Best long range caliber

[gringogigante]

Hey guys,

My buddy and I are wanting to get into more distance shooting. We are brand new to distance shooting.

He has a 50, 100, 200, and 300 yard range on his land. He has more land behind it that he said he'll make longer ranges if he ever gets good enough to shoot that far.

We are both getting a Remington 700 probably.

We will be shooting from a bench rest position until we are proficient enough to go hunting with them.

I have assumed that since the sniper schools use the Model 700 in .308/7.62 that this is the best cartridge for shooting at longer distances. I personally doubt that I'd ever get proficient past 600 yards, but my buddy Rob has always been the most accurate shooter among us and wants the ability to go farther should it turn out that he's got the skills.

What, in your opinion, is the best round for us?

I'm sure that there are a whole host of vairables: rifle, scope, weather, etc......

Assuming I've got a 700 with a good scope, what round should we use?


Thanks fellas!

 

[dee]

If your not gonna go past 600 I'd go with 7mm-08 but for farther distances there are plenty of other calibers that come to mind 7mm rem mag, .308 , 300 win mag and though not considered much anymore .30-06 will work. All of these rounds excluding the 7mm-08 has one camp perry on more than one occasion.

 

[usmcpmi]

Chris, Well my friend, you have opened up a can of worms here... You will get enough different opinions on this subject, that when all is said and done, you will still have as many questions as answers. That being said.... In My Humble Opinion....It mostly depends on what you consider "long range". I think of it as 1000+ Mid range would be 600 to 900. What do you expect the projectile to do once it gets there? Make a hole in a piece of paper, or kill something? Shooting long distance takes more than just wanting to do it. It takes instruction from someone who Really knows whats going on. Out to 500 yards, most weather conditions are forgiving, but after that you might as well give up that try to shoot unless you know wind, angle (up hill / down hill) Angle of sunlight on the target. Speed of the target, and direction. Temperature and humidity. And then there is always judging distance... But like you said, start close and work your way out. When you can put 5 shots through the same hole at 100 yds. move out to 200 and start again. Remington is a fine rifle. But even with that, you will need to find the load that works best in that rifle. Not necessarly custom loads to start, but different factory loads and find out what works best. Then when you feel you ability has surpassed that of the rifle/loads, have some custom loads worked up to move to the next level. Mostly, don't expect this to happen overnight. I've been shooting about 40 years now, and still strive to shoot better, father, and more accurately. Have Fun!
Semper Fi
MG

 

[Texas1911]

Learn a .308, they are heavy grain bullets so they are more forgiving of wind values, the flight path is well known and predictable, the ammo is plentiful in match loadings, and it will be easy to get help from people that know the round.

I would invest your money in reloading, as it will yield results very quickly and improve consistency. It also means more shooting and for less.

If you buy a Remington 700, try to buy their factory 5R barreled model. It's a heavy barrel stainless with a jeweled action and a 5R 1:11.25 barrel. That barrel will stabilize bullets up to 190 grain with ease, but with VLDs I would stick to a lesser grain count.

I have shot 1/4 MOA with the above rifle and our reloads, and I never see anything less than 1/2 MOA out of it.

First learn the trade, then adjust your equipment to what you think you need. The .308 is not perfect, it offers a solid midrange in everything, which is why the military use it. There are far more accurate calibers out there, and there are far better long range calibers out there, but .308 is just simple.

If you want cheaper, you can always go .223 Remington. You'll have to fight the wind more, but that can translate to better practice. With the bullet offerings in .223 Remington you can reach out to 600 - 800 yards with accuracy, but you'll need to specify a barrel for that kind of long bullet. I would suggest a Krieger 5R 1:7.7 5.56 Match barrel for a 700 Rem or 10 Savage action.

 

[TexasR.N.]

Sorry, nothing to add, other than to say this thread is just one more example why I joined this site.

Craig

 

[Okierifleman]

I would either start with the 308 or the 300 Win mag. Both of them are very accurate cartridges and both have a lot of good quality factory target ammo available. That will get you started and let you see if its really something you want to jump into. If you decide you want to put both feet in, then you are going to have to start reloading. That will open up a completely new chapter in wringing out the most from your rifles accuracy potential. You will be able to dictate every single step of your ammo production to ensure everything is 100% tailored to your rifle.

 

[Big country]

I'm no expert but if the long game is what you're after get a .50.
Okay now here is where I tell you all that my knowledge is solid gold, only I'm not going to do that as I have learned on this forum exactly how mutch I didn't know about rifles and shooting. So for now I'll throw in the 7mm-08 the 7mm rem mag and the .308 win. The 7's have the velocity to have some go go juice on them when they reach that buck at 700 yds. The .308 is a time proven round with a wide selection of offerings on both factory cartridge's and rifle alt ho I think one of the 7's might be a little better for the long game. But as I said before I started offering advice some of what I thought I knew was a little off so these are purely an armatures advice. I to was going to look into a 7mm-08 so I'm learning from and watching this thread as well.
And know for the pop corn.

