POI change in foulers, role of Pelican case foam

[jlow]

I know this is a bit out there and I understand the problem associated with cold bore shots and clean bore shots which are known factors in changes in POI for fouling shots, but my question is could the transporting of rifles in Pelican cases with too much foam also be a factor.

The reason I ask is my 308 has a nasty habit of having significant POI shifts for the first 2 fouling rounds, as much as 1 MOA but it settles back at the third round. Barrels have not been cleaned for the last 40 rounds and of course it is cold bore. The Pelican case in question has one layer of egg carton foam on the lid and two layers on the bottom – a flat piece and an egg carton one on top. With all the foam in place, it is possible to close the case with the rifle in it but it is tight and takes a little persuation. If I take the bottom egg carton foam piece off leaving only the flat piece, the gun still fits in the case and is not loose. So the question is by transporting the gun in this manner, I can visualize some slight torque on the barrel. The question is would it be significant enough to affect the initial rounds.

Please only answer this question if you have had first hand experience (both good and bad) associated with this question.

 

[Jay Christopherson]

I have several Storm/Pelican cases and have never found there to be any sort of POI change related to transport in them. All of my rifles fit very tightly. If there were, I would have to imagine that there is a bedding issue or action torque issue.

 

[jlow]

Thanks for the feedback - much appreciated.