Friday Ramble: Retard Range Day

Gawddam… it is fricken’ hotter n’ blazes out!!! 32C today…what’s that in Murkin? 90F?? GAH!!! 🥵 

Castello Di La Filthie looks a fright too. I had no choice but to go outside, brave the heat…and mow the grounds. I damn near died and went to hell (where it would probably be cooler, come to think of it…). Instead of doing that, the Niglet and I went downstairs afterward to unpack the guns and patch targets from yesterday’s range session. Then there’s the brass that has to be deprimed and tumbled and other puttering about.

Deep under the Castle are the ghastly dungeons filled with horrors

and unspeakable evil…and the cool

Reclusium where my most fiendish plots and conspiracies 

are hatched.

It’s soooooo nice and cooooool….ahhhhhhh….

Poor Hannah…. Black dawgs take a beating in hot weather. But - I digress. Fellas - it’s time to get serious about the li’l 223 Ruger bolt gun - AND the Ruger No.1 hunting rifle. I have been buggering around with powders n’ bullets and now I have a fair idea of the character of both guns. Yesterday we were playing with 55 gr. Hornady VMAX bullets and IMR 3031 powder. The pattern was the same as with other experiments. This carbine likes max powder charges, and does best when pushing them at around 2700 FPS. It’s a 16” carbine so higher velocities are in that range for this pocket rifle.

That’s a 55 gr VMAX, 20.3 gr. of IMR 3031

at 200m.

About 1.25 MOA

55 gr. VMAX sitting on 23.3 gr. of IMR 3031

at 200m.

Approx.  0.725 MOA

Nothing surprising here at all. The brass was fine with no pressure signs, nothing to see there. Sorry… no velocity data… my chronograph may have calved. I’ll be trying it out again on Monday.  But - whatever! At this point we know the little rifle can shoot like a house afire - if I do my part. This experiment is largely a formality; I was infuriated when I pulled my 8lb. jug of 3031powder out…and I am almost out! 😡 

Fortunately it can do well with a couple other powders too. I think I’ll just stuff it with the biggest dose of H4895 and run with that. At this point… I could pull my hair out by the roots (if I had any) and play with more powders, seating depths, bullet weights, blah blah blah. We’ve got a couple loads that will go sub MOA now, which is spectacular for an outhouse econo-carbine. I will use one of those.

But all that accuracy isn’t worth a hill a beans if you can’t put it to use in realistic situations. It’s time to stop pussy-footing around and getting seriously ugly! From here on out - I’m shooting like a man! Off my hind feet, or from the positions! A lot of people flat out refuse to come off the bench because shooting from the positions is damned hard on the ego. Your groups open up, flyers make you look stupid, the wind kicks up… and if you’ve told any porkies about your marksmanshit… this is where you get found out! Experienced riflemen are not afraid to do this. Nor should YOU be! Get off the damned bench! Shoot from the positions. Heckle your friends, and be heckled. Everyone sucks when the shooting gets real! Allow me to demonstrate:

223, 150m, slung up, crossed ankles.

I just wanna say up front, fuck all y’all!!! Don’t even say it!!!

🤬

The stench on the firing line was so thick you could see it! It may have obscured the target a bit. But a target like this tells the story: my natural point of aim was off a bit… see those stinkers off to the right? That indicates I’m wrestling with the rifle. I have to shift my bum to the left a bit. The lateral dispersion is even worse. That effing shot at the top? That’s mental retardation going on - but the others? That indicates lack of breathing control. The pressure in my lungs was different from shot to shot. If I’d been doing my part all of them would have been inside the outer ten ring. Guys like you would do even better. That outer ten ring circle is about 8”.

Here we go again!

😖

.243 this time, 150m.

Same thing again! 

The good news is that these were the first targets I’ve fired from the positions in an awfully long time. A few sessions like these…and careful examination of the targets afterward…and I’ll be ready for hunting season. I am not at all worried by this. If I were shooting at deer, 40% of those shots would be devastating kills. Some simple tweaks will fix those scores up nicely. When I actually DO start shooting at deer…it will be a different story. You simply have to practice these skills or you will lose them - like I did! But…it all comes back quickly.

When I’m in shooting form, my rule of bum is that I will shoot off my hind feet (standing, offhand) at game…out to 100m. After that I will have to shoot from the sitting position to about 200. After that I want to go prone because it’s the steadiest position you can take. 300 yards is my personal self imposed limit on game and given my druthers…200m is getting out there. On game, I want to kill them dead on the first shot and put them out of their misery as soon as possible. When people start stretching ranges out … that’s when game gets wounded and the excuses start. Do it right: get in close, put then down decisively with one and stay within your abilities. There is no shame in turning your nose up at a poor shot. 

I urge everyone - make the transition from the bench bound gear queer - and get a sling on your rifle and learn how to use it. There are some charming old WW2 training vids on OyTube. I think guys like HR Funk and modern gunnies also have some great vids on that. 

If ya want to learn how to shoot… welp…there again, the best shooters in the world are the United States Green Bean Fuggin Marines! And one of their best shooting coaches was M/Sgt Jim Owens who’s given shooting tips and pointers from 4 stars on down! Pick up a copy of his book -  Sight Alignment, Trigger Control And The Big Lie. In it, he goes over the basics that will get you shooting like a pro.

I hope you guys are all ready for hunting season because opening day will be on us all too soon. For now… stay cool if you can!

Cheers!

Filthie

😎