Is the .284 obsolete now?

[plumbs7]

I'm feeling very inadequate about my Manhood! I only have a .284 and seems everyone is going for 7 Saums ! Not even owning an XY Gt repl.is going to overcome this one!

But seriously, can the .284 still win at Queens level?
Regards Graham.

[SunnyCoast 5r]

Hey mate. If you are worried about your masculinity what about the 7RUM or 7mmWeatherby Mag to put the lead back in your pencil???? You might not win but you could scare the bejesus out of the competitors either side of you on the mound!

I reckon just have a cry & a good lie down and continue to plink away with the 284...and take some concrete pills man! Fer christs sake go and lay some rubber with that beast of yours (deliberate double entendres there).

Hahahahahahah

[plumbs7]

Hey mate. If you are worried about your masculinity what about the 7RUM or 7mmWeatherby Mag to put the lead back in your pencil???? You might not win but you could scare the bejesus out of the competitors either side of you on the mound!

I reckon just have a cry & a good lie down and continue to plink away with the 284...and take some concrete pills man! Fer christs sake go and lay some rubber with that beast of yours (deliberate double entendres there).

Hahahahahahah

Laughing my guts out hehe!

[plumbs7]

Thanks Sunny coast ! May try all of the above ! Lol!

I guess my thoughts go back to a couple of people? L tillack only dropping 1 point over a whole Queens!
Cam and Julie Mac with their world beating .284 shehane tune ( not to mention brilliant wind coaches!) against much bigger cals !

Just trying to make myself feel better lol!

[Steve N]

Not sure what you manhood or type of car you drive has to do with it but the simple answer I think is no.
For F open I would reckon the 284 to be the standard that other calibres are compared to. Great combination of accuracy, low recoil, ballistics and barrel life. In the hands of good shooters it loses very little to the smart sixes at the shorts and is right there with the bigger sevens etc at the longs. In fact I think if it is used exclusively by a shooter they get really used to its capabilities and the confidence that gives makes a great combination 300 to 1000. Very versatile and different loads can be easily developed for different conditions.
Unlike a XY GT replica the 284 is the real deal. If you shoot one and get flogged by another calibre at any range the reason would usually be the shooters fault either in poor preparation or poor shooting.
If you feel inadequate get some range time with your 284 and an accurate load and you will be so excited with the results your missus will wonder what got into you!

Steve

[RDavies]

The 284 is still the standard work horse of F Open. The 7mm SAUM is a great calibre with slightly better wind drift than the 284 with the same accuracy potential. Where the 284 is better than the SAUM is in it longer barrel life, which not only helps barrels to last longer, but more importantly, the gun stays in tune for longer with slightly less need to chase the lands and bump up powder loads to make up for throat wear. For this reason, a 284 will likely be easier for less experienced shooters to keep it in the accuracy node.

[plumbs7]

The 284 is still the standard work horse of F Open. The 7mm SAUM is a great calibre with slightly better wind drift than the 284 with the same accuracy potential. Where the 284 is better than the SAUM is in it longer barrel life, which not only helps barrels to last longer, but more importantly, the gun stays in tune for longer with slightly less need to chase the lands and bump up powder loads to make up for throat wear. For this reason, a 284 will likely be easier for less experienced shooters to keep it in the accuracy node.

Less experienced ! That sounds like me hehe!
Last year I really only campaigned with the lil 7/08 Ai . So I'm looking forward to getting to know the .284 a bit ! From what I've seen it's very easy to tune!
( now it's cooled off , even though I'm on a self imposed break! I'm hoping to head back to the cow paddock and training again ! )

I just see a lot of people going the saum route ! Pros ?? Better ballistics hands down !

Cons ??? Cost to run and limited time with tune . By the time you've found a tune , the barrel possibly 1/4 through its barrel life ! As Rod is saying !
Anyway thanks for the comments ! It is an interesting subject and I guess the target will tell the story either way!
Regards Graham.

