Experienced Advice Appreciated For Long Range Hunting

Now isn't that interesting...

If you can’t accurately dial a scope and know where your bullet will
Strike it’s a no brainer. Animals are not for target practice. Do that on a range.

Bad form.

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Originally Posted by Proudkiwi

Old mate Remington 5R posted this wee gem about 6 months ago....

Having said that, verification of bullet trajectory is 'essential' for longer range shooting. To do this, you're first gonna need a tall piece of cardboard, and if you're zeroed at 200 yards/meters, set your target up at 400. Have your target placed near the top of your cardboard and fire (obviously considering your firing zone). Now don't just fire one round and say 'good, I know where it goes', fire 3 - 5 because you're wanting to try an gauge your group size as well. Greg Duley touched on the 6" hillier zone, which is a vital kill zone in the chest area, so, provided your rifle is a capable killer at whatever range you're hoping to shoot out at, then you're trying to find the 'maximum' range you can confidently shoot, keeping your group size at around the 6" mark, preferably less.

Now, take a measurement from the center of the bulls eye, where you aimed, to the center of your group as that gives the bullet drop (trajectory) in inches/cm. If you've got a holdover type scope, with various elevation marks, take a note of the middle of your group size and correspond it to the marks in your scope, and write that mark on your stock for easy reference (example 400 = 1 & 1/2 lines down). Do this at every 100 y/m intervals (remembering that the closest you choose to do this, the more accurate a data you're going to collect) until your group size gets bigger than the magic 6" mark! If you shoot 6" at 700 y/m but at 800 you're shooting 7 or 8" then 700 y/m is your maximum, it could be that your group size opens up more than 6" at 500 y/m, in which case 500, or maybe 450 is your maximum range.

Now, 'if' at say 500 y/m you're shooting a 2' group, then there's something drastically wrong with either you or your setup, and desperately needs to be sorted.

Do this and you should have the 'ethical right' to shoot at anything out to that particular range, and if we're all being honest, a certain amount of "collateral damage" is always to be expected with all forms of hunting, after all, how many rabbits have we shot that have manged to escape wounded down the hole, dragging their rear diff and screaming as they go, 'never, to be seen again?... That's just my sixpence, oh, and of course, windage is a different story!

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Another "forum troll" - looks like it.... Maybe a vegan pushing for the "hunting is cruel" element....:O_O:

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Originally Posted by Remington 5R .300 Win Mag

Thanks Tentman and thanks for all the other guys who have taken the time to reply. I too feel that the thread has jumped the tracks a bit here and has become a bit of a 'pick on me' session. The thread has nothing to do with morality and long range shooting/hunting ethics per-se! For all of you here, the fact that we are going to shoot at animals out to around 7-800 meters 'IS' a happening thing, so you'll simply just have to get used to it.

Now, I can understand that in public forums, such as this, someone starts to through his/her ethical weight around, then another jumps on the band wagon, then before you know it you've created a 'pack-mentality' whereby everyone has to be seen to have the 'holier than thou' attitude!

The purpose of this thread is (for my brother's sake) should we be checking, and therefore 'knowing' where our bullets are going at the ranges we intend to shoot, at prior to going or, should we just go hunting first, at those ranges, and then check our POI 'after' the deer shooting's done? Increasing the chances of missing and/or wounding animals.

I personally (like most of you out there I'm sure) have got advanced equipment to be able to give me a theoretical trajectory, based on a number of perimeters that I have acquired (velocity, BC, barometric pressure, temperature, zeroing distance etc) however, I would like to verify them in real time. My brother, on the other hand, hasn't.

Anyway, kidmac42 is kinda right, in that this thread is not giving me the answers I was hoping for, and R93 was right in that I can, and already have, answered my own questions, so I'll leave you all to it, and go my merry way! Thanks for all who have tried to reply genuinely.

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There is nothing holyer than thou regarding common sense is there?

You also mention a pack mentality?

I take comfort looking at the replies in this thread that there is a lot of common ground among our peers regarding the treatment and respect for our quarry.





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Originally Posted by Nickoli

Another "forum troll" - looks like it.... Maybe a vegan pushing for the "hunting is cruel" element....:O_O:

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The comment he copied and posted makes a lot of sense. It is a fairly simple practical method of finding the effective range that a shooter is capable of with a particular rifle. and would mean there is no excuse for not knowing where you shot will go. What part of that would you consider trolling?

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Originally Posted by timattalon

The comment he copied and posted makes a lot of sense. It is a fairly simple practical method of finding the effective range that a shooter is capable of with a particular rifle. and would mean there is no excuse for not knowing where you shot will go. What part of that would you consider trolling?

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....I don't know - asking for an opinion, not giving a rat's arse about those proffered yet being a "cut & paste" expert in another thread.... meets my threshold; you must have a higher tolerance than I...:ORLY:

The purpose of this thread is (for my brother's sake) should we be checking, and therefore 'knowing' where our bullets are going at the ranges we intend to shoot, at prior to going or, should we just go hunting first, at those ranges, and then check our POI 'after' the deer shooting's done? Increasing the chances of missing and/or wounding animals.

