Spring has sprung. Get out and shoot your Henry
BBSC 357 at 100 yards
BBSC 357 at 100 yards
I made it to the range this past Wednesday and decided to see what I could do at 50 and 100 yards with my BBSC 357. The goal was to see how accurate I could be with the rifle at longer ranges using the factory buckhorn sights. It was an experiment to see if this would be a good deer rifle. I’m 49 years old and just got my first hunting license this past season. I’m trying to decide if I want to deer hunt this fall. I set up a plain white paper plate at 50 yards and shot 2ea 5 shot strings from a rest.
That was certainly accurate enough for deer hunting.
Then I set up at 100 yards knowing that bullet drop would be an issue. I shot 4 more 5 string groups before I ran out of time. I had to experiment with raising the rear sight with the elevator and adjusting my sight picture. At 50 yards I covered the plate with the brass bead. All good. Doing the same at 100 I was low. So I raised the rear buckhorn a notch. Then I was high. So I used a six o’clock hold and I was a little low. I think the sweet spot was to cover the bottom third of the plate. It’s hard to tell exactly what to do to get good hits. I think this calls for some more practice and experimentation. Also, I need to take notes this time so I don’t forget what I learned.
If you look closely, at the top and bottom of the plate (almost lined up vertically) there are 2ea two hole groups. Both are circled with a black marker. I thought that was interesting. Out of the 20 shots, 2 were high and missed the cardboard completely.
All in all I think I did ok for my first time shooting at that range. My windage was pretty good but I need to figure out the elevation. That brass bead is just too big to be very precise at long range.
That was certainly accurate enough for deer hunting.
Then I set up at 100 yards knowing that bullet drop would be an issue. I shot 4 more 5 string groups before I ran out of time. I had to experiment with raising the rear sight with the elevator and adjusting my sight picture. At 50 yards I covered the plate with the brass bead. All good. Doing the same at 100 I was low. So I raised the rear buckhorn a notch. Then I was high. So I used a six o’clock hold and I was a little low. I think the sweet spot was to cover the bottom third of the plate. It’s hard to tell exactly what to do to get good hits. I think this calls for some more practice and experimentation. Also, I need to take notes this time so I don’t forget what I learned.
If you look closely, at the top and bottom of the plate (almost lined up vertically) there are 2ea two hole groups. Both are circled with a black marker. I thought that was interesting. Out of the 20 shots, 2 were high and missed the cardboard completely.
All in all I think I did ok for my first time shooting at that range. My windage was pretty good but I need to figure out the elevation. That brass bead is just too big to be very precise at long range.
5 x
Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
Factory Ammo Deano or reloads?
0 x
Don't worry about getting older and still doing stupid stuff. You'll do the stupid stuff as always, only much slower. Hold my beer and watch this.......
H001T .22LR
H001T .22LR MONUMENT VALLEY
H003T PUMP .22LR
BBS .41 MAG
SS .357
SIDE GATE 38-55
H001T .22LR
H001T .22LR MONUMENT VALLEY
H003T PUMP .22LR
BBS .41 MAG
SS .357
SIDE GATE 38-55
- JEBar
- Town Marshal / Deputy Admin
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Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
the good news is, you've got a few months between now an hunting season .... I'm looking forward following your reports as you become better acquainted with your Henry
1 x
Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
I really love my BBSC .357, and took it deer hunting a couple of times last year. There were lots of wolves in the area though, so we didn’t see any live deer. Lots of tracks, (pics below) but aside from a solo wolf, squirrels and a rabbit, there was not much moving.
I did do some target shooting and found mine to be very accurate with 158 grain sjsp. I have Skinner’s Express rear and Patridge front sights on mine. That makes a big difference for me. I’m only one year older than you Dean, but I found the factory sights weren’t great for much.
I did do some target shooting and found mine to be very accurate with 158 grain sjsp. I have Skinner’s Express rear and Patridge front sights on mine. That makes a big difference for me. I’m only one year older than you Dean, but I found the factory sights weren’t great for much.
