ProHunter accuracy question ????

[Varmint Hunter]

Well, I finally got a chance to shoot my Prohunter with the 45-70 Katahdin barrel. The trigger had previously been reworked and lightened. It breaks cleanly @ 2.5lbs. I mounted a Nikon red-dot sight on it for an upcoming bear hunt and loaded some Hornady 300gr HP bullets to get started. The bullets were loaded with RE7, H335, or H4198, all of which shot at about 2,000-2,500 ft/sec. All testing was done @ 100 yds.

The rifle was much more pleasant to shoot than its bark would suggest. However, I was rather disappointed in the accuracy. Groups with all powders ran 3" to 4.5". While I was not expecting 1 moa groups, I was expecting 2"-2.5" groups with at least one of the powders.

What would you guys suggest to try to shrink the group size? Different bullets? Shimming the forearm? Hinge pin? Other?

[KN]

In my opinion you are expecting too much from the Red Dot. I have never seen one that could be used outdoors without turning the power up on it. That causes your dot to cover a bigger area than your groups. If you really want to check group size, mount a scope.   KN

[Varmint Hunter]

Actually, the Nikon red-dot sight has 5 different size dots including a 1moa and a 4 moa dot so I'm not sure that is the problem. However, I have a 3x9 Kahles laying around here which I can mount for load development.

Any other suggestions?

[Cheesehead]

I have had great accuracy results with the Hornady 350 grain round nose and RL7.

Cheese

[Varmint Hunter]

I have had great accuracy results with the Hornady 350 grain round nose and RL7.
Cheese
[/quote/]

How fast are you shooting the 350's?

[Cheesehead]

The 350 grain is measured at 1900 fps through my chrono. I have tried many bullets and this one is the most accurate in my 1895 Marlin, while using a 4x Burris scope. KN has a good point, magnification is helpful to achieve small groups at 100 yards. My groups with the 350 grain ranged from 1.5 - 2". Also the 350 is a deep penetrator and devastating on big game.

Cheese

[Varmint Hunter]

Even though I don't think the red-dot sight lead to the large groups, I temporarily put a 3x9 scope on the rifle to determine how much influence it had on group size. I won't have a chance to shoot it again until next weekend but I'll keep you posted.