Yes check and 'know' before going
No dont hunt and check poi later, thats just crazy
Good luck

Looks like I've just stumbled onto a popcorn graveyard :XD:

My personal opinion would be to stalk in closer. Save the long range stuff for another day after you have done a heap of range work at those longer ranges you talk about. You say that its going to happen anyway so I'm interested to know if this is because the terrain dictates this or is it that you both just choose to want to take these long shots?

Someone wrote, "The thread has nothing to do with morality and long range shooting/hunting ethics per-se! For all of you here, the fact that we are going to shoot at animals out to around 7-800 meters 'IS' a happening thing, so you'll simply just have to get used to it."

If someone like the above poster (assuming he's not a psychopath with no insight) is cruel to animals by taking shots "at" them which he should not be taking, and then falls off a rock to a slow and painful death at the bottom - does he deserve it?

This guys attitude is not the one...... I've only ever wounded one. I spent a very, very long time looking for it etc etc. I dont ever want to repeat that feeling. That was at a 100 yards. I've missed a few at, for me, long range (300 ish) so I've gone out of my way to get better and learn a bit more about longer range shooting. All I'm after, is to be able to confidently shoot a deer somewhere between 300 & 400 yards. Until I can do that on a target or gong, confidently, I just can't see the point.

500 yards is a very long way in real world hunting. And it takes ALOT of practice to be consistently and cleanly taking deer at this range. Till you've done alot of practice as well as hunting - 300 yards is plenty far enough.

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Originally Posted by Nickoli

Another "forum troll" - looks like it.... Maybe a vegan pushing for the "hunting is cruel" element....:O_O:

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Elementary cut and pasta skill as well

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Im a member of rifle club that shoots out to 900 yards. F class targets for 900 yards are as tall as I am, but look very small from 900 yards away. A few years ago I wounded and lost a deer at 50m with a rushed off hand shot and I still feel bad about it. Personally I would never take a shot at an animal longer than the distance I am confident I could hit where I was aiming every time, which is about 300-400 yards

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Originally Posted by PJC

Im a member of rifle club that shoots out to 900 yards. F class targets for 900 yards are as tall as I am, but look very small from 900 yards away. A few years ago I wounded and lost a deer at 50m with a rushed off hand shot and I still feel bad about it. Personally I would never take a shot at an animal longer than the distance I am confident I could hit where I was aiming every time, which is about 300-400 yards

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Iv been dabbling in some longer range shots with the 308 it seems a pretty good alrounder with a lupy 10 power ,finally got out yesterday to see if the shooter app was correct & that the scope dials well enough , was really happy with results I only did 1 3 shot group at the 500 yards but it was a bloody good group around 3 or 4 inch not sure what others get but I was a happy chappy the group had drifted 6 inchs to the left with a slight x wind , while I was happy it also emphasised how little wind can have an effect I can only imagine what would happen in winder conditions or even further ranges ,shooting deer at that sort of range is a skill in its own one im looking forward to practicing more before lining up on a deer

Ive said for years IF you can CONSISTANTLY hit a 3ltr milk jug at any given range ,you can kill a deer at that same range...a 3ltr milk jug pretty much duplicating size of deers vitals...CONSISTANTLY being the operative word.

I think you and your brother both ate a long way from being capable long range marksman. Just looking at the language you are using it tells me that you havent got a clue about external ballistics.

A lot more that dialing the scope up and shooting goes into long range shooting and hunting.

I demonstrated this over the weekend again to a guy, i had my target rifle out and we were shooting some meduim (300-500y) goats and just by dialing without taking any atmospherics etc into account i clean missed by half a meter, and this was on purpose to proof a point to a newcomer.

I shoot minimum 1500 rounds in my center fires every year, mainly in my 2 main guns and i will and have many times killed animals out to 700 however i also many times passed up shots that were only 300-400 yards and conditions werent perfect, or shooting position wasnt perfect.

I think you need to train and study a LOT more before you start shooting at animals beyond 300 yards.

Buy a 150mm gong from steeltargetsnz and use it for practice, the max range you can hit it 10 out of 10 times, that is the max you are allowed to shoot shoulder shots on deer on. You will have to learn patience and discipline.

Im happy to take you through some stuff if you are located in Hamilton.

If you have some experience like that just have a go at a target. If you can consistently hit a smaller target then go for a hunt.

You have to think of the animal if you can't get a clean shot at it.

Wow, Dr. Frankenstein would be proud of this thread. Talk about resurrecting the dead.

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Originally Posted by Nickoli

Another "forum troll" - looks like it.... Maybe a vegan pushing for the "hunting is cruel" element....:O_O:

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A tooled up vegan?? this I'd love to see.

For those deer that pop out 30-50-100yds infrontof you.Try a standing shot at a 8 inch steel plate,try 50yds.Then try a 100yds,its harder than you think.I watched a few utube demos and got a few pointers,which improved my hit rate.Mind you a deer shoulder is a little bigger,but when you only have 10-15 seconds to aim and shoot.A bit of practice on steel wont hurt.