How to ruin a day at the range!

D

DOCSpanky

New member
I was out at the range today, working nights has some advantages in that you have few people you have to share with. Mostly its older retirees, often who fought in the Big War, and tell great stories. So I usually enjoy myself. Today however, I learned a valuable lesson in maintenance and upkeep.

Always make sure the screws holding you scope on are nice and tight!

Some of you are probably rolling out of your chairs laughing at me by now, but heres what it was.
I was having a fair to middle day at the range, a little breezy, so super accurate shooting was out of the question. Had just fired the tightest 100 yard group of my life with my 22WMR, a killer .435 group at 100 yards!

2 groups later the rounds started flying. After the first, I said it was just a flyer, the second, maybe a flinch, the third, and I started getting angry. Over the next 5 minutes I probably wasted 20 rounds before it dawned on me to look at my scope and mounts. The front mount had loosened, and the scope was wobbling all over the place. :mad:

Lesson kids is to always check the little things, for its those that will totally wreck your day!

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I thought I'd seen it all, until a 22WMR spun a bunny 2 1/4 times in the air!
 
Whoa, you and I must be long lost brothers or something. Same thing happened to me...with my WMR nonetheless! I was shooting, getting some absolutely sweet groups on afternoon. Then they started to go left, but stay pretty tight. After awhile, they were about a two inches left at 25. I got mad. I figured my barrel was warping as I shot. Nuh-uh. My front mount screws came loose and the entire scope with the mounts was shifting forward each shot. That changed my zero...sending it left. Needless to say, I loctited the screws in...and no problems since then. I never thought the "recoil" from a 22 mag would be enough to shift mounts! I now check the placement of the mounts every session.


Hueco
 
My Brothers in Arms! I had exactly the same thing happen to me a few weeks ago. I was shooting a .22LR (!) and the shots were all over the place after about 2 mags worth. The rear scope base had come completely loose. And this was for a postal match. I had to restart the whole 50 shot target.

I wonder if we're seeing a psychological effect here. That is, we say to ourselves that this is "only" a .22 LR/WMR so no need to tighten those screws as tight as we do on the big bangers. I know I have consciously thought this myself. Any ideas on that possibility?
 
I have been told that a 22WMR actually prduces more bang than a snub nose .38, so it would stand to reason that without monitoring, it can definantly rattle things loose :)

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I thought I'd seen it all, until a 22WMR spun a bunny 2 1/4 times in the air!
 
I actually had this happen with an air rifle! The rabbits were laughing at me for days.

They're not laughing now ... ;)

Regards from AZ
 
Get some locktight and make shure thoes mounts are tight. that should take care of the problem.

House
 
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