Why 6mm at MidRange?

[kyreloader]

I am curious why others shoot 6mm or other calibers at midrange while shooting a 7mm at long range?

In starting shooting, I have been told or had embedded into my psyche to shoot a precise 6mm (Dasher/BR) or 6.5 (6.5x47) for midrange. Whereas, I have been instructed to shoot a 7mm (284 or improved/7RSAUM) or recently 300 WSM for long-range.

My main question is why?

Last year, I decided I would shoot my .284 Win at both mid and long-range. I noticed that the .284 is definitely precise enough to shoot midrange matches (shot a 599 with it/cleans at 300y etc.). I also was competitive with it in midrange matches even occasionally beating Dashers and BRs.

The ballistics even at 300 yards are better than the 6mms. I have heard the argument for the recoil difference and it is easier to shoot the 6mms over the 7mms for a match. I agree, but how many points should you expect to give up to recoil versus improved ballistics of the 7mms.

I am leaning towards shooting only my .284 Win this year again for both midrange and long range matches even though I have a phenomenal 6 Dasher barrel for my action.

Can someone talk me into shooting my 6mm for midrange and my 7mm for long range? If so, why??

 

[JohnKielly]

Wear & tear on the body & cost are two elements that come to mind.

 

[spclark]

I think it's a matter of personal choice what the 'best tool for the job' might be.

Budget certainly is a factor (shoot more for less) as well as tolerance for getting beat up by recoil. Latter being mostly why folks don't use 300WM much beyond maybe one match a day.

I shoot 6's (6XC and / or 6HAGAR) for mid-range, prefer 308 (Palma rifle with 155.5's) for long range... at least until this year. I've kept up with 6.5-284's with my 6XC at 1,000 yards (sling + irons) more than once.

Project for 2016 is a 7mm for 1,000 yard any/any. I'm stopping short of 284WIN for the time being, not convinced I need it enough to subject myself to recoil 44+ rounds in an afternoon. I'll post more once this particular project nears completion.

 

[lawrence97]

Pick the caliber that you can shoot the most accurately at distance of choice.

I fireform form my 284 shehane at midrange and full loads at 1000. My fireform loads give me mid to high 590's at 600yd matches with high x counts shooting re17 and 180 sierras.

I did shoot a dasher at that range for some time and if that were the only distance I shot at I would use it due to cost, recoil, accuracy, barrel life and easier to get rds down range a lot quicker when the condition is right.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

I love it when my friends show up to 300 and 500 yard matches with 7mm's. I've shot two consecutive 599's with about 2/3X's @ 500 yards while fireforming for my dasher. Talk about low-recoil!

For me, the dasher provides me with low-cost training and a slight advantage when the wind isn't cutting us to pieces.

When things do get wicked, the 7mm is the only way to go - especially at 500 and 600!

 

[WindSurgeon]

I shoot .284 Winchester for both mid and long range. I can see no good reason to own both calibers unless you simply want to complicate matters. I think the 6 dasher is a proven winning caliber in addition to the strait .284. The guys that shoot dasher at both mid and long range do very well at the matches. It is really a matter of preference and I feel that it is more important to get comfortable behind a rifle and stick with what works. Most people don't get a lot of time to shoot and halving your time between two guns reduces the time getting comfortable behind the gun and how it shoots.

 

[Terry]

This appears to be a F-Class post.

In Benchrest the 6BR or 6 Dashers shoot 2" groups at 600 yards, most 7's can't do that. Even at 1,000 the BR/Dasher often shoot smaller groups.

 

[kyreloader]

I started this thread inferring Fclass. Sorry I did not place that in the original post.

 

[kyreloader]

I love it when my friends show up to 300 and 500 yard matches with 7mm's. I've shot two consecutive 599's with about 2/3X's @ 500 yards while fireforming for my dasher. Talk about low-recoil!

For me, the dasher provides me with low-cost training and a slight advantage when the wind isn't cutting us to pieces.

When things do get wicked, the 7mm is the only way to go - especially at 500 and 600!

The last midrange match I shot at my home club, myself and another straight .284 Win tied with 599s. 42Xs won with 36 coming in second. We both beat multiple 6BRs/Dashers/BRXs. Our range is noted for having benign conditions. I still do not feel handicapped with my 7mm.

 

[Heman]

As a sling shooter the biggest reason is recoil and keeping a tight position I have a .280 Rem for LR (180s at 2920fps) and a .243 Win (105's at 3,300 fps) that is the big match MR rifle and backup LR rifle. I've never shot my 280 at MR and won't because from 300-600yds the ballistics are more mathematical than actual. My position stays way tighter with the 243 and that is worth way more than having more recoil. I'm pushing 105 Nosler/Hornady/Barnes (whatever I find the cheapest) at close to 3,300 fps, as I save the 105 Hybrids for LR. So I'm not giving anything up to a 7mm for MR. The only difference I've noticed between the two is in a fishtailing wind the .243 does get pushed a little more at 1000. But again for mid-range I don't think that is going to happen.

