Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Obsession with accuracy.

How many of you sell 'close range' bolt rifles if they do not shoot 1" or less at 100y with hand loaded ammo?

I recently sold rifles that I never used for longer range shooting but was just not satisfied with how shot groups. I know shooting groups is not everything but it is kind of satisfying picking up any one of your rifles and shooting a decent group with it.

Pieter

Like a shotgun choke, what's most important is not the markings, full, mod, etc., but how it actually performs on a pattern board. Having a hunting rifle that will bench sub-moa groups is nice, but what is more important is how that rifle fits, handles, and shoots from field positions. Sometimes the table turns, and that bench gun proves finicky from varied field positions, whereas that 1.5moa gun is not finicky and is easy to shoot well from most any position.

So, start thinking of your rifles benched under ideal conditions like a choke marking. Before you proclaim that sub-moa gun a keeper, and that 1.5moa gun a goner, run those guns through some realistic drills, close range to far, shooting field positions, and then make a judgement.

I sell a rifle if I don't have confidence in it. Whether it is the mechanical accuracy based on the hardware or the software interface of how it fits my body, if I cannot get it to perform in the field for me it hits the road.

I had a very accurate model 7 that was fantastic in concept, pacnor barrel, wildcat stock, great groups from a bench and I missed "easy shots" on deer three years in a row. I am convinced it was jinxed as a wedding gift from my now ex-wife. It went down the road and replaced by a tikka. At one point I had 72 straight pigs so the tikka clearly has mojo that the model 7 did not have....

I gave up chasing tiny groups many years ago and began chasing consistency. I'd rather have a 2" gun that fits me and I shoot well in all situations than one that does great off the bench but is not well suited for all positions.

I'm a hunter, not a sniper. I hold my shots at unwounded big game to 300 yards or less. Even when I lived in wide open sage brush country I had far more shots under 200 yards than I had over that distance.

Yes, I love to see my rifles shoot tiny groups and I work toward the smallest groups possible during load development but If a rifle only shoots 1.5-2", but it's dependably consistent at it and comfortable to shoot in field positions and scenarios, it's a keeper.

I'll even forgive 3 inch groups from some of my older guns as long as they will produce that group consistently. Of course I'll limit my shooting to the ranges those rifles are most suited.

I like one that will shoot at least a 1" group. Give you confidence. I really like the L-61 Sako's. Everyone I have had would really shoot. Especially the older ones with Bofor's marked barrels.

I like tiny groups. A 2" gun that I couldn't get to do any better would go down the road. It just doesn't inspire confidence like a more accurate gun. I would however treat a very accurate gun the same way if I couldn't shoot it from field positions. I practice both ways.

I've never had a consistently accurate gun that I couldn't shoot in the field. I have owned guns that would sometimes shoot great groups and an occasional bad shot.That was before I knew much about tweeking my guns for consistency.I got rid of those inconsistent guns too.

I've been known to hunt with a rifle that prints 2". I draw the line there, but it'll do. Even a iron sighted lever should do 2".

An example is a bolt gun I hunted for a couple years, killed maybe eight deer with it. It wasn't until after running out of loads realized what I had done. I had just picked a load, checked it quick on the home range, saw it was inside 2" and loaded up a couple boxes. It was supposed to be a backup for a last minute trip out of town. Wound up hunting it and liking it. Matter of fact I loaned it to someone and they killed one with that loose grouping load, too. Never bothered to work up a tight grouper until I ran out.

That's for a 300 yard hunting rifle. Longer range target play guns are another story.

I shoot good groups with all of my rifles. I've sold many an accurate rifle as well....

I have an X-wife that I would trade for 72 pigs ;-)

I had an early A-Bolt in .338 that routinely posted honest 3/8" groups. I parted with it because it wasn't CRF

I wouldn't send a 3" .30-30 down the road if it carried and felt good walking the woods

All depends on the intended purpose, and lethal range expectations

Nothing wrong with being "obsessed" with accuracy, just make sure you even it out with a little precision.... I notice a lot of guys post pictures of groups that aren't even close to the bulls eye. Accuracy does no good, if your not putting the bullet where it needs to go:




The "hunting" rifle I used this year, for deer and elk, is damn old, but still a good shooter. This is the target I used to check POI for the load I used to take both my buck and bull this year:

338Rules,



Fascinating. The only rifles I can remember ever having trouble feeding were controlled round feeders. I wouldn't have one.

Gary, we were lucky enough to own a commercial game farm and have friends that needed help with culling a lot of animals throughout the years, thus getting plenty of time using rifles in just about every type hunting you can think of. I agree that the rifle has to work for what it is used for (I have sold uncomfortable accurate rifles). But regardless of what it is used for, it is nice to see that it prints small groups.

Pieter

My primary want from a hunting rifle is that it hit and take the game I shoot at with it!

That means it must stay sighted in!

Most all of my game is taken with that first shot from a cold barrel.

Here is how a new to me favorite proved itself at 200 yds from a cold barrel.

It's not the 'group' concern on a game hunting rifle. It's hitting the game!



Of course my match rifles must shoot groups. However we get sighter shots at matches.

Heck I used to shoot deer with a pencil barreled mini 14. If I put enough lead out there, one or two were bound to connect. That's when I was 14 years old. No I don't have that rifle anymore. It never shot the same pace twice.

Somebody once said " Only accurate rifles are interesting". That is the bottom line always.

somebody once said 'shooting itty bitty groups is only necessary if itty bitty groups are the object of the exercise."

For me, I tend to draw the line at 1.5" at 100 yards with hunting bullets. I don't have much use for a hunting rifle that shoots target or frangible bullets well and hunting bullets into 1.5" or more. My bullets of choice are Nosler Partition or Horn Interlock but greatly prefer the Nosler. I've sold several rifles that wouldn't keep them inside 1.5".

I also agree with the field shoot-ability of rifles. I've also sold rifles that were accurate from the bench but didn't fit me well in field positions. I've had rifles I can shoot quite well from offhand and others not so much. Surprisingly, my Kimber MTs I can shoot well from field positions, especially given how light they are.

I agree with this. I'm not the best bench rest shooter but do manage to put bullets on game where they need to go - even in some tough situations. I've done the 5 sec decision and 2" window at 100 yards deal several times in recent memory. Your not gonna do that with a gun that isn't consistent or doesn't fit you, regardless of how pretty the bench groups are.

MOA minimum with factory, 1/2 MOA or better with handloads. Cloverleafs are confidence builders.