Just bought my first rifle!

D

Dramabeats

Inactive
Just bought my first rifle! (range report)

Hi new to the forum! My name is Caleb. I had a couple of newbie questions to ask. So I just picked up my weatherby vanguard s2. Brought it home and cycle the bolt a few times. So the safety locked in the 'safe' position and I had to pull the trigger while applying pressure on the safety to get it to unlock? I applied some remoil on the safety mechanism and it seems to be a little smoother. Also I was wondering if hoppes #9 is safe on the finish? It has sticker residue on it. Lastly I ran a patch through it with remoil on it to keep it lubed and this is what came out? http://i.imgur.com/MLTcI.jpg Lastly do i need to completely disassemble this thing to lube it? I'd rather not cause I dont have a torque wrench

Also what are these blemishes on the crown? anything I need to worry about?
http://i.imgur.com/APgVT.jpg
 
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Congratulations on your first rifle Caleb, and welcome aboard! I don't see anything wrong with your photos. The first one, just looks like normal residue from when it was test fired before leaving the factory. The second one, while looking a little alarming up close like that, is probably minor chatter from the rifling tools- I wouldn't worry over this either. The proof will be in the puddin when you shoot it and get it sighted in.

How you clean and preserve a rifle kind of depends on where you live (humid or dry). Eventually you may want to disassemble, but in reality, if a rifle sees only light and dry use- some go decades before they are pulled out of their stocks. The idea of the need to torque your action screws is a good and sound one I suppose, but I've been shooting varmints at long ranges for quite a number of years with really good success, and I've been working of firearms for 13 or 14 years now and I don't have a torque wrench. What I do is very carefully get and estimate of how tight the action screws are when I break them loose and re-tighten them to that feel.

That safety issue don't sound right. I don't think you should have to pull the trigger to get the safety off. What if you had a live round in there while on the range or in a hunting camp? I'm not familiar with the Vangard, but keep working it and see if you can get the safety to engage/disengage without having to pull the trigger- if not, a call to the service center should be in order.
 
Thanks for the help, It's just a few nicks right at the end of the rifling, maybe an illusion but it almost looks like a piece of metal is hanging off. My friend told me it could be from the brass cleaning jag? Should I take it to gander mountain to have it looked at? (certified Weatherby service). I can upload more pics tommorow if need be. I think I may have confused my self on the safety issue, right now the safety will not operate if the gun is not cocked. It works fine when it is, I've been told this is normal.

Thanks for the help!
 
Welcome and Congratulations

Wow, my first rifle was a beat up old Nylon .22. I'm jealous. ;) Just like with a new (or new to you) car, you're overthinking it a bit.

The residue on the patch is normal. As 10-96 said, it's residue from the factory test fire; I think he's also right on the chatter marks.

It's clean, take it to the range and shoot a box (or three :eek:) through it.

What's the caliber? Are you going to hunt? After you shoot it, give us a range report.

Welcome to TFL, hope to see you regularly.
 
So I was able to make it out to the range today. I went and bought some winchester X super power point. So after two boxes of that just to get the shots on paper (remember i'm not the most experienced) this is where I am. http://imgur.com/ko1TN I just did 2 (2) shot groups at 100 yards with my scope maxed out cause I was low on ammo. I just stuck the reticle in general area of my last shot.. so I should get a tighter 3 shot group next time, I put a ruler next to the two shots

Overall I'm pretty happy with it although it jumps off the table when I shoot it, maybe a barrel compensater will help? Also the gun is pretty fore end heavy when shooting off hand

Caliber is 30-06 planning on shooting deer and hogs, looks like i need a stronger left arm to shoulder this thing in the field!

Oh and I didn't clean the barrel once during the shooting of 40 shots, Nor did I necessarily wait for the barrel to cool down.
 
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That's not bad.

Pretty good shooting. Are you an experienced shooter? If not, that's really good.

As for your questions, here are the best answers I can give, and I think they're as good as anyone can give you.

First, .30-06 is a cartridge that can kick, especially with higher powered loads. Again, are you an experienced shooter or a newbie? It might just take a while for you to get used to the round and the rifle. I know Federal makes a "low recoil" load and Remington makes a "managed recoil" load. I'd advise you to try those loads, at least until you get a feel for it, then move up to the higher powered loads for hunting. If you have a rifle that is uncomfortable to shoot due to recoil, it might produce bad habits like flinching or closing your eyes.

As for stronger left arm, don't worry, as you shoot it, your arms will get used to it. I'd also advise you to get some snap caps (dummy rounds, your local gun store should have them) so you can dry fire. If you do dry fire your rifle, BE ABSOLUTELY RELIGIOUS ABOUT SAFETY. For example, I have a routine when I dry fire. I keep my snap caps in a spare bedroom and NEVER, EVER bring live ammo into that room. I clear the weapon to be dry fired when it leaves the safe, take it into the room and clear it again. Then load the snap caps and practice some dry fire. Watch the muzzle when you dry fire, it should be smooth. There are ways to practice, like balancing a dime on your barrel when you dry fire, but first, just do it and watch the muzzle. If you flinch or snatch the trigger, the muzzle will show it. That will produce muscle memory and get your arms used to the weight of the gun and your finger used to the pull of the trigger.

