Henry Rifle Forums

What a gorgeous evening. 75F, very little wind. Have not been to the range for a couple of weeks so it was time. The 1860 Henry in 45 Colt. That big beautiful old frontier lead slug. 250 gr Winchester lead flat nose.
First up is 50 yds off hand standing and I think a personal best for me. 12 rounds dialed in. Open factory sights. 8 inch target. Next up is 100 yds. Double the distance but several times the challenge I think. Again off hand standing. Took some time to get on to it. 10 rounds out of 24 in the big diamond. 12 inch target. It's tough. I have a hard time seeing where they hit. Need some binoculars. Fun time!

RR, you've just raised the bar, around here, with that 50 yard target. Holy smokes, cowboy! You and that 1860 make one impressive team. You're making a strong case for staying with one rifle to shoot and getting to know it like the back of your hand.

You are so right about 100 yards being only twice the distance, but a lot more than that for difficulty when shooting from a standing position. For me, it's now gotten to be an issue with good target visibility. Open sights at 50 is still doable for me, but open sights at 100 is now a real struggle. I keep trying, though most days I just grab a gun with a scope and call it good.

That is a super target There is not many guns or shooter can beat you with that gun for sure .

My computer is slow this morning so I couldn't see all the pictures. Your country looks a lot like parts of Montana.

Thank you so much for the kind words. That is Montana in the distance. Border country.

North Country Gal wrote:RR, you've just raised the bar, around here, with that 50 yard target. Holy smokes, cowboy! You and that 1860 make one impressive team. You're making a strong case for staying with one rifle to shoot and getting to know it like the back of your hand.

You are so right about 100 yards being only twice the distance, but a lot more than that for difficulty when shooting from a standing position. For me, it's now gotten to be an issue with good target visibility. Open sights at 50 is still doable for me, but open sights at 100 is now a real struggle. I keep trying, though most days I just grab a gun with a scope and call it good.

I hear ya. I had several at 100 yds go astray and not sure why, other than I guess even microscopic barrel movement is amplified tenfold at the target.

1/1000th of an inch equals 1 inch at 100 yds. That's what you are contending with.

Ouch. That's a lot of room for error.

nicely done indeed .... 50 yds offhand target is remarkable

RanchRoper wrote: I hear ya. I had several at 100 yds go astray and not sure why, other than I guess even microscopic barrel movement is amplified tenfold at the target.

The barrel twist and the FPS is against you . The 45 Colt bullet at 100 + yds is very slow and becomes unstable in bullet because of a 1 mph change that you can't feel will make the bullet go wild . Sometime a bullet shot above sound barrier and when it slow down and goes below the sound barrier it will go wild too . Hope this make since .

Beautiful Target RR. Even more beautiful rifle. I keep saying I'm going to sell off some of the extra training guns (Glocks) now that I'm not teaching ccw classes any longer, and turn the proceeds into an 1860. I just hate to sell anything to folks I don't know. Lol.

Very interesting discussion and bullet flight info. Difference in the two targets looks quite similar to the .22LR POIs I make out of my SGC at 25 yards vs. 50 yards. Always a fun challenge at the longer distances when shooting off hand.

Great 50-yard results, RR

Here's a 50-yard challenge for you. With your POIs, try "writing" your initials (e.g. "RR") over the bull next time at the range. I've seen that done, and it will be a really cool accomplishment.

tx gunrunner wrote:

RanchRoper wrote: I hear ya. I had several at 100 yds go astray and not sure why, other than I guess even microscopic barrel movement is amplified tenfold at the target.

The barrel twist and the FPS is against you . The 45 Colt bullet at 100 + yds is very slow and becomes unstable in bullet because of a 1 mph change that you can't feel will make the bullet go wild . Sometime a bullet shot above sound barrier and when it slow down and goes below the sound barrier it will go wild too . Hope this make since .

Makes sense. That flat nose lead is not very aerodynamic. Any wind at all plays a big part. With the ladder sight up but the slide on the bottom setting the bullet will hit on paper or fly right over the backboard depending on the breeze at 100 yds. With ladder sight down, using just the regular rear V notch, aiming for the paper will put you under the backboard. It's a tough thing to figure out. I love experimenting with it.

North Country Gal wrote:RR, you've just raised the bar, around here, with that 50 yard target. Holy smokes, cowboy! You and that 1860 make one impressive team. You're making a strong case for staying with one rifle to shoot and getting to know it like the back of your hand.

x2

great shooting RR

Thanks all. I am so impressed with how accurate this rifle is. Not sure about writing my name like PT7 suggests but those critters coming at me better run a zig-zag pattern under a hundred yards.