Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles need to improve accuracy of 7mm-08

What would you think the possible causes for this horizontal stinging?
I just purchased a second Savage Axis this one in 7mm-08. The first Axis in 243 win surprised me with groups between .7 and 1 inch at 100 yards. I am not the greatest shot so based on that accuracy, I purchased my second in 7-08.
The 7-08 strings shots horizontally up to 3 1/2" wide but only 1/2" in height. I know the composite stock is light and flexes easily but gun is just resting on front sand bag. The barrel is free floating and paper can be slid around the barrel from muzzell to receiver. The barrel heats quickly. Shots are taken with cool to warm bbl. Receiver screws are tighten to 40 inch lbs. Trigger has been worked on to have a 3 1/2# pull weight.
Bullets are Sierra 120gr Prohunter over IMR4350 and Varget loaded two gr below max.

4646, If you are sure the barrel is not touching the stock or the sandbag...I would look toward the ammo...try some factory loads and try handloading some different ones.
Years ago I had trouble with a 270 that would not group ,,,the best was 4 inches at 100yds....a friend said try different powders.....so, I did and found a load that put 5 shots into 3/4 of an inch.....it was a lesson in reloading for me.
This is just my opinion.
Maybe someone here can offer better ideas.

Some other areas to look into might be the scope mounts (verify they're all torqued and sound) and also the scope....is it a proven scope?

Savage axis = [bleep] trigger or have they went to accutrigger ?

Try the old business card trick and put some upward pressure under the barrel out toward the end of the stock.

Mike

I'd glass-bed the recoil lug area. Factory could be rounded. Be sure to bed the reciever in flat. That too is often not the case with factory stocks. The receiver screws should tighten up from going snug to snug in a half turn or less.

Include about 2.5 inches forward of the lug, the sides of the receiver in that area, the tang area, and the bottom metal. Be sure the receiver screws all have clearance. They are to hold top and bottom together, not to act as recoil lugs!

I seriously doubt fore-end pressure via credit cards is gonna help HORIZONTAL stringing.

And get that trigger down to 2.5 to 3 lbs.

Try different bullet weights. My .260 doesn't shoot worth a crap with 120's, but loves 140's.

I think you get what you pay for. If you buy a cheap gun, be satisfied with minute of deer accuracy. You got lucky with the first.

My Ruger American in 7mm-08 was pretty inexpensive but it shoots great.



P

Best post I've read all day..

I don't like Savage 110 etc. But the damned things are 'sposed to shoot, despite their price... and by all accounts, most of them do.

Most of the rest are likely tweakable..

Rx - like the RAR -
but does it outshoot your T3?

Darn close. They're both under an inch with the same handloads.



P

Seems Ruger is determined to be on the heels of the Finns.

Perhaps Ruger will start advertising "the Most accurate rifle out of the box" - American mfg. Not heard of any bad RARs.

have you checked the crown? my gut tells me it's a bedding issue but it wouldn't hurt to check anyway. could you try putting the 7-08 action into the .243 stock and see how it shoots and see how the .243 shoots in that stock?

Not these days, your underestimating the economy rifles. some of the best out of the box shooters are proving to be the economy rifles, some of the poorest out of the box shooters seem to be the expensive guns. I've had $2000 Sakos and Weatherbys that are easily outshot by the cheap Savage and Marlin Package guns from Walmart. Why is it the cheap $350 Weatherby Vanguards pretty much always out shoot the $2000 Weatherby Mk IV's Why do the Ruger American's pretty much always shoot better than Rugers 77's .

I tried the shim at front of stock since it was the easiest and quickest possible fix. No difference.
I put a Limbsaver de-resonater xring 2 inches in front of stock and switched to heavy HORNADY 162 SST bullet over 42.5 IMR4350. That brought group sizes down. Groups now run 1.11 to 1.37 at 100 yards.
That is about as good as my tired eyes and low power scope will do today.
Thanks for the suggestions. Bedding the action in the future is a possibility.

I bought a Browning A5 Light 20 several years ago from a guy I was hunting dove with. He couldn't hit schitt with it and I made him a lowball offer and he took it. That was about 15 years ago and it's my favorite hunting shotgun........I don't miss very often with it. I've seen him several times after that and offered to sell it back to him for what I bought it for......and he never wanted it back. I tell you that to tell you this..........Let me know how many $2,000 Sako's and Weatherby's you have that you can't shoot and I'll see if I can help you out.

My experience is that the "same" model/caliber rifles often prefer different loads. For example, I have tried campfire member recommended loads for the same NULA I own, and not had the same results.
I guess that "same" doesn't mean identical when it comes to rifles!

Had a Sako 260 Grey Wolf, more than once put the first 2 in one hold at 200 yds, 3rd still was a 1/2moa group....

No doubt accurate rifles can be had at sub $500. Some Savage rifles were twisted wrong IMO in 7/08, 11ROT vs 9. Sierra 120s never did great for me in 7mm. 120/140 Noslers and 139 Hornady always did well over Varget or IMR4064. WW brass better than RP.

If it shoots the 162, its likely the updated 9ROT. I'd run 139s or a 140 Nosler, less recoil, and all you likely need. Might be more accurate than 162.

Just ran some Hornady 139 btsp interlock over 46 gr of H380. Group at 120 yards was a nice diamond measuring 1.37. I plan on reducing trigger pull another pound. I do not want a pull so light that a cold half frozen finger might put too much pressure on the trigger until sight picture is correct, but I do notice that I am aware of having to exert slightly more pressure on this rifle than on other hunting rifles. For a hunting rifle I really prefer a crisp 3# to 3 1/2# trigger. The accuracy is very acceptable for me. Now if judging distances over 300 yards was as easy!