Thread: New Tikka .308 zeroing issues

Hi all,

I recently bought a new Tikka t3x lite .308 (22" barrel) with Burris Signature HD 3-15x44mm scope on talley rings.
The plan was to zero it at 200yards

I went to a range with a friend yesterday to zero it in with a box of Federal blue 150g and Fioochi 150g

We got it to group well at 100yards first, then went to 200 yards and put the dpt supressor on. We couldn't get it to group, there wasn't really any constancy to it. So i went back to 100 and shot within 1/2 inch of the first couple of shots.

I fired both boxes of ammo with and without the supressor and we left scratching our heads. I am fairly new to shooting/hunting so it could be my shooting thats playing a part in it. However my mate let of 4-5 rounds and could get a decent group either, and he has done alot of shooting.

Next step is to get another mate who has done some competition shooting to have a go, but thought I would throw it up on here and see if anyone has any experience/pointers that might help. Any info is much appreciated.

Was there any cleaning performed in what looks like 100 rounds.
Was the action screws,bases screws if any,scope mounts checked for tightness?
Its not possible to shoot that good at 100 and that bad at 200 save for bullet instability issue's which is unlikely with any factory ammo.
Im picking something has come loose or its copper fouled.

What are you using for a rest.
You will need to decide if you are going to use it with the surppressor on or not as it will shoot totally different without it on, did you buy it with the surppressor ie has its rear bush been machined to fit your rifle.

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Looking at the 200 yd targets it shows a lot of holes. Did you allow time for barrel to cool down between strings? Like5 mins at least ?
Did you remove suppressor to let it and bbl cool? How many shots in a string? In summer temps things get pretty warm and take a long time to cool down. So if you shooting more than 3 or 4 shots before letting bbl and suppressor cool off you get issues.
You mention that first group at 100 yards was good, and the picture confirms that.

The other thing to check is to make sure rings, bases, and action screws have not come loose under recoil.
Be careful with factory Tikka stocks not to ever tighten the action screws or you’ll bugger up the stock and free floating recoil lug permanently. Torque to 30-35 in-lbs max.

Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Was there any cleaning performed in what looks like 100 rounds.
Was the action screws,bases screws if any,scope mounts checked for tightness?
Its not possible to shoot that good at 100 and that bad at 200 save for bullet instability issue's which is unlikely with any factory ammo.
Im picking something has come loose or its copper fouled.

Hey,

Thanks for the reply. Shot 2 x 20 boxes. We checked the scope by feel to make sure it wasn't loose . But I think I should take it off and check with a torque wrench as it was put together at H&F.
I didn't clean, so thats something I will look at doing also.

Thanks

Originally Posted by 25 /08 IMP

What are you using for a rest.
You will need to decide if you are going to use it with the surppressor on or not as it will shoot totally different without it on, did you buy it with the surppressor ie has its rear bush been machined to fit your rifle.

Sent from my CPH1903 using Tapatalk

Hey,

Thanks for the reply. I had a bipod on the front and a sandbag on the back. I was shooting from a table, but on the way home we thought it would have been good to change positions.
I decided i will run the suppressor, so 90% for the 200 was with it on. H&F got the rifle threaded for me and supplied with the supressor. Not sure if the rear bush has been machined.

Originally Posted by chainsaw

Looking at the 200 yd targets it shows a lot of holes. Did you allow time for barrel to cool down between strings? Like5 mins at least ?
Did you remove suppressor to let it and bbl cool? How many shots in a string? In summer temps things get pretty warm and take a long time to cool down. So if you shooting more than 3 or 4 shots before letting bbl and suppressor cool off you get issues.
You mention that first group at 100 yards was good, and the picture confirms that.

The other thing to check is to make sure rings, bases, and action screws have not come loose under recoil.
Be careful with factory Tikka stocks not to ever tighten the action screws or you’ll bugger up the stock and free floating recoil lug permanently. Torque to 30-35 in-lbs max.

