Stretched my PD record out to 2200 yards with witness...

[lrgoodger]

Dang it! No VHA anymore to submit those long shots to. My previous record of 1820 yards was in the Fall 2016 Varmint Hunter magazine. In case you missed it, my post about that is here;

http://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/i-did-it-1820-yard-pd-with-vha-witness.3846054/

When my best friend Rick from my teenage years showed up on my doorstep after 44 years last November, we got re-acquainted and I showed him that article and a lot of photos on my computer. "I usually go around the end of May", I told him. "We can go if you want." "I've never done that", he said, "Let's do it!"

We made the trip and he watched as I set up the gun (same 284 Shehane with a new barrel) and zeroed in on some mounds. It took less than 50 shots total, including zeroing, to make the hit. He was impressed by bullet flight times and started timing them while watching through my big spotting scope. When the dog flew off the mound at 2200 yards and thrashed around on the ground, he excitedly exclaimed, "You got him! It took seven seconds." I had plenty of time to put the gun back in place and watch the hit myself.

Rick made a couple of hits at 750 yards the next day. He is a Vietnam vet and the only dogs he had ever killed before were the two legged kind, but he did that as a helicopter tail gunner. He had no experience with long range rifles. We settled in to close range slaughter for the rest of the trip. He was a good student and had the best kill to shots fired ratio of anyone I have ever taught, but I think all the blood and guts may have stirred up his PTSD a bit. He told me a lot of war stories in the evenings after a day of shooting. I'm really glad I didn't have to go over there.

Ron

 

[K22]

You should go on the Outdoor Channel - considering the kill area of a Pdog, the distance, wind and mirage affects this has to be some kind of Impossible Shot.

 

[pauls]

"You should go on the Outdoor Channel - considering the kill area of a Pdog, the distance, wind and mirage affects this has to be some kind of Impossible Shot."

Eh, eh, not so quick K22. My buddy and I just returned from MT. Last year he hit one at 1880 yards, and this year tagged one at 2050 yards. It's doable. Gotta know your equipment, the ballistics of your round / cartridge, have good technique, and some luck.

He was using a .338 Lapua with high BC Flatline bullets / 40 MOA scope base with .013" shims underneath. As my son says, "it's just math with some luck thrown in".

 

[Hal]

Ron
Great story. It's interesting to know what's possible .
Any pictures of the rifle ?

Hal

 

[lrgoodger]

Ron
Great story. It's interesting to know what's possible .
Any pictures of the rifle ?

Hal

This is me at the setup just before I started shooting long range. It is early yet (9:20 AM - you can tell by the long shadows) and the sun is not high enough to create much mirage. We were lucky there was almost no wind that day. I built the bench from 2" thick oak and used 2" pipe for legs. It is stable as long as you don't touch anything but the 2 oz Jewel trigger when firing. The barrel is a straight 1 1/4" four groove Kreiger chambered in 284 Shehane. The action is a BAT MB. The stock is a bench rest stock made of some lightweight African wood by a friend of mine. There is almost two pounds of lead in the butt of the stock to counterbalance the barrel. The scope is a Schmidt & Bender 12.5 - 50 PMII. I shoot at minimum magnification to get maximum field of view so I can get it back in place and see the shot hit. It is on a 20 MOA rail and elevation is maxed out and I was using the large crosshair at the very bottom of the graduated reticle. The front rest is a SEB NEO that used to be dealer Ernie Bishop's personal rest. He shot prairie dogs with me on this ranch right after I bought it from him in 2012. The rear bag is a Protektor Dr. benchrest bag. The spotter is a Vortex Razor HD mounted on a heavy duty video tripod. The shooting stool is a Sinclair. The five legged design is not ideal for this type of terrain, but it works. The three legged drummer stool behind the tripod is a better choice. The lower photo shows we are set up atop a ridge just below the rocks. I am shooting at the treeline in the distance where the Cheyenne River flows through the valley.

 

[johnfred1965]

You mentioned the Cheyenne river in your pictures. I don't know where all that river runs, but my brother and I have been on the Cheyenne River Souix Reservation many times, always great shooting. Where were you if you don't mind giving up a good spot?

