Right Caliber

[Deleted]

Trying to decide on the right rifle to get and need some input. I want something that will shoot out to 800 yards, mainly predators, maybe a deer or two (have my sml for them), easy to reload, accurate, and easy to find ammo in a pinch.

Thinking the 243 or 223 (bolt) but want out of the box accuracy also. I realize that's allot but need a place to start and later upgrade the rifle to better stock maybe barrel or any other upgrades.

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions please feel free thanks

[1coyotemaster]

If you are going to 800 I would probably rule out the .223 due to lack of energy. The 6MM (243) would maybe do it but that's a long poke. If you are serious about that kind of yardage a 6.5 is more suited to what you are after. Either the .260 Remington or 6.5/.284 would reach the distance with enough energy to anchor an animal humanely.

[Deleted]

Thanks didn't know anything about the .260 I'll do some more research.

Are there any other rifle out there in this range?

[petev]

Aug 18, 2014 12:29:05 GMT -5 @78riverrat said:

Thinking the 243 or 223 (bolt) but want out of the box accuracy also. I realize that's allot but need a place to start and later upgrade the rifle to better stock maybe barrel or any other upgrades.

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions please feel free thanks

This statement is rather astounding to me, since IMO the .243 is the most accurate deer cartridge there is, and is effective on smaller game and varmints as well.

[wilmsmeyer]

Are you trying the save the pelts. What's the average shot more likely to be?

[Deleted]

Saving the pelt would be nice around 500 yards western Nebraska is very open

[mike243]

25/06 I love a 243 but deer past 450 is a stretch on energy. more energy & also good bullet selection in the 1/4 bore

[wilmsmeyer]

You took the thoughts right out of my mouth. I was going to suggest the 25-06. However if those 800 yd shots were only once in a while I would lean on more mild medicine if pelts were an objective.

Not sure of your skill, but 400-800 yds is a whole new league in delivering a killing hit on a small predator. I'm a layman when it comes to the long range shooting game. However, I have shot my .243 at 500-650 yds and have shot groups that would tell me it's doable. The problem is doping wind. On "calm" days my groups were 1 foot left or right where I wanted them. This tells me that even with highly accurate loads, that if I couldn't dope the slight breeze exactly. I would miss. Or...if I were pretty good, but not perfect, I could guarentee maybe a wounded animal. 800 yds is a long way to respectively deliver a humane shot.

Using a .243 or .223 would be marginal for that. Even a 25-06 or 7mm mag....that is a poke and your chances of a solid hit on a first shot is all but minimalized unless you are the cream of the crop. Yeah, I understand that most do not put the lives of a predator in the same league as a game animal like a deer. Fine. However, these guys are only doing what they need to do to survive...like you and me. They compete with us in killing game animals. They HAVE to do it and we choose to do it for fun and sport and meat in the freezer that ends up costing more than beef after considering the cost of weapons, gear, clothes blah blah.

Just saying that ANY hunting should be done with respectfulness in mind. The bigger the caliber and the fastest loads....tested for accuracy would be best for that crazy 800 yd line. Even then, the little critters are VERY small out there. Learn to call them in...that's fun...and dust them with #4 buck at 40 yds.

[Deleted]

Wilmsmeyer

I agree with what you have said and I'm not a great shot but I feel I'm better than average. I don't have any long rifles other than my sml and thought it would be nice to have one. Along with I'd like to take a long range shooting class some day and learn some new things. I really feel I can shoot longer ranges than most with a little more practice but I want something I can shoot easier than my sml. Gives me practice and make it a little user friendly.

Thanks for the replies guys

[pposey]

7mms have awesome BC's,,, but 800 is a longgggggg ways,,, .280 or .280AI, 7mm mag, perhaps a short mag in 7mm or .284 win

www.6mmbr.com/7mm284.html

info from guys that shoot way out there,, of course there are those here that shoot very well also.

[sourdough44]

I would go with the common 243, pick the gun you want. I don't care for longer heavy guns with extended carry, some feel otherwise. Even 300 yards on a small, nervous target can be a stretch.

[7mmfreak]

800yds is a long ways but doable with training and practice.

The .223 Rem is not the way. I shoot the .223 Rem (Wylde really) in competition to around 650m with 75gn or 77gr bullets and you can reliably hit 10" targets at that distance but I have tried the same loads at 1000yds and they are frustrating at best. I want more bullet and more velocity than a 77gn at 2550fps if I am going long.

My idea of a perfect LR rig is a walking weight varminter in .243 Win or AI launching a 105-115gn bullet around 3000fps. That will shoot up there with just about any long range load and will do it without an overly heavy gun or a ton of recoil. That is on my very soon to do list. You can also shoot decent deer bullets or varmint grenades for rodents.

For true LR work nothing beats the 7mms; at least nothing I am willing to carry since the .338s and bigger are not portable unless you are paying someone else to carry them. They also get their with enough ass to devestate a song dog or deer.

[hankinsrfls]

78riverrat..

If you want a good long range shooting rifle and stay in the short action, you have several good choices. First you have the 243. A great varmint round but a little soft for whitetails unless you make a really good shot and have the correct bullets. The 243 got a bad name for a long time when it came to shooting whitetails. Winchester introduced it as the do-all round and that it can do, but guys were ground hog hunting with it all summer and making some great longrange shots, when deer season rolled around they shot the deer with the same bullets they used for groundhog hunting and could not explane why they lost their big buck.. It was because they we using the wrong bullet. So if it's deer you plan on shooting choose a rifle with a barrel twist of at least a 1-10 twist if not a 1-9. that way you can shoot the heavys that will be needed for killing deer cleanly.

