I'm confused
Posted: Tue Jun 02, 2026 8:47 am
Life happened (bought a house, moved towns, bought a new place, moved towns again, had a baby, etc.) and because of this it's been a while since I shot my guns. A few weeks ago I decided to do something about that. Cleaned my rifle top to bottom, set up a range with a target on my smallholding and fired a few rounds.
This was ALL OVER THE PLACE. I struggled to hit an A4 paper at 100m with the rifle. Sure, it was not with my regular load but with factory ammo, but previously it shot very well with factory ammo. Nothing has changed. I figured it might be me so I kept shooting, and eventually I got something that resembled a group, but the POI shifted almost 15cm to the right, and low.
I adjusted this group to center with the correct clicks, but the next group fired way left. Still low. Every time it's just windage that's off, elevation is fine. Every time I adjusted by the correct amount of clicks, the POI overshot to the other side. I gave up after firing almost the whole box and got nowhere.
A few weeks later I decided to try it again. Pulled out the brush cutter, opened a nice path through the bush and set up a proper shooting station - table, dead rest, comfy chair, sun behind me, the works. I ranged the target at 130m and set myself down. I returned the scope to where it was before I started shooting the previous time, and fired three shots. Again, factory ammo. Again, far right and low. But, this time, in a very acceptable ~35mm group. Vastly different than before. I mean, I can hunt with that. I didn't have a lot of time (just wanted to see what the rifle would do), so I didn't adjust or changed anything. Packed up and stored my rifle in the safe.
This past weekend I set up a range again, but because I was away from POI so much, I decided to shoot closer. I ranged 50m and set up. I fired my last factory ammo round as a warmup shot and it impacted exactly in the same place as the previous group - 12cm right and about 3cm low. I know this ammo did well in my rifle before and wasn't far off from my hunting load, so I adjusted the clicks left and up.
I then fired three shots with my hunting load. Yes, it was only 50m, but I punched only two holes, touching. Two bullets (the first two) through the same hole. The second just-just off to the left. Slightly low, and a little to the left. I adjusted to center and fired three more. Again, a very, very tight clover group. I did a final adjustment and punched out the remaining 1cm dots around the edge of the target. It fires like the day I developed the load. All is well again in the world.
So, now I want to know, how is it possible for a rifle to go from good to horrible to good again? I changed nothing. Yes, I'm shooting with a suppressor but it was tight every time. Rifle is a Remington 700 in .30-06 in a Stocky Stocks laminated wood stock, with an aluminium bedding block and it was bedded and threaded by a good gunsmith. I also replaced the trigger with a Triggertech Primary. Scope is an Athlon Talos BTR 4-14x44 FFP.
Could it be that it was just me shooting like my arse, and some practice got me "back in it"? It's possible, but I don't know. I made sure of my shots on all the previous strings as well. Rifle dead still, not fighting the stock, letting the shot off easy while being dead on target, etc. I'm confused. Very confused.
This was ALL OVER THE PLACE. I struggled to hit an A4 paper at 100m with the rifle. Sure, it was not with my regular load but with factory ammo, but previously it shot very well with factory ammo. Nothing has changed. I figured it might be me so I kept shooting, and eventually I got something that resembled a group, but the POI shifted almost 15cm to the right, and low.
I adjusted this group to center with the correct clicks, but the next group fired way left. Still low. Every time it's just windage that's off, elevation is fine. Every time I adjusted by the correct amount of clicks, the POI overshot to the other side. I gave up after firing almost the whole box and got nowhere.
A few weeks later I decided to try it again. Pulled out the brush cutter, opened a nice path through the bush and set up a proper shooting station - table, dead rest, comfy chair, sun behind me, the works. I ranged the target at 130m and set myself down. I returned the scope to where it was before I started shooting the previous time, and fired three shots. Again, factory ammo. Again, far right and low. But, this time, in a very acceptable ~35mm group. Vastly different than before. I mean, I can hunt with that. I didn't have a lot of time (just wanted to see what the rifle would do), so I didn't adjust or changed anything. Packed up and stored my rifle in the safe.
This past weekend I set up a range again, but because I was away from POI so much, I decided to shoot closer. I ranged 50m and set up. I fired my last factory ammo round as a warmup shot and it impacted exactly in the same place as the previous group - 12cm right and about 3cm low. I know this ammo did well in my rifle before and wasn't far off from my hunting load, so I adjusted the clicks left and up.
I then fired three shots with my hunting load. Yes, it was only 50m, but I punched only two holes, touching. Two bullets (the first two) through the same hole. The second just-just off to the left. Slightly low, and a little to the left. I adjusted to center and fired three more. Again, a very, very tight clover group. I did a final adjustment and punched out the remaining 1cm dots around the edge of the target. It fires like the day I developed the load. All is well again in the world.
So, now I want to know, how is it possible for a rifle to go from good to horrible to good again? I changed nothing. Yes, I'm shooting with a suppressor but it was tight every time. Rifle is a Remington 700 in .30-06 in a Stocky Stocks laminated wood stock, with an aluminium bedding block and it was bedded and threaded by a good gunsmith. I also replaced the trigger with a Triggertech Primary. Scope is an Athlon Talos BTR 4-14x44 FFP.
Could it be that it was just me shooting like my arse, and some practice got me "back in it"? It's possible, but I don't know. I made sure of my shots on all the previous strings as well. Rifle dead still, not fighting the stock, letting the shot off easy while being dead on target, etc. I'm confused. Very confused.
