My first Weatherby

[stagpanther]

I just got back from firing my first two groups--nothing to write home about, at 198 yds I was hovering around 2.25 inches. I've noticed also the action screws tend to come loose after each shooting session, even when I torque them down to factory recommended.

 

[std7mag]

Sure!
Send me the blueprints & give me 10 years. Hand filing takes a while.

And your complaining about a 1 MOA Howa?

 

[stagpanther]

Rifles that can't do sub-MOA quickly find themselves a quiet spot in the back of my safe. To be fair, I'm still breaking the barrel in but only have a few more cartridges to go. I'm seeing signs in the stock's front lug slot that the receiver is moving in the stock even though I've got it torqued down to the factory spec--I guess I'm going to have to torque it harder or perhaps bedding it (yes I've got it vertical and pressing down the receiver and torquing the rear screw first).

I've got a pillar and bed kit on the way. I think the action is just a wee bit too powerful for the stock and can't be held steady.

 

[stagpanther]

Much better day today. Decided to file down the barrel channel on the B&C stock to get a generous freefloat. The Howa stock being a composite and not having reinforced pillar I decided just wasn't going to be able to take heavy torqueing of the trigger guard screws, whereas the B&C has full length and pillar aluminum bedding which I reached 55 lbs of torque on the screws--and they stayed put. I picked a random test load and fired a few shots to see if that helped--difference between night and day.

 

[stagpanther]

Don't know why--but that black furniture on the FDE finish really bugs me. So much so I'm going to paint base and rings FDE--and blew a wad on a Burris XTR II 5 x 25 which comes in FDE--Leupold's custom shop will no longer do that--otherwise I would have got the scope from them. Never had a Burris, heard good things about this scope so I thought I'd give them a try.

Weatherby says the stock trigger is adjustable down to 2.5 lbs--best I could get was 3 lbs and it has quite a bit of take-up slack to the break, I'll probably get a replacement trigger at some point.

 

[std7mag]

Yeah, a new trigger would probably help.
Have heard good about Burris, but not better than the NF you have pictured on it.
I was looking at your base/ring set up. Your more trusting than i am.
300 WBY Mag my rings would be quite a bit wider!

Ya know, instead of torquing the crap outta the action screws, they make this purple Loctite stuff.

 

[stagpanther]

The SHV is good--but not not great IMO. It was Nightforce's attempt at a budget scope--and IMO comes up short at the price point. It's glass gets a bit wavy at 200 yds plus. As far as the mount/rings goes, I have a 20 MOA American Rifle Company one piece mountings coming in with built-in level. They are expensive--but the best rings I've ever used. I have them on my 338 lapua mag and they have never lost zero. I thought about loktiting the screws--but that's just going to encourage gunking up in the long run IMO.

 

[std7mag]

My setup is usually EGW one piece base with Vortex Viper low aluminium rings for my hunting rifles.
My wifes heavy barrel is the same, except i used Warne low steel rings.

Your the first i've heard think negatively on the SHV.

I've been seriously looking at Arken optics lately. They have been getting really good reviews. Comparing them to the Steiner M7, Razor, Schmidt & Bender.
They advertise ED glass from Japan. But nothing else.
I e-mailed them & they confirmed glass from Japan, and that they were two guys with their base in Texas. Finally that the scopes were made in China.

So i'm kinda torn now. With all the available buildings from manufacturing moving out of the city i live, and so many other places around the US, that 2 guys from Texas, supposedly proud of the US make them overseas kinda pisses me off!

But, excellent glass, First Focal Plane, zero stop, 34mm tube, and 0.5% or less tracking gaurantee for under $600 make it appealing.

 

[stagpanther]

Your the first i've heard think negatively on the SHV

I don't think the glass clarity is all that great at it's price point is all--it's otherwise functionally nightforce solid. I would put it's price point value more realistically at upper-end vortex tactical scopes. I've googled and found a couple of other users who experienced the same. Then again, maybe my eyes just suck.

