Where to go from here? (longish read)

denydart

denydart

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Winchester Ontario
My Remington 788 in 22-250 is giving me fits. I don't know whether I need to alter my loads or shooting technique. Load 1 is Winchester brass, 32.6 gr. Benchmark, 55 gr. Sierra SP and CCI large rifle primer. This usually produces around 3250 fps mv. Load 2 is the same but 32.8 gr. Benchmark and Hornady 55 gr. SP usually getting the same velocity.

Here is what gets me: (all at 100 yds) the Sierra load will consistently group under 1", floating in the .760"-.840" range unless a flyer opens things up. I get this whether I free recoil or hold the rifle on bags or if I use my bipod or whatever really. The Hornady load however will always group over 1.25" using any normally acceptable shooting technique but if I use the bipod and rear bags, and use both hands to pull the rifle into my shoulder with probably 60lbs of force, I get groups that measure in the .200"-.330" range. Using this method does not get the same results with the Sierra load.

I fully prep and weight sort the brass, use a Forster in-line seater, Lee collet sizer, Lee factory crimp and limit COAL to the magazine. Should I give up on the magazine and play with seating depth to maximize the Sierra load or hope that I can reproduce the odd hold and use the Hornady load in the field?
 
Deny,
I wonder if you have repeatedly got the quarter inch groups with the Hornady bullets using this tight hold? I would say if it happened once or twice it could be coincidence, but if it is repeatable stick with what works.

I think the bi-pod is probably getting vibration from the contact with a hard surface and transmitting that to your rifle. The groups shrink when you pull the rifle in hard becasue you have dampened that vibration. Try putting the bi-pod on a soft mat and see if your group improves.

Can't say for sure why you might consistantly get better performance with Hornady's rather than with Sierra's, but if your rifle likes the Honady's better you know what to do.
 
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Yeah, the tight hold thing occured to me last trip to the range and between the few groups that day and the 4 five shot groups today, it has held up to "testing". Thanks for the bipod dampening tip, I'll try that. I just don't get why one load would be sensitive to how the rifle is held and another wouldn't.
 
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Another thing is to try a different scope. I had a 788 just after they came out in 22-250. and with my fixed 6 power leuopold it wouldnt hit with any accuorcy, so i sold it. The person I sold it to swore by it for being the most accurate rifle he shot.
 
suggestion

But a box of Decent/real nice factory rounds. Test the grouping with these with your normal shooting technique. If your groups shrink drastically you know to look at your home made ammo. If the groups are the same, check the gun.
Gives you a good place to start.

M.
 
Thanks for helping fellas. In order: The trigger is the replacement from Timney set at 1.25 lbs and no creep or overtravel. The scope right now is a Simmons Prohunter 6x21 but was a Bushnell 3200 5x15 before. I double checked all screws before this last range trip. The Bushnell was the first scope I tried on it with factory loads so many moons ago. They were Win. SuperX 55gr PSP, Remington "Corelokt" 55 PSP and some UMC 45 grain stuff. Actually the UMC was pretty good getting around 1.25" if I sorted by runout; the other two were in the 7/8" area.

Just out of curiosity, do these inconsistencies sound like a shot-out barrel? I ask because further back in experimenting I had to seat bullets waaaaaaaaay out there if I wanted them close to the rifling, as in no possibility of using 40 grainers and I also know the previous owner shot it alot back in his younger days.
 
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You found what works. That is 99% of the battle. But now you want to know why?

The only thing that I could think of is that pulling the stock hard into shoulder reduced influence of vibration off bag or bipod.
 
I mainly want to use this gun for coyotes and crows. I have to decide on whether to go with the load that I can count on out to 250yds using whatever hold I want or choose the one I can reliably go out to 400yds with but can only do so with an inconvenient or at times near impossible hold. From a ballistics point of view though, why would one load demonstrate sensitivity to bench technique when no others have yet?
 
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