Next you have the 260 Remington... I have built a ton of those over the years and at this time I don't think Remington is currently chambering for them, but they are a super round and will carry that energy you need at 800 yards much better than the 243. Go with a 1-9 twist for bullet weights up to 120 grains and do a 1-8 if you want to shoot the heavy hitters in 140 grain. The 6.5 caliber would be my choice for a do-all rifle if I was building for myself, and that is what my girlfriend will be using this year due to the very light recoil. A 260 Remington.

The 7mm-08 is your next good choice but it is getting a little on the big side for shooting coyoties and groundhogs. Still a great round for doing so but don't expect much $ for the pelts. The 7mm is a great bullet also and carries its energy to the target very well. For the 7mm-08 I would limit myself to bullets no heavier than 168 grain and you would have a solid performer at 800 yards. ..

Last is the 308. It's been around a long time and you can get ammo for it just about anywhere you look. The 150-168 grainers will stop just about anything you want to shoot and you can hand load the 110-125 grain varmint bullets for working on the groundhog population. But there again don't expect to see much of them when you go over to pick em up.... A belly shot will blow them in half...

Now the good thing about buying the 308 is that when you are ready to re-barrel it to either the 260 or 7mm-08 you have the platform complete. All you need to do is chamber a good barrel for it and blueprint the action. Also save every piece of brass you can get from your 308 because you can use it to make the 260 or 7mm-08. Simply full lenght resize it in the die and out comes the cartridge of chice.

I just looked in my supply cataloge and Remington is offering the 260 in their CDL model 7. Classic design walnut stock and blued metal. The 700 Classic Deluxe is available in the 7mm-08, the 700 CDL DM is available in the 7mm-08. The SPS all blue and black and the SPS in stainless is available in the 7mm-08. Just about every model is available in the .243 and 308...

The ammo for the 243 and 308 is the easiest to find, the 260 and 7mm-08 is a little harder but it's out there... Jeff.

[Dave W]

Another option, and this is according to a friend, no experience personally. An off the shelf gun that does well at known distance steel matches he attends is the Savage LRP chambered in the 6.5 Creedmoor. Very similar to the 260 Rem. They don't win, but they are in the ballgame at several thousand dollars less than the customs that win.

[airborneike]

78riverrat,

The 6.5x284 is my favorite for medium range work and they are accurate enough out to a 1000 but don't have the energy at that range. I shoot 130 grain Berger vlds just under 3000 fps and they are like a scalpel, scary accurate.

Don't know how available ammo for the 6.5x284 is but that round is a reloaders dream and you can get some impressive speed and accuracy out of it. SD and BC is high with the Berger's. especially with the 140's.

Lot of different opinions about long range hunting, some valid and some not but if you know your equipment and it is adequate and you have validated your comeups and practiced a lot, then IMHO it is ethical.

Best,

Mike

[Deleted]

Wonder where a 270WSM would fit in at, in the
medium to long range world? If at all compared to calibers already mentioned.
I bought one years ago in a savage, not long after they came out, sighted it in with factory ammo, wiped it down and cleaned it up, put it in the gun cabinet and it has never been back out, other than to be wiped down.
Havent shot it more than 5 times and have never researched the caliber to see where it stands among others, just thought it would be a "good" whitetail gun so I bought one, thats about as far as I went with it...
Maybe I need to read up on them and get it out and shoot it some...lol
Along with the 204 Ruger that has been in the cabinet a year longer than the 270 without being shot either...
Just curious if anyone has any experience with the 270WSM and can tell me where they think it stands among other similar calibers..

RR, Sorry, not trying to hijack your thread.

[mike243]

ohioguy the 270wsm has better ballistics than a 300wm in a lot of the loadings from what I can see comparing the 2 rounds, I shoot a 300wm and the only other center fire rifle id want to buy is the 270wsm

[7mmfreak]

My only issue with the .270 anything for long range is the lack of bullet choices. The new Nosler LRAB is promising and Berger makes a few as well but there are not as many choices as with the 6mm, 6.5mm, and 7mm.

But what is long range? When I first started shooting long range in the 90s it was 400yds and the Nosler BT was the go to bullet for LR hunting. Compared to other bullets we have now it flies like a shoe box and 400yds is not far to me anymore. That said I have never been forced to shoot long on a deer so I could get by with any reasonable hunting rifle.

[Deleted]

Thanks for the replies guys. I do have other choices if I want to go 500 yards or beyond, which the only way I could do that is head west, which is always a possibility.
if I were to do that, I would def sit down and do some homework to see what would be most adequate for my situation... I could compare my choices, 7mag, 300win mag and the 270WSM and work loads out for the task.
I had a 7STW, that was probably the best choice I had for long range, but it had a brake on it and I could not stand shooting it, had to wear plugs and muffs together to shoot it, and I refused to do that when hunting, and naturally I paid the price, shot an 8 point with it and my ears rang for days....gun was sold.
Now all my rifles have taken a back seat to the SML's and collect lots of dust...