hello all
sorry its been a while since i posted at the moment i am juggeling shift work finishing my extention and looking after the kids. i will try and set the scene a bit and explain the story.
about two yrs ago i bought a .243 remington sps ,the rifle was a great little work horse bagging a few deer and lot more foxes , on a good day i could manage 1" groups with my home loads but the rifle had a problem that would rear its ugly head now and then.
the rifle once zeroed would every now and then change its point of aim(POA) this change would not be a constant amount but varied between 1"-4" this POA movement has caused me some serious headaches trying to figure out what was causing it and how to stop it.
this has caused me a few probs in the past with a couple of misses on foxy that i knew should have been hits , and one shot on a deer that instead of hitting classic heart /lung , went high and took out the spine deer dropped on spot but the shot could of gone the other way and resulted in an injured deer and long follow up.
i had my optics checked ,went over my reloads . changed my scope bases and more . i discovered the problem in the end , i found the plastic stock on the SPS was as stiff as marzipan and about as usefull.
i priced a 1/2 decient stock replacement but by now i had lost confidence with the rifle and went for a change.
i took the plunge and bought a .243 SAKO 85 stainless varmit with laminated stock and fluted 20" barrel i fitted a T8 and put on my S&B 8x56 ir scopes.(it cost the same as libera's national debt)
the set up was a bit heavier than the SPS but no more than i could manage. i did a basic 100m zero and got a 1" group i went out and bagged a fox but since then with all the commitments i have been unable until today to carry out a proper zero session.
i am not a target shoot just someone who every now and then enjoys a couple of hours in the field honing my shooting and getting out from my house full of women. i use my bi-pod and shooting bags as a rest when zeroing
the weather in my part of Wales today was clearish and cold the area i shot in was a sloped sheltered valley that is protected from the wind ....perfect
i was using a x-ray type deer target that incorperated zeroing areas built onto it .
i made a selection of bullet ammo up to see what the rifle likes , i made the following rounds up at diffrent distances varying from 5-20thou from lands and all were 1gr under max loads using Varget powder loads from Hogdons data.
75gr V-max
85gr Nosler Partition
85gr sierra gameking HPBT
90gr Speer hotcore
95gr SST
i started off with the 5thou from land and got a 1/2" group from the gameking first 3 rounds. i was overjoyed , i tried the 20thou in same bullet and group opened up so decided to stick to 5thou to start.
i managed 3/4" group with Nosler Partion , 1/2" with Hotcore but 1 1/2" on SST (i forgot about V-max) @100m .my problem is i tend to rush the shooting.
i decied to try a few at the actual deer taret @200m to see if i could get hits on the hearh/lung area, using all rounds (except V-max forgot)
i did my shots and got all rounds (2 bullets each type) in a 4" group that was me judging the the target area on the deer . i again was very pleased with this .
now discovering the V-max i decided to try them the 85gr Nosler Partion 90gr Hotcore and the SST on the zero target parts @ 200m using three shots each.
i made a concious effort to take my time on the shots and let the rifle cool down. on examining the target for the SST i got a 2"+ group , i thought thats good.
i got a 3/4" group for the Nosler and Hotcore i am now over the moon. i check the V-max target and see two holes 1/2" apart but no third ,i think i had a flier but on closer examination i can see two rounds hit the same mark . i am Ecstatic i cant belive it, its the best shooting i have done.
as i said i am no target shooter but i'm chuffed at the groupings , i am not going to fiddle with the 75,85and 90gr rounds as i pleased with them. i will try and see if i can get 1" or less from the SST but i think the rifle does not like 95gr or above.
these groupings are down to good quality optics and rifle doing what they say they can do on the box , quality hand loaded ammo ,and taking time on zeroing. i has now given me massive confidence knowing that the rifle will shot where i want it to , down side if there is a miss it will be down to me....... i will post more on the SST and see if i can get the grouping down.......neil
sorry its been a while since i posted at the moment i am juggeling shift work finishing my extention and looking after the kids. i will try and set the scene a bit and explain the story.
