Longer range hunting options

[gwchem]

I've been hunting deer with a Ruger American predator in .308. It's a fine rifle, and has mainly fit my need except for one.

This past season and in the future, I've been given the chance to hunt fairly large farm fields. Some are 1000 yards across. On opening day in WV, I passed on two great deer because they were at 250-300 yards. My confidence in my ability to shoot well at that distance is not great, and is compounded by only having .308 rounds out of a short barrel rifle. Second, I'm gearing up for elk hunts in the next few years, out west. I shot one buck this season at 250-275 yards, and hit him on the first shot, but it was lower than expected. Felt like the bullet is dropping fast at that distance.

So, given that info, what would you do?

1. Get better at shooting what I've got at longer distances?
2. Switch rifles and/or calibers for all hunts.
3. Keep the ruger for some hunting, but add a longer range option (flatter like a .25-06, or a magnum).
4. Other?

 

[Pinecone]

For #1, Bang Steel. You will learn to shoot at longer ranges, and learn YOUR bullet drop at those ranges.

Learn about Maximum Point Blank range, so bullet drop becomes less of an issue for moderate range shots.

A hotter, flatter shooting round would be better. But for hitting power, I would stick with .30 caliber, or maybe 7mm.

 

[Batt816]

For #1, Bang Steel. You will learn to shoot at longer ranges, and learn YOUR bullet drop at those ranges.

Learn about Maximum Point Blank range, so bullet drop becomes less of an issue for moderate range shots.

A hotter, flatter shooting round would be better. But for hitting power, I would stick with .30 caliber, or maybe 7mm.

^^this exactly^^ The .308 is fine. Shoot at a gong at your desired distances and learn the amount of drop. You will be dropping deer at long distances in no time!

 

[xtreme43s10]

Dan at Bangsteel is great highly recommend him. Whatever Rifle you decided on practice, practice practice if you want to make long shots on an animal. I use a .300 win mag out west. It does come with more recoil. I shot an Antelope at 410 yard and Mule deer and 219 yards this year and both shot's where right through the heart. The shorter barrel on your .308 will affect velocity, but not accuracy. 300 yards shouldn't be a problem with that rifle if you know your drop.

 

[Speed3]

Dan at Bangsteel is great highly recommend him. Whatever Rifle you decided on practice, practice practice if you want to make long shots on an animal. I use a .300 win mag out west. It does come with more recoil. I shot an Antelope at 410 yard and Mule deer and 219 yards this year and both shot's where right through the heart. The shorter barrel on your .308 will affect velocity, but not accuracy. 300 yards shouldn't be a problem with that rifle if you know your drop.

Agreed with post above, you'll lose velocity with a shorter barrel.

I have a 20" R700 in .308 and ran out of elevation at 1050 yards with 175SMKs. It will reach, but you wont have the energy. You should still have over 1k ft lbs of energy at 600 yards, which will ethical dispatch an animal.

 

[Hit and Run]

I've been hunting deer with a Ruger American predator in .308. It's a fine rifle, and has mainly fit my need except for one.



This past season and in the future, I've been given the chance to hunt fairly large farm fields. Some are 1000 yards across. On opening day in WV, I passed on two great deer because they were at 250-300 yards. My confidence in my ability to shoot well at that distance is not great, and is compounded by only having .308 rounds out of a short barrel rifle. Second, I'm gearing up for elk hunts in the next few years, out west. I shot one buck this season at 250-275 yards, and hit him on the first shot, but it was lower than expected. Felt like the bullet is dropping fast at that distance.



So, given that info, what would you do?



1. Get better at shooting what I've got at longer distances?

2. Switch rifles and/or calibers for all hunts.

3. Keep the ruger for some hunting, but add a longer range option (flatter like a .25-06, or a magnum).

4. Other?

300 Win Mag is a good long distance Elk option as is 7 mm.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[Doco Overboard]

I’m blessed with opportunity to Hunt large fields where a I live.
I often see good deer that are sometimes 3-4 hundred yards away.
I never feel like I have to shoot at them just because I see them, I just get a little closer to make sure I can kill them if I want to.

 

[SkiPatrolDude]

I've been hunting deer with a Ruger American predator in .308. It's a fine rifle, and has mainly fit my need except for one.

