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Your Ultimate 500 Yard Rig
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<blockquote data-quote="Gcan" data-source="post: 1526405" data-attributes="member: 102867"><p>I know the question was 500 yards, but a shot is seldom that cut and dry. What if it was 658 yards, 10 mph full value wind @ 40 degrees up hill? Perhaps the better question for me might be - What rifle would I likely have in my hands when a 10 yard, out to the longest distance shot I would accept arose for that once in a lifetime opportunity?</p><p></p><p></p><p>If I had to run - or at my age, take a helicopter up a mountain to make a 500 yard cold bore shot, many rifles come to mind. But to answer the 10–500-800 yard + question it's only one rifle. It would be with a Christensen, and you will never know how much it pains me to say it. I may need counseling now. My experience with Christensen Rifles comes from about 18-years ago when they were suffering growing pains; and they ensured I suffered with them. ($$$) Having said that, I am a 300 UM fan. I have a one-off 32" 1.6" Proof Research carbon barrel on a 338AM. Its not something one might consider a "mountain rifle". We quickly determined the PR carbon barrel on the 338 weighed just ounces less than the fluted steel barrel counterpart that Kirby regularly uses. Why? While the axially wrapped Proof carbon barrels are neither appreciably lighter, nor stiffer than steel, the longitudinal matrix wrapped Christiansen barrels are a different animal. I say that being a Proof barrel (not carbon) fan. </p><p></p><p></p><p>My current Chissy in 300 UM weights in shy of 7 lbs, sans glass. It is considerably lighter than my Tooley built 338 UM fluted Sendero of the same dimensions. </p><p></p><p></p><p>People carry Short Action mountain rifles in 6mm, 6.5mm or 7mm calibers to make the weight. A Christensen in 300UM or 338UM with a magnum action is a featherweight rifle. Yes, any of my 6.5 x whatever will hit and kill what Im aiming at at 500yards. 500 yards is a chip shot. My 300UM will just do it better and dependably PLANT the animal. Shooting a 185 grain Berger VLD Hunter at 3300 fps with a 250 yard zero I'm -4.5 moa @500 w/2400 ftlb. No 6.5 or 7mm anything is close. </p><p></p><p>You certainly do not want to shoot a true carbon cannon without the Titanium break. But with it, the Christiansen is a pussycat off the shoulder, sticks, bench or prone. Christiansen guns are extraordinarily lite because their barrels are actually mostly carbon fiber, not a marketing veneer. They certainly prove you do not need mad smithing acumen to build shooters. </p><p></p><p></p><p>The first gun in 300UM Christiansen built for me was .011" over the max SAAMI headspace spec. The chamber was .003" out of spec and non concentric too. The gun was completely unsafe, and it still shot everything I fed it into 1/2 moa groups, even when it was separating cases and ruining hunts. The rifle I have now has just 22 break-in rounds thru it. I refuse to use it for anything out of principle. While breaking it in however, it shot my Surgeon loads of 210 SMKs over 90 grains of H1000 into sub 1/2 moa groups @ 100-500 yards. It shot my near 20-year old 185 Nolser BT (melters) and 180 grain Partitions loaded in unsorted Rem brass over 93 and 94 grains of R25 respectively into ragged one hole groups. It shot Remington factory loads into only slightly larger groups. These loads ranged from .012" to .050+/- off the lands and ranged in velocity from 2900-3300 fps. </p><p></p><p>Christensen's old claims of barrels 5x stiffer than steel are true in my mind. These things seem totally immune to harmonics- just like a 5" steel barrel might be weighing several hundred pounds might be. So if I was going to take a shot at anything on my bucket list at any distance out to 1200 yards, in any conditions, at any elevation with a gun that I might also shoot at 10 yards, it kills me to say it would be a Christiansen Carbon anything. Now if you asked about 1700 yards it would be Kirby's 338AM. </p><p></p><p></p><p>For my money, you can have all the exotic calibers, great builders, custom chambers and loads, hand made bullets, etc, etc, you want (God knows I may own one of each). I think the smithing fight is to beat harmonics. The better the smith, the lighter the rifles and more precise the work, but when you can take a production rifle and feed it virtually any OEM hunting load and be certain it will shoot sub 4" at 500 yards or 1" @ 500 with custom loads in hunting conditions, and print the first cold bore round, and the next 10 in the same holes, taking anything else up the hill might just be ego. Just my opinion. "Good God, that hurt."