- Attachments
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- A69FEB33-1DDB-4A3F-AF2B-D2947BF7D4FE.jpeg (150.87 KiB) Viewed 1922 times
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- AF303579-B578-4F1B-A8F5-5EE63CF52847.jpeg (96.43 KiB) Viewed 1922 times
3 x
SGC .22 LR Stripped and oiled up
BBSC .357 w Skinner Express & Patridge
BBSC .44 Magnum with Skinners
Marlin 1895GS .45-70 w RPP Cloverleaf
Marlin 336BL .30-30 w Skinner LoPro 2 and Sig 2-7x
1912 Winchester 1894 .30 WCF
BBSC .357 w Skinner Express & Patridge
BBSC .44 Magnum with Skinners
Marlin 1895GS .45-70 w RPP Cloverleaf
Marlin 336BL .30-30 w Skinner LoPro 2 and Sig 2-7x
1912 Winchester 1894 .30 WCF
Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
I think you're on the right track, and yes buckhorns are limited at longer ranges. I had to scope my .41 mag to get even close to acceptable performance due to my aging eyes. Buckhorns were useless for me. I don't like the aesthetics of scoping a lever gun, but ya' gotta do what ya gotta do if you're going to put meat on the table.
PS: Here's the difference a scope makes. This was from my scoped Win 9422m with CCI Maxi-mag @100 a few days ago from a makeshift rest. The ballistic trajectory is nearly identical to my Henry, but what we're concerned with here is group size, so it's a reasonable comparison. Prior to scoping the Winnie, my group sizes with the factory buckhorns had been deteriorating for several years, and I finally had to scope it. The 3 flyers were me not paying attention (breathing, etc.). 15 rounds, 1" bullseye.
PS: Here's the difference a scope makes. This was from my scoped Win 9422m with CCI Maxi-mag @100 a few days ago from a makeshift rest. The ballistic trajectory is nearly identical to my Henry, but what we're concerned with here is group size, so it's a reasonable comparison. Prior to scoping the Winnie, my group sizes with the factory buckhorns had been deteriorating for several years, and I finally had to scope it. The 3 flyers were me not paying attention (breathing, etc.). 15 rounds, 1" bullseye.
4 x
Bellum Omnium Contra Omnes is rapidly becoming a reality (11/2023). Para Bellum.
- markiver54
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- RanchRoper
- Forum Ambassador
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Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
Nice job. Try shooting from 1 knee with your factory sights. I have had some success with my 1860.
2 x
1860 Colt SA Richards Conversion Revolver .45C
1860 Henry .45C
1885 High Wall .45C
1820-1840 Frontier Percussion .50
1790-1820 Frontier Flintlock .50
Ohkínohkomit - Shoot skillfully
1860 Henry .45C
1885 High Wall .45C
1820-1840 Frontier Percussion .50
1790-1820 Frontier Flintlock .50
Ohkínohkomit - Shoot skillfully
Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
The buckhorn/front bead combo is a challenge for many, it seems, and you encountered what most of us do: at anything over about 40-50 yds, that bead obscures the target so much that you can hardly guess what your true POA is.
The good news is you have lots of options to make it better, including booking a trip to Canada for a RR shooting lesson! Wish I could!
The good news is you have lots of options to make it better, including booking a trip to Canada for a RR shooting lesson! Wish I could!
3 x
BB Steel .357 | SGC 22LR | LR .308 | CCH 30-30 | BB Brass .45 Colt (Carbine) | Single Shot 20 gauge | Single Shot .223 | Single Shot 357
Re: BBSC 357 at 100 yards
Thanks. A side note: When you're trying to squeeze groups down as much as possible, setting up a video of yourself to capture things like trigger control, jerking or bucking the shots, etc. gives you the opportunity to rerun the session and critique yourself. This is a big help in honing your shooting if you don't have a coach watching you.
3 x
Bellum Omnium Contra Omnes is rapidly becoming a reality (11/2023). Para Bellum.
- markiver54
- Deputy Marshal
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- Location: Biue Ridge Mountains, NC