Gamehead inconsistant

[Anser anser]

Having used these in .243 for a season or more now i must say they do the job well for me.However i do notice accuracy just vanishes for no apparent reason. Having noticed a shot was not where it should be for no apparent reason I have then done a few sessions laying flat with the bipod at the 100 yard and found that its on then its off ,then its on etc.I did put it down to the mounts the barrel needing cooling the barrel needing cleaned, etc. point being--- its random. Now i do have a newer box of rounds i used for zeroing a few days back and they were relatively ok--but with 3 rounds just below centre say 1/2 inch low initially i was concerned as i always had the gun set at 1" high. next 3 were about 1" high and scattered. The last 2 (after i used a pull thru)were 1/2 inch off the bull ,slightly below/within an inch circle as i normally expect from my gun and myself. after as i say ,after i had used a pull thru to clean the barrel. plenty time between shots btw .Im pretty sure its the ammo being erratic. So im going back to using remington i think for a while --once i get hold of some that is.im hoping the lad in Duns stocks the remmys in .243.Has anyone else had poor batches of gameheads at all?Im not talking about ammo flying off a foot off the bull btw.Simply not as accurate as other boxes seem to be.

 

[Smellydog]

Which rifle? Have you shot without the bipod?

 

[Tim.243]

Having used these in .243 for a season or more now i must say they do the job well for me.However i do notice accuracy just vanishes for no apparent reason. Having noticed a shot was not where it should be for no apparent reason I have then done a few sessions laying flat with the bipod at the 100 yard and found that its on then its off ,then its on etc.I did put it down to the mounts the barrel needing cooling the barrel needing cleaned, etc. point being--- its random. Now i do have a newer box of rounds i used for zeroing a few days back and they were relatively ok--but with 3 rounds just below centre say 1/2 inch low initially i was concerned as i always had the gun set at 1" high. next 3 were about 1" high and scattered. The last 2 (after i used a pull thru)were 1/2 inch off the bull ,slightly below/within an inch circle as i normally expect from my gun and myself. after as i say ,after i had used a pull thru to clean the barrel. plenty time between shots btw .Im pretty sure its the ammo being erratic. So im going back to using remington i think for a while --once i get hold of some that is.im hoping the lad in Duns stocks the remmys in .243.Has anyone else had poor batches of gameheads at all?Im not talking about ammo flying off a foot off the bull btw.Simply not as accurate as other boxes seem to be.

Clean/scrub the bore a couple of times and give it a go, my Rem .243 went "off" gave it a x2 bore scrub and patch, been good for quite a while now

 

[Anser anser]

aye i done the bore foam with the gun a while back since its had a good few hundred thru it since i bought it. Now dont get me wrong here -this is not a rifle thats tired out and/or filthy in the barrel. its well cared for and in tip top shape. The only other possible factor causing lesser accuracy is me and my shooting style. Dare i say i may be becoming over confident!!I enjoy my meopro scopes quality every time i use it. Its a great scope for the roe. But i also realized that on 16x i am less accurate than if its sat on say 9x.And its always the way that when zeroing on a bull i tend to zooom that scope right up.Ill do a wee session on a lower magnification -- once i pick up some remmy rounds and have a chillaxed afternoon pottering. Pretty sure the box i was using was less accurate but im not arrogant im my way to think that it could not just simply be me. i shall address both and perhaps see a closer grouping.

 

[Anser anser]

Which rifle? Have you shot without the bipod?

The guns my stalking "go to" rifle for roe .Aye its mostly shot on the sticks m8 or from the high seat. last few bucks this month the shots have been a few inches off an that set alarm bells ringing. Not a drastic issue here but somethings a tad off and needing rectified i feel.The ammo is my gut feeling but ill change that for a round i used a lot thru this gun with good results prior to using the gameheads and see whats what.Drop down to 6x for the zeroing and maybe do a few at 50 yards as well see how the gun runs. accutips worked well in this steyr

 

[Donkey Basher]

aye i done the bore foam with the gun a while back since its had a good few hundred thru it since i bought it. Now dont get me wrong here -this is not a rifle thats tired out and/or filthy in the barrel. its well cared for and in tip top shape. The only other possible factor causing lesser accuracy is me and my shooting style. Dare i say i may be becoming over confident!!I enjoy my meopro scopes quality every time i use it. Its a great scope for the roe. But i also realized that on 16x i am less accurate than if its sat on say 9x.And its always the way that when zeroing on a bull i tend to zooom that scope right up.Ill do a wee session on a lower magnification -- once i pick up some remmy rounds and have a chillaxed afternoon pottering. Pretty sure the box i was using was less accurate but im not arrogant im my way to think that it could not just simply be me. i shall address both and perhaps see a closer grouping.

Don’t take offence, but from what you’ve said, I’d suggest that the issue may not be with either the ammo or the rifle…

 

[Anser anser]

Don’t take offence, but from what you’ve said, I’d suggest that the issue may not be with either the ammo or the rifle…

You may well be right. But i will change ammo none the less .placebo or not it will do no harm. Nice lazy afternoon out with a flask of coffee and a camping stove for some bacon rolls i see in the near future.Ive had my rut bucks off my patch so i can afford some time for pottering now.Sides i would like to pick up a box or two of some rounds i have perhaps not used to see how they perform.I dunno what he has in down Duns way. Might pop in but probably head up to Ed's roost in Edinburgh if he has a decent selection box of .243 round just now

 

[Foxyboy43]

Don’t take offence, but from what you’ve said, I’d suggest that the issue may not be with either the ammo or the rifle…

Always a possibility. Nothing worse than losing confidence in your setup - especially if shooting live quarry.
I suggest a few hours and a couple of boxes of different ammo would be very well spent at the range to help get back your mojo…

 

[Penyard]

Bore Foam alone will not clean deeply engrained filth

 

[Dalua]

Bore Foam alone will not clean deeply engrained filth

This is certainly true. I'm a Forrest Foam Fan, but it only goes in after a a good scrub with carbon remover on a phosphor-bronze brush.

