Ranging fast moving game

After a weekend of culling where we were mostly jump shooting at close range, but also having shots at 300+ M where disturbed animals only pause for 5-10 seconds before disappearing what's people's approach on getting consistent hits.

We were occassionally ranging but estimating quite often as well and mostly guessing hold overs with about a 50 % hit rate which was pretty disappointing.

I'd like to get quick enough to dial (or maybe use a reticle) for these sorts of shots but you need a very quick "solution" and a lot of practise.

Thoughts?

Flatter shooting chambering ?

Cheap option-use a caliber with a point blank range that works from 0-250/300 and don't shoot further.
Medium cost option-use a scope with bullet drop compensation, I'm assuming cds will be too slow?
Expensive option-scope with intergraded rangefinder and ballistics calculator.

well you could have somone standing alongside calling out the range - but that would require those bloody awfull hold over reticles - keep doing what you are doing and dont try long shots on running stuff

Plan ahead of the shooting, range features in the distance at bracketed distances or adjustment values.
Shooting as a pair with one on the gun and the other doing the ranging.
Simplified and written out drop chart rather than referencing a device.
Wind on enough elevation to satisfy the rule of thirds, then dial when beyond that. (Queue ROT FUDZ).
One of those eliminator scopes must be quick to use.
Practice at the range under timed drills, a little duress makes a huge difference to your shooting.

What animals ? Assuming goats? they are small

range landscape features so you have a reference in advance. If you want high kill rates you need to be patient and tactical in how you plan and approach before starting shooting. Get close and give yourself the best chance to get the lot.


Knowing drops for your reticle or having a marked BDC turret. I use a fine point & paint to put 100/50m increment marks on my turret - environmentals don't change enough that you won't make hits out to 350-400.

Goats and very flighty Fallow does/juveniles. We usually get in close to start with but its the ones that reappear for a quick look back on the next face that are difficult to hit

As sure as shit theres no time to go from ranging to solution to dope and sighting using more than one device besides your scope

Its that 325 to 400M area that is difficult.

the process of making a shot involves not only knowing and correcting for drop, but setting up a position, getting a sight picture and making the shot.

There may be more time to be saved in the latter parts of the process. for work on goats I've been finding that a PRS-style bag with ultralite fill is extremely fast. use low magnification. practice getting the rifle lined up on the animal (NPA) before trying to find it through the scope.

Before you start shooting, range some landmarks so you’ve got an idea of ranges. If you’ve zeroed for 200m like my 223 then you can hold dead on to about 235m, then if a mil dot reticle first dot is 305m @9 power with my scope. Misjudging windage is possibly going to stuff you up though. If a plain reticle then you have to spend more time at range learning approx holdovers. Just an observation but most shooters probably shouldn’t be shooting at moving animals at 200m let alone any further. And an animal that pauses for 5 seconds or so doesn’t give a lot of time to dial. Lately I’ve seen guy’s take 2-3 minutes getting set up for a 200m shot at stationary target and still not get a good hit. Not a dig at OP in any way, from his posts I gather he does a lot of range time and knows his gear but there’s a lot out there that don’t.

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hells bells 400 m moving goat or fallow I would hazard a guess that less than 2% of the hunters on here could do better than 50% - certainly when I was culling and doing big goat jobs the hunters I was with were very good shots but not that good 150 - 200 was our self imposed limit ( all .222) - 400 thats a long way on a moving target - wind calls - elevation man good luck

Now I know this won’t be a popular statement but back in the day with goats we’d try and figure out the lead animal and tag that first. Rest of mob often wouldn’t be sure what to do/where to go. Gave more time to get rest of mob then go back and finish leader if not already expired. Ruthless maybe, but effective. With deer always shoot the front escaping animal, will often make following animals hesitate and/or reverse direction.

hells bells 400 m moving goat or fallow I would hazard a guess that less than 2% of the hunters on here could do better than 50% - certainly when I was culling and doing big goat jobs the hunters I was with were very good shots but not that good 150 - 200 was our self imposed limit ( all .222) - 400 thats a long way on a moving target - wind calls - elevation man good luck - so you are likely doing better than you think

I don't think he's talking about shooting moving animals. Just waiting for the pause that normally happens and being able to take advantage of that.

@Barry the hunter. I’d give that statement a like but the button appears to be missing.

okay I just think he is doing well if he is getting 50% - I found goat shooting big numbers did not actually improve ones shooting - in fact it made one a rough shot - just trying to drop as many as possible in as fast a time as possible -

I don't try moving shots on anything much past 80-100M, my Dad could bowl running pigs to 200 or so but that's a lot of practise that most shooters ( me especially) don't get these days. So I was talking about those "pause" moments when they stop for a blow.

Even if you range where you think they will come out into view, past 350 they only have to vary that a bit and it's a recipe for a miss in the benched country we shoot (central is quite unlike the sort of terrain in Gimps picture).

