Let me start off by saying, I know it sounded kind of harsh about telling everyone that they don't know anything. I just wanted to avoid this thread turning into an ethical shot or not type of thing. I know that other people know how to do this also. So don't take offense.
No, I am not a sniper. You don't have to be a "sniper" to shoot accurately at long ranges, you do have to practice though. Anyone can do it, it just takes certain tools, skill and know how. Practice practice practice.
Someone asked to tell more about my gun. I could fill page after page about my rifle and ballistics and such just cuz I like to talk about it, because it's cool!!
The gun is a custom rifle built by Kevin Rayhill at Stockade Guns. It has a Savage Precision Target Action a custom 28" Benchmark barrel with 1:9 twist so I can shoot heavy for caliber bullets and still stabilize them. The action has been bedded into a custom stock that has an adjustable cheek piece so I get good cheek weld and line of sight with the scope is the same every single time. The stock was also made my Stockade.There is also a Night Force Angle Degree Indicator mounted on the rail so I know exactly the angle my gun is pointing, up or down. It has a 20 MOA canted scope base (allows for more "up" clicks in my scope without bottoming it out) and six screw tactical rings that have been lapped by me. They hold down the Vortex Viper scope which is 6.5-20X50 with 30mm tube and 65 MOA of internal adjustment and target turrets. The trigger is set to exactly 16oz. Yes, that is very light but you can shoot much more accurate with a light trigger and it is my preference and my gun so I can set the trigger however I want [
]. It is a single shot and a shell never goes in until I am already lying behind the rifle.
This is already getting long!
Well I have been doing this longrange thing for a few years now and have practiced a lot at these distances and further (1370 yards longest shot on a gongs so far). My limit right now on live game would be about 1200 yards. 800 to 1000 yards I am as confident as I am at 200 yards. Just because I know that my rifle is accurate and REPEATABLE, that is the key. I have shot at a 8" white rock on a hill side 874 yards away while elk hunting over an over with the same point of impact every single time. Even different days and different winds, it's all science and you can't argue science. The ballistics are proven and so are the ballistic programs that you input the relative data into.
About the shot and what makes it possible:
I carry a very expensive and accurate Swarovski rangefinder that will range well past a mile.
I also carry a hand held weather station that gives me the data I need like, humidity, wind speed, barometric pressure and temperature.
I also carry a PDA with me that has Exbal loaded on to it. (a ballistics program from Night Force) this is not necessary but is very handy. Other wise I would have to carry printed out drop charts on paper and only have general info to input instead of the real world conditions.
The muzzle brake on the rifle allows me to spot my own shots since the gun moves very little once fired. I usually have a spotter with me anyway and it is his job to watch through the spotting scope and call out any correction that may be need after the shot.
I reload all my own shells and put a ton of time into brass prep like deburring the flash holes, neck turning, gaging the neck wall thickness and so on and so on. Good components make good finished cartridges so I only use Federal Match grade primers. The bullets I use are made one at a time by a guy in California and have a very high B.C. value .750 This lets them retain there speed longer than a lower B.C. bullet would and the wind affects them much less. They are 189 grains and yes that is pretty heavy for a 7mm cartridge but man they are accurate and great for longrange hunting. All my powder charges are measured to 1/10 of a grain so they are all exactly the same.
I use a chronograph to get my starting point with my ballistics program then tweak it from there with validation in the field at the same distances. One reason the gun is so repeatable is the feet per second only vary in the single digits from one shot to the next.
There is no "hold over" when I shoot. I "dial" my scope up to the predetermined MOA and hold dead on in the crosshairs. Same with the wind, dial and hold dead on.
Ok, almost done. Not really but this is really long.
I will tell you the scenario of my shot then let my fingers rest [
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I had watched the deer bed down in a group of trees and just waited for him to stand up and stretch or feed. Eventually he did. He fed broadside across a clearing that we thought he would. We had already ranged that spot and it was 1024 yards over and over. Checked again just to make sure. The rifle was angled down 7 degrees. My PDA told me 23.25 MOA up and 1.75 MOA left to make up for the 9 mph half value wind blowing to the right. I shot from the prone position from my bipod with a poly bead filled rear bag(doesn't weigh a thing and can be very handy) just like shooting from the bench. Dialed the scope, held dead on, took a few breaths and slowly squeezed the trigger. It took 1.3112 seconds to get to the deers chest, so I had plenty of time to get back on target before the hit. My spotter called the shot right behind the shoulder. He ran down hill about 50 yards and piled up where you see him in the pics. It was really quite awesome. There was no guessing involved in that shot at all. It is all about precise shooting. When I pulled that trigger I knew exactly where that bullet was going to end up. If you are surprised when your bullet hits where you wanted it to, that isn't exactly confident or precise.....
I can go on for hours but I'll post this and write more if someone wants to ask a question.
As far as the antlers go, they will go on a plaque because we didn't pack out the whole head, just the skull cap and antlers.
Thanks for letting me ramble for so long, this has got to be a record for longest reply.
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