Am I chasing my tail?

[22BRGUY]

The CALIBER/CARTRIDGE a person shoots has a lot (NOT EVERYTHING) to do with what distance it will shoot it's best at.
If you are wanting to shoot 1000 yards, I suggest you don't shoot a .22 LR regardless of how well it shoots at 50 yards.
Also if you are looking for a caliber that does great at short range, say 100 or 200 yards, I suggest you NOT use a 300 Win Mag or 338 Lapua.
I disagree that if a cartridge shoots great at 100-300 yards, it will automatically shoot well at 1000.
That is NOT to say you can't shoot at 1000 with a .223, .22PPC or other small calibers, but don't expect to win much in benchrest competition.
Usually, people decide the distance they want to get superior performance at and THEN pick a cartridge/caliber that does that and has proven itself to accomplish that.
JMHO

 

[Ccrider]

I am still trying to figure all of this BR reloading stuff out. I can say that at 100 I have shot groups in the 2s with Es well over 100. I am sure that the group would not hold that moa our to 1000. Measure your filing shots and look at where they hit the target. With loads close to tune, the variance in speed does not seem to matter nearly as much at 100 yds- unless you are shooting competitive short range br.

Also, there are a lots of things that influence Es. At 100 yards, single digit Es does not necessarily translate into the tiniest groups based on what I am seeing. It is intriguing to me that short range br guys often throw there charges at the range. Of course, they are capable of throwing them to .1gr. But this tells me that minor powder variations don’t matter much at short range. If it did, I am sure these guys would measure down to the grain.

 

[1shot]

This is what I want to hear, I recently just purchased a Labradar unit from a friend and I'm hoping that will help me along better. My Magnetospeed works great and gives me the data but you can't shoot for groups with it on the end of the barrel. Does not effect my .223 but plays havoc with my .308, poi shifts bad.

I respectfully disagree with the statement that you can't shoot for group with a Magnetospeed. I have shot countless groups in testing that were in the .100-.300 range at 100 yards. I'm a sling shooter, and all my barrels are either a light or med. Palma contour 32" long. I suppose it MIGHT affect a short stubby BR barrel, but logic says no. A pencil barrel hunting rifle, maybe so.
YMMV,

Lloyd

 

[Falfan2017]

I respectfully disagree with the statement that you can't shoot for group with a Magnetospeed. I have shot countless groups in testing that were in the .100-.300 range at 100 yards. I'm a sling shooter, and all my barrels are either a light or med. Palma contour 32" long. I suppose it MIGHT affect a short stubby BR barrel, but logic says no. A pencil barrel hunting rifle, maybe so.
YMMV,

Lloyd

I've seen it firsthand affect groups on a hunting barrel. This guy came as a first time competitor to a club bench match at 600 yards shooting a factory 6.5 creed. I forget what rifle but it was not a heavy competition barrel. He had the magneto on for the first two targets and shot a 12-18 inch "group" on the first two. Bullets all over the paper including a shot off paper. He took the magneto off for the third and fourth target at the suggestion of another member and shot 6" groups the last 2 targets. Still not great but it was just a hunting rifle off a bipod with factory ammo so could be worse.

 

[riflewoman]

Ok, so if I find a decent load that shoots awesome at 100yds and does really well at 300yds it should be a load that will work out well at 1000yds if the shooter can do his part. No need to find and load different weight bullets for different ranges.

What you want to find is one that shoots awesome at 300 and really well at 100. Use MOA or, better yet, mean radius at 300 as your guide. Depending on the type of competition ten shot groups here. No guarantees that what shoots well at 300 will do well at 600 or 1000,

 

[Lefty Trigger]

I've seen it firsthand affect groups on a hunting barrel. This guy came as a first time competitor to a club bench match at 600 yards shooting a factory 6.5 creed. I forget what rifle but it was not a heavy competition barrel. He had the magneto on for the first two targets and shot a 12-18 inch "group" on the first two. Bullets all over the paper including a shot off paper. He took the magneto off for the third and fourth target at the suggestion of another member and shot 6" groups the last 2 targets. Still not great but it was just a hunting rifle off a bipod with factory ammo so could be worse.

Regardless of his score I bet he still had fun. Last time I got on the long range I took some serious ribbing because I kept making dust clouds just shy of the target, I eventually got "there" but had a ball doing it.

 

[Ned Ludd]

I respectfully disagree with the statement that you can't shoot for group with a Magnetospeed. I have shot countless groups in testing that were in the .100-.300 range at 100 yards. I'm a sling shooter, and all my barrels are either a light or med. Palma contour 32" long. I suppose it MIGHT affect a short stubby BR barrel, but logic says no. A pencil barrel hunting rifle, maybe so.
YMMV,

Lloyd

Attaching any weight whatsoever to the end of a barrel, such as a MagnetoSpeed chronograph, absolutely can affect both POI and group size/shape, just like a tuner. Further, it can do it in rifles with very heavy barrel contours. I know this because I've used one for years and it does affect both POI and group size/shape. Given the amount of time and effort we put into the reloading process, I don't want something hanging off the barrel and potentially altering the testing results. Just like altering an optimized tuner setting, groups can change once the bayonet is removed, so how can it be possible to do meaningful load development with one attached? The answer is quite simple, you load extra rounds, measure velocity, then remove the MagnetoSpeed and shoot groups. The LabRadar gets around doing that, but does have some other issues of its own, IMO. Either one can work when used properly.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

It changes the groups in my 24” long 1.450 rail gun barrel thats in a block. If it changes that you know it changes everything else. Thats the stiffest barrel i can think of- maybe what 16” long 1.450” in front of the block?

 

[1shot]

Nedd & Dusty,
After thinking about this some more, you both make valid points, so I will stand corrected. With that said, your discipline strives for a much tighter tolerance than mine. So when I test with or without the Magnetospeed, my results are within my accuracy parameters as a sling shooter. (My outer limit is .5 moa with very tight vertical).
I hope this helps,

Lloyd