1000 Yard Ammo

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15 years 7 months ago #1907 by mlotziii
1000 Yard Ammo was created by mlotziii
As I am not a reloader, I am wondering what factory ammo you would recommend for shooting at 1000 yards with an AR-10T 24-inch barrel? Thanks!

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15 years 7 months ago #1908 by aaron
Replied by aaron on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
I would recomend you get into hand loading it is the only way to be sure you are getting the best ammo for your rifle. But if you dont want to deal with hassle of rolling your own I have had very good results from winchester gold medal match in my AR 10T.

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15 years 7 months ago #1911 by BUILDING MY SASS
Replied by BUILDING MY SASS on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
Mlotz...........dude 1K shooting, WOW I envy you, I can hardly get 100 to 200 where I used to shoot. Haven't done much this summer. I would like to hear about it, where did you find the place to shoot.
I will check with a few guys I know that are ex-military and see what they say, a few are even comp shooters that shoot that distance. Edge would have a good idea as well.
BMS

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15 years 7 months ago #1912 by mlotziii
Replied by mlotziii on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
I have not fed my 10T in quite some time. The last gun club I belonged to only had a 200 yard range. I'm joining a club soon that has a 1000 yard range and wondering what to ammo to initially stock up on.

Reloading is definitely the best option but right now I don't have the time or money to get started. New furniture and baby stuff is far ahead of a reloading press and gear for the next few months.

Thanks for the replies. Please let me know if you hear anything from your military friends and comp shooters.

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15 years 7 months ago - 15 years 7 months ago #1915 by Edge
Replied by Edge on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
Do you have access to a chronograph? If so, try a few different loads and see how fast and accurate they are. Ideally you'd like to be around 2640 fps in order to get to 1000 yards accurately. With your 24 inch barrel, it's probably doable. Gas gun platforms are notorious for loss of velocity. For example, my bolt gun load averages 2640 fps, but that same load in my gas gun is 2400 fps. Sometime using a moly coated or bHN coated bullet will help this.

I like Federal Gold Medal Match 175gr SMK or you could try Black Hills 175 gr Match. The heavier bullet will have more momentum behind it to get you to 1000 yards.

As others have said, I would look into reloading. That way you can pick a load that will work the best for your rifle.

What twist rate does your barrel have? My Rock Rivers have 1 in 10, so they are ideal for the heavier bullets. In fact mine like the 180 Nosler's the best.
Last edit: 15 years 7 months ago by Edge.

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15 years 7 months ago #1925 by BUILDING MY SASS
Replied by BUILDING MY SASS on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
Well I heard from a few. Looks like the 175 gr Match is about the best so far. One guy said something about 180 gr, but I am not sure about that in the AR-10, don't know if the 5 gr. difference would hurt or not.

This is what they had to say.

Hornady 168 gr BTHP match .308
Federal Gold Medal 168 gr Sierra Matchking BTHP .308
500 yard range.

Federal Gold Medal Match 175gr. Sierra Matchking HPBT.

Hornady 168gr BTHPs for my .308

With a 168 BTHP out to 600 Yds the bullet drop is about 98.5 inches or 8.2 Feet with a 24" Barrel and the scope mounted 2.5" above the bore line - That's a lotta drop.

any my friend, I will keep you posted on what I hear.
BMS

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15 years 7 months ago #1926 by zfk55
Replied by zfk55 on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
SMK 175 is the standard for that range.

zfk55

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15 years 7 months ago #1927 by Edge
Replied by Edge on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
BUILDING MY SASS wrote:

Well I heard from a few. Looks like the 175 gr Match is about the best so far. One guy said something about 180 gr, but I am not sure about that in the AR-10, don't know if the 5 gr. difference would hurt or not.


That was me with the 180 gr Nosler. But that's my rifle and my reload, I doubt that you can find that commercially made.

As has been mentioned, the 175 SMK is the standard, however, if you can reload and your barrel has a 1 in 10 twist rate, you could experiment with other bullets up to 210 gr. You might even look into the 155 gr Lapua or the new 155 SMK Palma bullet. But then again, that's if you reload.

To get back on the commercial loads, I would look at the 175 gr Match loads made by several manufacturers. I like Federal Match the best.

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15 years 7 months ago #1928 by BUILDING MY SASS
Replied by BUILDING MY SASS on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
That was me with the 180 gr Nosler. But that's my rifle and my reload, I doubt that you can find that commercially made.
Sorry my friend, it was a long night at work. Tying to keep to much straight when tired.
The 175 does seem the most popular for that distance, going to reference some of my old articles and see what they have.
We will find Mlotz what he needs.
BMS

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15 years 6 months ago #1969 by weshowe
Replied by weshowe on topic Re:1000 Yard Ammo
Gents,

Shooting .308's at 1,000 yards...

A lot has been said about ammo and bullet weight with 168 and 175's being the most common.

The real critical issue in 1,000 yard ammo is getting the projectile(whatever it is) to stay supersonic to 1,000 yards. In the .308 that's hard to do with most match factory match ammo. Especially, with 168 grain bullets.
Sierra developed the 175 SMK to stay supersonic to 1,000 yards. That said it still needs enough velocity to stay supersonic coupled with the high BC of the 175 SMK. Usually, 2,600 to 2,650 FPS will keep you supersonic depending on conditions. The only real way to know for sure is to shoot the load at that distance in your rifle.

The old M852 load (168 gr SMK) went subsonic just prior to 1,000 yards in most cases. Again, depending on atmospheric conditions, temp., altitude, etc. Not the best choice.
Realistically, the .308 is not a good 1,000 yard cartridge.
A number of folks have been using the Lapua Scenar 155 gr match bullet that can stay supersonic to 1,000 due to it's extremely high BC. Sierra's new 155 gr SMK Palma bullet can, too. Note I said the new Palma bullet...the older Palma bullet has a lower BC and doesn't work as well.

Just a few things to try out.

Frankly, if I'm stretching the range to 1,000 I reach for my 6.5 X .284 Norma...but that's a whole 'nother ball game.

Just a few observations that may help. The only real way to see if your load is going to work is to shoot it at 1,000 yards. Those of us lucky enough to have access to 1,000 yard ranges.

Good shooting and please report back your results if you get to the range.

Wes

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