I've followed your posts on the Arken glass--if you get one I'd be very interested in your review. The SHV is coming off soon (as it has on most other rifles I've mounted it on) to be replaced by a Burris XTR 2 5 x 25. I would have otherwise got a Leupold 5HD which I think are the bee's knees if they would still offer to paint them.

 

[std7mag]

Yeah, well glass is last on my list of things for my rifle build.
Gonna be quite a while before i'm ready to buy optics.

 

[stagpanther]

Yeah, well glass is last on my list of things for my rifle build.
Gonna be quite a while before i'm ready to buy optics.

I used to think a good trigger was more important than good glass--not so sure about that now.

 

[stagpanther]

Screws came loose again--you win 7 mag--loctite it is, though I suspect the real solution is a precision "form-fitting" bed.

 

[stagpanther]

Base and rings finally came in, I know it looks a bit high but that's the way it goes with the American rifle co integral 1 piece with 20 MOA, the only one I could find to fit a 34mm tube. The only nit I have to pick is the built-in level--while useful for leveling the cant while installing the scope--is almost invisible in regular outside use.

I still intend on replacing the trigger at some point, it'll do for now.

 

[stagpanther]

I guess I'm having a conversation with myself. Took the rifle out today and shot it for the first time with the new Burris scope and 20 MOA rings; things weren't quite what I expected. I thought the mirage was bothersome with my NF SHV--but it's nothing compared to the XTR II. Try as I might I couldn't get even a moderately clear target picture at 250 yds, what made matters even worse was the propensity for pronounced chromatic aberration which put a psychedelic halo of red/purples around everything. Ugg.

My apologies Nightforce for casting aspersions on your fine scope!

I only made it through 16 cartridges before I had to call it a day, My eyes were going fuzzy from trying to see clearly and I was getting a bad headache. Nonetheless, here's a pretty decent 4 shot group of 168 gr custom comps @ 250 yds. Winds were crossing from the left 10 to 15 and temperature was 51.

 

[stagpanther]

what might have been...

Shot the same load today at 200 yds just to make sure it wasn't a fluke--things were looking good til I pulled the obligatory choke flyer. Even so the group was well under MOA--but would have been REALLY good had I kept it together.

 

[stagpanther]

Decided to take the rifle apart and see what I could do to improve it. Despite having a full length almuminum bed and pillar--I'm getting an asymmetric seating of the receiver to the stock when I tighten the screws, so I'm going to have to look around for pressure points etc that might be causing that. I'm also going to yank the stock trigger and replace it with something else. It's a good hunting trigger, but I can't get the pull down to near what they say I should be able to.

 

[std7mag]

0.74 MOA is nothing to sneeze at.
Mirage is just telling you to turn the magnification down some.
Clarity is another story though.

I'm still following, was busy in negotiations for a used barrel.
Guy thought his Savage 12 Benchrest barrel in 6BR was shot out, it was just really dirty.
While negotiating with me, he kept messing with the barrel.
Asked me my zipcode for shipping, then put barrel on and started shooting again.
I withdrew my offer to buy.

 

[stagpanther]

take a look at mel80's post about her mile long Grendel shots--I'm about to post something of tangential interest, maybe to both of you.

 

[stagpanther]

I found a pressure point on the stock where it rose up and contacted the barrel somewhere near the point where the barrel tapers down a few inches in front of the lug when the front receiver screw is torqued down. More barrel channel sanding and it's now gone. While looking at the receiver--the lug has an elliptical shape in the front while the lug slot in the stock is a rectangle with right angles--there is basically lots of empty space in the lug slot in front of the lug and I'm wondering if I should bed it.

 

[std7mag]

In front of, meaning towards the muzzle?
That doesn't matter much. Nor along the sides, and bottom of the lug.
The face towards the receiver is where you want good contact.