Range report - new shooting table w/ 270, 223, 221
02-19-2017, 05:45 PM
#1
Typical Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Martin, TN
Posts: 854
Range report - new shooting table w/ 270, 223, 221
I woke up this morning ready to shoot a few guns off of my new homemade shooting table. On the agenda: 1. see if I can sight in my granddad's Ruger M77 223; 2. finish sighting in my 270 and use up the last of my older handloads; and 3. finish sighting in my 221 Fireball Encore and record the velocity of my handloads to map out the scope's BDC reticle.
First up to bat:
Ruger M77 223 Remington and Hornady 55 gr. spire point factory loads.
Last fall, I shot all of my inherited guns except for this one. I let my cousin fire a few rounds off a tripod with it, but they formed a pattern rather than a group. Having never shot it myself, I wanted to see what it was capable of.
Before I even shot, I drug my new table into position. It was about all I could do just to scoot it into position given its weight. Once in position, I realized it was a little shaky, but only because the concrete isn't quite level in that spot. A folded up garbage bag wedged under one of the legs put an end to that issue.
First group:
Hmm. Part of that was probably me. I will say, that gun has a really good trigger, at least compared to my 270's creepy, heavy one. After a few more groups:
A 1.321" group. Not bad. A little wide and high, but considering I probably won't be doing much precision shooting with it anytime soon, it'll do. My chronograph gave me an average velocity of 3061 fps with a standard deviation of 29 fps. Next. . .
My Weatherby Vanguard 270 Winchester
Load 1: 130 grain Hornady Interlock seated to the lands, Federal case, Winchester WLRM primer, and 41.6 grains IMR 4064.
Load 2: 130 grain Hornady Interlock seated to the lands, Remington case, Federal Large Rifle primer, and 51.5 grains of IMR 4350.
I had two groups of handloads that I wanted to fire just to get rid of them. The first was a reduced load I developed for my recoil sensitive cousin. I only had six of these, so I fired one group, adjusted the scope, then fired the second group:
That last group measured 1.254" across, which wasn't anything special. However, the chronograph data was unbelievable. According to it, I averaged 2667 fps with a standard deviation of 11 fps, which is amazing in its own right. However, if I take out the highest velocity of 2688 fps, the average becomes 2662 fps with a standard deviation of 2 fps. All of the other velociy readings were between 2661 and 2666 fps. That is, to date, my most consistent group of handloads.
Load 2 grouped a bit high and to the right, but I got the scoped sighted in enough to make one last three shot group with my 270:
That's my personal best group with my 270, measuring 0.729". The velocity of these rounds averaged 2911 fps with a standard deviation of 24 fps, which is typical of this load.
Lastly:
Thompson Center Encore, 12" 1-9 twist 221 Fireball barrel, using 55 grain Hornady soft points seated to the lands, Lapua brass, CCI 400 primers, and 15.5 grains of IMR 4227.
Unfortunately, my new pistol rest isn't here yet, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from shooting. I set up on my pillow stuffed backpack and readied five rounds, just to determine my velocity and whether it's sighted in. The results:
I pulled one of the shots, resulting in the flier. Additionally, I noticed the crosshairs shaking side to side somewhat, no doubt due to the backpack's lack of a solid support. Still, given the circumstances, I'm pleased with the group. Sure, it was rather wide at 1.583" across, but I can pretty comfortably say the scope is zeroed. Now, I just have to wait until my new rest gets here so I can really begin seeing how well this gun can shoot.
The loads averaged 2540 fps with a standard deviation of 18. That's about what I predicted I would get out of this barrel, and they're certainly consistent enough for my needs.
Final thoughts:
That homemade bench is leaps and bounds better as a shooting table than what I've been using. When I got my crosshairs centered on the bullseye, they stayed centered and didn't move or shake while I shifted my arms around on the table to better get into firing position, which would have severely shifted my point of aim with the other table. Once I get my pistol rest in, I'm hoping my Encores and 460 will be held as steadily in place when I prepare to shoot as my rifles currently are.
One thing I've learned after shooting my 270 these past few times is how horrible its trigger is. I can count three distinct levels of creep as I apply pressure to it, and while I don't have a trigger gauge, I would guess it requires at least three, possibly almost four pounds of trigger pull to fire it. At this point, I feel the trigger is the one thing keeping me from shooting exceptional groups with it. Fortunately, I do have a Timney trigger on the way, so hopefully I can soon have a rifle with a trigger that's comparable to my Encores' in quality.
All said, I had a very productive day.
First up to bat:
Ruger M77 223 Remington and Hornady 55 gr. spire point factory loads.
Last fall, I shot all of my inherited guns except for this one. I let my cousin fire a few rounds off a tripod with it, but they formed a pattern rather than a group. Having never shot it myself, I wanted to see what it was capable of.
