Longest revolver shot U ever made

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About 40 years I was teaching a firearms class to a group of new deputies. It was being held at the Colorado Law Enforcement Training Academy range in Golden, Colorado.

The pistol range was 50 yards with a backstop, but you could shoot a 1/4 away and the flattop foothills were the backstop. During the session I saw a coyote trotting at the base of the foothills. I stopped the class. Pulled out my revolver out of my holster and loaded it with .357 mag 158gr JSP. I took my stance facing the trotting coyote and held about 6 feet over his head with the front sight run all the way up in the rear and equal on both side. I slowly followed him and started my double action trigger pull. When it fired their was a long pause before the bullet got there. He dropped!! I looked around at the rookies and they all had their mouths wide open. I calmly kicked out the empty single round and reloaded. and never said another word. After that I never had a problem with the class listening to my instructions.

NOW having said that I did not make that shot. I hit close or close enough to him so he hunkered down and slipped away. I had hunted coyotes in Texas and when you hit one with a handgun they thrash around before they die. A rifle is a different story. This coyote had escaped and probably headed for the high country. After the class left I walked up and checked it out and no blood or thrashing around.

I never told the recruits and I never told anyone this story. Being from TEXAS I just wanted to strut around a little.

How say U on you longest witnessed shot.
 
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200 yards at the Alliance Rifle Club range in Malvern, Ohio.

I had read about pre-WWII long range revolver shooting at a club in Louisville, KY, so when a friend was moving to Seattle, so we had a farewell revolver shoot.

We put some full sized man targets on the target frames and shot at them with a 6" K-38, a 6" Model 14, and a 6" M&P respectively.

I had done this kind of shooting in college with my Series 70 Colt, and was able to easily hit an oil drum on a sand spit in front of a pond in some clay pits. I estimate that the range was somewhere around one hundred fifty yards. I was using VERY mild bullseye handloads with 200gr. LSWCs, and either Unique or Bullseye. It couldn't have been much more than 3.8gr. of Bullseye. I shot from the recumbent position.

Shooting the Model 14 20+ years later, I was using Winchester White Box 140gr. .38 Special FMJs, which are about equivalent to .38 Long Colt. I tried to find 158gr. LRN, but couldn't find any ANYWHERE here in time for the trip.

Once I found the range and a consistent aiming point, I was able to keep most of my shots on the paper.
 
If we are talking about shots on wildlife, I had two at about equal range. The first was on a sheep killing wild dog at 100+ yards with a Series 70 Colt .45 ACP using hardball ammo. One shot kill. 1979

The second at about the same distance was a mule deer buck with a 4 in S&W mod 29 using a Keith type SWC .44 Mag handload. 1982. In full disclosure, I thought it was closer because it was so big and I had to blood trail it for a quarter mile in the mountains.
 
The year was 1895--Down near presidio in S Texas. Me and another Ranger was tracking some stolen beeves goin into Mexico when we was ambushed. We was stuck in the river bottom and thay were on high ground--about three hundred yards up a hill.
We killed about six during the night as they tried to get to the horses but at day break---got a call coming in---I'll get back to ya'll.
Blessings
 
I have never been a long distance shooter with a hand gun. In my military days I was good with my M-14 though. I eventually got to the point that I stopped wasting ammo at targets beyond 25 yards.

I can shoot with most folks up to 25 yards and, depending upon what I'm shootin' I am probably a little below average (especially in the last 5 years or so) or out to 50 yards. I have 4 double action revolvers and 2 single sixes.

Charter arms Chiefs special 2" .38speccial
Ruger SP101 3" .357mag
S&W 624 4" .44special
S&W 24-3 3" .44special

Heritage Rough Rider 6" w/.22lr and .22mag cylinders
Ruger SS Blackhawk 41/2" .357mag

I am most consistently accurate With the 24-3 With the Ruger Blackhawk coming in a distant second.
 
I've never shot at any game with a handgun, so no stories there.

Back around 1988 the only revolver I had was a S&W M.66 w/ a 6" barrel. At one point while shooting with a friend in the desert I measured off 100 yards, and set up with a standing supported position, and took one careful shot at the full-sized silhouette target. We walked out to check the target, and the "X" in the center of the target was neatly bisected. It couldn't have been more perfectly placed. My friend was sufficiently impressed. I opted not to try any more shots at that range, that day.

