Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting 100 yard groups for Hunting Rifles

Don't need a cursory zero here.... mine is at least at 200 if not 300... I can figure it backwards later if need be.

Did anyone seriously answer the OP'S question. I think bigstick had the right idea. I know the op should of posted this question somewhere else other than the "long range hunting" section. I'll be man enough to step up to the plate here and leave the b.s aside. I'd expect a "hunting rifle" to group into 1 moa. Some manufactures guarantee that kind of accuracy out of the box with premium ammo. BSA.

Screw it, I think he wants to see some pictures of targets from real world hunting rifles. Still haven't fine tuned a load for the 308 win yet, but it is shooting better after glass bedding and freefloating the barrel:


Pre-64 model 70 standard in 30-06. This group meas. .425, but the rifle usually shoots 3/4 moa.

300 win mag ruger M77 MKII, consistant 3/4 moa gun. This group meas. 1/2"

Model 70 classic sporter 30-06, group meas .626". also a 3/4 moa rifle.

338 win mag Ruger M77 MKII. Group meas. .425", consistant less than 3/4 moa rifle.

Ruger hawkeye .223. Honest 1 moa rifle (got lucky on this target).

My Range is configured for hasty 100yd rough dope,to establish the cursory initial zero and the start of a drop chart. I like to center windage there,make ele corrections,zero turrets and stretch long from there.

Depending upon the time of the year,I may come outta the gate with a 500yd cursory zero,on say a new rifle,wearing new glass.

Long story short,I gun little in the way of 100yd paper..................

I find myself on the 700yd line often,as a barometer of evaluation for a Real World Hunting Rifle.

7Whizzum Montucky at the 100yd line,roughing a cursory zero.



Sub .5MOA at 700+.



Kinda how I roll stuff out................

Nice shooting bigstick. You use those bullets in your real world hunting rifle at game animals?

I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that all my targets were shot with partitions, interlocks, and of the most frangible I have is the 250 grainer in the 338 win mag which is a sierra gameking. I guess I believe in saving a little meat for the skillet: the less bloodshot meat the better. That's just my .02 though.

Those are 162 A-Max lit with '22. Batch shown was F/F fodder,in 300WSM hulls.

Formed case results(it is a very modest move),with the 162 doing 3150fps at the muzzle and an 80-ish yard entrance.





They dig nicely,thus the appeal.................

Very nice Big Stick. Excellent shooting, love the pictures. BSA.

7mm 162 Cranial Insertion at spittin' distance,ala 2700fps 22" Ti 7-08 launch.



Exit.



Inside.




They is no slouch afar,either....................(grin)

What kind of rifle(s) do you have?
Do you reload or use factory ammo?
Describe your bench shooting set-up.
What game animal(s) are you considering hunting?
Have you done much group shooting from field positions?

With a factory gun (I rarely use factory) I would want a 3-shot group at a 100 yards under .75 MOA.
I make sure mine will be at a 1/2 MOA or less.
In good conditions (where wind is not much of a factor), a half MOA rig gives you approx 2.5" at 500 yards, whereas a 1MOA group is 5", and a 1.5 MOA group is 7.5".
Depending on the size of the animal's kill zone will also somewhat determine how far you can shoot an animal with "xyz" accuracy.
I typically use a 6.5, 7mm for my LR hunting. I have recently had a 338 built, but haven't used it in the field yet for hunting. 3x's in a row (different days) I have fired 4-shot groups running right .4" groups at 100 yards off of a bi-pod. This is the heaviest recoiling rig I have.

Once I do load development, Chrono, etc., I start confirming my drops shooting from field positions usually at 500 yards and working my way out to 1k or 1200 yards.
Take notes, and each time I go out out, tweak and confirm.

Practice further than you intend to hunt at, and practice at times in bad conditions.
It will bring humility and give you a better idea of your limitations.
But most of all, have fun learning and shooting.

FWIW-I like John's idea of 100 yard practicing on the dots.

100yds is no tool for weighing atmospheric influences and is largely moot round count,as applied to the Real World and it's variables.............

Big Stick, some guys like myself don't have access to a 700 yard range. Some are limited to 300, 200, and even 100 yards. When I lived in nevada, I shot at 600 yards with a heavy barreled 1917 enfield chambered in 30-06 that was a very consistant 1/2 moa rig (miss those days). Know exactly what you mean by 100 not being a good tool for atmospheric influence you deal with at true long range. In order to feel comfortable at those ranges, you have to practice at those ranges. BSA.

Practice cain't be purchased nor feigned.................

if folks don't have access to long ranges to practice, they limit themselves to the distance their ranges for practice are.

So if limited to 100 yard range, I could give you 200 because that drop isn't going to be far enough off of the ballistics calc... but beyond that nope.

I know this was your first post and added info after this....


But I believe the answer is, what size group would YOU be comfortable achieving at 500 yds? Your quarry is important, rock chucks surely need better accuracy than a moose at 500, if you are talking "kill zone" which most loosely say is a heart / lung shot.


I would imagine "most" would say if you can't keep 3 on a bench in 1/2", your gun could use refining. Remember, shooting on a bench vs a quick rest, heart pounding from exertion, altitude surely open a group up.....


I myself am happy with 0.75" 5 shots at 100yds on a bench, but have never taken longer than a 250 yd big game shot.

Allen

Drop is Physics,wind ain't and therein lies THE critical differences.

Mastering same,only comes from doing it.............

I always wanna know what the weakest link in the equation is. Can I outshoot the combo,or can it outshoot me.

Happiness is a rifle better than I..............

We could yack about physics all day... yet the bottom line is entering the precise data for the physics to work... thats not always the case via BC of overestimated figures by bullet makers....

Wind has always been a whole nuther game.

I"m with ya... get a better rifle than the shooter, then I KNOW if a shot turns bad, its somethign I did, not the gun. Makes for a much more relaxed life.

Was just trying to confirm drops at 75 yards with my 329 yesterday... 270 hard cast... and finding out the gun is ok to about 50-60... it just doesn't group well enough anymore at 75 to risk a shot at a deer or beyond. Of course in honesty I"d done little work on the 329.. it was primarily carried as a SHTF light handgun.. and at 20 steps it was just fine.

A single poke through a chronograph,will yield trajectory dope accurate enough,to get Leupie glass on a 700yd pie plate from a cursory 700yd.

EVERY time...and that move has sold alotta builds,boolits and glass.................