First blood with 6SLR - and the season is over

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Yes it is, Wayne. But no ice cream - she was anxious to get home to tell mom and dad and brother about her accomplishments. I took her brother out a week or so ago. He was 5 for 6. And his miss was due to him aiming at a small patch of dead hay instead of the groundhog. He kept wanting to keep his eye near the rear of the stock therefore limiting his field of view.

I just got my Savage 12BVSS back from Mike Scott. He put a brake on my new 243AI barrel and installed an adjustable cheek piece. The cheek piece should help the grandkids get their eye in the right position behind the scope. I need to take a photo and post - that new cheek piece is sweet.

 

[NCVarhtr]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Bill,
I have enjoyed reading about your Groundhog shooting and the daily reports. I like the sound and pictures of the 6 SLR case. You probably mentioned it somewhere but I missed it. What bullet/powder combination are you using and what kind of velocity are you getting? Thanks, George

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

NCVarhtr, I'm shooting 105 Amax and 105 Hybrids, both hBN coated. IMR7828ssc with CCI200s. I was running a little over 3200 MV out of a 28" barrel, but I have since backed it down to 3160ish after developing a little sticky bolt.

 

[NCVarhtr]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Bill,
Thanks for the load data information. Looks like you have a really great cartridge/load combination. I'm sorry I missed you this year when you down here in the Kinston area. Maybe next year...........George

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Same here, George. Sorry things didn't work out on our last trip to NC. Next year for sure.

 

[Cakes]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Bill- I've been shooting the 6SLR for several years now but haven't tried IMR 7828ssc. Do you get descent ES's with it? Might try it with some 115's. Thanks, Eric in DL

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

All I can say is sometimes. ??? Sometimes the ES's are good, sometimes not. I have a MagnetoSpeed strapped on for practically every shot. This evening, ES was excellent. I shot four groundhogs and the velocities were 3156, 3156, 3160, and 3152.

 

[Cakes]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Bill- Thanks for the info. I think I'll try some 7828ssc with the 115dtac's and see how they perform. Eric in DL

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - grannddaughter success

Let us know how it works with the 115s. Do you shoot coated bullets? I think I mentioned that I hBN coat all my bullets.

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

Took my daughter out yesterday morning to a field that I have been drooling over. The field is long, fairly narrow, flat and near a creek. Due to all the spring and early summer rain, the farmer finally got the first cutting of hay/alfalfa and the groundhogs have had all spring and summer to multiply and get fat.

My 243AI/12BVSS now has an adjustable cheek piece and it was easier for her to get lined up behind the scope than with my 6SLR/PTA.

She killed 10 with 12 shots. Shortest was 100 yards and the three longest were 400, 470, & 480 yards. Her two misses were actually my fault for not getting the range correct. The trees at the end of the field ranged 595 yards but the field was so flat that it was difficult to get an accurate reading on anything over 400 yards. On her first miss, I guessed the range too short, she missed, but I didn't see a bullet splash. After looking over everything a second time, I had her set the scope for 470 yards and she nailed the shot. On her second miss, I guessed too long and I saw her bullet splash just over the groundhog's head. I had her dial down 5 clicks (.625 MOA) and she smacked that one. She did let me shoot one at 250 yards with the 6SLR - but only because I was blocking her shot and she would have to pick up her bench to move around me. Season total now stands at 194.

My daughter is a decent shot but like Dogbone says, my new setup makes it real easy to hit those long shots. F T/R style bipod and stock mods so the rifle slides straight back on the rear bag. She missed seeing her first kill because the rifle kicked a little left. I told her to put a little shoulder into her next shots. She did and she saw all her his after that. And she got a big kick out of seeing the bullets hit her targets.

 

[Raythemanroe]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

Nice to see the younger Generations taking to it!

 

[Bangs OH]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

If she's already "unflinching" enough to see her hits and making long shots, I'd say she's more than a "decent" shot, Bill. Might be giving grandpa some competition before long.

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

You may know her or know of her, Lee. She is married now but was Jill Tucker of Centerburg. She loves to hunt deer and has killed deer with shotgun/rifled slugs and also cross bow.
Yeah, I should have said she is a good shot.

 

[Bangs OH]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

Oops, I see now it was your daughter you took out 'hog hunting last; you're gonna have a whole family of shooters, Bill. Actually, some of those Tuckers are in my family, somewhere. Like they say: everyone in Knox County is related in some way. :-\

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

I went back to the same field yesterday evening that I took my daughter to. 9 more fell to the 6SLR, the longest was around 400 yards IIRC. That field is 800 x 250 yards and FLAT. Hard to see them in 5" alfalfa at the far end.

And this evening I got just one (different alfalfa field) but it was at 596 yards. It took two shots. The first shot splashed an inch or so over its head. The 'hog moved a few feet and got nervous. I clicked down 1/4 MOA and nailed it with the next shot. There is about a 150 foot elevation drop between my shooting position and where the groundhog was, so that was probably why the first shot went high.

Season total is now at 204.

 

[Raythemanroe]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

How many misses?

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

How many misses?

Don't know. I was 1 for 2 last evening. 9 for 10 the evening before. With my setup, anything under about 300 yards is like shooting fish in a barrel.
Dogbone shot one with my setup. His comment afterward was there is no challenge on the short shots.
I'm shooting from a portable bench with an elevation adjustable bipod and a rear bag.
Here's the bench and bipod. I have the 243AI sitting on a 20 round cartridge box instead of the sand bag so the bottom of the stock can be seen.

 

[Raythemanroe]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

Does look nice!

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - daughter kills 10 w/ 243AI

Thanks, Ray. My groundhog setup has done a lot of evolving over the past few years. This is the most accurate and consistent setup I have ever had.

 

[Nomad47]

Re: First blood with 6SLR - omnivorous groundhog?

I got out this morning and shot 5 - longest was 404 yards. But the first two were the most interesting.
The first one I spotted was 154 yards, like shooting fish in a barrel for my setup. But just a few seconds after shooting it I see another groundhog in the same spot. When I looked thru the scope it appeared to be eating the first one. What?! A meat eating groundhog?! Cannibal?! Well, I shot it, too. Then after shooting three more it was time to pack up and go get lunch. But I had to go get a close look at those first two.
What I found was a pup and it's mom. The mom had blood on her nose and the top of her teeth which is visible in the photo. (And by the way, I didn't move either of the groundhogs for the photo.) She must have rolled her pup over because the exit wound is in the direction where the shot came from. And I think she was just trying to revive her pup. So, no cannibal. And it made me feel sad in a way.

Saw one this evening. 628 yards and I missed it twice. Not making excuses, but all I could see was its head and shoulders. Alfalfa was mowed two weeks ago and it is already 6 to 8 inches tall. Season total is now 223.