About a decade and a half later I was out shooting in the desert again, with a different friend, and we had set up a steel rifle target at 227 or 277 yards (I forget now)...we had just put the target in a likely spot, and I measured it afterward with the rangefinder. In any case, we had both recently acquired Glock 27s, which we had both decided to outfit with .357 Sig barrels, and we decided to see if we might be able to hit the steel at that range. We just sat on the ground and rested our arms on our knees, and we were both able to hit the steel roughly half the time. Not too bad for a sub-compact semi-auto. We were happy!

Tim
 
100 Yard rams with a 25-7 or with my Auto ordinance 45 auto every other Tuesday in the summer. I also use full house loads in my 44 Ruger SRH as my scoped handgun.

David
 
I loaded some .357 with a 95grains 9mm smg bullet
can't remeber what and how much powder, but it was like a laserbeam out to 300meter.
Shot it at a "Magnumfieldshoot" (longrange competition here in Sweden)
Many shooters was really ticked of at me for shooting a snubby at this type of competition.
Most shoot 6" or longer barrels :rolleyes:

Badgercombat.jpg
 
I don't rightly know....

I did go ten for ten on the 200 meter rams a few times in the
ol IHMSA when we could shoot matches for cash.

Using an 8 3/8" Model 29-2 and a Ruger Super Blackhawk 10 5/8" ;)


Su Amigo,
Dave
 
I shot five rounds into a hand-size group at 50 yards, double action,
with my M649 .38 Special, once.
That day, I shot better DA at 50 than I had been doing SA at 25.

Hit a steel plate target at about 60 yards with a borrowed Ruger
Old Army at a blackpowder group shoot once. It felt a lot like my
Ruger Blackhawk and the sights were just about the same too.
One shot, clang.

The guy who owned the gun seemed a bit annoyed with me after that.
Somebody came up to me later and said,
"He's been trying to hit that plate with the Old Army all summer."
 
Years ago I was at the local gravel pit with my 6" 29-2. Some friends showed up and were sighting their rifles in shooting milk jugs at 125 yards.
I watch them for a little while and said let me give that a try. One of the guys spoke and said "hit the one on the left Mike". Took steady aim and squeezed off a shot and the left milk jug exploded. Holstered my gun and didn't take any more shots. I knew enough to quit while I was ahead.

I've never done a lot of long range shooting. Keep handgun within 50 yards or so. I have picked up some that would be suited for longer ranges but just haven't gotten around to trying the longer ranges.
 
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Qball said:
I loaded some .357 with a 95grains 9mm smg bullet
can't remeber what and how much powder, but it was like a laserbeam out to 300meter.
Shot it at a "Magnumfieldshoot" (longrange competition here in Sweden)
Many shooters was really ticked of at me for shooting a snubby at this type of competition.
Most shoot 6" or longer barrels :rolleyes:

Badgercombat.jpg
Click to expand...


I have shot in matches where they had a Special 2in match.

7/15/25 yards with a B27 target

Many experienced shooters really have a hard time with the 2in bbl. You really have to watch your front sight due to the short sight radius. Most good shooter can keep their shots in the 9 ring or closer. Great shooters keep them in the 10 and x Ring.

Good shooting to hit anything at 300 meters with a snub.
 
Offhand shooting at 12oz soda cans at 100yds with my 3" model 65 is a hoot. Actually hit one every once in a while.
 