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gcan, post: 1526405, member: 102867"] I know the question was 500 yards, but a shot is seldom that cut and dry. What if it was 658 yards, 10 mph full value wind @ 40 degrees up hill? Perhaps the better question for me might be - What rifle would I likely have in my hands when a 10 yard, out to the longest distance shot I would accept arose for that once in a lifetime opportunity? If I had to run - or at my age, take a helicopter up a mountain to make a 500 yard cold bore shot, many rifles come to mind. But to answer the 10–500-800 yard + question it’s only one rifle. It would be with a Christensen, and you will never know how much it pains me to say it. I may need counseling now. My experience with Christensen Rifles comes from about 18-years ago when they were suffering growing pains; and they ensured I suffered with them. ($$$) Having said that, I am a 300 UM fan. I have a one-off 32” 1.6” Proof Research carbon barrel on a 338AM. Its not something one might consider a “mountain rifle”. We quickly determined the PR carbon barrel on the 338 weighed just ounces less than the fluted steel barrel counterpart that Kirby regularly uses. Why? While the axially wrapped Proof carbon barrels are neither appreciably lighter, nor stiffer than steel, the longitudinal matrix wrapped Christiansen barrels are a different animal. I say that being a Proof barrel (not carbon) fan. My current Chissy in 300 UM weights in shy of 7 lbs, sans glass. It is considerably lighter than my Tooley built 338 UM fluted Sendero of the same dimensions. People carry Short Action mountain rifles in 6mm, 6.5mm or 7mm calibers to make the weight. A Christensen in 300UM or 338UM with a magnum action is a featherweight rifle. Yes, any of my 6.5 x whatever will hit and kill what Im aiming at at 500yards. 500 yards is a chip shot. My 300UM will just do it better and dependably PLANT the animal. Shooting a 185 grain Berger VLD Hunter at 3300 fps with a 250 yard zero I’m -4.5 moa @500 w/2400 ftlb. No 6.5 or 7mm anything is close. You certainly do not want to shoot a true carbon cannon without the Titanium break. But with it, the Christiansen is a pussycat off the shoulder, sticks, bench or prone. Christiansen guns are extraordinarily lite because their barrels are actually mostly carbon fiber, not a marketing veneer. They certainly prove you do not need mad smithing acumen to build shooters. The first gun in 300UM Christiansen built for me was .011” over the max SAAMI headspace spec. The chamber was .003” out of spec and non concentric too. The gun was completely unsafe, and it still shot everything I fed it into 1/2 moa groups, even when it was separating cases and ruining hunts. The rifle I have now has just 22 break-in rounds thru it. I refuse to use it for anything out of principle. While breaking it in however, it shot my Surgeon loads of 210 SMKs over 90 grains of H1000 into sub 1/2 moa groups @ 100-500 yards. It shot my near 20-year old 185 Nolser BT (melters) and 180 grain Partitions loaded in unsorted Rem brass over 93 and 94 grains of R25 respectively into ragged one hole groups. It shot Remington factory loads into only slightly larger groups. These loads ranged from .012” to .050+/- off the lands and ranged in velocity from 2900-3300 fps. Christensen’s old claims of barrels 5x stiffer than steel are true in my mind. These things seem totally immune to harmonics- just like a 5” steel barrel might be weighing several hundred pounds might be. So if I was going to take a shot at anything on my bucket list at any distance out to 1200 yards, in any conditions, at any elevation with a gun that I might also shoot at 10 yards, it kills me to say it would be a Christiansen Carbon anything. Now if you asked about 1700 yards it would be Kirby’s 338AM. For my money, you can have all the exotic calibers, great builders, custom chambers and loads, hand made bullets, etc, etc, you want (God knows I may own one of each). I think the smithing fight is to beat harmonics. The better the smith, the lighter the rifles and more precise the work, but when you can take a production rifle and feed it virtually any OEM hunting load and be certain it will shoot sub 4” at 500 yards or 1” @ 500 with custom loads in hunting conditions, and print the first cold bore round, and the next 10 in the same holes, taking anything else up the hill might just be ego. Just my opinion. “Good God, that hurt.” [/QUOTE]
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