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14.5 for hunting - smith - 05-15-2012
Can anyone advise the effective range (for deer hunting) of the 14.5 barrel? Thanks!
14.5 for hunting - LRRPF52 - 05-15-2012
Welcome. Depends on the load and the projectile, but there are guys on here who have done it with 14" barrel TC's, taking some pretty exotic game like Oryx and other strange mountain goats with cool-looking horns. Search through the hunting section.
14.5 for hunting - smith - 05-15-2012
Ok, will do. Thanks!
14.5 for hunting - mongoosesnipe - 05-15-2012
I would probably keep it within a 250 max shot placement will be important as always but more so depending on the load as you my not ge a hydoshock enhancing effect
14.5 for hunting - smith - 05-15-2012
I was planning on using the 123g Hornandy AMAX.
14.5 for hunting - mongoosesnipe - 05-15-2012
Match bullets are usually not ideal for hunting as theare not designed to retain weight and penetrate shouldn't be an issue on white the at the velocities you are dealing with but I would probably go with something more like a nobler balistic to or hornady sst or an expanding monolithic like barnes, you want to retain weight and penitrate deeply into the animal your bullet choice will need to be gauged by the impact velocity to the animal if your going to hit the animal at a velocity under say 1600 fps the Amax will preform well but I think you will be closer to 2100 fps http://www.alexanderarms.com/images/pdfs/grendel_ballistics.pdf
14.5 for hunting - JASmith - 05-15-2012
One could look at "effective range" in a two-part sense.
The first is the ability of the bullet to reliably anchor the game given a hit. For example, let's look at the AA 120 gr Ballistic Tip from the 14.5" barrel.
[INDENT]The muzzle velocity of 2376 ft/sec and ballistic coefficient mean that its velocity will drop to below 1800 ft/sec just beyond 300 yards.
1800 ft/sec is important because Nosler lists it as the minimum recommended impact velocity for the Ballistic Tip. The bullets momentum and kinetic energy are adequate at velocities a little less than 1800 ft/sec.[/INDENT]
The second part defining effective range is the shooter's ability to hit the target's vital zone. Trajectory and wind drift influence the game, so let's look at them before addressing accuracy.
[INDENT]A lot of folks like the 200 yard zero. The reason is that the near-in trajectory is close enough that the bullet will stay within a gallon water jug from the muzzle out to a considerable distance. Our 120 gr Ballistic Tip will stay within that jug out to about 250 yards even in a 10 mph wind.
So, if your wind doping skills are like mine, where we know when the tops of the trees are moving a fair bit, we don't need to add Kentucky Windage and further don't have to worry about wind direction until the target is more than 250 yards out.
If your shooting skills are good enough that you know to use a modest holdover to get a bit further reach, a spine-high hold on the deer for shots between 250 and 300 yards will likely work. You will, however, need to think about wind direction if the winds are approaching 10 mph so you can set the windage correctly,
After that, precise range measuring, wind doping and using skills possessed by several members of this forum can add some distance to your effective range.[/INDENT]
The final major factor is the tendency for most of us to not shoot as accurately in the field as we do from the bench. This means that putting a shot inside the nominal 10" vital zone becomes problematic at ranges beyond 250 or 300 yards even on calm days and with the correct holdover.
The above factors would lead me to suggest that the effective range for the 14.5" barrel shooting the 120 gr Ballistic Tip with 2-7 or 3-9 optics is about 250 yards. You can aim for the center of the vital zone on most days and have confidence that the bullet will get there without heroic wind doping and trajectory calculations.
Incidentally, that 250 yards encompasses the vast majority of shots actually taken at game animals.
14.5 for hunting - JASmith - 05-15-2012
Post Script to above: Going all the way to a 24" barrel only adds ten or twenty yards to the effective range defined above!
The reason is that the ability to hit trumps the ability of the bullet to function given a hit.
The Nosler minimum impact velocity of 1800 ft/sec is reached just past 400 yards with the longer barrel. This would be the effective range when the skills are up to the challenge of regularly placing the shot in the vital zone.
