Handload accuracy question/range report.

[Tomekeuro85]

I was at the range today with another set of reloads and I learned a few things. Weighing brass does have a slight effect on removing fliers. Today I had stuff like 3 shots touching and 2 off to wherever they pleased. Without those fliers my groups would have been an average of .4-.5". With them my average is about .7" for both of my guns.

Is .7" a realistic maximum for performance, meaning will I ever do much better with my 2 factory rifles? I do get a lot of touching shots, but the fliers really hurt my groups.

What I'm trying to say is, would you guys be happy getting a max group size of .8" and usually getting somewhere .6-.7"?


Also, what would match primers and match brass do for my groups? More specifically, how much of an effect do match primers really give? A benchrest competitor i talked to told me to expect a difference, but how much?

 

[griz]

Depends on the rifle and load. A rifle that will keep cheap bullets inside of .7 inches would make me happy. If you are talking about 223 and 308, have you tried match ammo?

 

[Tomekeuro85]

I currently use Sierra match king 168's and 52's, and Varget and H335. I use once fired neck sized only federal brass from my Gold medal match and regular CCI primers, non match. The guns have no modifications at all.

 

[hoghunting]

I have used Bench Rest primers and it made a difference in some of my loads.
How much time are you taking between shots. If you are using a sporter style barrel, after 3 rounds it will heat up. That might be why you have 2 shots outside of the first 3.

 

[Tomekeuro85]

Id say I wait about 1-2 mins between shots. Its a heavy barrel for both guns.

 

[Khornet]

How much trouble

do you want to take to get max accuracy?

I once bought a 1903A3 Springfield rifle which had been clumsily sporterized. The barreled action was fine, though. It has the original GI 2-groove barrel.

After I glass bedded it, floated the barrel, refinished and checkered the stock, and installed a Timney trigger, I went to work on handloads. I could usually get 2 MOA but wanted more.

In the end I bought 100 new .30-'06 cases, and sorted them by weight. In each lot of cases weighing within 2 grains of each other, I then uniformed the primer pockets, reamed the flash holes, and turned the necks. I weighed all my charges but did not bother to sort bullets by weight. I use a Wilson hand die to neck size, and seat with a Forster micrometer seater. I Used a tool from Sinclair which permits me to measure the seating depth to not quite touch the lands, about five thousandths off.

I wound up with a sporter-stocked, glass bedded, adjustable trigger, scoped but otherwise stock WWII service rifle which shoots 1/2 MOA with Hornady 150 gr hunting bullets.

This was about a two-year project, though it could have been done in a week if I'd not had other things in my life. Worth it? Yes, for me it was. I had an absorbing hobby and a great time wringing out that rifle and load. Now when I hunt with it I have absolute confidence, and the cool thing is that it's the work of my own two hands. For some, it's just work. For me, it's half the fun.