Zero'd my new BMP what should I expect?

[Anonymoose]

Shot a 5 round group probably just under 1 moa and made my scope adjustments based off of it. Then I moved to this bullseye, shot a 3 rd group and made fine adjustments. The next shot hit just about dead center so I followed up with 4 more and wound up with this 0.43 moa 5 round group. Feeling pretty excited I was a bit disappointed to then shoot 3 more 5 round groups ranging from 0.55 to 1.1 moa. The last 1.1 moa group was definitely my fault. The range got busy with AR bros and I was not concentrating as much as I should have been. I did let the barrel cool sufficiently between shots and strings.

How many rounds through this barrel until maximum consistency is reached?

Assuming I am consistent can I expect this to be a >0.6 moa rifle? Seems like it will be.

 

[Anonymoose]

I should probably mention that this is with Hornady ELD-M 140gr

 

[Anonymoose]

Thanks. I'll be heading to a 1000yd range in the spring to get a better picture of where we stand. For now I'll continue to work on fundamentals.

 

[Southern Custom]

Dont start getting disappointed with 1” groups this early. Don’t know if this is your first time dabbling with a “precision rifle”. But you may be looking at an accurate picture of what you and your gun are capable of with the 1” group. And that’s just fine. The reality is that true .5 MOA factory rifles are not that common. And shooters that can squeak the best accuracy out of them less common. 3 round groups tell you nothing despite what the factory guarantee says. 5 rounds are better. If you want to know what you and the gun are capable of, shoot a slow 10 round group while staying on the gun. If you shoot under an inch call it good. .75” would be great. .5” with 10 rounds and you should start shooting f class with that gun. Consistent sub 1” with factory ammo is excellent. You’ll need to do load development to tighten that up.
I’ve printed dozens of sub .25” 3 round groups with my Bergara HMR pro 6mm creed rifles. Also more sub. 5” 3 shot groups than I can count. Neither one is a .25moa gun. Probably not .5” guns. I chased my tail with reloading for ages trying to get both to consistently shoot under .3 and it drove me nuts. Then I finally picked my best load and started shooting 10 round groups. Guess what. They print .75 or slightly better consistently. I used to call my Bergaras .3” guns until someone challenged me to start shooting 10 round groups. Those groups offered a much more accurate picture. Now I just shoot and have fun with it and do t sweat it when that flier opens the group up to 3/4. I have a Brux barrel waiting in the wings for my main gun when I burn this one out, and maybe it might be a true .5moa barrel. But after load development I’ll shoot 10 shot strings and the paper doesn’t lie. Knowing your guns true capability is a lot better than chasing a group size that may not be attainable with any consistency.
I just built a 6mm ARC gas gun and on the second range trip I printed a couple of 1 hole 3 shot groups. Knowing what I know now, I didn’t get overly excited trying to repeat it. More follow up with load development and 5 round groups tells me I’ve got a .75” barrel on this gun. Still tuning the load but I’ll shoot some 10 round strings when I settle on one load.
I started shooting the friendly F class matches at my local club and one thing I learned from those guys is that true sub half minute guns are more rare than the internet would have you believe.
Try overlaying all your groups from a range session. Unless those groups all fall into the same 1/2” circle when they are overlaid one on top of the other then even though they are all 1/2” the gun may not necessarily be a .5” gun. If it were, on a still calm day you would have no problem shooting a 600yard F class match and shooting a 200 with a high x count. The reality is that laying those targets on top of each other and measuring the overall group size is a much more accurate representation of what the gun is capable of. If that turns out to be 1”, don’t start questioning your purchase etc. it’s just fine. I’d be happy Knowing I can put 20 rounds inside 6” at 600 on a good day. (My club range maxes at 600) any better and it’s probably the rifle. Any worse and I know it’s me.

 

[Anonymoose]

Thanks @Southern Custom . I do have experience behind precision bolt guns from my time in the Army.

That was 20 years ago and while it's somewhat like riding a bike my consistency (precision) is not what it was. I started shooting 2-4x per month over the past year or so. Started rifles with a Mossberg Patriot that I bought on a whim and put in an MDT chassis. Obviously I would want something better. When I put the pieces together It feels like a zen moment, almost automated. That 5 shot group felt like that. The two 5 shot groups following this one were at the same dot, measured under 1" and also felt good. Based on your post I'll be excited about that one too. It was that last group that opened up and I know it was me. I am disappointed that I succumbed to the distractions around me.

I suppose my question was more about the rifle. I know from experience that I can shoot sub 3/4 moa 10 shot groups, outdoors and at extended range. (at least at some point in history). I was surprised to print that group so early with a new rifle. Could be dumb luck but we'll see with more rounds through it. It likes 140gr ELD-M at least, now I just need to find more. Hopefully <$1.90 each... Perhaps I'll enter the madness that is handloading at some point in the future as well.

 

[Southern Custom]

Thanks @Southern Custom . I do have experience behind precision bolt guns from my time in the Army.

That was 20 years ago and while it's somewhat like riding a bike my consistency (precision) is not what it was. I started shooting 2-4x per month over the past year or so. Started rifles with a Mossberg Patriot that I bought on a whim and put in an MDT chassis. Obviously I would want something better. When I put the pieces together It feels like a zen moment, almost automated. That 5 shot group felt like that. The two 5 shot groups following this one were at the same dot, measured under 1" and also felt good. Based on your post I'll be excited about that one too. It was that last group that opened up and I know it was me. I am disappointed that I succumbed to the distractions around me.

I suppose my question was more about the rifle. I know from experience that I can shoot sub 3/4 moa 10 shot groups, outdoors and at extended range. (at least at some point in history). I was surprised to print that group so early with a new rifle. Could be dumb luck but we'll see with more rounds through it. It likes 140gr ELD-M at least, now I just need to find more. Hopefully <$1.90 each... Perhaps I'll enter the madness that is handloading at some point in the future as well.

Not dumb luck at all. Hand lapped barrels don’t need any real break in to speak of. Bergara has the production barrel making game down pat. Find something it likes and shoot the snot out of it.