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Originally Posted by woods223

Now I know this won’t be a popular statement but back in the day with goats we’d try and figure out the lead animal and tag that first. Rest of mob often wouldn’t be sure what to do/where to go. Gave more time to get rest of mob then go back and finish leader if not already expired. Ruthless maybe, but effective. With deer always shoot the front escaping animal, will often make following animals hesitate and/or reverse direction.

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Yes always try for the "leader" first. However these animals get a fair bit of pressure so that doesn't always work.

If your using a Mil dial up scope? The Accuracy 1st “ Speed Drop “ system is bloody quick. I use this on my 223 for goat culling. There is a minimum and maximum accuracy distance threshold.

X Ring on YouTube explains it well and demonstrates it with a first time shooter of this system.

This is where.... I hate to repeat myself.... really.... But this is where you really need to go back to basics and get a .270 or similar, and sight in 3 high at 100 and then you dont need to know the range out too 300. If you think its within 400 then a hold on spine but no higher.

Its a very effective system and will beat a person relying on a rangefinder and dials all day every day.

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Originally Posted by whanahuia

This is where.... I hate to repeat myself.... really.... But this is where you really need to go back to basics and get a .270 or similar, and sight in 3 high at 100 and then you dont need to know the range out too 300. If you think its within 400 then a hold on spine but no higher.

Its a very effective system and will beat a person relying on a rangefinder and dials all day every day.

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I don't disagree, that's what I've done for 40+ years. But there are occasions when I've cocked that up (and I reckon you learn more from your missed shots as opposed to crowing about the hollywoods) and it happened a couple of times last weekend. I really like @tikka s idea and intend to see if I could make that work for myself. Ya gotta keep upping your game I reckon.

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Originally Posted by gimp

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I do a very similar thing, but with my pack, as I don't have an extended magazine to contend with. I can also stand it up if needed for extra height, and if I have time, use my walking poles. As for distances, if in doubt I will always range it and I have a "quick dial" label stuck to my scope which gives me the number of clicks I need to dial for every 50 yards past 100.

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Originally Posted by whanahuia

This is where.... I hate to repeat myself.... really.... But this is where you really need to go back to basics and get a .270 or similar, and sight in 3 high at 100 and then you dont need to know the range out too 300. If you think its within 400 then a hold on spine but no higher.

Its a very effective system and will beat a person relying on a rangefinder and dials all day every day.

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This 100%. The few you miss won’t matter.


But it needs to be 3 inches at 100 yds or 3.5 inches at 100 meters to be on at approx 275 meters, pill and velocity dependent.

assuming close to 3000 fps for a 130/.270W.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Originally Posted by Shearer

I do a very similar thing, but with my pack, as I don't have an extended magazine to contend with. I can also stand it up if needed for extra height, and if I have time, use my walking poles. As for distances, if in doubt I will always range it and I have a "quick dial" label stuck to my scope which gives me the number of clicks I need to dial for every 50 yards past 100.

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The PRS bag is much "deader" than a pack - much faster to get a stable position at NPA I reckon. The rifle beds into it rather than sliding around. Very good in rocky country.

This style of shooting is where I find the mill dot types of scopes to be very effective.take your best guess and then adjust your hold based on where the bullet lands

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Originally Posted by Scortched earth

This style of shooting is where I find the mill dot types of scopes to be very effective.take your best guess and then adjust your hold based on where the bullet lands

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And learn what ranges you can bracket an animal with 2 stadia.

Example between 3 and 400 meters with my scope and set up, I can place the 400 stadia low on chest and 300 stadia is close to spine. Anything between those ranges is now covered without having to know precisely what the range is.

What caliber are you limited too?

3"H at a hundy,2-1/4"low at 300yds,330yds =5''low.Aim at top spine 14 inch drop at 400yds bang flop.308 Hornady 150gr ssts 2900ft/s,tryed and proven.Most deer are inside the 330yds.

I do like a scope on low mag,like 2x.Makes it quick to find yr target with a good fov.Makes it easy to put yr cross hairs on a running deers front edge of chest following thru as you pulling the trigger.Just like shooting ducks.

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Originally Posted by robhughes-games

What caliber are you limited too?

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Not limited at all really, depends on the best match of game, terrain and transport (really how much weight can I tolerate) There's a 6.5-284, a 223, a 308 and others.

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Originally Posted by Tentman

Not limited at all really, depends on the best match of game, terrain and transport (really how much weight can I tolerate) There's a 6.5-284, a 223, a 308 and others.

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Reason I ask is, what about something like a fast .22 cal. 22-47 an option. 75amax at 3300.
Zero at 300ish. Never be more than 100mm off line of sight to 360.
About 15cm wind drift at 400 with 10kmph.
You'd basically aim center mass to 400.

223 tikka with 2 ten shot mags and a mill dot scope of some design is perfect for this.Get to know your hash marks.
Dial up is far too slow.