I shot 1000 yards for the first time last Saturday at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton (MCBCP). The Santa Margarita Gun Club held a practice day at Sniper Range 117A so I decided to head out to MCBCP with the Eliseo R5 6mmBR and try to get a 1000 yard elevation zero for it.
Here’s an HD video of me setting up the R5 before laying down to shoot:
According to JBM I would need 31.7 MOA from my 200 yard zero to make it to 1000 yards. So I dialed 6 notches on my front sight (6 notches * ~5.5 MOA per notch = 33 MOA) and 8 clicks down on the rear sight (8 clicks * .25 MOA per click = 2 MOA) to get me 31 MOA. Surprisingly, I was on paper and I was able to get a good elevation zero (6 notches front + 10 clicks down on the rear = 30.5 MOA from 200 yard zero).
I found that 1000 yards certainly isn’t easy like 600 yards. At 1000, any minute mistake in wind call or trigger control results in bad shot.
For those that don’t know, generally 1 MPH of full value wind (wind that moves directly left to right or right to left between the shooter and the target) is 1 MOA of wind drift at 1000 yards. In other words, every 1 MPH of wind will move the bullet 10 inches by the time it gets to 1000 yards. On the NRA LR target (official 1000 yard target), the X-ring is 10″ and the 10-ring is 20″. Depending on the shooter’s hold, a change in the wind as little as 1 MPH can result in the bullet hitting outside the 10-ring.
And last Saturday, I had to battle to wind as it constantly changed directions and boiled out (mirage). It was definitely a good workout as far as mental conditioning and training on wind reading. I may have to start shooting Long Range to help me practice my prone shooting for Across the Course.
Lastly, here’s an HD video of me waiting for the wind stabilize after the mirage started to boil out and the wind shifted directions:
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