Project: 243 hunting/longrange rifle. Update march: HUNTING
- Thread starter Roe
- Start date
Re: Project: 243 hunting rifle capable of longrange. Update: Winter shooting
This project is more or less finished for me now. The rifle is already sold and the new owner will get it in May.
We were able to build a very capable rifle for shooting out to 800 meters/ 880 yards (didn't bother shooting it farther) that was both lightweight and inexpensive - it still shoots the original Sako factory barrel.
The High-Visibility project I had for the rifle works, allthough I will be making a few changes. Personally I don't really use the "direction colours" as I've been shooting these scopes alot, but it was very easy for novices to click the right way.
I'm now shooting steel in winter and you'll see how the shots impact lower. This can all be predicted accurately with ballistic programs. Since last, Vector Maskin have fitted a 20 MOA picatinny rail to my rifle, I've Duracoated the stock anew and Duraheated my Atec moderator. Also included some scenery, thought this might be of exotic interest to some.
The latest video from the project can be seen here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aagve9y1NJY
I'm privileged enough to live in a fairly scenic part of the world
This is my present range, I pretty much have it to myself in winter
I pretty much shoot year round regardless of conditions - time off from work dictates the shooting, not the weather. Today the weather was excellent.
A quick-fix bracket for hanging the steel and a lenght of fluorescent surveyor's tape to act as a wind flag. Works superb for very little money.
Here's todays result at 386m/ 422yds. As predicted the shots would group low, and two clicks up put them centre.
This project is more or less finished for me now. The rifle is already sold and the new owner will get it in May.
We were able to build a very capable rifle for shooting out to 800 meters/ 880 yards (didn't bother shooting it farther) that was both lightweight and inexpensive - it still shoots the original Sako factory barrel.
The High-Visibility project I had for the rifle works, allthough I will be making a few changes. Personally I don't really use the "direction colours" as I've been shooting these scopes alot, but it was very easy for novices to click the right way.
I'm now shooting steel in winter and you'll see how the shots impact lower. This can all be predicted accurately with ballistic programs. Since last, Vector Maskin have fitted a 20 MOA picatinny rail to my rifle, I've Duracoated the stock anew and Duraheated my Atec moderator. Also included some scenery, thought this might be of exotic interest to some.
The latest video from the project can be seen here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aagve9y1NJY
I'm privileged enough to live in a fairly scenic part of the world
This is my present range, I pretty much have it to myself in winter
I pretty much shoot year round regardless of conditions - time off from work dictates the shooting, not the weather. Today the weather was excellent.
A quick-fix bracket for hanging the steel and a lenght of fluorescent surveyor's tape to act as a wind flag. Works superb for very little money.
Here's todays result at 386m/ 422yds. As predicted the shots would group low, and two clicks up put them centre.
The last two weeks I've been off helping with the roe doe cull at a property in Scotland.
Short version of the trip is:
Good to see the bastard Rockie
.
First week nice weather, plenty animals. Second week crap weather and ditto deer. Finished with excellent weather on the last day and saw 18 roe (that's a lot for forest stalking)
Very happy with my Sako Forester 243. Delivered 17 game perfectly to the cooler. Using the Hornady 87gr Vmax and finding it excellent for these deer.
Fairly cold but proper equipments kept me fat'n happy.
The pictorial resume:
The weather vane on the house, keeping very much in style with the owners.
The terrier bastard Rockie. A dog of absolute loyalty as long as you rope him securely
Both of us on looking from a high position. Have much use of the dog pointing deer for me, especially at last light.
Going down into the forest on windy days, the roe simply doesn't go out and you can't force them or follow them inside these forests.
The weather when I came, a little snow and about the right temperature. Small hills compared to NZ, but my body isn't what it used to be so still struggling here.
The snow rapidly reclined with the temperature steady on the plus side.
Had a fair bit of the usual rain. A poncho for roof, keeping water off the lenses was great.
Fog quickly rolling in always a problem. 3 days of non-visibility.
A couple of minutes after the above picture.
Difficult to stalk in this kind of weather, the deer is onto me long before I can see it. Can anyone point out the stag?
Visibility NIL. Nothing to do but wait
My tripod attended as usual. Always bringing what I need to use any chance for a shot.
Brought a rear bag filled with some lightweight material. Most of the properties of sand, but not the weight. It's possibly one of the best accuracy enhancers you can bring for longrange shooting!
Here is the practical result of my HI-VIS scope turret project, you can easily read them in even the very last possible shooting light.
Did some target practice on the very windy days. 450'ish meters (appr 500 yds) and 7-9 m/ sec wind through a forest gate and over a valley. Overcompensated the wind by 2 or 3 clicks and slightly high, but still a good shot.
Ground frozen solid and the bullet stopped at the surface.
Luckily there was plenty of deer movement on the good-weather days. Saw between 5-8 deer on every outing.
The Hornady Vmax puts these small deer down very well and uniformly. With headshots it was plain gruesome, but through the shoulder it opened up uniformly at all ranges and dropped the deer right there. Click on the links if you want to see how the bullet performs, no headshots included.
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
Using an A-tec moderator on my rifle. Just one thing to say - short barrels and moderators have come to stay on my rifles. Nothing but good to say about this combo and no pratical difference from shooting a long barreled rifle.
The highlight on this trip was a very confused buck standing 20 meters away from me with his doe shot dead. It looked all over the place, went into the forest, came back out, turned around and was generally lost until I whistled at him. That certainly put a fright into him
Duraheated the moderator green; mostly out of vanity as I don't like black gun parts unless it's proper bluing. Duraheat/Duracoat is a finish I'm very happy with, just be very pertinent with the surface preparation!
