Need help with my bench shooting

K

k in AR

New member
I'm trying to develop some proper Benchrest habits & skills. I have been doing fairly well with it so far but I keep having one problem.
Note: I'm using a Remington Heavy barrel rifle in 308. Good triger, Lam stock, etc.

My problem is that sometimes I'll shoot great groups, but then I'll shoot a vertical string that may be 2 inches long. This will happen even with a very cool barrel, & it does not matter how long I wait between shots or even if I'm cleaning between shots. One thing is consistent, when I "string" them it is almost a perfect vertical stright up & down string.

I figure that the nut behind the trigger is loose but I just can't figure out how to tighten him. Any help??? Thanks, k
 
stringing is most frequently caused by the shooter's breathing pattern, and not consistently stopping for up to 2-3 seconds before squeezing off the shot.
 
Is in your bag technique. I am assuming that you have a good solid pedestal and good rabbit ear bags. You will probably have better luck using a fore end stop . You want to pound the rifle down into the bags and position the rear bag so that the crosshair is within a !/4 inch of the point you want to hit. Push the rifle up to the stop and put about 8 ounces of pressure with your shoulder. Now with the hand that holds the pistol grip use you thumb and put 8 ounces of down pressure on the stock at the pistol grip. I don't hold the pistol grip except for the thumb and have the rest of the hand lying along side the grip with only the trigger finger and thumb touching the gun. If you have to pinch the bag to move the cross hair more than a ¼ inch then reposition the rifle and start over.
Having given the way I use the bag I will say that if your technique is right and you still get vertical stringing then you are not shooting enough powder. That will give you vertical stringing. That is why we load at the range during competition .
A 308 is a difficult caliber to master and the secret is to do the same thing every shot. With the heavy recoil of the 308 it wants to change position in the bags each time and you have to be on your toes to get it to shoot well. I shot one at the Nationals in 87 or 88 and was able to end up in the top twenty and felt real lucky. What ever you do don't try free recoil as it will compound your problem. Feel free to email me anytime if you have a question
 
Thanks for 2 good quick replies. I have the right bags but haven't been using them very well and need to watch that. I have another question:

What is a "fore end stop"?
 
On your pedestal in front of the bag there should be a adjustable rod that sticks out in front and comes up under the barrel so that you slide the rifle forward till it stops with the stop up against the stock forend
 
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