Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Obsession with accuracy.

I want a rifle that will put 3 shots consistently into roughly 1", but less is always better. There are simply too many options today that will do that to waste time with rifles that won't. The exception would be an older rifle with family history. I wouldn't be interested in buying something that didn't have that level of accuracy.

I don't really care how it does with 5 or more shots and I don't obsess about getting those 1/2" groups, although they are nice to brag about when it happens.

From field positions a 1/2 MOA rifle doesn't significantly improve the odds of hitting vitals at longer ranges over a 1 MOA rifle. I figure if the rifle is capable of 3 shots inside an inch at 100; then any animal I miss inside of 400 yards is my fault, not the rifle.

Even at very close range I want a flat shooting accurate rifle. Here in GA most shots are around 50 yards, but 400+ yard opportunities are there. And the 35-75 yard shots are often in thick brush where you have to thread the bullet through small openings.

A 30-30 or 44 mag rifle that shoots 2-3 MOA at 100 yards is fine for shooting deer size game inside 100 yards. IF THEY ARE STANDING IN THE OPEN IN GOOD LIGHT. Which just never happens. The 50 yard shot is almost always right at dark and in a position where you have a baseball size opening to put the bullet through. Accuracy and flat trajectory still matter inside 100 yards. At 75 yards a 44 mags trajectory is still arched enough to hit unseen brush above the line of sight.

There's a pretty good write up regarding a .10 MOA shooter vs a 1 MOA shooter on a 20" plate at 750. Gains were minimal.

Lower standards = easy street.

Rman - They can be a Vexation !

Seriously though, CRF remains a feature that needs to be designed around the cartridge, plus some budget for tuning.

I was spoiled early with a 7x57 Brno.

In todays mass-produced economy, push-feeders make sense.

If a CRF is built like a POS it won't work as designed just like anything else.

Pictures like this look good for show and tell, but really don't make or break a hunting rifle. Pictures of dead animals are more appropriate for a hunting gun and striving for a group like this is like getting a post doctorate degree for a career that needs no degree at all.

More game has been killed with 1 1/2inch guns than group shooters.

Because there are more 1 1/2" guns.

Pieter

I can't recall a feed issue with any of my CRF Rugers, CZs, Kimber or Winchester.

Problably more 1.5-3 inch shooters.

If I have a sub-MOA rifle and you are shooting a 2MOA and when the opportunity presents you know how to quickly get it done while I think and fiddle, you will win almost every time.

I agree with HitnRun... bsahunter is just taking a jab at minor stuff. The targets/groups that he is condeming could be sight-in pics and in no way degrade the accuracy of the rifle
just because the group is not in the bullseye.


Larry

In my experience taking game animals is a lot more about confidence in your equipment than folks talk about. For me that starts at the range, A rifle that consistently shoots where I aim it is the foundation. This is sorted out by shooting lots of groups. 1 MOA is my preference for bolt actions and 1.5 for levers. After consistent groups are established I shoot from field positions, this is where your money is made. Time spent shooting from real world conditions is what builds the confidence that when it's time to pull the trigger in the field you will hit your mark.

Oh and BSA will sell an accurate rifle in a heart beat trust me. 😉

First shot out of a cold barrel hitting where you aim is most important.

Today: Kimber re-barreled to .300Savage. What it has done since I had it barreled. Shot group 1 then shot another rifle. Shot group 2 and thought why go past 2 shots, they would fall into group 1. Went to 200. It's what it does. Seldom better, seldom worse. No need to shoot more groups.

When it comes to BG, you are shooting at basketballs and not 1in squares. Lot of room for error, even from field positions.

You pretty much phuqqin nailed it. Replace "group size" with "caliber" and it's the same deal. If a fella doesn't "feel" like a 270 is going to do what he wants, out comes the 300WM or whatever.

Same schit, different day. Put water on the 'fire, because that's every damn thread here.

The only people I know that believe more voodoo than rifle hunters are bass fisherman. Holy crap.....

battue, nice shooting.. You bolt .300 Sav. made me build one on a 700... Had a couple 99's, but I am a bolt action fan mostly.. Anyway, as far as accuracy, I had three boxes of 150 gr. Power Points I got for $5.. at a garage sale.. Two boxes of 150 Rem CL, and two boxes of WW 150 gr. Silvertips.. The old ones.. Never tried for much more than sighting in.. All seemed to shoot less than 2" at 100, so I have used that ammo. This fall with the Silvertips, shot a mule deer doe about 200-250 yards.. Near as I could tell, hit right where I aimed.. I do like accurate rifles, I may develop some handloads for this little rifle.. But right now I have more factory ammo than I will probably shoot at big game.. It may be a could season til it is up for rotation... Plan to give it to one of my step grandchildren.. It will kill plenty of deer in their country..

I remember one successful deer hunter on the east coast that got a new rear sight on his model 94 .32 spl. Sighting in consisted of shooting at a gallon oil can at maybe 40 yards.. Two shots and he was ready.. Killed several bucks after that but finally put a scope on it due to eye sight...

Playing with rifles is a blast, I love it.. But we do obsess over accuracy more than we should for the average whitetail deer hunt..

Steelhead turned me onto the .300Savage. Some say it is the original fat cartridge. That 130TTSX should be going somewhere around 2900 plus a little. Recoil in the 84 Montana is a sweet spot for me in a light rifle.

Congrats on taking a deer with yours. I've been trying with this one, and have passed on a gang of Does. May not do so this year.

I have Tikkas, they all shoot.




P

If they make you happy. Most rifles out there shoot. Matter of fact everyone at the range today did.

However, a couple days ago there was one that didn't. Well it shot once, then it jammed a case and didn't. Mauser of all things.

As I've said before, I have rifles that I've killed game with that have never seen paper or a bench. I like thing hitters over group makers.

I'll be headed out today with a rifle that I've never shot a target with. A deer I took 2 years ago was with a rifle that had been shot 5 times. I shot offhand at 50-60 yards and went 5 for 5 on hedge apples, so called it good for hunting.