Reloading .308 for the Ruger precision rifle

[bsa1917hunter]

Do you understand why groups are often not centered on the bullseye?

Is that a lame excuse for trying to call someone out, or do you just need some education on how to shoot? For the most part, when shooting in competition you want to hit the X-ring. The more X's you hit, the higher your score. Is this making sense? You can shoot for 8's, I guess, if it makes you feel better....

 

[DizzyJ]

Is that a lame excuse for trying to call someone out, or do you just need some education on how to shoot? For the most part, when shooting in competition you want to hit the X-ring. The more X's you hit, the higher your score. Is this making sense? You can shoot for 8's I guess if it makes you fell better....

Call it a lame excuse if you want. The reason a lot of groups aren't centered on the bullseye is because when you're working up a load, shooting for groups, you want as small of an aiming area as possible. As you start to shoot out the center of the target, your precision aiming point is no longer precision as it gets bigger and bigger the more holes you punch through it.

In competition, obviously you want to punch the X-ring as often as possible. Those targets generally have a more generous bullseye than say an 1/8" dot. When working up a load, or shooting for groups however, it is common practice to have the shots hit slightly away from your aiming point.

Thanks for educating me though. I feel so much more enlightened.....

 

[ron]

When shooting in competition at a distance of 600 yards it is a newbie mistake
to "chase the X ring". Shoot a "10" at 9 O'clock so you put some right windage
on the rifle. Right? Next shot you're out at 3 O'clock? And so it goes windage left
than right, repeat. I remember an old well respected "High Master" would
say "Leave that windage knob alone boy". So you end up not making sight
adjustments for every shot? And you end up with a higher "X"
count. You have to realize you and your rifle shoots in a cone shape.
That "10" at 9 O'clock was just the left edge of the cone. Leave that knob
alone and accept the "10" at 9 O'clock. Because the next shot will be
that "X" you wanted. Slow fire prone stage (1 minute per shot),
slung into the rifle at 600 yards. On a good day with good ammo
you can hold about 2 minutes. Sometimes a little less.
As your skill increases you will be able to "call" the shot. Break the
shot and you think that was a "9" at 6 O'clock. Target comes up and
there is that 6 'O'clock "9". Now you are "on call".

 

[lambene]

As your skill increases you will be able to "call" the shot. Break the
shot and you think that was a "9" at 6 O'clock. Target comes up and
there is that 6 'O'clock "9". Now you are "on call".

Ok now I will say....I need the education!

 

[Certaindeaf]

When shooting in competition at a distance of 600 yards it is a newbie mistake
to "chase the X ring". Shoot a "10" at 9 O'clock so you put some right windage
on the rifle. Right? Next shot you're out at 3 O'clock? And so it goes windage left
than right, repeat. I remember an old well respected "High Master" would
say "Leave that windage knob alone boy". So you end up not making sight
adjustments for every shot? And you end up with a higher "X"
count. You have to realize you and your rifle shoots in a cone shape.
That "10" at 9 O'clock was just the left edge of the cone. Leave that knob
alone and accept the "10" at 9 O'clock. Because the next shot will be
that "X" you wanted. Slow fire prone stage (1 minute per shot),
slung into the rifle at 600 yards. On a good day with good ammo
you can hold about 2 minutes. Sometimes a little less.
As your skill increases you will be able to "call" the shot. Break the
shot and you think that was a "9" at 6 O'clock. Target comes up and
there is that 6 'O'clock "9". Now you are "on call".

Yeabut, how
do
you cope with
that terrible twitch you
have in your
right
pinky?

 

[P7M13]

Yeabut, how
do
you cope with
that terrible twitch you
have in your
right
pinky?

A twitchy, left eye?

