broey1

A couple of things:

1. For "Hunting gun groups", I'd say if you can keep all your shots on a paper plate at 150 yards, you'll be in great shape 95% of the time.

2. I also agree with Big Country in that for most of us here (guys a little more serious than the average gun fella), we like to do what we can to shoot those tiny little groups off the bench.

Shooting and hunting are two different animals in my opinion.

Doe Dumper

You guys are confirming what I suspected. I seem to be on my way to a gem with the 3 shot groups all the time..but theres almost always one oddball that kills the group when ya shoot 5. My guns are all factory stock except lightened triggers. Im not gonna say what my offhanded groups are..but they are getting better..lol. I have always been a believer if a gun will group 2 inches or under with factory stuff that it was a keeper. Im still laughing over the comment oldelk made bout the internet tightening up groups..thats for sure!! Quite possibly the best accurizing tool ever invented for guns!

oldelkhunter

Glad you enjoyed that

max the dog

Some of those hyper accurate sub MOA guns aren't much good on a deer hunt. They tend to have massive scopes, heavy barrels, and a stock made for bench rest shooting only. The ammo used is normally a very light weight bullet that doesn't penetrate anything tougher than a sheet of paper before mushroming up and fragmenting into a bloody mess. But hey if you want to drag a portable bench rest and only shoot at known ranges go ahead. I'll be still hunt in the woods where the big one hide. You need a light fast handling gun for that.

Power

I've been trying for years to get my old Browning A-bolt to shoot MOA but it never would so I sold it and bought a Tikka. Best thing I've done to date. Since they guarentee MOA as long as I can hold steady I can get good groups. Since I've been after this goal for a while (I'm a hunter, not a shooter, but I'm getting better at both) I handload so these results are better than you might get with factory stuff. The gun is totally stock, not even glass bedded (yet!), I did lower the trigger to around 2.5 lbs. but the rifle came with instructions on how to do that (1/2 turn on an allen bolt on trigger).

Most times I shoot around 1"- 1.5" groups if I have a good rest and all goes right. I do need to shoot more in field positions and other methods. One fun thing I like to do is shoot gallon milk jugs full of water at 100 yards off-hand standing, no leaning against/over anything. It's much tougher than most people realize and if you can do that most of the time I'd say you're doing very well. I figure that size is similar to the vital area of a deer.

Anyway, just uploaded a couple pictures to my server of my new Accubond handloads from last fall. They shoot so well, I doubt I'll be switching for some time. I try to shoot only 5 shot groups now for consistancy as 3 shots aren't always as telling. Enjoy and good discussion!

Josh Sorensen

I strive to get all of my hunting guns to do sub MOA for 3 shots, and have a few that will do better with 5. I have an encore 22-250 that will do sub 3/4 MOA for 5 shots with Rem UMC 45gr HP ammo, which is really nice for $9 a box. My Bushy will shoot 52gr MHP black hills ammo into sub MOA 5 shot groups, a Tikka T3 in 338 win mag that will do sub Moa with reloaded 225gr TSX, and a Browning Eurobolt w/boss that will do sub Moa 5 shot groups with federal premium 100 gr SBT. I don't shoot a lot of factory loads in anything bigger than 22-250, 223 and 22-250 are so cheap I don't often bother reloading for them. I've gone thru a lot of guns and a lot of tinkering to get the ones I have now, but they are out there. One thing I find is that a lot of people don't but good enough glass on thier rifles, you can't expect great accuracy with mediocre optics. Most times really accurate rifles are more expensive and usually need a little tinkering to get the best out of them. For practicle accuracy anthing that will go 1.5-2" at 100 yards will do fine for a hunting gun. My dads one hunting buddy had a Remington 7400 in 30/06 that was lucky to put 5 shots into 5-6" at 100 yards but he killed enough deer and other big game with it to fill a dump truck.

Tikka T3 338


Encore 22-250


Bushmaster

Portage

I own a rifle that will shoot sub MOA on a very consistent basis, an older Sako. It is much more consistent than I am. Like others have stated, once sighted in, it comes off the bench and I practice field shooting.

Someone mentioned that more sub-MOA groups are shot on the internet than anywhere else. Funny but sadly true.

James B

I never shoot five shot groups with my deer rifles. I have never shot at the same deer three times and can see no reason to require my rifle or myself to put five shots in a tiny group. A good test for hunting accuracy for my big game rifles is to take them out several times, get set up good and steady and fire two or three shots. If they all come within an inch and a half of my point of aim at the range I am shooting, then that rifle will perform in the field. I am pretty happy with a rifle that will always or almost always shoot a group of two inches where none miss the point of aim by more than 1 1/2 inches. I had a 788 Remington in 308 once that would almost never shoot better than a 3 inch group. However it never missed the center of the target by more than that 1 1/2 inches. I never missed a deer with that rifle and I shot a lot of them with it. My rifles as a rule, group better than I am capable of holding them.

guppyfood

Groups? I don't shoot groups too often.
I tape dimes up to a target backer at 300 yards and pop them off with my 7mm STW. If the rifle fails to shot that well I'll rebarrel it to get back to optimum accuracy for the setup. Only the best will do for my highly trained trigger finger.

8mm/06

"I never shoot five shot groups with my deer rifles. I have never shot at the same deer three times and can see no reason to require my rifle or myself to put five shots in a tiny group." James B

I agree. I've never taken 3 successive shots at anything except paper.
I've hunted many years. I have taken a second shot at a deer once. I have taken a third shot at a deer once.
The deer I shot at twice was my very first deer, a fat little doe.....I thought I missed her on the first shot but upon recovery I knew the first shot did the trick. Second shot (on the then running deer) missed.
The only other deer that I shot at more than one time was a little buck. I had made a bad first shot on his leg (operator error), took an ill'advised second snap shot (missed) when I jumped it on the track, and then placed the third, coup-de grace, when I caught up to do the right thing.
Our hunting rifles need to shoot a consistently predictable first shot, and a follow-up second shot that doesn't string or walk. A third would be nice.
Five is asking for a bench rest rifle. I have nothing against bench rest rifles. I have one hunting rifle that could probably become one with some time and money spent. Just not really necessary for my hunting needs though.

"My rifles as a rule, group better than I am capable of holding them." James B

James and I must own the very same guns