How much shooting?

[Fullquiver]

I was just wondering just how much the average guy who hunts shoots.. Now I am talking rifles particularly centerfire rifles.. When I was a boy I remember my Dad just taking the old iron sighted lever Savage 99 out to shoot 1 shot at 50 yards and then hunting the next day on the opener.. A box of Remington Core Lokts lasted a long time with him. Me I burn hundreds maybe close to a thousand of rounds of ammo per year in several different rifles in many different calibers and configurations out to 800 yards.. So how much do you shoot and how often?

 

[Clam]

Centerfire, probably better than a couple thousand a year, maybe 2500. Usually shoot about a thousand at ground squirrels and prairie dogs, the rest, shooting at my local range for fun and practice.

My big game rifle (Sako 6.5 Swede) only gets about 100 put through it in a year.

Usually shoot once or twice a week, mostly during the wet months of Oct-April.

 

[brockel]

Almost every weekend at least one morning from April to September.

 

[Clam]

Almost every weekend at least one morning from April to September.

How many rds? What caliber(s) - just curious.

 

[brockel]

How many rds? What caliber(s) - just curious.

Jeez I change cartridges like most change underwear. This year it’s been 6.5 saum, two different 300 rums, 223, 204, 6.5 creedbro, 6mm creedmoor, 6.5-06. I think that’s it. Usually around 20 rounds a morning on the way to turn horses out.

O ya there was a 7mm-08 in there too

 

[WVgoodguy22]

Since most of me and my family's hunting with a centerfire rifle is for whitetail and is usually under 100 yards, we mostly check to see if our guns are on at 75-100 yards, which could be 1 - 6 shots then put it back on the gun rack. But since I want to go out west and learn to shoot longer ranges, I shot about a dozen shots a couple days ago. I need and want to find a range out to 4-500 yards so I can be effective and confident at longer ranges than I normally would take an animal and I want to practice shooting prone, sitting, get my heart rate up, etc...

 

[Jeremyc_1999]

It depends on the year. Last year and the year before I was shooting prs style matches and went through about 3000 rounds of mainly 260 remington. Some 6slr, 308, and 338 Lapua as well. This year I've changed jobs and my son has had some medical issues so I am way behind. At about 500 rounds for the year. If we add in AR and pistol rounds, I'm close to 12k rounds per year

 

[Dan O]

During the spring and summer at least 2000 rounds of 45-70 loaded with black powder and cast lead bullets. These are for BPCR matches not counting practice and my hunting rifles.

 

[GlockZ]

Centerfire rifle? I take my out a few times a year to shoot, under different weather conditions, hot and humid, cold, windy with rain or snow. Depending on what I choose to use for that year, that particular rifle gets a little extra attention paid at the range. For instance, if I go out west on a black bear hunt, my 30-06 spends extra time out on the range. If I'm making a trip to Maine for deer or Black bear, My 35 Remington lever gun gets the extra attention.

 

[Brandon270]

I try to go twice a month. Most of my range visits start at the 50 yard range with my 22lr for about 100 rounds. Then I move to the 100 and alternate between my .223 and .22lr to let my barrel cool on the .223. Probably another 100 rounds of .22 and 50 .223. Planning on getting my first big game rifle in .270 soon.

 

[std7mag]

Year round about 2,500 rounds a year.
Sun, rain, snow, wind.
250 Savage
257 Roberts
7mm-08
7mm-08AI
280 Rem (2 rifles)
284 Win
7mm Rem Mag
Distances vary from 25 yards to 1,000 yards.

 

[BuzzH]

I shoot once a month in December through April. Rest of the year closer to once a week. I’m a quality over quantity type. Some days I don’t shoot more than 6-10 shots but rarely shoot closer than 250 yards unless I’m testing loads or sighting in. I see zero value in shooting 100 yard groups over and over again. I like shooting steel from 250-750 in various weather, usually shooting off my pack for a rest. I concentrate my shooting in that 250-500 yard range since I very rarely have found a reason to shoot big game over that.

