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I'm shooting a Freedom Arms .454 Casul with a Leupold 2X fixed power scope. The gun has Pachmaeyer grips and is MagnaPorted. From a rest I can shoot 2"-3" groups at 50 yards, but only 6"-9" groups at 100 yards. I'm looking for advice on field rests, shooting and training techniques to improve my range and accuracy. Thanks in advance for your help. | ||
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Sounds about right twice the range twice or a little more group size might be all your gun and you can do. Higher power scope better load could help. | |||
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My FA .454 does better at 100 totally due to my rest. I use a regular size backpack filled with medium soft pillows. I rest my Contenders, Encores, XPs, and revolvers on this. I have three pillows in my pack. I keep many things between the pillows (water, rope, camera, trash bags, groundhog extractor) without adding any bulk (just weight) to the pack. This pack goes with me everywhere, Africa, Alaska, western US, and all groundhog and deer hunting in WV. I take it to the range and sight all my guns of it, then they shoot exactly the same in the field. How good is it? Two days ago, 438 yard doe (crop damage), May-420 yard baboon in Africa, plus many 2-300 yd. animals, Alaska-129 yd. brown bear at 129 with .500 S&W, WV 637 yd. groundhog, 718 yd. deer. The only caveate is for revolvers put a small piece of leather below the cylinder gap to keep the gases off the pack or the pack gets ruined. I wear the pack on all hunts. It's portable, non interfering with walking, climbing. I put my single shots on slings and put them on top of the pack (with sling around my shoulder) and it takes a lot of the weight off your shoulders. I've used this system for 38 years and have literally taken thousands of animals off of it. I defy anyone to show me a more portable, practical, lightweight system that will allow you to take unbelievably long shots in comfort. Larry Rogers | |||
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Wow! Great shooting Larry! I assume you're prone for the long shots. What power scope do you use? Tom | |||
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Not only that ,but if you get tired comes in handy to take a nap on!!!!!  | |||
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nimrod, how large is your aiming point at 100 yards? With only a 2x scope, it needs to be large enough that you can accurately determine the center. You might try a 50 yard pistol target at 100 yards. Also, how solid is your hold? Does it feel and look solid so that you have confidence in it when you shoot, or is it a bit wobbly? Peter. Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright, that God may love thee. Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death. Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong; | |||
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Peter I'm trying to shoot under field hunting conditions. I'm using a tripod with a Bogpod PSR pistol rest. The rest is not as steady as sand bags and a bench but typical of what I might have while hunting. The targets are roughly 6" diameter. I can't see the center bull in great resolution but I am able to center the cross hairs in the target. I'll try some larger targets and a different rest later today. | |||
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Nimrod, I use Burris 3-12X scopes on my single shots and Bushnell Elite 2-6X on revolvers. I've been know to take a nap on the pack. In fact, one year I did, woke up , looked straight across the mountain and saw a 6 point whitetail feeding. Slid the pack around, put my Contender on it. Dead deer. I didn't move. I tell you this is the most unbelievably versatile shooting/sleeping system you'll ever find. Larry Rogers | |||
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Larry I really like your Idea and finally there is a practical use for all the pillows my wife puts on the bed. If I have to carry a tripod all the time, it would be easier to carry a rifle. I didn't trust myself to hold a scope steady that was greater than 2x. Are you happy with the Burris scope? Tom | |||
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I carry a Stoney Point tripod. It's light in weight and with a handgun you have your hands free anyway if you use a holster. I can shoot fairly well off the tripod, just resting the frame aft of the trigger guard on the yoke and using a normal firing grip with two hands. The tripod is set up for shooting seated. Honestly, in most environments, I find that I'm too low with it, so I carry it quite seldom. Trees work pretty well, but many have thorns! I'd say with practice 1"-2" at 25m should be very possible (depending on thegun) and with a scope I'd say that could be possible at 50m (again, gun and load dependent) using the tripod seated. | |||
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I have about 15 Burris 3-12X scopes on guns up to .375/.284 XP. The BPlex is the best. Others have trashed them a lot, but I think they are fantastic for practical long range shooting, i.e., field use, field positions, not the "set in one place and bang all day". Them with my backpack keeps me portable and capable of 500 yard shots any time. I do use Stoney Point sticks, but I add the short arm to one leg. I rest the foreend of the gun on the tripod and MY FOREARM on the short arm. I can do pretty good out to 200 with this, but they still don't beat the backpack. I use the sticks in open, flat fields where I can't use my pack. I even use my pack in the woods. I hang it from a bow hanger on a tree and shoot off the top of the pack. I keep telling everyone how versatile this system is, but very few use it. I convinced MS Hitman of it. He's a believer. Here's a photo of the tripod in use:  Larry Rogers | |||
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I shot my FA-83 off the bench using sand bags for support and shot a roughly 2"-3" group at 100 yards compared to about 6"-9" groups off the Bogpod PSR. I think Hitman's backpack idea is a good one but his picture of the Stoney Point with the short arm looks promising too. I wish I had purchased the variable scope. Thanks for your help guys. | |||
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That short arm is called a "Tag-Along" if I recall and you are looking to buy one. Doc Rogers, Any chance for a pic of the pack in use? I'd just like to see how you set it up. Thanks. AL | |||
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Ask, and you shall receive. This is how I shot the #2 handgun Cape kudu in 2011 at 201 yards. Laid my pack on top of some BIG thorny bushes, put my Stoney Sticks under one edge for added support to the slightly wobbly bush (no way to lay on the ground):  Brush is so thick you can't see the sticks. I was extremely stable, didn't get stuck, and stayed this way for 20 minutes while he was courting his ladies. 6.5/.284 XP, 129 gr. Hornady Interbond (not this best bullet for this, but I was testing bullets on the trip). The results, an absolute humongous Cape kudu:  See the bullet hole to the left of the first stripe on the right. That's exactly where my PH told me to shoot him. Couldn't do it without a stable rest. Larry Rogers | |||
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Sorry, forgot to say thanks for the pics. | |||
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I have shooting sticks from Stoney Point as well, and they work quite well. "Ignorance you can correct, you can't fix stupid." JWP If stupidity hurt, a lot of people would be walking around screaming. Semper Fidelis "Building Carpal Tunnel one round at a time" | |||
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I use my pack too. I shoot a .454 Casul Ruger Redhawk and shoot 3" to 4" groups at 120 yards. I have a Bushnell 2-6 scope. I think you need more magnification. Even if it doesn't look as stable, I think it will improve your accuracy. I wish I had learned the trick of putting a piece of leather under it before I shot the first hole in my pack.  | |||
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Hold on 6 oclock for your shooting until you see what the gun/ammo will really do. Have you tried other loads? Don't limit your challenges . . . Challenge your limits | |||
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