This past season and in the future, I've been given the chance to hunt fairly large farm fields. Some are 1000 yards across. On opening day in WV, I passed on two great deer because they were at 250-300 yards. My confidence in my ability to shoot well at that distance is not great, and is compounded by only having .308 rounds out of a short barrel rifle. Second, I'm gearing up for elk hunts in the next few years, out west. I shot one buck this season at 250-275 yards, and hit him on the first shot, but it was lower than expected. Felt like the bullet is dropping fast at that distance.

So, given that info, what would you do?

1. Get better at shooting what I've got at longer distances?
2. Switch rifles and/or calibers for all hunts.
3. Keep the ruger for some hunting, but add a longer range option (flatter like a .25-06, or a magnum).
4. Other?

Personally I would try zeroing the rifle at say, 150- 200 yards. Would make for a "minute of deer" gun out to about 275 without too much loft or drop on either end of the zero. Past 300 with most .308 hunting loads I think you are approaching the lower end of 1000 ft lb of energy, which quickly make it less than idea for ethical kill range.

The right load can make a big difference. Pick a high BC hunting bullet for longer ranges.

 

[steves1911]

Your 308 will effectively take deer out to 600yds. Practice practice practice. A good rangefinder and learning to read the wind are crucial. Download a ballistic app like strelok and play around with it to see what diff cartridges do. Inside 500yds my 308win 168gr and 300 win 212gr have pretty similiar drop.

 

[Uncle Duke]

I've been hunting deer with a Ruger American predator in .308. It's a fine rifle, and has mainly fit my need except for one.

This past season and in the future, I've been given the chance to hunt fairly large farm fields. Some are 1000 yards across. On opening day in WV, I passed on two great deer because they were at 250-300 yards. My confidence in my ability to shoot well at that distance is not great, and is compounded by only having .308 rounds out of a short barrel rifle. Second, I'm gearing up for elk hunts in the next few years, out west. I shot one buck this season at 250-275 yards, and hit him on the first shot, but it was lower than expected. Felt like the bullet is dropping fast at that distance.

So, given that info, what would you do?

1. Get better at shooting what I've got at longer distances?
2. Switch rifles and/or calibers for all hunts.
3. Keep the ruger for some hunting, but add a longer range option (flatter like a .25-06, or a magnum).
4. Other?

Get better at shooting what you have at longer distances. No doubt in my mind.

You're not sure of your ranges. Or how much it matters. Because the bullet drop you say you're feeling? It is always real, and it is extremely significant as applied to your target.

No knock on you here OP.
I'd be willing to bet that most people unaided can't estimate a 300 yard target to within 100 yards of accuracy. So is it really 300 yards? Or is that more like 200? Or 400? And how is my rifle sighted in? Well, you'd better know. But you'd also better remember that you won't be at your range with those range markers. And now it really matters.

The difference in bullet drop becomes exponentially larger with increases in target distance. It is easily possible to introduce drop distances measured not in inches, but rather in feet. You have windage variation as well. That calculation is variable, just as wind speed and direction is variable.

In practical terms, I would suggest that most people probably shouldn't be attempting 300 yard shots at deer. Fire and hope/spray and pray doesn't get it on a live target. But then there are people who do their homework. They're not guessing, and when they are, they're making some very educated guesses.

By one of those guys. With study and applicable range work, you have plenty of rifle capability, to be determined and realized by you and your shooter's ability. Good Luck!

 

[erwos]

Yeah, I didn't want to be that guy, but OP's problem would be best solved by:
1. Spending some quality time with a shooting chronograph and a ballistics calculator.
2. Buying a LRF for use in the field.
3. Practicing on the 200yd range.

308 still has plenty of juice at 300 and in.

(Or, if you really want to cheat your way through this, buy the Sig Kilo BDX scope/LRF combo, mount/zero the scope, figure out your velocity, configure the components, and then it's just laze+fire. Not what I'd choose for long-range, but possibly a really good choice for hunting.)

 

[Melnic]

I'm curious myself about a longer range. I have a Ruger American with the short threaded barrel and have shot it to 200 yards to know where on the BDC to aim.
Was using soft points but wondering if for longer range, a plastic tip type bullet would be better?

 

[erwos]

At 200yds, the differences would be very small.

At 800yds, you'd notice.

The difference is their ballistic coefficient, aka how well they retain velocity over time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballistic_coefficient

 

[hobiecat590]

Your 308 should do the job w/ practice but is not as flat shooting as my favorite calibers. That said, I love the 25-06 for 'lopes and deer out to 300 yards. And lower recoil than the 308, 300 win mag and 7mm mag. For elk, I'd go w/ the 300 win mag. YMMV

 

[gwchem]

Lots of good feedback, thanks, and keep it up.

