Didn't David Tubbs (I think that's his name) nail down the 1k yard competion a few years back with a .300 Win. Mag? It seemed to be the "hot set-up" at he time for long range shooting. But I think this was before the .338 Lapua.
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My Windrunner M96 .50BMG Arrived, now looking for place to shoot it.
- Thread starter uziduzit
- Start date
Didn't David Tubbs (I think that's his name) nail down the 1k yard competion a few years back with a .300 Win. Mag? It seemed to be the "hot set-up" at he time for long range shooting. But I think this was before the .338 Lapua.
He has won so much with so many different calibers it's hard to keep track. It would not surprise me though. I'm not sure what he is shooting at for Long Range these days in NRA matches .30 Magnums were very popular for years and years, but a lot of people have gone to shooting smaller calibers to mitigate recoil. .284 & 6.5/.284 are popular. .308 has it's own category known as Palma Rifle. People that shoot Service Rifles like AR-15s & M-14s also have a separate category to compete in.
Although the rules allow up to .35 cal. I don't think anyone is winning with the .338 LM. To make it comfortable to shoot for several 20 shot strings in a day, you need a very heavy rifle and that in and of it self, can be uncomfortable. For the type of shooting in NRA matches, it would really be punishing to shoot much more than a .300WM. At the end of a day of shooting .308 with heavy bullets, I'm tired out.
![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
B
Thanks Uzi,I am going to be purchasing a semi .50bmg in the next few months and I am just doing some research.Let me know how you like the gun.
Semi 50
Be careful about the semi 50s. I had a Barrett M82 and M107 and didnt like them all that much as I was getting 2.5 to 3 MOA with them at 500 yards. I heard the Serbu might be a better choice when it comes out this year because it doesnt have a recipricating barrell. When I had my Barretts, I tried chambering a match load I made, running it through the action. I check all my loads for bullet runout when I load them to make sure that the bullet is seated on center in the case. This assures that when the bullet enters the lands of the barrel, it will spin consitantly every time to maximize accuracy. I then ejected it carefuly and placed it into my runout gauge. I found that the ramp of the Barrett moved the bullet head off center over .028 of an inch. With a bolt gun I dont get that problem.
Be careful about the semi 50s. I had a Barrett M82 and M107 and didnt like them all that much as I was getting 2.5 to 3 MOA with them at 500 yards. I heard the Serbu might be a better choice when it comes out this year because it doesnt have a recipricating barrell. When I had my Barretts, I tried chambering a match load I made, running it through the action. I check all my loads for bullet runout when I load them to make sure that the bullet is seated on center in the case. This assures that when the bullet enters the lands of the barrel, it will spin consitantly every time to maximize accuracy. I then ejected it carefuly and placed it into my runout gauge. I found that the ramp of the Barrett moved the bullet head off center over .028 of an inch. With a bolt gun I dont get that problem.
this guy got lucky...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mai...01.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/01/01/ixnewstop.html
Sniper shot that took out an insurgent killer from three quarters of a mile
Toby Harnden in Ramadi
Last Updated: 12:46am GMT 02/01/2006
Gazing through the telescopic sight of his M24 rifle, Staff Sgt Jim Gilliland, leader of Shadow sniper team, fixed his eye on the Iraqi insurgent who had just killed an American soldier.
His quarry stood nonchalantly in the fourth-floor bay window of a hospital in battle-torn Ramadi, still clasping a long-barrelled Kalashnikov. Instinctively allowing for wind speed and bullet drop, Shadow's commander aimed 12 feet high.
Click to enlarge
A single shot hit the Iraqi in the chest and killed him instantly. It had been fired from a range of 1,250 metres, well beyond the capacity of the powerful Leupold sight, accurate to 1,000 metres.
"I believe it is the longest confirmed kill in Iraq with a 7.62mm rifle," said Staff Sgt Gilliland, 28, who hunted squirrels in Double Springs, Alabama from the age of five before progressing to deer - and then people.
"He was visible only from the waist up. It was a one in a million shot. I could probably shoot a whole box of ammunition and never hit him again."
Later that day, Staff Sgt Gilliland found out that the dead soldier was Staff Sgt Jason Benford, 30, a good friend.
The insurgent was one of between 55 and 65 he estimates that he has shot dead in less than five months, putting him within striking distance of sniper legends such as Carlos Hathcock, who recorded 93 confirmed kills in Vietnam. One of his men, Specialist Aaron Arnold, 22, of Medway, Ohio, has chalked up a similar tally.
"It was elating, but only afterwards," said Staff Sgt Gilliland, recalling the September 27 shot. "At the time, there was no high-fiving. You've got troops under fire, taking casualties and you're not thinking about anything other than finding a target and putting it down. Every shot is for the betterment of our cause."
All told, the 10-strong Shadow sniper team, attached to Task Force 2/69, has killed just under 200 in the same period and emerged as the US Army's secret weapon in Ramadi against the threat of the hidden Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or roadside bomb - the insurgency's deadliest tactic.
Above the spot from which Staff Sgt Gilliland took his record shot, in a room at the top of a bombed-out observation post which is code-named Hotel and known jokingly to soldiers as the Ramadi Inn, are daubed "Kill Them All" and "Kill Like you Mean it".
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On another wall are scrawled the words of Senator John McCain: "America is great not because of what she has done for herself but because of what she has done for others."
The juxtaposition of macho slogans and noble political rhetoric encapsulates the dirty, dangerous and often callous job the sniper has to carry out as an integral part of a campaign ultimately being waged to help the Iraqi people.