[Wal86]

A fella by the name of john rawson(batemans bay) once told me when i was 13years old," you can have the best equipment, best tuned rifle, but if you cant read the wind conditions ya f@#ked..."
He is 100% correct!!!!!
Cheers
Alan

[DenisA]

In any competition, the rule limitations are always pushed by those that want to be competitive. It's not essential but makes being competitive easier. There are lots of good wind readers now who have no issue putting plenty of hard earned money in to their sport and so the nature of the sport has changed.

When I started shooting F-Open 6ish years ago, most people in the class were still very money conscious. It seems like that's not the case at all now. An example is the 6.5x284 Lap which was common and then everyone went off it due to the short barrel life of 1200 rounds. Present day, 7RSAUM the 1k gun good for 900ish accurate rounds is now being used for all ranges and folks have multiple barrels tuned at one time.
I've been wondering why the 6.5x284 hasn't been resurrected. Apparently it was awesome and doesn't suffer the case issues that the heavier 7mm bullets cause.

Another massive change we've seen is the amount of shooters who are no longer recoil shy. It was really common when I started and now recoil management and confidence has improved a lot.

I think the bottom line is that to have the best competitive chance, you have to run the best bullet as fast as you can in a given discipline. For us that's the 7mm 180's governed by range energy limitations drawing the line at 2960fps, otherwise people would be using full sized magnums.

I agree that the .284W is still the F-Open workhorse and is very capable winning repeatedly, at the cost of brass life on top of barrel life.

[macguru]

If you load the 7saum to moderate pressures & speeds (2850-2900) its still faster than a 284 and the cases last well and you get alot more than 900 rounds, maybe twice that. And if you load it up 3000+ its hard to control and tune and if you dont read the wind right you are still pharqued and your barrel wont last.

[ShaneG]

David Gosnell was running his 180 Bergers at 2775 fps at the Berger SWN match in Phoenix last month.

In the main match of 125 rounds from 800 to 1000 yards [ 95 shots at 1000 ] he dropped 3 points and hit 84X!

Not only does he have the most accurate gear around but the guy can obviously read wind.

The top 5 or so FO competitors were just incredible!
Second place was one point behind David!
The first few days were not big wind at all but still no guarantee of a 10 and easy to shoot 9's!
The last day brought some considerable challenge in wind - i had up to 8 moa at 1000 with 200 Hybrids at a decent speed.
So all in all - the highest level of competition i have personally witnessed in FO.
Everyone i spoke with agreed.

[jasmay]

If you really need a "manhood" confirming round, I've always wondered why someone hasn't tried a Lazzeroni Firebired, or at least a Warbird!!

Get intk that now G!!

[plumbs7]

If you really need a "manhood" confirming round, I've always wondered why someone hasn't tried a Lazzeroni Firebired, or at least a Warbird!!

Get intk that now G!!

What about that .50 bmg necked down to .22 cal hahaha! One shot and the barrel is toast !

But reading Shane was saying is the foundation of all shooting !!! Watching a master wind reader slapping the x ring at 2775 fps and 180's ! That gives inspiration! So much so I found my gun safe keys and loaded up some rounds and had a shot ! Was really good to get back behind the gun again, even if was just in the Cow paddock! Throughly enjoyed myself !

[Norm]

I think that the .284 win has about 8% more wind drift at 1000 yards than a 7mm SAUM in a 10mph cross wind.

So if you have two shooters of equal wind reading ability that can read the wind to within 1mph. With one shooting a 7mm SAUM and one shooting a .284 win.

The 7mm SAUM shooter may have a very slight advantage as the .284 win shooter would be correcting slightly more for each wind call. But if he is familiar with his load then this is not a big issue. After all we are not talking about a huge difference in wind drift like you are when you compare a .308 to a .284 win.

One way to work it out would be to compare the % average difference between the top 10 Queens placegetters in F-Standard, FTR and those shooting the various calibres in F-Open in the top 10. Then use this to work out what the theoretical difference between a .284 and 7SAUM would be.

Let me know what you come up with.

[DenisA]

Graham, I reckon it's almost exactly the same argument as comparing a 7-08 ai running 180's to a .284W running 180's.

You endorsed the 7-08ai fiercely, but even you admitted how much better going to the .284W was.

It's just the next step up. Interestingly, I think the 7mm short magnum varieties are as far as ballistics can be pushed in Australian F-Open. No more steps up.