Hardware

I've decided what my main weapon will be - a Ruger M77 bolt action rifle in .308 caliber. It's got a 26" barrel, a 10X fixed power scope and a Harris bipod that clips onto a swivel stud. I got the high 30mm rings so I can go a bit larger on the diameter of the suppressor. I can regularly do 7" groups at 500 yards. I know others get tighter groups but I'm trying to keep things generic and the Ruger M77 is a fairly popular gun - I imagine several hundred thousand have been sold.
Bottomline, I am very comfortable with this setup and that's a significant thing. Oh yeah, I've also practiced on windy days and have a decent feel compensating for wind drift.

This caliber is also very widely used and available - .308 is also known as NATO 7.62x51. Most Western medium machine guns and "Battle" rifles are this caliber. Depending on who you talk to, the specific type of ammunition and barrel used, the effective range could be from 500-800 yards up to even the 1000 yard Palma competition. I've been pleased with the Federal brand 168 grain Gold Medal Match ammo.

I've already discussed why I decided against using the significantly more powerful, longer range Browning Machine gun .50 caliber because it's relatively rare compared to the .308. For similar reasons I decided against the .338 Lapua and for now, the .300 Winchester Magnum. Remember, I don't want to get caught and the .50 and .338 are sort of memorable. If I really had to deliver some solid hits at 1000 yards, I'd consider the .300 Win. Mag.

Don't get me wrong, if "Gun Santa" left a big caliber gun and a bunch of ammo under my tree I'd consider using it. One gun that intrigues me is the Bohica Arms .50 caliber upper that fits onto an AR-15/M16 lower. An upper with 24" barrel is 37" overall or 43" with a 30" barrel. Most .50 caliber rifles are very long and pretty heavy and this makes transport and concealment difficult.

Another interesting regulatory angle is that in the eyes of the Federal government, only the lower is required to be registered so you can buy the upper with minimal paperwork. However, I figure less than 2000 of the uppers have been sold so they wouldn't be that hard to trace if the Feds court ordered sales records.

The last 2 equipment items are my Leica Rangemaster 1200 Rangefinder and my Litton night vision light amplification binoculars. More later on the various bags and cases I'll be using so it doesn't look like I'm out to snipe pinstripers. Oh yes, I'll also give an update on my suppressor design and construction - remember don't try this at home!

-Pinstripe Sniper