F-Class Caliber Suggestions

[Faine]

I'm thinking very heavily about getting into F-Class Competition shooting and I've been all over the boards and forums, competition sites and what not. I'm wanting a rifle I can take out to 1000 yds with accuracy. Flat trajectory, relatively; recoil impulse that won't kill me and in a caliber that won't kill my pocket book. So far the calibers I've been looking at are.

.260 Remington (huge fall off from 900 to 1000 yards ballistically)
.338 Norma Magnum (cost to reload is not the cheapest of the options)
.300 WSM (reloading components seem harder to find than others I've looked at either because people are shooting it or because it's just not in demand)
7mm Remington Magnum (commercially available, can be expensive to reload)

I'm not really wanting to get into the harder to reload calibers like 6.5x248 where brass can be difficult to find.

I know I'm running the gamut above from 6.5mm to 7mm to .300 to .338. But I feel like those are my best options in each caliber and I just can't make up my mind. Each seems to have definite benefits and hindrances. Since I know I will be hand loading my projectiles commercially available isn't really important to me so much as component availability. This rifle will never be used for hunting. Always shooting 900+ with this rifle.


I know I'm looking at a lot of cost on this rifle, so I would say cost isn't really an object (except I'm not game to spend 5.00usd per round for .338 lapua or more for one of the Cheytac rounds), I'm planning on buying 2-3 barrels up front so I can have them chambered and ready when needed. Also, short or long action doesn't matter to me, it will be a custom Remington 700 action. So really I'm just down to caliber choice and I've only shot two of the listed calibers. The 7mm Rem Mag and the .338 Norma Mag. I have no experience with .300 WSM or .260 Remington.

 

[42769vette]

I'm thinking very heavily about getting into F-Class Competition shooting and I've been all over the boards and forums, competition sites and what not. I'm wanting a rifle I can take out to 1000 yds with accuracy. Flat trajectory, relatively; recoil impulse that won't kill me and in a caliber that won't kill my pocket book. So far the calibers I've been looking at are.

.260 Remington (huge fall off from 900 to 1000 yards ballistically)
.338 Norma Magnum (cost to reload is not the cheapest of the options)
.300 WSM (reloading components seem harder to find than others I've looked at either because people are shooting it or because it's just not in demand)
7mm Remington Magnum (commercially available, can be expensive to reload)

I'm not really wanting to get into the harder to reload calibers like 6.5x248 where brass can be difficult to find.

I know I'm running the gamut above from 6.5mm to 7mm to .300 to .338. But I feel like those are my best options in each caliber and I just can't make up my mind. Each seems to have definite benefits and hindrances. Since I know I will be hand loading my projectiles commercially available isn't really important to me so much as component availability. This rifle will never be used for hunting. Always shooting 900+ with this rifle.


I know I'm looking at a lot of cost on this rifle, so I would say cost isn't really an object (except I'm not game to spend 5.00usd per round for .338 lapua or more for one of the Cheytac rounds), I'm planning on buying 2-3 barrels up front so I can have them chambered and ready when needed. Also, short or long action doesn't matter to me, it will be a custom Remington 700 action. So really I'm just down to caliber choice and I've only shot two of the listed calibers. The 7mm Rem Mag and the .338 Norma Mag. I have no experience with .300 WSM or .260 Remington.

I would, and did go 260. I did not buy multiple barrel's, 1 barrel on a 260 will last at least a couple seasons. Obviously the 6.5x284 will have a ballistic advantage, but it kills your barrel life, and I shoot to much outside of competition to go that route. Final product I would go 260, but I would throw out the 338, and 7mm rem mag due to recoil. I would add some 243 offerings, or some lower recoiling 7mm offerings.

If I had to break it down to 2 options it would be.

260
243 AI

 

[ChristianPatriot]

I'm guessing from all of those caliber suggestions that you're planning on shooting in the Open Class? I know you're probably aware of all this but I'm gonna say it all anyway: No cartridge is inherently "more" precise than any other cartridge, especially at known distance competitions. There are guys out there printing little tiny groups @1,000yds with iron sighted Palma guns in .308. It's all about reading the wind. It doesn't matter if you're shooting .223 or .408 cheytac; if you can't call the wind, you're not gonna hit a darn thing. The single biggest variable in any caliber is YOU. If you know your dope for 1,000yds, then "flat" trajectory doesn't matter a whole lot. The thing that separates guys that shoot F-Class from the guys that compete in F-Class is calling the environmentals, i.e. wind. The .260 Remington/6.5 Creedmoor is an awesome round. If you're going to have barrels custom made and can get a fast twist, the 142gr Sierra pills have a B.C. of almost .6, but you'll sacrifice some velocity with the heavier projectile in that caliber. I wouldn't rule out .308. Reloading components are everywhere. The 155 gr Sierra Palma and Lapua Scenar projectiles have a good B.C. and a really good velocity. I would like to also stress the massive amounts of time and money to be competitive. I am not trying to discourage you at all. I'll do some F-Class myself when I get the load worked up for my rifle. Central Indiana High Power Rifle Shooters shoot almost every weekend down at Atterbury during the summer. Good luck! I hope to see you at the range!

