Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Montana range report, good and bad.

As much as you shoot you would quickly discover they are not all that skittish, and those who I've let use mine for a day in the field usually start asking questions of what and where.

Yeah they are just as easy to shoot accurately but then I use a sling 99.9% of the time which helps to no end.

No doubt a sling steadies things down.

Two other things I've found is that even though they are light compared to standard rifles, a couple of hours of carrying them makes them seem heavier than when you first pick one up.

The second is the short burst of adrenalin that occurs when one is about to shoot game steadies the grip. With a practiced subconscious trigger pull I see little disadvantage to a light rifle with the exception of way out there shooting at BG.

Thanks Karnis and battue. These rifles have me so intrigued that I will probably buy one in the near future. Most of my so called "fwt's" weigh in right at 8 pounds (scoped with typical 3-9x40's).

While heavy should obviously be easier to shoot at the bench, a light rifles light shines brightest when used in the field. Horses for courses. Perhaps they are mudders.

I agree that it sounds like the action is binding as accuracy drops when the screws are tight.

You said you ensured the screws were not too long and the mag box isnt binding. With those things out of the way my first move would be to skim bed the action to make sure all is sitting right before anything else.

I'm betting groups improve. If still not where you want try adding some pieces of cut up credit card under the barrel at the forend. I would start with 3-4 pieces to ensure some upward pressure and shoot a group. If things tighten up a little add another piece or two and see what happens.

My 300 WSM shot better then yours averaging consistent 1 1/2" 5 shot groups out of the box. Mine had no mag box binding and the screws were fine. I started with 4 pieces of credit card under mine per Boxers recommendation and it shrank groups markedly so I damned up the forearm with modeling clay and poured an equivalent pressure pad. Mine now shoots pretty much everything under 1" and its favored 150 TTSX into 3/4" at 100 yds more often then not.

At this point the limiting factor is likely me shooting a light rifle but I'm perfectly content with it.

Ain't nothin' like a Savage.



Travis

Three things:

1.) Buy a 12 pack

2. Do these things:

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/8486078/Montana_tinkering#Post8486078

3.) Stop going to church.



Travis

That shoots like my cousins Kimber in 7-08. hmmmmmmmm

If you are playing with screw tension and throwing groups all over the place, it is a red flag that your gun needs bedded.

I completely agree. All I'm saying though is that I need more time to confirm that is the problem. I know that I was also having difficulty just with my shooting on some of those groups. I'll take it out again and play enough to confirm it's not just me learning how to shoot a light rifle. On those good groups I could definitely tell a difference in my ability to hold it firmly on target without the movement like a feather dancing on water.

You've had 5 good shooters tell you your bedding is off because of how it shoots at different torque settings and you still refuse to listen. Hmmmmmm. Not much help for you dude, rock on and waste components. If it's that finicky about torque, it's gonna be the same way about heat, cold, humidity...and everything else we run into while hunting.

Sounds "interesting". I prefer boring, consistency. Each to his own pastimes and best of luck in your endeavor.

No need to ship it off. Spend some time reading bedding threads and asking advice and do it yourself. Its not black magic. If it doesn't come out good, grind out the bedding and try it again.

I'm thinking about starting a bedding thread (with pictures) in the Winchester forums here in a bit.. The same techniques would also apply to different action types.

I hope you do. I have a Classic 270 WSM I still need to bed.

Clark,

If you're not ready to bed yet... go farmer tight on the front screw and farmer tight or a bit less on the rear. My 7-08 Montucky doesn't matter on the rear, but the front is always tight and done first, always. Lug against stock. I don't like dorking with screw torque on any rifle and don't. Have not bedded mine but eventually will since I've run out of things to tinker with rifle-wise.

Pull the action and look for weird wear spots in the paint. Also, for fun see if the action will stay in the stock when upside down and no screws.

Bedding now wouldn't "hurt" though.

Also, give some thought to lowering the pull even more. I know, I know... buds argue with me over this all the time. They are finally understanding it though... one less variable. You can increase the pull later, after you convince yourself that your new rifle/load/technique are sorted out.

And pay close attention to your rest at the range. Bags, rest, bipod? Are the targets level with the rifle, higher, lower? Sometimes the rest, height of the target, and the way you hold the rifle can make shots fly. I bet your pull is still a bit high during this acid test, and you mentioned the image moving while you are holding on target.

Heavy rifles are easier and light rifles will show problems in technique really quick.

Karnis is right. I've been shooting the Montucky off a rest a bunch lately sans sling. Last week I was shooting off my pack at 480y. Good enough to kill a buck, but I wasn't using my sling. I've gotten lazy with the rifle rest.

Make life easy and get everything level, and natural POA. Light trigger to help keep the rifle movement low. Control the fore-end as needed, and follow through.

Another thing... don't get too wrapped up at 100y either. I've seen quite a few people do better at longer ranges. Seems to take some pressure off the shooter. At 100y, everyone wants the magical 1". At longer distances, the target "appears" steadier too. Adds nothing mechanically, but helps mentally for some.

Jason

And definitely check out SAS' thread that Flave posted.

Jason

These guys have pretty well covered it. The only thing I would add is to set a realistic accuracy expectation for the rifle. It won't be a 1/2 MOA rifle. Chances are it won't consistently shoot sub MOA. But that's ok. Kimber Montanas are for killing stuff, not for posting pictures of pretty little groups on the internet.

Expectations of around 1 MOA three shot group averages with handloads would be a realistic and likely achievable goal.

Wow! You don't even know me but you've already labeled me as hopeless. First off, I didn't ask for "you're" help. Maybe I should have since you are obviously an expert, and gracious to boot.

To everyone else, including those who have suggested bedding, I really do appreciate the comments and helpful suggestions. I do realize that is likely my next step. I just want more than 2 or three bad groups to confirm that it the bedding and not my shooting, especially when I know on a couple of those bad groups I was experiencing less than perfect bench technique.

The main reason I posted all my targets was to let everyone see the good and bad that might come with a new Kimber. It is a bit more difficult to shoot from the bench but the main thing is that I believe the good groups tell me that I have a rifle that a simple bedding and better bench technique could cure of all problems. My main concern was that I would have one that had a bad chamber or barrel. I don't think that's the case and anything else can easily be worked out. Possibly all these things should not be in a $1300 rifle but I still see them as a bargain considering the complete package , even if a little tweeking is necessary.