Subsonic Hunting and Shooting @ 100+ Yards

[Pastor Gun.zales]

Does anyone else enjoy shooting and hunting with subs?

I have really been smitten by this craze and enjoy loading for my various rifles. This past season I was able to headshot a deer at 100+ yards with my Remington 700 .308 and 168gr bullet, and also was able to harvest a doe using my Henry Lever .44mag and my cast 250gr bullets. The next firearms that I will use this coming season are my .300blk , my 8.6blk, and my .458socom using maker bullets. Who knows, next might be 7.62x39, or if its not too sacrilegious, a sub 6.5x55 hahaha. Also, Arkansas is considering opening up muzzleloading season to straight walled cartridges, so 350lgd may need to be added to the list

So far I have only been able to stretch these out to 150yds due to ranges close to me, but has anyone else managed to get decent accuracy at 250+ yards using subs?

 

[Bucklowery]

So far only been around 100 yrds with the 308. I am working on the 300 BO now

Thanks

Buck

 

[Pastor Gun.zales]

So far only been around 100 yrds with the 308. I am working on the 300 BO now

Thanks

Buck

The great things about 300blk is how much information is already out there for it. I have a 1:7 twist barrel, but I'd love to get a 1:5. Makers, Discreet Ballistics, and even the Hornady Sub-x bullets are all good choices

 

[waspocrew]

I'm planning on snagging a few doe whitetail tags this season specifically for use of my 300 BLK with 200 gr Makers. Should be a good time!

 

[Wedgy]

 

[Pastor Gun.zales]

That is absolutely insanely awesome!

 

[Bucklowery]

Yes the makers have been my number one choice followed by cavity back Bullets

Thanks

Buck

 

[Bravo 4]

I built a large caliber rifle for subsonic about 12 years back. With the 750 grain Amax, one of-if not the highest BC bullets in production at the time (and still today), it will only lose 100('ish) fps out to 600 yards and less than 200 fps at 1000 yards. Used to if the subject of hunting with subs (for big game) arose I would say go big bore. Now there are some good bullets for such and I might even try some .30 cals.

 

[Wedgy]

I run the Lehigh Defense 570 grain controlled fracturing sub in a .458 Socom at 1050fps from a bolt gun and it really puts the smack on pigs. As Bravo says, it only loses ~200 fps at 1,000 yards but it is like lobbing artillery. LOL
They single stack in an AR magazine and also run perfect in a .243 Win bolt gun if you screw a .458 barrel on.

 

[Pastor Gun.zales]

I rum the Lehigh Defense 570 grain controlled fracturing sub in a .458 Socom at 1050fps from a bolt gun and it really puts the smack on pigs. As Bravo says, it only loses ~200 fps at 1,000 yards but it is like lobbing artillery. LOL
They single stack in an AR magazine and also run perfect in a .243 Win bolt gun if you screw a .458 barrel on.

I am a big fan of the 458SOCOM, especially for pigs! and you are right about putting the smack on things!

 

[Bravo 4]

I run the Lehigh Defense 570 grain controlled fracturing sub in a .458 Socom at 1050fps from a bolt gun and it really puts the smack on pigs. As Bravo says, it only loses ~200 fps at 1,000 yards but it is like lobbing artillery. LOL
They single stack in an AR magazine and also run perfect in a .243 Win bolt gun if you screw a .458 barrel on.View attachment 561827View attachment 561828

I was running the 725 Lehighs until they stop producing them. Best sub bullet I've ever tried, absolutely devastating on deer and hogs. I would have liked to have gotten an elk with one.

 

[bluedog69]

I run the Lehigh Defense 570 grain controlled fracturing sub in a .458 Socom at 1050fps from a bolt gun and it really puts the smack on pigs. As Bravo says, it only loses ~200 fps at 1,000 yards but it is like lobbing artillery. LOL
They single stack in an AR magazine and also run perfect in a .243 Win bolt gun if you screw a .458 barrel on.View attachment 561827View attachment 561828

That is something I have wondered. So the 458 SOCOM should work in about any bolt rifle with a 243 win sized bolt face?

 

[Bravo 4]

That is something I have wondered. So the 458 SOCOM should work in about any bolt rifle with a 243 win sized bolt face?

Not Wedgy but I'll answer that for him …yes the .458 Socom is a .473 rim like all .308 Winchester/.30-06 derivatives. If I were to do this again I'd go the .458 Socom route. It's the easy button, a pre-fit Savage or Remage barrel and I'd be good to go. Instead I made my own dummy rounds and had a reamer made, then had to get a fast twist .510 barrel made…not to mention odd dies.

 

[QuietTexan]

I've been using almost nothing but subsonics this last year. Have killed a goodly pile of pigs with 300 BLK, 450 Bushmaster, and 308 Win.

I've been disappointed in 8.6 BLK so far. I have a bolt action 16", and it took two shots to put any hurt on a moderate sized sow at 80 yards. First was broadside in the shoulder, zero blood and acted like no broken bones at all. Follow up was the Texas Heart Shot... right up Main Street, good amount of blood but still managed to go more than 200 yards and under a fence line. She's definitely dead somewhere at least. I'm still going to shoot it and see if it does better, maybe I hit an unusually fat pig, even though she looked like all the others.

Comparatively my 450 Bushmaster AR-10 with the exact same broadside shot has laid over several and much larger sows, with significant amounts of fat that it had to get through. I shot a weaner through the hips while running with the 450 BM, completely rolled it over and stopped both legs from working. My current problem is I need to put an adjustable gas block on that rifle, it won't cycle subs yet, otherwise it might be the only one I used ever agin.

but has anyone else managed to get decent accuracy at 250+ yards using subs?

Out of a 22LR with match ammo yes Bigger stuff, not really anything more decent than "can probably hit a pig". But these are all factory barrels, usually with thermal sights on them.