Ammunition
At a high level, rifle ammunition shares all the same components of pistol ammo: case, primer, powder, bullet. Centerfire and rimfire ammo is available for rifles. Some ammunition, such as .22LR, and .45 Long Colt, can be used in either pistols or rifles. Centerfire brass is also reloadable, and rifle brass is often more expensive than pistol brass, so it’s even more worth saving. The malfunction types (misfire, hangfire, squib) are also the same, and so are the safety procedures.
Calibers
One of the most confusing things I remember from when I was a new shooter was the plethora of rifle calibers. Some of the more common calibers are .22LR, .223 Remington, and .308 Winchester, but .30-06 (pronounced “thirty aught six”) Winchester, .270 Winchester, and .300 AAC Blackout are also popular. There are countless others that I won’t go into here. For your first rifle, I suggest .22LR, .223 or .308, since they are popular and widely available. However, if you have a hunting friend or other knowledgeable resource that advises you to get a different caliber, feel free to try it out.
How do you find out what kind of ammunition a rifle accepts? As discussed in the pistol section, a rifle will also have the caliber stamped on the barrel, frame, or both.
Here are some pointers on rifle ammo:
Some rifle calibers have a name after the number part, for example, “Remington” or “Winchester,” as mentioned above. These are simply noting the manufacturer or developer of that particular round. Having a similar number in two caliber designations does not make them the same; the other words that make up the designation also indicate differences in caliber. For example, .270 Winchester and .270 Weatherby are totally different calibers. If there is a word after the number, you must make sure the number and word match the caliber for specific rifle. Using the wrong ammo in a firearm is dangerous and can lead to death or injury to you or others in proximity and to damage to your firearm.
In some cases, having different numbers in the designation may not mean a big difference in the caliber; .223 Remington and 5.56x45mm NATO are almost the exact same round. The same goes for .308 Winchester and 7.62x51mm NATO. With respect to guns and ammo, I simply think of NATO as a military organization. Rifle barrels are made for either the civilian imperial measurement or the NATO metric measurement. There is some debate on this, but many people say that civilian ammunition for a .223 barrel can be used in a 5.56 NATO barrel, but not vice versa; other people use 5.56 NATO ammo in a .223 barrel with no problems. There are technical differences between the two rounds, which I won’t go into here, but if you would like to learn more I encourage you to search the web or consult with a knowledgeable party. For beginners, I recommend purchasing the exact caliber you see on the barrel of your rifle.
In a caliber such as 5.56x45mm NATO, the number before the “x” is the bullet diameter in millimeters. The number after the “x” is the cartridge length in millimeters.
Some cartridges have two numbers, such as the .30-06 example above. However, a dash in between the numbers does not mean you will always pronounce it as “aught.” In this case, the “aught” refers to the zero before the six and, for example, the .45-70 Government round is simply pronounced “forty five seventy.” To make things more confusing, the second number after the dash can have different meanings. In .30-06, the “06” simply refers to 1906, when the round was created. In .45-70, the “70” refers to the seventy grains of black powder it was originally designed for. As a beginner, don’t worry about making pronunciation mistakes or asking questions if you’re not sure about something. Remember, everyone starts out as a newbie, and gun owners are usually more than happy to help if you ask for it.
Sights
Now that we’ve reviewed a number of common actions, the last part we will discuss is sights. There are three categories: open, aperture, and optical.
Open
Open sights are pretty much a standard item on-out-of-the box rifles. These rifles usually have a rear leaf, notch, or “V” shaped- area, and then a front sight post or bead. There are different ways to align open sights, so you’ll want to consult your manual for the proper sight alignment.
The rear sight on a Ruger 10/22 rifle.
Sometimes the sights need to be adjusted, and many times a rear sight can be adjusted for windage (moving the sight left to right) and elevation (moving the sight up and down). We’ll discuss zeroing a scope in more detail in a few pages.
