Here we go again!

For today's range session I took the Simmons 4X ProDiamond shotgun scope off of the Renegade and mounted a 3x10 Cabala's Powder Horn with the Bullet Drop Compensator reticule.

Started out loading her up with 95 grains GOEX FFg and the 465 grain .451 lead flat nose over an unlubed felt wad.



Got the scope pretty well adjusted with two shots at 25 yards and two more at 50 yards.

Then, sticking with the same load, I set a target at 100 yards and took four shots.

Here's that target.


The shot that's low and to the right of the bull was Shot #1. I had made an adjustment to the scope right before shooting this target, and wonder if recoil from the first shot after the adjustment settled the cross hairs, moving the next three shots up and left.

Anyway, after eight shots with the 95 grain load I was starting to feel the recoil a bit. So I wimped out and reduced the load to 85 grains for the rest of the session.

After adjusting the scope a bit to the right I shot five 85 grain loads at a fresh 100 yard target.

Here's that one.



Once again, the first shot after the scope adjustment was out of group. But WHOOEEE, those other four shots made me laugh out loud.

Couldn't help but make another scope adjustment to bring the group up and left and see if I can get it on the bull.

Took five more shots after that adjustment and got this.



Well DANG! I sure don't want to sneer at a 1-5/8" 100 yard group. But why are three shots in one place and two in another? I wonder if I'm changing my position behind the scope?

The reason for mounting the Powder Horn scope was to play with higher magnification and the BDC feature at longer ranges. So I set a target at 125 yards and took five shots using the first BDC index line below the cross hairs.

Here's that target.



Now that's got to be one of the strangest targets I've ever shot. YOU TELL ME WHY THEY STACKED LIKE THAT!

Time for one last target - five shots at 150 yards using the second BDC index line.



Not so hot, huh? Even though four of the five shots were within three-and-a-half inches, I was hoping for a little better. (Yeah, I know - still a dead deer on a broadside chest shot.)

But you can see from the way some of the holes on that target are cut, the bullet appears to be starting to yaw. Next time out I guess I'm going to have to try the hard kicking 95 grain charge to see if it remains stable out at 150 yards and beyond. Oh, how I suffer in pursuit of knowledge.

A FINAL THOUGHT: After another session or two with the Powder Horn scope, it's coming off and the ProDiamond is going back on. It's quicker to get on target, fits and looks better on the Renegade, is all I need for hunting, and I'll still be good for 150 yard shots on deer.

That's gun is a shooter, or maybe its just you!
I agree, that is really odd the way they shot that string... ? Even the 150yd target was sorta stringing them. But you gotta smile at 100!

My grandson shot his first deer yesterday (Button Buck) at 80 yds using my White M98 with them 465gr bullets that I cast with a load of 70gr of 777-3F that Semisane been shooting. The deer was slightly quartering towards my grandson and I was about to tell him wait until it turns broadside when BOOM and I saw the deer dropped right where it was standing. The bullet caught him high in the shoulder and traveled the length of the body and almost came out by his groin. I was able to recover the bullet. I weighed it at home and it still retained 420 grains out of the 465 grs. I was pretty impressed with how the bullet mushroomed. Below is a picture of my grandson with his first deer and the before and after picture of the bullet.

That's a fine looking young man Ed, and a great shot on the deer.

I know you're proud to have mentored him in taking his first deer. Good for you. It's always been my opinion that a doe or small buck is the perfect first deer for a youngster.

I'm really impressed with that bullet's expansion. Can't ask for any more than that. Thanks for posting the picture.

Congrats to him! Awesome!!!

And that bullet worked perfectly... I think you have a winner! Looks to be close to an inch wide now. Good stuff! Doubt you'll capture many of them bad boys.

Congratulations on the deer. And that bullet performed excellent. Talk about expansion... no wonder that deer dropped.

Awesome..Way to go Pappy. Teaching him right. Congrats to your grandson.

Semi - I've found that differences in cheek pressure on the stock, where the rifle is placed on the bags, how tight the rifle is held and any other inconsistency in shooting will change the POI. When I'm shooting off the rest I try to be conscious of every aspect of points of contact hoping to eliminate as much human error as possible.
As for the two targets with the first shot out of the group, it could possibly be the scope's springs are 'sticky' and settle in after the recoil from the first shot after adjustment.

WHen I was first starting out with my paper patched 500 S&W bullets I was getting "yaw" at 150 yards. I cut my load back to 80 gr of Pyrodex P and they straightened right out. I tested them out to 300 and a little farther and they are still poking straight holes. You might cut that load a little more to see if it helps. Ron

Thanks for the recommendation Ron. I'll try that.

Maybe I'm on the wrong track. I was thinking I needed a bigger charge to stabilize them. Pushing them slower never even occurred to me. It seems counter intuitive.

Dave you got me wondering how much did that bullet expand. So I took out my digital caliper and the bullet went from .451.5 to 1.0135 at the widest to .6455 at the narrowest point. Looks like soft lead does expand. GRIN

Ed