1/30/10

Today I started early. I set up a target at 100 yards, and then another at 425 yards. Since I was going to be shooting a different grain bullet today, I thought it would be good to make sure it was zeroed at the 100 yard target, before attempting the longer shot. I loaded up the 180 grain Winchester Super X bullets, and my first shot was about 15 inches low! I was amazed at that, since the others seemed pretty close yesterday, except for a couple of stray shots that migrated about 2 inches off target. So I shot another. This one was about 7 inches apart from the first shot, and still a good 7 inches away from center. I was baffled. The only different between today and yesterday, was that the bullets were 30 grains heavier. I wondered if my scope was bad. I was sickened. After 6 or 7 shots, of the worst grouping from 100 yards I have ever had, I left the targets right where they were and headed off for Cabelas to get different bullets. My thinking was that I either had the worst bullets on the planet, or a bad scope, or a bad gun, or a combination of all of them.

While online last night, I got some recommendations of good shooting, match bullets, that can sometimes rival good handholds. Federal Gold Medal Match, and Black Hills Match. Cabelas only stocked the Black Hills Match ammo, so I got 2 boxes of that. For the record, it was 168 gr. BTHP Match .308 ammo. My first 2 shots with this new ammo did not even register on the box from 100, so I brought the target in to 50 yards. I shot 2 more shots about 6 inches high, but at least they were consistent. Then I brought the bullets down and printed a nice 3 shot grouping from 50 yards. With the target back at 100 yards, I shot the rest of that box to make sure that everything was in order. The result, very good groups.

By this point I was relived to see that (at least for now, it seemed) the problem was some REALLY terrible, cheap, Winchester ammo. The Black Hills Match ammo seemed to be fine. With the 100 yard shots falling into line, I decided to put it to the real test. Earlier I had set up the 425 yard target, so I swung my aim over in that direction. I had noted from the night before that the 308 in the 168 grain bullet dropped about 30-34 inches from a 100 yard zero, so I clicked the scope 30 times for the 30 inches of elevation I thought I would need. (It was only a co-incidence that this formula worked, as I found out later). This might be my imagination, but this scope seems to have a bad bullet each time you adjust the scope for the first shot, but then all the subsequent shots fall into line. True to form, I think my first shot landed right and low, just off the paper but still in the box. I was not able to see that shot however because of the distance. The next shot on the other hand, I was able to see. Not only was it on the paper, it was close! It was 3 inches high, and 1 and a half inches to the right. I was happy with that, but anyone can get lucky once, right? My third shot from this distance fell Just below the center of the target, about ¾ of a inch, and maybe an inch and a quarter right! I could actually clearly see the two shots very close to the bulls-eye from 425 yards. The next shot was almost in the same hole as the one before it, and the last of my 5 shot group fell 3/8 of an inch high and in line with the others on the right. I had just printed a grouping of 4 shots all in a line with a spread of only 3 inches from 425 yards, with a rifle that couldn't keep it closer than 10 inches together from 100 yards with the crap ammo. What a difference the ammunition makes!

I can cover 2 of the 425 yard shots with a nickel, and a silver dollar would cover 3 of them. All and all, it was a learning experience to say the least about how ammunition can make or break your day. The funny thing is that I have been shooting the same type of crappy ammo (Winchester Super X) out of my .243 for the past year. I have been buying that, since it is cheap and shooting it with the intention of using the brass for handholds. I guess I will not be buying any more of that stuff. I figured out online that I can load my own, very high quality, bullets for just over a dollar at current prices, and that includes using Lapua Brass which is very expensive brass. That is even with using the Sierra Match bullets. The subsequent loads will be under 60 cents, since the brass can be used again.