Aperture
Apertures are often referred to as “peep” sights, as the rear part of the rifle has a small hole near the action. When you look through an aperture sight, you will see the front sight post. The typical sight alignment is to place the top of the front post in the center of the peep hole.
An aperture sight can normally be adjusted for windage and elevation.
Optical
An optical sight is basically like a small telescope that is mounted to the top of the rifle. Colloquially known as simply a “scope,” it magnifies the target to help the user make precise shots.
A Leupold Mark 6 1-6x20mm scope on a Houlding Precision AR-15 style rifle.
There are a number of things about optics that a new shooter should be aware of, as described below.
Reticle
The reticle is what a shooter sees when looking through the scope. A reticle can contain crosshairs, a red dot, or both.
Examples of different reticles, which can vary from simple to complex. Left to right: crosshair, Fine Duplex, Mil Dot, Illuminated Mil Dot, Leupold SPR (Special Purpose Reticle). Photos courtesy of Leupold & Stevens, Inc.
Choosing a reticle is often a combination of how the rifle will be used and personal preference. For example, for action shooters using an AR-15, some prefer a red dot because it enables them to acquire a target quickly. However, for long-distance precision shots, a crosshair reticle would be better, as it has finer details in the reticle. For your first scope, I suggest going simply with a red dot or some sort of crosshair reticle.
Magnification
When looking at scope specifications, you’ll see descriptions such as 4x32 (“four by thirty-two”) or 1-6x20 (“one to six by twenty”).
The number before the “x” is the magnification power. This number describes how many times larger the image will appear—6x is “six power” which means the image will appear six times larger. If there is just one number, then it is a “fixed” magnification and cannot be changed. If there is a dash between two numbers, then the scope is “variable” and can be adjusted by turning a ring on the side where you look through the scope. In our 1-6x example, the scope could zoom in anywhere between one and six power.
The number after the “x” is the objective lens size in millimeters. Sometimes “mm” for millimeters appears at the end; other times it does not. However, this number is always a millimeter measurement. The objective lens is the lens closest to the muzzle. Generally speaking, the larger the objective, the more light will come in and increase visibility, especially at long distances or in lower-light situations.
Base Mounts and Rings
Picatinny (also called M1913, MIL-STD-1913, or rails) and Weaver rail mounts are the two primary base mounts you’ll most likely run into. Sometimes there are specific mounts for a specific make and model rifle, but Picatinny and Weaver are the most common.
This Leupold scope is mounted on a Picatinny rail, visible on the right side.
Scope rings go around the scope tube, and then the rings are attached to a rifle mount. Rings come in varying height and tube size. Heights are mostly available in low, medium, high, and super high. You’ll need to find the right height primarily based on the objective size of your scope. The objective lens is the scope lens farthest away from your eye. Generally speaking, a larger objective lens will allow more light to enter the scope, thereby making the picture more clear, and easier to see in low-light situations. If you have a large objective size (50mm is on the larger size), low rings are probably not going to work, as there won’t be room for the objective. Most ring manufacturers have some sort of chart to help you figure out the right height for your make and model rifle.
The height size is also tied to your facial anatomy and how low or high your cheek sits on the buttstock. I suggest getting the lowest rings possible, and if your cheek is too low on the stock (meaning you cannot clearly see through the scope when you have a solid cheek weld), then you might want to get a different stock that has an adjustable comb. You can raise the comb to the point where you have a solid cheek weld and can clearly see through the scope. (More on cheek weld as it relates to scopes when we get to talking about rifle stance.)
On tube size, scope tubes are most commonly 30mm or 1-inch—check your scope specs to confirm your tube size.
There are many one-piece base-and-ring combinations available, where the rings are permanently attached to the base.
The main thing for beginners is to get a base that fits your particular rifle make and model. If your rifle has built-in Picatinny or Weaver rails, then you’ll want to get rings that can mount to that specific rail type.
Chapter Summary: