Handgun rests??

[S.B.]

xphunter and sscoyote, not doughting you but, would really like to witness this myself. I've never seen this type of handgun shooting. How do you locate the intended targets without actually looking through the scopes on these game animals? Wouldn't that be shaky at best? Just out of curioucity, how in the world do you dope the wind at these ranges? I know good marksmen who have trouble with wind at 600 yards using rifles.
Steve

[xphunter]

I posted this just recently:
Been out of pocket for awhile helping teach a couple of LR shooting schools. Took my 7mm SAUM center-grip XP and my 7mm Rem Mag Improved MOA--Can't let the rifle guys have all the fun.
Worked very long days, but it was great.
Darrell has opened the school to specialty pistol shooters when I am there, but we had none this year.
When I had some free time when the students were on solo mode I was able to do some shooting between 400 to just under 900 yards.
Lady luck was on my side, because I never missed steel one time. I wish I could say this is always the case, but it is not so.
So yes, I am sharing the joy
Also, about 20 rifle guys got introduced to specialty handguns at long range.
None of this shooting was from the bench and there was no wind flags.
One of the students who watched me shoot beyond 800 yards in a 14mph wind on Friday, told me that if he read or heard someone talk about such a shot with a specialty handgun he would say that person is full of cow manure (I edited his actual words). I asked him what thought about it now, and he said with a smile, I witnessed it myself and I still can't believe it."

Here is a pic of the 7mm SAUM XP:




Two one-shot attempts at 775 yards (one shot per person).
This was Jody's first shot from a SP.
He was one of the assistant instructors.

[S.B.]

From your photo I would guess the steel at about 24" maybe 30" top to bottom with brite white paint added? Coyotes, around here anyway, usually run 6" to 8"(for a big boy)top of back to bottom of chest and blend with dead grass very well? Big difference.
Steve

[xphunter]

Most of the steel we shoot at was 10" wide and 16" high.
As you can tell I am shooting for the heart, not just hitting the steel.
Yes, I hunt too.  I am very aware of God's camouflage He give to wild game.
I can say that during the two four day classes that helped teach that over 95% of my shots between 400-800 yards would have killed a coyote.
In other words my vertical was spot-on.
We use a Kestrel to determine wind speed, but there is a lot more to determining the wind dope than just owning a wind meter.

[xphunter]

xphunter and sscoyote, not doubting you but, would really like to witness this myself. I've never seen this type of handgun shooting. How do you locate the intended targets without actually looking through the scopes on these game animals? Wouldn't that be shaky at best? Just out of curiosity, how in the world do you dope the wind at these ranges? I know good marksmen who have trouble with wind at 600 yards using rifles.
Steve

Locate the animals through either a spotting scope or a good pair of binos.
If you want to see more than a handful of guys shooting specialty handguns at these distances check out this competition.
This is a bench shoot, but we have added a roving field course just for giggles.
http://www.moaguns.com/

[sscoyote]

Thks. Ern. That rig had the 3-12x Burris with Ballistic Plex reticle and target turrets. I had the dope calcd. for 0.125 IPHY turret clicks beyond the reticle's lower post tip zero (9.6 MOA @ 12x) all the way out to 1000...untested, BTW. Two dogs acme in to a buddy's calling/myhowling far side of a valley, but wouldn't come any closer. I figured,why not and got set up using the stadium seat and Harris bipod with the rig between my knees after lasering the dog (now sitting) at 906 with an older Leica. There was no wind at all. Put the dog on the reticle's lower post and touched it off. Sure enough when i looked with the binocs there was a white spot that wasn't there before. Figured it was the dog and sure enuf it was. Bullet (129 SST) hit him dead center in the chest and exited size of a quarter out his backbone. I consider it one of my luckier calculated shots. Went out several days later with the wife and didn't see any coyotes but decided to test it again on a lasered dirt clod on the side of a dry wash at an even 1000. After the shot we went for a long walk and sure enuf the bullet hit 4" left of the dirt clod. Dug it out with my pocket knife and still have that bullet on my bookcase next to me--i'll never forget it. There was an ever-so-slight breeze touching my right cheek and i often wonder if i would've hit that dirt clod had i held a bit for it--which i didn't, dang it!

