Opinions on a tuner on a precision .22, BR level accuracy. Worth it?
You are probably better off, figuring out what your rifle likes. Ammo selection has the greatest effect on precision. It also entirely depends on what you intend to do with the rifle. Top level bench rest competition, and you may want to consider getting a good tuner. Check out that challenge I posted in this forum, and you’ll see what some decent shooters are running.
Originally Posted by raybass
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style.
Originally Posted by Pharmseller
You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole.
Depends on what they are asking for them I suppose. They do work. I've got a small lathe and made one for my 9mm Bergara - the rifle barrel was already threaded:
200yards on a better than average wind day:
Originally Posted by mauserand9mm
Originally Posted by mauserand9mm
Originally Posted by Raspy
Whatever you said...everyone knows you are a lying jerk.
That's a bold assertion. Point out where you think I lied.
Here's an example of an EC tuner on my Bergara B14R with cheap TAC22 Practice ammo, distance is 50yds:
Here's another pic of a tuning session with Lapua LR, 3 shot groups at 50 as per Cortina's instructions. This is just the initial tuning to find a rough setting:
You can see that as I "tune" or adjust the tuner, the POI shifts as well as group size. The flyers (again TAC22) don't disappear, but they are subdued a bit. Using Lapua LR and SK LR match, the results are similar, just not as dramatic.
With the Lapua LR I retested the 40 and 1R10 settings and settled on 40 which produced .25-.3" 10 shot groups at 50 yds pretty reliably. It has an ES of 22.1 and an SD of 6.08 from my rifle. This ammo lot is what I'll use in NRL22 matches this year.
Bottom line is when I find .22LR ammo with decent chrono stats I can utilize the tuner to tighten the group. At distance the stuff with double digit SD is still going to shoot poorly, but it works OK for practice off of props.
Another plus, with the tuner on I finally got the rifle to balance better:
“Might does not make right but it sure makes what is.”
Thanks for all the responses, gents. Lots of useful info.
And not a single "I don't need no stinkin' tuner, I kin kill critters all season long with my trusty_____".
That's true, so it didn't need to be said. Besides, a tuner really needs to be used on a target rifle (typically). I was watching a video the other day, and a guy tried one on his Bergara BMR, and it looks like it really helped:
Your question was specifically for "benchrest" accuracy. What kind of benchrest competitions are you going to be shooting? USBR? One thing about those guys, is they are going to use everything to their advantage. They are going to be playing with all the new gadgets, and if it helps, they are going to be using them. For an every day joe, that shoots in his club rimfire matches once a month, he may not be so inclined to buy one.
Originally Posted by raybass
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style.
Originally Posted by Pharmseller
You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole.