stagpanther
New member
Got out again today with a few reload groups of 210 xtp's and 210 Nosler sporting handgun loads.
First problem I discovered right away was the scout scope's eye relief was way too long for where I had set the scope--I need to get a pair of off-set rings in order to give adequate ring clearance (.75") from the eyepiece.
Second issue I discovered--after shooting 4 separate groups between each I hiked out to the 100 yd target to check--was that the first shot or two in each group tended to be wide but the group tightened with each successive shot. It was in the mid-20's so I'm thinking the temperature variations might have something to do with it, though perhaps it might have affected the powders (H110 and W296)--I'm not sure. The last two groups I shot I didn't check the targets and shot fairly quickly between each shot--and they were tighter than all the other groups, though still fairly mediocre IMO.
I also wanted to "stress test" the difficulty/risk of the tube mag load as opposed to a side gate--since that seems to be a really big issue with a lot of lever gunners.
After firing the last round of each load, I checked the chamber, uncocked the hammer and simply sat down with the rifle horizontal across my knees. Unlocking the tube I simply extended it to where it cleared the side port and loaded the cartridges easily sideways. Closing the tube was easy to do as well--you can even finger it sideways so that your hand does not obstruct the muzzle or tube end.
I'm happy to say there were no magazine detonations, no animals were hurt, North Korea did not launch an ICBM and China did not invade Japan.
First problem I discovered right away was the scout scope's eye relief was way too long for where I had set the scope--I need to get a pair of off-set rings in order to give adequate ring clearance (.75") from the eyepiece.
Second issue I discovered--after shooting 4 separate groups between each I hiked out to the 100 yd target to check--was that the first shot or two in each group tended to be wide but the group tightened with each successive shot. It was in the mid-20's so I'm thinking the temperature variations might have something to do with it, though perhaps it might have affected the powders (H110 and W296)--I'm not sure. The last two groups I shot I didn't check the targets and shot fairly quickly between each shot--and they were tighter than all the other groups, though still fairly mediocre IMO.
I also wanted to "stress test" the difficulty/risk of the tube mag load as opposed to a side gate--since that seems to be a really big issue with a lot of lever gunners.
After firing the last round of each load, I checked the chamber, uncocked the hammer and simply sat down with the rifle horizontal across my knees. Unlocking the tube I simply extended it to where it cleared the side port and loaded the cartridges easily sideways. Closing the tube was easy to do as well--you can even finger it sideways so that your hand does not obstruct the muzzle or tube end.
I'm happy to say there were no magazine detonations, no animals were hurt, North Korea did not launch an ICBM and China did not invade Japan.
I bet those temps are causing some variation like you said.