What is your maximum distance for medium/large game?

[FL-NC]

I would take a deer at 600 yards with my 308, which is the only rifle I have that I would push past 300 on a deer. In reality, 100 yards is a long shot where I do most of my hunting due to terrain and vegetation.

 

[tactikel]

At the distance I can put 5 out of 6 shots into a 7” paper plate. With my .350 legend it is 150 yards, with my ‘03-A3 it is 250 yards (Iron sights).

 

[irishlad]

660 yards for the grandson. 6.5 Creedmoor.


I'm good to 300.

 

[LoonWulf]

All my rifles have web slings, and are left set for a hasty sitting position.

So sitting is quick and solid for the ranges used.

Prone ranges will generally offer time the sling-up and adjust.

Ive taken the advice "get as low as you can" and added "..... comfortably"
Flopping on my butt and shooting off my knees is one of my favorite methods of minimizing my profile and increasing stability. I have to bring my knees up cause......im...uh.....well rounded
Im only comfortable to about 200yds or so like that if unsupported.

 

[tominboise]

350 yards or so. I much prefer closer, like under 100 yards, if at all possible. I also shoot from prone or use sticks or a fencepost or the hood of the truck or whatever I can find, to make a shot, where possible.

I shake my head at the stories I hear about guys shooting game at 700 yards or more. They must all be much better shots than I am.

 

[JmacD]

Ive taken the advice "get as low as you can" and added "..... comfortably"
Flopping on my butt and shooting off my knees is one of my favorite methods of minimizing my profile and increasing stability. I have to bring my knees up cause......im...uh.....well rounded
Im only comfortable to about 200yds or so like that if unsupported.

I used to love that position. But my lower back has issues and I have a bugger of a time getting my knees up there… dunno what I’ll do by the time I’m 50…

 

[.38 Special]

There is a big difference in what a rifle/load is capable of and what a shooter is capable of. That realization is why I no longer own a magnum rifle. A lot of those cartridges are capable. And even though I feel I'm a better than average shot my personal limit doesn't require a magnum cartridge.

I've shot at paper as far as 600 yards. Not a lot mind you, and I have been pleasantly surprised at how well I've done. But I don't have enough trigger time at that range to have the confidence to try a shot at a big game animal anywhere near that range.

I do however feel pretty good at 300. With most cartridges the drop at 300 yards isn't hard to compensate for and it takes a pretty stiff wind to make a significant difference. Beyond 300 yards precise ranging and wind calculations are important. On a dead calm day with a range finder and a solid rest I MIGHT try a shot farther than 300, but not much. At the same time, I recognize others have the skills and equipment to do it. I don't judge. Good for them.

I myself am a mediocre rifleman, and constantly have to remind myself that my limits aren't necessarily everyone else's limits. In other words, just because I can't hit at 500 yards doesn't mean no one else can.* I've just seen so many braggarts who have no business shooting at 200 yard game animals - let alone the 600 yard game animals that they claim - that my reactions tend to be somewhat knee-jerk.

*I do argue that at some point beyond 600 or 700 yards, the vagaries of wind gusts, animal movement, time-of-flight, etc. begin to outweigh skill and equipment. I don't care how good you are: a 1000 yard shot simply requires too much luck for me to ever agree that it is a responsible thing to try at unwounded big game.

 

[d2wing]

I shot a deer at 440 yards once. It took 3 shots. It turns out that I used Elk loads instead of deer loads and at that distance they didn't expand properly. All the shots were in the lungs. After that I decided to limit my shots to 400 yards or less. I have had a few in the 250 to 300 range but most are within 100 yards.

 

[d2wing]

I prefer kneeling to squatting. It's quicker and not impossible at my age. That and often the grass and brush is too tall for either.

 

[JFrank]

I really haven’t had the opportunity for a really long shot on any game lately so I’m not really sure how comfortable I would be. I know I don’t like tracking after dark in Bear country.

 

[md7]

660 yards for the grandson. 6.5 Creedmoor.
View attachment 1174684View attachment 1174685

I'm good to 300.

Nicely done!

 

[Wolfshead]

I find this topic interesting.

Seems that maximum distance a person is willing or able to take on game varies considerably based on cartridge, game, geography, and of course…. the bullet’s effectiveness on game at a given distance.

For myself, I’m after whitetail. The lay of the land varies from wooded to rolling hills and usually surrounded on the edges by woods. 300 is about as far as the terrain will permit a shot, and in nearly 30 years I’ve only had rare occasions to shoot beyond 200 yards.

I shoot a 270 Win and 308 win. For me, I’d rather keep shots at 300 and in. Both cartridges are capable beyond that and I may consider 400 yards under ideal circumstances. (If I had the opportunity)

But I’m no long range shooter, so that’s my personal limit.

What’s yours? Curious to listen to y’all’s experience and limits.

this sounds similar to me.
I'm after whitetail and I’m shooting 30-06, or .308 win. Lately it has mostly been .308.
I have only ever shoot out to 300 yds and I know I can do that for certain. I know how my loads will hit and I know how and what I need to do to take that shot.
I may take a chance a little further but to be honest I don’t really ever hunt anywhere I can Or would want to.
I’ve taken deer out to 270 yds which is the furthest I’ve ever done.

 

[12Bravo20]

Answers will differ depending on location, caliber used, and the shooter's skills (and what they are comfortable with). Location will make a difference too.

The longest shot I have taken on deer was about 350 yards using a 30-06. Most places I have hunted here in Missouri won't let you take shots that far away. I mostly hunt in the Ozark's or in the river hills along the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. A 100 yard shot is about the max in the areas I hunt.

 

[JShirley]

My 2 longest shots so far have been 225 and 178 yards. Scoped '03 with 150 gr SPs. My max range right now with flatter rounds and high power scope would be about 400 meters. With some of my "Goldilocks" calibers (.224 Valkyrie, fast-twist .22-250, etc) though, I wouldn't take shots past 250 meters. The idea behind the "perfect rifle" is that it's just right for the task, but if you try to send it too far, it no longer has enough energy to kill cleanly with anything but absolutely perfect shots. Real life is rarely perfect.

John