 

[oldguy]

For accuracy and price take a look at the Savage rifles, 223,22-250 or 308 all accurate out of the box. Remember smaller calibers easier on the shoulder and pocketbook and will reach out with practice.

 

[mclarenross]

260 Remington. AKA 6.5-08. The Lapua 139gr Scenars have a ballistic coefficient of 0.615!! If you dont know what ballistic coefficient is yet you need to learn about it. 6.5mm is the top caliber for out to 1000 yards currently. Factory rifles are available in this caliber but im not sure what twist is required to stabilize the 139 and 142 VLDs. A beat to hell Savage 110 can be had cheap(~$200) and a good barrel and stock put on it for another $700, add $500 for optics and you have a pretty damn good 1000 yard rifle. If you want a nicer rifle, get a 700 though. I did. Here is my 600 yard rig.

Remington 700 VLS. 308 Win. Barrel cut to 20" and threaded 5/8x24. Factory trigger tuned to ~1.5lbs. Harris bi-Pod. EGW 20MOA scope base. Leapers 4-16x56mm SWAT scope. Barrel is free floated. Its gonna get bedded and an extended bolt handle, and a Seeking drop mag bottom metal set.

 

[usmcpmi]

mclarencross, My .50 has a BC of 1.056! When I shoot steel plate at 600 yds. it will bend the targets made of 5/8" plate steel! 6.5 is fine for thin skinned targets....but heaver "game" calls for the knock down power of the 750 gr. A-MAX.atriot: MG

 

[mclarenross]

Lol. I will agree, 50 is king. but until I get that kind of disposable income I will have to stick to 30 cal and under. 6.5 will do fine on any game short of Moose and Brown Bear out to 600-700, given proper bullet selection and shot placement.

 

[Hawghauler]

Plenty of great advice already. Except for collecting purpose I try to purchase firearms in popular calibers for long term ammo availability of ammo . .308 or 30.06 are great shooting and hunting rounds, 5.56 is great for target and varmit shooting.

 

[TexasR.N.]

FWIW I have a Savage 22-250 and have thoroughly enjoyed shooting it.

Craig

 

[Big country]

I have put some thought into a 7mm-08 and a 7mm rem mag and I have also thought of getting the Marlin XS7 S in .308. How important is it to have a heavy bull barrel? I like that Marlin .308 and I would think with a Nikon 3x9x40 I should be set for 3-4" groups out to 300. Am I wrong to think that a regular "sporter" barrel will get that kind of accuracy out to 300? Is the 7mm-08 a good accurate long range deer caliber?

 

[Navarone]

30-06 is a Good performer.

Also you can check here:
Common Sniper Calibers

 

[Big country]

30-06 is a Good performer.

Also you can check here:
Common Sniper Calibers

That is chalked full of info. Thanks.

 

[Okierifleman]

The 7mm-08, as well as the rest of the big 7's are great for long range hunting purposes and you can get very good results with a sporter weight barrel. The heavy barrel is designed not to heat up as fast, but hopefully you wont be taking that many pokes at a deer, so you really dont need it on a hunting rifle. A full fledged target gun is something entirely different....

 

[TxEMTP69]

All I can add is . I don't know jack about rifles or long distance shootin so I'm just absorbin info

 

[Big country]

All I can add is . I don't know jack about rifles or long distance shootin so I'm just absorbin info

LOL! I thought I knew jack but I started getting into some of the BC, drop angle calculations, harmonics, etc... and I realized just how much I didn't know so now I'm going to act like a beginner and ask a sh*t ton of questions to all the guys and gals that know there bitness.

 

[Texas1911]

30-06 is a Good performer.

Also you can check here:
Common Sniper Calibers

Not a fan of .30-06 ... the long case leads to problems with powder shifting and that affects pressure curves between each case. It's a good hunting round, but accuracy is not it's forte.

That's why the short mags were released. They shorten the action which improves rigidity, and they are generally filled in powder volume so you get a consistent burn. That's the idea behind the popularity of the 284 case verses the 300 Savage derivatives like 308, 243, etc.

If you want pure accuracy, stick to 6 - 6.5mm bullets and opt for short cases that handle alot of pressure. The 6 BR is pretty much the poster child for that, and 6-284 / 6.5-284 are popular too over the 7-08 and 260 Remington (6.5-08)