 

[IndyGunworks]

.260 and look nowhere else.

 

[sloughfoot]

I'm guessing from all of those caliber suggestions that you're planning on shooting in the Open Class? I know you're probably aware of all this but I'm gonna say it all anyway: No cartridge is inherently "more" precise than any other cartridge, especially at known distance competitions. There are guys out there printing little tiny groups @1,000yds with iron sighted Palma guns in .308. It's all about reading the wind. It doesn't matter if you're shooting .223 or .408 cheytac; if you can't call the wind, you're not gonna hit a darn thing. The single biggest variable in any caliber is YOU. If you know your dope for 1,000yds, then "flat" trajectory doesn't matter a whole lot. The thing that separates guys that shoot F-Class from the guys that compete in F-Class is calling the environmentals, i.e. wind. The .260 Remington/6.5 Creedmoor is an awesome round. If you're going to have barrels custom made and can get a fast twist, the 142gr Sierra pills have a B.C. of almost .6, but you'll sacrifice some velocity with the heavier projectile in that caliber. I wouldn't rule out .308. Reloading components are everywhere. The 155 gr Sierra Palma and Lapua Scenar projectiles have a good B.C. and a really good velocity. I would like to also stress the massive amounts of time and money to be competitive. I am not trying to discourage you at all. I'll do some F-Class myself when I get the load worked up for my rifle. Central Indiana High Power Rifle Shooters shoot almost every weekend down at Atterbury during the summer. Good luck! I hope to see you at the range!

This....... Once you shoot your first match, you will see the truth in this.

 

[Faine]

I know it's the shooter not the caliber for 99% of it. I've been sold on .260 for a while but as I look more and more into it I just don't like its numbers past 900. I also want something I will enjoy shooting. When I hear the term "boringly accurate" it makes me question my decision, that's part of the reason I went back to the drawing board on caliber and came down with the other three. I'm not really concerned about recoil in any of those packages after having shot the .338 Norma and being blown away by its light recoil it comes down to tye equipment to manage that.

I know it's a time and money sink, a recent divorce is going to leave me with both time and money, and I can get out and do something I love or I can sit at home and think about all the things I could be doing. This project is a year out still but I want it planned and ready when the time comes so I can just snap and go. I know the flavors of the month will change before I get there and I am trying to avoid those the most with regards to caliber choice. I was hoping you'd chime in Alan, you make me feel a lot better about the .260 that I was originally looking at.

 

[bulletsmith]

Have you watched this vid yet? While I can't speak for the validity of this guy's science. I like his approach. Perhaps it can help in your research.

 

[42769vette]

As others mentioned, wind reading is key. The main advantage to a flat shooting caliber is not that its flat shooting, its that the flatter it is, the less time the bullet was in the air. The less time the bullet is in the air, the less time wind has to effect it. The less time the wind has to interact with the bullet the more forgiving it is on wind calls (IE, if you mess up a little, the effect is not as drastic). A good caliber can not make a bad shooter look good, but it can help to an extent.

Lets put it this way, if you go to a match and get killed you wont be able to say "its because I was shooting a 260"

 

[RobbyMaQ]

Have you watched this vid yet? While I can't speak for the validity of this guy's science. I like his approach. Perhaps it can help in your research.

Interesting vid. thanks!

 

[Faine]

Just finished the video. Thanks, so basically you're saying 7mm-08. I gotcha

Yeh, I'm not sure this is helping. Lol. Now I'm thinking 7mm Rem Mag. I've owned one and liked it, so there's that too.

I dont think there's a right choice. Every caliber has advantages and disadvantages. Each will get me where I'm going, maybe it's just a thing where I need to look at the tangibles like reloading costs.

 

[bulletsmith]

Just finished the video. Thanks, so basically you're saying 7mm-08. I gotcha

Yeh, I'm not sure this is helping. Lol. Now I'm thinking 7mm Rem Mag. I've owned one and liked it, so there's that too.

