1st shot lands low

[bladeracer]

Thread on another forum talked about this issue, but the first shot was like 12" off. Break open I think it was

I'm intrigued how long or what occurs until that wild shot occurs again.
Some are saying they don't clean between and it happens.
Does it occur all year round or mostly in warmer months?
If you left it in the rest on the bench for a few hours and everything got back to the same temp as when starting for the day would it still happen?
Could it be along the lines of what someone else mentioned, after traveling in the car, being stored upright in the safe etc, that things have shifted slightly and the first shot settles it all back in? I'm doubtful of that one, but weird things happen. But scope is locked onto the action and it shoots the same as last session after that dodgy first shot

What else could occur in between sessions?

That does at least sound potentially plausible, scope turrets are generally held in place on a spring. It's possible the load on that spring bouncing around in a vehicle for an hour _might_ set it somewhere other than zero. Perhaps try tapping the turrets to settle them before shooting, or wind them out ten clicks then back again before that first round and see if it makes a difference. With some _really_ cheap scopes they sometimes take a shot or two for the turrets to settle after being adjusted.

[Elmer]

I always put s couple of fowlers through my clean cf barrel before I start a bunny session.

[disco stu]

Hmm. I didn't think about the scope internals being a possibility.

[MtnMan]

Having a few sighter shots before a rabbit hunt is fine but when you pull it out of the safe and something around the house has to die then the 1st shot has to count. That's when it's a pain in the butt.

Great conversation here. Glad it's not just me.

[in2anity]

Having a few sighter shots before a rabbit hunt is fine but when you pull it out of the safe and something around the house has to die then the 1st shot has to count. That's when it's a pain in the butt.

Great conversation here. Glad it's not just me.

This is true - but chances are the rabbit in the garden isn’t gonna be more than say 30m away - accuracy isn’t so paramount I guess.

[MtnMan]

I can shoot 100's of meters out my kitchen window so it kind of does matter if what needs to die is out in the paddock not the house yard.

[in2anity]

I can shoot 100's of meters out my kitchen window so it kind of does matter if what needs to die is out in the opaddock not the house yard.

get a 17hmr

[deye243]

I can shoot 100's of meters out my kitchen window so it kind of does matter if what needs to die is out in the opaddock not the house yard.

get a 17hmr

Haha yep

[MtnMan]

not saying I need to shoot 100's of meters with my .22. My point was I can shoot at things smaller than a rabbit further than 30m out my front door, in which case an inconsistent 1st shot becomes a problem.

I don't need or want a .17hmr. I traded a .22wmr for this .22lr.
Both .17hmr and .22wmr are too expensive for what I want to do. I reload my .222 for the same money.

[Oldbloke]

IMO more like a fouling issue. Or perhaps bedding. These things can be a bugger to sort. Have you had a look here?


https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/#/

[straightshooter]

IMO more like a fowling issue.
https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/#/

Are you suggesting there might be a chook in the barrel?

[straightshooter]

MtnMan
My measurements using a simple ruler on your posted picture indicate that the first shot is 13 calibers away from the center of the rest of the group.
That is about 5.5 MOA.
Anybody who in all seriousness suggests that that amount of error at 50 meters could possibly be due to fouling and/or lack of fouling may be ignored as a complete and utter dill.
If you dismiss the possibility of shooter error then the most probable answer is that the barrel and sight are pointing in different directions for that first shot and then settle down for subsequent shots.
Your challenge is to establish how or why that is so.
It might help if you were to put up a good picture of the scope and mounts on the action.

[Oldbloke]

IMO more like a fowling issue.
https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/#/

Are you suggesting there might be a chook in the barrel?

Lol. Fair enough.

[disco stu]

IMO more like a fowling issue.
https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/#/

Are you suggesting there might be a chook in the barrel?

[bladeracer]

MtnMan
My measurements using a simple ruler on your posted picture indicate that the first shot is 13 calibers away from the center of the rest of the group.
That is about 5.5 MOA.
Anybody who in all seriousness suggests that that amount of error at 50 meters could possibly be due to fouling and/or lack of fouling may be ignored as a complete and utter dill.
If you dismiss the possibility of shooter error then the most probable answer is that the barrel and sight are pointing in different directions for that first shot and then settle down for subsequent shots.
Your challenge is to establish how or why that is so.
It might help if you were to put up a good picture of the scope and mounts on the action.

