Target Shooting

Long range target shooting has been gaining popularity over the years.  With so many firearm options available, more and more gun enthusiasts have been exploring target shooting as a hobby as well as a profession.  If you are interested in getting into the target shooting hobby, I would suggest you get a membership to the Ames Izaak Walton League.  Below, I have listed three different firearms used for target shooting.  All three have different purposes and ideal range limitations.

Olympic Arms AR-15

The AR-15 has been around for many years, and has proved to be a very reliable and accurate rifle.  Our military uses the M-16 which is just a semi-automatic version of the AR-15.  This rifle has become very popular for prairie dog shootouts in the states surrounding Iowa.  The effective range of this rifle is from 50-300 yards.  With specialized loads, the range of this rifle drastically increases.  There are many accessories and replacement parts available for these rifles, so almost anything is possible.

Mosin Nagant 1891/30

Military surplus rifles are becoming more and more popular among gun collectors.  The Mosin Nagant 1891/30 is a perfect example of an inexpensive and accurate rifle.  The one pictured above is the sniper model which has an original Russian scope mount and scope.  These usually sell for around $300, but Mosins without the scope mount can sell for as little as $60.  There are also aftermarket scope mounts that can be added to increase accuracy.  The effective range for this rifle is 50-600 yards. 

Barrett .50

This rifle is the ultimate long range weapon.  The Barrett .50 caliber rifle is currently being used by the military's sniper teams and is performing flawlessly.  This rifle currently holds the world record in long range shooting.  The effective range of this rifle goes up to 2 miles which is almost unbelievable.  The only drawback is the price.  These rifles don't usually sell for under $5,000 so if you want one you'd better start saving.