I dont think there's a right choice. Every caliber has advantages and disadvantages. Each will get me where I'm going, maybe it's just a thing where I need to look at the tangibles like reloading costs.

Please don't take that as advice from me. I truly have no experience here to help. But knowing nothing but the data on that chart, I have to admit, I found myself thinking I should have gone 7mm rem mag instead of the 308.

 

[ChristianPatriot]

I dont think there's a right choice. Every caliber has advantages and disadvantages. Each will get me where I'm going, maybe it's just a thing where I need to look at the tangibles like reloading costs.

Bingo

 

[42769vette]

Just finished the video. Thanks, so basically you're saying 7mm-08. I gotcha

Yeh, I'm not sure this is helping. Lol. Now I'm thinking 7mm Rem Mag. I've owned one and liked it, so there's that too.

I dont think there's a right choice. Every caliber has advantages and disadvantages. Each will get me where I'm going, maybe it's just a thing where I need to look at the tangibles like reloading costs.

Practice trumps ballistics every day.

 

[sloughfoot]

As others mentioned, wind reading is key. The main advantage to a flat shooting caliber is not that its flat shooting, its that the flatter it is, the less time the bullet was in the air. The less time the bullet is in the air, the less time wind has to effect it. The less time the wind has to interact with the bullet the more forgiving it is on wind calls (IE, if you mess up a little, the effect is not as drastic). A good caliber can not make a bad shooter look good, but it can help to an extent.

Lets put it this way, if you go to a match and get killed you wont be able to say "its because I was shooting a 260"

Actually, Since I shoot in the Master class with irons and the OP will either be shooting F-class or new shooter in the Master Class, I won't be paying any attention to him. Nobody cares how anyone is doing except we all have an eye on the overall winner. But I am always trying to win in my class. That is victory enough.

What I don't like in F-class is that they are all grouped together. In NRA irons you are only competing against others in your class. Marksman, Sharpshooter, Expert, Master, High Master.

I think someone who says that he is thinking about shooting maybe next year is just blowing smoke. If you want to shoot long range OP, grab your factory rifle and try it next Saturday. Plenty of guys will help you if you are approachable.

 

[Faine]

Thanks guys, I'm checking out of this thread now that I've been called a liar. I'll deal with people I know from here on. I appreciate all the advice and will take it into consideration when I am finally able to have the time and financial resources to take this on in about a year.

 

[IndyGunworks]

why get butthurt about it so fast.... I think its reasonable for someone to question someone wanting to get into an expensive hobby "about a year later".... Stick around and enjoy the discussion.... you will get a lot more rubbing than that once you actually make it to the line.

 

[Faine]

I don't think it's reasonable at any point to call someone a liar if you have no point of reference concerning them. I make long term plans, it's what I do. My AR took me almost 2 years to figure out what I wanted, get the parts, and get it built. 1 year is actually kind of quick for me. I was called a liar a lot growing up when it's not in my nature to do so, of all things, that bothers me the most. Cuss at me, make jokes about my family, but being called a liar even in a round about way rubs me the wrong way.

 

[sloughfoot]

We are all friends on the firing line. And sometimes pretty blunt. Just come to a match with a rifle . We will have fun. If you screw up a string of fire, somebody is certain to brighten your day even more. Probably your best friend in the world...

All I really care about is that if you are my scorekeeper behind me, that you are accurate. I don't care about your score. Just mine.

I dont think I called you a liar.....I think I called you cannon fodder. That is what new shooters are. Your entry fee is just more money that I can win. Don't agonize over caliber. It won't matter until you are in the Master class anyway. Or it's equivalent.

Bring tissues if you are sensitive. You will be welcomed into the sport. Lord knows we have all cried plenty on one day or another.

 

[17 squirrel]

Hahahahaha... My your first shot on the line be a squib..... Poof........
He better get some thicker skin....

 

[indyjohn]

We are all friends on the firing line. And sometimes pretty blunt. Just come to a match with a rifle . We will have fun. If you screw up a string of fire, somebody is certain to brighten your day even more. Probably your best friend in the world...

All I really care about is that if you are my scorekeeper behind me, that you are accurate. I don't care about your score. Just mine.

I dont think I called you a liar.....I think I called you cannon fodder. That is what new shooters are. Your entry fee is just more money that I can win. Don't agonize over caliber. It won't matter until you are in the Master class anyway. Or it's equivalent.

Bring tissues if you are sensitive. You will be welcomed into the sport. Lord knows we have all cried plenty on one day or another.

Carry on soldier!