Rifleman

Guns Magazine, June, 2002 by Dave Anderson

Rifles are fascinating artifacts and the pursuit of rifle accuracy is a fascinating activity. So fascinating, in fact, that for many people the pursuit of accuracy is their sole reason for shooting. They want rifles that can shoot small groups in order to shoot small groups -- and nothing else.

Nothing wrong with that. As long as an activity is legal and doesn't infringe on the rights of others, I believe people should be able to do pretty much as they please, no explanations needed. Benchrest competitors, whose objective is to shoot tiny groups, have done more to unlock the secrets of accuracy than anyone. Every rifle shooter is indebted to this dedicated group for the superb equipment and technical knowledge we have.

There are also shooters who want to use that equipment and knowledge not so much to shoot tiny groups, but to hit specific targets on demand. If this is your objective, obsessing over tiny increments of accuracy and constantly shooting from the bench may not help achieve your goal. Such activities may even make it more difficult to achieve your goal.

Consistency Versus Predictability

One aspect of rifle accuracy is consistency -- the ability of the rifle to put all its shots in a small group. When we state that our rifle will shoot 1 inch groups or 1/2 inch groups, we are measuring consistency.

But another aspect of accuracy, one that is often overlooked, is predictability -- the ability of the shooter to predict with a high degree of confidence that he can hit a specific target. Maybe an example will illustrate the difference.

Let's say we have a very accurate (consistent) rifle, one that will put all its shots inside a 1/2 inch circle at 100 yards (judging from what I hear and read, everyone and his cousin has such a rifle). One pleasant day, we take the rifle from the gun safe where it's been standing for the last six weeks and head for the range. We tape a quarter to the 200-yard backstop. The objective is to take the rifle from its case, load one round, and hit the quarter.

If we miss it's not the rifle's fault. We already know the rifle shoots under 1/2 inch at 100 yards, meaning it should also shoot under 1 inch at 200 yards. A 25-cent piece is approximately 0.95 inch in diameter. We should, therefore, hit it the first time and every time from 200 yards. If we miss (as I suspect most of us would) it is because the other aspect of accuracy -- predictability -- has been neglected.

A lot of experimenting, development, research, and workmanship has gone into assembling consistent rifles: precision barrels, rigid actions, cartridge design, powders, bullets, bedding. To achieve predictability, we need all those problems solved, plus a lot more.

For example: do we know precisely where bullet impact will be relative to the sighting system? Where does a bullet impact when fired from a cold, clean barrel? How about from a cold, fouled barrel? From a hot barrel? Is the sight system -- scope, rings, bases -- durable and strong enough to maintain zero during the unavoidable jostling and jiggling a rifle gets when it is transported and used in the field? What effect do extremes of temperature and humidity have? What happens to point of impact if we shoot from a tight sling, or a bipod, or with the forearm resting on a log or binocular case?

Shooting small groups takes skill and quality equipment. Hitting a specific target -- first shot, on demand -- adds another level of difficulty.

Bad Habits

Watch typical hunters at the shooting bench, sighting in or testing handloads. Seldom do they have the sophisticated, adjustable rests used by experienced benchrest competitors or the knowledge of how to use the bench for maximum precision. Usually the rifle's forearm will be sitting on a jury-rigged rest such as a folded jacket or bag of shot. Such expedient measures can be made to work, but their common fault is that they are almost always too low.

With too low a rest the shooter has to lean well forward to get his face on the stock and acquire a sight picture. Draped over the bench like this the body takes the full force of recoil, with no flexibility to absorb the jolt. Furthermore, the buttplate often rides too high on the shoulder, resting against bone rather than muscle, usually padded by no more than a light summer shirt. Under such circumstances, even the recoil of .270 to .308 class rifles with hard buttplates can be painful.

I believe this type of shooting is a major reason why so many shooters flinch, or feel they can't handle more powerful cartridges. For comfort, use a higher rest that lets you sit up straight. Use some padding such as a PAST recoil shield and settle the buttplate into the muscular pocket of the shoulder instead of on bone. Use the bench no more than is required to develop loads and sight in, and you'll find you can handle more recoil than you thought.

After our typical shooter fires, what happens? First, he keeps looking through the scope for a while, trying to spot the bullet hole. Then he sits up. slowly opens the action, carefully extracts the fired case. He ruminates over the case, studies the primer, looks inside the case neck, then sets it back in the cartridge box and takes out another round. He pats the barrel to see how hot it is, studies the new round lovingly, then finally pokes it into the chamber and closes the action for the next shot.