|
|
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 44,832
Campfire 'Bwana
|
Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 44,832 |
Something I think I'd try. Tough to explain why sometimes it helps though.
Try a blank target. No circle or dot and ask her to just shoot for the middle area. ...
God Bless
Steve That's not a bad idea. I've managed to shoot some pretty respectable groups shooting at blank sheets of paper 300 yards out, aiming with a 4x scope.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 19,179
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 19,179 |
I have read that the bright colored shooting dots do not make the best targets - can't remember why .
Yes, Mike. A few years ago I remember a discussion per Color of target dots. Some could NOT see as well with Orange. I and several others posted that Orange IS our favorite target color. It seems to be individualistic. Y'all should try Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue. See what you SEE best. Good Luck.
Last edited by jwall; 09/10/18.
jwall- *** 3100 guy***
A Flat Trajectory is Never a Handicap
Speed is Trajectory's Friend !!
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 46,038
Campfire 'Bwana
|
|
Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 46,038 |
Focus on ringing the gong quickly from a field rest. Without having to fiddle around with crap.
That bears repeating. One of the best shots I know won't shoot groups on paper, but he can sure wear out steel (and prairie dogs) at some good distances.
A wise man is frequently humbled.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062
Campfire Regular
|
|
OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062 |
Thanks everyone!
Here's our new plan based on all this.
- get back to the 100 yard range, get her gun 1.5 inches high. She typically shoots tight groups here
- head back to 200 and ring the gong.
- Bring the backpack and move from standing with backpack to prone and shoot the gong, smooth and quick. That's more fun!
We were chatting earlier tonight, I reminder her that I took her Dad 2 times to the range (ex air force), at 100 yards he was shooting her rifle in a baseball size group off the bench. Second time we went to 200 and he couldn't hit the gong at all. so the distance matters
Like I said, 2 years ago, same hunt in WY, she drilled a mulie at 176 and a pronghorn at 120, both kill shots. She has focus on game.
She wasn't really into shooting yesterday, went mostly cause I pushed it a bit. We will go back a couple times
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 12,651
Campfire Outfitter
|
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 12,651 |
I did play a bit with bullet selection, had 3 different ones, this one grouped the best WHEN i WAS SHOOTING. Once we switched her to the bigger "dot", she put 4 in about a 4-5 inch group, centered slightly low/left. All well inside the "dot". I have the same scope on my rifle and the smaller dot is harder to hold on since it's almost covered by the cross hairs.
Our "sandbag" setup is not like above, we have 2, one under the forearm another under the butt, but they are lower than above and when sitting on the bags, its actually very hard to get the gun aimed high enough, plus we are crunched down not sitting comfy. What I get for going cheap I guess. Looking into a lead sled, or something else to help with this.
We will have a couple more practice sessions before going and I will try the federal bullets she used before as well.
Another question, this struck me as odd. She was about 6-8 inches right. We moved the adjustment 4 clicks to being it left, what should have been about 2 inches. It didn't seem to move at all. We moved it 4 more and it brought it all the way in. How trust-worthy is the "4 clicks is 1 inch at 100 yards" on the scope?
She likes the gong WAY more than paper, likes the noise and making it swing! Her first 2 shots at the gong were dead center and just low/right of dead center ( I spray paint it orange and you can see the paint fly!)
Also, how much will a heated up barrel effect things? We didn't shoot all summer because if was 90+ most weekends, yesterday was 65, but her barrell still warmed up a good amount. Bob – There are a lot possibilities. Some questions and comments: 1. Is it her or is it the rifle/trigger/scope/ammo? How well do YOU shoot with her rifle? How well does SHE shoot with yours? 2. The value of a click depends on the scope. Typical values are 1/2”, 1/4"and 1/8”. (Or MOA.) If the adjustment don’t seem to work and you believe it is the scope, try a) going past where you want a click or two and then bringing it back to the desire setting, and/or b) tapping the scope adjustment with a cartridge or other object to help it adjust in case it is hanging up internally. (I use a Swiss Army knife screwdriver to make adjustments, then hold the blade and tap with the body of the knife. 3. Barrel heating can have a very noticeable affect on POI. That’s why all my rifles get free floated. With unfloated barrels (and particularly with wood, in my experience) the hotter the barrel the more the more the POI shifts upwards, often with a left or right bias. 4. Gongs are WAY more fun. So are clay pigeons on the berm, water jugs, etc.