Don't worry 'bout the cleaning or barrel cooling down. Those are things that the 1000 yard guys worry about. I was in the infantry, and we figured that until the oil on the barrel was smoking, we weren't really shooting. Although, now, I have a new reason for missing. "My barrel was hot." :D
 
I've probably shot 10 guns during my lifetime, not really experienced. It doesn't hurt too bad although I may have a flinch cause its pretty wild when it goes off. I got better over the course of the day. I'll try the low recoil loads though. As for the snap caps I've been dry firing it without them, should I pick some up? I shoot all the ammo I buy so I probably won't have much if any at home
 
I'm not familiar with the Vanguard.

I'm not sure if you need snap caps or not. Some firearms need them, some don't. On some firearms, you can do damage with repeated dry firing on an empty chamber. It has to do with the floating firing pin. I don't know, I just purchase snap caps for most of my firearms. They're also useful with immediate action drills for malfunctions, but for a bolt action, that's pretty simple.
 
congrats on your new rifle and welcome to TFL.
first, safety issue
I agree that pulling the trigger to disengage the safety is a HUGE safety issue, it should never be done and if the safety will not budge otherwise then it needs to take a trip to the factory. you said it smoothed out with remoil so it is more than likely just new and needs to be worked a bit to free it up.

second, your accuracy
2 inch groups are not too shabby for a new shooter, you say you've shot before but contrary to popular belief, shooting is not like riding a bike, you need regular practice sessions(I would recommend at least putting a few 3 or 4 shot groups on paper every month or two). even though the vanguard is guaranteed to shoot less that half in groups, many shooters are not able to maintain that same accuracy. given time and practice and maybe even lessons, you could easily be making groups like that at triple the distance.

winchester ammo is not the greatest in terms of accuracy and consistency. it is usually some of the cheapest around which makes it very appealing to many shooters but for precision tasks like sighting in your rifle or making long distance shots, it may not be the best choice. federal ammunition is very good stuff and I like their powershok ammo for hunting and it's normally accepted practice to sight in your rifle with the ammo you intend to hunt with so I generally sight in with that as well. you don't need to buy uber expensive match grade ammo but decent quality is a must when sighting in.

third, your approach. you said you were aiming at the last spot you hit on the target... never do this. you always want to aim at the bullseye. this give you the same point of reference and especially for young shooters it is a lot easier to focus on a target that is 1 inch in radius than it is to focus on a hold that is .30 inches in diameter. if you are hitting just 1 inch left, right, high, or low of where you are aiming, you will still be touching the bullseye. that same group gets a lot bigger when you start zigzagging around the target because you keep changing the point of aim. it is a common mistake for new shooters and is best if you correct this behavior early.
 
I actually wanted powershocks but it was put of stock. It was between rem corlocks and these. Will it be hard to resight with the federal ammo? It was hard for me when the shots were off paper
 
most companies have their own proprietary loads which will effect velocity(up and down) and the shape and weight of the bullet will effect wind drift(left and right). depending on the velocity of superX versus powershoks you can expect them to hit 1 to 2 inches higher or lower at a hundred yards but with a more consistent load you can expect them to be be able to hit close to the same elevation every time. depending on the ammo quality you can expect your groups to shrink or grow from left to right so realistically if you switch to a higher quality ammom as long as you were already hitting fairly inline left to right then you should only have to worry about a vertical adjustment.
 
Hi Dramabeats, I'm happy to hear about your new rifle! That's d**n fine grouping if you ask me (from your link). You'll be downing deer and hogs in no time.

It doesn't hurt too bad although I may have a flinch cause its pretty wild when it goes off.
Click to expand...

Overcoming flinch (lots of great tips from this forum): http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=493635

+1 on the snap caps suggestion.

I don't like to dry fire a firearm, and though it might be okay on your model (I don't know) I would err on the side of caution: http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/11363
 
is this normal wear and tear? I noticed what looks to be wear on the bolt locking lugs, where the bolt locks in, some gold colored marks on the outside of the receiver (i'm guessing copper), and a few scratches on the barrel (don't want these rusting) http://imgur.com/a/harUf
 
yes, that is normal, a lot of the brass flecks should come off with thorough cleaning. the scratches on the barrels are just a part of life, hunting rifles usually get pretty banged up over time.
 
To reduce the pain and agony from "kick" when shooting from a bench rest, there are several remedies. I've done it in as primitive a manner as just folding a towel into a loop, held with a rubber band, and slid it up my arm to over the shoulder.

One arm through a thick winter jacket's sleeve can help. Padding without over-heating. :)

Usually, I interpose a small sandbag between the butt pad and my shoulder. That adds to the apparent weight of the rifle against the force of recoil and spreads the impact over a wider area of your shoulder.
 
Does your range allow you to shoot from something like a prone or sitting position? Getting off the bench really seems to take the annoying aspects out of shooting.

Besides, learning to shoot well from positions is fun and makes you look like legend to your non-off-the-bench-shooting friends.:D
 
"...muzzle jump and the gun moving a bit left to right that bothers me."

The only thing that matters is the sight picture when the bullet leaves the muzzle. Everything else is "just part of the deal".
 
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