best group at 100 yards

[crankshaft]

Folks often just shoot with the sights that came with the rifle. Any target the store sells. Chunk shooters create custom sights. Other disciplines also. Some Targets we see better much better than others.

 

[Eterry]

Some say they are not happy unless they get 1 ragged hole at 100. I would guess off a rest? Any way, I am not calling them a liar, but would like to see it. I have been around some very good offhand shooters, and no way would they be able to keep all shots touching at even 50 yards. I might get a 1 shot group at 100 off hand if lucky. So, how accurate are you at 50, and 100? Say off a rest. chuck

I get that feeling when guys say they ALWAYS shoot squirrels in the eye ball at 30 yards. I don't think I've shot many squirrels in the head, usually going for the sure shot in the ribs.
My best group was with my 58 Buffalo Hunter, 500gr minie, 60gr fffg. 3 shots touching at 50 yards., strung horizontally.

A good friend explains that it is much easier to shoot the eye balls out of squirrels and make one hole groups on the Internet.... lol.
I think he's right.

 

[dragnetbill]

I get that feeling when guys say they ALWAYS shoot squirrels in the eye ball at 30 yards. I don't think I've shot many squirrels in the head, usually going for the sure shot in the ribs.
My best group was with my 58 Buffalo Hunter, 500gr minie, 60gr fffg. 3 shots touching at 50 yards., strung horizontally.

A good friend explains that it is much easier to shoot the eye balls out of squirrels and make one hole groups on the Internet.... lol.
I think he's right.

My best "one hole" group through a squirrels eye.

 

[Eterry]

That's good shooting... I'll have to give it a go. As a teen with my Marlin 39 i have struck matches and split bullets on an axe... but always went for the sure thing on meat... heck i still do.

 

[S.Kenton]

I get that feeling when guys say they ALWAYS shoot squirrels in the eye ball at 30 yards. I don't think I've shot many squirrels in the head, usually going for the sure shot in the ribs.
My best group was with my 58 Buffalo Hunter, 500gr minie, 60gr fffg. 3 shots touching at 50 yards., strung horizontally.

A good friend explains that it is much easier to shoot the eye balls out of squirrels and make one hole groups on the Internet.... lol.
I think he's right.

That’s realistic... I have been able to shoot a plastic yogurt bottle at 90 yards off hand 3 times in a row. It was a tie breaker in my muzzleloading club. First shot, I hit ... I felt good about that. Then the other fella stepped up and he shot, he hit.. then I had to repeat it, I was able to and thought “ no way he’s gonna hit again” well.. he did. I had to do it one more time and managed to pull it off. The other fella missed by a hair and I was exhilarated. I was a bundle of nerves and was lucky to hit anything! That’s probably the best I’ve shot to date. The yogurt bottle was was about the size of a regular can of soup, painted red, filled with sand, and hanging from a string. As far as shooting a squirrel in the eye at 30 yards consistently... well that’s tuff, not impossible... but darn hard to do all the time. I’ve missed my share of squirrels.. as well as deer. But I’ve also taken my fair share as well...

 

[Darkgael]

Some say they are not happy unless they get 1 ragged hole at 100. I would guess off a rest? Any way, I am not calling them a liar, but would like to see it. I have been around some very good offhand shooters, and no way would they be able to keep all shots touching at even 50 yards. I might get a 1 shot group at 100 off hand if lucky. So, how accurate are you at 50, and 100? Say off a rest. chuck

 

[Sidney Smith]

I can keep most of my shots inside a tennis ball sized target at 50 yards, That's plenty good enough to take deer out to about 100 yards and that's all I'm concerned with. Shooting to impress others is not why I go to the range.

 

[Kansas Kid]

It’s gonna depend on equipment and hold, such as round ball or bullet gun. Off hand fixed iron sighted hunting rifle. Bench rest gun with vernier tang sights. Apples to Apples.

 

[Tom Compton]

That's good shooting... I'll have to give it a go. As a teen with my Marlin 39 i have struck matches and split bullets on an axe... but always went for the sure thing on meat... heck i still do.

Those 39s are great shooters. Wish I had mine back.

 

[Eterry]

Those 39s are great shooters. Wish I had mine back.