Before I even shot, I drug my new table into position. It was about all I could do just to scoot it into position given its weight. Once in position, I realized it was a little shaky, but only because the concrete isn't quite level in that spot. A folded up garbage bag wedged under one of the legs put an end to that issue.
First group:
Hmm. Part of that was probably me. I will say, that gun has a really good trigger, at least compared to my 270's creepy, heavy one. After a few more groups:
A 1.321" group. Not bad. A little wide and high, but considering I probably won't be doing much precision shooting with it anytime soon, it'll do. My chronograph gave me an average velocity of 3061 fps with a standard deviation of 29 fps. Next. . .
My Weatherby Vanguard 270 Winchester
Load 1: 130 grain Hornady Interlock seated to the lands, Federal case, Winchester WLRM primer, and 41.6 grains IMR 4064.
Load 2: 130 grain Hornady Interlock seated to the lands, Remington case, Federal Large Rifle primer, and 51.5 grains of IMR 4350.
I had two groups of handloads that I wanted to fire just to get rid of them. The first was a reduced load I developed for my recoil sensitive cousin. I only had six of these, so I fired one group, adjusted the scope, then fired the second group:
That last group measured 1.254" across, which wasn't anything special. However, the chronograph data was unbelievable. According to it, I averaged 2667 fps with a standard deviation of 11 fps, which is amazing in its own right. However, if I take out the highest velocity of 2688 fps, the average becomes 2662 fps with a standard deviation of 2 fps. All of the other velociy readings were between 2661 and 2666 fps. That is, to date, my most consistent group of handloads.
Load 2 grouped a bit high and to the right, but I got the scoped sighted in enough to make one last three shot group with my 270:
That's my personal best group with my 270, measuring 0.729". The velocity of these rounds averaged 2911 fps with a standard deviation of 24 fps, which is typical of this load.
Lastly:
Thompson Center Encore, 12" 1-9 twist 221 Fireball barrel, using 55 grain Hornady soft points seated to the lands, Lapua brass, CCI 400 primers, and 15.5 grains of IMR 4227.
Unfortunately, my new pistol rest isn't here yet, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from shooting. I set up on my pillow stuffed backpack and readied five rounds, just to determine my velocity and whether it's sighted in. The results:
I pulled one of the shots, resulting in the flier. Additionally, I noticed the crosshairs shaking side to side somewhat, no doubt due to the backpack's lack of a solid support. Still, given the circumstances, I'm pleased with the group. Sure, it was rather wide at 1.583" across, but I can pretty comfortably say the scope is zeroed. Now, I just have to wait until my new rest gets here so I can really begin seeing how well this gun can shoot.
The loads averaged 2540 fps with a standard deviation of 18. That's about what I predicted I would get out of this barrel, and they're certainly consistent enough for my needs.
Final thoughts:
That homemade bench is leaps and bounds better as a shooting table than what I've been using. When I got my crosshairs centered on the bullseye, they stayed centered and didn't move or shake while I shifted my arms around on the table to better get into firing position, which would have severely shifted my point of aim with the other table. Once I get my pistol rest in, I'm hoping my Encores and 460 will be held as steadily in place when I prepare to shoot as my rifles currently are.
One thing I've learned after shooting my 270 these past few times is how horrible its trigger is. I can count three distinct levels of creep as I apply pressure to it, and while I don't have a trigger gauge, I would guess it requires at least three, possibly almost four pounds of trigger pull to fire it. At this point, I feel the trigger is the one thing keeping me from shooting exceptional groups with it. Fortunately, I do have a Timney trigger on the way, so hopefully I can soon have a rifle with a trigger that's comparable to my Encores' in quality.
All said, I had a very productive day.
02-19-2017, 06:11 PM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,695
TN, 3-4 pounds isn't really that heavy. If you feel it is a heavy trigger, it is probably more along the lines of 6+. I've not really heard that many people talking about the Vanguard trigger and the few (3-4) that I have pulled weren't spectacular or really even that good but they weren't "horrible". But I am an ultimate trigger snob from the deepest parts of hell. Probably one of, if not THE, hardest people on this planet to make happy when it comes to a trigger. Satisfied and able to compensate yes. Happy, VERY hard to do. Out of the MANY triggers I have bought over the years, I've had 2 that I didn't do at least SOMETHING to them to make them feel better. One Jewel and one Timney. Both came out of the box absolutely perfect for me. Used to drive my Armorers insane in the service.
02-20-2017, 12:40 PM
#4
Fork Horn
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Granbury, TX
Posts: 481
A good table is always a plus. I use a outers varmit rest when I sight in . It really helps me hold solid. It doesn't take away the recoil but it works great.
I've got a vanguard in 257 and the trigger is great when I'm only shooting it. When I sight in other rifles the same day I shoot it last as the two stage will cause me flinch .
I've got a vanguard in 257 and the trigger is great when I'm only shooting it. When I sight in other rifles the same day I shoot it last as the two stage will cause me flinch .
