[KYMountainMan]

I recently purchased a Howa Mini Action in 6.5 Grendel 20" Heavy Bbl, and thought I'd sight it in along with my new Scout Squad today.

I put a New Redfield scope on the Howa and these are the results that I got! Shots 1 - 5 are numbered. Something is obviously wrong!

I was using Hornady 123gr. Match ammo.

On a side note ... I'm really pleased with the Scout Squad and it's accuracy. I sighted the M1A in on the bottom right target and the final adjustments seemed to be about right!

 

[Wasted ammo]

Dam if I know make sure everything is tight on the scope and mounts also check the action screws. Maybe try some different ammo. I know how frustrating this can be. Good luck let us know what it was when you figure it out. I have been eyeballing one of those little rifles In 7.62-39, just becuase it is cheap to shoot and I like to waste ammo.

 

[KYMountainMan]

Dam if I know make sure everything is tight on the scope and mounts also check the action screws. Maybe try some different ammo. I know how frustrating this can be. Good luck let us know what it was when you figure it out. I have been eyeballing one of those little rifles In 7.62-39, just becuase it is cheap to shoot and I like to waste ammo.

Well, I know the scope mounts and action screws are tight. I took them out and re-torqued with Blue Locktite and my Fat Wrench a little while ago.

I'll clean it, and go back out on Thursday to see if that helps. I'll try at 25 yds ... then 50 ... and then 100 yds. to see if it starts "Acting Up" anywhere along the way.

The scope is a New Redfield scope that I bought this past weekend, so I'm fairly certain it's not the scope ... unless I got a Dud.

 

[Wasted ammo]

I have seen it happen with new scopes before, if all else fails try another one.

 

[boomerpusher]

Not to pour salt into a wound, but my old 6.5x55 Swed made in 1901 will put 5 into under a quarter at 100yds with Winchester white box. Something is as loose as a goose. Does the rifle have iron sights, if so may try them. If they shoot good then it has to be in the scope system and I have gotten scopes with a loose erector system right out of the box. Don't keep us in suspence, if you find out what it is, let us know.

 

[POLACK]

paper under the barrel to check contact? free floated? try diff ammo

scope paralax adjustment?

 

[Stevie Ray]

Anytime I've had results like that it always came back to being the scope or the scope mounting.

 

[swagbrdr]

Anytime I've had results like that it always came back to being the scope or the scope mounting.

This

 

[POLACK]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VPGcq9IVxc

video. we just had a thread like this issue.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VPGcq9IVxc[/ame]

 

[KYMountainMan]

I thought about that, but parallax doesn't account for the 12" spread on the target! It might affect a 1" spread on the target, but my sight picture was clear and crisp.

 

[Wasted ammo]

I'm still thinking bad scope or maybe that rifle just hates that ammo. Have you checked the barrel crown? I'm just thinking of possible reasons.

 

[shooter86314]

Bummer.
Are the action screws tight?
Is the bullet weight suited to the barrel's twist?

 

[Willard]

Which stock does it have? I've got an older Howa 1500, with the short 20" Bull barrel in .308 Win. Unfortunately it's got the "Pillar Bedded" Hogue, which flexes too much. I plan on getting a Bell and Carlson with the bedding block, but it's a low priority, as I also plan on getting a decent magazine feeding conversion, using AICS magazines.
Years ago, when I bought my Winchester 70 XTR .30-06, it had the "Tupperware" stock, and my "patterns" looked like that. I ended up getting an H-S Precision sporter stock with a bedding block, and it ceased patterning, and started grouping my shots.
Not saying that is your problem, but if it's not the optics, the bedding would be my next visit.

 

[Chingon]

Post some pics of your set up. That may help.

 

[twobyfour]

Sounds like a scope problem. Those new mini 1500's are supposedly very accurate out of the box, especially for something like 6.5 Grendel.

 

[Earthquake]

Did you check the "Crown"? Try the Q-tip trick, take a Q-tip and insert it in the barrel and pull it out slowly and see if any strands of cotton come off the q-tip. If it does you have a burr which could be causing your problem.
Another trick I have tried is to take some paper shims and put them in the cut for the recoil lug, tighten the rear action screw first and then the front, this will lift the barrel out of the barrel channel a bit and free float it. Fire a group or two and see if it makes a difference, If it does you have some barrel contact some where.

Casey

 

[Taskmaster86]

I have a bone stock Weatherby Vanguard S2 which is the same rifle as the Howa 1500, 2nd generation like you have there. Mine is chambered in .308 and shoots less than an inch at 100 yards with every ammo I have tried, including wolf and military surplus.

Provided nothing is mechanically wrong with the rifle, I am guessing the erectors in your scope are no good. The reticle is bouncing around inside the tube of the scope with every shot and giving you that poor accuracy.

Try all the tips and tricks suggested here and then put a different scope on it. Also be aware that good scopes are not cheap. Unless you get something used or stolen, a good scope that you can rely on for good accuracy is going to cost at least $150. I like the Weaver brand of scope myself. Check out Natchez shooters supply, Natchezss.com for good deals on weaver and other scopes.

 

[Mike7.62]

If it were mine, I would place another scope of known reliability on the rifle and shoot it again. If the accuracy improved, I would place a better grade of glass on the rifle.

Redfield used to make good scopes right here in the USA, and I have a few of them, but they were shut down by the EPA back in the nineties IIRC, and had to declare BK. The newer Redfield scopes are a division of Leupold, and just like the lower end Leupold's, are made in China or the Philippines. Not saying that they can't make decent scopes, but the construction and QC are not up to scratch with more expensive glass. Even the vaunted Vortex, which is also made in China, has problems, and the only thing that saves them is their lightning fast customer service and replacement policy.

Another thing that I would check is the distance off of the lands for your particular bullet. Hornady makes a good gauge to check this. It used to be Stony Point, but Hornady bought them awhile back. I have a Winchester M70 in 6.5x55, and it wouldn't shoot for beans. I glass bedded the stock, and that helped a little, but going from 6" groups to 4" groups isn't a great improvement. I bought one of these gauges, and found that the distance from the lands to the ogive on the Hornady 129 gr IL that I was using was almost a tenth of an inch. Yikes! I seated the 129 gr IL out to just off the lands and accuracy settled into 1.5" consistently.

Good luck figuring it out. Kinks with new rifles/cartridges is very frustrating, especially when they have reputations for accuracy, but it is what makes this hobby interesting.

 

[ripcord]

As the above posters have said: it is probably the scope. But....did you follow Howa's barrel break-in instructions? (Not trying to re-open a subject that has been beaten to death) They (Howa) are very specific about what to do with a new barrel. If it is not necessary, doing won't hurt. If it is necessary and you don't do it...well....

 

[CrackHo]

I'm curious too. Did you ever get it figured out (I hope you did)? What was the solution?