Nearly 40 years ago I was shooting with a buddy, he had often talked about his Ruger Superblackhawk and his claimed accuracy with it. I was shooting a Ruger Superblackhawk in .44 magnum with that big 7.25" barrel, it was as accurate as any handgun I had ever shot, especially with 240 gr. wadcutters in .44 Spcl. His Ruger was chambered in .30 carbine and he claimed that if he could see it, he could hit it. The day we were shooting we were in an old abandanded gravel pit. There were targets set up all over the place and an easy 100 yd range with plenty of backstop. He took a dozen or so beat up bowling pins and we hauled them down to the limits of the range which was pretty close to 150 yards. He said we would save those for after got warmed up a bit. We'd also brought some plastic milk jugs full of water, plastic pop bottles, the usual pistol stuff. After I thought I was warmed up I tried to hit those bowling pins and once I got the range I managed to knock a couple of them over. He said "This is where this .30 carbine really shines." He sat down and put the pistol between his knees and proceeded to knock the remaining pins down, rarely missing a shot. I was really impressed and ran down to reset the pins came back and gave it a try on my own. It was not my pistol but I still managed to hit three out of six and was pretty happy with myself. He said the .30 carbine doesn't have the knockdown of the big .44 but clearly makes up for it with its inherent accuracy potential. I agreed that for long range shooting it was the best pistol I had ever seen.
A couple of months later a few of us were grabbing a smoke out in front of the building we worked at, one of the guys said "What do you think your odds would be of hitting the traffic light on Monroe from here?" It was a full two city blocks from where we were and my .30 carbine buddy asked "How many shots?" The guy said "How many do you need?" My buddy said "I'd bet five bucks I could hit the colored light of your choice in three shots." I told the other guy "Lets make it ten bucks as long as Mike is doing the shooting." There was a lot of laughing and backslapping but Mike said "I'm dead serious, you can take a bowling pin out to 150 yards and give me three shots and I can hit it." I backed him up by saying "I've watched him do it, I'll back his bet." Nobody took him up on it...
I've seen very competent, seriously practiced guys with 1911 Gold Cups shoot very good targets at 100 yards, knocking bowling pins over, etc. But just your average guy with an average pistol and cartridge I thought wasn't much good for anything except being very loud that was the best long range shooting I ever saw.
 
Buddy and I had been shooting for a while, 25 and 50 yd targets. I was on a roll with my model 67, probably shooting 148gr wadcutters. We were getting ready to pack up and I said"bet I can hit that can on the 100 yd berm. Yeah..go ahead"..bang and I wacked it. Do again he said...bang, wacked it again. That was 40 years ago.

To this day he still says it was a lucky shot. May have been but it still makes me smile and the fact that he still remembers is always worth a smile! :)
 
billwill said:
Buddy and I had been shooting for a while, 25 and 50 yd targets. I was on a roll with my model 67, probably shooting 148gr wadcutters. We were getting ready to pack up and I said"bet I can hit that can on the 100 yd berm. Yeah..go ahead"..bang and I wacked it. Do again he said...bang, wacked it again. That was 40 years ago.

To this day he still says it was a lucky shot. May have been but it still makes me smile and the fact that he still remembers is always worth a smile! :)
Click to expand...


Tell him "Not luck but skill" if you hit it twice.
 
Not so much long range as consistency. I once hit an eight inch plate six times in a row at 100 yards. Used a six inch 17-3. Never again since. Standing two hand hold.
 
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RonJ said:
Not so much long range as consistency. I once hit an eight inch plate six times in a row at 100 yards. Used a six inch 17-3. Never again since. Standing two hand hold.
Click to expand...

You were in the "zone" that day


Dwight
USAFSS 1962/1966
 
Longest shot w/ a revolver? In the summer of 1983 my brother and I went outside of town to a area where soil had been excavated for road construction. The result was a very long deep hole, wonderful place for shooting anything and everything. When we arrived several men were shooting w/ scoped rifles at a large brown beer bottle which was on a board all the way down at the other end of the hole... most certainly over 100 yds. away. I had a six inch 28-2 that I'd been shooting hot and heavy since 1980. I was carrying it in a Bianchi 10L holster. It was like an extension of my hand. They weren't hitting the bottle. I asked if they were shooting at the bottle and on of the fellows responded that of course they were shooting at the bottle but that it must be bullet proof. My brother was going to shoot his rifle but I had only my revolver. I told them it didn't seem that far away. The response was to the effect that it was further than I might think. I said I'd like to try to hit it and they said go ahead. On a impulse, I pulled the revolver from the holster and just popped off a round one handed quick. I was shocked when the bottle broke. They were shocked to. My brother said something crude and unmentionable. And I, I just put my revolver back in the holster and kept my mouth shut. But by the middle of the next week word had gotten around that the new preacher in that small town could shoot a handgun. It is a sure and certain thing that if I'd had to repeat that shot, I would have missed.
 
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