Practical Accuracy for a Hunting Rifle? - Page 2

Olaf · November 7, 2005, 01:57 PM

I completely agree with most here. Consistency is more important than absolute group size. The standard I use, for myself, is.... if I can place all shots within a 6" circle at 100 yards.... good enough...especially since I hunt with iron sights....and only out to about 150 yards, maximum.

injun · November 7, 2005, 07:18 PM

I think every hunter should have first most and foremost on his mind that he has the personal responsibility to know that the shot he fires is going to hit his game in an area which give swift, humane kill. That said, a sub MOA would seem to be very important to an individual taking a 350 yard shot. But moreover, it is not required for an individual to enjoy hunting and to ethically take game. There are hunters who should never attempt a 350 yard shot, either because the gun or the hunter's own skills limit the probably of hitting the vitals somewhere along the lines of a crap shoot.

I have passed on shots because i felt they where beyond my ability to complete successfully. Even so, I still was able to bag most of the game after rewarding stalks. And isn't that what hunting is all about?

AJ Peacock · November 10, 2005, 10:58 PM

A 1/2 MOA rifle enables expert marksmen to take/make shots that would be questionable with less accurate rifles. Most posters have made this case for longer (300yd+) shots. However, I think it can be important in other cases. I'll give a couple examples.

I'm sitting on a brushy/wooded hillside watching the opposite hillside (200yds or so), when I see movement on my side of the hill about 100 yards through the trees/brush. With my Bino's, I see that its a deer walking up the hill. I raise my rifle and can just see it silouhetting up the hillside. Watching ahead of the deer, I see a small opening and as the deer goes through the opening, I see its a nice little 4x4 whitetail. I decide that the next opening I'm going to shoot. I pick an opening about a foot wide and just as the deer gets to the opening, it stops and starts looking around. The only thing I can see other than the horns, is an apple sized opening at the base of the ear. I take a breath, let half out and squeeze.

Without the faith in that rifle (Rem 700/7mm) I wouldn't/couldn't have made that shot. My hunting buddies couldn't believe I made that shot, even though it was only around 100yds.

Second example. Hunting Mule deer, last day of season and my friend Dennis had the only unfilled tag. We walk up on a group of deer and one of them is a nice 26" buck. Unfortunately he is standing directly behind a doe. We can only see his head and about 4 " of his neck. The distance is around 200yds and we have no rest. Dennis is one of the best offhand shooters I've every been around, I whisper to him to take the buck before he runs. Dennis says, "I can't see the vitals". I say "shoot him at the base of the ear". Dennis clicks the safety off and a second later, a bullet from his (Rem 700/7mm) flies between the does ears (3" over her head) and takes the buck at the base of the ear. If I didn't know how Dennis could shoot and that his rifle was capable of 1" groups at 200yds, I wouldn't have had him take the shot.

Neither of these shots was Long, but was only capable with an expert shooter and an extremely accurate rifle.

AJ

SeekHer · November 11, 2005, 01:15 AM

Quote:

Today 08:58 PM AJ Peacock
A 1/2 MOA rifle enables expert marksmen to take/make shots that would be questionable with less accurate rifles. Most posters have made this case for longer (300yd+) shots.
Without the faith in that rifle (Rem 700/7mm) I wouldn't/couldn't have made that shot.
Neither of these shots was Long, but was only capable with an expert shooter and an extremely accurate rifle.

In long range hunting the faith in the rifle/bullet/hunter combo is the most important thing...Would you pass up a trophy of a lifetime because it was just a little farther Away than usual?

My uncle's 100 year old Winchester 94 .30 WCF will group about 2½ to 3" at 100 yards, which is fine as in the terrain he hunts, he has never made a shot more than 90 yards.

In benchrest/target you can put five (5) bullets into one whole and lose because of score or grouping and that would be far greater than what is necessary in the typical hunting rifle.

So long as the groups are smaller then the vital area you are shooting at, you'll probably make the kill--sorry, harvest the consumable--has been said before and is correct.

Idealy, you need ¼ to ½ MOA for making head shots on humans or prairie rodents, ½ to ¾ MOA on predators, ¾ to 1 MOA for sheep, goats & human torso, 1 to 1½ MOA for deer and bear, 1½ to 2 MOA for moose or elk.

