I recently became the proud owner of my first ever hunting rifle! This journey from ordering to possession was about a month in the making but backed by many years of interest. After a week of internet research and phone calls to some of my more experienced friends I decided on a Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 rifle chambered in .300 Weatherby Magnum* I was able to pair that with a Vortex Viper Scope which I found for quite the steal, thanks AA Optics!
For a bit of context I do not have anyone in my life that introduced me to the world of hunting, archery or marksmanship. There has always been a quiet internal interest but I consider my mentors to be people like Steven Rinella, Janis Putelis, Ryan Callahan, Jim Shockey, Remi Warren, Randy Newberg, John Dudley, Cameron Hanes and the like. More about mentors in a future post …
After getting all the parts** in, assembled and safely housed I found a local shooting range and worked up the courage to take the next step in being a gun owner … actually shooting my firearm. My first day on the range I shot 11 rounds over the course of about two and a half hours while following a barrel break in procedure I saw outlined by Randy Newberg. Now for the honest part ... It felt like my shoulder was about to fall off, even while averaging 14 minutes between rounds. I have since added a Limbsaver Airtech to the stock which has decreased recoil significantly.
Cherry Creek State Park
Prior to May 14th 2020 I had only shot a gun three times in my life. The first was back in 2012 with a .22 caliber rifle owned by a friend of mine, which had an impact slightly harder than an aggressively delivered spitball (I kid, all ammunition is deadly but that round has an unnoticeable kick). The second and third times were with bolt-action rifles that were probably chambered in a 30-06 configuration. The world of ballistics and ammunition is a rabbit hole we're not going to go down at this moment but start here if you want to see the basic differences.
Why .300 Wby Mag?
Now a bit more on my logic of going with 300 weatherby mag, I chose this caliber so that I could hunt big game anywhere on the planet without having to buy, rent, or borrow another rifle. The 300 weatherby mag has a muzzle velocity of approximately 3,200 feet per second depending on the manufacturer and grain weight of the cartridge. To put that in layman's terms that's 2,182/mph or for my metric folk roughly 975 meters per second (3511 km/h). A .300 caliber bullet is 3/10 of an inch or roughly 7.62mm in diameter. The round I chose to shoot has 180 grains of projectile with roughly 88 grains of powder in the case. To make a very loose comparison the projectile coming out of this rifle has more than twice the energy of a Semi Truck Engine (Comparing the energy of the 180g .300 wby mag to a Cummings ISX).
Being that I have no formal training or familial mentors I'm quite proud of the progress that was made on my first day. I went from asking the range master to help me load my gun to confidently chambering rounds while properly turning the safety on and off like an old pro. I thought I would attempt to start sighting in the scope, which simply means making the cross-hairs line up with where the bullet was landing, but for this first day of shooting I didn’t want to introduce too many variables. Believe it or not having a scope professionally mounted only will give you an accuracy of about 12 inches at 100 yards.
No Scope Adjustment (aiming at center of target)
After Scope Adjustment @50yds
One could use a Boresight to increase accuracy before ever shooting a round but if you can hit paper at 100 yards you should be able to dial in any rifle. The crucial piece of the process is consistency. Imagine if you could lock your gun in a vise and have a robot pull the trigger, exactly the same way, every single time. In that scenario there is zero human error and the only thing one would need to be adjust is the Windage (left and right) and Elevation (up and down) settings on the scope. Being that I was shooting off beanbags I recognized two pivotal items for a proper sight in procedure. Those were having a consistent sight window and a smooth trigger pull that did not jerk the gun at the last moment. When using anything but what is referred to as a lead sled, user error is a factor (especially for a novice shooter). There are some similarities to sighting in a compound bow, which I will discuss in detail in a future post.
Ordering a Firearm
For those who want to know the details of the gun ordering process. In the state of Colorado, where I currently reside, you could just go to a store like Cabela’s or any other dealer but if you want to order a firearm on the internet you can take that approach as well, as long as you're 18 or 21 years of age (for a long gun or handgun respectively). One caveat is that the firearm cannot be delivered to your residence directly, it must go through the hands of what's known as an FFL dealer. A shop that has a federal firearms license. They will receive the gun, call you when it arrives and have you come in to fill out some paperwork and perform a background check, which can take between 30 minutes and several hours. After that you are the proud owner of your new firearm.
One thing that was a bit of a surprise to me was that it is PROHIBITED to register a weapon in the State of Colorado[CRS 29-11.7-102]. However having the ability to conceal carry requires a sheriff's approval which generally requires an application, a safety class and a clean record [C.R.S. 18-12-203]. Another thing that came as a surprise to me, is that in the State of Colorado one can transport a long gun simply if it is unloaded and not in the front seat [C.R.S. 33-6-125]. Please note that there are different laws regarding handguns. Being from New York, a state with stricter gun laws as well as being the son to lawyer parents I've decided to put a cable lock through the chamber of my rifle and put that rifle in a hard plastic case that also has a lock on it. Being that these weapons are not for self-defense nor do I ever plan on needing them for such an event I see no reason why not to give myself, law enforcement officers and my future family peace of mind by being a responsible gun owner.
That being said, always store your ammunition and your firearms separately with separate locks. As a single man with no kids this is quite easy for me to do without worry, however if you live with family or roommates I highly recommend a physical gun safe or locker.
Firearms are a marvelous piece of mechanical technology that are not to be feared but are to be respected with the similar responsibility and respect that we give to motor vehicles and their drivers.
*Having now the slightest bit more knowledge I probably should’ve chambered it in .300 Winchester Magnum due to it being a much more popular cartridge, therefore less expensive and more readily available. The difference in velocity is nearly negligible for my type & range of shooting (we are talking a mere 57fps). The Price of Barnes TTSX 180Grain Lead Free is about $2.50/round for the Win Mag compared to $2.90/round for the Wby Mag. Either way knowing myself I will most likely get into pressing my own ammunition at some point.
Disclaimer: Nothing in this post is to be taken as legal advice. Always refer to your state and local municipalities for the current laws regarding firearms, weapons and ammunition.