Bone to pick with new rifle owners - 100 yards out of the box

[Gamesniper19]

Bone to pick and advice. Over the past ten years, we have seen a massive growth in out of the box 1000 yard capable rifles. Set up amazingly, built incredibly well and topped with amazing glass. Even engineered ammo. Then add ranging binos and ballistics calculators and you have a pretty amazing set up. True

If you buy one of these, awesome. SHOOT IT before you show up in camp. SO many times, I have been in camp trueing my D.O.P.E. and had some person show up with a rifle they have never shot and expecting to shoot their animal. They sit down, start shooting and wonder why they arent hitting the 500 yard target I set up.

Its because no one who cannot shoot 500 should try to shoot 500. Further more, shooting 600 is not a little harder than 500, its way harder. Just like shooting 1000 is not 2x as hard as shooting 500. NO its 10x harder. Especially in the field!! Especially with untested rifle, ammo, and hunter.

I have seen a few animals wounded and die terrible, long and painful deaths. Seen a few even not be recovered that were shot very badly. Please, show up ready to be an ethical hunter rather than showing up with bravado and ego. There is a reason military shooters have DOPE, so they hit the target correctly the first time! Then, true their dope...its takes time but the animal deserves it.

 

[coyote wacker]

I've been hunting for over 60 years and have only taken one animal at 600 yards and that was in the early 70's with a 2-7 power scope on a 30-06.....it's rare if I shoot more than 200 yards....

 

[ShtrRdy]

Unfortunately those same people who show up at camp with little to no experience with their rifle are not likely to read this.

 

[Gamesniper19]

Unfortunately those same people who show up at camp with little to no experience with their rifle are not likely to read this.

True - always a challenge.

 

[sierracharlie338]

Couldn't agree more and your sentiment is a lot of the reason I dislike the creedmoor craze, though cartridge is irrelevant in this conversation. Some of these clowns go out and spend money on equipment but they don't bother to learn it. They buy into the hype that it's a point and click application when in reality it is much more than that.

LoOk MoM iM a SnIpEr!!

 

[birddog 68]

A guy from a neighboring camp shot 4 times at a deer approximately 300 yards away and couldn't understand how he missed it.
Apparently he never even shot the rifle but was upset about the guy that mounted the scope and bore sighted it!
You can't fix stupid

 

[Gamesniper19]

The defining moment was when I had a S Colorado 3rd season muley tag. Trophy area.
Guy bought a 1000 yard rifle complete set up for elk. Probably spent north of 12k with Kahles scope. 2 boxes of ammo. New in box. Never shot.
Sat on a 340 bull for 3 hrs at 500 yards. Same guy that couldn't hit the 500 yard target. Outfitter let him shoot. Problem 1. Problem 2. With 3 hours to set up, thankfully he missed the entire bull. That's a 25" round area at 500 yards. F-ing 5 MOA!!!

 

[asd9055]

I am fine when its a total miss. Its when they wound the animal and never find it, for it to die a slow death and wasted meat. That's what really bothers me.

 

[comfisherman]

Couple weeks ago we were camping with a fellow who assistant guided on the peninsula, he'd had a client shoot a nice bear with some ultra mag master blaster. They were over looking at the bear getting ready for pictures, when the client admitted he'd never shot the rifle before harvesting the bear, and further admitted he'd of missed if he had.... because it kicked so hard he was certain he would have flinched.

Over the course of day it was revealed he had read up online about various bear stopping cartridges. But also had read about guides not liking brakes and the like. So he had a non braked rifle built in said far shooten loudenboomer, a load done by a boutique ammo company, and then had the smith bore sight it in... then straight to the Great wide north.


While its a terrible idea, and not one I'd ever recommend it did work once.

Friend did laugh a bit, he figured it must have been some kind of recoil as the client talked about how hard it hit him more than the bear in the days after the hunt. Figured he had a one shot rifle he'd likely never use again...

 

[nksmfamjp]

I love this thread. So many people buy a rifle and scope. Then they are done.

My experience shooting over 300 yds is that it gets exponentially harder for every hundred farther.

I was shooting 600 yds, a chip shot, right? The owner's son was helping me hit a 12" plate. Flag was left to right 3/4 to fully horizontal, but I had to hold right edge due to other wind just to get a hit. Wind was blowing straight at me where I was shooting.

Not sure how I learn my dope, sight in, learn my rifle and shoot my deer all in 20 rounds yet…

 

[Darryle]

Unfortunately those same people who show up at camp with little to no experience with their rifle are not likely to read this.

I read it

 

[BigGriz]

I agree wholeheartedly that the step from 500 to 600 is where you start separating the wheat from the chaff.

 

[MachV]

I agree with your assessment that as the range gets longer the difficulty goes up substantially. However the same guys that miss at 500 are far more likely to have a bad hit at 200! Trigger time makes a big difference, for some more than other but it still relivent.

 

[marksman1941]

I used to work the gun counter at Sportsmans warehouse many years ago. We had a frat boy looking fella come in and buy a Tikka 7mm the night before elk opener. He bought a scope, and I ended up staying an hour late to mount the scope, bore sight it, and let the background check clear. I cautioned him a dozen times that the bore sight would get him on paper at 25 yards, nothing more. He HAD to tune it in and test a couple ammo options before he hunted it.

The guy came back the following afternoon with the rifle and THREW it across the counter at me, screaming "you made me miss an elk!". Of course he didn't shoot the rifle or take it to a range, he just went to someone's ranch and tried shooting a critter at 300 yards straight out the box.

We banned him for life from the store. And I refused to do boresights for anyone after that.