I bought this "upland birds half-vest" from Cabelas about 10 years ago. Very happy with it, carrying a sitting plate, butchering tools and camera in it
A super product for staying fat'n happy in the slow-paced stalking that roe is.
My 35-40'ish litre backpack. Holds what I need to be fat'n happy: Rain pocho, thich fleece, mittens, sleeping pad, backrest, tripod. For overnighters a cooker, tin and mountain bag as well as some food.
Fat'n happy. Clothes don't create heat, they just insulate and reduce your heat loss. Close all hatches as soon as you've stopped sweating, and open up again before you start moving. Only way known to me that you'll be able to stay at it hard enough for days and weeks - the opporunities on roe can be very fleeting and yu need to catch it.
I was actually coldest indoors! Scottish stone houses are as good as any walk-in cooler, here wearing double socks, wool underwear, wool pant, sweater, heavy fleece and still feeling a bit frosty ;D
All in all a trip I was very pleased with, a good result and some good excercise.
Have quite a bit of video that need to be edited, stalked and filmed som every nice bucks that some lucky hunter will possibly get a chance at.
Unfortunately my faithful Canon G9 met it's manufacturer in the inclement weather so there will be a pause in my video blogs now, but have enough material for about 2 or 3 episodes.
Rifle now sold, my next project is:
6.5x284 in moderated 20" barrel.
Short version of the trip is:
Good to see the bastard Rockie
. First week nice weather, plenty animals. Second week crap weather and ditto deer. Finished with excellent weather on the last day and saw 18 roe (that's a lot for forest stalking)
Very happy with my Sako Forester 243. Delivered 17 game perfectly to the cooler. Using the Hornady 87gr Vmax and finding it excellent for these deer.
Fairly cold but proper equipments kept me fat'n happy.
The pictorial resume:
The weather vane on the house, keeping very much in style with the owners.
The terrier bastard Rockie. A dog of absolute loyalty as long as you rope him securely
Both of us on looking from a high position. Have much use of the dog pointing deer for me, especially at last light.
Going down into the forest on windy days, the roe simply doesn't go out and you can't force them or follow them inside these forests.
The weather when I came, a little snow and about the right temperature. Small hills compared to NZ, but my body isn't what it used to be so still struggling here.
The snow rapidly reclined with the temperature steady on the plus side.
Had a fair bit of the usual rain. A poncho for roof, keeping water off the lenses was great.
Fog quickly rolling in always a problem. 3 days of non-visibility.
A couple of minutes after the above picture.
Difficult to stalk in this kind of weather, the deer is onto me long before I can see it. Can anyone point out the stag?
Visibility NIL. Nothing to do but wait
My tripod attended as usual. Always bringing what I need to use any chance for a shot.
Brought a rear bag filled with some lightweight material. Most of the properties of sand, but not the weight. It's possibly one of the best accuracy enhancers you can bring for longrange shooting!
Here is the practical result of my HI-VIS scope turret project, you can easily read them in even the very last possible shooting light.
Did some target practice on the very windy days. 450'ish meters (appr 500 yds) and 7-9 m/ sec wind through a forest gate and over a valley. Overcompensated the wind by 2 or 3 clicks and slightly high, but still a good shot.
Ground frozen solid and the bullet stopped at the surface.
Luckily there was plenty of deer movement on the good-weather days. Saw between 5-8 deer on every outing.
The Hornady Vmax puts these small deer down very well and uniformly. With headshots it was plain gruesome, but through the shoulder it opened up uniformly at all ranges and dropped the deer right there. Click on the links if you want to see how the bullet performs, no headshots included.
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
LINK VMAX EFFECT
Using an A-tec moderator on my rifle. Just one thing to say - short barrels and moderators have come to stay on my rifles. Nothing but good to say about this combo and no pratical difference from shooting a long barreled rifle.
The highlight on this trip was a very confused buck standing 20 meters away from me with his doe shot dead. It looked all over the place, went into the forest, came back out, turned around and was generally lost until I whistled at him. That certainly put a fright into him
Duraheated the moderator green; mostly out of vanity as I don't like black gun parts unless it's proper bluing. Duraheat/Duracoat is a finish I'm very happy with, just be very pertinent with the surface preparation!
I bought this "upland birds half-vest" from Cabelas about 10 years ago. Very happy with it, carrying a sitting plate, butchering tools and camera in it
A super product for staying fat'n happy in the slow-paced stalking that roe is.
My 35-40'ish litre backpack. Holds what I need to be fat'n happy: Rain pocho, thich fleece, mittens, sleeping pad, backrest, tripod. For overnighters a cooker, tin and mountain bag as well as some food.
Fat'n happy. Clothes don't create heat, they just insulate and reduce your heat loss. Close all hatches as soon as you've stopped sweating, and open up again before you start moving. Only way known to me that you'll be able to stay at it hard enough for days and weeks - the opporunities on roe can be very fleeting and yu need to catch it.
I was actually coldest indoors! Scottish stone houses are as good as any walk-in cooler, here wearing double socks, wool underwear, wool pant, sweater, heavy fleece and still feeling a bit frosty ;D
All in all a trip I was very pleased with, a good result and some good excercise.
Have quite a bit of video that need to be edited, stalked and filmed som every nice bucks that some lucky hunter will possibly get a chance at.
Unfortunately my faithful Canon G9 met it's manufacturer in the inclement weather so there will be a pause in my video blogs now, but have enough material for about 2 or 3 episodes.
Rifle now sold, my next project is:
6.5x284 in moderated 20" barrel.
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