 

[bsa1917hunter]

When shooting in competition at a distance of 600 yards it is a newbie mistake
to "chase the X ring". Shoot a "10" at 9 O'clock so you put some right windage
on the rifle. Right? Next shot you're out at 3 O'clock? And so it goes windage left
than right, repeat. I remember an old well respected "High Master" would
say "Leave that windage knob alone boy". So you end up not making sight
adjustments for every shot? And you end up with a higher "X"
count. You have to realize you and your rifle shoots in a cone shape.
That "10" at 9 O'clock was just the left edge of the cone. Leave that knob
alone and accept the "10" at 9 O'clock. Because the next shot will be
that "X" you wanted. Slow fire prone stage (1 minute per shot),
slung into the rifle at 600 yards. On a good day with good ammo
you can hold about 2 minutes. Sometimes a little less.
As your skill increases you will be able to "call" the shot. Break the
shot and you think that was a "9" at 6 O'clock. Target comes up and
there is that 6 'O'clock "9". Now you are "on call".

Great post Ron. By the way, I still like your target picture, even though they are all in the X-ring. The other poster is full of it or jealous of your target I guess. Let us be reminded what the P stands for in the RPR: PRECISION.... I have an appreciation for both precision and accuracy. I can also see you know what you are talking about, with the experience in your well said post. Whether you are a target shooter or hunter, I think it's important to put those bullets where they need to go: In the vitals or in the X-ring. Here's a picture I always enjoy:



lambene, have you figured out what scope you are going to use on your new rifle?

 

[DirectDrive]

I'm still waiting for a Remote Viewer to post the perfect load for the OP's rifle.
It would save the OP a lot of time experimenting/ladder testing and such.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I'm still waiting for a Remote Viewer to post the perfect load for the OP's rifle.
It would save the OP a lot of time experimenting/ladder testing and such.

I'm hoping that said magic load will be useful for my $100 Savage/Stevens .243 sniping rifle. lol

 

[lambene]

lambene, have you figured out what scope you are going to use on your new rifle?

Do not judge me, I really like these scopes for the price.
<broken link removed>

 

[rcnpthfndr]

one other thing you need to consider when you reload for your RPR s which magazine you are going to use. you are only going to get "So" much accuracy out of your RPR because it is magazine fed.

as for your scope choice don't do it, save up for a vortex or bushnell 3200 series at a minimum. buying a cheap scope is like shooting milsurp out of a precision rifle and wondering why you don't group well.
long range shooting isn't cheap nor does it have to break the bank. I have several 3k+ US Optics scopes and I also have a mix of leupold and vortex. there are better options out there than what you are looking at. scope base rings are not the place you want to go cheap at.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Do not judge me, I really like these scopes for the price.
<broken link removed>

I'm not going to judge my friend. If you have experience with that particular scope and know it works well, use it and be happy. If you don't have experience with that scope, then I might be like the other poster that said "don't do it". I'm not a scope snob and will use what I know works. Some may laugh, but one of my favorite scopes is a Nikon buckmasters 4.5-14x40 with side focus. It tracks very well and It holds zero. I've shot that one a lot out to 850 yards on both a 300wsm PBR XP and a model 70 7mm rem mag. When I was shooting centerfire competition, my scope of choice was another Nikon, but it was their top of the line Monarch X 4-16x50 secured in a good set of TPS rings. That scope was much better than my buddies vortex PST by a long shot. He agreed and sold it and swore off Vortex. He now uses a Schmidt and Bender 4-16x50 PMII:




I also agree with the poster that said you need good base and rings. However, the RPR comes with a 20 moa picatinny rail. I'd look for a good set of rings. Even the burris XTR 6 screw rings are great and affordable. The TPS rings are also good. You can go with high dollar rings, but you probably won't be gaining much over the TPS or XTR's. Back to scopes and what the previous poster said about the bushnell 3200 at a minimum. I agree, those are damn good scopes for the money as are the Burris FFII 3-9x40 with ballistic plex reticle. You can go fairly cheap on scope choice, as long as you know they have a good/great track record.

 

[lambene]

one other thing you need to consider when you reload for your RPR s which magazine you are going to use. you are only going to get "So" much accuracy out of your RPR because it is magazine fed.

as for your scope choice don't do it, save up for a vortex or bushnell 3200 series at a minimum. buying a cheap scope is like shooting milsurp out of a precision rifle and wondering why you don't group well.
long range shooting isn't cheap nor does it have to break the bank. I have several 3k+ US Optics scopes and I also have a mix of leupold and vortex. there are better options out there than what you are looking at. scope base rings are not the place you want to go cheap at.

