Extreme Long Range Shooting
What is involved?
The Trans-Continental Rifle Association is a small club which, amongst other things, shoots out to stupidly long distances. Recently the association visited the excellent range operated by Gardner’s Guns and shot accurately out to 2000 metres. (2200 yards). Since then, people have asked how to shoot “Extreme Long Range (ELR)”. Raf Jah tries to explain some of the basics of ELR shooting.
The definition of ultra-long range
The first question when discussing long-range shooting is, “What do you call very long-range shooting”. For example, any of our American friends call anything over 300 yards long range, with 500 or 600 yards the limit. At the NRA, most target shooters define 600 as mid-range and 1000 yards as long-range. Therefore, if we pay homage to the abilities of the Target Rifle community, we should carry on from where they leave the baton. Thus, without a better alternative, we think of anything beyond 1200 yards as long-range shooting. This is because perhaps a degree of consistency can achieve with .308 out to 1000 yards. Still, at 1200 yards, a hit on a 30cm metal disk becomes much more problematic.
Calculating Elevation
The next question that we get asked about ELR shooting is, “How do I do it?” To understand the basis of ELR shooting, I would again look to the achievements of the Target Rifle community. The “TR mob”, as I fondly call them, really know their stuff. They lie down in all conditions and shoot 1000 yards without bipods or scopes. They know exactly how many MOA they need to hit the target at 800/900/1000 yards. They understand gravity affects the bullet once fired from the barrel. No matter how new, I have never encountered a TR shooter who does not have the principles of marksmanship off-pat. These principles are fundamental, and knowledge of their rifle and bullet properties is essential. There can be an element of friendly banter between disciplines in the NRA; some of it is less than positive. But we in the TCRA absolutely respect the skills of TR shooters. Their shooting and published knowledge lays the groundwork for the ELR shooter to build on.
Where very-long range differs is in the need for first shot first hit, knowing cold bore zeroes and then being able to adjust for the hot bore. There are no sighters in ELR, the first person to hit scores the highest.
The factors that really affect ELR shooting then come into play. The first is the bullet type and speed. Most ELR shooters load their own ammunition. (I am a notable exemption). The bullet chosen must then have its ballistic properties analysed against gravity and the correct coefficient established. Many bullet suppliers will publish G1 and G7 BCs for their products, and this information is generally contained in many of the online ballistic apps. Of the many ballistic apps available, most TCRA members use Streklok Pro. Latitude, direction of fire, Coriolis effect, aerodynamic jump and the cosine of the shot (slope angle) will all affect the required rifle elevation. These, and other parameters, must be entered correctly into Strelok. What then catches most shooters out is powder temperature. On a hot day, ammunition left out in the sun will behave very differently from ammunition kept in a cool box or cool place. The final control is muzzle velocity. Each different type of bullet that you use must be choreographed so that the speed and SD (or ES) can be measured. Only with the speed of the bullet can effective tables be created. But now we have a dope table that deals with gravity in the area you are in, at the temperature you are in.
To verify that your dope table is correct, you must shoot every distance accurately and true to the app. This can be done by changing the zero on the app. But this is a complex procedure that is best explained by an expert. (One such expert is Richard Utting of Sharp Shooting UK). There are so many variables that any slight error in data input can lead to a shot that lands 18 metres short at 2 kilometres. Not bad, you may think, but we aim to be on target within a couple of rounds at that distance.
Wind – the devil’s work
The problem is that you have a series of dope tables (hot bore, cold bore, high powder temperature, low powder temperature etc), but you need to calculate the wind. On Stickledown, you often see Target Rifle shooters with their spotters. The spotter makes the adjustments on the sight of the shooter, constantly reading the wind. This is an absolutely essential skill in ELR shooting. The problem, though, is that most of our shooting is done across valleys with no flags, trees or grass to give us an indication of wind. Mirage can provide clues but is hard to see at extreme ranges.
In our experience, when we cannot hit the target, the wind always defeats us. “elevation is science, the wind is voodoo”, mutters Andy Welch, the club’s most accomplished ELR shooter. Wind in a valley can only be worked out with estimation, shooting and observation. Watching the swirl of the round is essential, no matter how difficult it may be. Suppose the shooter is using a .30 calibre round (or .50). In that case, a tracer often helps to determine what the wind is actually doing. A swing to the right and then a dramatic swing to the left before finally coming right enough to be on the target is not unknown in a Scottish valley.
Spotting and correction
Half the struggle in ELR shooting is spotting. The shooter needs a good spotter with a fixed power 30x scope behind him. This is where good glass makes a difference, and the spotter can call the shot as soon as it lands; the shooter then rapidly reloads, corrects and shoots before (hopefully) the wind conditions change. This is the only way to accurately correct your fire and hit the target. Shooters and spotters must work as a team. After a mile or so, the shooter is nothing without his spotter. It is not unheard of for one of our spotters to spot all morning, enjoying the success of his shooter as much as the person pulling the trigger.
What Do you need to shoot ELR?
This is the question that no one asks and yet should ask. Everyone we meet who wants to shoot ELR thinks they need to buy at least a .338 Lapua, and then they will instantly be able to shoot at 2000 yards. Apart from the cost, this is not an overly clever idea.
The most important thing an ELR shooter needs is skill. After skill, the ELR shooter needs a phenomenal spotter. Only when these two assets are lined up can the ELR shooter look at ammunition? Ammunition must be extremely consistent and have the power to get out to the range required. For example, I use a 23-inch barrel Tikka 30-06 with 175-grain Sierra TMKs. The ammunition has an SD of 5 and is hand loaded in 500-round batches by Colin Shorthouse of Fultons Bisley. He has tailored the round to my barrel, my chamber and the length and twist of the barrel. This means that I am happily able to hit a large target at 1370 yards. I use a 30-06 because it is what I have.
Many ELR shooters use a 6.5 derivative to reach roughly 1400 yards and only switch to something bigger, like an HME calibre rifle, when shooting further. One of our other members, Mike Shiew, was happily hitting the mile gong at Gardner’s with his 6.5 Creedmoor with carbon fibre barrel. Many club members have a .338 Lapua, but some have a .375 Cheytac. This is close to the ultimate ELR rifle (but other calibres are as good and readily available), which can get on target at 2000 metres within a couple of shots. It then stays on target all day long. But at 2600 yards, the spotting becomes so difficult that this impedes accuracy, not necessarily the rifle/bullet combination.
Good optics/glass is essential, and the adjustment range with the scope, mount and rail arrangement must allow for sufficient elevation changes to engage targets at your maximum range. When aiming at the 2650-yard target, Andy needed about 38 mils (about 130 MOA) of elevation. He was actually holding over 2.5 mils on his scope. To reach 3600 yards, the furthest placed target at Gardner’s, he would need just under 80 MIL (270 MOA) of elevation.
Where can you shoot ELR?
Now that you have mastered the art of Extreme Long Range shooting, where can you do it? Using and zeroing the smaller calibres, such as a 6.5 Creedmoor or 30-06, is easy. Stickledown often plays host to shooters with these calibres. But for anything larger, the only places are the MOD field fire ranges and a series of private range facilities such as Orion Firearms Training and Gardeners Guns. Most of the TCRA ELR shooters are also members of the FCSA (Fifty Calibre Shooters Association), so they can access multiple ranges at minimum cost.
So if ELR shooting is something you want to do, you should contact one of the long-range clubs about visiting and seeing what they do. Then you must become proficient on smaller targets at shorter distances before buying a high muzzle energy rifle.