I have posted before about the poor groups we get. I loaded a bunch of loads and shot as good as I could at 50 yd's, both Creedmore and sandbags. I am using the Lee 158 gr that I removed the bevel base on so it weighs 160 gr's. The patterns are the same we got with every factory load and jacketed bullet.
The first thing I did was clean the gun spotless and lightly oil everything. I used two different small hole gages in the throats plus expanded lead slugs and they are all a perfect .358". So far so good.
I then pushed a slug through the bore and found it is .0005" tighter at the threads. Then I expanded 5 slugs, one at a time, at the end of the muzzle using a rod against a thick, long piece of Micarta on the recoil shield. I could pull the slugs from the bore like this.
The bore measures .359 to .3595 depending on the groove measured and every slug was the same. The slugs pushed all the way through the tight spot measured .3585" to .3595. No wonder it shoots like crap! The barrel is oversize and larger then the throats plus the bore is constricted at the threads.
Guys, this is a $2000 gun! So much for saying they are built better then a Ruger.
Here is the picture. The center target has 2 of the slugs on it.
I had to tanspose the holes because a lot of the shots were off the target.