300 Win Mag Flyer Problem

Bearcat 74

Bearcat 74

New member
A friend is going elk hunting this year and recruited me to work some loads for him. He is shooting an Encore that has a muzzle brake installed, Leupold 4x12x50, Leupold bases and rings that are tight, WW Brass, 190 Hornady BTSP, H4831 powder. I started an worked up to 73grs with the bullet .012" off the lands and 73grs worked the best. My problem is out of 3 shots 2 will touch and then it will throw one out of the group, everytime. It is random, it may be shot 1, 2, or 3 and it's driving me crazy. Velocity average is 2938fps with a spead of 14fps over the 3 shot groups with the largest spread being 26fps. I have 4 groups that two touch and the flyer makes it .5 - .8, this is all at 50yds because that's all the room I got. We went out yesterday and stretched out to 250yds and tried some water bottles and hit all 5. Any ideas on the flyer? It has been shot by two people and it has a flyer for both of us? The flyer will be left of the other two.

Any ideas?


Thanks
 
try a 5 shot group, if your getting a distict group within the group, its a seating depth dilemma, personaly I'd rework the load touching the lands and see how it goes.
RR
 
I would not worry about the flyer! Remember, you are shooting elk, not p. dogs. Kill zone on an elk is about the size of a small wash tub.
 
I've had problems in the past specifically with the 300 Win mag and firing too quickly in lighter barrel guns getting inconsistent groups from rapid barrel heating.(not an isolated occurace happening in these guns as well; Win Model 70, Remington ADL and Ruger M77)

On these guns if I slowed down my rate of fire to one shot every 3-5 minutes the groups "Flyer" disappeared.

My best accuracy results were using RE-22 in 190-200 grain bullets, but these were in 26-28" rifles.
 
The Encores have a slight problem with headspacing and when sizing the cases you may push the shoulder back on some without realizing it. Make sure all your brass is trimmed to the same length and try a neck sizing die to eliminate the shoulder being pushed back by full length sizing. In my opinion any Encore that groups consistly under a inch is great. The 300 WM is a big game rifle and any group 2 inches or under will kill and Elk at any distance you choose to shoot. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
Sounds like your trying to shoot match groups out of a off the shelf hunting rifle. It's a common mistake made by many people especially when using T/C rifles, because the rifle must come off the rest to be reloaded. What you need to do is zero the rifle and quit shooting it at paper, problem should clear right up.
 
I have a Remington 700 300winmag. Colorado is right about the hot barrel. In order to keep my groups consistent I let the barrel cool for several minutes between shots. I recently bought a battery powered personal sized fan to help speed up the process. I haven't tried it yet. But while waiting for it to cool I always open the bolt and blow in it a little (hence the fan), and test the barrel heat with my hand. It may not be the answer to your problem, but it is still a good practice for just about any gun. Good luck.
Mark
 
And besides, like the others are saying, you're getting 1" to 1.5" 3-shot groups, which ain't bad. Like Ridge Runner said you really need to try 5-shot groups. I ain't no expert, but from I have read, 3-shot groups are no longer considered sufficient enough to tell the whole story unless your gun/ammo is already proven, and your just double checking it. When trying a new gun or new ammo, 5 shots will tell you a lot more - BUT, let it cool off between shots. It takes patience, but it is worth it.
Mark
 
Well, I followed ya'lls advice, I checked the headspace and I was pushing the shoulders too far back, fixed that, slowed down the rate of fire, and shot more rounds per group. After all was aid and done, I got 2 2.5" groups at 313yds, I think the brass/shoulder issue and the time between shots helped. RL22 is next on my list, I have never seated a bullet to touch the lands, I was always afraid of a big pressure spike.


Anyways, thanks guys!!!
 
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