Factory Rifle / Factory Ammo Project

[K22]

I must admit the Scope problem took a bit of the shine off my purchase and inserted some doubt into my brain .
The Vortex is the second one which I have had problems with now and I won't be buying another .
I'm sure the higher models are good but in the Diamond grade and below your taking your chances .
I'll send it back under warranty , but if its replaced or fixed it will be getting sold .

A couple of years ago I purchased my first Vortex, a 4x16, getting a terrific deal at Midway. The scope had all the features I was looking for in a varmint scope. However, I had trouble getting a clear consistent focus. Their customer service was responsive. I sent it to them, they examined it and sent it back - no defects found. When I called them and explained my difficulty they offered the following explanation:

The problem was the eye box was too small for me. I'm use to Leupold and Bushnell scopes so the smaller eye box on the Vortex created problems for me to obtain consistent focus in the field. This is more of a personal issue related to me than an indictment of Vortex's quality.

Also, at 16x, the resolution wasn't great but I expected that so that wasn't a surprise or something I couldn't deal with. However, I couldn't shoot precisely due to the "small eye box" so I sold the scope. I got a Bushnell Elite and problem solved except that I didn't get a "deal" on the Bushnell and had to paid full price.

 

[jlorenzo]

Cool thread. Good to see Howa is one of the companies finally going with a faster twist than 1/9 for 223 bolt guns. I have the same B&C stock and I enjoy it. Looking forward to see how that 69gr Winchester shoots for you. Could you walk through how your hunts usually work? Mostly Roos? I find Australia very interesting.
I'm sure one of those loads should work out well enough for you. Are you shooting prone off a bipod and rear bag for groups?
Keep us posted on any further developments. I like the rifle.

 

[Gary in MD]

Yea, after your first shooting with terrible groups, that was my very first thought. That it was that scope being the problem. You will more than likely have good success with that Meopta.
Keep us posted on how the rifle is shooting and post some pictures of some hunting results.
Gary

 

[harro]

Thanks to everyone that has responded with positive feedback.

I started this project to satisfy my own wonderings about if Factory ammo and Factory rifle could be adjusted/ tuned to a higher level of accuracy easily and simply.
While doing research on Barrel Tuners I ended up here and another couple of forums.
It then occurred to me that most threads these days are about high dollar builds and the factory rifle / factory ammo guys are hardly ever heard from anymore.
I come from a rural area here in Australia and most people I know are farmers who use their firearms as tools and those rifles are hardly ever altered or improved.
I totally understand the high dollar , high performance builds that are prevalent now , but I’m sure there are as many if not more “ old fashioned “ guys like me that might enjoy a “ Factory “ thread .

Ken

 

[Knotwild]

I've enjoyed this thread. I tried something similar with a Remington 783 in .223. It has a 9 twist barrel though.

I also just bought my first Meopta scope - the same one you bought. One of my shooting buddies saw it and bought one too.

 

[JSH]

I got lost with the stock reply. You mentioned Hogue, then the Bell and Carlson. Did the B&C stock meet your expectations? I have a few of the Mini’s and wish I had a couple more. I ditched the factory stock on all of them.
I rebarreled one to 22 Nosler, like the cartridge but the Oryx chassis does not make me happy. I have a sporter B&C set up and thinking on the one you have.

 

[harro]

I got lost with the stock reply. You mentioned Hogue, then the Bell and Carlson. Did the B&C stock meet your expectations? I have a few of the Mini’s and wish I had a couple more. I ditched the factory stock on all of them.
I rebarreled one to 22 Nosler, like the cartridge but the Oryx chassis does not make me happy. I have a sporter B&C set up and thinking on the one you have.

I made a mistake purchasing the Hogue aluminium bedded Stock it just wasn’t good enough even though it was an improvement over the original Stock .
I think the B&C Stock is very good in my limited time with it and I’m very happy so far . It is solid as a rock and the ergonomics , fit and function seem to be top quality. It is heavy but that isn’t a problem for my application.
I purchased an Oryx for one of my Tikka’s and it got taken off the rifle soon after . It was my first and only Chassis stock , I just didn’t get on with it and I realised that for what I do a Stock suits my requirements better. I’m sure that for competition a Chassis is a good thing but for hunting a more classic Stock feels better and is easier to use .

 

[harro]

I've enjoyed this thread. I tried something similar with a Remington 783 in .223. It has a 9 twist barrel though.

I also just bought my first Meopta scope - the same one you bought. One of my shooting buddies saw it and bought one too.

Meopta makes a very good product for the money and as I mentioned earlier the low light performance is only bettered by scopes worth 3 times as much .
This Meopta is my third one , I’ve had zero issues with the other two and they have had a hard life bouncing around in vehicles and covered in dust and grime.

 

[searcher]

I made a mistake purchasing the Hogue aluminium bedded Stock it just wasn’t good enough even though it was an improvement over the original Stock .
I think the B&C Stock is very good in my limited time with it and I’m very happy so far . It is solid as a rock and the ergonomics , fit and function seem to be top quality. It is heavy but that isn’t a problem for my application.
I purchased an Oryx for one of my Tikka’s and it got taken off the rifle soon after . It was my first and only Chassis stock , I just didn’t get on with it and I realised that for what I do a Stock suits my requirements better. I’m sure that for competition a Chassis is a good thing but for hunting a more classic Stock feels better and is easier to use .

I acquired a Remington 700 years back which carries a Hogue aluminum bedded stock. I think Remington called the rifle the "Police Special" or something like that. It is a Remington varmint contour. Anyway - shot pretty ho-hum till I skim bedded the action to the aluminum block. Big difference. I was going to put on a different stock but changed my mind after the bedding job. Went from ho-hum to really well.

 

[Scrumbag]

Nice project and thanks for writing up.

Meopta scopes are good. I've got a couple and like'em.

Ammo I would suggest you try if you can get it: Federal 62gr Fusion. My 1:9 barrel loves it.

Scrummy

 

[harro]

Nice project and thanks for writing up.

Meopta scopes are good. I've got a couple and like'em.

Ammo I would suggest you try if you can get it: Federal 62gr Fusion. My 1:9 barrel loves it.

Scrummy

I’m going to slowly chew through the different ammo I already have over the next month or two .
I’m going down to Brisbane ( our state Capital ) in May which is an 11 hour drive and there are a few large gunshops there which hopefully have a bigger selection of ammo to choose from .
I’ll definitely keep my eye out for some of that Federal 62 gn

 

[Scrumbag]

Ah Brisbane, used to know it well (Between working in oil & gas and mining I seem to have visited it a fair bit).

Those Fusion aren't the cheapest but I really do like the performance.

Scrummy