 

[8x57]

What weight bullet are you shooting in your .243 ?

 

[Heym SR20]

Lots of things probably going on here.

1) rifles may well shoot a little 3 shot clover type group, but in truth are really not that accurate, and if you shot a ten round group, you, the rifle, ammunition and scope would produce a 1 1/2 to 2” group. So when you have the odd bullet going slightly high or to one side that just the normal variation.

2) frustration, heat etc. it happens to us all. Your first round doesn’t go quite where you want it, so you shoot another quickly. We have had an extended period of warm weather, so barrels and moderators get hot, and this causes mirage which causes wobbly aim and the next bullet is not quite, so you put another round into the fecking thing, and by now you are getting irritated so you pull the trigger to give it extra velocity to go down range ……. And the whole lot ends up in utter frustration.

Happens to me, and I see it regularly on the range.

I have come to the realisation that most of us are perfectly capable of taking a cool unfired rifle and putting one or two shots very close to the point of aim. That’s all that really necessary to be a perfectly competent deer stalker that will cleanly kill any deer.

However it takes a lot of practice and a particular mentality to consistently shoot tiny little groups with hunting rifles on the range.

3) equipment. Things do vibrate loose. Check everything. Bipods - I have a love / hate relationship with them. They do offer a very steady shooting position, but I have found that they are very fussy as to how you hold the rifle. You have to be very consistent, especially if the bipod is on a lightweight rifle. They tend to cause the rifle to bounce. If you do not need a bipod for the vast majority of your deer stalking, get rid of it. Why add the extra weight. I am of the opinion that most light stalking rifles are much better properly held with both hands controlling the rifle.

The 243 is not a heavy recoiling calibre by any stretch of the imagination. But its a high pressure finicky little round that is quite snappy, and suspect has a high frequency vibrations in the barrel and thus is particularly temperamental to any slight change in hold, pressure on the rifle, change in temperature etc etc. certainly this is what I have found with mine.

By contrast my 7x57 which is lower pressure doesn’t care - it just shoots. It is not as accurate as my 243, but it easier to be consistent.

4) choice of ammo - some ammo is just fussy. In the 243, I am finding the Fox 80gn to shoot very well. Indeed the Fox bullets seem to be very consistent in most rifles. No, they beautiful long sexy high BC bullets for long range use, but inside 250 / 300 they work very well.

 

[monarman]

Are you using a digital scope?....

 

[Anser anser]

This is certainly true. I'm a Forrest Foam Fan, but it only goes in after a a good scrub with carbon remover on a phosphor-bronze brush.

Done

 

[Anser anser]

Lots of things probably going on here.

1) rifles may well shoot a little 3 shot clover type group, but in truth are really not that accurate, and if you shot a ten round group, you, the rifle, ammunition and scope would produce a 1 1/2 to 2” group. So when you have the odd bullet going slightly high or to one side that just the normal variation.

2) frustration, heat etc. it happens to us all. Your first round doesn’t go quite where you want it, so you shoot another quickly. We have had an extended period of warm weather, so barrels and moderators get hot, and this causes mirage which causes wobbly aim and the next bullet is not quite, so you put another round into the fecking thing, and by now you are getting irritated so you pull the trigger to give it extra velocity to go down range ……. And the whole lot ends up in utter frustration.

Happens to me, and I see it regularly on the range.

I have come to the realisation that most of us are perfectly capable of taking a cool unfired rifle and putting one or two shots very close to the point of aim. That’s all that really necessary to be a perfectly competent deer stalker that will cleanly kill any deer.

However it takes a lot of practice and a particular mentality to consistently shoot tiny little groups with hunting rifles on the range.

3) equipment. Things do vibrate loose. Check everything. Bipods - I have a love / hate relationship with them. They do offer a very steady shooting position, but I have found that they are very fussy as to how you hold the rifle. You have to be very consistent, especially if the bipod is on a lightweight rifle. They tend to cause the rifle to bounce. If you do not need a bipod for the vast majority of your deer stalking, get rid of it. Why add the extra weight. I am of the opinion that most light stalking rifles are much better properly held with both hands controlling the rifle.

The 243 is not a heavy recoiling calibre by any stretch of the imagination. But its a high pressure finicky little round that is quite snappy, and suspect has a high frequency vibrations in the barrel and thus is particularly temperamental to any slight change in hold, pressure on the rifle, change in temperature etc etc. certainly this is what I have found with mine.

By contrast my 7x57 which is lower pressure doesn’t care - it just shoots. It is not as accurate as my 243, but it easier to be consistent.

4) choice of ammo - some ammo is just fussy. In the 243, I am finding the Fox 80gn to shoot very well. Indeed the Fox bullets seem to be very consistent in most rifles. No, they beautiful long sexy high BC bullets for long range use, but inside 250 / 300 they work very well.

Never have bipod on mine unless its for a zeroing session. Ruins the rifles positioning on my sticks and everything else.For the exact reasons you mentioned there i tend to stick with the first 2 or 3 shots to confirm how my .243 is grouping as im relaxed and the guns cool.T he steyr classic is lovely and i am delighted with it as my "go to " roe rifle but the barrel is not best suited to range work.i suspect the first two shots will always give a more truthful tell on what adjustment if any is needed to the scope.Ive never adfjusted the scope left or right since i bought it.its always been the dogs danglies