Trigger Time - Practice ?

MN Hunter

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Joined
Feb 4, 2009
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557
Location
Aberdeen, SD
If you were to buy/build a gun for practicing (not hunting - I have a 338rum for that) long range shooting what caliber would you get? What barrel contour and length would you get.
Two criteria inexpensive ammo, good barrel life. Break???
Thanks
 
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I would try to match the ballistics to the round I hunt with as close as possible. That way when you switch from rifle to rifle, you don't have completely different data in your head. Yeah, I know, thats what data cards are for, but I try and memorize all of my windage, drop, and come-ups for each weapon I fire.
Less variation = less confusion= more consistancy=more first round hits.
Myself, my trainer IS the rifle I plan to hunt with!gun)
 
A 308 is about as good as you can get. Brass and bullets are plentiful. Accurate loads are well known and documented. Recoil is manageable. Barrel life is thousands of rounds. It is much more sensitive to winds than magnums so it forces you to pay attention to wind. It is also a very decent cartridge for hunting most animals out to about 800 yards or so. A 26 or 28 inch barrel helps a little with velocity but is not necessary, just stay away from really short barrels. Contour is more a matter of how you practice. If your practice is formal competition then you need a pretty stiff barrel such as might be found on one of the Savage F-class rifles. If you are just going to shoot at milk jugs and such, then something on the order of a Sendero Contour would be satisfactory.
 
Why not do a 6br? Half the recoil of a 308, 33% less powder, cheaper bullets too... and better ballistics. I built one and I couldn't be happier!
 
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