and .458 Win. But the 7mm Remington Magnum will remain supersonic out to 1,400 yards or a bit more, making a good choice for cross-canyon hunting. Those projectiles shed their speed slowly, so the 6.5 PRC can catch up with much larger and harder-recoiling cartridges at 600 yards and beyond. Some shooters have an intense disdain for newer cartridges. It outperforms the .280 Remington (also known as the 7mm-06 and the 7mm Express), and for years wildcatters and handloaders have been singing its praises. can handle any big-game animal on earth. I zeroed it at about 2 inches high at 200 yards. Shouldn't penetration at the point of termination be a consideration? All of those things and more must be perfect. Posted January 26, 2017. Is it the 6.5 CM on steriodes but with out the kick of the 300 win mag? I wish there was more talk around 308 since you've established it as the baseline by which all long range cartridges are judged. While there are newer cartridges around, many of them are derived from the .308, and all are measured against it. Well, with the right bullets (70 grains and up) and the right barrel twist (1:7 is best), the 5.56 is capable of shooting impressive distances, including the elusive 1,000-yard mark. when it comes to long range hunting I have to stick to my 7mm mag custom made bolt action, an extremely flat trajectory and shots at over 1000 yards are very common. These numbers indicate that one of the flattest shooting commercial cartridge at sensible hunting ranges is the 220 Swift. If that is 100 yards for him fine, it might 1200 yards for me given my skills , equipment, training, & practice.. 7 mm. A 180 grain bullet traveling over 2300fps at 500 yards? A .270 Win is one of the flattest shooting rifles that won't beat you silly, but it still drops over three feet at 500 yds (and don't forget wind drift; it's easily =/< to drop, always a big factor). rounds to their specs. It is the Madonna of long-range rounds. Bottom line, I agree its in our best interest and the animals' best interest to get as close as we can. It's disconcerting to me that this cartridge always gets left out of the conversation. I was an early adopter of this round because it seemed to hit a sweet spot for the kind of hunting I like bestthe open country of the West, where long shots in windy conditions on mule deer, elk, and other game are the norm. Mag., .338 Win. Weve built dozens of ARs and well cover all the best AR-15 upgrades such as handguards, triggers, BCGs, gas blocks, and more. Anyway be safe shoot str8 and God bless. Regarding the comment on the 6.5C, the laws of aerodynamics don't agree with you. It combined flat-shooting ballistics with hard-hitting bullets in a package with lighter recoil than the .300 Weatherby Magnum, which debuted in 1944. Let us know in the comments below! ), neither of which is conducive to good accuracy. Hathcock, of course, went on to become the most storied Marine sniper in history in Viet Nam in the following years, though he didnt do it with a .300 Win. At 100 yards with black powder 50 kaliber. In fact, loaded correctly it will leave quite a mark well past 2000 yds. When coupled with bullets that have a high ballistic coefficient, the results are impressive. At the end of WWII, when NATO was forming, the members wanted a flat shooting cartridge good out to seriously long-range, without the weight of a full-sized rifle round like the .30-06. Also look at Federal Premiums 180-grain Nosler AccuBond offering at 2,960 fps. Check out more F&S long-range shooting coverage, including advice for getting started in long-range shooting competitions, the reason why rifle groups keep shrinking, how Heavey did at Gunsite Academy, and what makes long-distance shooting so difficult. It will be passed down to my son and so forth. It just murders your shoulder, ears, and pocketbook at the same time drop in feet Shooting at 700 (In Theory) In reference to the gentleman saying a hunter shouldnt take a long range shot, what he meant was He shouldnt take a long range shot. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. Shot from SAAMI-mandated 1-8 twist barrels, the 6.5s long, slender bullets seem to almost defy wind and gravity and allow this cartridge to deliver clean kills at distance. The rifle is my primary backcountry gun for deer, elk, bear and whatever else I think I may need to hunt. With new( in the works)bullet designs the .308 surpasses the .300 win mag and is closing in on 6.5 ! Its pinpoint accuracy makes it deadly on these animals to 500 yards and more. Although it will always be there and ready if the need arises. From 600 to 1000 yards they use a 300 Winchester. The lack of factory offerings is one reason the 6 GT might overtake the Dasher. My go to for long range hunting are the 7mm STW and 6.5-300 weatherby. With a flatter trajectory and less wind drift the .300 Win Mag offers a useful step up in performance in a similar size rifle. Mag. More than enough to be lethal, and it's a speed that is greater than some 9mm handguns actually fire as muzzle velocity. A few years back I took a very nicely built AR-15 to Buck Doyles training facility where a group of us shot out to 1,100 yards on steel targets. The 6.5 PRC joined an ever-expanding field of 6.5mm (.264 in.) 30 years later still shooting this caliber even though I do have the 6.5 CM too. Norma offers a 156-grain Oryx load that wont shoot as flat but provides great terminal performance. These are all with commercial brass available, 300NM, 338NM, 338LM , 375CT , .408 CT and 416 B all shoot very good out to and passed 2000 yards. While other cartridges have emerged and gained popularity, the 6.5 Grendel still has a permanent place in the conversation when talking about long-range shooting. appeared, calling that cartridge the .30-338 Winchester. Its moderate recoil, inherent accuracy, and proven lethality is why it is such a great choice for new hunters. One afternoon, after shooting a nice antelope at about 500 yards, I was walking back to the truck with the guide, and we were discussing quarter-bores, with the guide extolling his 25-06, the best of the lot. 36 in. It shoots flat and just drops the deer.. Doesnt quite pack the punch needed for long range elk hunting though. I don't care if you have a Win Mag or a Creedmoor and can hit steel from a mile away with it. but the whole free recoil thing and light grip will require some attention also. Of course, if you want to know a LOT more about