600 yrd scores?

[CPT.CRAZY]

I'm just starting in long range shooting and using my Grendel. Do any of you use yours for this? If so what do you consider a good score, I know 200 with 20 X's would be the goal, but realistically what do you guys or gals see?

[RangerRick]

OK CC before we 'fess up our scores, you have to spill yours! I haven't shot much competitively or for score at those ranges and only once with the Grendel, but anything above 180 with any caliber is good on a "reasonable" wind day. The real competitive guys were all over 190 with numerous X's.

I actually did better at 1,000 once I got sighted in, so some was learning curve with the gear. I only have one arm and I was shooting off a bipod and a rear bag so getting the bag adjusted and finding a good body position to avoid trembling without that extra elbow was a trick. That excuse making said, I did 165 at 600 with 2 X's, so I was all over the target.

For any of you other handicapped shooters, I had good luck with a rear bag with a sloped side. I could move the butt up and down the ramp one handed pretty easily to get the elevation set right. I had to carefully adjust the bipod height to keep the sight picture in the ball park of the ramp. I also pulled my left knee knee up much further than you normally would in a right-hand prone position to give me a more stable base without the second elbow.

Not a great score, but I had fun! My drop tables were way off at 1,000 so by the time I got it zeroed in at that range I only had 10 shots left, but I got 2 X's and six 9's out of that last 10. The wind got pretty consistent by then, so that helped a lot.

RR

[CPT.CRAZY]

Well I will say my scores are not in the 180-190 yet had a great run started yesterday had a92 with 4x's in the first 10 shots then the wind picked up and gutsy got a total of 168 5x's. I know I need to learn to read wind better.

[davidj]

. I know I need to learn to read wind better.

The key to long range shooting.

[RangerRick]

Well I will say my scores are not in the 180-190 yet had a great run started yesterday had a92 with 4x's in the first 10 shots then the wind picked up and gutsy got a total of 168 5x's. I know I need to learn to read wind better.

Sounds like you are doing good. Your scores on the first 10 indicate that your equipment, loads etc. are good. After that it's like golf, just getting consistent and learning to read the wind. That just takes practice.

Watching some of the guys who were really good, I learned a lot. One of the things they had the hardest time with in shifting wind situations were transitions. It's easier to shoot in a strong steady wind than a shifting wind. With the flight time of the bullet, if the wind transitions from one state to another in flight your dope will be wrong, even if it was right when you pulled the trigger, so you can get large errors.

So the idea is to watch for patterns and try to shoot when you feel like things aren't going to transition for a few seconds from a left to a right wind or vice versa.

Same goes for clouds. When you've got the sun going in and out of clouds it can affect how you see the target and mirage, so you try to shoot with the same sun conditions each time if you can.

The mirage angle tells you the wind speed and you can swing your spotting scope left or right until the mirage is straight up to see the wind direction.

When you are waiting to shoot, watch other guys shoot through a spotting scope and you can see this stuff happening. So you can practice a lot even when you aren't shooting.

Good luck and have fun!

RR

[LR1955]

I'm just starting in long range shooting and using my Grendel. Do any of you use yours for this? If so what do you consider a good score, I know 200 with 20 X's would be the goal, but realistically what do you guys or gals see?

CC:

It is not competitive in NRA High Power. Sorry -- it doesn't have the velocity to give that buffer a guy needs when shooting in winds.

With no wind, it is easily capable of cleaning the target. However, the same can be said for any cartridge that holds under a minute as the X ring is a minute.

With wind, you will have trouble. Go with 1/2 minute per MPH of full value and you will be OK but not competitive. In other words, given you have a very good 'No Wind Zero', if you see even the slightest mirage blowing in any direction, go at least 1/2 minute and more likely one full minute. No matter how slight you see a change, go at least 1/2 minute. You will still lose points because unless your life is High Power at longer ranges, you won't be able to discern 1/2 MPH from, say, 2 MPH and then the exact wind direction when shooting a string in competition.

This is one cartridge where doing something is much better than doing nothing.

200 fps more with the 123 grain bullets and I wouldn't be advising the same thing.

You will learn how to dope winds with the cartridge, that much I will assure you. The problem is when you go to a faster cartridge, you will over dope and not know when to just shoot straight through.

LR1955