First sub-MOA shots

[herkyguy]

THR, These are my first sub-MOA shots out of my Remington 700 .308 tactical. It's my first bolt-action gun and I appreciate everyone's help in answering my questions over the past few weeks. I've learned a great deal from THR and dialing in the gun would have taken much longer without the forum! Everything from mounting the scope to the intricacies of slow breathing...

This was my second time shooting it. Beautiful day at a local range shooting 100 yards. I shot 150 grain Winchester powerpoint for the first group (.68 MOA) and some leftover Hornady 110 gr TAP FPD for the higher group (.55 MOA).

Thanks for all the help!!

 

[redbullitt]

Congrats! Very nice groups.
Gotta do something about that one lonely round on each though huh lol?

Which shot is the flier? First, middle or last?

 

[JDGray]

Great shooting! Looks like you got a good shooter

 

[herkyguy]

The forend of the stock is pressing fairly hard against the barrel and that's what I'm wrestling with right now....do I drop the cash to float a 20" heavy barrel?? or stick with what I've got. I'm by no means an expert so my trigger control could also be the cause of "that little guy" getting away from his buddies.

 

[wnycollector]

Nice shooting. I shot my first sub MOA group over the summer...I grinned ear to ear for ~two days Enjoy the feeling!

 

[sansone]

The forend of the stock is pressing fairly hard against the barrel and that's what I'm wrestling with right now....do I drop the cash to float a 20" heavy barrel?? or stick with what I've got. I'm by no means an expert so my trigger control could also be the cause of "that little guy" getting away from his buddies.

stick with what you got

 

[henschman]

You have to learn to call your shots, so you know which one is the flyer, and so you can figure out what you did wrong. If your eye is closed when the rifle fires, there's no way you can do this.

Also, I don't know that "slow breathing" is the way to go... the main thing is pausing your breathing before you fire, and always pausing it in the same place in your breath cycle (I use the bottom of the breath cycle because it is more repeatable). I actually take pretty quick little shallow breaths between shots. For one thing it is quicker, and also because it helps me pause my breathing in the same place in my breath cycle (marksmanship is all about being consistant). You should also cut your breath off at the throat rather than the diaphragm, because the former uses less muscle. Taking very slow breaths could also lead to holding your breath too long, which causes your eyesight to dim pretty quickly. If you've gone 6 or 7 seconds without breathing and haven't fired your shot yet, you need to take another breath and start the process over.

 

[JDGray]

You have to learn to call your shots, so you know which one is the flyer, and so you can figure out what you did wrong. If your eye is closed when the rifle fires, there's no way you can do this.

I've come a long way in my shooting consistancy, but riding the rifle just right to see impact through the scope, has not been learned as of yet Got a LEO sniper buddy with a suppresed R700, with a brake, that I'm dying to shoot.....Says he can watch the hits as they happen. Other than that, I know when a shot don't feel right, and they usually are the ones ruining the group(but not always)

 

[BrocLuno]

Wood and barrel pressure are mysterious. Some days they are good, others not. The combination is humidity and temp dependent. Over time you can use a slip of paper (dollar bill) between the fore stock and barrel and move it along to find the happy point, or you can route out the barrel channel and free float what you have. But that may require a bit more stock work around the receiver? How's it bedded now?

 

[unwise11]

Good shooting, don't sweat the stock until you shoot more groups.
I always put the third shot outside the other two aswell, yesterday I could've had a perfect group, but I rushed it a little and pulled off.

 

[Skylerbone]

You can remove the factory speed bump with some sanding if you choose but you may wish to consider bedding a few inches of the barrel if you do to support it's weight. Second trip out, you ought to just wait and see if POI changes with weather.

Thanks for sharing your positive experiences with us all and nice shooting.

 

[henschman]

I've come a long way in my shooting consistancy, but riding the rifle just right to see impact through the scope, has not been learned as of yet Got a LEO sniper buddy with a suppresed R700, with a brake, that I'm dying to shoot.....Says he can watch the hits as they happen. Other than that, I know when a shot don't feel right, and they usually are the ones ruining the group(but not always)

Calling your shot doesn't mean watching your bullet impact on the target... it means taking a "mental snapshot" of where your sights were on the target at the moment the rifle fired. If you notice that your sights were not on target, think about why they were not and don't do it that way next time!

Watching for bullet impact or other feedback from downrange is also important, though.

 

[TXiceman]

Pretty fair shooting. I have an old Model 70 Winchester (circa 1949) .30-06 that constantly shoots 100 yard groups with 5 shoots touching with 150 gr. PSP ammo. With 180 gr., 5 shot groups that you can cover with a quarter.

 

[unwise11]

OP- Post a picture of the gun you shot that with?

 

[Geno]

herkyguy:

Those are the type of groups that I like to call minute-of-varmint! Very good shooting, and you should rightfully be proud!

When I was still instructing Hunter Safety, I toyed with the idea of setting up local competitions for the kids. We had an informal hunting club in the high school. Specifically, I thought of creating an "MOA Award".

Congratulations!

Geno

 

[Redneck with a 40]

3 shot groups are good, next time try 5 shots. The 4th and 5th shot tends to blow up your group. I've got plenty of 3 shot groups that measure .75", and plenty of 5 shot groups that measure 1.25", lol.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Good shootin. Feels good don't it?
I've got a rifle that's dead nuts accurate. The problem is, I'm not. Every now and then, all the planets line up and I can pull off a sub moa group. And it sure feels good when it happens.

 

[Geno]

Redneck w/ a 40 said:

3 shot groups are good, next time try 5 shots. The 4th and 5th shot tends to blow up your group. I've got plenty of 3 shot groups that measure .75", and plenty of 5 shot groups that measure 1.25", lol.

<<Geno smiles>> I've always wanted to try some 5-shot groups, but the durned varmints keep droppin' dead on the first shot. I gotta get me some stronger varmints.

Geno

 

[Fremmer]

That gun's a shooter. I'm not surprised, it's a Remington. Don't mess with the stock or anything else, it shoots too well to mess with.