So I Have to say a few things about this...One is that the type of magazine will not determine how accurate the rifle is, besides I don't shoot for points. I will also say that it TOTALLY depends on the rifle. My remington 700 sps is not as accurate as my ruger precision rifle. Also I must say Two legged targets are my biggest worry in life but I hope it never comes to that, there is a reasion that the military doesn't use a single shot rifle.

Second: I have two <broken link removed> scopes and they are WAY better than any of the 3 Bushnell 3200 series I have had or have used. Even the Nikon Monarch 3 BDC 4-16x42mm is not as good a scope IMO. The reticle is AMAZING for LDS.Ask anyone who owns one and they will tell you that it is HARD to come even close to the durability and quality for double the price. But yes when I manage to stop spending so much on cars I will buy glass worth more than the gun. But until then in all my testing and research I feel this is the best value out there right now. My next step up will probably be a Bushnell Elite Tactical G2 6-24x50mm

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Sounds like you got your scope figured out. Now go work up some good loads..... Then post some results. Good luck with that new rifle my friend.

 

[rcnpthfndr]

in my experience with precision rifles that run DBMs, not all mags allow for the same COAL. back when AICs mags were the only thing on the scene. it was common to pull a metal plate out of the front to allow for loads that were seated longer. since the RPR is a mutli mag system their might be a difference in the OAL each mag allows. i knew guys who would run a long action in 308 and use the 300wm DBM so they could seat their bullets out farther to improve accuracy. that's all I was getting at.

the reason why your SPS probably isn't as accurate as your RPR is more than likely due to the extreme throats that big green puts into their rifles.

I have two RPRs one in 243 and the other is currently at LRI being switched over to a 6.5x47 lapua with a pac nor 1/7 polygonal barrel.

you hit the nail on the head, competing hobbies suck up monies and you get what you can to enjoy the lesser hobby/ies. Such are the ways of toys and hobbies.

as for the military each branch is different, marines have premiers on their MK14EBR's, S&B PII on their m40 series, army loves leupold. none of them are cheap but they are absolutely reliable, repeatable and durable.

 

[lambene]

in my experience with precision rifles that run DBMs, not all mags allow for the same COAL. back when AICs mags were the only thing on the scene. it was common to pull a metal plate out of the front to allow for loads that were seated longer. since the RPR is a mutli mag system their might be a difference in the OAL each mag allows. i knew guys who would run a long action in 308 and use the 300wm DBM so they could seat their bullets out farther to improve accuracy. that's all I was getting at.

the reason why your SPS probably isn't as accurate as your RPR is more than likely due to the extreme throats that big green puts into their rifles.

I have two RPRs one in 243 and the other is currently at LRI being switched over to a 6.5x47 lapua with a pac nor 1/7 polygonal barrel.

you hit the nail on the head, competing hobbies suck up monies and you get what you can to enjoy the lesser hobby/ies. Such are the ways of toys and hobbies.

as for the military each branch is different, marines have premiers on their MK14EBR's, S&B PII on their m40 series, army loves leupold. none of them are cheap but they are absolutely reliable, repeatable and durable.

I must thank you for your incite. You make some very good points!In the end I am shooting a 308 and not a 6.5. Untill I improve as a shooter with a 308 I don't feel that I need or deserve a 6.5. But if I ever get to that point I will probably have LRI or BHI make a barrel for me.

As far as military I was simply meaning that engaging multiple targets faster is a higher priority then the added accuracy I would get from going with a single shot. If that makes sence

 

[rcnpthfndr]

absolutely. you figure out what load yet?

 

[lambene]

absolutely. you figure out what load yet?

I am going to start with Hornady match grade brass, Sierra MatchKing TMK 168 grain, IMR 4064 and try a few different primers (Winchester LR and CCI BR2)

 

[bsa1917hunter]

lambene, what size of groups is your rifle shooting with factory ammo? That way you can try to duplicate or beat that accuracy with your hand loads.

 

[lambene]

lambene, what size of groups is your rifle shooting with factory ammo? That way you can try to duplicate or beat that accuracy with your hand loads.

Have not had a chance to shoot this one yet.