Wait Time When Shooting Groups

[MG5150]

Hi All

I recently had my scope wobble loose on my 30-06 and will need to re-zero it after having it tightened up.

When shooting for groupings and re-zeroing

1) how many shots should I fire before adjusting the turrets?

2) how long should I wait between shots?


I've also got a Lithgow 223 Varmint Barrel, will this require less time in between due to thick barrel and smaller calibre?

[JohnV]

I would only fire one shot and see where it lands in relation to point of aim . Adjust it the amount you need to be closer to point of aim and when a shot lands very close to the point of aim let the barrel cool down and fire three shots to form a group and if necessary adjust again to get the group centered . Three shots at a time is all you need once you are close .
Put your hand on the barrel just in front of the scope and see how hot it is , then wait till you feel it's cooled down noticeably .
After a while you can feel by hand how warm the barrels is and shoot at a consistent temp even if it's not dead cold .
It's the same reasoning for a 223 or any other cartridge . If the scope just loosened a bit then after tightening it back up it should not be too far off .

[Die Judicii]

I would only fire one shot and see where it lands in relation to point of aim . Adjust it the amount you need to be closer to point of aim and when a shot lands very close to the point of aim let the barrel cool down and fire three shots to form a group and if necessary adjust again to get the group centered . Three shots at a time is all you need once you are close .
Put your hand on the barrel just in front of the scope and see how hot it is , then wait till you feel it's cooled down noticeably .
After a while you can feel by hand how warm the barrels is and shoot at a consistent temp even if it's not dead cold .
It's the same reasoning for a 223 or any other cartridge . If the scope just loosened a bit then after tightening it back up it should not be too far off .

And then (if its 50mm or further off) secure/bag the rifle so it can't move, with the reticle set on your original aiming point.
Then (taking care not to move the rifle) carefully wind the reticle across or down to the bullet hole.
That being done successfully you should be pretty damm close to zero.

[Billo]

If the shot you fired isn't too far away I from the aiming point then I will often shoot a 3 shot group first before then adjusting.

I tend to wait 7-8mins between groups this time of year so the barrel is closer to cool, and replicating a cold bore shot

[womble]

Just remember which way to wind the turrets. Or it’s going to be a very long day.

[Oldbloke]

If the shot you fired isn't too far away I from the aiming point then I will often shoot a 3 shot group first before then adjusting.

I tend to wait 7-8mins between groups this time of year so the barrel is closer to cool, and replicating a cold bore shot

Much the same here.

[geoff]

It depends how confident you are in the rifle, the ammunition and you as a shooter.

Most people could do with being a bit more humble

If you know full well it's a laser beam rifle shooting absolute hammer ammo and you can personally keep that standard up consistently then yeah go the one shot and chase it method.

Most rifle shooters I see and help benefit greatly from shooting at least a 3 shot, preferably a 5 shot, group to see where the true mean point of impact actually is, and adjust off that (pro tip: the mean POI on a hunting rifle in hunting conditions is almost never actually one of the bullet holes)

If your gun shoots 1 to 1.5 inch groups (pretty acceptable for a hunting '06), how can you be sure where your bullet is in that 1.5 inch circle shooting one shot at a time?

[MG5150]

It depends how confident you are in the rifle, the ammunition and you as a shooter.

Most people could do with being a bit more humble

If you know full well it's a laser beam rifle shooting absolute hammer ammo and you can personally keep that standard up consistently then yeah go the one shot and chase it method.

Most rifle shooters I see and help benefit greatly from shooting at least a 3 shot, preferably a 5 shot, group to see where the true mean point of impact actually is, and adjust off that (pro tip: the mean POI on a hunting rifle in hunting conditions is almost never actually one of the bullet holes)

If your gun shoots 1 to 1.5 inch groups (pretty acceptable for a hunting '06), how can you be sure where your bullet is in that 1.5 inch circle shooting one shot at a time?

Thanks

If I'm shooting 3-5 shots am I waiting 15-30 seconds between each shot then an extended period before the next grouping? or better to wait 2-3 minutes between each shot?

[animalpest]

By the time I have walked down to the 100m taget and back, I then am ready for the next 3-5 shots.

[Oldbloke]

IMO, of you have a sporter/light weight barrel wait a bit longer. Heavy barrels are more tolerant of a bit of heat. What's the rush?

