PaulL
05-10-10, 10:36
Yesterday I was out plinking at the in-laws' house and decided to take some shots at their 300 yard target (6'x2') with a few different guns and ammo. I've never done this before and the results were pretty interesting. The target had about 20 feet of sand in front of it so my goal was to try to hit the target first, but at least land it in the sand somewhere. My other goal was to not shoot a cow.
For the 9mm, sight picture was usually right at the top of the target, give or take a foot of slop 'cause 300 yds is a long ass way.
Glock 19 - 115gr FMJ reload, just barely IDPA legal, XS Big Dot sights
Out of 15 rounds, I was able to hit the sand twice. With the same point of aim, some of the rounds (7) would hit the dirt at around 150 yd on the centerline and some (4) would veer off to one side or the other and hit about 30 feet off center at the same distance. 2 rounds weren't track-able and likely went over the target. I suspect my 115 load just isn't heavy enough or moving fast enough for this kind of thing.
Glock 17 - WWB 124gr NATO, stock Glock sights
Shot 17 rounds and 6 hit the sand. The rest took a nose dive at 200-250 yds for some reason. Better than the reloads, though.
Glock 19 - 147gr Federal HST, XS Big Dot sights
Only shot 5 of these 'cause I can hardly find 'em anywhere. One hit the target dead center (blind luck) and the other 4 hit the sand. Goes to show the difference in quality ammo.
Glock 19 - 147gr Winchester Ranger SXT, stock Glock sights
5 of these went downrange and all 5 hit the sand. One was right at the bottom of the target. Again, the higher-end ammo clearly performs better, or at least more consistently.
Glock 21 - Remington UMC 230gr FMJ, Glock factory Meprolight night sights, LE trade-in reconditioned gun
This was the hardest to aim. Shot 5 rounds to get in the ballpark. Point of aim ended up being about 10 feet above the target. The best way to sight it was to put the bottom of the front dot at the top of the rear sight and aim just above the target. Out of 10 rounds, 2 hit the target. One of those was just right of dead center. The other 8 hit all around it, but actually pretty close.
Glock 21 - Remington 230gr Golden Sabre, Glock factory Meprolight night sights, LE trade-in reconditioned gun
Shot 3 rounds with one hit on the target. One went over the top and the third went into the sand just in front of the target. My brother-in-law shot this one and won't shut up about his 33% hit ratio. :rolleyes: :D
FWIW, we shot a fair bit at 50 yards with these guns and ammo and were able to get very consistent hits on a silhouette. Groups for all guns ran 18" and under shooting offhand.
My ultimate conclusions:
(1) You CAN hit stuff at 300 yards with a common defensive handgun.
(2) If you're going to shoot at stuff at 300 yards, buy good ammo.
(3) Accuracy at 25 or 50 yards doesn't mean squat at 300.
(4) XS Big Dot sights will work at long range.
(5) Hits at 300 yards with a handgun are mostly luck.
(6) 300 yards is for rifles.
There are a few long-range shooting reports out there, but I figured another one from some random goofball in Texas couldn't hurt. :D
No cows were harmed in the making of this post.
For the 9mm, sight picture was usually right at the top of the target, give or take a foot of slop 'cause 300 yds is a long ass way.
Glock 19 - 115gr FMJ reload, just barely IDPA legal, XS Big Dot sights
Out of 15 rounds, I was able to hit the sand twice. With the same point of aim, some of the rounds (7) would hit the dirt at around 150 yd on the centerline and some (4) would veer off to one side or the other and hit about 30 feet off center at the same distance. 2 rounds weren't track-able and likely went over the target. I suspect my 115 load just isn't heavy enough or moving fast enough for this kind of thing.
Glock 17 - WWB 124gr NATO, stock Glock sights
Shot 17 rounds and 6 hit the sand. The rest took a nose dive at 200-250 yds for some reason. Better than the reloads, though.
Glock 19 - 147gr Federal HST, XS Big Dot sights
Only shot 5 of these 'cause I can hardly find 'em anywhere. One hit the target dead center (blind luck) and the other 4 hit the sand. Goes to show the difference in quality ammo.
Glock 19 - 147gr Winchester Ranger SXT, stock Glock sights
5 of these went downrange and all 5 hit the sand. One was right at the bottom of the target. Again, the higher-end ammo clearly performs better, or at least more consistently.
Glock 21 - Remington UMC 230gr FMJ, Glock factory Meprolight night sights, LE trade-in reconditioned gun
This was the hardest to aim. Shot 5 rounds to get in the ballpark. Point of aim ended up being about 10 feet above the target. The best way to sight it was to put the bottom of the front dot at the top of the rear sight and aim just above the target. Out of 10 rounds, 2 hit the target. One of those was just right of dead center. The other 8 hit all around it, but actually pretty close.
Glock 21 - Remington 230gr Golden Sabre, Glock factory Meprolight night sights, LE trade-in reconditioned gun
Shot 3 rounds with one hit on the target. One went over the top and the third went into the sand just in front of the target. My brother-in-law shot this one and won't shut up about his 33% hit ratio. :rolleyes: :D
FWIW, we shot a fair bit at 50 yards with these guns and ammo and were able to get very consistent hits on a silhouette. Groups for all guns ran 18" and under shooting offhand.
My ultimate conclusions:
(1) You CAN hit stuff at 300 yards with a common defensive handgun.
(2) If you're going to shoot at stuff at 300 yards, buy good ammo.
(3) Accuracy at 25 or 50 yards doesn't mean squat at 300.
(4) XS Big Dot sights will work at long range.
(5) Hits at 300 yards with a handgun are mostly luck.
(6) 300 yards is for rifles.
There are a few long-range shooting reports out there, but I figured another one from some random goofball in Texas couldn't hurt. :D
No cows were harmed in the making of this post.