TM, I am not attempting to go long range with this rifle. I am simply sharing what I do to stay in practice with this rifle. I also practice at estimating range, and then measure that range to ascertain if my skills are still sharp.
I appreciate your generosity at the suggestion you would send me spitzer bullets if you had them, however I most likely have some 308 caliber rifle bullets in my inventory from my 308, and 3006 days. I use this rifle, and match it to it's INTENDED capabilities, and MY capabilities with that rifle.
The idea of carrying an 8 shot rifle (one in the chamber) with only one in the chamber, and one in the magazine does not appeal to me in the least. I have shot spitzer bullets in the rifle about 40 years ago, so the idea is not new to me.
I am way past experimenting. I am satisfied with what I have. There is no reluctance, or doubt when I pick this rifle up and start out the door. I know it will do, what I want to do.
Occasionally I will make these long shots just for entertainment, and to show myself, that not only I still can, but that to others, they have been misinformed, or mis-led, and or, that they have preconceived notions that it could not be done, when it most certainly can be done.
I used to be one of the millions, that could not wait until the next edition of magazines like Guns & Ammo, or Shooting Times, or a number of other gun rag's LATEST COPY, came out. I would pour thru the pages, and justify going out and spending several hundred dollars on what THEY said I needed.
It finally occurred to me a little over 25 years ago that the writers in these gun magazines weren't EXPERTS. They were GUN SALESMEN. Nothing more.
I have a lot of education and experience involving L.E. related firearms, and was a trainer for almost 20 years. I could testify in court involving training, and some ballistics issues. I have charts, graphs, books, and countless hours of reading on the subjects of ballistic coefficients, hydrostatic shock, trajectory, windage, all that. But I also had a grandfather that could take the nose off a squirrel at 40 yards with a 60 year old lever action 22 rifle with iron sights. He not only had NONE of that training, but could barely write his own name. He knew instinctively, what I ignored, and took years to get thru my head. If it works, it really doesn't matter why.