TwelveCheeseSticks wrote:Howdy folks.
I'll get straight to the point.
I am currently writing a fantasy novel about an Australian marksman who is quite suddenly transported to a fantasy environment (A dumb premise, i know)
At the start of the novel it is established he has a gun licence, and i was wondering what firearms would be best for going long times without maintenance or cleaning, and also for long range firing
I'm thinking of making his primary a Cat B lever action, but i'm not entirely sure whether a lever action would be appropriate for long-range shooting. What calibre would be best for long-distance shooting? And what would be best for going through medieval plate armour (which was usually about 2-3 millimetres thick)?
Specific firearm brands and names would be appreciated, i'm a stickler for details.
Thanks y'all
Denno wrote:What about a combination rifle maybe.
Something like a .223 and 12guage
Then can shoot long range and blow those goblins away close range
Just a thought
Blr243 wrote:It’s great to see a writer research a topic first Experienced readers respect written material so much more when it actually makes sense Otherwise it’s just like movestar sensational dribble
deye243 wrote:I find this a bit suss ...... y'all fell for it
deye243 wrote:I find this a bit suss ...... y'all fell for it
bigrich wrote:Hey tcs, what range are you thinking when you say long distance ? As Norton and others have said , a bolt is better at long distance shooting, that’s not to say a skilled shooter with a accurate , scoped , spritzer firing lever gun couldn’t hit a breast plate at 300 yards . If the hero of your story is a civilian hunter of some discription , you need to give some more information on the settings of the situation to get some accurate information and advice. Real time at a rifle range would give you better insight as well
Denno wrote:What about a combination rifle maybe.
Something like a .223 and 12guage
Then can shoot long range and blow those goblins away close range
Just a thought
deye243 wrote:I find this a bit suss ...... y'all fell for it
Norton wrote:Well, this is new
To argue the other side of the coin to Bigrich...
If you want to be technically accurate, a bolt-action rifle is going to be better suited for your story IMO.
Bolt actions are very simple, making them strong and reliable. Not that you'd ever advise such a thing in the real world, but if starting with a well maintained rifle you could realistically expect many years without problems (other than it getting a bit sticky).
Lever actions are mechanically more complex and jamming is more common. Partly due to the complexity, also often due to the operator not quite completing the lever throw and causing a jam.
How long "long range" is depending on your point of view. You mention he's a "marksman", but also that he "has his gun license" which sounds a lot more civilian to me.
If you're talking about a hunter/recreational shooter, real world "long range" is going to be something like 400-500 metres max with the type of rifle they're likely to have.
If you're talking about a trained marksman you could be talking about 1,000m - 1,500m but you'd be talking about a more purpose built precision rifle, and high quality optics for that. No Joe Blow goes into a gun shop and grabs a $900 off-the-shelf hunting rifle and starts hitting bulleyes at 1,500m, you know?
"What cartridge is best" is a conversation that's literally been discussed millions of times in the shooting community I'd keep it simple and say .308 Winchester, or .300 Win Mag. These are both popular, proven, highly capable cartridges. Go .300 Win Mag if you're story is going to be extreme range stuff.
Either of these would go through 10 layers of medieval plate without blinking. All but the very smallest centrefire cartridges would go through 1 layer without any trouble whatsoever.
About brands, realistically, there are a dozen brands that would fit the story. Remington, and maybe more so Ruger, are both known to be reliable. I think it's fair to say Remington leans more towards accuracy, where being rugged and near unbreakable is very much part of Rugers brand image.
Hope that helps.
TwelveCheeseSticks wrote:Thanks for the reply.
He'll be shooting anywhere between 10 metres to a little over a kilometre (He does this once to impress another character), But he's no military grade marine, He's a office worker who shoots hogs every few months.
How large is his target at that distance?
He has a scope, but im not exactly sure the types of those. ANy recommendations for brands of those?
Cheers
bladeracer wrote:
I would very strongly recommend that whatever firearms you decide to write about that you go and actually spend some time handling and shooting them. I am continually annoyed by writers trying to sound authentic by describing the gun, then failing dismally by things like "He instinctively flicked off the safety as he drew his Glock from its holster and caressed the hair trigger with his finger.", (Glocks don't have safeties and have horrendously heavy triggers), or "His clip was almost out of bullets!". In virtually all cases, clips are used to quickly transfer cartridges into the magazine of a firearm - clips are not magazines. Bullets come out the muzzle, cartridges are loaded into the firearm.
And I suggest you fire the firearms without hearing protection at least once, the noise is often totally overlooked by novelists.
For reliability, accuracy and longevity I think you're limited to bolt-action rifles, but the chambering is a wide choice, virtually anything from .223Rem and up will penetrate 2-3mm steel out to hundreds of meters, and medieval armour was not particularly tough. The volume of the ammunition being carried might make it sensible to stick to the smaller cartridges, like .223 - you can carry two or three times more .223 in your pockets than you can .30-06.
Unless your protaganist happened to be carrying a great deal of ammo at the time he went back, you might need to learn about reloading cartridges using blackpowder, or if you're travelling to pre-gunpowder times, learn how to make it yourself - that'll really impress those maidens
TwelveCheeseSticks wrote:
He's a bit of a wimp, so he cant lift anything particularly heavy.
Cheers, thanks for the reply
TwelveCheeseSticks wrote:
Thanks for the reply.
He'll be shooting anywhere between 10 metres to a little over a kilometre (He does this once to impress another character), But he's no military grade marine, He's a office worker who shoots hogs every few months.
He has a scope, but im not exactly sure the types of those. ANy recommendations for brands of those?
Cheers