so how far is to far

[rjmarine]

just got back from a new zealand tahr hunt and took my 25x47 along for a hunt.
the longest shot to date with my 25x47 was a mule deer buck at 414 yrds using an 80gr, TTSX going 3100 fps. the bullet dropped him in his tracks .
this nz hunt i took my tahr at 472 yrds and he went maybe 50 yrds then piled up rolled down about another 50 yrds. after caping him out we found the bullet entered front left chest and came to a stop on the far side about the last rib. if i go out any longer i might need to get a little bigger scope like a 3.5 to 10 . i have a 2.5-8 on it now but this are getting much smaller way out there for this scope

 

[Waynzee]

Yep, I would say your pushing that 1/4 bore a bit, if your going to make long range shots all the time you might want to use something a bit larger, 6.5 or bigger.

 

[Barrelnut]

Run the numbers with a higher BC bullet and see what you get.

 

[rjmarine]

i already have a 6.5-284 had it built maybe 12 yrs ago and yes it works very well for longer shots but as i get older and it gets heavier it tends to sit in the safe a lot more then it did just a few yrs ago.my 6.5 is on a rem 700 and is close to 9.5 lbs which is way more then i care to carry around mountains looking for tahr. the 25x47 i used on this trip is 5lbs 1 1/2 oz with scope ready to shoot. not really worried about the B.C of a bullet i am using i just do a bit of homework so i know where it is hitting at a given yardage then make adjustments for holdover from there

 

[Barrelnut]

i already have a 6.5-284 had it built maybe 12 yrs ago and yes it works very well for longer shots but as i get older and it gets heavier it tends to sit in the safe a lot more then it did just a few yrs ago.my 6.5 is on a rem 700 and is close to 9.5 lbs which is way more then i care to carry around mountains looking for tahr. the 25x47 i used on this trip is 5lbs 1 1/2 oz with scope ready to shoot. not really worried about the B.C of a bullet i am using i just do a bit of homework so i know where it is hitting at a given yardage then make adjustments for holdover from there

All good points. The higher BC bullet though will give you more knockdown powder at longer ranges. Which is what I thought you were concerned about.

I don't use a real high BC bullet in my 25-06. It uses a 100 Gr Sierra GameKing at 3200 FPS. It starts running out of steam at about 450 yards at 4000 Feet altitude. My longest kill with it was just 350 on an antelope. It did well though.

 

[rjmarine]

so you shoot a 1/4 bore also i know my bullets i choose to use in this rifle are not some super high B.C. bullet but they always seem to do just fine on all the game i have used them on from antelope to mule deer to elk. this rifle was built to be a light mountain rifle for shots out to 300 yrds. it was working so well for this that i started doing more testing and took it 400 yrds. i had a chance at a nice mule deer at 414 yrds with no wind and took it. the buck dropped in his tracks. this tahr i had a nice set up with solid rest and again no wind so gave it a go. so to date this 472 yrds is the longest with this set up. after see how well it took the tahr i would do it again on that size game or smaller. the 1 down side would the 2.5-8 scope .

 

[Barrelnut]

so you shoot a 1/4 bore also i know my bullets i choose to use in this rifle are not some super high B.C. bullet but they always seem to do just fine on all the game i have used them on from antelope to mule deer to elk. this rifle was built to be a light mountain rifle for shots out to 300 yrds. it was working so well for this that i started doing more testing and took it 400 yrds. i had a chance at a nice mule deer at 414 yrds with no wind and took it. the buck dropped in his tracks. this tahr i had a nice set up with solid rest and again no wind so gave it a go. so to date this 472 yrds is the longest with this set up. after see how well it took the tahr i would do it again on that size game or smaller. the 1 down side would the 2.5-8 scope .

Understood. I did find it interesting how well the 80 Gr TTSX worked at 472 yards. I mean setting on the far side and opened up is all that's needed, so it seemed to perform very well. I did shoot and antelope with a 100 Gr. TTSX at about 175 yards and it just hammered it. Went clear thru and caused some damage. I shoot the 100 gr. Sierras because the rifle like them a lot. I might try 500 yards if all was right. It's the wind that scares me with the 1/4 bore. It does seem to get blown around some...

 

[rjmarine]

yes the wind is not our friend with these smaller lighter bullets. i hunt and take shots based on many factors and if there is to much wind for the bullet i happen to be hunting with i will just pass on that shot. i have done a lot prairie dog shooting with a 221 fireball at ranges from 100 -600 yrds and you learn very fast just how much wind can toss light bullets around. all that shooting with the 221 with a 40gr really does help with judging the wind and hold when big game hunting. the 80gr TTSX seem like a super high B.C. bullet after shooting the 221. i know bullets can also be a lot like the chevy/ford/dodge thing and some guys just use a bullet based on its name and how high its B.C. is. i tend to use a bullet based on how well it groups and how well it will work on the game i will be hunting with it. these 80gr TTSX group very well is this rifle and so far have all opened up and performed well on game. i have another 25x47 that will not shoot them well at all and i use 100gr partitions in that rifle. i will take a bullet that groups very well over a bullet that just has a high B.C.
just having a high B.C. does not mean that bullet will group the best .

 

[Zen Archery]

How ever far the bullet manufacturer says to shoot for bullet to perform properly is the rule I go by. If it says minimal 1800fps velocity or 1000ftlb of energy for bullet to expand properly I will keep it at that range.

 

[rjmarine]

oh yes those good old numbers on paper
i am not a big fan of published numbers that most of the time do not cross over into real world results . this is why i do a lot of bullet testing for things like how well they group in the rifle i plan to use them in and also how well they open or dont open in my test media. this testing also takes place at yardages i plan to use these bullets at.
i do this by placing my test stand at say 400 yrds then shoot it and inspect the bullet to see just how well it opens and how well it penetrates into the test media. the results i get back are real world which i trust a lot more then numbers printed on paper based on computer generated models. this form of testing may not work for those that like paper numbers but they have served me well over the yrs and to date zero loss of animals i am hunting . case in point look up what an 80gr TTSX leaving at 3100 fps is doing at 472 yrds and just how much energy it has . those numbers will show it could not even take a rabbit at 472 yrds let alone a big bull tahr. after seeing it first hand and seeing what the bullet did and how well it opened up i would take that same shot again and not even think twice about it

 

[RockyMtnMT]

oh yes those good old numbers on paper
i am not a big fan of published numbers that most of the time do not cross over into real world results . this is why i do a lot of bullet testing for things like how well they group in the rifle i plan to use them in and also how well they open or dont open in my test media. this testing also takes place at yardages i plan to use these bullets at.
i do this by placing my test stand at say 400 yrds then shoot it and inspect the bullet to see just how well it opens and how well it penetrates into the test media. the results i get back are real world which i trust a lot more then numbers printed on paper based on computer generated models. this form of testing may not work for those that like paper numbers but they have served me well over the yrs and to date zero loss of animals i am hunting . case in point look up what an 80gr TTSX leaving at 3100 fps is doing at 472 yrds and just how much energy it has . those numbers will show it could not even take a rabbit at 472 yrds let alone a big bull tahr. after seeing it first hand and seeing what the bullet did and how well it opened up i would take that same shot again and not even think twice about it

Good on you!

I would like to hear about your test media? I don't want to hijack your thread, so you can start another or whatever.

Steve

 

[jjmp]

Awesome trophys great shooting ,great report thks, your proven homework speaks for its self. im also a 1/4 bore fan, and target shoot more then hunt,Sierras 100 MKings fly fantastic and grouped 1.5 moa at 600 yds in paper, not saying its an animal bullet , cause theres better choices , plus im a Barnes fan , my 1/4 bore is a 25/06 semi custom, great hunting to you all. thks jjmp