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Four Rifles. Three Calibers. One Goal: Ring Steel at Distance – 800 to 1000 Yards

Long-range shooting has a way of exposing the strengths and weaknesses of both rifles and ammunition. It’s easy to look good on a single lucky hit, but sustaining impacts over an entire day of shooting is what really tells the story.

For this range session, we brought four very different rifles chambered in three different calibers to see how they performed on silhouette-sized steel at extended distances. Rather than focusing only on the highlights shown in the video, the hit percentages below represent our performance for the entire day, giving a much more realistic picture of each rifle’s capabilities.

Ruger Gen 2 .300 PRC – A Solid Start at 1,000 Yards

The first rifle on the firing line was the Ruger Gen 2 chambered in .300 PRC, equipped with a ZeroTech 5-25x scope.

Rifle Setup

Handload

  • Bullet: Hornady 230gr A-Tip
  • Powder: H1000 – 77.2 grains – 2789 Feet Per Second
  • COAL: 3.705″

Despite changing conditions throughout the day, the Ruger maintained a 48% hit rate on a silhouette-sized steel target at 1,000 yards.

While there is certainly room for improvement, nearly one out of every two shots connecting at 1,000 yards is respectable and demonstrates that the Ruger platform is fully capable of stretching its legs with quality handloads.

Savage 110 Elite Precision .300 PRC – The Accuracy Leader

Next up was my Savage 110 Elite Precision, which has become one of my favorite long-range rifles.

This rifle features a custom 30-inch, 6-groove Criterion barrel by Shilen and wears a Vortex Razor Gen II 4.5-27x optic.

Scope Discount Code CYCLOPS

Rifle Setup

Handload

  • Bullet: Hornady 230gr A-Tip
  • Powder: H1000 – 77.2 grains 2800 Feet Per Second
  • COAL: 3.705″

Using the exact same load as the Ruger, the Savage consistently outperformed it throughout the day, finishing with an impressive 62% impact rate on the 1,000-yard silhouette.

This illustrates just how much rifle setup, barrel quality, and overall system tuning can influence performance, even when the ammunition is identical.

Uintah Precision UPR .224 Valkyrie – The Surprise of the Day

The rifle that may have generated the biggest smiles was the Uintah Precision UPR chambered in .224 Valkyrie.

With almost no recoil, spotting impacts was easy, making follow-up corrections much faster than with the larger magnum rifles.

Rifle Setup

Handload

  • Bullet: Hornady 62gr ELD-VT
  • Powder: Ramshot TAC – 25.4 grains 3058 Feet Per Second
  • COAL: 2.250″

The results were outstanding.

The rifle maintained an incredible 82% hit rate on a silhouette target at 800 yards.

The new Hornady 62-grain ELD-VT bullet continues to impress. Combined with the light recoil of the .224 Valkyrie, this rifle was arguably the most enjoyable to shoot all day. It proved that you don’t always need a magnum cartridge to have success at long range.

SIG MCX Spear .277 Fury (6.8×51) – High Expectations, Tough Results

Finally, my close friend and I couldn’t wait to spend time behind the new SIG MCX Spear chambered in .277 Fury (6.8×51).

The rifle was equipped with a Leupold Mark 5HD 3.6-18x scope and fed a steady diet of SIG’s factory 155-grain ammunition.

Going into the day, we weren’t completely convinced the factory ammunition would perform the way we hoped and unfortunately, those concerns proved justified.

Over the course of the day, both of us combined managed a 39% hit rate on the silhouette target.

That doesn’t necessarily mean the rifle isn’t capable. There are simply too many variables still left unexplored. Different factory loads, handloads, seating depths, and additional trigger time may significantly improve the rifle’s performance. This test represents only our first serious long-range experience with the platform.

The Importance of Real-World Hit Rates

One thing I wanted this test to emphasize is that hit percentage matters far more than a single impressive group or a few edited impacts.

Anyone can showcase a handful of successful shots. Sustaining performance over an entire day is a much more honest measurement of a rifle’s capability.

Our sustained hit rates were:

Percentage Four Rifles. Three Calibers. One Goal: Ring Steel at Distance - 800 to 1000 Yards

Final Thoughts

Every rifle taught us something.

The Savage 110 Elite Precision demonstrated why it’s one of my favorite long-range platforms, delivering the best performance at 1,000 yards and the softest recoil with the KGM 30T Suppressor.

The Ruger Gen 2 proved it can absolutely compete and offers a solid foundation for shooters looking to get into long-range magnum shooting. I am interested in thoughts on a different muzzle break for the Ruger. For the original muzzle break size I expected more in recoil reduction.

The Uintah Precision UPR in .224 Valkyrie stole the show with its light recoil, excellent consistency, and outstanding 82% hit rate at 800 yards. It was simply fun to shoot.

As for the SIG MCX Spear in .277 Fury, this is far from the final chapter. While the factory 155-grain ammunition didn’t produce the results we hoped for, we’re just getting started with this platform. Future testing with carefully developed handloads and additional ammunition options could paint a very different picture.

That’s what DayAtTheRange is all about real testing, real data, and showing both the successes and the challenges. Stay tuned, because we’ll continue pushing these rifles farther and sharing the results with you.

If you enjoy this type of honest long-range testing, be sure to watch the full video, subscribe to the channel, and visit DayAtTheRange.com for more articles, load data, and upcoming range adventures.

Apologies for the shaky tripod the spotting scope was on during heavy wind. It was changed out for a more sturdy tripod a quarter of the way through the video.

 

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