I know they work. But my question is how well will they hold the group using them on centerfire rifles? Some write ups seem to say day to day they can change from .5 moa to 1.5 moa, that seems extreme to me. Are they more likely to go out of tune than a handload if so why?
Barrel tuners?
- Thread starter coop2564
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Justice1327
Well-Known Member
I have two different makers of barrel tuners for CF rifles. Neither goes out tune if you tighten it properly.
Yeah, I think what varies is not so much the tuner, but the ammo due to temperature variation and impact on burn rate and velocity
and on burn rate in one lot of powder to the next, and which primer is used this batch vs. last, and how consistent the loading practices are and what weight of charge actually went into the ammo, case by case.
Then did the tuner setting stay locked?
Are all the screws in the rifle stock tight to the frame? Did the scope get knocked around?
I think there are just as many variables other than the tuner that have to stay the same.
and on burn rate in one lot of powder to the next, and which primer is used this batch vs. last, and how consistent the loading practices are and what weight of charge actually went into the ammo, case by case.
Then did the tuner setting stay locked?
Are all the screws in the rifle stock tight to the frame? Did the scope get knocked around?
I think there are just as many variables other than the tuner that have to stay the same.
nealm66
Well-Known Member
I run them. I will have a very slight change with weather and such but it's very slight for instance I just adjusted a 22 creedmoor for this weekend 600 match where I fell out of tune but I'm talking from .5 to less than .25 at 200. You should be able to create the same harmonic with bullet seating as with a tuner from experience. I use ats for small caliber and amd for large. I have beetable to pick a coal and powder/velocity and tune completely with amd, it's a heavy tuner
Two other things......did you load the exact same bullets, same weight, and are they seated at the same COAL?
All these details concerning consistent ammo and environment and rifle mechanics all matter.
Even altitude changes will impact the barrel tuner. It will have to be tweaked maybe.
Tuners work pretty well for the most part. I use a Kinetic Security Solutions ATS tuner, actually two, on my match rifles and with factory ammo. I got the first one a little over a year and a half ago and brought it out and tuned different lots of ammo and you can see the shots come together as you adjust the tuner. Some lots of ammo more than others but they all got better. After tuning I took the one lot of ammo I was planning on using the match from my almost sea level up to the match in the higher elevation about 1000 feet and the day before the match they had an open range day and steel out to about 1000 yards. I had a piece of steel at 930 yards and had a spotter on glass and I shot three shots at it and the spotter said they were almost touching. So from there I wasn't worried that my only 100 yard tune at sea level would work farther out.
This is 5 shots of factory ammo at 100 yards after tuning using a 6th bullet hole as the aiming point.
Here is a pic of a couple lots of ammo during tuning. Target 1 I used for something else so look at targets 2-7 for lot 537 and you can see them come together as I adjusted tuner. The lot 715 only required one adjustment. Being factory ammo some lots will only shoot so good so you have to know that from the get go. I haven't tuned any handloads yet. Tuners might not be for everyone but I figured I would try them and glad I did.
This is 5 shots of factory ammo at 100 yards after tuning using a 6th bullet hole as the aiming point.
Here is a pic of a couple lots of ammo during tuning. Target 1 I used for something else so look at targets 2-7 for lot 537 and you can see them come together as I adjusted tuner. The lot 715 only required one adjustment. Being factory ammo some lots will only shoot so good so you have to know that from the get go. I haven't tuned any handloads yet. Tuners might not be for everyone but I figured I would try them and glad I did.
nealm66
Well-Known Member
If you want to see if a tuner will work and don't want to go all in, the rubber limbsaver things will work. Especially on sporter barrels. Not the best looking but they work
Im tuning an ATS on my .338 Lapua now.
It will make about 6 complete rotations from 0 to 22, each complete rotation. I started with it completely rotated up against the muzzle brake. So far I am only about 2.5 to 3 turns into it. Here are my results so far. See attached Taegets at 100 yds.
I have 3 different interesting settings so far. Im changing the setting by 2 each time.
So, my plan is to go back on these 3
and shoot 3 shot groups on settings to either side and on these same settings to test repeatability and consistency.
I will also likely go through all the turns too just out of curiousity.
How much of my 3 interesting points was actually taming harmonics and how much was coincidence, ie bad shooting that just happened to get a good group?
More shooting will be required to see.
But, so far, Im not having a 3 shots and you're all dialed in and set experience......like Eric Cortina.
It will make about 6 complete rotations from 0 to 22, each complete rotation. I started with it completely rotated up against the muzzle brake. So far I am only about 2.5 to 3 turns into it. Here are my results so far. See attached Taegets at 100 yds.
I have 3 different interesting settings so far. Im changing the setting by 2 each time.
So, my plan is to go back on these 3
and shoot 3 shot groups on settings to either side and on these same settings to test repeatability and consistency.
I will also likely go through all the turns too just out of curiousity.
How much of my 3 interesting points was actually taming harmonics and how much was coincidence, ie bad shooting that just happened to get a good group?
More shooting will be required to see.
But, so far, Im not having a 3 shots and you're all dialed in and set experience......like Eric Cortina.
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swat
Well-Known Member
look at the EC tuner by Eric Cortina, works great have not had a group move period. My 6.5 saum shoots very good but I was getting about .440 out of it. I tried seating depth, and about everything I could. The tuner with the same load work up shoots .250 or less.
I have also used shaft collars or shaft couplers both slide on and the two halves bolt on kind to experiment w it for low dollars before spending money on a tuner and threading, etc.
The ATS is the one Im thinking about. Just got leery when some videos said 2 weeks after tuning they went to shoot and it wasn't .5 moa anymore but 1.5moa. But sounds like your guys are not experiencing that kind of shift. I can understand small shifts my handload tunes do that to.
