Lots of people are suggesting you buy a firearm if you get a rebate. There are numerous suggestions (partial listing):
I have another suggestion and I’ll even make the deal sweeter for you. Buy a rifle and ammo for Boomershoot and I’ll give you a free entry into Boomershoot 2009. Limit of one entry per rifle and no more than five free positions will be given away. You must purchase the rifle between now and June 1, 2008. The rifle and ammo must be capable of at least regularly connecting with the boomers at the 375 yard line. This means your ordinary hunting rifle, carbines, and pistol caliber rifles won’t qualify. Heavy barrel AR-15’s will. It should have at least a 4X (10X or greater is recommended) scope on it but I won’t be holding that against you because people have connected with red-dots and iron sights, it’s just not easy. Ammo is going to have to be match grade.
If you decide you want to participate in Joe’s evil plan then scan a copy of your receipts, send the scanned image and one or more pictures of you new rifle to me. First come, first serve, limit five prizes total.
Update: At the suggestion of Mopar in comments I’ve created a Boomershoot web page on rifle selection and threw in a little about ammo too. See also Choosing Optics (from 2001).
OK, someone must be trying to tell me something here. I just had a dream last night which involved long range shooting. Something I don’t have the equipment, ability or even a location to practice here in crowded southern CT, but something I have always wanted to learn.
Along the same lines…..
How about an article over on the boomershoot website on just what a beginner’s basic “boomershoot rifle” needs to be?
So…. you’re saying my recent purchase of a Remington 700 R5 falls juuust outside the valid period then?
Figures.
Kevin, you have a different discount available to you that is just as good. You don’t get to apply two discounts to the same event.
Joe,
I’m pretty sure I proved in reno that I can hit at long range–very long, in fact, just fine with a .30 carbine. Likewise with a garand, both with nothing more than a few bits of iron on top for “optics”.
Not sure what the force at impact at those ranges would be, though. So I guess I’ll just have to start shopping for a 416 “varmint rifle.”
–Chuck
The targets we had in Reno were much larger than 1 MOA which is what you will have at Boomershoot.
In order to relably detonate the targets regardless of the bullet type you need over 1700 fps at the target. By that measure the .30 Carbine runs out of velocity at about 50 yards. The closest targets are at 375 yards. At 375 yard the .30 Carbine bullet is panting to keep up with air gun bullet muzzle velocities.
For a .416 Rem. Magnum shooting the Federal load for the Barnes Triple Shock X-Bullet you will run out of velocity at 360 yards.
According to Nosler shooting the .416 Weatherby with the max load for their 400 gr. Partition bullet you will run out of velocity at about 530 yards.
Of the cartridges you have mentioned the 30-06 is your best bet. Shooting Federal Match you should be good out to about 620 yards–assuming you can connect with a 7″x7″ target at that range. Most people have trouble seeing the targets at that range with the naked eye. Once you are looking over your iron sights the target disappears. I’m not saying you can’t do it. I’m just saying it’s going to be a real challenge for most people.
I guess we need some help here, Joe. Specifically, which tactical rifles can deliver a bullet from a Match round at 1700fps to 400 yards? We know about the 1MOA requirement, and I doubt if anyone without laser-modified 20-05 eyeballs is going to try Boomers with iron sights, especially if there’s still some snow around, which is a possibility this year, right?
Tell us that Boomershoot is STILL about 1MOA accuracy however you get it (practice, practice, practice), not whose table-mounted, 25# rifle will do the best.
Rivrdog, you are right, 1 MOA no matter how you get it. Most “tactical” or “varmint” grade rifles with good ammo will work just fine.
The bullet then needs to have the velocity to do the job. That means a high BC and/or high MV. A 50 grain .223 (V-MAX, BC = .242) bullet with a MV of 3275 will work out to about 475 yards. A 168 grain .308 Winchester bullet (Sierra Match King, BC = .462) bullet with a MV of 2600 is good out to a little past 550 yards.
See also this page on rifle selection and this page on bullet selection.
Snow at the end of April? I sort of doubt it. It might snow on us but I doubt it will stick on the ground.
What a great offer! Guess I need to learn about long range shooting. What sort of budget would a guy need to allocate for a basic rifle and scope?
I haven’t priced any guns in a long time. I know Kevin paid about $1000 for his rifle and that didn’t included the scope. But his is probably a little more than what you would call “basic”.