When you can't take a fouling shot...

[Cosmoline]

A lot of people think that, until they try it. Like I said, start a running group with several of your favorite rifles. You may be surprised.

I've never seen any significant variation with a smokeless rifle. A muzzleloader is another story. There the fouling can make a significant difference in tightness and accuracy--but it actually tends to help. A smokeless rifle's big problem as the shots get fired is not fouling but HEAT. The barrel heats up and its dimensions change, as does its fit with the stock. I've witnessed this with all smokeless rifles.

I strongly suspect this business of taking a "fouling shot" with your hunting rifle is a hangover from someone's grandpa's grandpa who was shooting a smoke pole. You really do not need to worry about it unless you're going into a competition shoot. For hunting there will be no appreciable difference. Nothing is getting "fouled" with the first shot, just a bit of copper residue at most. There is no black powder and no soot buildup.

That said, there are some good reasons to take some practice shots prior to going on your hunt. Esp. if the rifle just got unpacked from an air flight and you need to check your zero. This may be called a "fouling shot," but its purpose is not to foul the bore.

If you do see a significant variation after the first shot in your rifles, I would suggest that you may be over-oiling the bore. I've noticed people doing that before. The first shot will have to clear out all that oil, and accuracy may suffer. Just leave the bore clean and dry save for a micro-thin layer of CLP.

 

[texastony]

I always thought if you could hit a paper plate at 100 yards, your good to go.

My dad has a .243 that he has put probably 5 boxes of ammo through without cleaning. Met his limit on bucks and does last year. Shots ranged from 80 to 150 yards. Deer were DRT in the kill zone.

My M70 shoots .5 moa when I do my part, which is really quite rare. If I can shoot 1 inch groups, I'm tickled.

 

[matrem]

Didn't Cosmoline cover everything that needed to be said in post # 2?

 

[.38 Special]

Well, I'm sure not here to convince anyone about anything. If what's been working for has been working for you, then no reason to change anything. OTOH, as I mentioned, if you haven't tried it then you're just assuming.

Oh, and FWIW, it's not "my" running group method. It's been around for at least 50 years that I know of, and has been mentioned -- that I have seen -- by Cooper, Keith, Aagaard, Seyfried, and Mike Venturino.

 

[dls56]

Thread caught my eye

My deer rifle needs a fouling shot in order to perform to its potential. I use a light coat (swab with a clean dry patch after) of clp as was suggested when the bore is clean but for whatever reason the clean bore shot is iffy at best and can be as much as 6" different at 250 yards. I hunt over fields and make some fairly long shots. My goal is to hit the neck and drop them in their tracks, anything short of that is unacceptable to me.
In order to be able to do this I shoot almost every day of the year. Different calibers, different rifles, different loads, different results. My conclusion is that no two hunters are quite the same and no two rifles are quite the same either. What may be insignificant at 50 yards can be a miss or worse a wounded animal at 300 yards.