Horizontal flyers.

[Boz330]

I was testing some loads yesterday at 300yd and I would get a nice little knot of hits and have 1 or 2 flyers out to the side. Is there any ideas what might cause this. I was shooting over cross sticks and there was no wind to speak of and what little there was was straight down range.

Bob

[Mr_Sheesh]

Any possibility that the stock has warped & is now touching the side of the barrel? (Or something else is touching there) Sights or scope all nice and tight etc. hopefully? (Just in case you didn't already check those things)

[Boz330]

Brand new gun. I was thinking maybe some reloading issue. I try to use the same cheek pressure, barrel distance on the sticks, etc. It can be frustrating when nothing seems to account for the flyers. 8 rounds into 4" high by 5.5" wide and 2 others stretching the group to a foot+. I am using a scope and never saw that sort of yaw.

Bob

[Don McDowell]

Checked all the mounts and base screws for any thing that needs attention? I had a front base screw back out once, and instead of getting at least a 5 ram pin, when the trigger broke on ram 5 # 8 toppled.. Luckily rams were my last target for the day..

[NSB]

I shot on a lot of "calm" days with little or no wind.....until I started using wind flags. It's really hard to believe how fickle the wind can be even on "flat" ground. I've been shooting on what I thought was a dead calm day and a hundred yards out there was a ten-fifteen mile an hour cross wind. Even a slight rise or drop in the ground, trees/buildings, etc can funnel a breeze away from you or into a point between you and the target. That might not be your problem, but put a flag out between you and the target and watch if for a while. It's a real eye opener sometimes.

[Boz330]

I shot on a lot of "calm" days with little or no wind.....until I started using wind flags. It's really hard to believe how fickle the wind can be even on "flat" ground. I've been shooting on what I thought was a dead calm day and a hundred yards out there was a ten-fifteen mile an hour cross wind. Even a slight rise or drop in the ground, trees/buildings, etc can funnel a breeze away from you or into a point between you and the target. That might not be your problem, but put a flag out between you and the target and watch if for a while. It's a real eye opener sometimes.

I might give that a try but my range is in a 100+ foot deep valley less than 100yd wide and the wind is usually up or down the valley. if the wind is strong enough to swirl or across I won't be shooting. The bullet has to cross a creek twice before it gets to the berm at the top of the pic.

Don, I just mounted the scope and put locktite on the mount screws so there was no movement there. I also checked the thumb screws while shooting thinking that might have been the problem. This is one of the MVA B model scopes. I like it but it sits down pretty close and there isn't much clearance for the hammer on the Shiloh.

Bob

[Don McDowell]

Bob are the fliers in the same place ? Wondering if you might need to tighten that screw on the mount that holds tension on the adjustment knobs. Making sure you're not giving a touch of windage adjustment during recoil or when you cock the hammer?

[nun2kute]

When I punch ladders, I like to shoot a target with five bull's-eye's on it, five shots each. Last trip out, on my third target, when I layed the gun down on my rest, I noticed the dang scope wiggle. When I got home to investigate thoroughly, I had to use a wrench to dismount the mount from the gun, but the scope to mount screws had come lose. Granted, it is a 458 Socom with a fair kick, but I now have to redo 75 shots. I can't honestly say why you got what you got. But I won't take tight screws for granted ever again. They may seem tight when you're pulling on it, but they may not be tight anyway. good luck with that !

[sharpsguy]

It is intermittent mirage that you can't see with your naked eye or through the scope on your rifle. It takes a dedicated spotting scope, properly used, to see it. You can't see it shooting and spotting for yourself, and it takes a good spotter to see it for you while you are shooting.

[Mr_Sheesh]

I use the plants to read wind in eastern WA - sage etc. - grass in W. WA.

One trick you could try if it keeps up is to put matchbook cover shims under the mounting for the action - Free floats it and if that fixes things you have more information, it is hard to remote diagnose this. I just hope we're helping :)

[Boz330]

It is intermittent mirage that you can't see with your naked eye or through the scope on your rifle. It takes a dedicated spotting scope, properly used, to see it. You can't see it shooting and spotting for yourself, and it takes a good spotter to see it for you while you are shooting.

Now that you mention it, it was mostly cloudy (overcast) while I was shooting, which I actually like. But there were a few very short breaks where the sun came through. They didn't last any time at all and I didn't see any mirage but that might be a possibility. I remember thinking that I could really see the target well when that happened. The cloud cover was very thick otherwise and I never even thought about it affecting anything.

Don, it is hard to get to that hammer without touching the scope but it seems to return to the same place although it wouldn't take much. And I generally pull it back to the stop after I cock the hammer, but not always. That might be something to do the same every time.

Thanks guys, some things to look at, consistency is mandatory. Sometimes you just need an outside look at things and most of you guys have been doing this a lot longer than me.


Bob

Bob

[Dan Cash]

Since your flyers are in azimuth, I don't believe you will encounter sufficient "unseen" mirage at 300 or so yards to account for the problem, though an unsuspected down range cross wind is very possible. I suspect that you are letting the rifle twist from torque. The big bore single shots can do that and if your gun is a straight stock rather than pistol grip style, a twist is more likely. You might try an experiment by firing two shots at your usual range; one shot should be tightly gripped and the other loosly held allowing the gun to twist. See what happens.

[Don McDowell]

Bob one of our B5's will occasionally jump the track in that front mount. Just something else to keep an eye on. A little puff of wind can really bugger good groups up.

[Lead pot]

Bob.
If your getting a nice round cluster and the few walking horizontal it's mostly control or recoil anticipation pushing your shoulder as you touch the trigger and the shots will go oblique or horizontal or what I call I fat fingered it :) to much side finger pressure on the action.
Kurt

[Boz330]

Bob.
If your getting a nice round cluster and the few walking horizontal it's mostly control or recoil anticipation pushing your shoulder as you touch the trigger and the shots will go oblique or horizontal or what I call I fat fingered it :) to much side finger pressure on the action.
Kurt

I am sure capable of that, but I do try to fight it. I have seen that through the sights before.

Dan, this is the same range you shot on when you lived here just 90* to the pistol ranges. Check the picture. It is a deep narrow valley, pretty tough for a cross wind to get in there, especially when it is mostly calm. This is a 40-50 so not torque like the bigger guns. I shot a 577 Nitro express when I was working in South Africa, now that had TORQUE, 750gr solid at 2400FPS. Bruised my bicep big time and I didn't ask for a 2nd shot either.

Don, I will keep that in mind. I got the scope for silhouettes and hunting, Iron sights for BPCRT.

Bob

[Lead pot]

I think we all have Bob but some just wont admit it. :)

[Wayne Smith]

I'm not sure how this will affect target impact but if you are not handling the scope the same each time it will affect how you shoulder the rifle and how you plant your cheek. Something to think about, any way.