Coyote Hunter - NRA Patriot Life, NRA Whittington Center Life, GOA, DAD - and I VOTE!
No, I'm not a Ruger bigot - just an unabashed fan of their revolvers, M77's and #1's.
A good .30-06 is a 99% solution.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 3,998
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 3,998 |
Bob,
One more thing that you may check. Check focus on the scope. Sometimes our eyes change enough that what you had for focus when you mounted the scope may have changed and isn't quite as clear anymore.
I am continually astounded at how quickly people make up their minds on little evidence or none at all.
Jack O'Connor
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313 |
Just about the scope adjustments: I've never been a scope tapper. I can't bring myself to do it. I do adjust one more click than needed and then one back. I put less credence in the POI of the first shot after the adjustment than the next two. If the those three shots don't make a tiny and pretty group I don't worry about it.
Brushbuster: "Is this thread about the dear heard or there Jeans?"
Plugger: "If you cant be safe at strip club in Detroit at 2am is anywhere safe?"
Deer are somewhere all the time
To report a post you disagree with, please push Alt + F4. Thank You.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 7,082
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 7,082 |
Hunting accuracy simply means accurate enough to carry.
Muzzle loaders with open sights, lever and pump rifles were all providing hunting accuracy long before the clientele became expert enough to assume they had superior knowledge.
When truth is ignored, it does not change an untruth from remaining a lie.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,299
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,299 |
I have an 8" and 4" gong set up in the backyard at 100 yards. We started a couple of weeks ago shooting 22 lr, going through about 200-300 rounds a week in varying positions. Some off front rest, some off of a post supported, some freehand. Will do this through hunting season. I carry a Bog-Pod with me when I squirrel hunt and can shoot some pretty good groups with it. When it is not used as a rifle rest, it makes a dandy staff for walking up and down the local river hills.
CK
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313 |
For me hunting accuracy means hitting an 8-1/2" x 11" white sheet of paper. It doesn't matter if I'm shooting at contact distance with my S & W model 36 or my .30-'06 at 600 yards, that is what I've got to hit. We can quibble about the size, I chose that size because it is easy.
I need to be able to hit 10 of 10 from a position on that target at that range before I'm comfortable shooting for blood.
Brushbuster: "Is this thread about the dear heard or there Jeans?"
Plugger: "If you cant be safe at strip club in Detroit at 2am is anywhere safe?"
Deer are somewhere all the time
To report a post you disagree with, please push Alt + F4. Thank You.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 79
Campfire Greenhorn
|
|
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 79 |
You certainly want to rule out equipment issues, making sure screws are tight, etc. If you wear glasses, how old are they? My shooting improved with a new prescription simply because I could see better.
We're always trying to get better, but remember that everyone has a range limit with a particular gun. When hunting, stay in your comfort zone. For some, that's 400 yards, for others it's 100. Don't compromise and take a shot on game that you aren't reasonably confident in making a clean kill with that gun in that position. We all read about 300 yard shots on whatever animal, but it pays to keep perspective that every game animal in North America has been taken with archery gear at 40 yards. Get closer, it puts the hunt back in hunting.
I hunt with handguns, and there was a time when I could kill deer at 300 yards with my Contender. These days, as I get older, I've decided that 200 is my limit with that gun. There's no shame in it. I'd rather get closer, anyway, it's more exciting. With a revolver (2x Leupold) my limit is a bit over 100. It shoots 5 rounds into 3" all day from a good rest, but I've never shot it past 100, so that's that. It's the right thing to do.
Just my 2 cents.
"Life's too short to hunt with an ugly gun."
U.S. Coast Guard, retired
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062
Campfire Regular
|
|
OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062 |
Thanks again to everyone who's given help and input!