[MG5150]

IMO, of you have a sporter/light weight barrel wait a bit longer. Heavy barrels are more tolerant of a bit of heat. What's the rush?

not so much rush as not knowing the recomendation, and hearing a dozen different things from different people (outside of this forum/post)

[Oldbloke]

The more powder they burn the fewer shots required for them to get hot.
So less critical for a 223, than a 30.06

[geoff]

It depends how confident you are in the rifle, the ammunition and you as a shooter.

Most people could do with being a bit more humble

If you know full well it's a laser beam rifle shooting absolute hammer ammo and you can personally keep that standard up consistently then yeah go the one shot and chase it method.

Most rifle shooters I see and help benefit greatly from shooting at least a 3 shot, preferably a 5 shot, group to see where the true mean point of impact actually is, and adjust off that (pro tip: the mean POI on a hunting rifle in hunting conditions is almost never actually one of the bullet holes)

If your gun shoots 1 to 1.5 inch groups (pretty acceptable for a hunting '06), how can you be sure where your bullet is in that 1.5 inch circle shooting one shot at a time?

Thanks

If I'm shooting 3-5 shots am I waiting 15-30 seconds between each shot then an extended period before the next grouping? or better to wait 2-3 minutes between each shot?

I do the same method as animalpest. Don't overthink it - no stopwatch required

There's so many variables if you wanted to go down a rabbit hole. Very few of them make much of a measurable difference for the average shooter

[womble]

Would an egg timer work.
Now that would be handy.

If it was a really breezy day would that effect how quickly the barrel cooled ?
Should you use a little windmill straw to gauge how breezy it was.

Perhaps also a small thermometer to test the ambient temperature of the air surrounding the barrel.

Or how about a magic rabbit’s foot that you could rub between shots. Now we’re getting somewhere.

Carry on.

[Wapiti]

If you have a quality barrel, you do not need to wait at all between shots in a group.

If you have to wait between shots, other than working the action and re-establishing point of aim, you are actually cheating and giving yourself a false outcome.
In other words, you're trying to make up for your equipment being inconsistent as it heats up.

The barrel is just a piece of steel alloy with a hole drilled in it and rifling formed by whatever method has been used. If the barrel has no stress present from this process, or has been stress relieved, it will not walk it's shots or shoot a larger group as it warms.
If it does, it has stresses present in the metal which presents itself in changing POI when it heats up.

There is another VERY common reason that this happens, which is mostly never explained because the gun reviewers or posters know nothing about how this effects consistency (what's new). That is that too many mass produced barrels have their bores off-centre to the external profile by quite a margin. Which I almost guarantee that you cannot see with the naked eye and can only tell when you clock the bore centreline in a lathe to do accurate work on it.
Then as the barrel heats up, because one side of the stress-filled barrel heats up, it starts moving in the direction it is weakest in, or in which the stresses push it.

That's why the heavier you go in a barrel, the less you see it. And also, why some pencil thin barrels do not show this occurring. More care and steps taken during manufacture.

You will find out what you got by just shooting 5 shots without trying to skew the results by waiting for a barrel to cool to the same temp each time.
Think about it - in the field, if you have to take 5 shots quickly, accurately, do you wait between shots then too?

[bigrich]

Hi All

I recently had my scope wobble loose on my 30-06 and will need to re-zero it after having it tightened up.

When shooting for groupings and re-zeroing

1) how many shots should I fire before adjusting the turrets?

2) how long should I wait between shots?


I've also got a Lithgow 223 Varmint Barrel, will this require less time in between due to thick barrel and smaller calibre?

hey mate, i'm late to the party . myself , i fire 3 shots then adjust . if it's a hunting rifle let the barrel cool till you fire your next three as cold barrel accuracy is the situation in a hunting/stalking scenario. i put my hand on the barrel to access whether it's "cooled" . suppose 5 minutes i guess . i don't fire a lot of rounds quickly through my rifles except in a hunting situation . your varmit barrel will not change POI much due to it's heavier construction, a bull barrel can be cool on the outside but the heat buildup in the chamber throat can have a negative effect on barrel life with rapid firing /heat buildup .
JMHO , others will have theirs

[Bugman]

I was a 3 shot then adjust for me 243.

[fussy]

1. Will you hunt with a cold zero? That's the shot you want. (eg. 12 point deer after a long wait at 300m)
2. Will you hunt a huge mob of pigs at < 100m? Blaze away, your accuracy is not that important.

In any case, see IF it makes a difference.
Fire the first shot.
Then a few more.
if you start to get a "string", your barrel is warping. Especially true if it corrects when cool, then recurs when hot.

[CJRBOLTGUN1]

lots of overthinking going on here