Handi Tuning

J

jephthai

New member
A couple months ago, I took my sister to the range, and had her shoot my Handi Rifle in .223 (it's the bull varmint variety). We had a great time -- it was her first time shooting anything bigger than a 22LR. When we came home, I looked at the groups, and noted, once again, that it started out somewhere around 2MOA, but expanded to 6ish MOA toward the end. I've read that this is due to heating up.

So I figured I'd try the nylon washer trick, and put two layers of washer between the barrel and the forearm. Yesterday was the test, and my results were at least interesting to me.

With the "floated" barrel my groups stayed at about 3MOA the whole time, despite heating up. So my first thought was that initial accuracy went down, but heat didn't seem to affect the group size over time. Does that make sense? Would you consider that an improvement?

Also, I currently reload for 38 Special, and don't have dies for .223. If I get the equipment, does load-development work out well for a Handi? Could I turn 3MOA into 1.5MOA? I know it's a $200 gun and all, but it's the only one I've got that I want to tune ;) .
 
how many rounds did you send downrange and how much time did you allow between each shot? A 4 moa increase in group size would have me going crazy to figure it out or selling the gun and buying something better. Is it possible that shooter fatigue and/or noise induced flinch over a long range session are the culprit?\

Edit: Never mind about the fatigue idea because I just re-read that you held a steady 3 moa through the next session after floating the barrel.
 
It's been my experience that Handi rifles are good, entry-level rifles. I've got four of them, plus one shotgun and I use them for training tools and hunting rifles. I normally get about 2 MOA out of my Handi's but the only thing I've done is to insert a neoprene washer under the forearm.

The guys at Graybeard's forum can tell you all you want to know about the little rifles. Pay particular attention to the FAQs page and the Handi Basics 101 threads before you start asking questions. Most, if not all, of those questions are answered in one or the other thread.

Yes, Handis benefit from careful load development, just as all rifles do. It's entirely possible that you might shrink the groups considerably with just a little development specific to that rifle.

Graybeard's forum is the center of gravity for Handi rifles. Go over there and learn from their combined experience. Some of those guys get phenomenal accuracy from their rifles and they've got the expertise to share and data to back up their claims.
 
It took about 200-300 rounds for my handi's barrel to settle in. You can use products like Tubb's Final Finish or JB bore paste to speed up the break in process. You should be able to buy the Tubb's FF as loaded ammunition in .223 from Midway.

I would check your base as well to make sure it isn't moving on you. I had this problem, thought it was the scope and only discovered the problem when I went to replace the scope. My Ultra .223 is now a 1-1.5" shooter with most factory ammunition and a little better with hand loads.
 
taylorce1 said:
I would check your base as well to make sure it isn't moving on you. I had this problem, thought it was the scope and only discovered the problem when I went to replace the scope.
Click to expand...

I hadn't even thought about that. I still have the factory base on it as purchased. I will check that out too! Thanks for the feedback.



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One trick for the handi push the trigger guard against the front rest mostly we all place the front part of stock on the rest however with the Handi to improve groups shove it up against the trigger guard so the support contacts frame and forend.

I must tell you I'm not a huge fan of the little break open guns, two piece stocks and break open just mean problems so while you may achieve (at times)fair groups consistent ones are unlikely.
 
Jephthai, yes you can get you Handi Rifle down to 1.5 MOA easily. Run about 3-400 rounds down the tube to smooth out the bore. Then start working on some reloads, trying various powders, bullets, and powder charges. My heavy barrel Handi in .223 has printed 0.515 inch groups at 100 yards. It took a couple years of trial and error on reloading, but it can be done.

You did the right thing with the washer trick, but one more tip on your Handi. Make sure the barrel latch and shelf are bone dry. Remove any traces of cleaning solvents and oils from this area. It helps the barrel lock up a bit more consistently, and will eliminate the dreaded “pop open”. Pop open is when the action opens right at firing. That ruins accuracy, and is a bit scary. I had my Handi pop open once. No harm no foul, but it did scare me.

FYI, my 0.515 inch group was with the following. 52 grain Hornady A-Max bullets. 22.5 grains of IMR3031 powder. Winchester brass. Remington 7 ½ bench rest primers. May or may not work for you. Good luck, have fun, be safe.
 
My .243 handi rifle will shoot 1.5'' groups with remington 100gr. cor lokt. Thats plenty good enough for hunting, which is all I use it for. Im sure with a better bullet its capable of better accuracy.
 
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