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Remember when owning a rifle that shot right at an inch at 100 yards was fantastic??
dreher
Member Posts: 8,886 ✭✭✭✭
Now there are multiple companies that give a sub MOA guarantee and a few companies that will guarantee a 1/2 inch or better.
There has never been a better time to be a shooter. The choices of super accurate high quality rifles, handguns and shotguns has never, ever been what we have today!
Except the way things have been going it might even be better tomorrow!!
Comments
tomorrow I will be to old to take advantage of them..............
My tomorrow was quite a while back!
if it would not shoot 1 inch or better it was traded next day. period.
Why? It's not like you NEED to have a rifle that accurate for hunting. The reality is that a rifle shoots to half its average group size. That means that for a two-inch group, no bullet will land farther than one inch from point of aim.
Years ago, I wrote that your rifle needs to shoot groups half the size of your quarry's lung size at the range you shoot them. A deer's lungs span roughly 12 inches. If you shoot deer mostly at about 100 yards, your rifle is plenty accurate enough if it shoots six-inch groups. Remember that even with that group size, no bullet will land farther than three inches from point of aim. That gives you a very generous "wobble" room when you aim.
Sell off a one-inch rifle? You're kidding yourself.
I remember working through dozens of different handloads to try to get that holy grail 1" group in some/most rifles. Now most of the new rifles that I bought in the last 20 years do that with factory loads. Bob
Some of those very accurate rifles are priced that the average guy can afford them.
The scope on my newest rifle has electronic Braile etchings in the glass. 😁
If I had a gun that I could hit a dinnerplate with at 100 yards it's a keeper. Actually all my rifles shoot better than me. When your hunting who has time to put their gun on a sandbag anyway. I can't ever get a deer to run across in front of me while aiming off a of a sandbag. If your not practicing holding the gun on your own then all the practice shooting off of a prop ain't gonna do you any good. Maybe if the gun is off some it might actually help. 😉
I practice marksmanship and strive for 1 hole groups all that time. But that is paper punching and not real life.
My favorite deer rifle is a M1 Garand which shoots 4 inch groups at 100 yards.
I believe modern ammo has a little to do with it even some of my older lever guns the groups have tighten up quite a bit
Ammo has gotten a lot better also. Years ago we used to handload testing various combinations of bullet, powder, seating depth, etc. to get the best accuracy we could out of a given gun. Today's factory ammo often beats the best hanloads of years past.
I just shoot one shot groups. They are always tight. Don
I've noticed that a consistently accurate rifle can make most anyone look like they are a good shooter, but a rifle that shoots erratic groups can make a accurate rifleman look like a really bad shooter.
From the original post:
Now there are multiple companies that give a sub MOA guarantee and a few companies that will guarantee a 1/2 inch or better.
Anyone every try to collect on this guarantee? (such as get your money back or a company replace the gun or not satisfactory results)
While many shooters/hunters can't really take advantage of a truly accurate rifle, some of us can(and do). 1 MOA accuracy is a 'must have' for me and is expected from even my pistol configuration AR's.
I often do varmint control work or depredation removals so it's imperative that my bullet placement is precise. A 3 MOA rifle simply isn't good enough even when removing deer. 3MOA may seem OK but when you get to 300 yards, there's not much wiggle room left on a deer and you're already off a coyote with 1/2 your shots even if perfectly aimed.
1moa is great on the bench. But there is no benches in the woods. Benchrest shooters must work to achieve there mark of accuracy. A hunter must learn to shoot from different positions. As the game doesn't sit still.
Beginning about a month before my hunting season(s) start, I begin getting serious about my practice. Since my primary hunting rifle is a bolt action, my rimfire practice rifle is also. I start with 10 shots per session at 25-30 yards sitting and using shooting sticks on 2-3" swingers. As soon as I'm getting 90% hits, I move the targets out 10 yards further and increase the firing to 25 rounds(25 round mag in my Ruger 77-22) fired at varied sequenced targets spaced far enough apart to require some movement to get on target. This continues until I reach the rifle's capability which is typically 2-3" @ 100 yards. Been doing this for many years.
In the weeks leading up to my 2021 MO deer season and NM elk hunt, I'd reached 70 yards with 95% hits on 2" swingers. I hit every critter I shot at as a result.
I'm happy if I hit the target, at 100 yards I see three, or is it four,