You want to get into long range shooting, but you're not sure where to start. Maybe you have a rifle, but you don't know if it's good enough. With so many great calibers, it can be hard to know which one to choose. So let's go over some popular options suitable for long range shooting.
There are so many great options for shooting, it would take years to go over, so I'm going to narrow it down to just 5.
.223/5.56, 6.5 Creedmoor, .308, 300 Winchester Magnum and 338 Lapua.
Before we get into selecting a caliber, lets first start with how to pick a caliber best suited for our needs.
When selecting a caliber, you should keep some things in mind:
• ammo/reloading cost
• availability
• popularity
• military use
• accessibility
• realistic target distance
• hunting/animal size
• rifle
You need to determine real world expectations and use of what you will be getting out of a cartridge. Also, maybe you found a rifle you want to purchase, but they don't make it in the caliber you were looking for.
We'll start with .223/5.56. By far the most popular rifle cartridge is .223. It's on every shelf of every gun store. It's cheep and there are a ton of options and brands to choose from. It's a good option for hunting small animal and shooting to medium distance. With the right set up and bullets, you can push .223 out to 800+ yards.
Pros:
Very light recoil
Tons of ammo options
Very inexpensive $
Popular
Lots of reloading options
Great for beginners
All around fun
Multi use
Cons:
Not ethical for larger animals
Smaller bullet/low B.C
Wind pushes the bullet around more
Not ideal for long range
Next on the list is the beautiful .308. Just like the .233, the .308 is extremely popular with uses for military snipers, hunting, target and long range shooting. Bullet options go from 110 grains for varmint up into 200+ grains; the most popular being in the 150 range for hunting. 168 and 175 are generally used for target and long range shooting.
Pros:
Heavy bullet for hunting medium sized game
Good option for learning long range shooting
Lots of reloading options
Availability
Ammo selection
Long barrel life
Great for 800 to 1000 yards
Cons:
A little more expensive $$
Medium recoil
What I consider to be at the top of the list when it comes to long range shooting is the very impressive 6.5 Creedmoor. With high B.C. and fast moving bullets, 1200+ yards is easily attainable. Not to mention very low recoil for such a high performance round. 6.5 Creedmoor is definitely a favorite among PRS and long range shooting.
Pros:
Light recoil
Overall performance
Maximum distance
Great for learning
Very high B.C.
Cons:
Bullet selection
Cost $$
Less bullet options than .308
Powerful is the first word that comes to mind when I think of the .300 Winchester Magnum. For years, military snipers have been using the M-24 and M40s chambered in .308, and are now switching to .300 WM. A .30 caliber bullet ranging from 185 - 230 grains makes this a very good choice for big game hunting and extreme long range shooting. But, it does come with a price: Recoil! The hard hitting, big bullets of the 300 WM makes it easier to get to 1000 yards. With a maximum range of around 1500 yards, the 300 WM is for the novice.
Pros:
Excellent for ELR
Hunting big animals
Ammo availability
Maximum range
Cons:
Recoil
Price $$$
Loud
Weight of rifle is a factor
Last but not least, the .338 Lapua Magnum. With a maximum effective range of 1,640 yards, and bullets options in 300 grains with G7 B.C. in the .380 - .421 the .338 LM can take down the big animals. The .338 is also employed by military snipers in the Afghanistan and Iraq war. Many firearm companies are offering firearms chambered in .338 LM making this option more cost friendly. However, the ammo is very expensive. Anywhere from $2.50 per round for the cheap stuff and $5.00 per round for the quality ammo. With the .338 LM you have to pay to play.
Pros:
ELR
Hunting big game
Production rifles
Cons:
Price $$$$$
Price $$$$$
Did I mention price
Now that we went over some options, lets find a cartridge that will best fit our needs. I'll use myself as an example and the questions that I ask.
I most commonly shoot to 500 yd, I have ease of access out to 2000. One range is about 20 minutes from me, and a second range is about 40 minutes. How often do I actually go to these ranges? The closest range with a 500 yd range weekly. The 2nd range with a 2000 yd range about once every 3 months. I am only shooting steel, so I'm not looking for a good hunting cartridge. I reload, but still have interest in buying factory ammo. What I am specifically looking for is maximum distance for steel, long barrel life and options for reloading and factory ammo that won't break the bank. I usually look for factory ammo and run the data in a ballistic computer to get an idea of the external ballistics.
The two calibers that really look interesting for this purpose are the .308 Winchester and the 6.5 Creedmore. The .308 because I mainly shoot to 500 yards, I can pick up .308 range brass free all day long, lowering my reloading cost, and .308 has a long barrel life. The 6.5 Creedmoor because I can shoot out to 1400 yards or more. Ammo availability is good and I can pick up 6.5 from many stores in my area. I am willing to give up barrel life for distance and it has lower recoil than .308. Also, the rifle I have, Tikka T3x A1 is chambered in 6.5 C.
So, In this application, the 6.5 Creedmoor is the winner. I have been contemplating 6.5 or .300WM thinking the .300WM was far superior. And it is, until I set parameters with realistic expectations of what I'm doing. I just thought 6.5 was another fad until I got one. I'm now a huge fan.
THE OVERWATCH
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