FTR rulebook concerning equipment

[Maple57]

Wind flags wind flags wind flags mirage mirage, get a 3/4 minute gun go shoot on a range with all flags set up. You can have all the above discussion after a day of shooting with a cold drink in your hand. 12+ yrs of F-class shooting and have seen a lot of 1/4 minute guns get their asses handed to them when the wing is up lol

As with all things in shooting, there is a flip side to every coin.

It's very difficult to be optimal for every distance and wind condition with a single rifle in a single configuration.

More like a golf bag full of rifles and the winner tends to be the guy who happened to be using what works best under the conditions at the time.

I have a barrel with an undersize bore for 308 that is scary accurate with 155 SMKs out to 800 yards, but past that the wheels come off. I have another barrel configured for 185 Jugs. Its not as accurate, but in heavy wind it does real well. Nothing is best for everything.

Once in a great while, lightening will strike and a barrel arrives that is miraculous, but that is rare. This is why some of the most well funded shooters will often buy barrels several at a time. Chou brothers for example are known for returning barrels that they have found to be unacceptable upon examination. Knowing how to correctly inspect the barrel has its advantages.

 

[maynard]

Beware of the guy that only brings one rifle to a match, he may know how to shoot it. To make things clear I am not an F/TR shooter, I am old school TR with iron sights. While I don't really believe that you need a quiver of rifles to shoot a match, I have been known to shoot a .223 at short range out to 600 then switch to a .308 for 800, 900 and 1000 yards. Not because one rifle shoots better or I shoot one better or that one rifle shoots better in the wind. Shooting out of a sling and having to actually hold the rifle, the .223 is a little easier on the body. Shooting and dragging 2 rifles around the range is a PITA. So I might just change things up and only shoot one rifle either the .223 of the .308 for the whole match or at least for a whole day at a time. I do not believe the .223 will put me at a disadvantage at long range.

One thing that I have learned over a few years of shooting is that wind flags lie. On a big range like Connaught there might be 20 or more wind flags visible, knowing which ones to watch is the key. Tring to watch all of them will drive you crazy.

There are a lot more of things that come into effect at longer ranges between 800-1000 yards. Wind is never constant, increases and decreases, angle changes and lighting condition all play a part. A cloud moving over the range either over the shooter, the target or mid way down the range may have some bearing over where the bullet strikes the target from shot to shot. I have seen where 4-5 targets in a row will come up with 2 O'clock shots on them, without seeing a change in wind or mirage. It may not be that the wheels fall off with a particular bullet after 800 yards, but more that the conditions are harder to read. The 185 Jug may very well be a more forgiving bullet at long range over the 155 SMK's.

Of course there is always talk on the range or after the shoot on what people are using for a load and bullet. Remember in the TR game we are limited to 156 gr max bullet in .308. Some shooters use one bullet all the way from 300-1000. Some switch from 2156 SMK's at short range (out to 600) to 155.5 Fullbore for long range.

So instead of a quiver of rifles these guys have a short range load and a long range load with on rifle. One shooter doesn't bother to weigh charges for ammo used under 600 yards, he just throws them, for long range he does weigh each charge. I am in the camp of one rifle, one load that works all the way from 300-1000.