We went over the gun closely after noticing that we constantly had to adjust right/left and that neither of us could hold a decent group, even at 100 yards. The scope mount was loose! We remounted everything, lock-tite and torque it all and bore sighted (way off!0
Back to the range to re-sight and rebuild her confidence!
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 7,263
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 7,263 |
As others have said if you can hit a pie plate from field positions your good to go at that distance. I use a bi-pod more for antelope than for most other hunting. I would recommend a bi-pod or tri-pod and practice with that and over the back pack. The original groups of 4" at two hundred are consistent with the 2" groups at 100 and are more than adequate for hunting to about 300 yards. Good you found the loose scope mount early as it could have wasted a lot of ammo and shaken your wife's confidence which could hurt more than anything else as far as hunting accuracy. Good luck.
"When you disarm the people, you commence to offend them and show that you distrust them either through cowardice or lack of confidence, and both of these opinions generate hatred." Niccolo Machiavelli
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 184
Campfire Member
|
|
Campfire Member
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 184 |
I've used the hornady 170 gr Round nose alot, because of a load that works for me, the only problem with Round nosed bullets in mauser actions, is that some mauser actions don't like to feed round nosed bullets. I have a Czech 98/22 and a persian 98/29 both are the the same as a vz-24 except for the barrel length and one feeds the bullets nicely and the other I had to do a little honing and stoning of the feedramp and receiver rails to get it to feed rn bullets consistantly.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 151,346
Campfire Savant
|
|
Campfire Savant
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 151,346 |
Good luck on your hunt, the best time of the year is beginning.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300
Campfire Oracle
|
|
Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300 |
I'd say from a field rest if you could hit a 6" circle at 200 yards every time then you should be good to go. ^^^^^^^^^^ THIS
"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062
Campfire Regular
|
|
OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 2,062 |
Quick update, again thanks for all the info and advice!
Went to the range last night - tried to go Sunday but it was closed for a hunter ed field day.
After the scope remount and bore site, she was on paper at 100 yards, several shots/adjustments later and she was consistently in a 3 inch circle. Off to the 200 yard range!
Put up paper and the gong. Paper had a 6 inch red dot inside a 10 inch black circle. First 2 shots where 2 inches apart, 6 oclock just in the black, so about 3-4 inches low.
Tweaked the scope up a bit, 2 more, again 2 inches apart, coming up nicely, one more tweak and she put 3 well into the red.
On to the gong, she then went 4-4 on the gong.
One pattern I noticed every single group, her first shot is always the best, the others seem to group around the first one! That's a good pattern for hunting.
She was done, didn't want to "play" at the 400 yard range. She won't shoot that far,
Her confidence came back, when she was adjusting teh scope and it moved correctly and stayed there, she started to perk up.
We start the drive to WY next Monday! We will try to get to the range one more time for more trigger time.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 41,974
Campfire 'Bwana
|
|
Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 41,974 |
Paul.
"Kids who grow up hunting, fishing & trapping, do not mug little old Ladies"
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 79
Campfire Greenhorn
|
|
Campfire Greenhorn
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 79 |
"Life's too short to hunt with an ugly gun."
U.S. Coast Guard, retired
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,126
Campfire Tracker
|
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 7,126 |
what is a decent 200 yard group size? I know MOA, is that the "you're an ok shooter"?
In my world a group within MOA is much better than OK especially at distance. It means your ammo is exceptionally liking your rifle and the shooter is doing things right. Changing ammo brands or loading components can produce quite different results from the same shooter & rifle. I'm in agreement with the previous field position posts, especially about hitting 6" plates establishing a persons effective range, that would give you good odds of hitting a deers basketball size kill zone. Happy Hunting
|
|
|
|
|
614 members (007FJ, 10gaugemag, 160user, 1936M71, 12344mag, 16penny, 62 invisible),
2,383
guests, and
1,253
robots. |
|
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
Forums81
Topics1,191,824
Posts18,477,888
Members73,944
| |
Most Online11,491
Jul 7th, 2023
|
|
|
|
