Thread: Experienced Advice Appreciated For Long Range Hunting

My brother and I have got two different takes on hunting, I thought I'd share with you guys. I know he will be reading this thread, so please feel free to offer up your advice.

We're both new to any sort of long range hunting and we've just gone to the range recently to test where our rifles are shooting out to 200m (that's as far as this particular rifle range will allow).

We've got the deer block booked for next weekend, which involves shooting at longish ranges out to around 700m, however, we haven't tested our rifles out to that range yet, so we don't know where our bullets are actually going to shoot?

It's supposed to be a two day affair (Saturday and Sunday) and my theory is to get there first thing Saturday morning and shoot the rifles out to 8-900m or so, (at a framers place that neighbors the block we intend to shoot) that way we can see where the bullets are going and therefore be more comfortable that we're liable to connect with something, then do our hunt later in the evening. My brother, on the other hand, wants to get there early, get lead in the air ASAP by shooting at deer out to ranges previously untested, then later that day, at our leisure, after the dust settles, and sometime after the wind whips up, start to shoot targets and see where we went wrong!

Now, to me that's a kinda putting the cart before the horse, style of thing, I mean, come on imagine it, you've got to then get in behind the cart and push the blastard thing and drag the horse on the strength of it, or, at the very least hope the horse is gonna follow happily along behind you, so you don't have to drag him... it starts creating all sorts of problems IMHO.

What do you guys think, to firstly do the hunt and aim blindly shoot in the general direction of the animal in the hope that a wild child bullet grazes it's hide or, have a better idea of where your bullets are gonna go, by shooting at targets, out to those ranges, before hand? What's the standard procedure or is there none?

Takes more than a morning of practice to be able to take an animal at 500m plus.

Originally Posted by MSL

Takes more than a morning of practice to be able to take an animal at 500m plus.

Oh, ok thanks. So by that I'm assuming you're meaning just shoot at the animals, and don't worry about where your bullet's impacting, for the amount of target practice we're gonna get in is gonna be a mile insufficient anyway?

Shoot at the targets first.

No, I’m saying you are best to leave the long range shots on animals to another time when you are more proficient. This time you’d be better off trying to close the distance to somewhere close to your current ability

Originally Posted by MSL

No, I’m saying you are best to leave the long range shots on animals to another time when you are more proficient. This time you’d be better off trying to close the distance to somewhere close to your current ability

Yeah I got you, thanks.

I will be blunt.

The fact either of you are even considering this with no experience or validation shows a total lack of common hunting ethics and respect for the animal.

Go shoot some steel and leave the animals alone.


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You wont be able to just jump out to a long shot like that an expect to make it. You would be far better to split the weekend into two different activities.

Get there early as your brother suggested and be prepared to start stalking. Dawn and Dusk go hunting. Get to within a range that you know you are capable of making the shot and if you have no success then you gave it your best attempt. Within the 200 yards you mentioned would be where I would suggest.

During the middle of the day when hunting is not ideal, pop over to the neighbouring block and shoot at ranges working you r way out to the longer ranges. Take plenty of ammo for this and take your time. Work out beforehand what your drop should be at 300, 400,500,and maybe 600 metres / yards (depending on what unit you are working with?) then compare your results of what you got with what you expected.

I did this with one of my rifles and while the calculator stated I should have around 28 inches drop at 200 it was closer to 36. In my case it was a 215gr round nose projectile .303 doing 2094fps at muzzle zero'ed 1" high at 100.....not a fast round or a long range round.But accurate. I got a 45mm group at 300 but all three would have been a miss as far as shot placement goes if it had been an animal. It is set up as a compact not quite bush gun, and I wanted to know if I was capable of making a longer shot if one presented.

You will also need to know that the calibre you are using is suitable for long range as well.

Originally Posted by R93

I will be blunt.

The fact either of you are even considering this with no experience or validation shows a total lack of common hunting ethics and respect for the animal.

Go shoot some steel and leave the animals alone.


Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

I might have put you fella's slightly wrong. I have 'very successfully' shot deer out to 500m before, what I'm saying is, I'm not a bench rest shooter (don't shoot thousands of $$$ of ammo off at 1000 yards at the range each month) and I haven't got a ten year history of it!

Originally Posted by Remington 5R .300 Win Mag

I might have put you fella's slightly wrong. I have 'very successfully' shot deer out to 500m before, what I'm saying is, I'm not a bench rest shooter (don't shoot thousands of $$$ of ammo off at 1000 yards at the range each month) and I haven't got a ten year history of it!

Then you should be able to answer your own questions.

500 yards in fair conditions is not really a hard shot if you know your gear and abilities.

Beyond 500 is where no matter how good you think you are, you are not going to be able to get it right every time on an animal which doesn't stand still like steel.

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Originally Posted by R93

Then you should be able to answer your own questions.

500 yards in fair conditions is not really a hard shot if you know your gear and abilities.

Beyond 500 is where no matter how good you think you are, you are not going to be able to get it right every time on an animal which doesn't stand still like steel.

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Yeah, yeah, look, to be honest with you I 'can' answer mine own questions, and that is, we should be checking our POI at the ranges we intend shooting at 'FIRST', 'before' we shoot at the animals at that range but, for the benefit of my brother, who I know reads this forum often, and will be reading this post, I was kind of wanting 'YOU' to be telling 'him' that!

The biggest issue even once you've calibrated and confirmed will likely be your wind call.
Crunch the numbers and look at the difference a few mph will make. Then work out the measurement of the hit between the chest and ass

With long range what about the retrieve?

If your shot is on dark and you wound how long are you going to leave it out there?

Originally Posted by R93

I will be blunt.

The fact either of you are even considering this with no experience or validation shows a total lack of common hunting ethics and respect for the animal.

Go shoot some steel and leave the animals alone.


Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

What he said!

Originally Posted by R93

I will be blunt.

The fact either of you are even considering this with no experience or validation shows a total lack of common hunting ethics and respect for the animal.

Go shoot some steel and leave the animals alone.


Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Animals are cruel to each other in their cycle of survival. Predator and predated. Hunter and hunted. That's their natural way of things.

But what sets us apart in our own cycle with nature is an element that only man alone can bring. And that is respect for our quarry.