 

[FLS]

I’ve slowed down the last couple of years, but still a good bit. I shoot long range, 3 gun, and action pistol, about a match a month. At my peak it was 3-4 matches a month, and about 10-12K of pistol rifle and shotgun a year. I ran a 3 gun match for several years and hosted a few long range events. I have a barn full of rifle steel, plate racks dueling trees, and poppers.
Hunting rifles, I’ll check zero and confirm dope before hunting season. Maybe 100 rounds a year, between 3-4 rifles.

 

[stealthy_bowman]

At least once a month, more if time permits. Love spending time at the range.

 

[RockinU]

It helps having a range in my back pasture, but I shoot on average probably 3 times a month (my kids love to hear steel ring). Not a huge volume each time, but I do a lot of dry fire. It's very valuable to me, not only does it save ammo, and wear and tear on a barrel, it's just so much easier to develop good form, and diagnose bad form with for me.

 

[Don Fischer]

Year's ago about 5000 rds a year, couldn't afford more. These days very little. getting long in the tooth. Most hunting anymore is bird's and If I didn't have bird dog's I'd be slowing down there also. Sitting in my boat fishing is no where near as hard on the back and knee's as climbing chukar hills and packing out big game! The result is shooting is down, mostly use my handguns now and then these days.

 

[Carl 9.3x62]

Not enough

 

[Guy]

Used to shoot a fair bit of centerfire rifle every year, couple of thousand rounds. I was shooting NRA High Power competition.

Am shooting more handgun and 22 rifle anymore. Shifting interests I suppose. But... as hunting season approaches, yes! I do get to the range regularly with my rifles. I enjoy the rifle shooting a great deal. Favorite practice is to set up a steel target and shoot at it from various distances & positions. Sometimes I do that at an official range, other times I've set up the gong in a canyon and "stalked" it, taking shots from standing, sitting, kneeling as I close in on it. That has been an awful lot of fun!

Mostly I hunt with my 25-06 & 30-06 rifles, a pair of Remington 700 CDL's with 6x Leupold scopes. I practice with them a fair bit, but also with a very accurate Rem 700 in 308 Win. I used to compete with that rifle, but it's back to being more of a heavy-barreled hunting rifle now.

Three fused vertebrae in my neck make prone very difficult for me now, so mostly I practice from sitting, kneeling and standing. I find that with practice I can be pretty good from sitting. Not as accurate as I was from prone, but not bad. I rarely take a shot at game much beyond 300 yards, so I seldom practice much beyond 300 yards, though I do like to do some 600 yard shooting at the range still. That's fun.

Time to time I hunt with a 375 H&H, or one of my lever action rifles. If I intend to do that, I'll work more with that particular rifle. Have a 375 H&H Ruger Number One that I dearly love to shoot and hunt with. Earlier this year I took it to a big-bore match in Montana. That was a hoot! Shot about 30 rounds that day, all from standing, at life-like targets and water bottles. Some of the targets were moving. It was great practice for modest range hunting.

I probably go through about 500 rounds of centerfire rifle ammo every year the past few years. And a few thousand rounds of pistol ammo & 22 ammo. I know the question was how much centerfire, but... I've gone to mostly shooting my 22 rimfire, a Marlin 39A. Love that thing!

I'd like to shoot even more, but.. there's only so much time!

Regards, Guy

 

[buffybr]

I go to the range every Wednesday that I'm home throughout the year. I usually start my shooting with CF pistols (9mm, .38 Spl, .44 Spl and mag, .45 acp) shooting at least two clips or cylinders through each one at 25 to 50 yard gongs. I then move to the rifle range and shoot 10 or more rounds each from my .308 Win and at least one other hunting rifle (.223 Rem, .257 Ackley, 7mm Rem mag, or .300 Wby) from field positions at 200, 300, and 430 yard gongs. All of these rifles are bolt action and have stocks built to the same dimensions, and with similar Leupold scopes.

After that I go to the Skeet range and shoot 3 or 4 lines of Skeet.

 

[sharpshooter97]

Thankfully being in a rural area I can shoot as often as I want or have cash for ammo. I shoot 9mm, .223/556, and .22LR the most, 9mm over a thousand rounds a year as I like to be proficient with my carry gun. The 22 gets quite a few through it at gophers and rabbits. Other than that I shoot a box of .30-06 and .45-70 every once and a while. The .243 is shot all year at coyotes,badgers, and is usually the deer rifle, never really shoot it at the range