 

[VaRandy]

Dang it! No VHA anymore to submit those long shots to. My previous record of 1820 yards was in the Fall 2016 Varmint Hunter magazine. In case you missed it, my post about that is here;

http://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/i-did-it-1820-yard-pd-with-vha-witness.3846054/

When my best friend Rick from my teenage years showed up on my doorstep after 44 years last November, we got re-acquainted and I showed him that article and a lot of photos on my computer. "I usually go around the end of May", I told him. "We can go if you want." "I've never done that", he said, "Let's do it!"

We made the trip and he watched as I set up the gun (same 284 Shehane with a new barrel) and zeroed in on some mounds. It took less than 50 shots total, including zeroing, to make the hit. He was impressed by bullet flight times and started timing them while watching through my big spotting scope. When the dog flew off the mound at 2200 yards and thrashed around on the ground, he excitedly exclaimed, "You got him! It took seven seconds." I had plenty of time to put the gun back in place and watch the hit myself.

Rick made a couple of hits at 750 yards the next day. He is a Vietnam vet and the only dogs he had ever killed before were the two legged kind, but he did that as a helicopter tail gunner. He had no experience with long range rifles. We settled in to close range slaughter for the rest of the trip. He was a good student and had the best kill to shots fired ratio of anyone I have ever taught, but I think all the blood and guts may have stirred up his PTSD a bit. He told me a lot of war stories in the evenings after a day of shooting. I'm really glad I didn't have to go over there.

Ron

Congratulations on you accomplishment. It will be many years before even many accomplished shooters realize what is NOW possible with a purpose built rifle using the best components and assembled by a master gunsmith knowledgeable about his role in this quest. With decent ballistics available on a smart phone, Kestrels (with or without software) and affordable rangefinders, a good reloader can do proper research on loading data and with range time, produce a candidate for these kind of accomplishments.

I have all the above and will soon take a groundhog at a mile. To take one at your 2200 yards, I will have a candidate soon for your distance and even beyond. I would not want to try to beat you however, because as a retiree, I cannot afford to replace barrels that are shooting so much in such little time. To downsize the target to a Prairie Dog boggles my mind. Could I find the discipline to try it, firing no closer that 5 minutes apart, is iffy so I won't put myself in that position. (Hell, I can't even stay on a diet).

 

[shoot4fun]

Congratulations on your feat! Having taken one at over 1600 yards myself (Forever referred to as "the world's unluckiest prairie dog) I understand the planning, motivation and determination it requires to even attempt your success.
BTW, the hit was on round 79.

 

[Hal]

Ron

Thanks for sharing details of you long range setup.


Hal

 

[powderbrake]

Congratulations on an incredibly difficult shot !

I'm still looking for my 1000 yard hit, been in the 700's but I know that the right equipment, the right skills, the right conditions, and a little help from above will get me there. You just reaffirmed it's possible.

 

[CJ6]

First shot cold bore ?If not ....Well what's the point...Not meaning to ruffle the feathers ....But the VHA set the the whole "Patch" thing up just to get members. You can put as many rounds down range as you want till you hit whatever PD was in the way....PS nice rigs

 

[lrgoodger]

First shot cold bore ?If not ....Well what's the point...Not meaning to ruffle the feathers ....But the VHA set the the whole "Patch" thing up just to get members. You can put as many rounds down range as you want till you hit whatever PD was in the way....PS nice rigs

I'm not a military sniper. They are the one who need first shot cold bore. I shoot prairie dogs. Two different games.

 

[jghoghunter]

First shot cold bore ?If not ....Well what's the point...Not meaning to ruffle the feathers ....But the VHA set the the whole "Patch" thing up just to get members. You can put as many rounds down range as you want till you hit whatever PD was in the way....PS nice rigs

If your not trying to ruffle any feathers than why say anything?

 

[K22]

"You should go on the Outdoor Channel - considering the kill area of a Pdog, the distance, wind and mirage affects this has to be some kind of Impossible Shot."

