New shooter needs advice

2

2rott

Guest
Hi everyone. Been lurking & just joined. I'm new to bench & rifle shooting. Been a pistol shooter for a long time.
I live near a range that has a 200 yd bench range. They practice once a week & have matches once every month or two. I have access to the 100yd range 6 days a week. I'm also a reloader, but so far only pistol rounds.
The good thing is that I only want to have fun & try something new because I'm pretty out classed in the equipment arena.
Just purchased an inexpensive rifle to get my feet wet. Dick's has a sale on a Rem. 700 ADL varmint in camo. It was $449.00 after the rebate, plus a gift cert. for another $16-17. I got a .223 with a 1-12 twist & 26" heavy barrel. It came with a 4-12 (no brand) 40mm scope. I just mounted & bore sighted it. At 4 power it's not too bad (or good), but at 10-12x it's hard to see well. I have to keep my eyes 1" from the scope to see a full view. If I move a drop I lose it. My vision is pretty good with glasses, so I think it's the scope. Plus the crosshair is pretty thick.
I'm planning on buying a new scope in the $250 to $400 range. I'm considering the Mueller 8-32x44 or the Weaver T36. Not sure what to get yet. Would a new scope be clearer & give me more eye relief? Any suggestions?
Next, I have to get some dies & other accessories. I'm going to have to figure a bullet & powder for reloading & start working up a load. I'll probably get some 50G bullets. A lot to do. I read all I can & stop by a few forums. I'll talk to the bench shooter's at my club also.
 
Happy your giving it a try .
The Scope is as important or more so then the rifle . If you can,t see it you can,t hit it .
You will get a lot of advice but all it really is is one persons option .
Shoot 50-=52-53gr bullets start slow and have fun .
 
If your plans for this rifle are stictly bench shooting go with the T36. For the price its one of the best deals going.
Never had a Mueller so I can't compare but the Weaver is considered a beginners bench scope. It will serve seasoned benchers as well.
Bottom line, as long as the Weaver is'nt outright broken it should function just fine. Can't say that about most scopes in your price range.

I've found most new shooters have a difficult time dealing with all the magnification on high power scopes. Does'nt take long to adapt tho.

Most scopes that come on package rifles are junk. Theres a ton of no name/bad name junk optics on the market these days. Buyer beware.
 
with the 26" bbl and 1/12 twist i would look at 50 to 55 with 52/53 match being the best of the commercial bullets.

work up loads, neck size only as you have just one rifle.

buy quality brass...try either a small lot of lapua ot a large lot of winchester.
( buy 500 pcs of win and weight sort after prep'ing the brass...do a fl size, trim to length, debur the inner flash hole...lots of big burrs there from punching the hole)
i was able to get 300 excellent consistant cases from one lot of 500......6 50 rd lots that ran from plus or minus 0.3 to plus or minus 0.1 and one lot of thirty that were the same.

lots of good powders out there......consider starting with imr 8208 ...it works......others that work are 2520, 2230, 2200 2015........not real picky on primers but do not use heavy mil primers and stick to one lot..as in buy a brick of 1000 and shoot them up.....winchester if you cannot find federal ...( i like wolf/tula...but they may not be available to you.)

velocity works, case fill is important...look for loads that give close to full cases........

mike in co
 
Thanks guys. The T36 is my first choice. I hope I have more than 1" eye relief with it. I just want to look thru the scope before I buy. I think a couple of the bench shooters use the T36. I'll check one of their's.
I wasn't expecting the scope I got in the package to be any good. I'll sell it or give it away.
Should I use the alum. Leupold bases I got with the rifle or for that matter the rings if they fit the new scope?
 
Sounds like what you want is the T36 it is the best bang for your buck for target shooting. Leupold bases and rings should be fine, be very sure the mounting screws are tight..

Dick
 
clean all the threads and all the holes with a solvent.. and when you assemble put a drop of blue loctite on the threads......

do the bases and the rings.....

nothing like having a loose screw to give wandering shoots....

mike in co
 
Make or buy at least 4 windflags of some sort. A length of surveyors ribbon on a pole is better than nothing. Bullets, primers and powder is too expensive to waste shooting without flags.
 
One of the common things that can go wrong with scope mounting is for the front base screw to be just a little too long, in which case it does not clamp the base to the reciever, but simply bottoms in the hole. I routinely check any screw that goes into a hole that is closed at the bottom. To do this, I start the screw (without the base in place) and then back it up till I hear a click, which indicates that the beginning of the male and female threads have just passed each other, and from that point carefully count, by half turns, until the screw meets resistance. Then I do the same thing with the base in place. There should be fewer turns with the base or other part in place than without, I like to see at least a quarter turn difference. If there is not, I use a file to shorten the screw till there is.

One more thing; I suggest that you do a littl looking around on the subject of scope mounting before you attempt to mount a new scope. There is quite a bit more to doing it right than just screwing the parts together. Sometimes bases need to be bedded, and pretty much all the time, rings need to be lapped and deburred for so that the scope will not be pulled out of shape and marked when the ring caps are mounted. Assuming that you are not dealing with a rifle weight issue, the Burris Signature Zee rings, of the appropriate height, will let you sidestep these issues quite handily, except for the possible need to bed a one piece base. If you use two piece Weaver bases, the whole thing becomes much simpler. Because it is common for factory actions to have problems with the alignment of their front and rear base mounting locations, Burris makes offset inserts that may be used to compensate for these issues. Setting up a scope this way can take some calculation, but it is worth doing.
 
