't need anything over 10x, so optics would be light. the only animal i've shot @ 600 yards was a p-dog. it was shot with a pre64 mod70 264wm using superX brass, 61.3gr of imr4831 and sierra 140sbt. worked real well

You guys must have better eyes than me. For anything over 400 yards I like 12-24x. I can get by with less but prefer not to.