I figure a coyote at probably 4" widthwise and 6" for an avg. adult broadside, and is truly the most challenging long-range animate tgt. out there...IMO. There was luck on my side that particular day though admittedly, but it was also a perfectly calm overcast early morning, that we sometimes get out here, and evenings too. For an untested system that was a pretty good ballistics program profile for that load.

I've seen coyotes at well over a mile away sunning themselves on slopes with binocs. It's often very easy to see their white bellies/throats flashing with movement against the pastel colors of sandhill country with the naked eye at long-range. The white throats and chests of coyotes are a color that stands out like nothing else on the prairie that i've seen--especially sandhill country. But if they have their heads down, no white exposed and loping in straight to you, they are very often difficult to spot until they get...closer.

[sscoyote]

SB--you should've been there for this shot. This is a double (2 with 1 shot) with a "Contender" at 1140, on the 9th or 10th shot (after the gun was cleaned). I could see the trace of the bullet on every shot and when he killed both of those dogs, it was like time stood still. Ray killed 2 the day before in <10 shots at 1040 in some variable winds. There were several guys there to witness that. But they didn;'t see them quite like i did through my 32x Highlanders--



...or this dog at 1590 on the 9th shot. I saw the trace on every one of those shots too. One of the most memorable days of my life just watching it happen--



Here's one of the secrets to it (spotting comfortably using quality high magnification)--



If you have ever shot priaire dogs at long range then you'll know just how lucky these guys were that all 5 of these (world record...?) prairie dogs actually died before they got into their mounds so they could get pictures of them. Ray killed all 4 of his outright, believe it or not (75 gr. A-Max), and Ernie was REALLY lucky that he gut shot his dog. Because he was a ways from his mound and the action of the dog trying to get back to his hole caused the guts that were dragging behind to get stuck on a cactus and after struggling to get "undone" he finally gave up the ghost--LUCKY...for Ernie, that is.

[sscoyote]

SB, if u think that shooting from a modified soft-sided stadium seat with your knees together resting your clenched hands on the pistol grip between your knees, with a tall Harris bipod in front is unsteady then u haven't tried it yet. It is the most stable practical/portable sitting position shooting platform there is---period! You should read some of John Antanies articles regarding the use of a tall Harris bipod and shooting sling with a rifle in Varmint Hunter magazine sometime. They're very enlightening.

[xphunter]

Steve,
That 6-284 barrel is still shooting good

[skarke]

From a wooden blind, I use a small sandbag with heavy sand (sharp sand).  I lay the bag over the rail, then rest the forend of my tc on the bag.

I've made what some call pretty good shots this way.

[S.B.]

I have to admit, you guys have really enlightened me, on this thread. Would love to make the shots you guys have made at 1/4 the distance.
Steve

[kyhareraiser]

i agree with the idea that a man (or woman) don't sound like a 2 legged hunter while in the woods  while walking with a walking stick.  kinda throws the deer off when they here a scuffle of more than 2 steps   sequence coming through the hills.. i have a deer leg (10 "long)  mounted on a walking stick (50 inches ) and the hoof was spread wide as it could go before it dried out..thats where the forearm of my t/c sets  as i shoot.no scratches on the gun from it either

[xphunter]

I have to admit, you guys have really enlightened me, on this thread. Would love to make the shots you guys have made at 1/4 the distance.
Steve

Steve,
You can do this too. 
What many think are impossible shots, are actually quite possible. 
Practicing on steel or other reactive type targets is fun, and allows you to know what your limits are under a given set of circumstances.

[S.B.]

xph, hell, some days I have trouble hitting a big piece of cardboard at 100 yards?
Steve

[xphunter]

We all have bad days shooting.
From the prone position, with a good rest, you can get real steady.