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Hello and welcome to the forum. There is a wealth of knowledge here.

Killough's advertise here and have the best price on the T36 scope of anyone. They are nice people to deal with as well.

You will need a decent front rest and bags to shoot from. The Caldwell is about the least expensive. It would help your stock to track to install a forend stabilizer. You can make that or get it from Sinclair.

Good Luck,

Joe
 
boyd, and all others ,
what was just described is called "thread drop"....the begining of the bolt thread, dropping over the begining of the female thread(nut or threaded hole).
this is a simple safe way to minimize the chance of a cross thread.......simply always turn the fastener backwards till you feel the drop, then go forward....
rightie tightie, leftie loosie..
mike in co
Boyd Allen said:
To do this, I start the screw (without the base in place) and then back it up till I hear a click, which indicates that the beginning of the male and female threads have just passed each other, .
Click to expand...
 
Wow. Thanks for all the advice. I wouldn't of thought of half of it. The T36 sounds best. Have to decide the thin cross hairs or the small dot. The crosshais might be better for Bench shooting. What do you think?
My rings have no name on them & I'll order the Burris Sig. Zee Rings. Not sure which height, But the T36 is 40mm, same as my no name scope & I'll measue my no name rings & check the height. I want it high enough for scope covers. Thanks for the flag advice.
My base is two piece & it came with one short screw that I put in the front hole, which was the shortest.
The Sinclair site has lots of interesting stuff on it. I'll figure out what I need.
Thanks for the reloading advice. So maybe all the .223 brass I've picked up at the range is not the best way to start Bench shooting. Good to have found this site.
 
2rott said:
The Sinclair site has lots of interesting stuff on it. I'll figure out what I need.
Click to expand...

Looking at Sinclair's website can keep you broke so many cool tools.
Dot or FCH is pretty much personal choice but a lot of Score shooters lean towards dot's while Group shooters tend to like crosshairs with no dot. I personally use the Tall Zee Rings, in 30mm they are not that tall but it helps get your face farther away from the stock for less interference. You however will be using 1" rings but I think the tall rings would still be a good bet.

Dick
 
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Dick Grosbier said:
Looking at Sinclair's website can keep you broke so many cool tools.
Dot or FCH is pretty much personal choice but a lot of Score shooters lean towards dot's while Group shooters tend to like crosshairs with no dot. I personally use the Tall Zee Rings, in 30mm they are not that tall but it helps get your face farther away from the stock for less interference. You however will be using 1" rings but I think the tall rings would still be a good bet.

Dick
Click to expand...
I think I understand what you mean about score & group shooter, but don't understand why they're not the same. Don't you always shoot for score in competition?
Why is it better to get your face further away from the stock?
 
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2ROTT

I bought Nosler 223 Brass and really like it 50 for $31.99 from Sinclair's .
If your not going to be hunting P Dogs you don,t need any more then 50 .

As for the higher rings it will keep you from bumping/pushing the rifle and you don,t need to touch it MUCH .
 
it's hard to beat Talley Mfg for Rings & Bases, Weaver T36 for a scope, for your loading,, a Redding "S; Bushing Full Length Sizing die, Lapua Brass, Fowler 52 gr Flat Base Match Bullets by Scheider Accuracy, any primer and approx 25.0 grs (to your guns liking)of Vitvh N-133,,,,,,,,,,PM me for more load info,,,,,,,

the wind is my friend,,,,,,,,,,,,

DD
 
2rott said:
I think I understand what you mean about score & group shooter, but don't understand why they're not the same. Don't you always shoot for score in competition?
Why is it better to get your face further away from the stock?
Click to expand...

In Score you are trying to hit where you aim, and you shoot one shot per target. In group it is not unusual to intentionally have your bullet impact a distance away from where you are aiming so you do not destroy your aiming point which you must reuse . In short range competition they are two different disciplines. In long range both Score and Group count. The groups being shot these days are so small precision shot placement is extremely important. Generally speaking you want to touch the rifle as little as possible to have a consistent hold. If you press your cheek against the stock it pushes your shot off to the side. Maintaining consistent cheek pressure is difficult, removing cheek pressure removes one variable from how your rifle moves on the bags when it recoils.

Dick
 
Dick Grosbier said:
In Score you are trying to hit where you aim, and you shoot one shot per target. In group it is not unusual to intentionally have your bullet impact a distance away from where you are aiming so you do not destroy your aiming point which you must reuse . In short range competition they are two different disciplines. In long range both Score and Group count. The groups being shot these days are so small precision shot placement is extremely important. Generally speaking you want to touch the rifle as little as possible to have a consistent hold. If you press your cheek against the stock it pushes your shot off to the side. Maintaining consistent cheek pressure is difficult, removing cheek pressure removes one variable from how your rifle moves on the bags when it recoils.

Dick
Click to expand...

Thanks for clearing that up.
 
Has anybody mentioned a trigger. It is very important to have a 2oz trigger for comp. If it is a dual purpose rifle it is a different story. A 2 oz trigger will allow you to shoot only touching the trigger.
 
2oz trigger. Sounds kind of scary. But I knew I would eventually change the trigger to a better lighter one. I guess you get used to the lighter trigger as you use it. I haven't weighed the trigger I have, but it feels about 3#. I think I should learn to master the trigger before I go to a lighter one. Or maybe not. What triggers do you guys recommend?
I'm just starting bench shooting & if I like it as much as I think I will, I'll have to figure out how to progress from here.
You guys have already given me a wealth of info & sites that hopefully will help me make the right decisions.
 
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