1000yd newby

[1984nitro]

Well I made it out to the desert yesterday to go shooting. I planned at all cost to shoot out to 1000yd which I had only attempted once. Because of the large amount of road and people in southern Cali I had to set up shooting up and and cross three small ravines. I thought I was good having the wind at my back, as to not to have to dial wind. After shooting 700 and 855 with good results I moved out to a 1000yds. I shot about 5 round not being able to get on target bouncing back and forth up, down left and right.
So I took a break and decided to go out and check the target to see where the bullet where land for sure, I was spotting my own never again. I will be using a spotter next time:lightbulb
Well so I went out to see the target and as I was walking out there I realized that the 6 oclock wind was only out to 700yd then the second ravine did a right hook changing the wind to 8:30. At 870yd the third ravine was crossing the bullet path at 9 oclock and had wind from 15 to 10 mph. So I went back to try again with all this in mind. After calculating out all the different winds and drop I was able to get a bullet just 8" left of center on a 8" target this is not great but encouraging for the first attempt. Then the wind went crazy and I just quit wasting bullet at that range.
All in all I learned a lot about the terrain changing the wind path, having a spotter is great, steady prone position is the only way and it is great being able to shoot all day long.
Please share some tip of what you have learn about shooting out to 1000+ with less than perfect conditions.
Thanks
Eric

 

[DT7]

When it comes to learning long range, data is king.

It takes time to gather some of the data neaded but some can be gathered easily by stacking your odds.

One thing I may suggest to start with is cheat. . . yeah cheat. If you set up a target that is 12 inches in diameter 3 feet off of the ground it is very difficult to tell exactly where you are missing by looking at the dust trail in the dirt.

Cheat by setting up a target that gives you the most important data: Where did that shot hit?

Get a sheet of plywood and set it up with a point to aim at and then take the time to go downrange after each shot and see where you hit.

Get a log book and make notes of how the wind was acting, what was the temp., humidity, what direction were you shooting (north, south, east, or west).

Now go back for another shot and do the same thing noting the wind changes relative to the last shot and making adjustments for the location of the last shot and wind differences.

It won't take long to get dialed in if you have the data you need.

The first time I shot 1000k yards I was extremely fortunate to have the perfect conditions for gathering data, but I didn't know how lucky I was.

The location I was shooting was a freshly disked field with 1.5 inches of fresh snow.

Impacts could be seen and adjusted for in real time. It took three shots to get wind and elevation dialed in and I hit 6 for 7 after that on a 14" X 18" target at 1075 yards.

I have since then had range sessions that took 5 or 6 rounds to hit at that distance because I didn't have the data to tell me what was happening.

Don't be afraid to stack the odds in your favor til you have more data to go by, it will help build the confidence and data needed to increase consistency.

 

[1984nitro]

Thanks for the tips.
I have used data books in the past but put them away went I got exbal on a pocket pc. I guess that is bad idea. I can see that looking back I kept having to remember the different wind values when i shot last. The book would have been invaluable then and later.

Also having a bigger target would have been nice. I had a large 8" rock flat set up on the ground. I could see my impact at time an other time the wind was pushing them away to fast.

The last thing is going and checking the target everytime would have help greatly. I was lazy because there were not road to the target and it took me a half hour there and back to hike. Next time I will put the target by a road.
Thanks Again
Eric

 

[liltank]

Another good target backer is a pallet with legs screwed on. We then screwed on an 1/8th inch piece of finish board for flooring to give us a smooth surface for tacking targets on. Works good.

Tank

 

[RMulhern]

Hmmm....so you had the 'wind at your back' huh?? Buddy....THAT is the WORST KIND of wind condition to shoot under because generally it's FISH-TAILING; going from one side to the other in about 2-3 seconds flat; constantly changing! I'd rather shoot in a direct 20 mph crosswind than a fishtail wind any given day! And the winds betwixt your firing point and half-way downrange is the MOST IMPORTANT wind that you have to deal with. With the target you had...you're beating yourself in the head with a 4# hammer at an 8" size! Take the time to set you up some steel at least 30"x30" and then you can see your POI; that is if the mirage isn't eating your *** up! Another way is to set up a two-way radio behind the target attached to the steel plate....open the mike and then have another radio at your firing point and in this manner you can hear the strike over the radio! You'll eventually figure it out...hang in there!lightbulb

 

[1984nitro]

I can see what you're saying about the tail wind that is a great point. I will be setting up different next time. Also I will finding a better target as a back stop. I loved shooting that far reguardless of the results so I will continue for sure.
I also like the pallet idea.
Thanks to all for the tips this is helping a lot.
Eric