Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles This is odd !

I have an M-77 Mk II in 7 x 57 that I've had for years.
My favorite rifle.
I put it in a McSwirly 2 or 3 years ag,and put in a Riflebasix trigger.
It's always been pretty accurat (1"or so).

About 6 months ago it completely stopped shooting anything.
I'm talking 7" or worse.
Changed scopes,checked action screw torque,cleaned the hell out of it,you know the normal stuff.
Nothing helped.I tried new handloads,old proven loads,factory loads,nothing helped!!!
Took it to my smith,
He bedded the action,re-crowned,and lapped the barrel.

Yesterday I shot a 9 shot group that measured 1 1/8 inch with-3 Sierra 175 BTSP,3 140 NBT,and 3 120 NBT.
I am amazed !

While the gun was always pretty accurate in the past,it would have grouped those 3 loads to different places on the target.
Fluke,or keeper ?
Mike

Doesn't take much to damage the crown of a barrel and accuracy can suffer greatly when it is not right. A gun can also begin to move around in a stock after years of use. So I am not surprised.

1 1/8" accuracy is plenty good for critters way out there if you do your part. I'd keep it since it seems to be an old, trusted favorite in a very good, though fairly uncommon chambering.

My money's on the crown.

I like the thought of the different loads grouping close together.

I had a Shilen BBL'ed 257WBY on a Husky action once that would put a Moly'ed Barnes original 100gr bullet, a Hornaday 100gr bullet, a Speer Hot Core 100 and a Sierra 100 gr bullet into ONE single 3/4 inch group. Not the norm by a long shot and kind of amazing. I wish that I never had sold that rifle but when I was the sole income earner for a family of five and early on in my straight commissions world it had to be sacrificed.

All this to say, KEEP that rifle for sure! Try some Barnes 120gr or 140gr TTSX's in it as well. They very well may out shoot everything else and they will for sure out perform those other bullets on big game.

You have a good one there.

Another idea or thought, sometimes hard powder foulinig buildup will screw up the accuracy on a rifle tube. Copper removing cleaners and bronze brushes won't touch that stuff. Black Powder cleaning gel is about the best thing I have found for removing that hard crud. Might be worth a try, along with those Barnes bullets and see if that does not tighten your groups even more.

Lastly, barrels wear out from the throat forward. Re chambering to a longer cartridge like, in your case, a 280AI will cut out the worst part of the checked/cracked barrel throat and oft times shrink groups down, so long as the rechambering is done right and well, meaning straight and in alignment with the bore and bolt face.

Good post. Keep in mind his 1 1/8" group was with 9 shots (and 3 different loads). I think that is awesome and it's even better when it happens with one of your favorite rifles. I'm always happy with "hunting" rifles that shoot 1 1/2" 10 shot groups, 1" 5 shot groups and sub moa 3 shot groups. Sounds like the OP should be ecstatic. I know I would be....

Yes,
I am ecstatic. That was the point of my post.
I've never had any rifle do that.
Mike