Target shooting rifle caliber

[CC268]

I posted about a good big game hunting caliber earlier, but I am thinking about getting a gun this summer that I can truly put some range time in to increase my shooting ability. I am not considering a 22LR or a .223 as I already have a .243 and I would like something that I can shoot at longer ranges to practice for hunting (plus something that will be a little closer to shooting a bigger caliber for big game).

I am thinking the .308 is the way to go because it is cheap to shoot, good barrel life, and not a ton of recoil. I think that caliber would really allow me to get some good time in and really increase my shooting ability.

Am I wrong? What do you guys think?

Thanks

[Vt.birdhunter]

.308 was the first thought that crossed my mind.
Fits your needs well.

[Ruger480]

If your going to practice basic rifle marksmanship at the range, keep in mind you are essentially learning to manage the gun you have in your hand. Case in point, if you pick a 308, you will essentially be learning to shoot a 308. Yes, some of those skills are transferrable but I put forth that if you have in mind to become a better shot with a caliber you intend to hunt with, you may as well practice BRM with that caliber.

If your intent is to hunt with a 300WM, you may as well learn to shoot the 300WM.
My 22 is not my 30-06. I can practice breathing techniques and trigger pull with my 22 but it's a different ball game with my other gun. For starters, my 22 is a Marlin 39A and my '06 is a Savage. Completely different ergonomics. I hold those guns differently. Therefore, I shoot them differently. Does that make sense?

[CC268]

Yes I understand completely. However, I believe that shooting anything and increasing my skills with any gun WILL transfer in some shape or form to any other gun. Yes, it may differ slightly from rifle to rifle, but it is better to practice with something than nothing at all.

[P-990]

What's wrong with using your .243? Are you afraid of wearing it out? That will take a few thousand rounds at any rate, and you can have it rebarreled cheaper than buying another rifle. Ammo cost a problem? Learn to reload, a .308 isn't going to be any cheaper to feed. Surplus ball ammo won't cut it accuracy-wise if you're looking to improve. Does the .243 not fit well? What is the .243 lacking that you are hoping to address with another rifle?

Sorry, I have to pick at "target shooting." I read it a lot, but it really means different things to everybody and generally when somebody comes on and posts "for target shooting" they're actually referring to "plinking." Random, informal shooting sessions just trying to hit things. Not that there is anything wrong with that (do plenty of it myself), but actual, dedicated competition target shooting is an entirely different animal and will set the parameters for the equipment you're looking for.

And why don't you want a .223 just because you have a .243? IME out to 600 yards you're hard pressed to find a round that does the job as economically with the low recoil, ready availability and excellent accuracy as the little mouse gun round. See my signature line, I used an AR-15 Service Rifle tossing little .224" pills out to 600-yards.

[Ruger480]

That is true.

[603Country]

Yep,get a 223. I never wanted one, thinking it was a generally worthless round, but one day I saw a nice 223 at a price I could not refuse. Now it gets used more than anything else I shoot. The big grand kids shoot it and now the little grand kids shoot it. They love blasting water bottles. Giant splash.

[Blindstitch]

I'm a fan of .308 caliber rifles but if i'm going to hunt with it i'm going to target shoot with it. All act differently. Trigger pull, grip, length, recoil, bolt handle shape and many more things.

But as others said reloading may or may not be the way to go. I have a 30-40 krag that's $40 for 20 shots vs 30-06 which has more powder and brass for $20 for 20. In this case I have to reload for the krag.

In your case I might pick up two rifles depending on your funds. Two identical ones or one used one to target shoot with that may be like or near like your final purchase.

[jersurf101]

I bought a .308 last year for the same purpose. components have been pretty easy to find and the caliber is not my limiting factor. I know there are better new calibers that will have a better BC at long range with less recoil but the .308 is tough to beat on a budget. Tooling and components are every where and the recoil is mild.

