advice for 200yard shot

[pghrich]

i am going to a trail walk shoot on march 3rd.and i found out today that they are going to have a ham shoot at 200yards. closest to the bull wins.i am now shooting dead on at 50yards using 50g of 3f 50cal.490 ball .015 pre lube patch. cabelas kentucky rifle.i willnot have time to sight in before hand [work].suggestions on where to hold or bump up to my hunting load of 85g 3f. plese help i really could use that ham bone for some good soup...pghrich....

 

[F.G. Ford]

Try 50 balls down the barrel!
Old Ford

 

[50cal.cliff]

Id' go with your hunting load! Do you know where the hunting load hits at a given yardage? The heavier charge of 85 grn. sill be more constant at 200 yds.
There is no easy answer to your question. You have to know at a given yardage where your bullet strikes.
I shoot a .50 and using the same combo, a .490 RB w.15patch and 85grns. I hold about 2+" for a 100yds. If I were going to take this shot with my gun at 200yds, I would hold about 6-8" above center.
Mind you alot of this has to do with knowing your gun and this is educated guess with using results I know from my rifle at 100yds.

 

[Zonie]

If you use your 50 grain load when you shoot at 200 yards you will have to aim about 69 inches high ( a little less than 6 feet).
If you change the powder load to 85 grains I don't know where it will hit at 50 yards so I can't predict where it would be at 200.

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

Up your powder some and hold high. When shooting my 54s at 200 yards ( Friendship silly-wets )
I elevate the barrel until the base of the front sight is on the top of the rear sight. This much elevation gets me close to 200. I also aim at the top of the bear. Mine shoots dead on at 60 yards.
What would be good is if you could find a place to practice before you went. 200 yards sounds tough but with practice.......

:thumbsup:

 

[Herb]

From Lyman's "Black Powder Handbook", first edition: .50 cal., .495 ball, GO 3F powder, 32" barrel, 50 grains gives about 1450 fps and 85 grains about 1800 fps. With 50 yard zeroes, 50 grains drops 55 inches below point of aim at 200 yards and 85 grains drops 40 inches. With only 5 mph of wind, EACH drifts about 21 inches. I have shot my .54 at 100 and then 200 yards and the wind really moves that ball. These figures are bound to give you a big advantage over other shooters that haven't actually shot at 200 yards, because few people are into ballistics enough to know them. Use either load, but practice what 40 or 55 inches of holdover is at 200 yards.

I was in a shooting contest years ago where we'd start at 100 yards and the winners backed up about 25 yards. I was back about 200- 225 yards with Doc Gary White of the old Green River Rifle Works, having to guess how high to hold my .45 Green River Leman. He beat me. I didn't have any experience at that range. So, win that ham!

 

[MikeChapin]

I shoot occasionally at silouettes where three of the targets are beyond 100 yards. The bears are at 200 yards, are 4' tall and made of steel plate. They need to be knocked over to score and it usually takes a .54 or .58 hitting in the chest or higher to knock them over.

I use my hunting load and raise the front sight until the bottom of the front sight is even with the top of rear sight and hold on the top of the bear's head. If I can keep from wobbling from side to side, that will usually produce a hit in the top area of the bear and knock him over.

For paper I would probably do the same sight picture and hold a foot high. Try it out at the range beforehand and see where you are hitting.

 

[50cal.cliff]

I told you I had never attempted a 200 yd shot! So what I was recommending was an educated guess!
:shocked2: :redface:
Appears I need a little more ed u ma cation , as Jethro would say!
I guess I could lie and say I meant 6-8" to be 6-8' but what the heck! I tried! :grin: :haha:

 

[longcruise]

Just yesterday was doing some shooting at 200 meters with a .50 and .50 grains of powder as well as 80 grains of powder.

I have no way of knowing exactly what holdover distance was but in shooting at a 3X5 steel plate it took at least one plate height of holdover to hit it. Interestingly, there was not that much difference in the needed holdover between the two loads. Maybe two feet but could have been less.

I'd shoot the most accurate load that you know best and don't bother trying to improve trajectory. The key would be to practice beforehand but if it's not possible, then it's just pretty much a manure shoot!

A 10 mile per hour crosswind can do some serious damage to the flight path too!

 

[Walks Alone]

Shooting 200 yards cold turkey to win a match?
:rotf: :surrender: :rotf:

I'd suggest you stop by your local food store if you want soup for dinner that night. :wink:

 

[Idaho Ron]

too bad we don't live close. I could loan you a rifle that would center punch a 200 yard target if you do your part. Windage would be your part also :thumbsup:
Ron

 

[54mountain]

At the annual Labor day shoot that I attend every year they set up a full size buffalo silouette out at around 160 to 200 yards, and with my 28" .54 and 80gr. ffg I have found I have to hold just above the line of the back to make it ring, but then again thats an awfully big target :grin: Windage and elevation my boy windage and elivation.