What's the farthest you've ever shot with a long rifle?

[Don Steele]

I'm very conservative about the shots I'll take on game. The only "longish" shot I've ever taken on an animal was 100 yds. I had a stand positioned to observe a trail where we knew Deer were coming out of the thick stuff, onto an open field. The distance was measured ( not guesstimated) at 100 yds. I had been firing my 50 caliber roundball rifle at 80-100 yd targets, loaded with 90 gns. of powder and had a rest to use. Open, primitive style iron sights. Sure enough late one afternoon, here came a small buck. One shot, one kill.

 

[BrownBear]

Longest shot on game, around 70 yards. Longest shooting on targets somewhere out near 500 yards. We live right on some deserted shores of open ocean, so without danger to anyone we can take shots at rocks and kelp and anything else poking above the water as far as we can see them.

Kinda fun to get way out there, that is if you have any interest in mortar fire. Reading the splashes, you can pretty well walk a succession of shots close enough to worry any human target for sure.

No aiming points above the target, so you learn how to raise the front sight above the rear in a consistent manner. Your aiming point remains on your target as the front sight gets "taller and taller." It's about 100x more accurate than fiddling for aiming points above your target. If that technique had been taught back in round ball war days, I figure much of the limited range rep of round balls would have vanished. A rank of troops milling around at 500 yards in red coated splendor? Raising the sights and walking in my rounds, I bet I could make some of them sorry.

 

[sawyer04]

Target four hundred yards, hit close enough to scare it. Animal, fifty six paces of left foot, approximately one hundred and ten yards. Muleli in New Mexico. Since I moved to the ozarks in ‘82 I don’t think I’ve shot more then forty, a lot at fifteen or less.

Just don't have much reason for long distance shooting in Missouri.

 

[Robby]

Right around seventy yards on a deer and hit exactly where I aimed. I always figured the bragging rights for a hunter was how close you could get, for a shooter it seems to be how long it was.
Robby

 

[Shot deer]

About 238,855 miles
I use to shoot the moon. Don't believe me? just look at it you can see my bullet splatters all over it.

Haha, I saw the "bullet splatters all over". The moon is 238,855 and 3/8 inches away! Just kiddin'

 

[Loyalist Dave]

The farthest that I've shot is 150 yards at a target. The farthest game that I've harvested was 110 yards, and I had to check it four times, just to be sure. The doe was rather large, and I under estimated the distance to her. Ball went right where I aimed, dropping only about an inch or so...my rifle is sighted to 75 yards.

I am endeavoring to join a club that has ranges in excess of 200 yards, and out to 1000. I hope to try some flintlock shots at 300 and 400 yards, as well as maybe get a chance to duplicate and shoot a caplock rifle at 40 rods.

LD

 

[tenngun]

Haha, I saw the "bullet splatters all over". The moon is 238,855 and 3/8 inches away! Just kiddin'

3/8” ???? That’s why I kept shooting under the target!!!

 

[hanshi]

In Georgia the only long shots at game are in hay, bean or cotton fields. In a huge hayfield I killed two deer with two different flintlock longrifles; both were .50s. On both occasions I was seated in a canvas chair and used hay bales as rests. For the actual shots I had to stand to see above the huge round bales. One was a large doe right at 100 yards; one shot and complete penetration. The second one was a small doe at between 100 and 130 yards - couldn't decide the exact spot where the shot was taken. Again one shot in and out. Neither ran any distance. I did take another deer at 75 yards with a .45; but by far the vast majority of shots were from 30 yards to 8 feet.

 

[renegadehunter]

.54 cal
Game: 90 yards, give or take 5 yards (judged), on a coyote. Hit about a 1/4 of the way up and through both front shoulders rather than behind them. PRB made a heck of a "whop!" when it hit. Shot from a kneeling position with elbow resting on my knee.
Target: Muzzleloader club has two long targets at the end of the rifle section, by my judged distance the bear is around 130 yards and the "renegade trapper" is somewhere around 200 yards. Shots are standing freehand. I hit the bear about 75% of the time. Have yet to figure out my hold for the renegade...there is brush around it and you can't tell where you're hitting.
*Edit* I made this post and then remembered I was in the flintlock forum. The above is with a percussion.

 

[Shot deer]

3/8” ???? That’s why I kept shooting under the target!!!

Or should we make it "4/8" inches!?
Just to let anyone know that's curious, my location means "mounted on the wall"

 

[Shot deer]

.54 cal
Target: Muzzleloader club has two long targets at the end of the rifle section, by my judged distance the bear is around 130 yards and the "renegade trapper" is somewhere around 200 yards. Shots are standing freehand. I hit the bear about 75% of the time. Have yet to figure out my hold for the renegade...there is brush around it and you can't tell where you're hitting.
*Edit* I made this post and then remembered I was in the flintlock forum. The above is with a percussion.