about two yrs ago i bought a .243 remington sps ,the rifle was a great little work horse bagging a few deer and lot more foxes , on a good day i could manage 1" groups with my home loads but the rifle had a problem that would rear its ugly head now and then.
the rifle once zeroed would every now and then change its point of aim(POA) this change would not be a constant amount but varied between 1"-4" this POA movement has caused me some serious headaches trying to figure out what was causing it and how to stop it.
this has caused me a few probs in the past with a couple of misses on foxy that i knew should have been hits , and one shot on a deer that instead of hitting classic heart /lung , went high and took out the spine deer dropped on spot but the shot could of gone the other way and resulted in an injured deer and long follow up.
i had my optics checked ,went over my reloads . changed my scope bases and more . i discovered the problem in the end , i found the plastic stock on the SPS was as stiff as marzipan and about as usefull.
i priced a 1/2 decient stock replacement but by now i had lost confidence with the rifle and went for a change.
i took the plunge and bought a .243 SAKO 85 stainless varmit with laminated stock and fluted 20" barrel i fitted a T8 and put on my S&B 8x56 ir scopes.(it cost the same as libera's national debt)
the set up was a bit heavier than the SPS but no more than i could manage. i did a basic 100m zero and got a 1" group i went out and bagged a fox but since then with all the commitments i have been unable until today to carry out a proper zero session.
i am not a target shoot just someone who every now and then enjoys a couple of hours in the field honing my shooting and getting out from my house full of women. i use my bi-pod and shooting bags as a rest when zeroing
the weather in my part of Wales today was clearish and cold the area i shot in was a sloped sheltered valley that is protected from the wind ....perfect
i was using a x-ray type deer target that incorperated zeroing areas built onto it .
i made a selection of bullet ammo up to see what the rifle likes , i made the following rounds up at diffrent distances varying from 5-20thou from lands and all were 1gr under max loads using Varget powder loads from Hogdons data.
75gr V-max
85gr Nosler Partition
85gr sierra gameking HPBT
90gr Speer hotcore
95gr SST
i started off with the 5thou from land and got a 1/2" group from the gameking first 3 rounds. i was overjoyed , i tried the 20thou in same bullet and group opened up so decided to stick to 5thou to start.
i managed 3/4" group with Nosler Partion , 1/2" with Hotcore but 1 1/2" on SST (i forgot about V-max) @100m .my problem is i tend to rush the shooting.
i decied to try a few at the actual deer taret @200m to see if i could get hits on the hearh/lung area, using all rounds (except V-max forgot)
i did my shots and got all rounds (2 bullets each type) in a 4" group that was me judging the the target area on the deer . i again was very pleased with this .
now discovering the V-max i decided to try them the 85gr Nosler Partion 90gr Hotcore and the SST on the zero target parts @ 200m using three shots each.
i made a concious effort to take my time on the shots and let the rifle cool down. on examining the target for the SST i got a 2"+ group , i thought thats good.
i got a 3/4" group for the Nosler and Hotcore i am now over the moon. i check the V-max target and see two holes 1/2" apart but no third ,i think i had a flier but on closer examination i can see two rounds hit the same mark . i am Ecstatic i cant belive it, its the best shooting i have done.
as i said i am no target shooter but i'm chuffed at the groupings , i am not going to fiddle with the 75,85and 90gr rounds as i pleased with them. i will try and see if i can get 1" or less from the SST but i think the rifle does not like 95gr or above.
these groupings are down to good quality optics and rifle doing what they say they can do on the box , quality hand loaded ammo ,and taking time on zeroing. i has now given me massive confidence knowing that the rifle will shot where i want it to , down side if there is a miss it will be down to me....... i will post more on the SST and see if i can get the grouping down.......neil