the 6.5 Grendel you need to read the 6.5 Grendel Shootout! For those looking to leverage the latest innovations in cartridge design and bullet technology there is a whole world of goodies to choose from. The quicker it gets to 200 yards the less time gravity has been working on it and the less it will drop. They usually start at around $300. Used 85 grain Winchester preamumbalistic tip, No one ever mentions the .270 Win. That is just my opinion. Just my 2 cents plus change. Prices vary greatly for rifles, but feeding them is a whole different story even if you reload. What about 22-250? While they are relatively close within 500 yards, at 1,000 yards, the .308 Winchester has 4 feet more drop when you compare a 6.5 CM 140-grain ELD vs. a .308 Win 168-grain ELD. The most accurate long-range caliber cant be reduced to a single answer. I wasnt there to see it actually happen, but I dont doubt that it could have. Mag. Since this article originally went live, several excellent long-range big-game cartridges have it the market. We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe. One reason for the .300 Win. If I am just putting holes in paper at 1000+ I'd go 6mm Creed, 6mm Dasher, or 6x47 Lapua. Why? In the East it is rather limited. There's plenty of setups out there where 500 yd shots are simple things. I know someone will. The .308 Win. It shoots as flat as a Kansas prairie and holds its velocity way out there. A popular western big-game cartridge, the 7mm Magnum doubles as an excellent tool for long-range target shooting. A: Kelly, it depends on the distance across which you want to measure. But lack of convenience is certainly the Big Kahuna. I have a 2506 killed a deer at 840 yards one shot !! Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. As for its effectiveness on game, theres little doubt about its track record there. I don't expect to change your mind, but think respectful conversation is a good thing. Although it isnt the flattest shooting round, that trait is, ironically, overrated in a long-range round. Ive also used it in Africa on large and small game, including on Giant Eland, the worlds largest antelope that tips the scales at 2,000 pounds. is the perfect Goldilocks round. Mag., and the story of its adoption and evolution in that role is what really lands it on the list of best long-range calibers. It's a quick and easy swap. Mags., the .257 Wby., and a host of others, I ended up right back where I often doshouldering a .308 Winchester. Just took me a 600+ pound cow elk 1 shot with my creedmore 200 yards away. rating) driven more slowly. Numbers are one thing. i think the 50 bmg would make most every ones list on this topic. For deer and lesser critters, its a solid 500-yard cartridge. With the highest BC bullets, the 26 Nosler remains supersonic beyond 1,750 yards. To explain the nuances of rifle twist rates, you can read my previous article about AR-15 Twist Rates! I still like my 300 Win. Heres your winner. Definitely agree with that statement. This includes gear reviews, features on technical innovations, stories on shooting techniques and general hunting coverage with the occasional fishing story thrown into the mix. The .30-06 Cartridge Ballistics For Cooper, the .308 Winchester fit the bill. If you handloaded the same heavy bullets used in the 224V and had a custom rifle built with a faster twist rate (1:8), it would either match or slightly beat the 224V. When I wrote about the event, many commenters called me a liar for suggesting that a .223 Rem./5.56 NATO could shoot that far. Lets look at some of the popular calibers. But I suspect the 220 Swift will hang on as our Flat Trajectory Champ or close to it at quasi-sensible hunting distances. Need to recheck your math when you were talking about the .416 Barrett clinking at 5497m. If im trying to hunt, 300 Win Mag, 338 maybe a 7mm. Happy Hunting! I also encourage others to understand that their limits legitimately aren't limits for other people sometimes. Right here: ".300 Winchester Magnum is a favorite of hunters around the world for big game at long range. drops 6.7 inches at 300 yards and just under 20 inches at 400 yards. Mag Browning Eclipse using 208 Grain Hornady Match Bullets and am having a good time with my new DPMS with a Geissly Trigger and custom Muzzle brake with the barrel cryogenically treated hitting golf balls at 200 yards. A good hunting cartridge has to fit in a rifle thats comfortable to carry all day and wont kick you so hard that you cant shoot it well. Nonetheless, during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Naval Surface Warfare Center wanted to develop a sniper round that was effective to 1,500 yards and started looking for a cartridge to fulfill that role. Both are far more exceptional than the 5 you chose. But putting the emotional draws to the cartridge aside, there are still plenty of pragmatic reasons for the choice. Ammunition choices have increased lately, and Hornady has ammunition with the 87-grain VMAX and 103-grain ELD-X for long-range hunting. For example, my Allterra Arms 6.5 PRC shoots Hornady 143-grain ELD-X bullets at 2950 fps. Retained velocity and energy is 2202 fps / 1539 ft-lb and 1967 fps / 1229 ft-lb at those distances. I tried to pick out some popular ones on the market currently based on typical ranges most shooter's shoot out too. Published Apr 14, 2022 12:07 PM EDT. Subscribe to OL+ for our best feature stories and photography. The same thing with the 556mm. | (, We noticed that you have previously logged in with your, Check what do you get by creating an account, Bookmark and compare your favorite firearms, 7 Best Long-Range Cartridges: Hit Stuff Really Far Away, While this may not be the first cartridge that comes to mind for long-range shooting, with an appropriate bullet, the compact .223 Remington or 5.56 NATO is, If you choose to shoot long-range with a .223 Remington, I highly suggest shooting longer, heavier bullets with a 1:7 rifle twist. The Creedmoor is the hottest cartridge on the planet. Those predictable velocities mean that shooters can calculate their trajectories at longer ranges with extreme confidence. Thats true, but the bullets have been vetted. It will push a 90-grain Fusion bullet to 500 yardswhich is probably the limit for big game with this cartridgewhile still retaining enough velocity to initiate expansion. It shoots flat and just drops the deer.. 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