PRS Talk My first PRS match

[Austinjunks]

So, I shot my first PRS match this past Saturday. I didn't go into this expecting to be competitive, but I did not expect to be shooting with such awesome folks. This was a regional points match held at Cool Acres in Swainsboro GA. I am not much of a bolt gun shooter, my experience is gas gun centric, even then, I'm not someone who follows a competitive circuit or chases a podium finish, very casual shooter. This was my first match running a bolt gun and my first PRS match.

My goal this year is to put in the reps and attend competitions to become a more proficient behind a bolt gun, and in general a more well rounded shooter. So my good friend Nick (he is on here but I don't know his handle) and myself rolled in with similar experience and similar level of proficiency. Going into Saturday all I wanted to do was learn and have a little friendly rivalry with my buddy.

Man was I under prepared, I did not expect so much positional trickiness. The little things that make such a difference between a poor position and a solid one are crucial. I need to work on a ton of stuff, I found so many deficiencies in my skill set, or lack there of. It was eye opening and I have a long list of things to address. I wanted to stay on glass and work on watching wind and how it was being handled by each shooter, but I also wanted to watch how the shooters were navigating these positions. It was information overload in the best way.

Overall I got 44 of 100 possible points, which im not mad about. I was shooting a 20 inch 308, running 168 smk's at 2610. I was a bit under gunned, but I knew that going in. I placed 53rd of 66 and tied Nick but I got him on the skills stage.

My squad was an awesome bunch of folks (squad 1, cool kids squad) and I am thankful for the help you offered Nick and myself. I had a great experience and look forward to my next match with you all.

 

[Rob01]

It's a fun sport. Keep shooting and don't get hung up on the BS. Practice and most important, have fun.

Your rifle is fine. Just eventually get a better long range bullet and you will be fine in Tac class.

 

[lash]

Glad that you enjoyed your first match! I honestly think that yours is the experience that most new shooters have. There are the few that have a bad experience and that’s unfortunate. Your attitude was right on though and that makes a big difference.

As Rob01 said, your rifle is fine for now, get those rounds down range in focused practice before you start changing things up.

 

[Austinjunks]

Glad that you enjoyed your first match! I honestly think that yours is the experience that most new shooters have. There are the few that have a bad experience and that’s unfortunate. Your attitude was right on though and that makes a big difference.

As Rob01 said, your rifle is fine for now, get those rounds down range in focused practice before you start changing things up.

I am in no rush to change my rifle, and am not blaming my inadequacies on it either. I plan on running this rifle ragged before I move on to something new. I chose to start with a 308 on my first rifle to force myself to focus more on fundamental and such. I did not want to start with a soft shooting 6mm or a BC heavy bullet.

I very much enjoyed my first match and can't wait to participate again.

 

[Rob01]

Yup no need to change the rifle but you can use a better bullet to get better in the wind. Also at longer ranges. The 168 SMK is not a very good long range bullet. It’s the bullet that gave the 168s a bad name. You handload or use factory ammo?

 

[Austinjunks]

Yup no need to change the rifle but you can use a better bullet to get better in the wind. Also at longer ranges. The 168 SMK is not a very good long range bullet. It’s the bullet that gave the 168s a bad name. You handload or use factory ammo?

Factory FGMM, I have a press but not interested in hand loading.

 

[Rob01]

Try some factory 168 elds. Shoot great too and have a much higher BC. They also go through transonic much better. I shot them out to 1200 at a match a few weeks back.

 

[Austinjunks]

Try some factory 168 elds. Shoot great too and have a much higher BC. They also go through transonic much better. I shot them out to 1200 at a match a few weeks back.

Will do,thanks for the heads up!

 

[lash]

Rob01 is just pointing out that the 168 SMK does tend to run out of gas for the longer shots and the FGMM 175s will carry better to 1000+. That said, if you are making the hits that you need to now and are comfortable with what you have, don’t let us tell you what works and what doesn’t.

All things said and done, confidence in your load, dope and rifle system will get you further than most anything else. Constantly making changes in your equipment, loads, ammo or methods can lead to a mess and a loss in confidence in your abilities. My opinion.

 

[db2000]

Good for you for trying. Practice as much as you can on stages. Many use a .22lr trainer to save $$$.

Long range 22LR trainer - how to get best out of it?

22LR rifles have always been very popular. Most of us have one sitting in safety. Some of us have also spent quite a bit hard-earned money to make their small rimfire feel and look similar to favorite big center-fire. All in sake of realistic low-budget training. It is also not too uncommon to...

finnaccuracy.com

I like Berger 185 Juggernaut OTM's. Great BC and accuracy. SMK 175's as mentioned also.
Pigg River Precision in Rocky Mount, VA is running a mock PRS where for $50 you can be paired with some of the top shooters in the area and run a match It's on 7/11/20 I believe, but not positive. They will give you pointers and help you out along the way. Can't beat that deal.

 

[Rob01]

Yup if you are happy with what the 168 SMK is doing and it goes to the distances you want then use them but I just wanted to let you know that you can find factory ammo with better BCs. The 168 SMK has a .462 G1 BC and the 168 ELD has a .523 G1 BC. That's a good jump. It's even higher than the 175 SMK at .496. The 185s are a good bullet but you have to watch if you want to stay in Tac division as the max weight is 178grns.

Pigg River would be a good drive for you at about 6 hours but not a bad idea to shoot a pro am style match.

 

[Austinjunks]

Yup if you are happy with what the 168 SMK is doing and it goes to the distances you want then use them but I just wanted to let you know that you can find factory ammo with better BCs. The 168 SMK has a .462 G1 BC and the 168 ELD has a .523 G1 BC. That's a good jump. It's even higher than the 175 SMK at .496. The 185s are a good bullet but you have to watch if you want to stay in Tac division as the max weight is 178grns.

Pigg River would be a good drive for you at about 6 hours but not a bad idea to shoot a pro am style match.

I do appreciate the advice, I wasn't aware the ELD was that big of a jump, I'll give them a try. I am shooting the Guardian match at Altus next month, I believe day 2 there is a pro am format.