Eh, eh, not so quick K22. My buddy and I just returned from MT. Last year he hit one at 1880 yards, and this year tagged one at 2050 yards. It's doable. Gotta know your equipment, the ballistics of your round / cartridge, have good technique, and some luck.

He was using a .338 Lapua with high BC Flatline bullets / 40 MOA scope base with .013" shims underneath. As my son says, "it's just math with some luck thrown in".

I still think it's amazing and would be an interesting topic on that show. It certainly equals or exceeds most of the shots I've seen on that Impossible Shots show.

 

[DHuffman]

I was whacking them north of you on the Grand river this morning. Nice shooting and gear!

 

[CJ6]

I'm not a military sniper. They are the one who need first shot cold bore. I shoot prairie dogs. Two different games.

So do I, and many others on here...It would just be great if people were honest and said "hey I got this one @ "X" yards and it only took X number of shots"....We all know the game.

 

[VaRandy]

The significance of the shot is ultimately with each reader. Would suggest though, that all realize the MOA value involved and the likely group at that range and what that would take. Skill, dedication, and first rate equipment made it possible for a critter the size of your dick to "walk into" the bullet. I give it 3% value for the "LUCK" factor.

 

[lrgoodger]

So do I, and many others on here...It would just be great if people were honest and said "hey I got this one @ "X" yards and it only took X number of shots"....We all know the game.

Well, I DID say it took less than 50 shots right in the original post. I wasn't counting, but I was also moving from mound to mound and had to fire a couple of shots to get the range each time I moved. Once I moved to the dog I hit, it only took a couple of shots to get the range and a couple more to make the hit. I don't just range one mound and stay there all day like some do when attempting such long range shots.

I have no desire to purchase instrumentation to get range and wind data for a first cold bore kill at such a distance. That's a different game.

How many such shots have YOU made?

 

[CJ6]

How many such shots have YOU made?

First trip out was in 81-82' and I couldn't even estimate how many rounds down range. Our group uses a Know Your Limits forum. Each shooter "picks" their first dog (range) and must back it up (range wise) within 5% of that yardage to count as a kill (1 shot one dog) but 2 dogs to verify yardage. Next "dog" must be at least 5% further than last...if you miss then you go back to base yardage and start over. At the end of the day the person with the most resets to base buys dinner..next would be cocktails etc. My best is 880 yds with a confirmation @ 902 yds. This is set up in a round robin style also. We've thought it was more about dogs down than rounds down range.

 

[lrgoodger]

First trip out was in 81-82' and I couldn't even estimate how many rounds down range. Our group uses a Know Your Limits forum. Each shooter "picks" their first dog (range) and must back it up (range wise) within 5% of that yardage to count as a kill (1 shot one dog) but 2 dogs to verify yardage. Next "dog" must be at least 5% further than last...if you miss then you go back to base yardage and start over. At the end of the day the person with the most resets to base buys dinner..next would be cocktails etc. My best is 880 yds with a confirmation @ 902 yds. This is set up in a round robin style also. We've thought it was more about dogs down than rounds down range.

See, now you have laid out rules for a completely different game. I wasn't playing your game, so why judge me by your rules? I and friends of mine have made those one shot kills, but at much shorter distances. We use ballistics programs and wind meters to get the best shot we can on the first try. My friend Glenn made a 615 yard shot kill with the rifle I made for him on the first shot after we set up at 600 using the drop chart I made for him and my recommendation for windage holdoff in the 15mph crosswind. We then moved to 1000 yards putting the wind at our backs and he killed a newborn pup that was just big enough to crawl out of the den at 1071 yards on the second shot at it. He had fired around 15 shots at neighboring mounds before that kill. But his 605 and your 902 are a far cry from 1820 and 2200. I challenge you to make those distances using ANY rules. I have confirmed kills at 978, 1059, 1296, 1820 and 2200 yards and numerous kills between 500 and 1000, some of them in 20mph crosswinds. Again, I challenge you to go over 1500 yards using ANY method. If it's just a matter of slinging enough rounds downrange as you say, then let's see how many it takes you.