I agree that this appears to be an extreme example of clean bore drift, but is possible. It is also very easy to rule out by simply not interfering with the coating of lube in the bore and seeing if the issue resolves. If not then more investigation is needed.

As for the bumpy transport issue, if it's a QD mount simply remove it from the mass of the rifle and isolate it from the bumps, otherwise isolate the rifle by laying it on a foam rubber mattress or air bed for the journey and see if that resolves it.

I can't fathom it being a mounting issue that only affects the very first shot, then totally resolves itself with no further input. It's possible it could be a cold shooter issue, but to immediately and complete disappear after just one shot makes it is extremely implausible, in my opinion.

[bladeracer]

not saying I need to shoot 100's of meters with my .22. My point was I can shoot at things smaller than a rabbit further than 30m out my front door, in which case an inconsistent 1st shot becomes a problem.

I don't need or want a .17hmr. I traded a .22wmr for this .22lr.
Both .17hmr and .22wmr are too expensive for what I want to do. I reload my .222 for the same money.

It sounds like you are shooting at home, so is it fair to surmise there is no bumpy road journey that could be a factor? You don't carry the rifle on a quad, bike, tractor, or Landcruiser ute when going out to shoot paper?

[bladeracer]

IMO more like a fowling issue.
https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/#/

Are you suggesting there might be a chook in the barrel?

The dreaded bok-bok-bok first shot syndrome!

[animalpest]

QUOTE - "Anybody who in all seriousness suggests that that amount of error at 50 meters could possibly be due to fouling and/or lack of fouling may be ignored as a complete and utter dill".

So please explain to me why three different rifles do the same thing when shooting CCI Quiet ammo?

[bladeracer]

QUOTE - "Anybody who in all seriousness suggests that that amount of error at 50 meters could possibly be due to fouling and/or lack of fouling may be ignored as a complete and utter dill".

So please explain to me why three different rifles do the same thing when shooting CCI Quiet ammo?

Do you mean these rifles only shoot one of the CCI Quiet loads and nothing else?
Or do you mean when switching to this from a different ammo?
The first situation is odd, unless you are cleaning the bore between sessions, the second is probably normal depending on what the previous ammo was.

[MtnMan]

It sounds like you are shooting at home, so is it fair to surmise there is no bumpy road journey that could be a factor? You don't carry the rifle on a quad, bike, tractor, or Landcruiser ute when going out to shoot paper?

I take it out of the safe, walk outside and shoot on my front lawn.

Scope is Leupold VX-II 3-9x40 that used to be on my .270win with leupold rings mounted to the factory weaver rail.

I'm confident the scope mounting is solid.

[bladeracer]

It sounds like you are shooting at home, so is it fair to surmise there is no bumpy road journey that could be a factor? You don't carry the rifle on a quad, bike, tractor, or Landcruiser ute when going out to shoot paper?

I take it out of the safe, walk outside and shoot on my front lawn.

Scope is Leupold VX-II 3-9x40 that used to be on my .270win with leupold rings mounted to the factory weaver rail.

I'm confident the scope mounting is solid.

Yes, I think it's fine since the rifle shoots generally very well.
You could try shooting some control groups, then clean it and shoot a few groups. Then clean it, secure it, then shoot some groups a day or two later (perhaps a solvent is evaporating during storage), then secure it without cleaning, then shoot some groups a day later. You _might_ be able to discern a pattern, and it's an excuse to do some shooting

[animalpest]

Bladeracer -
Barrels uncleaned. Does it with first 2-3 shots from cold. Left a hour or two it does it again.

Revert back to standard velocity or HV and all is normal. Just happens with CCI Quiet.

Haven't tried doing it with a clean barrel

[straightshooter]

I wonder could having a muzzle velocity of 710 fps have anything to do with it?

[bladeracer]

Bladeracer -
Barrels uncleaned. Does it with first 2-3 shots from cold. Left a hour or two it does it again.

Revert back to standard velocity or HV and all is normal. Just happens with CCI Quiet.

Haven't tried doing it with a clean barrel

That is curious. I often set the Ruger American Compact up zeroed for CCI Quiet HP for the rats and I haven't seen this issue.

[in2anity]

I agree a larger sample is required.

[womble]

Glasses slipping just marginally down the bridge of your nose on the first shot
Couple of rubber bands over the arms and around your ears is the easiest way to fix it.
Those big strong red rubber bands.