Hi all,
Obviously, I am new to the forum. I'm from Sydney, Australia and love hunting the wild pigs and numerous deer species in this country. I have several rifles including:
- .22LR Remington
- .223 Howa
- .22-250 Howa
- .6.5x55 Husqvarna
- .308 Remington 7600 Police
- .308 Tikka T3 Lie S/S
- .300WSM Browning A-Bolt White Gold Medallion
The newest addition to my armoury is the Tikka T3 (Image 1 below) and it is the cause for my first ever forum query. Please excuse any tech errors as I do not have a very strong technical knowledge.
The gun is now about one year old but has shot less than 100 rounds. I originally had a Nikko Target Master on it, but now have a Leupold VX3L 4.5-14x50 on it with a Harris 6-9 Bipod. I have stock T3 mounts and rings. I use solely .308 150gr Remington Core Lokt which I think is a good hunting bullet for Australia and, despite potential inaccuracy flaws, should achieve the 3-shot sub MOA Tikka guarantee regardless.
I first managed to sight the rifle in roughly at a friend's farm to what I considered reasonable.
I then took the rifle to a range and achieved the following groupings (Image 2 below) with the first 6 shots, including an adjustment for height.
After that, however, I have since achieved the EXACT same inconsistent patterning when shooting. Image 3 below shows one near dead-on on the centre line near the '7'. The next 2 shots, however, are high and to the right about 1-1.5 inches. This was done at a meagre 50 yards. This exact pattern repeats itself time and time again: first shot is dead on where I want it, next 2 are up and right. This happened 3 more times on the day at the range 2 months ago (after 15-20 minutes to cool the barrel) and again last weekend at another range.
Basically, my gun is zeroed perfectly for the first shot and then moves up and to the right about 1.5 inches for any consecutive shots. It then groups in that area consistently for further shots until I allow the barrel to cool completely (more than 1 hour), at which point it returns to zero. Thus, it seems that the heated barrel changes the zero of the gun, which is unsurprising. But such a shift (1.5 inches) is hardly a small change, especially at 50 yards!!! This certainly does not meet the Tikka guarantee.
I have tried removing the bipod and tightening the scope screws, but this has not made a difference. The symptoms appear consistent with flinching also, but I shoot the .300WSM in an equally light outfit without an issue and do not believe I flinch.
My questions are:
- Has anyone had such difficulties/issues with a Tikka?
- Has anyone got a diagnosis?
- What action should I take (e.g. re-moutning the scope and/or replacing the mounts and rings)?
Thanks in advance for your responses and, again, please excuse any errors.
Zubtec
Obviously, I am new to the forum. I'm from Sydney, Australia and love hunting the wild pigs and numerous deer species in this country. I have several rifles including:
- .22LR Remington
- .223 Howa
- .22-250 Howa
- .6.5x55 Husqvarna
- .308 Remington 7600 Police
- .308 Tikka T3 Lie S/S
- .300WSM Browning A-Bolt White Gold Medallion
The newest addition to my armoury is the Tikka T3 (Image 1 below) and it is the cause for my first ever forum query. Please excuse any tech errors as I do not have a very strong technical knowledge.
The gun is now about one year old but has shot less than 100 rounds. I originally had a Nikko Target Master on it, but now have a Leupold VX3L 4.5-14x50 on it with a Harris 6-9 Bipod. I have stock T3 mounts and rings. I use solely .308 150gr Remington Core Lokt which I think is a good hunting bullet for Australia and, despite potential inaccuracy flaws, should achieve the 3-shot sub MOA Tikka guarantee regardless.
I first managed to sight the rifle in roughly at a friend's farm to what I considered reasonable.
I then took the rifle to a range and achieved the following groupings (Image 2 below) with the first 6 shots, including an adjustment for height.
After that, however, I have since achieved the EXACT same inconsistent patterning when shooting. Image 3 below shows one near dead-on on the centre line near the '7'. The next 2 shots, however, are high and to the right about 1-1.5 inches. This was done at a meagre 50 yards. This exact pattern repeats itself time and time again: first shot is dead on where I want it, next 2 are up and right. This happened 3 more times on the day at the range 2 months ago (after 15-20 minutes to cool the barrel) and again last weekend at another range.
Basically, my gun is zeroed perfectly for the first shot and then moves up and to the right about 1.5 inches for any consecutive shots. It then groups in that area consistently for further shots until I allow the barrel to cool completely (more than 1 hour), at which point it returns to zero. Thus, it seems that the heated barrel changes the zero of the gun, which is unsurprising. But such a shift (1.5 inches) is hardly a small change, especially at 50 yards!!! This certainly does not meet the Tikka guarantee.
I have tried removing the bipod and tightening the scope screws, but this has not made a difference. The symptoms appear consistent with flinching also, but I shoot the .300WSM in an equally light outfit without an issue and do not believe I flinch.
My questions are:
- Has anyone had such difficulties/issues with a Tikka?
- Has anyone got a diagnosis?
- What action should I take (e.g. re-moutning the scope and/or replacing the mounts and rings)?
Thanks in advance for your responses and, again, please excuse any errors.
Zubtec