I thought I knew my ballistics and was assuming mpbr to 250 yards based off a 2" high zero at 100 yards. Deer was laser ranged prior to the shot, but walked around a few steps between ranging and the shot. The bullet just dropped further than I thought it would and hit his upper leg. Took a second shot which hit in the exact same place, then actually took a third shot higher up for the kill. He never ran the whole time. Lay down quietly 30 seconds later.

5 minutes later I shot I doe at 100 yards exactly where I expected.

I'm taking everyone's "more practice at longer distances" to heart.

 

[davsco]

start with what you have. 308 should stay over 1500 ftlbs of energy (ballpark recommendation at the elk) to 400 yards and of course bullet type definitely matters. 300 mag will extend that to roughly 600yds. chrono your favorite hunting load and plug that and your bullet data into a ballistic program (i use 'shooter' on my phone, $10). that will tell you your theoretical drops at various distances. get a rangefinder and shoot at various distances (via dialing your scope and/or holding over) and know where you actually hit (called dope).

once you start getting out 300+ yards, wind really can come into play. just because you (or anyone) can walk it in at the range with a few shots doesn't mean that you (or anyone) can or should be taking risky shots on live game animals.

 

[Doco Overboard]

Something else to consider is how to sight your rifle outside of just getting a zero and using gadgetry to know how it will shoot in actual field conditions. How you sight your rifle from a bench and how you grip/rest it in the field can make a huge difference.
.

 

[Steel Hunter]

I'm curious myself about a longer range. I have a Ruger American with the short threaded barrel and have shot it to 200 yards to know where on the BDC to aim.
Was using soft points but wondering if for longer range, a plastic tip type bullet would be better?

Ballistic tip bullets are basically hybrids of hollow point and soft points. I would say they are generally better than soft points in general regardless of your use case. I think most have better coefficients than soft points, but I wouldn't use that as a sole measure of effectiveness. Out of a 16.5" barrel I'm not sure how much difference it does or does not make.

 

[E.Shell]

Assuming the shooter can tolerate the heavier recoil that might rule out larger cartridges, the whole caliber deal can be divided into two interrelated categories:

1) Hit-ability:
A smaller cartridge case or caliber can reduce effective range by excessive drop and wind deflection. High velicity can help offset this, but usually at the expense of penetration. If "long range" means 300 yards, then this isn't too big a problem with most popular hunting calibers, .308 included. If "long range" means 600 yards, then I believe that one owes one's self and the animal the use of a more substantial cartridge.

A magnum cartridge, like a 7mm or 30 caliber, will improve chances of a lethal hit because both drop and wind issues can be minimized and the shooter can be afforded a little more error with both range and wind estimation.

2) Lethality:
If you can kill it with a sharp stick (archery gear), then raw power is not too much an issue. It sort of boils down to how willing one is to decline a marginal shot.

One of my students shoots cull elk with a .260 Remington, using Barnes bullets, He has a solid position, his choice of shots and no pressure to shoot. He surgically places (he had better!) that little 130 grain bullet through both lungs and the heart and the elk is killed quite easily.

If he used the .260 for normal hunting situations, he would be compelled to pass up many shots, such as quartering on, with all the bone structure, or quartering away, with all the paunch contents, between the shooter and the vital area. With a heavier rifle and bullet, one can humanely and easily take those quartering shots and even straighaway, with the confidence that the bullet can and will reach the vitals. When he hunts for trophy animals with his guide, he carries his .300 WinMag and isn't forced to wait for a standing broadside shot.

After seeing a LOT of recovered bullets and quite a few animals killed, I would stick with Barnes bullets for my own long range hunting.

I say this because one seldom thinks of terminal ballistics, but once one gets past about 500 yards, many/most otherwise good bullets will not expand, unless driven by a large capacity cartridge, and even then can be iffy. Barnes has the ability to open well at lower velocities, while staying 100% together at close range/max velocities.

At longer ranges, potential problems stack up pretty quickly. A little puff of wind or movement by the animal while the bullet is enroute can turn a lethal shot into a wounded animal. Compound this by the difficulty in knowing exactly where the animal stood, inexact ranging and then insufficient bullet expansion and lost animals can occur.

 

[OLM-Medic]

Just get more practice and make sure you are using good ammo. 300 yards is not long range. It's an easy shot if you have practiced enough. The rifle and caliber is capable of much more than that.