Need help on Double Grouping

[TenX]

Hi all.
I need some tips on improving my grouping. I have (forcibly) migrated from SK to Eley Club in my event, .22 Prone FRP. I had a very tight grouping with easy 98 cards with the SK. But with Eley, now, I am getting double grouping on the Anschutz 1913 model. Any quick tips to help me out.
I cant change ammo now.
I get only 10 sighters to make all adjustments.
I can distinctly see variations in the recoil.
My National Championship practice is going on and will be till the 23rd Dec.
Two shooters (including me) use the same rifle, and we both have the same problem - 1 inner ten and the next shot is usually an 8'O clock or 9'O clock 9 (and sometimes an 8 )

Any bedding screw adjustments that can help me out?
Any 'knack' or something like that?
Pointers/tips?

[shutzen]

HI! Man u putting in a load of practice havnt even started my live fire till now ;( anyways too cought up in renovation of my house and wedding season etc. besides this year there is only open event in the NSCC so even if u shoot 560 or 590 the result is gonna be the same - u will be a renowned shot and I think all the 8 finalists will be in the ninties or very close to it.

The annie loves the eley xtra ammo and unless u have a really old rotten lot whose bullets are loose in the ctg. casses there should b no problem. The bedding screws should just b checked for tightness and the barrel for free float. Make sure your front and rear sights are fixed properly and tightened beside correct aperture settings.
Make sure of your NPA , variations in recoil can either be a lot of bad ammo or most likely bad position and NPA ,U r forcing the Rifle onto the tgt and it is moving back to NPA under recoil , right elbow relocation after reloading and dont flinch or jerk . Cheek placement , cheek pressure ,eye relief , sling tightness , heartbeat can all be a factor. Make sure your butt does not move down while reloading as this will surely give similar effect as u r having.
I think from what u post abt your scores that u r in good nick and are just suffering from performance anxiety. Just take it easy and things will go okay at the nats.
Well as for me I hope to get in at least four live practice sessions before heading out to Ahmedabad on 30.1.2.2007. - See you there and Good Luck !

[TenX]

Thanks for so much pointers Shutzen.
ACK

[shutzen]

Thanks for so much pointers Shutzen.
ACK

Hey dude! Come on with the kinda scores you claim to shoot "easy" regularly 98/100 it mean u shoot 588/600 - Now that is hallowed ground by any standards and u shooting 8' an whatever the smiley u put there means - hope its not denoting a washout had to give you the whole hog. Hate to think of what you shoot when you really try hard

BTW other readers who are interested can also check this out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACK

Have fun and hope to see you in the finals! - If you make the finals I will personally volunteer to be your record keeper

[TenX]

Not all cards were 98. I actually range between 96 to 99. 97 being my most consistent. And by the way, I actually shoot better in matches than in practice. Somehow, I never get into the 'performance anxiety' groove.
One good thing is that the range officer 'managed' to arrange for a half practice with SK-SP just so that I can prove that the double grouping is not because of the round!
I switched to SK SP rounds today, (after getting another bad double grouping with Eley club) and shot a series of 4 cards with the SK-SP scoring 93, 95, 97 and 99, in that order. I am pretty pleased and have my confidence back. Need to shoot a 580+ tomorrow and I will be back on track I guess...
My best scores in Nationals were 585 and 583, but have shot 588 in the National Squad trials 3 years ago. Hope to match that, if not better that, this time.

ACK
(Anand C K) - Maybe this makes sense now

[TenX]

Thanks all.
I am back in niche form - scored a 588 with 7 sighters in a total time of 28 minutes, and one break of 7 minutes

[Mack The Knife]

Thanks all.
I am back in niche form - scored a 588 with 7 sighters in a total time of 28 minutes, and one break of 7 minutes

Well done, mon ami! Go kick some ar*e....big time!

Inder and Pran, what did I tell you about this guy's shooting speed?

[Pran]

Thanks all.
I am back in niche form - scored a 588 with 7 sighters in a total time of 28 minutes, and one break of 7 minutes

Wow...

Boss, looking forward to getting some tips from you when you're at the range.

>Inder and Pran, what did I tell you about this guy's shooting speed

Got the point.

Pran

[shutzen]

HI! ACK best of luck and good shooting! Nice to see that the gremlins have been ironed out Well such are the nuances of SB rifle that one day the same lot of ammo will refuse to respond to the clicks you give and keep grouping to one side and next day it will dance around to every click you give ! Well something to do with the way the image forms on the retina and the brain interprets it too- looking too long will cause the burn in memory effect and while the trigger is being pressed the aim has already shifted but the image is burnt into the retina and the shooters gets a shock when he sees the score. Anyways this is just one the things which upsets the apple cart. Managed to get one round of live fire myself too - first 20 shots were goofed as I was adjusting the buttplate but the last 30 were cool good ones.
One good thing I have noticed in your string is the time! Following the ready aim fire in 4- 7 seconds schedule ANyways see you in Ahmedabad and happy hunting!

[TenX]

Thanks for your post.
The retina fact is really impressive. never thought about it. I often would get a better grouping when I would change my focus to a green cloth that I keep necxt to me and look at the front sight, soon after.
SOmetimes, if there is no cloth, I look at a small protruding rivet tip on my sling. It helped, and I did not know why.
The posting you put in explains it pretty well.
And you are damn right about the SB-click. For me, the initial position, scope, natural aim and body balance, which happens in the first few seconds dictate my final score. 8 out of 10 times, I get into that perfect body-balance-strain feeling. And I know I will smile that day.

ACK

[shahid]

Relax, take it easy, then focus and shoot, get your mind away from anxiety, shoot in a relaxed easy manner.

Ammo does matter, my personal preference would be towards ELEY but not club, they are practise ammo, I would prefer tournament grade stuff that is individually checked in more frequent batches and hence the higher price.

Anyway you may get lucky and the next few boxes of ammo might actually perform better.

is the range airconditioned ? Temperature does make a difference to powder performance.

[TenX]

Well we dont have an air-conditioned range.
Next, we dont get to 'Batch-test' the ammo ether. The topic was brought up today (over a briefing meeting for the NSCC) and a whole lot of 'senior' shooters raised a hue and cry about individual preferences. But that is expected, and what I have seen in the last 6 years.
Weonly get ammo that is given, and mostly, it depends on what ammo is in shortage, what is expected and what needs to be exhausted.
Luckily for me, I have brought home 5 medals in the last three NSCCs that I took part in, been awarded KOA's Best Sportsman of the Year for 2003 and the Ekalavya Award for 2006. So, I get to pull some strings once in a while, and thus managed to get SK-SP. I have tried (out of wild desire) Eley Ultimate a few times, and somehow, my barrel vows to equally distribute the shots all over the nine ring, and calmly misses the center.
So, no 'Match-Grade' for me.
Anyways, shot 581 today, and have an average of 96, 98 and 96.75 in my three rounds of practice.
Do wish me all the best and lets meet in Ahmedabad soon.
ACK

[Mack The Knife]

Like I said, go kick some butt and if you shoot 581 I'll kick yours.

THINK CENTRE!!!

[shahid]

Relax, take it easy, focus, you will do well. All the best at Ahmedabad to all IFG memebers.