[CC268]

Alright well maybe I am just better off with the .243 and then getting something like a 300WM for big game. I try not to shoot my .243 a lot because someone on here it is a barrel burner and would only last about 800-1000 rounds. I guess I am better off just shooting whatever rifles I have that I will hunt with. I didn't have any intention of competition shooting, just becoming a better shot for longer range hunting (300+ yards).

I will take your guys' word for it and I will just shoot whatever I hunt with!

[makarov]

308 is a great choice. If you don't have a .223 that would be my first choice simply because the ammo is cheap. You might also look for a bolt gun in 7.62x39. CZ and Ruger make one. Ammo is cheap for those too.

[Blindstitch]

What kind of big game are you planning on hunting at those ranges?

I never want to discourage anyone from buying another rifle or two but the used market has a lot of guns on it that need homes and some are cheap but not cheaply made.

Beyond that I don't know the price of 300wm from store to store but a few months ago I saw a box at gander mountain for $60. Seems like you could buy a lot more 308 or 30-06 for that price.

[Slamfire]

You should not have crossed off the 223 from your list. My first thought was 308 Win as I still shoot that in competition but the 223 has advantages that the 243 and 308 does not. The 243 is a barrel burner and the 308 kicks. The 223 has very light recoil and it is wonderfully accurate. I shot a 223 any/any last month, that is prone with a sling but with a scope at 600 yards. The round is superbly accurate and the low recoil is very conducive to accuracy. I flinch with the 308 and it knocks me out of position. It is a lot harder to shoot well with a heavy recoiling caliber and you don't learn your positional errors as well with a caliber that does not knock you out of position.

I have been shooting smallbore prone and that is unforgiving for positional errors, and you see them. You pull the trigger, the gun slightly recoils, if it does not end up back in the center of the black, you know something is wrong, and the bullet went astray. Small bore prone has been great on follow through because if the gun does not recoil the same and return to the exact same position each time, you see it, and you see it on paper.

[kraigwy]

I'm the last person to say "you don't need a new caliber", any excuse is better then not getting a new gun. And the 308 is a good choice.


But don't discredit you 243 for long range practice round for hunting practice.

[CC268]

Yea I think I will just target shoot the guns I will hunt with like you guys are saying. I am sure at some point I will end up with a .308 anyways.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Alright well maybe I am just better off with the .243 and then getting something like a 300WM for big game. I try not to shoot my .243 a lot because someone on here it is a barrel burner and would only last about 800-1000 rounds.

800 rounds or so for a .243 is for uber-accurate competition use. Unless you and your gun can hold maybe 1/4" groups (real groups, not 3 shots) at 100 yards, you don't need to worry about it. You could probably triple that number before it's a real problem.

Besides, the ammo costs far more than the barrel. If you can't afford the barrel, you can't afford the ammo either. If you were saving money for a new barrel, you'd have to save $5-10 every range session with a .243 and $2-4 with a .308.

A .308 is a lot more recoil than I'd want in a target gun. Sure, it's tolerable but it's not something I want to go to the range with for a 100 round session.

A .243 can be used out to 1,000 yards (probably a good bit further under the right circumstances) and certainly any range that a normal hunter would shoot an animal.

[old roper]

I think it's good idea learn how to shoot rifle you plan on hunting with and I've yet to feel recoil when I'm shooting at elk etc.

When I go to the range shooting some of my hunting rifle I'll take along light recoil rifle it may be 222,223 or even 243AI. It kind of breaks up the recoil lets barrel cool down and I still get to shoot with same level of concentration on groups.

[CC268]

^^^ I agree...

Well at this point I have the .243 and it looks like I may pick up a 300 WM this summer. I won't worry so much about the .243 barrel life and I will start shooting the guns that I will hunt with!

[340 Weatherby]

I can think of nothing that would make me happier than to shoot enough to wear out a barrel. The trick is more guns to spread it out a little.

[CC268]

haha I guess that is a good way to look at it

[NavyVet1959]

Get a Thompson Encore and just start adding barrels to your collection.

