rifle is good to go , just need to work on marksmanship.

I have no doubt its possible for you with that rifle to get all the shots int he red bull at 50 yards.


these are not the best videos, but they explain a few things to help tighten your groups a bit.

maybe some others can chime in with some other tips to tighten those groups.



[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaRCFpH27-w[/ame]
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv22usQYjDo[/ame]
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVn0s8lbIrA[/ame]

 

Reasonable groups for a person that isn't very experienced with the M14 style rifle. Between the recoil and the shape of the stock, it takes some practice to become consistent from shot to shot.

From your targets I can recommend several things that you might want to pay attention to. All of your targets show impacts that are predominately horizontal with some amount of vertical dispersion thrown in on a couple of targets. There are some specific things that can cause these group patterns.

Assuming that you are right handed:

For the first three targets

• Jerking the trigger rather than squeezing smoothly.
• Canting the rifle right or left but more often, it seems, to the right.

The last target

• Inconsistent eye relief.
• Shifting the butt of the rifle.
• Moving the front of the rifle; either your support arm or moving the rifle forward or back on the front rest on subsequent shots.
• Inconsistent breath control.

 

I agree that accuracy mods like GC shimming are good first improvements to make, but as others have stated work on your marksmanship skills first and then start accuracy improvements. It looks like at this point that rifle is consistent and you just need to make your skills consistent and then perform accuracy mods.

 

Accuracy looks pretty decent from here. It's an unmodified battle rifle design and it holds true to the intended purpose.

Tony.

 

oh forgot to mention, at 100 yards, i shot with federal match king bthp 168 grain gold match ammo...

 

I'm also curious about opinions to this. My shots aren't much different.

 

Looks good to me.

 

I agree with GARRARD. Being a newbie with a new stock rifle shooting factory, it is not bad for the first time. Look at it this way, if that was a man, any of those shots would have put him "six feet under". I agree with others that you will get better as you learn the rifle. It's like buying a new poolstick, you will get used to the weight and learn how to smooth stroke it to do what you want with usage. Once you as the shooter feel that you can outshoot the rifle, and still want more accuracy, start out with the cheap mods as suggested here. A lot of people make the mistake that by adding all kinds of mods will make the rifle shoot better, when in fact it is the lack of learning shooting skills. dozier

 

Can I assume the red bullseye is 1"? Not too bad for a new rifleman. You're better with a rifle than I am with a pistol.

There is much to teach your muscles and nerves about shooting a rifle. If it's all a conscious effort, you’ll not do better than this. First is coordinating a sight picture; front sight pillar perfectly centered in the rear sight aperture. Second is locating the point of aim (bullseye) relative to the front pillar. I’ve always used a 6 o’clock sight picture where the bottom of the bullseye is centered and just touching the top of the front pillar. Last is squeezing the trigger; take up the slack and then steadily squeeze the trigger until the shot breaks. The actual shot should be a surprise, if the shot is anticipated, you will react and the shot will be missed.

They say that if you do something a thousand times, your muscles will learn to remember the activity and do the work for you. Your job is to practice, practice and practice some more. You’ll soon discover the affect that breathing has upon your sight picture and learn to stop squeezing when your breath is moving the front sight away from your point of aim. You’ll even learn to snap off the shot while still being surprised at its timing.

Personally, I’d say your shooting is better than my first attempts and I had drill instructor instilling some motivation into my shooting.

 

You need to learn how to use a leather sling.....it makes a difference.

 

If I might offer a suggestion?

Shim your gas system, it is the cheapest fastest way to improve the group size.

Shameless plug.

Jim

 

Shim your gas system, it is the cheapest fastest way to improve the group size.

Shameless plug.

Jim

Definately a worthwhile upgrade too.
m14brian

 

jake2far is absolutely correct; shim the gas system. It is the least expensive mod you can do and probably the most cost effective at reducing group size except for practice practice practice. Oh, wait, practicing is not exactly cost effective at today's ammo prices, but it is a must. Also, I recommend a Sadlak National Match spring guide; they are very easy to install and not very expensive. Both made a world of difference in how my Scout grouped.

 

Wow thanks for the advice everyone. This is the greatest forum ever!

 

A good way to practice cheaply is dime drills. It's a little bit easier with 2 people but you can do it yourself.

the rifle, balance a dime or small washer on top of the barrel, and practice dry firing. The goal is to squeeze gently on the trigger, and keep the coin balanced the entire time.

Costs nothing but time, and you'll notice the horizontal size of your groups go down over time.

 

You did good! With enough practice and quality ammo you will be printing those 50 yard groups @ 100 and those 100 yard groups @ 200
You definitely brought 'enough gun!'
I think bench shooting and sandbag zero is the way to go with a new stick
then progress to the standard positions and combat skill sets (reload drills)
iron sight training is a primary necessary skill
even though my ma one alpha has optics, I can see and use them irons
if needed
that front sight focus applies equally to long sticks as well as sidearms
ranger on!

 

Good. Expect the groups to improve with practice.

 

Shots look good to me.

 

Thanks everyone. I'm considered a newbie, but i basically applied same fundamentals as pistol shooting. I didn't anticipate the recoil and let it surprise me. "Squeeze the trigger, not pull". focused on the front sight, ect...

I really want to get good, but i'm glad i'm already getting compliments for my first time taking it to the range!

 

There are a lot of misconceptions about waht exactly "accurate" means. It's relative, really.

Battle rifles were expected to shoot about 3" groups until the advent of aluminum and polymer construction, like the M16. The advantages of these new designs weren't realized overnight, but have changed the game in the last 30 years.
Where flat trajectories and fully floated match barrels firing magnum loads used to define precision shooting, that sort of performance is for sale over the counter today.

The M1a is still true to it's roots. 2"-3" groups at 100 yards are not indicative of a defect, just a typical battle rifle for the time. The standard for an M14 that is mounted in a Sage EBR chassis is 1.5" at 100 yards. I expect a lot of that comes from the mechanical bedding of the rifle.
I am shooting 2"-2.5" with my M1a, but my best friend can squeeze 1.5" groups without much effort. It's entirely the benfit of his experience as a Marine.

Do as some suggested, shim your gas cylinder, practice, and pay attention to what ammo your rifle likes. I think you'll get really comfortable with it. In the end, accuracy is hitting what you aim at. If that's a ferral hog, that 1.5" dot isn't so important.

 

In the end, accuracy is hitting what you aim at. If that's a ferral hog, that 1.5" dot isn't so important.

You said it friend! GI2

 

Appleseed project helped me alot. Met some great people to.

 

I spent my puberty with a very accurate high-powered air rifle... Without any official training. I couldn't guess how many 100s of thousands of rounds I fired. Whenever I go shooting, someone comments: Hey, I like the way you did that (let out half a breath before squeezing, etc., etc.), when I didn't even know I was doing it.

Tips are GREAT. Range and practice time is essential.

It took a while to convert my rifle skill to handgun skill--And then again, whenever I changed calibers--But I've killed-off the smarts that had me fearing different recoils and muzzle blasts. You will get better.... and with an x51, close is pretty damn good anyway.

 

+1 to Appleseed, probably the most productive shooting weekend I've ever had.

 

chaos06, do you see a certain tendency for a pattern to develop as to POI versus shot order? A shortcut would be to have an m14 match shooter give yours a try. Another is to find one which is a known quantity, dialed in, and see what yhou can do with it. To improve, you need good feedback. This method will tell you where attention needs to be focused, and should save $$$ and time. Seymour

 

Good shooting !!