Actually I built a .223 palma rifle and this past season it did very well for me, winning the season MR championship at Atterbury, the MR regional and the ISRPA MR state championship. I've shot cleans at the 300, 500, and 600 yd lines with it. The other two shooters that finished behind me at the MR regional were shooting 6 BR and .308 palma and I wasn't doping the wind any harder than they were It is like shooting a small bore rifle and VERY pleasant to shoot.

Now I will say two of our top F-class shooters at Atterbury are running 284 Shehannes but that is because they are shooting one rifle for both MR and LR. The other shooter shoots a 6mm for MR and then goes 7mm for Long Range.

Shooting is all about position and wind reading.

 

[watercam]

That said, the .243 shoots VERY well at 1K.

 

[swed6.5]

I have 3 reasons why 2 guns 2 ranges, 1st i believe and tune for the range/yardage i shoot at, second when u get a good hummer of a barrel that shines at 1k why burn it up at 300/600. 3rd i like to learn how to read wind conditions and i know a300wss aint teaching me how wind flags work at 300. Simple answer!

 

[WindSurgeon]

This appears to be a F-Class post.

In Benchrest the 6BR or 6 Dashers shoot 2" groups at 600 yards, most 7's can't do that. Even at 1,000 the BR/Dasher often shoot smaller groups.

Two qualifiers to that statement: 1) Guys shooting 7 mm often win mid range matches against 6's ; 2) Once the wind kicks up, the 7's shoot better at 600 and 1000 hands down in the hands of an average shooter.

A .284 won both the mid and long range F-Class Nationals this year.

 

[Heman]

Watercam, you ignorance shows as John Whidden has done quite well with the .243 at 1000yds and David Tubb shoots a 6XC which is slighly smaller case and has done well with it, as do a lot of the Georgia area shooters. I've seen Bryan Litz win the 1,200 yd match at Lodi with his .243 Win and he has gone from a .284 Win to a .243 Win for his 1000yd any rifle 2 years ago or so. So please expand upon your statement as to why you say this. Like I said I shoot a .280 Rem for NRA Long Range, but don't hesitate to shoot the .243 either.

It isn't the cartridge that wins matches it is the quality of the shooter. The NRA 1000yd iron sight record is held by Kent Reeves and he as shot it 3 times once with a 6.5x284 and twice with .308 using 2155 and 2156 bullets. Little bit of ballistic advantage between each of those.

 

[Keith Glasscock]

Please don't interpret my previous post as believing that 7's can't win at midrange - far from it!

I have a 284 barrel or two that are fully capable, in a better shooter's hands, of setting records at midrange.

What I do like is improving myself with a little less ballistic performance. If I can shoot 599's with 40+ or - X's consistently @ 500 yards while fireforming, don't you think my performance will improve as a result?

In the end, I believe that the shooter's skill, not ballistic performance of the chosen equipment is what wins matches.

 

[dkhunt14]

This appears to be a F-Class post.

In Benchrest the 6BR or 6 Dashers shoot 2" groups at 600 yards, most 7's can't do that. Even at 1,000 the BR/Dasher often shoot smaller groups.

Doesn't matter discipline you are shooting. The fact is the little 6's outshoot the rest at 600 yards. Then factor in the cost and recoil. Matt

 

[jsuber]

Doesn't matter discipline you are shooting. The fact is the little 6's outshoot the rest at 600 yards. Then factor in the cost and recoil. Matt

+1. I have F-Open Rifles in .284 and 6X47 Lapua. Now if everyone was shooting 7s at 600 the point would be moot. In general the precision level goes up at 600. Of course this is due in part to distance but it's also due to the calibers most often used. I can assure you that my .284 is within an 1/8 moa of my 6 and my 6 is scarey accurate. I don't find it particularly hard to shoot the heavier kicking .284 but I do find that my level of concentration reboots more frequently. I predict that in spite of occasional anomalies, 6s will continue to be the mid-range caliber of choice among those who most often compete successfully in F-Open.
At the end of the day, while eveything else is the same, I'm seeing more and more that the two distances almost amount to different disciplines. Ask someone who shoots 1000 successfully then goes to one of the better midrange clubs. It's just a tad different. Regularly shooting well at 1000 in no way guarantees a spot on the leader board at a midrange club

 

[Heman]

+1 to what gstaylorg says and why I said previously I built my 223 palma rifle. 600 on in gives up nothing to the 308. At 1000 its taken some more fiddling with but even with 90gr SMKs I'm not affraid to pull it out for a palma match. As of now I'm planing on shooting it at the FB regional at Malvern this year. The 90's* will be an advantage over the 155s that is for sure.

* US Fullbore allows 92gr and under in .223, ICFRA has the weight limit, just in case someone starts wondering.

 

[Joe Salt]

Kyreloader If the recoil doesn't bother you go with the 7mm! you sound like your leaning that way. I'm building a 6mm Dasher just because I'm tiered of getting my but kick buy them. But I do love my 300 wsm's

joe Salt

 

[Immike]

Having both a small hammer and a big hammer is getting to be a popular choice of the "Hammer people" but that's up to you...