130 yards, theres a 38% chance I'd be hitting 1ft low and 2 1/3 foot to the right! Even with a percussion!

 

[dd832]

285 yards with a 58 Zouave, surprised every one, including myself. It was the top cut from a 50 gallon barrel hung on a low branch.

Watch this guy shoot a Zouave at 420 yards (at 4:19 on the video) . The title of the vid is "Accurizing the .58 cal black powder mini-ball". In the first portion of the vid he shows how he casts & prepares his mini-ball slugs. He also shoots a '61 Springfield at 600 & 800 yards and shoots with open sights, his name is Ernie Jimenez. He is an incredible talent & I suspect that he has pretty good eyesight, too. He has ton of videos shooting various black powder and modern guns at long distance. In a lot of the videos he is shooting using a 'Lead Sled' because he has broken his neck - twice!
Mike

 

[Loyalist Dave]

…. by far the vast majority of shots were from 30 yards to 8 feet

I agree...
Now the majority of shot is different for me than farthest..., most of mine are from 30 to 50 yards, with my shortest at about 12 feet. The only deer this past season I got at 33 yards. It was my first shoulder shot as the rest have all been broadsides..., bang, flop...

LD

 

[Many Klatch]

I hit a plywood cutout of a British Officer at a measured 235 yards with my Brown Bess. Loaded it up with 240 grains of 2F held high and let her go. Got one hit in the ankle out of 3 shots. With my .54 flint rifle I got 3 hits out of 20 shots at 400 meters at a plywood target that was 2' wide by 6' tall. With a little time and being able to see where your shot falls you can hit a target at a ridiculous distance. At Friendship on the Smoothbore Silhouette range I was shooting at the Bear target at 120 yards with my Bess. Hit low about 15 yards in front of the Bear. The ball bounced up, hit the Bear in the groin and knocked the target down.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

I shot a ball in to the air, where it lands I do not care.

 

[PA RIDGE RUNNER]

Light years unknown. I once shot a distant star and know I hit it because it winked. Seriously I do not recall a hunting shot at a deer much over about 75 yards.

 

[Tom A Hawk]

190 yards on a buck using a tree for a rest. Got 'im. About 300 yards at a rock in a plowed field on a rather windy day. Couldn't believe how far the wind blew that .54 round ball off the mark.

 

[Tom A Hawk]

I hit a plywood cutout of a British Officer at a measured 235 yards with my Brown Bess. Loaded it up with 240 grains of 2F held high and let her go. Got one hit in the ankle out of 3 shots. With my .54 flint rifle I got 3 hits out of 20 shots at 400 meters at a plywood target that was 2' wide by 6' tall. With a little time and being able to see where your shot falls you can hit a target at a ridiculous distance. At Friendship on the Smoothbore Silhouette range I was shooting at the Bear target at 120 yards with my Bess. Hit low about 15 yards in front of the Bear. The ball bounced up, hit the Bear in the groin and knocked the target down.

I beg your pardon...240 grains of 2F in a Bess?

 

[Dr5x]

SOMEONE THIS PAST WEEK PINTED OUT THAT AT 100 YARDS, OR MAYBE 50, THE SHOT HAS LOST 66% OF ITS VELOCITY.
IT WOULD SEEM TO ME TO BE POSSIBLY CRUEL TO SHOOT AT LONGER DISTANCES FOR FEAR OF JUST WONDING THE ANIMAL. I BELIEVE MOST HUNTERS STAY AROUNF 75 YARDS AS A MAXIMUM DISTANCE.
NOW THERE ARE LONG DISTACE ML RIFLEMEN WHO SHOT A WHOLE DIFFERENT METHOD. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY REGARD AS A MAXIMUM HUNTING RANGE.

A FELLOW MEMBER WHO LIVES ON THE ISLE OF JERSEY AND WHOSE EMAIL ADDRESS I HAVE LOST, US A LONG DISTANCE RIFLEMAN WHO COULD TELL US HIS THOGHTS ON THE SSUBJECT.

DUTCH

Light years unknown. I once shot a distant star and know I hit it because it winked. Seriously I do not recall a hunting shot at a deer much over about 75 yards.

 

[Shot deer]

SOMEONE THIS PAST WEEK PINTED OUT THAT AT 100 YARDS, OR MAYBE 50, THE SHOT HAS LOST 66% OF ITS VELOCITY.
IT WOULD SEEM TO ME TO BE POSSIBLY CRUEL TO SHOOT AT LONGER DISTANCES FOR FEAR OF JUST WONDING THE ANIMAL. I BELIEVE MOST HUNTERS STAY AROUNF 75 YARDS AS A MAXIMUM DISTANCE.

I would guess it would be 100yds when the ball has lost "66%" velocity. I do and would keep my shots within 100yds for any animal really.