Comp Rocks

[acasto]

Had the chance to watch my first 1000yd comp this past weekend. It is amazing how those guys could shoot. It was at the Bayou Rifles club, and man was the wind blowing.
I don't think I could have hit a target at 300yds, let alone 1000.
Had a chance to talk for a few minutes with WalkerTexasRanger about getting into the sport. Thanks Mark for taking the time to answer my questions.
Another shooter let me borrow his spotting scope and watch the fun.
Now, if I can just sell these two cowboy pistols I have...

Great forum.

 

[spclark]

You gotta get behind a gun... even a borrowed one.

The fun you had watching is even more fun when you're the one pulling the trigger.

 

[acasto]

You're killing me.

 

[spclark]

No, I'm just telling you like it is.

Be thankful you discovered long range before you're 50 years old,I'll be 60 in April & only stumbled onto it three years ago) while your eyes are still good.

Be thankful too you live in an area of this fine country where you can expect to shoot maybe 10 or 11 months out of the year, and shooting isn't something your neighbors and state politicians want to prevent.,I've lived up at the north east corner of Illinois most of my life & we get to shoot outdoors maybe 6 - 6-1/2 months of the year at best. I don't have to tell you about the political situation up here, with Chicago affecting everything that happens in the state I trust....)

WTR will steer you down the right path. Don't cross him & he may just help you out along the way.

 

[acasto]

And I appreciate your input.
However, I hit the magical 50 mark in January. Already had lasik on both eyes about 3 years ago.
I will do my best to stay on the good side of WTR and others like yourself who share the hard earned info that you have.

I have already sold one rifle since last weekend, and will soon have the funds to put together a Savage based rifle.
Need to find a local smith who will receive and transfer the rifle for me.

I'm on the fence about putting together a rifle based on the savage target action and custom barrel and stock, or going with the Savage F/TR and just getting it tuned up as needed.

Any comments?

 

[Mark Walker in TX]

Thanks for the kind words, it was a pleasure to meet you at the match, and nice to see you here on the forum.

You aren't kidding, it was sure windy!! I had to keep telling myself it was just as windy for everyone else. Didn't help with my scores, but it made me feel a little better at least.

Mr. Clark is right, we are blessed to live in Texas. Gun friendly and even on one of the coldest mornings of the year, we still got to go get a little trigger time.

Once you get the Savage up and running, we will be requiring you to come back to H-Town and join us for another match. Next time, of course, it will be doing more than just watching!!

Keep the questions coming. You are right, this is a great forum, and the folks here will always try to help.

The group at Bayou is the same, always helpful. You just happened to talk to David Gosnell and myself, but if you had talked to any of the other guys, your experience would have been the same.

You can grab my email address here on the site if you have any questions I can help you with offline, or if you ever want to call me, send me a note with your # and I'll give you a call.

If you get up and running quick, and want to hop right into the fire, the TSRA State Midrange Championship is the March 28th and 29th in Bastrop at Camp Swift. F-Class shot at 300, 500, and 600. There will be some of the very best shooters in the country attending, and several of the National Team.

Stay in touch!

Mark

 

[acasto]

Thanks again, Mark.
I picked up a Savage in 308 Sunday at Cabelas, and ordered my Weaver T36 this evening. I plan on being in Bastrop at the end of the month to watch and pick up some more pointers.

Tony

 

[FTRshooter]

Bah, I've shot with WTR quite often. He can't hit the side of a barn with the side of a barn, from inside the barn.

Seriously Mark is a gifted shooter and a great competitor. You can learn a lot from Mark, especially what not to do. ,Just kidding on that last bit.)

I did not go the March LR match as I was at Greenwood the day before at the 600yard.

I don't know who suggested you buy a T-36 but that's a great idea. That's what I have on my rifle right now. Just make sure you bought the F/C reticle with Target Dot. It's a fine, inexpensive F-class scope and you will do well with it.

The Savage FTR looks like nice rifle and should serve you well.

Denys

 

[acasto]

Thanks for the help. It was WTR that suggested the Weaver.
Said it was a good scope for the money. It just arrived this evening from Midway. I did get the fine crosshair and target dot.
I did'nt get the Savage FTR. I picked up a Savage model 10 FCP with the Choate tactical stock. Finish is a little rough on the stock, but nothing I can't handle.
Hope to get to the range sometime next week for some sight in and break in time.
I will be searching this site to get some good load data soon.