I killed a lot more ducks with an old single shot .410 than I ever did with a 12-gauge autoloader. Perhaps only having only a single shot makes you more accurate?

[Jim243]

I am not considering a 22LR or a .223 as I already have a .243

So do I, but that is not the issue.


I have to admit that I have been saving my 243 and not shooting it as often as I would like, mostly due to the fact that the rifle ranges available to me within reasonable traveling distance are 100 yard ranges. (and that is still a 45 min drive) There are some 300 yard ranges available but are a hour and a half drive in each direction and at that point gas is costing me more than ammo to do it often. Anything that is 600 meters or better is a 3 hour drive away, and that is what I would like to shoot at, but I very, very seldom have the time or resources to follow up on going there.

Yes, 308 would be better to practice with and barrel life a bit better but I would rather reload my own ammo than use commercial or mil surplus for better accuracy.

So I went with a bolt action 223 Remington (recent purchase) which is what I reload the most and cheaply, not because it is a better caliber (it is not) but because it gives me the most trigger time to practice the basics and hone my skills. Most skills are transferable for me and it does give me more trigger time.

Your circumstances may be different, if not you may want to try the 223 option, you can always use it for varmint shooting as well.

Brian has given you some very good advice and I would follow it, but things are never the same for all of us and you need to follow your needs.

Good luck and shoot straight.
Jim

http://i620.photobucket.com/albums/tt284/bigjim_02/SAM_1127.jpg (http://s620.photobucket.com/user/bigjim_02/media/SAM_1127.jpg.html)

[trg42wraglefragle]

Even your 223 will be good out to 500 yards.
I'd practice my shooting with that, especially if ammo is a decent price. Hornady training ammo is generally pretty cheap and very accurate considering the price.

[CC268]

Yea I am sure I will have a bunch of new guns in the next five years after I graduate college :D. I am sure I will end up with a 223 at some point. I really need to get the stuff for reloading (and I may do that this summer), but I would also like to buy a 300WM too...so we will see what happens.

[zukiphile]

Jim,

Is that a Levange Linear on your rifle? I think those are interesting, but have never used one.

Does it do anything for you that another bit of barrel would not have?

Thanks

[Mobuck]

The .308 in a decent weight rifle is comfortable to shoot, isn't as sensitive to wind as many smaller calibers, and has a super selection of ammo/reloading components.

[Bob Thompson]

After many years of hunting most big game here in Utah with everything from stock 30-06 to custom .25-06 to 30-378 Weatherby magnums and everything in between including a nice Sharps 45-70 I have now resigned myself to target shooting from a bench just for the same practice you are talking about. Now on a limited budget I am shooting a nice 7mm-08 Ruger American with a 4-18 Tasco world class scope and with some small cartridge load development I am getting consistant sub 1" groups with some cloverleaf sub 1/2" groups all 6 shot strings.

It is easier to shoot many rounds at a sitting from a bench taking time to shoot, let cool and clean every 10 rounds or so. It is a highly enjoyable way to spend some quality range time especially with my wife for a spotter and to read wind gusts. A tail gate lunch out in the desert here and then some great .22 and AR plinking and carry handgun practice. A full day of quality shooting sport.

The 7mm-08 is a marvelous big game rifle as I have come to learn and can even be a fair varmint caliber as there are so many quality bullets in all weights to get when most other calibers are in short supply. Whats difficult right now is brass so I buy cheap loaded ammo and reload them. Prvi Partizen is just $16.00 a box of 20 and is very accurate to start with and gives me many reloads keeping away from max. loads. Just my take on continuing to enjoy the shooting sports at a senior age. Stay safe always. Bob

[Unlicensed Dremel]

Yep, shooting that .243 is perfect. .243 win is *pretty* cheap, relative to other "full-powered" rounds. A little less recoil than what you're ultimately training for, BUT at least a little bit of recoil - gives you ability to learn to handle it well without developing flinch.

I think Mr. Ruger480 and Mr. Pflueger speak wisely.