How far can you connect?

[pig ranch deadeye]

I have never actually killed a deer or a pig at over 180 yards. My typical shot is 75 to 120 yards. I have missed at ranges longer than 180, to be honest, several times. So my question is to my fellow bloggers here is, what is your longest successful shot? What is your shortest miss? What is your longest attempted shot on game? I have missed at 400 yards, I must confess, way more than once. In a sitting position I can hit a grapefruit at 200 yards four times out of five, if I take my time, with my trusty 27 inch custom-barreled .270. I have missed a sitting rabbit at six yards with my .338. Everyone on this site is, if you believe their comments, a superb shot, and that is great. That just does not apply to me, so this post is to confess my limitations honestly. Tell me if I have flunked!

 

[jpd676]

You haven't flunked. On paper, I'm very consistent at over 1100 yards with multiple rifles. When I see a massive deer or elk, I get excited and things aren't so easy. My longet kill is on an antelope at 934 yards with a .260 Remington; one shot and it was done. I have missed deer at 250 yards while free standing, an elk at 300 yards while sitting and other similar misses at closer range. When I take a long shot, I have to have a good feel for the conditions, a rock solid rest and the time to make sure I am on and the dope is on. If you rush a long range shot, you will likely miss. I have passed on many big animals at longer ranges because I didn't feel I could make the shot under the conditions that day.

 

[pig ranch deadeye]

You are way, way ahead of me. Well done!

 

[jpd676]

I am probably not very far ahead of you. I try to shoot every week (at least when the WY snow isn't too deep) in the summer time. I normally shoot prone with a bi-pod at distance. Shooting is a ver perishable skill and if I don't shoot a lot I lose skill fast.

 

[Jakeweb09]

I've mostly archery hunted. Missed a spike at 26 yards once. Guessed long and shot over his back. I also shot a cow at 70 with my bow and she went down in 40 yards. With a rifle I missed my first shot on a deer when I was about 13 at 150 yards off hand. I do a lot more long range shooting now days and regularly shoot 5-600 yards and have more recently been stretching out farther and been consistent out to 1300. This year took my longest shot on a mule deer at 430 yards with approx a 20mph cross wind. Double lunged and DRT.

 

[pig ranch deadeye]

What a great shot!

 

[sierracharlie338]

Longest hit about 338yds also longest attempt on game to this point.
Closest miss - 80-90yards with a rifle and 35 with a bow

 

[lancetkenyon]

Longest first round hit is 1365 on a coyote. 2nd shot, 2nd coyote at same distance. .300RUM w. 230 Hyb @ 3113fps.
Longest attempt was 1870 on a coyote. Missed by about 6" low, 6" right of POA. He didn't stick around for a follow up shot. I would bet $$$ bullet missed the legs by an inch or so.
Closest miss was about 3' on a fast moving coyote as he ran right by me flat out. Would have been closer if I would not have sidestepped.

 

[nmbarta]

920 on a whitetail is my farthest kill, one hit and dead, but it was close to a bad situation, back of lungs and liver. I've limited my hunting to 800 because of that. It would have been bad if I gut shot him. I'm just not good enough to get the wind right every time.
Missed the biggest whitetail that I've ever shot at at 250. No explanation for it, buck fever I suppose.

 

[del2les]

My longest varmint shot was a coyote at 1,031 yds, P-dog just over 1,000 (1,008-10), and elk at 890 yds. I have decades of shooting experience in formal NRA Nat'l Match, 1,000yd prone, BR, small bore, etc. and much in just shooting 1,000yd to 1 mile fun. Shooting P-dogs from 500-1,000 is great fun and training for long range wind reading and prep for the larger game, and the same for the larger bores on many reactive steel targets at similar ranges.

Everyone starts somewhere, so keep shooting and expand your goals.

As for misses, I recall a shot back in the 80's on a seemingly easy 120yd whitetail with a rifle I had much experience with and had taken deer past 1/4 mile. When I broke the trigger, the buck stumbled to the side, regain balance, and ran into swamps. Upon locating the spot the deer stood, a few yards away, I found a very disturbing sight of a bullet broken limb and splinters on the ground. Hair from the under chest but no blood.

That miss taught me much.

 

[Hugnot]

My personal self imposed limit on deers is 400 yards. I shoot a variety of .224's, 6mm's, 6.5mm, & a .300WM. For rodents & yotes the horizon is the limit. Some 800 to 1000 yard hits have been made. The rodents usually stick around for a follow up provided the bullet does not hit nearby dirt or rock. The yotes just leave (snap & gone). 400 yard drop with a 200 yard zero is about 12" plus-minus, about 4X as much at 500. Wind sucks bullets off course at increasing rates as range increases. Bullet time of flight is enough to miss or worse wounding, target movement happens before impact. Often dirt colored targets don't provide adequate reflection for range finders.

As far as limits on deers vs rodents & yotes: I am obviously specie biased.

Whatever, find a range where you can shoot at steel up to 1,000 before lobbing bullets at distant targets.

 

[GLTaylor]

Longest shot at prairie dog, 1472 (certainly Not first shot!)
Farthest at deer 351. Self imposed limit is 400 yds. Farthest I can practice. No long shots around here.

 

[manitou]

On long shots, I always lay prone and shoot off my pack or tripod... otherwise I would probably miss past 250 yds, lol. I did kill my muley at 503 this year, off my tripod while sitting. I am very comfortable to 700 yds off my pack providing the wind isn't insane and have taken quite a few animals over 500 yds. I limit to 700 yds. due to fpe and fps limitations of both my preferred rifles.

 

[orifdoc]

Offhand at 200 yards is WAY more difficult than shooting with a solid rest out to 800 or so.

I've made two fantastic shots and both were inside of 250 yards. One was offhand at a wounded running mulie at dark on the last day of the season and one was off high sticks at 250 on a big kudu. I was crazy buck-feverish on the kudu. We had been running to get ahead of them and they popped out of a tree line just before dark. Unsteady is a gross understatement. Somehow, magically, it all worked out.

My last bull elk was at 515 yards and my last three mulies were at 520, 540, and 420. I limit myself to 600 on deer if conditions are perfect. Elk are much bigger and I'm confident on them out to 800, but again this is with time to set up, get absolutely steady, read the wind, think about elevation, angle, temperature, and make a perfect shot with perfect trigger technique. Last year I passed on a buck that another guy shot later. He taped out at over 190 inches. He was at 600 yards, but it was gusty and I didn't have a great rest. We tried to close the distance but we got busted. That one haunts me a bit.

The mulie at 540 was, again, at dark on the last day. A little 3-point was bedded and all I could see was his head, so that's where I shot him. I had 15 minutes to set it up and was close enough to the truck I went and got my bags. My buddy thought it was pretty cool.

Banging steel routinely at 1000 does wonders for your confidence at 400.

Misses? Oh yeah - plenty. Only one or two recently though. These days I'm more likely to pass or wait for a high-percentage shot. The critters deserve it. The worst was on a waterbuck at 250. Whiffed it totally. My rest wasn't the best and I might have been a little excited. Luckily we found him again and I didn't miss the second time.