practicing for hunting

I would like some suggestions on how I could practice at the local gun range for hunting. The range I shoot at only goes to 100yds, so until I find a place to shoot at longer range, I am limited. The wind was blowing 18-25 today, so I decided to take my CZ452 .22lr and work on playing in the wind. I did fine and thought it was good practice. I actually spent most of my time at the range helping another shooter get his gun on paper. He claimed it was bore sighted with a laser, but was 2 feet low at 50yds. Back on task... Any suggestions on what I should try? Right now I am doing the best to learn with what I have and avoid the temptation to buy more guns and gear.

It really depends on the quality of the bore sight. I have personally used multiple types of bore sights and the only one I use is the one you insert into the chamber. I have had a lot better luck and a lot less headaches.

trigger time is never a bad thing, not sure what your shooting other than the 22lr but you can always validate trajectories for future down range distances depending on your equipment available

other than my .22, I have a Tikka 223 and a savage .243. Is there a way to validate trajectories when I am limited to a 100yd range?

You'll need to know specifics of loads your shooting, bullet BC, velocity to get started but hornady has a online ballistics calculator that will get you very close, when they list trajectories it give you point of impact high at 100 yds for downrange distances in inches, simply sight your rifle in for bottom of target and as you increase your elevation be it in moa or using mil dots your point of impact should be high of zero to compare to information entered into ballistic calculator, it won't be exact and you'll certainly need to validate but it'll get you close and some of your homework is done when you do get to stretch things out for real, good luck

LanceK said:

other than my .22, I have a Tikka 223 and a savage .243. Is there a way to validate trajectories when I am limited to a 100yd range?

Click to expand...

I was shooting today too, 15-20 mph crosswind.
100 yards showed a 1" drift, 200 showed a 3" drift and 300 showed a 4.5-5" drift. 6.5x284 @ approximately 3100 fps

I'll be spending a lot more time with my tikka 223 for fundamental practice

Positional shooting. Sitting, kneeling, prone, offhand, off bipod, off pack, etc.
I have yet to carry a bench and stool out hunting with me.

Signed....
Lance K

You can practice all the different shooting positions, trigger practice and play with your ballistic app but the only way you are going to get better at long distance shooting is to actually do it. The only way to truly validate your drops is to go out and physically do it at those ranges. You will never know what it's like shooting at 800 yards in a variable 7-15 mph wind coming from from your 10 o'clock unless you are actually doing it. just because the ballistic app says it's so doesn't mean it is.

There is just no way around it. If you want to practice at long range and get better at it, you are gonna have to find a place to do it.

I am working on some leads for longer range and might try a PRS match just to get access to longer ranges. Until that time, I'll practice with real hunting positions.

+1 on positional shooting. Get a sling and learn to shoot offhand very well!

Ditto on the positional shooting....this is a fun practice target I like to use at 100yds

Practice dialing( or reticle holding if your one of those guys) and shooting each of your yardages.

Setup a big piece of cardboard and or Plywood, mark your zero-Max distances up.
Start at zero and dial your numbers up and down.

Get used to what it takes and get back to zero also never hurts to have the confidence in your scope being correct.

Great suggestions here already!

Do a lot of shooting with that 22, it's accurate, inexpensive, perfect for marksmanship practice! Use at least one of your other center-fire rifles every session too.

And YES, shoot from various shooting positions: prone, sitting, kneeling, standing, off your hunting pack, with and without a bipod or shooting sticks... All of that with the 22 rimfire and your centerfires as well.

And when you can, get to a range where longer shots are possible. After my initial sight-in, or perhaps testing of a new load, I do very little shooting from a bench. As hunting season approaches, I do more and more shooting from offhand/standing. Why? Because it's my weakest position. Prone is stable as all get out. Sitting can be almost as stable, with a little work. Kneeling is pretty tough on me, and standing... That's just wobble city! Well it is until I work at it a bit. This photo is of me practicing on a steel gong at 300 yards, with my general-purpose 30-06 Rem 700. I've taken some game from standing, and with this rifle. I practice the most from standing because it's my worst position.



Regards, Guy