TargetTalk

Hi,

I have been shooting for a little over a year, mostly on a high school team. I had gotten my scores in the 98-99 range by the end of last year. I shot weekly in the offseason, but when the summer came, the program that I had been shooting in was cut off for three months. In that time, i purchased a rifle of my own.

A program finally opened up and I have been shooting weekly for almost two months. This week, the school season started again, and I have noticed that my scores are very erratic. I'll shoot a score in the high 90's, then one in the mid, and some which i don't wish to mention.

I feel as confident as ever in my shooting, and my postion is the tightest and most confortable I have ever gotten it. The only thing that I could think that would be hurting my scores is my sights losing the zero.

The sights are the old FWB sights w/ an Anschutz adjustable iris. We all know that the older FWB sights are nothing to brag about, but I never thought that they would actually hurt my scores. It seems like once I get them dialed in, I shoot several X's, then I will shoot consistantly elsewhere (i.e. 3 shots in a row that are 9's at 8 o'clock).

Is it possible that my sights are causing this? And if so, what sights would you recommend for a high school student on a budget?

Thanks,
Curt

Curt,
The easiest way to check the sights is to borrow another set, such as those from an Anschutz and give it a try to see if there is a difference. Also remember to check your front sight and also the aperature inside of the front sight.

You will also have to check your rifle action screws to make sure that they did not come loose. Use a torque wrench to ensure consistency and use the rifle's recommended torque settings as a starting point. Remember that every rifle has different torque settings that affect accuracy, so you will have to experiment. Also, dont' go over 35-40 in/lbs so you don't compress the wood of the stock, unless you have piller bedding.

Also check the action screws to make sure that they are not bottoming out in the action.

If the rifle is bedded, check for soft spots, wear points and for any cracking. These can also be causes of impact shifts.

Finally, check the "nut behind the bolt"! Natural point of aim is very simple to change for a young shooter without even realizing it. It can also be as simple as sight alignment between the front and rear sights. Simple, but it happens even to experienced shooters at times.

Some additional questions: When you have the impact point shift, is it always to the same place? How long between shots does it happen (several times a target, or only once in awhile?)? Does it happen with a position adjustment or shift in natural point of aim?

Hope this helps.
Ken

NO, the impact point does not always shift to the same spot. Its defferent everytime.

It sometimes is as many as three times a target, but there are also targets that i shoot that my zero will hold

No, it seems to change randomly.

I didnt think to check all of the screws. I'll have to look into that. It is glass-bedded, so I'm not sure if that would make a difference. I'll then try someone else's sights if that doesn't help.

Thanks for the help
Curt

hi curt ,
this kind of inconsistancy plagues most of us from time to time .
In the past four weeks I've had scores from 100 to 93 .
It is very easy to tense up after the first stray shot , when you mentally
switch from "smooth , easy , exhale , squeeze " to " ooops , ***** ,
how did that get there? " and start thinking of damage limitation instead
of your usual routine .
We've all been there :-)
Sometimes it's just a matter of plugging away for a couple of weeks untill
you pass through the rough patch .
But your coach , or shooting buddy , should be able to offer advice .
If you have access to scatt , noptel or rika systems , these can shorten
the process .
You will probably find as time passes , that your form will vary , you will
have periods when high scores come easily , and other times when you
find yourself fighting for every point .
It is also possible to get tied up in the details and take your eye off the basics .

Anyway , keep at it , and let me know how you get on ,

You might also want to consider stripping the bolt. If the firing pin or the spring are broken or too old, this can result in inconsistent ignition and wierd fliers.

Are you sure that your head is going down onto the same place in the stock each time? If the cheekpiece is a little too high or low, you may not notice small changes to your head position which can mean fliers.

You might also want to try your sights on another rifle, or let another shooter use them.

Hope this helps.

Tim S

Exeter UK

ooops , just like me to get lost in the detail and miss the original problem.
It could be the sights , but is more likely to be technique .
I know that I am the most probable cause of errors in my shooting ,

but it is possible that your sights require maitainance , normally just a drop of "break free" or something similar , unless there is some serious wear problem , causing the sight to stick when it is adjusted .
how old are the sights?

guest- ill talk to my coach about my firing pin. i also checked my cheekpiece. it origianlly was angled down and i had to contort my head. so i flatened it out and lowered it a bit. it was a little low then, so i raised the front a bit and the back slightly. its very confortable and i can get my head to the same place very easily, but the problem persists. i will also ask one of the better shooters on my team shoot a target w/ my sights.

bruce- the sights are probably around 20 years old.... ill have to look for a date on them. they were used by david cramer's daughter in college, so they got a ton of use. ive noticed that the clicks are inconsitant also. sometimes ill will click lets say 3 times for example. it may move it about what one click should or it may move what 6 or 7 clicks should move the group. this is what originally made me think that it might be the sights. i also will try shooting a target or two not scoping myself after i get sighted in. i have a history of some mentally effected targets. i was plagued by 99s for several weeks, dropping the last shot.

thanks for all the help so far. i was home sick today w/ a stomach thing, but im startign to feel better. our school wont let me (or any student) go to afterschool activities if they are out of school.

thanks
curt

curt
have you shot the rifle from a gun vise ,did you change the ammo,we had a case of ammo that would not shoot one hole from the bench ,that took some time to figure out ,it's always the kid's fault. if you think your doing everthing right set up a video camera and check yourself. you can set your sights up with a dial indicator to check for movement,as a early stated swap sights and test with a different set of sights. good luck

i had a rifle that was scoped and i thought that the scope was bad but when i put a different scope the rifle still would not group i ended up trying different ammo
i would try some different ammo first and then try for the sight suggestion

Curt,

It is my opinion it can be 2 things. One is your Natural Point of Aim and the other could be the cant of the rifle moving quite sharply after several shots. Your NPI may shift based on settlement in position or maybe when you move a little. Check it after each shift you make from bull to bull. The other item I have found is cant movement. Especially indoors, the sightest cant movement can place those shots in the nine ring. I do it all the time, but I am a good preacher lol.

Best of Luck

i dont believe that it is either of those two things. i check my natural point of aim before every shot. i also have grown increasingly aware of my cant. that is what had been keeping me from shooting 100s last year. in the past couple of weeks, i have shot several 100s and nothign lower than a 97.

i think that that the torque wrench solved my problems.

thanks everyone for the help.