Hence a 14.5" or 16" or 18" barrel is just fine for most of us!
14.5 for hunting - Von Gruff - 05-16-2012
Thanks JASmith
That is a very sound answering post and probably answers most Grendel hunting questions that most would have regarding barrel length and hunting with bullet weight and velocity also adressed.
Von Gruff.
14.5 for hunting - sneaky one - 05-16-2012
Most hunters shoot , 50-150 yds. In the heat of the moment (the food on the hoof , looks farther away, or closer - than it is, something to do with the pupil intensifing it's focus point rather than- reality. So many over, and under estimate the distance... Pick one load to shoot at distance, over and over. Trust your own bullet, & powder trials, and errors-use the info here as a start point, a Guide--to start a Grendel loading guide of your own.,, I had to do it with all my experimantes and all., - I'm still in 1 piece, So is my way cool rifle.. Just Don't Go Over The Top !!!!!= Less can be more. Work on the accuracy,, more than the speed-that I chase
14.5 for hunting - smith - 05-16-2012
WOW! Thanks guys I can't thank you enough. I won the 14.5 so I am turning it in to a hunting rifle because it is so much fun to shoot. The last two animals I shot were 250 yards (hog in Florida) and Mule Deer in Montana (264 yards) with my ole trusty .06. So, I am thinking 0-250 yards. I appreciate all listed responses.
14.5 for hunting - fanofflyn - 05-16-2012
I'm one of those guys that uses a 14 inch TC to shoot strange animals with strange horns. I use a 100 gr TTSX at 2700 fps. full penetration on a sheep at 250 yards, heart shot so went right down. All my other shots have been at closer range. Everyone here knows I'm a Barnes fan (although I strangely avoided them a lot of years before going several trips to Africa) so take my advice with a grain of salt. Everyone has their favorite projectile, and all the modern designs have their advantages and are superior to the older designed bullets (which also have their fans and their effectiveness).
14.5 for hunting - smith - 05-16-2012
This forum is addicting! Ok, thanks.
14.5 for hunting - txgunner00 - 05-16-2012
smith Wrote:this forum is addicting! Ok, thanks.[SIZE="3"]
I'm not an addict!!![/SIZE]!
14.5 for hunting - JASmith - 05-16-2012
txgunner00 Wrote:[SIZE="3"]We're all certain of that!
I'm not an addict!!![/SIZE]!
14.5 for hunting - fanofflyn - 05-16-2012
I'm not a addict either. I signed out of this forum four times today already, so I can quit anytime. Make that five now. It'll be seven by the time the day is over.
14.5 for hunting - Von Gruff - 05-17-2012
fanofflyn Wrote:I'm not a addict either. I signed out of this forum four times today already, so I can quit anytime. Make that five now. It'll be seven by the time the day is over.
You sign out.!!! That proves you are not an addict. I am always signed in and return many, many times during the day and into the night looking for any new posts or replys. Time zones mean you in the US are usually off line from my mid to late afternoon onwards and I am reduced to re-reading posts and google always brings up the same responses no matter how many inventive key words I try as a base to search from.
Von Gruff.
14.5 for hunting - hm2 clark - 05-17-2012
I can tell you that using the 123gr Hornady factory load works in the upper you are talking about(I use one) on 160lb does out to 350 yards...If you can hit them in the chest. They probably work farther but I dont shoot past 425 yards.
14.5 for hunting - hm2 clark - 05-17-2012
The DSM defination of addiction is changing this year. Now people who use things like sugar and fat will and the drive to obtain money will probably meet criteria to be an addict . Grendel ussage will probably only meet criteria it it can be shown to be bad for us and we use it anyway.
14.5 for hunting - JASmith - 05-17-2012
Yikes!!! The liberal control freaks are gonna claim that gunpowder residue plus oxides of copper, tin, zinc, and of course the ogre lead are bad for our health.
Then they'll label us as addicts and put us in therapy -- aka re-education camp.
(My apologies -- I am generally pretty good at staying out of politics, but I am VERY sensitive to any possible moves toward back door gun control.)