Do I need to do anything special or out of the ordinairy when mounting the scope? Should I shim,if necessary) to get the scope close to a 200 or 300 yd zero without changing the factory settings, or just mount it and sight in from there?

Tony

 

[js223]

acasto, I'd suggest using the Burris Signature Zee rings and an offset insert kit. With them you can move the scope for longer distances and keep it closer to optical center,instead of twirling the snot out of the elevation knob). They would be a real benefit for 1000yds, as you'll need alot of elevation for that.

 

[FTRshooter]

Acasto, by the Savage 10FCP you don't mean the one with a muzzle brake do you? I sure hope not because muzzle brakes are not allowed in any NRA Highpower competition.

BTW, there is a 600 yard match at Bayou rifles tomorrow. I should be there.

You will need a canted rail to get to 1000 yards with the scope you are using. The T-36 has about 43 MOA of total internal travel and that is simply not sufficient for the 308 at 1000 yards. From a 100 yard zero, you need to have about 35-40 MOA of elevation to get to that distance. JS223's recommendation is a good one and in fact I am using that method in my newly rebarreled .308 for F-Class. I will be using that rifle for LR exclusively. It's wearing a Nikon 6.5-20X44 right now but will get a T-36 or a Nightforce in a little while.

My current F-class rifle wears a T-36 but I am using a 20MOA rail on it. It worked fine for both MR and LR but I am now only going to be using the rifle for MR if my new setup works out as I hope it will.

The Burris rings is one way of doing it for not a whole lot of money, the other way is to get a rail for the Savage from anyone of a dozen or more manufactures, such as Ken Farrell, Seekins, and many others. For 1000 yards, with a 308 in a 24 inch barrel, you may want to consider a 25 MOA rail or even a 30 MOA rail. There are probably sellers to consider right here at the 6mmbr site.

So what kind of bullet will you be loading for that rifle; with a 1:10 twist you have access to a whole range of bullet lengths.

 

[acasto]

No, it does not have a muzzlebrake. It does have a 26' heavy barrel.
My plan is to cut my teeth at 300 and 600 yds. Might be a little easier than jumping in with the big boys. So, with that in mind, do I still need to shim the scope that much?
With reloading supplies in high demand, all I could find to load is some Hornady 168 BTHP match, some 168 BTSP and some 150 SSTs. Got several powders to choose from. Varget, reloader 15 and 4064. Got a box of CCI br2 primers.
Thanks for all the help. Wish I could be at the Bayou shoot to meet you, but I live north of San Antonio and can't get away.

 

[FTRshooter]

No muzzle brake and a 26 inch barrel, you are good to go.

I would suggest Varget with the 168gr bullets. Right on the Varget canister you will find your load. Last thime I was using a 168gr, I was loading at 46gr of Varget in Lapua or Winchester cases. I moly-coated my bullets, so I would suggest you work up to about 45.5gr of Varget, that seems like a sweet spot and it will give your the velocity you need.

As for the scope, you should be able to get to 600 yards nicely without a canted rail, though I will suggest you look closely at those Burris Signature rings. You can always change the offsets later on. You will need about 9MOA above your 300 yard zero with that load. The 300 yard zero will be about 5 MOA up from 100 yards. So a total of about 14 MOAs from 100 will get you nicely in the black at 600.

 

[js223]

You *may* need to shim it for 600 yds. I say that because I had to on a 223. It needed some up for 100 yds, and first time at 600 I ran out of adjustment,44 MOA range in scope). Had to hold on the top of the target frame to put 'em in the center. During the down-time, I put an offset in the Burris ring and took some off the scope. Fixed it up nicely.
Remember, if you have 43 MOA total, then it's actually 21.5 MOA from the center. If you need alot of up just for 100, as I did, then 600 will be a problem. If not, you'll make it without shims.
But I'd still recommend them, since you plan to eventually try 1000 yds.

 

[acasto]

Completely agree on the quality of Burris Signature Zee rings. Used them before on several rifles.
I am limited right now to using some Talley mounts that have the rings built to the base. So, I probably will have to shim.

Thanks for all the good suggestions. As soon as I get my reloading bench set up, I will try the Varget load.