I have had more than a few guys ask me "What does it take to get to the top??". I'm not sure why they are asking me, but I decided to put up my opinion on what it takes and what I have done to TRY and get there. Someday maybe I can get a little better and pull of a big win on a consistent basis. If anyone wants to add to this, feel free. I put in the the technical section, because most of my answers have a technical basis.
Over the last year or two I have made a effort to try and get my shit together and do a little better. I have made changes to equipment, shooting styles, wind reading, practicing and just about everything. It has seemed to help overall. I'm gonna break it down into some multiple posts and topics. First I am gonna talk about the gun.
My FIRST advice to anyone starting out is "DON'T TRY AND REINVENT THE WORLD. DO WHAT EVERYONE ELSE IS DOING UNTIL YOU CAN SHOOT THAT GOOD AND THEN MAKE CHANGES". I have had a hard time with that one in the past and a few years ago I took that advice and started doing better. Use proven stocks, actions, triggers, tuners and methods to tune them, scopes, ammo, rests and barrels, including people to build the guns. DON'T start out with some stuff that is just in general different than the norm, unless that is your thing and you are willing to give up shooting better to do it. The absolute easiest way to get it done here is to find a PROVEN gun and set of equipment to get going. That can be tough, as the top shooters don't turn loose on it much. At this point lets say for sake of argument, you have most of the stuff that is in the norm and have a gun that is good, but not great.
Take that gun and make sure everything is as good as it can be minus the barrel. Make sure the stock is rigid and not jacked up somehow. Make sure the bedding is solid. Make sure that when you tighten and loosen the bedding screws that the barrel doesn't move compared to the end of the stock more than about 3 or 4 thousands. Make sure the screws tighten up quick, not soft. What I mean by that is over about an 1/8th of a turn it goes from finger tight to tight. Make sure they don't hit the screw hole walls, bind on the trigger guard etc. Believe it or not, this is very important. I really like wood stocks better because they seem to be "deader". I have seen fiberglass work well and it is just my opinion. I really like our new stocks with the Dymalux material. I believe they have added 25 to 50 points a target to my scores, but I have no proof other than a feeling. I don't think the flyers go as far in it.
Make sure the firing pin hit is good and consistent. Make sure there is no drag on the cocking piece sides or internal to the bolt. I used to believe you needed a deep and solid hit to be good, but I have now moved back on that. I tend to just have enough hit to make it fire consistently. I cut back the spring or move the trigger forward until I get occasional misfires and then go back a little. That seems to be the ticket for flyers and smaller groups. Less vibration is my theory on that. Along with that goes the trigger. Minimize the trigger drag. Modify the internal spring if necessary. Also, KEEP THE DAMN GREASE OUT OF THE BOLT INTERNALS. This will create terrible drag and kill consistency. This whole topic can get much more involved, but is a small piece of the puzzle.
Make sure the scope base fits right, sand the bottom to match if needed. I have a mandrel built that with a piece of 240 grit paper on it measures 1.340 diameter. I sand all of my rails I install with it to make sure the side edges slightly load first. Keep all the screws tight and use the pins. Good rings are a must also. Anything in a bind in the scope mounting is definitely not good.
I will try to address the other stuff as I have time. The next installment will be finding ammo if you have a good gun or a few good guns. Feel free to add.
Over the last year or two I have made a effort to try and get my shit together and do a little better. I have made changes to equipment, shooting styles, wind reading, practicing and just about everything. It has seemed to help overall. I'm gonna break it down into some multiple posts and topics. First I am gonna talk about the gun.
My FIRST advice to anyone starting out is "DON'T TRY AND REINVENT THE WORLD. DO WHAT EVERYONE ELSE IS DOING UNTIL YOU CAN SHOOT THAT GOOD AND THEN MAKE CHANGES". I have had a hard time with that one in the past and a few years ago I took that advice and started doing better. Use proven stocks, actions, triggers, tuners and methods to tune them, scopes, ammo, rests and barrels, including people to build the guns. DON'T start out with some stuff that is just in general different than the norm, unless that is your thing and you are willing to give up shooting better to do it. The absolute easiest way to get it done here is to find a PROVEN gun and set of equipment to get going. That can be tough, as the top shooters don't turn loose on it much. At this point lets say for sake of argument, you have most of the stuff that is in the norm and have a gun that is good, but not great.
Take that gun and make sure everything is as good as it can be minus the barrel. Make sure the stock is rigid and not jacked up somehow. Make sure the bedding is solid. Make sure that when you tighten and loosen the bedding screws that the barrel doesn't move compared to the end of the stock more than about 3 or 4 thousands. Make sure the screws tighten up quick, not soft. What I mean by that is over about an 1/8th of a turn it goes from finger tight to tight. Make sure they don't hit the screw hole walls, bind on the trigger guard etc. Believe it or not, this is very important. I really like wood stocks better because they seem to be "deader". I have seen fiberglass work well and it is just my opinion. I really like our new stocks with the Dymalux material. I believe they have added 25 to 50 points a target to my scores, but I have no proof other than a feeling. I don't think the flyers go as far in it.
Make sure the firing pin hit is good and consistent. Make sure there is no drag on the cocking piece sides or internal to the bolt. I used to believe you needed a deep and solid hit to be good, but I have now moved back on that. I tend to just have enough hit to make it fire consistently. I cut back the spring or move the trigger forward until I get occasional misfires and then go back a little. That seems to be the ticket for flyers and smaller groups. Less vibration is my theory on that. Along with that goes the trigger. Minimize the trigger drag. Modify the internal spring if necessary. Also, KEEP THE DAMN GREASE OUT OF THE BOLT INTERNALS. This will create terrible drag and kill consistency. This whole topic can get much more involved, but is a small piece of the puzzle.
Make sure the scope base fits right, sand the bottom to match if needed. I have a mandrel built that with a piece of 240 grit paper on it measures 1.340 diameter. I sand all of my rails I install with it to make sure the side edges slightly load first. Keep all the screws tight and use the pins. Good rings are a must also. Anything in a bind in the scope mounting is definitely not good.
I will try to address the other stuff as I have time. The next installment will be finding ammo if you have a good gun or a few good guns. Feel free to add.
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