Hey mate,

Thanks for the reply. I have a 3 round mag so was shooting in in 3 rounds strings. We were checking that and it never really got that hot, warm but not burn your hand hot. We were doing it 7-9.30pm last night so it had cooled off a bit.
I will go over all the screws, we gave the scope a check last night, but felt tight.

Thanks

Some suppressors come loose as you shoot so that could be the culprit.

Given what others here have already outlined it is likely that something has come loose. As I understand it you are saying the variable between good and bad groups was the addition of the suppressor?

If this was the only thing you changed it is likely the issue.

Trying to think of less obvious things.... Crown damage from putting suppressor on? Bit of metal shavings from threading it caught somewhere? Dirt / anything in the barrel channel or under the action?

Originally Posted by 300_BLK

Some suppressors come loose as you shoot so that could be the culprit.

Given what others here have already outlined it is likely that something has come loose. As I understand it you are saying the variable between good and bad groups was the addition of the suppressor?

If this was the only thing you changed it is likely the issue.

Hi,

No I don't think the suppressor was causing it. I shot 2 x at 100 and they were well left, adjusted windage and got 2 touching on line. Went to 200, decided I should be using the suppressor so put it on and shot a few strings with no consistancy. So went back to 100 and shot one within 1/2 inch of original 2 shots on line.
Then though suppressor might be causing it so took it of for a few strings, still with no luck. Suppressor back on for the rest.

Cheers

Originally Posted by 223nut

Trying to think of less obvious things.... Crown damage from putting suppressor on? Bit of metal shavings from threading it caught somewhere? Dirt / anything in the barrel channel or under the action?

I hadn't thought of that. Will check all and give it a clean this weekend.

Thanks

Sound to me like the added weight from the silencer on the barrel is causing the barrel to whiplash into the stock.

Remove the barreled action from the stock and look for any shiny spots. Enlarge the barrel chanel a little.

Next up: check the inside of the silencer - look for signs ofthe bullet touching the baffles.

Its a Tikka. Its second hand now so its worth about twice what it was in the shop. Pop it on trade me, double your money and buy something else....

All joking aside, when sighting in, I fire a shot, stop clean the barrel and give it about 5 minutes between each shot. The latent build up of heat can cause the barrel to perform differently when hot versus cold. And when hunting it is the first shot that has to count most.

Also by giving yourself 5 minutes to settle and sort yourself out you get into a more repeatable firing position. (Practise, practise, practise) When firing strings, if you dont take your time the rifle and you can move around a bit with the recoil as an additional variation from the heat.

Thirdly, how many shots between scope adjustments? I never adjust a scope after 1 shot unless I know it is getting very very small groups. For a sight in of a new rifle, I use a group of about 3 or 4 shots before I adjust the scope and I take the time to clean between each one. At 50m there is usually not enough variation for a "group" so one shot each time to get close is usually enough, but at 100m and 200m I use 3 or 4 shots over 20+ minutes before I alter anything. This will stop you 'chasing your tail" as your shots jump around as you adjust the scope. especially if you are a newer shooter and are really shooting a 2 or 3 inch group with your technique ...

Also some scopes can take a round or two to 'settle" into place after an adjustment. Normally cheaper scopes, but these are also what people tend to buy from chains stores with a 'combo' deal.

First off now, I would suggest returning to the range, start again at 100 with 3 or more slow and delibrate shots to see where it is set now. DO NOT ADJUST THE SCOPE yet. See what size group you get. STOP and wait for 5 to 10 minutes then do the same thing at 200m.. Now compare the two groups. If you are above centre at 100m you should be closer to centre at 200m but the group should be spread a bit further apart (double the size) but if not, repeat.

As others have said check all scope screws as I would never trust anything that some H&F do.
Next time give it a good clean fit the surppressor and set rifle up same as you did last time. And shoot 3 shots at the 200 make sure your target center is the correct size for your scope power and range you are shooting at, ie big enough for the cross hairs but not too big.
Some days are just bad shooting days.

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that looks like a normal day at the range for @Philipo