Different Bullet Brands

mickthebrick

Well-Known Member
Has anyone out there experienced a huge increase in accuracy just by changing bullet make? I've only used 140grn Sierras in my 7mm08 but took it to the range the other day and my confidence with the rifle has gone again. Just wont group reliably under 2" I'm not the greatest shot in the world but I do OK with my .223.

You know when you're bang on target, you pull the trigger and you just know what's human error and what isn't!

Which leaves me with a quandry....I've been offered a Roe Buck this weekend for nowt:). What would you do.....take the 7mm or the .223 with Sako Gameheads? I'm tempted to take the .223.....:confused:

Cheers
Mick
 

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Personally I would take the 7mm (you would be illegal using a 223 in england anyway)... Even a rifle shooting 2 in groups should be OK to 200 yards providing you aim at the right bit of the deer. There may be other factors at work...
What rifle/scope/mounts are you using
Has the rifle shot this load accurately before and has the load or loading procedure been changed since last time (bullet seating depth, case type, primers etc)
Have you started flinching (would be less likely with the 223)
Are all of the screws on the rifle/mounts tight
What were you using to support the rifle
Has the rifle had a soaking since last time you shot
When was the barrel last cleaned
How fast did you fire the string of shots
Has the rifle been glass bedded

If possible I would clean the barrel thoroughly with a copper removing solvent e.g. forrest bore foam, then tighten the stock and scope mount screws, check the barrel is still free floating and no foreign bodies or signs of warping. Then I would try to get someone else to shoot a few groups that you know can shoot. If after this the rifle still wont shoot I would the try different bullet weights and manafacturers. A lot of rifles with thin barrels will shoot the first shot to the same point of aim with subsequent shots wandering as the barrel heats up. If your rifle shoots the first shot to the same point of aim then dont worry as you should only need one shot anyway.

If you could give us some more info we may be able to narrow it down a bit. If its any consolation my .308 did something similar about 6 months ago and would only shoot 3.5 inch groups at 100. Did the whole strip and clean thing and the next time with the same load it grouped inside 0.5 in. I think however with hindsight that the bullets may have been hitting some marsh grass before the target but still affected my confidence. Dont give up on the rifle because of one bad range session.

Cheers

Simon
 
did you get the 7mm from new. have you cleaned the barrel with carbon and copper remover ?
doy ou homeload your ammo ?
 
Thanks for the replies.

I bought the rifle second hand with 6x42 S&B on Leupold windage adjustable mounts.

Checked all screws they're ok
Mounts are tight
Barrel Freefloats
Crown redone when threaded
Not much difference in groups, mod on or off
It has only occasionally grouped under 2"
Factory ammo all over the place
Reloads, been through entire powder range. Some loads seem better than others but no real consistency
Barrel has been cleaned numerous times with solvents, foams and brushes

Only tried Sierra reloads
Never tried another scope on it

Taking it apart today I noticed a small amount of bedding missing on the right hand side of the recoil lug. Could this be the culprit?

Saw a vid on Youtube the other day where a guy bedded his Remington and it went from 2"groups to 1/2".

My next plan of attack is to make some more reloads the same as last time.
Change the scope for my 6X42Swaro off my .223 just in case it's the scope:doh:
If that doesn't work then I may try and re-bed it, something I've never done before.

Does anyone know where can I get bedding compound from?

Cheers
Mick
 

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mick have you tried different seating depths im using sierras in my 270 ,130 and 150 grain it took a while to get right but spot on now,wayne
 
Pillar Bed it and free float the barrel,

Groups will come down to less than 1" MOA. There are kits available from america or get agood smith on the job.

i sorted mine out one winter and it is very accurate now.

Bought the full kit here, comes with DVD and everything to do a Pro Job.

http://www.scorehi.com/
 
mick out of interest what sort of job are the sieras doing on the deer
ive been using the 120 and 140 siera pro hunters in my 7 08 and had too many run
accuracy is fine at just under an inch but found the bullets too hard
im now trying other makes before i hand load some up
regards pete .
 
mick out of interest what sort of job are the sieras doing on the deer
ive been using the 120 and 140 siera pro hunters in my 7 08 and had too many run
accuracy is fine at just under an inch but found the bullets too hard
im now trying other makes before i hand load some up
regards pete .

Invest in Nosler partions expand quick but have a limited expansion so always exit and destroy little meat on way out.
Heart+lungs usually shredded.
 
That bedding job looks quite poor Mick. Even if not the source of your probs, i'd have it redone anyway.

7mm can be fussy buggers. Have you tried a ranged of different bullets and loads?

What rifle is it?
 
john thanks for the tip ive got a few my gunsmith let me have i will load them up
loaded some in 243 a couple of years back and it was the best bullet i had used
regards pete .
 
I don't think it's only the bedding. Something is really wrong.
As other have said I've also had a bad case of barrel fouling where the
rifle wouldn't group anymore. An abbrasive barrel cleaner sorted that problem for me,
sometimes chemicals are at their end.

A well pillar bedded rifle will give you a huge increase of reliability and shoot day after day to
the same point but often doesn't increase accuracy on a day.

Maybe there is something drastically wrong with the rifle. Let a gunsmith you trust have a look at it.
Something like headspace or shot out.

edi
 
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