remington 700vs and newbie

[themarksmn]

Hi all,
Im new to the long range shooting game. I have hunted since i was about 5-6, so i know i can shoot effectively at game inside 200-300 yards. I have a remington 700vs in .308. It holds half inch or better groups, small clover leaf, at 100yards as long as i do my part. I have a simple bushnell 3x9x50 scope, just crosshairs. I also reload hunting ammo and have for about 2 years.
My questions are these :
What are some pointers, using my current setup, for engaging targets out to 600-700 yards? Are there any particular bullets\weights that i should look at? What should i realistically expect as far as group size? I shoot about 100 rounds a month, but mostly between 100-200 yards.
I know those are pretty open ended questions, but i do appreciate any answers given.
Thanks,
Matt

 

[ogonzalez13]

Re: remington 700vs and newbie

Sounds like your set up is accurate and you got the skills needed to shoot it. Not sure what bullets you are using for it but to be honest there is not much magic need to reach 500-600 yards. I say give it a go with what you got and if need be change your bullets to something with a high Ballistic coefficient (BC) and press on. The only way to know what you and your rifle is capable of is to get out there and do it.

 

[cropins]

Re: remington 700vs and newbie

I realize you want to do this with the equipment you have, but I would start saving for a Mil or Moa reticle you won't be sorry. Just going to be hard trying to do a hold over with with no reference point on the reticle except cross hair.

 

[themarksmn]

Re: remington 700vs and newbie

Update:
Took my little brother out shooting today. I brought the 700, a remington 770 (just for giggles) in .243. He brought his mosin. both the .243 and mosin have cheap, bargain bin mil- dot scopes, from some online retailer.
We measured out 310 yards with a gps, set up a large piece of I beam and a piece of scrap railroad track, bottom facing towards the muzzle, and set up our shooting area.
That first shot with the 700 and subsequent sound of metal clanging is both encouraging and addicting! The group i shot could easily be covered by my closed fist. i was using the Hornady 150grain bullets that i normally use for deer hunting.
Definitely a good start as far as i was concerned. After 6 rounds, i didn't want to heat the barrel up too much, i had the little brother bring his rifle and set up. He went 9 for 14 with surplus ammo. Am pretty proud of him.
Next was time to try the .243. I didn't have much hope that this rifle would perform anywhere near what the 700 did. The trigger on the .243 is horrid, creepy, sticks and is nowhere near what i am used to. That being said, i went 4 for 6 with it shooting some 55gr screamers. Wind wasn't blowing much at all, but i wouldn't know how much to compensate even if it were. Grouping on the I beam was larger than what i would have liked, but, not bad for a cheapy gun.
I guess the main point of this post is try to show development. If this is the improper place for a post like this i apologize.
i totally agree on the need for a mildot scope for the .308. The funds situation isn't so hot right at the moment, but i have definitely been reading through the forum to get scope specs and ideas. My initial thought was that i could adjust the scope for different ranges and then return to my zero settings after i finished shooting. Possibly a good idea, or a complete waste of time?
Im pretty sure that if there is a long range rifle bug, the little snot bit me, because now i am thinking about trying some 105gr a-max's in the .243 to see what they will do.
May even start playing with the 8mm mauser again too. My name is Matt and i have a rifle addiction.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[Radar360]

Re: remington 700vs and newbie

If your shooting KD most or all the time, you really don't benefit that much more with mil-dots. What makes it easier if you have target turrets which allow you to adjust elevation without removing the cap. And even non-target turrets can be adjusted easy, just de-cap them and set your elevation/windage as needed. It's just not as fast or slick. But very doable with good dope for your setup.

So it depends what you want to do. But for box ranges a mil-dot isn't a game changer, nice to have? Yes, especially if you get into tactical shooting where you will have to determine the distance. But either way, eventually, you'll want one because it is much faster but it doesn't stop you at all as you already know.

As far as which grain to use in .308's for 700 yards paper targets, they all will work fine. Your rifle will likely like one better that the rest. Many like 168's which is very accurate. Speer makes a 30cal (.308), 168g, w/BC of .534. That's one heck of a bullet. I've also used Hornady's 168s AMax w/BC of .475 and have been very pleased with it as well as Sierra's 168's HPBT MK which has some .460 BC. All excellent at the 700 yard mark and beyond too. If you go much further than 800 I'd recommend the 175's but the 168's can do it too, just a bit more work.

If your planning on using only factory ammo for a while, you might try some of the hide vendors here. They make very decent ammo at fair prices. Look around the group buy section and you will find some excellent buys with good CS. Also Black Hills, Cor Bon, etc. will work right out of the box in most rifles.

Look around, Google and research availability so that you don't have to start all over every 100 shots.