I couldn't afford one, but gradually ended up with mine when i was 17. It has killed a truck load of rabbits, some squirrels, Turkey, etc, and is on its 2nd buttstock thanks to a speeding Cadillac.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Back when I was doing a lot of match shooting, there was a round ball cross stick 100 yd target down at Winchester VA. I had a peep sight on a H&A underhammer 45 cal. target gun and despite some cross breeze, shot a 48-2x. The whole group could have been covered with a 50 cent piece, and the target came in 5th. I saved some dollars and ordered a 45 caliber H&H barrel and put it on an old Cabelas' Hawken stock, moved the peep sight to the new rifle and practiced like a possessed monk. The following year, I entered that cross stick match again and shot a 49-3x and came in 7th., I shot the same gun without the peep sight, in a 50 yard offhand match up at Blue Ridge and had a fantastic group with all 5 shots in a ragged hole. It still wasn't good enough to place. A few years ago, I went to watch the slug gun match at Blue Mountain Rifles near Shartlesville PA. They shoot a six bull target at 100 yards, use peep sights and fancy two piece swaged cross patched bullets. Getting all tens was a requirement just to place. Winning was determined by the number of x's. At that 4 and 5 -x's were not that uncommon.

 

[Shooter1]

I've only shot one of those 50 1x targets in national comp. That was good enough for a second in match. 40 cal. Peep rear, post front.patched round ball.

 

[Eterry]

Im very much aware that a match grade rifle, with target trigger, target sights, barrel, etc CAN and WILL shoot incredible groups. And some stock off the shelf guns can turn in groups that are amazing.

My point was/is, like everyone's grandfather had a Stradivarius violin hanging in their barn, and everyone locally has/had a 92 Winchester that belonged to Sam Bass, there's a lot of "Blue Sky" on the Internet...

 

[Rattus58]

Some say they are not happy unless they get 1 ragged hole at 100. I would guess off a rest? Any way, I am not calling them a liar, but would like to see it. I have been around some very good offhand shooters, and no way would they be able to keep all shots touching at even 50 yards. I might get a 1 shot group at 100 off hand if lucky. So, how accurate are you at 50, and 100? Say off a rest. chuck

The best I can say that I have done at 100 yards is all shots in the black. I have done that many times... the bull is usually 4" square sometimes a pie plate (6") which is pretty easy to do. However, with my current first choice, it is a 30" green mountain barrel in .580 and 50 yards with that gun I can keep them all really close, every once in a while a sub 1" group within a group... Open sights are a challenge for old eyes... but that is all I shoot...

 

[Nessmuck56]

When at a black powder shoot,some years ago....I saw a guy shooting offhand at a 100 yard Offical target. His first 4 shots were in the 10 ring.....and then everyone stopped shooting,and waited for him to squeeze of his last shot. It landed in the 9 ring

 

[crankshaft]

I shot against a guy who went thru a case of powder a year.
A case!
Needless to say, he was a very good shot.

 

[tc45dave]

The best group I have had is 6 inches at 50 yds. But I have only shot my Hawken 3 times and I need a lot more practice.

 

[dave951]

Text on each says it.

 

[Eterry]

View attachment 9701 View attachment 9702
Text on each says it.

That's great shooting Dave... is your musketoon a PH, Navy Arms, or what? In my experience getting a minie to shoot accurately is LOTS harder than a prb.
My Navy Arms Musketoon started out shooting 6 MOA, until Dave France helped me get the right size minies. I have discovered using lots of pressure seating the minies help my groups a lot.
I haven't spent much time on bullet prep other than visually inspect for flaws.
What kind of bullet prep do you do, or would reccomend?

 

[dave951]

That group was out of a 1st Gen (Birmingham) PH. Bullet was RCBS Hogdon cast pure lead, sized to bore. Mold drops just over .579 and I sized to .575. Lube was lard/beeswax. Minies were weighed and visually inspected. Seating during loading was one firm stroke, none of thar ramrod pounding stuff. All ramrod pounding does is deform the nose and screw up aerodynamics and accuracy. Powder charge was 43g 3f Old Eynsford. Powder quality matters. Best powders are probably Swiss and Old E.