Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Interesting read on group size

DOES GROUP SIZE MATTER?

A good article that will make you feel better about your rifle that will "only" shoot 1 MOA.

Good read.

Seems we have had similar discussions on here before.Those are pretty tiny jumps in hit probability going from 1 MOA to 1/2 MOA.

I do feel better. Does this mean that i need to find another hobby?

I would like to see the numbers for a 1.5 MOA rifle. I bet they still aren't that different.

It matters even less at the ranges most of us shoot.

If my math is correct, its a 1.4 MOA target. Wouldn't mind seeing the numbers on a 5" target at 500, for conversation. I'd think the gains would be higher, but drift would be less a factor.

It's an excellent article, and reflects what I've seen in the field. I've never noticed that I hit 2 MOA targets any differently with 3/4" loads than I do with sub-1/2 MOA loads.

But, I bet hit %'s drop off pretty quick as rifle avg. group size approaches/exceeds the target size . Visa vis..... A 1.5 MOA gun trying to hit a 1.5 MOA (or smaller) target.... like a 10" plate at 700 or a 15" plate at 1500.

I get laughed at when I refer to my '2 MOA' guns.... by guys with guns that are "1/4 MOA all day". But I'm not referring to group size (and I know 99% are FOS).... I'm referring to the size of targets that I can hit with it.... to about a 1/2 mile, under most conditions. Do they shoot 'good groups'.... Sub-MOA mostly.... but that ain't what's important. Benchrest guys shoot groups..... hunters shoot shots.

I know that once you get past about 400, 2 MOA size targets get tougher and tougher to hit.... for a lot of reasons.... rifle accuracy isn't one of them. I see guys beat on 8" plates at 400.... then hit a 12" round at 600 maybe two outta five. This is where 'consistency' trumps 'accuracy'.... and the spent primers in your reloading room trash will tell you which way you're leaning.

Well written article. Enough so I subscribed to future articles. Another is - http://www.accurateshooter.com/articles/

Well, dang…

John

What do you think the hit % would be on a clay bird at 1/4 mile? That's right at MOA, it's a simple visual, and it's about the range where almost everyone should be passing on shots....

I'm thinking it would be about 50% with an MOA rifle, under 'ideal' conditions in that simulator. Actual shooting, by 100 random 'fire members.... and I bet it's about a 1.5 out of 5 average.... with a 1/2 MOA rifle.

50% of the time I would hit it, every time.




Travis

That was a good article. It really starts to matter very little when you factor in your ability as a shooter to hold in expedient field positions. If you can only hold offhand within a couple MOA, whether the rifle is a .5" shooter or a 1.5" shooter becomes almost irrelevant. I have found most of my shot opportunities when elk hunting are in the woods and involve fleeting opportunities and I will not have time to find a support. I'm still a geek and want to have tiny groups, and you never know when you'll have time on a longer shot, but in the end tiny groups won't likely change my outcome.

The "English" is the deal killer with all of it. I'm sure everyone has seen a 200 yard flag going in one direction while the 500 is going the other. Or whatever diatance is your flavor at the time. And that's just the friggin wind.

Hit % at 440? Who knows. I've gone 5 for 5 on 4" steel at 425 only to come back to the same bench with the same targets with the same rifle and the same batch of ammo and not be able to hit the phuqqin dirt.