With masterful understatement, Lt Col Robert Roggeman, the Task Force 2/69 commander, conceded: "The romantic in me is disappointed with the reception we've received in Ramadi," a town of 400,000 on the banks of the Euphrates where graffiti boasts, with more than a degree of accuracy: "This is the graveyard of the Americans".
"We're the outsiders, the infidels," he said. "Every time somebody goes out that main gate he might not come back. It's still a running gun battle."
Highly effective though they are, he worries about the burden his snipers have to bear. "It's a very God-like role. They have the power of life and death that, if not held in check, can run out of control. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.
"Every shot has to be measured against the Rules of Engagement [ROE], positive identification and proportionality."
Staff Sgt Gilliland explains that his Shadow team operates at the "borderlines" of the ROE, making snap judgements about whether a figure in the crosshairs is an insurgent or not.
"Hunters give their animals respect," he said, spitting out a mouthful of chewing tobacco. "If you have no respect for what you do you're not going to be very good or you're going to make a mistake. We try to give the benefit of the doubt.
"You've got to live with it. It's on your conscience. It's something you've got to carry away with you. And if you shoot somebody just walking down the street, then that's probably going to haunt you."
Although killing with a single shot carries an enormous cachet within the sniper world, their most successful engagements have involved the shooting a up to 10 members of a single IED team.
"The one-shot-one-kill thing is one of beauty but killing all the bad dudes is even more attractive," said Staff Sgt Gilliland, whose motto is "Move fast, shoot straight and leave the rest to the counsellors in 10 years" and signs off his e-mails with "silent souls make.308 holes".
Whether Shadow team's work will ultimately make a difference in Iraq is open to question. No matter how many insurgents they shoot, there seems no shortage of recruits to plant bombs.
Col John Gronski, the overall United States commander in Ramadi, said there could not be a military solution. "You could spend years putting snipers out and killing IED emplacers and at the political level it would make no difference."
As they prepare to leave Iraq, however, Staff Sgt Gilliland and his men hope that they have bought a little more time for the country's politicians to fix peace and stability in their sights.
i may have an ignorant question, but how much does something that uses .50BMG usually cost? and what about the ammo? i cant imagine that it is cheap. hell, or even a place to shoot the thing? is is something that you can bring to any range and shoot?
note: i am very new to shooting, tho i do aspire to some day get my hand on a large caliber rifle and be able to shoot 800+ yards.
thanks
note: i am very new to shooting, tho i do aspire to some day get my hand on a large caliber rifle and be able to shoot 800+ yards.
thanks
I take it your basement is not much of an option ![[grin]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/041.gif "Grin [grin]")
Great looking rifle - best of luck with it.
I thought that there was a 1K range somewhere near Albany - maybe someone could help with a name or more info.
Great looking rifle - best of luck with it.I thought that there was a 1K range somewhere near Albany - maybe someone could help with a name or more info.
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That rifle is flippin' sweet
He has won so much with so many different calibers it's hard to keep track. It would not surprise me though. I'm not sure what he is shooting at for Long Range these days in NRA matches .30 Magnums were very popular for years and years, but a lot of people have gone to shooting smaller calibers to mitigate recoil. .284 & 6.5/.284 are popular. .308 has it's own category known as Palma Rifle. People that shoot Service Rifles like AR-15s & M-14s also have a separate category to compete in.
Although the rules allow up to .35 cal. I don't think anyone is winning with the .338 LM. To make it comfortable to shoot for several 20 shot strings in a day, you need a very heavy rifle and that in and of it self, can be uncomfortable. For the type of shooting in NRA matches, it would really be punishing to shoot much more than a .300WM. At the end of a day of shooting .308 with heavy bullets, I'm tired out.
B
I know what you mean. I spent an afternoon putting full power .350 Rem. Mag loads through that little carbine they made (model 600?) and the next day, my right shoulder and the top right part of my chest were black and blue. But it sure was fun!
My hat is off to anybody who can drop $10 Grand on a rifle. With a 50BMG, I would think anything under 1000yds would be a waste of time and money.
I'd probably just get a .308 or 6.5-284 and pocket a few thousand dollars.
I'd probably just get a .308 or 6.5-284 and pocket a few thousand dollars.
I've owned 2 50BMG's (Watson's Weapons & Serbu BFG Carbine) but ended up getting rid of them due to the rising cost of surplus ammo. I used to buy it for 119.00/100rd. linked can, but now it is 600+ just for the ball and tracer. Very fun rifles and the recoil was only like shooting 12ga. slugs...but with a much bigger boom. Shooting at 100 yards is not only wasteful but a bit dangerous as well. I had tracers bounce back 100+ feet over my head, not really something that makes you feel comfortable shooting. The 50 shows its potential at 500 yards and beyond. I had the oppertunity to shoot the Serbu on one of Ft. Bragg's armored vehicle range. Watching tracers explode against a tank is like watching a small fireworks display 
Right now I am enjoying & challanging myself with my Steyr SSG69. I love the 50, but can no longer afford to feed one.
Right now I am enjoying & challanging myself with my Steyr SSG69. I love the 50, but can no longer afford to feed one.There is a 1000 yrd range in upstate NY. I forgot the name of it but I believe it is the only such range in the region.
Anyone that thinks that 308's are not an effective 1000 yard bullet should really consult the biography of Carlos Hathcock and any other of the military snipers who used the 7.62 Nato round chambered guns so effectively in the past. Many kills approaching and even exceeding 1000 yards have been made with their 308/7.62 chambered rifles.
