Thread: Sighting with factory and handloads

So today it has finally stopped blowing like crazy and despite the showers I was able to get out to my sighting in place. A month ago I dropped my rifle and hadn't had chance to get out and check it due to work and it being windy season here.

So even though the forecast was 100% rain today I managed to get out and stay dry.

I tested with some old Norma factory loads that came with the rifle and some 36Gr Sierra 1455 varmint pills as 36Gr seems to perform best at 100 yards.





I then moved the target out to 200 yards and tested again.






Rifle is a Savage 22-250 with gunworks suppressor that I picked up second hand 2 years ago and I was shooting off the bonnet of my ute with bipod and butt into shoulder.

The handloads while performing well at 100 yards are not working at 200 yards. I have no more handloads made up at the moment but will do some before I go back to work on the 10th Jan.

I suggest remo e the bipod and then support the rie front forend and rear on sandbags then try again.

The two shots I can see with the handloads at 200 are a smaller group than the three factory shots. POI for the handloads is more to the left, which could be wind, and way higher so the handloads may be going way faster. What weight are the factory projectiles? I'm guessing significantly more than 36gr (50 or 55 maybe), which I would expect to be going slower and be less affected by wind.

I'm off to the range tomorrow, I need to see if a couple of extra baffles on the DPT will affect POI, and check zero on a couple of rifles. It's about 16 months since I last went there!

Originally Posted by Woody

I suggest remo e the bipod and then support the rie front forend and rear on sandbags then try again.

I would but I prefer to test as close to the way I hunt as possible and I don't hunt with sandbags.

36grains is the charge of ADI 2208 powder I guess I should have explained that in my original post, all projectiles are 55grain in both the factory loads and the handloads

Fair enough but first you need to prove the loads.

I would be trying to remove the shooter variables as much as possible presuming you are trying to test the rifle and load.
But by all means zero as you will shoot it.

It was really just to test the scope after I had dropped the rifle.

mate...that is terrible shooting,anywhich way you look at it. sorry I dont think its worth sugar coating it....a .22-250 or 223 SHOULD be plurry near touching at hundy and still minute of rabbit head at 200.....
you need to get all set up to shoot,shut your eyes for count of 20..open them and see if you still on target..if you ARENT... you need to shift yourself,change your rest untill you can do it...it might mean taking off your socks and using them under butt plate to keep it higher....yeah yeah sure you not going to shoot in field like this (although I have done it,much to bro in laws discust as my sweaty smelly socks went in under his nose LOL) BUT you trying to test rifle/scope/ammunition NOT your shooting ability....
if your Xhairs are waving around like boobies on bouncy castle,you not going to shoot good groups,or test bugger all other than it will go bang.
you better off to come back into 50 yards if thats all you can find behind treeline out of wind...if holes appear on target in line the rifle probable fine,if they inch off to left...they probably going to be 2" to left at hundy....its all relative.

which is long winded way of saying what Cam did above.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

mate...that is terrible shooting,anywhich way you look at it. sorry I dont think its worth sugar coating it....a .22-250 or 223 SHOULD be plurry near touching at hundy and still minute of rabbit head at 200.....
you need to get all set up to shoot,shut your eyes for count of 20..open them and see if you still on target..if you ARENT... you need to shift yourself,change your rest untill you can do it...it might mean taking off your socks and using them under butt plate to keep it higher....yeah yeah sure you not going to shoot in field like this (although I have done it,much to bro in laws discust as my sweaty smelly socks went in under his nose LOL) BUT you trying to test rifle/scope/ammunition NOT your shooting ability....
if your Xhairs are waving around like boobies on bouncy castle,you not going to shoot good groups,or test bugger all other than it will go bang.
you better off to come back into 50 yards if thats all you can find behind treeline out of wind...if holes appear on target in line the rifle probable fine,if they inch off to left...they probably going to be 2" to left at hundy....its all relative.

which is long winded way of saying what Cam did above.

I like your honesty, I don't claim to be the worlds best shot as only been shooting for maybe 2 years and then not often enough. I can generally hit and kill what I'm aiming at and with time I expect to get better. I know I don't have the best setup for target shooting and like everything I do, its all done on the cheap and with what I happen to have at the time.

I couldn't get anything under the stock as I didn't have anything big enough and if I did I would have needed a ladder. I'm ok with it and expect to do better next time.

So how do they compare to your previous ones that you shot before you dropped it?

all good bud....prone is always best....you can get away with a sleeping bag in its cover/cushion...day bag with old swannie inside it is ideal....if you have and use bipod..consider trying something under rear...as said Ive used sweaty socks,even a beanie will work and HELP KEEP YOU STEADY...which is 99% of the battle. the pause with eyes closed will tell you straight away if you muscling rifle onto target.
its a small thing and once yo uhave tried it set up correctly...well you will understand. its just better LOL..... I can hit hares at 250-300 yards pretty much everytime with 22-250 off bipod if I have time to get comfy and relaxed with rifle on target..if I rushed its more like 50/50.....

Originally Posted by charliehorse

So how do they compare to your previous ones that you shot before you dropped it?

Well I did no adjustments so looking back at pictures from last time I shot targets back in Jan it seems to be hitting in the same spot. The 200 yard shot was just to see if I could work out the drop which would appear to be an inch which is what I had been told to expect.

I like shooting with a bipod but ALWAYS leave it folded up and rest it on a bush shirt or something when firing over the ute bonnet. The bipod will bounce/rebound badly as the bonnet will 'bounce' under it on the shot also. Lean right forward over the bonnet and use something else as a rear rest and try to get your elbows onto the bonnet too.

I'm like you and do all my shooting like i'll be hunting. Prone with a spiked bipod on grass with rear rest. Or prone with Pikau front rest with shirt rear rest. Both elbows need to be on the ground to steady in either position. However your shooting/loads have ALOT of room for improvement. Shooting position is the most important thing to improve first as you cant determine what your rifle/loads are actually doing until this is sorted.

Has the rifle proven to shoot well in the past?

Shooting off a bipod is certainly different.
I shoot off a table "cheap benchrest" on my deck and had/have some real shit groups.
Used to use the rolled up sleeping bag and like over the bonnet and used to be confident of good groups or shooting to where I expected.
Had to have a rethink about how I held the forend etc.
I can get good groups using the bipod now but took some practice and going back to basics.
One bit of advice I can give is somedays if you do not feel right, the stars and moon do not align etc pack it in and go home.
Go back when it feels good.
The biggest issue I have now is aging, the eyesight failing and the like means you aren't as capable as you used to be and bad habits creep back in.
When your rifle is shooting where you want the old boresight is as good a check as any if you drop you rifle and want a quick check.
Have an empty deprimed cartridge to get it a bit more precise.