Practical accuracy and hunting guns

[Thebear_78]

I wasn't sure quite where this post belonged so I guess this is as good a place as any.  All the time here on various forums I see questions regarding rifle and optics recomendations.  I read things in hunting magazines talking about accuracy and what acceptable and needed for big game hunting.  Some would have you believe you need a 6.5-20x scope on a rifle capable of 1/2 moa to be a successfull hunter at ranges over 100 yards.  I thought I would share a few observations and conclusions that I have come up with.

I have a thing for accurate rifles .  I used to shoot off the bench canstantly trying to alter loads and work on my shooting skills to shoot tiny bug groups.  I used to think the smaller groups I could shoot the more comfortable and confident I could be shooting game. Over the years I have gotten pretty proficient off the bench shooting true sub MOA with several rifles out to 500 meters.   I gravitated to large scopes and heavy varmint style rifles.

Last summer I started something new.  Once I zeroed my rifle  and had it shooting where I wanted, I only shot from feild positions.  Both at targets and cardboard cutouts of animals.  It took a lot more practice to get proficient at shooting the carboard cutouts than you would think, totally different than shooting at bullseyes. I also practiced moving targets, I would practice shooting balloons in the wind or tied to the antenae of a RC car. I did most of my field shooting with 22lr and 223 but I made a point of shooting at least 100 rounds from field positions with each of my hunting rifles.  I found a few things out that were pretty interesting.

Number one was that even out to fairly long range I was able to shoot just as well from feild positions with low power scopes than I was with higher magnification.  It was fairly easy to center a 10" kill zone out to 300 yards even with a 2.5x scout scope.  Matter of fact unless I had a very stead feild rest or shooting stick position no  more was even helpfull out to 300 yards.

Number two was that lighter, handier, more comfortable rifles work better.  Given the choice between a heavy unweildly rifle that shot 1/2 MOA off a bench and a lighter, handier rifle that shot 1.5-2 moa, I would choose the lighter, handier rifle every time.  While it may not be the more accurate rifle it is easier to shoot accurately in the field.  

Number three was that I could shoot MUCH better at extended ranges with a ballistic plex scope.  When armed with a decent range finder and a ballistic plex scope I could place shots out to 500 meters, my fartherst range, reasonably consistantly inside of a 8" paper plate.  It was much easier to aim dead on than try holdover.  Even in between distances was much easier to aim halfway or third way between to dots than just aiming high with crosshairs.  As a result all of my long range rifles now wear a ballistic plex reticle scope, the biggest being a 3-12 on my 338 RUM.  

I have never been more comfortable shooting at game.  I shot my moose this year at 270 yards with a 9.3x62  using a 2.5x scout scope with no problems,  I also shot a nice whitetail with a 243 usint the lowest setting on my 3-9 scope.  I hit it 4/5 times in the heart lungs as it ran by from 80-120 yards, offhand.  Any of the shots would have worked but the deer was all jacked up on adrenaline and I'm a shoot till they drop kind fo guy.  I'm sure  the miss was deflected in the brush.  

Another classic example is a buddy of mine.  He shoots everything with a Ruger 77 in 300 Win Mag with a 1.5-6 swarovski.  I doubt his rifle is capable of much better than 2.5-3" groups at 100 yards but it just plain kills things.  He hardly ever misses game with it.

To sum this over long post up I still have a thing for accurate rifles but now I mainly concern myself with practical accuracy.  It does me no good if a rifle is capable of 1/4-1/2 MOA off a bench if I can't use it in the field.  I give far more weight to handling characteristics of a given rifle over its ability to shoot tiny groups from a bench.  Its great if you can get both but we need to always remember if it is a hunting rifle,  what good is it if you can' effectively hunt with it.

[Nightrain52]

Good post Bear79. I have never seen a game animal with a bullseye painted on it. For hunting a 6x scope is about all the power you need unless you can get a rock solid rest. :money:

[beemanbeme]

Good post.  Accuracy, or rather, needed accuracy is a relative thing.  And the comments about shooting from field positions hit dead center.

[Sourdough]

The hunting rifle I carried for 25 years, was a Ruger M-77, in .338 win mag.  It has a 1.75X5 Red Field.  I have taken Caribou, and Moose consistently.  While most shots are around 80 yards, a few have been farther, one Moose out to 500yards.  
     I now carry nothing but single shots.  As you said the lighter, and shorter, gun is much easier to handle and carry.  I now carry one of three guns, depending on the time of year.  A TCR in .338 w/3X9X50, a Handi in .35Whelen w/1.25X4X30, and the one I carry 75% of the time a Handi in 30-06 w/6X24X40.  The 30-06 had a Shepard scope and will again wear one as soon as I can afford to replace the stolen one.  The reason for the more power on the 30-06, is I use it to shoot wolves during the winter.  Often times 4 and 5 hundred yards is as close as we can get.  I use the snow machine seat as a rest.  Frequently a wolf will hide behind a bush, and not give a good shot.  Good optics are essential to see at that range, and to find any openings in the brush.    
    For practice I shoot 4" clay targets, at 300 yards.  I don't use paper except to sight in.  The .338, and 30-06 are sighted in for 300 yards.  The .35 Whelen is sighted in for 150 yards.

[Savage .250]

Accuracy is a relative  term so if you think it`s accurate then it must be accurate.  

 " The best part of the hunt is not the harvest but in the experence."

[unspellable]

years ago when I landed in Arizona I fell in with a group going javalina hunting.  At this point I decided to take my revolver and leave my rifle at home.  This brought a few laughs on the part of the rest.  In camp I went up against a guy with a scoped 30-06 with my S&W 29 with iron sights at 50 yards and won a case of beer.  At the end of opening day I had a nice sized boar while they had nothing.  nailed the boar with a 50 yard down hill shot while he running cross wise.  Put the slug between two ribs, through the gristle on the top of the heart and out between two ribs on  the other side.  He went down after running about five feet.  I didn't spoil as much as two ounces of meat.  They didn't laugh at me on the way home.

Moral of the story?  Accuracy doesn't matter a damn if you don't know which end of the gun goes bang.