Rifle, or pistol?

Something long range, so I'm guessing it would have to be a rifle?

Lisa

Cartridges are what you load into the gun. Bullets are what come out of the barrel. Brass -- or cartridge cases -- are what remain.

Yep. And if you want to keep from putting your fingerprints on the cartridges when you load them into your gun, you should wipe them down, or load them while wearing gloves. As expanded brass on the ground, they can be picked up and checked for fingerprints. Alternatively, you can "sweep the area" and pick up all your expended brass and carry away the evidence. Sometimes a near impossible task. Brass will often land in unusual, hard to find locations.

Example: I once fired the entire contents of a fifty round box of pistol ammo from the back door of my house. I found forty of the brass cases (steel cases actually...Wolf ammo) but could NOT find the last ten. Two months later I clean the gutters and all these cartridges cases come raining down on me. They had been ejected high enough into the air to land in the roof gutter. If I had been trying to pick up all that brass to hide a crime, it would have been a real headache to climb up and find all of them. Especially if the police were coming to investigate a "shots fired" call.

(You should copy all of these comments into a computer file and use them as conversation in your book. )

Brass will often land in unusual, hard to find locations.

Don't I know it though. I have tens of thousands of cases I picked up after people had given up looking for them.

Ken - the brass hound - V.

Something long range, so I'm guessing it would have to be a rifle?

Lisa

Long range, and not trying to hide his identity. Hmmmmm . . . .

You're right it would be a rifle.

The next question is, how knowledgeable about guns is the shooter? Somebody expert? Or just some guy who happens to be a good shot?
If it's the former, then how about using a Remington Model 700 bolt action, with a Shillen match barrel, (8 lands and grooves) and a composit stock, firing a 30-06 Ackley Improved, with a Sierra 220 grain Hollow Point Boat Tail (HPBT) Match King bullet. Good at 1000 yards. (If the shooter knows how to determine range and windage . . . we can go into that later if necessary.)

Ackley Improved is a regular 30-06 cartridge case that has been blown out in the neck area and had much of the taper removed in order to increase the volume of powder the case is capable of holding. This can't be determined from the bullet, but is easily identified by looking at the brass left behind.

Also, the Sierra HPBT Match King -- although it does have a hollow point -- is not made to expand upon hitting its target. So, depending upon what it hits, it will keep its shape.

Ken V.

Long range, and not trying to hide his identity. Hmmmmm . . . .

You're right it would be a rifle.

The next question is, how knowledgeable about guns is the shooter? Somebody expert? Or just some guy who happens to be a good shot?
If it's the former, then how about using a Remington Model 700 bolt action, with a Shillen match barrel, (8 lands and grooves) and a composit stock, firing a 30-06 Ackley Improved, with a Sierra 220 grain Hollow Point Boat Tail (HPBT) Match King bullet. Good at 1000 yards. (If the shooter knows how to determine range and windage . . . we can go into that later if necessary.)

Ackley Improved is a regular 30-06 cartridge case that has been blown out in the neck area and had much of the taper removed in order to increase the volume of powder the case is capable of holding. This can't be determined from the bullet, but is easily identified by looking at the brass left behind.

Also, the Sierra HPBT Match King -- although it does have a hollow point -- is not made to expand upon hitting its target. So, depending upon what it hits, it will keep its shape.

Ken V.

Nice choice! And with a bolt action, the shooter will pocket the brass (for reloading if not for purposes of evidence removal) so identification of the weapon from brass recovered at the scene will not be an issue.