Basic rule of thumb: the closer to the target the larger the group can be.
The furthur away the smaller the group has to be.

wvrifleman · November 27, 2005, 01:29 PM

recently purchased a Mossberg ATR 100 in .270 that will shoot factory ammo (Federal Fusion 130 grain bullets) into 1.5" or so off the bench for 5 shots. I'm quite happy with that accuracy, since this rifle is only for hunting and not benchrest competitions.

I agree with goalie on this.Also have a mossberg in .270.i'm using remington 130 gr core-loks with a BSA contender 6x24. 1" to 1.5" moa off the bench and have 2 bucks in 1st three days of wv whitetail season with it so far.i'll put a pic or 2 of my 11 point on here as soon as i get them.

November 7, 2005, 07:18 PM	#27
injun Member Join Date: November 2, 2005 Posts: 16	The limits of hunter and gun. I think every hunter should have first most and foremost on his mind that he has the personal responsibility to know that the shot he fires is going to hit his game in an area which give swift, humane kill. That said, a sub MOA would seem to be very important to an individual taking a 350 yard shot. But moreover, it is not required for an individual to enjoy hunting and to ethically take game. There are hunters who should never attempt a 350 yard shot, either because the gun or the hunter's own skills limit the probably of hitting the vitals somewhere along the lines of a crap shoot. I have passed on shots because i felt they where beyond my ability to complete successfully. Even so, I still was able to bag most of the game after rewarding stalks. And isn't that what hunting is all about?

November 10, 2005, 10:58 PM	#28
AJ Peacock Senior Member Join Date: October 17, 2004 Location: SE Michigan Posts: 127	Awesome accuracy is a 'nice to have'. A 1/2 MOA rifle enables expert marksmen to take/make shots that would be questionable with less accurate rifles. Most posters have made this case for longer (300yd+) shots. However, I think it can be important in other cases. I'll give a couple examples. I'm sitting on a brushy/wooded hillside watching the opposite hillside (200yds or so), when I see movement on my side of the hill about 100 yards through the trees/brush. With my Bino's, I see that its a deer walking up the hill. I raise my rifle and can just see it silouhetting up the hillside. Watching ahead of the deer, I see a small opening and as the deer goes through the opening, I see its a nice little 4x4 whitetail. I decide that the next opening I'm going to shoot. I pick an opening about a foot wide and just as the deer gets to the opening, it stops and starts looking around. The only thing I can see other than the horns, is an apple sized opening at the base of the ear. I take a breath, let half out and squeeze. Without the faith in that rifle (Rem 700/7mm) I wouldn't/couldn't have made that shot. My hunting buddies couldn't believe I made that shot, even though it was only around 100yds. Second example. Hunting Mule deer, last day of season and my friend Dennis had the only unfilled tag. We walk up on a group of deer and one of them is a nice 26" buck. Unfortunately he is standing directly behind a doe. We can only see his head and about 4 " of his neck. The distance is around 200yds and we have no rest. Dennis is one of the best offhand shooters I've every been around, I whisper to him to take the buck before he runs. Dennis says, "I can't see the vitals". I say "shoot him at the base of the ear". Dennis clicks the safety off and a second later, a bullet from his (Rem 700/7mm) flies between the does ears (3" over her head) and takes the buck at the base of the ear. If I didn't know how Dennis could shoot and that his rifle was capable of 1" groups at 200yds, I wouldn't have had him take the shot. Neither of these shots was Long, but was only capable with an expert shooter and an extremely accurate rifle. AJ

November 7, 2005, 01:57 PM	#26
Olaf Senior Member Join Date: June 12, 2005 Location: not from Svalbard Posts: 346	I completely agree with most here. Consistency is more important than absolute group size. The standard I use, for myself, is.... if I can place all shots within a 6" circle at 100 yards.... good enough...especially since I hunt with iron sights....and only out to about 150 yards, maximum.

November 27, 2005, 01:29 PM	#30
wvrifleman Member Join Date: April 8, 2005 Posts: 25	recently purchased a Mossberg ATR 100 in .270 that will shoot factory ammo (Federal Fusion 130 grain bullets) into 1.5" or so off the bench for 5 shots. I'm quite happy with that accuracy, since this rifle is only for hunting and not benchrest competitions. I agree with goalie on this.Also have a mossberg in .270.i'm using remington 130 gr core-loks with a BSA contender 6x24. 1" to 1.5" moa off the bench and have 2 bucks in 1st three days of wv whitetail season with it so far.i'll put a pic or 2 of my 11 point on here as soon as i get them.