Looking to hit clay birds at 1000 yards by the end of 2015. (no equipment yet)

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  • designMachine

    Plinker
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    Dec 26, 2013
    4
    1
    McCordsville
    Hi Ya'll

    I'm looking into getting into a rifle setup for the specific goal of earning my way up to hitting 4in targets at 1000 yards away by the end of 2015. I'm a proficient pistol and skeet shooter on a weekly basis. But I want to earn my 1000yds before I miss out on the chance. My old man suggest I start with a Rem 700 .308 heavy barrel and customize my way up throughout my journey.

    This is were I need guidance.

    1. Is the .308 round the best to start with? Especially if I want to eventually run my own reloads down the barrel for my 1000yd targets?

    2. Is the Rem 700 just the go to rifle for everyone? Am I missing anything by not going with a different manufacturer? I'm looking for heavy barrel bench shooting so at this point I want to make sure that any rifle I go with can go the distance...

    3. This is a huge investment. Should I look at certain gunsmiths that would be willing and ultimately save me money in the end by building a custom rig for my goals?

    I know I have to start small and work my way up but, I want to make sure whatever I invest into the rig will eventually help me reach my goal when it's all said and done..

    Thoughts?
     

    OneBadV8

    Stay Picky my Friends
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    Aug 7, 2008
    55,149
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    Ft Wayne
    I would do lots of research. Be sure to check out Savage rifles, as well as even building your own completely from just an action. Is there a budget for your rifle? Optics? Ammo?
     

    designMachine

    Plinker
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    Dec 26, 2013
    4
    1
    McCordsville
    I imagine that I'm looking at anywhere from 3-5k with all the equipment to achieve the goal... Thats why I'm reaching out. I don't want to loose 200 to 1000 by re-buying equipment..
     

    designMachine

    Plinker
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    Dec 26, 2013
    4
    1
    McCordsville
    .338 it is, I've held a Savage at Gander, but they seemed to skinny barreled. Do ya'll have savage models that you would recommend? Every slide of a bolt felt nice on the savage, but I wasn't sure if they were a buy here pay here type rifle to invest in?
     

    Leo

    Grandmaster
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    Mar 3, 2011
    9,733
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    Lafayette, IN
    There is WAY more to shooting 1000 yards repeatably that a good rifle. At that distance wind reading means probably more than the rifle, and the rifle means a lot. Without wind reading, it is very likely that a true 1/2 moa rifle may not even hit a 4 X 8 FOOT sheet of plywood. .308 is a very poor cartridge at 1000 yards due to trouble remaining supersonic past 900 yards. Yes, I know that it can be done, I personally wore out several Top shelf HART match barrels on a .308 rifle shooting nothing with those rifles except 800-900 and 1000 yards. Shooting 93-96% at a 1000 yard target with a 10 inch "X" ring is a pretty significant feat.

    Your goals are really lofty, especially with only a year to learn. I can recommend two other calibers as easier to shoot, something in 7mm, like the .280 Remington or a hot 6.5mm like the 6.5 X 284. I recommend these for a couple reasons, not including recoil that calibers like the .300 WIN mag subject on your shoulder.

    1) Fight time. While a ,308 takes about 1.8 seconds to reach the target, a 142 Sierra gets there in under 1.1 seconds. That is significant in dealing with wind drift. A misjudged wind call with a .308 that would result in a shot to the inside of the 8 ring with the .308 would still hold the 10 ring with the 6.5 X 284.

    2) Ballistic co-efficient. In the leading match bullet companies, the 6.5mm and 7mm bullets have the highest BC of the common calibers. This is also a factor in long range accuracy.

    The downside of the long fast skinny bullets is barrel throat erosion, a hot loaded 6.5 X 284 will eat a throat pretty significantly in only 1000 rounds. The barrel I shot in this caliber was removed at 800 rounds, chamber end cut short, and rethreaded and rechambered to extend the barrel life to 1600-1700 rounds.

    4 inches at 1000 is pretty steep. The I have shot with long range shooters at Camp Perry and even out of the top 20 in the nation (military and civilian), I do not think any of them can shoot 4" targets with certainty at 1000. The 10 inch "X"ring seems to be the top of the stack.


    BTW, 3-5 grand will be the tip of the iceberg trying to complete your goal.

    All this said, I hope you get started and increase your skills to master level. Good Luck!
     
    Last edited:

    1911ly

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    Dec 11, 2011
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    South Bend
    No one wants to bring up the 30-06. It's way cheaper to shoot. It's a capable 1000 yard round. And you'll find it when you can't find other rounds. But that being said I'd go for the 338 too. Not a 308.
     

    42769vette

    Grandmaster
    Industry Partner
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    Oct 6, 2008
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    south of richmond in
    Wow, Im not even sure where to start on this one.

    First I would say, accomplishing your goal in this life time is a find goal. Accomplishing this goal in a year would be amazing. being proficient with a pistol has nothing to do with being proficient with a rifle. How many times have you done math to shoot a pistol? There are a lot of rifles that have the best of everything, and don't turn into consistent .4 MOA rifles, and a lot of shooters that put thousands of rounds threw a rifle a year, that never become .4 MOA shooters.

    If I were trying to accomplish your goal I would start it off with a custom action. Skip the savages, and 30-06 recommendations, and go for the gold. The caliber I would pick would be the 6.5-284 (but that's debatable). You wont accomplish your goal in the first few barrels, so you mise well order a few. If you accomplish your goal I would plan on sending at least 10,000 rounds down range before succeeding (so this year), so reloading figure 5 grand in ammo. On the rifle/optics I would figure another 6-7 grand.

    Keep in mind the internet is the only place where everyone is a 1/2 MOA shooter, and every rifle is 1/2 MOA. On the range is a different story, and saving money will not play into it anywhere.
     

    flashpuppy

    Sharpshooter
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    8   0   0
    Jul 5, 2013
    475
    28
    NWI, Lowell
    338 Lapua? Really? Someone tell me why that's the best choice. Why would firing a 300gr pill be beneficial here? Plenty of short action calibers are still supersonic at 1k and with a good enough BC to make it count. If we were talking ELR or 1700+ that might be different. 6.5 would be my caliber for this. Creedmoor more specifically. Not because it's the best option, but I'd stand the best chance with it due to my data and load info available.

    You realize .4 MOA at 1k is danged near world record, right? How about a more realistic goal? Like being able to calculate your dope for that shot in a year or even being able to land on a 2'x2' target out there.

    If you are serious about this. It'd be a full time job and probably $50k of ammo, rifles, optics, reloading equipment, four wheeler, targets, flights to get hands on tutoring from "the masters", etc.

    This is totally not the right forum to ask for advice on this type of thing. Try Snipershide. Grow some rhino skin before you post this over there.
     

    M67

    Grandmaster
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    Jan 15, 2011
    6,181
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    Southernish Indiana
    The caliber I would pick would be the 6.5-284 (but that's debatable). You wont accomplish your goal in the first few barrels, so you mise well order a few. If you accomplish your goal I would plan on sending at least 10,000 rounds down range before succeeding (so this year),

    One thing I've been curious on, with some of the long range calibers or barrel burner wildcats, would it be worth having the barrel melonited or a similar process done to extend the life of the barrel?
     
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