Some shooting and results

[gnatshooter]

Friends,

 

Now that the weather has become civilized, it's time for me to use all that energy that was pent up this winter, and to shoot some targets with the DPMS LR-308T.

 

This was my first time out with my new "Kaw Valley Precision .308/7.62 Linear Comp". I would say it does an acceptable job of sending the noise of the muzzle blast downrange. Well enough to take the rifle hunting without ear protection, as only 1-2 shots will be fired. ::) That means my Bennie Cooley (large) muzzle brake from JP rifles will be staying in the parts bin. The Slash Heavy Buffer does a great job of reducing recoil, but even so, my shoulder's a bit sore. I must say, though, it's not as bad as a 12-gauge 1-ounce slug.

 

This is not my first time out with my Dave Lauck CQB rear leaf sight, but it is the first time out with a custom 0.060" rear notch in the sight. It is the first time out with the Lipski competition barrel band which holds a Lyman #93 Match globe sight that accepts Lee Shaver inserts/reticles which are compatible with Anschutz.For now, I'm using the large post reticle but may go to the small post reticle or even the small aperture.

 

I was shooting PMC "Bronze" ammunition, factory loads, with a 147-grain FMJ BT bullet. I had a DPMS standard 19-round steel magazine loaded with 20 rounds. With 20 rounds, the magazine would not snap into place and fell out. It worked, however, when I took out one round to give me the 19 it's supposed to hold. I'd be interested in hearing from someone on why I might have this result.

 

This was done under a clear blue sky with no wind.

 

After all this shooting, I have so much windage dialed in that the rear notch is visibly not centered in the sight assembly. I'm positive the front sight is canted and would appreciate advice on how to fix this that's better than eyeballing.

 

Below are pix of the 6 targets I shot. I designed my own target, which I print on 8.5" x 11" paper. Groups are 3 shots each. Hey, it's $1 per round. :-[

 

#1 Distance of 30 yards. At this point, the rifle is only bore-sighted. I must say, I am very impressed with the results I got by simply looking down through the bore to do this, with no equipment involved.

 

#2 30 yards, the sights adjusted to the left. No elevation dialed in. Since I'm planning on a 100-yard zero, the shots should come in low when the target is nearer.

 

#3 50 yards, a little more adjustment to the left.

 

#4 50 yards, a little more to the left.

 

#5 50 yards, even more to the left.

 

#6 75 yards, a bit too far to the left, but some elevation dialed in. The point of impact is not going noticeably higher as I get closer to 100 yards. I dialed in more elevation, we will see what this does next time out, At 75 yards, the target is visually the same width as the post of my front sight. Obviously I need more practice, and likely the reticle with the thinner post.

 

Edit: each square on the target grid is 3/4".

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2014 by gnatshooter

[FaRKle!]

This is not my first time out with my Dave Lauck CQB rear leaf sight, but it is the first time out with a custom 0.060" rear notch in the sight.

Why do they mount the rear sight in front of the RDS on their page?

I was shooting PMC "Bronze" ammunition, factory loads, with a 147-grain FMJ BT bullet. I had a DPMS standard 19-round steel magazine loaded with 20 rounds. With 20 rounds, the magazine would not snap into place and fell out. It worked, however, when I took out one round to give me the 19 it's supposed to hold. I'd be interested in hearing from someone on why I might have this result.

Does the mag seat with the bolt locked back?

 

After all this shooting, I have so much windage dialed in that the rear notch is visibly not centered in the sight assembly. I'm positive the front sight is canted and would appreciate advice on how to fix this that's better than eyeballing.

If you have a level make sure the gun is resting level. Take off the globe sight then see if you can rest the level on the front sight post. Adjust till level.

[gnatshooter]

Why do they mount the rear sight in front of the RDS on their page?

It's something about 'co-witnessing', i.e., using two sights at once. But I'm not the expert to ask.

Does the mag seat with the bolt locked back?

 

Dunno, didn't try it.

If you have a level make sure the gun is resting level. Take off the globe sight then see if you can rest the level on the front sight post. Adjust till level.

 

Thanks, I will give that a try.

[survivalshop]

  DPMS mags are made to load 19 rds.. ,just the way they made them . No idea why , some say they can fit & shoot 20 , but I have not been able to do that with any of mine, the mag. with 20 rds. in it will compress the spring & not leave any room for it to lock in place ,because of too much tension on the ammo . It may lock into place with the bolt locked back , but will probably FTF that first rd. .

   That's why I have the 25 rd. PMags now , if I want more than 19 . <thumbsup>

Edited May 21, 2014 by survivalshop

[gnatshooter]

  DPMS mags are made to load 19 res. ,just the way they made them . No idea why , some say they can fit & shoot 20 , but I have not been able to do that with any of mine, the mag. with 20 rds. in it will compress the spring & not leave any room for it to lock in place ,because of too much tension on the ammo . It may lock into place with the bolt locked back , but will probably FTF that first rd. .

   That's why I have the 25 rd. PMags now , if I want more than 19 . <thumbsup>

 

Thanks, survivalshop. It sure is a PITA when the mag holds 19 and the ammo is sold in boxes of 20. You'd think the designers of the mag would have thought of that. They work for a gun company, after all. Then again, if you've ever wrenched on cars, it's obvious that car engineers never think that some poor b@stard with a wrench would eventually have to fix the car.

[392heminut]

Hmmm. I've got 3 of the DPMS '19 rnd' steel mags and they all hold 20 with no problem and snap into the rifle with the bolt closed. I've never had any feeding issues with them, although I don't really use them much (I prefer my Magpul mags). I have always wondered why they called them 19 rnd mags!

[gnatshooter]

Hmmm. I've got 3 of the DPMS '19 rnd' steel mags and they all hold 20 with no problem and snap into the rifle with the bolt closed. I've never had any feeding issues with them, although I don't really use them much (I prefer my Magpul mags). I have always wondered why they called them 19 rnd mags!

 

I've heard of that, too, and basically, that's why I bought more 19-round mags. Dang, dag-nabbit and shee-ooot. Mechanical things are supposed to be orderly and predictable. Mysteries are bad things.

 

Well, at least I don't have to worry if my wristwatch or my rifle or I'm standing too close to a microwave oven or something like that.

[gnatshooter]

Friends,

I took some time off this afternoon to fire off a few rounds with the DPMS LR-308. Things are still in the Research and Development phase; you'll find info about my previous time out located

The sky was blue, and there were light breezes, but not enough to blow my targets around -- and they're printed on printer paper. Pretty much like last time out.

A few things were new this time.

First off, I tried to fix the 'cant' on my clamp-on front sight as recommended by a member here. Where the members are the best members there are. Still, no joy. But I found an alternative that worked.

Secondly, I moved both the rear sight and front sight forward, both by an equal amount, to increase the eye relief and make the view of the sights crisper. My sight radius is still 15 1/2 inches, but the rear leaf sight is all the way at the forward end of the receiver rail. You can see that in this picture:

 

Thirdly, I changed the reticle/insert in the front globe sight -- took out the large post, and replaced it with the medium post. There is one size smaller that's in the parts bin.

Fourthly, I reached into my stockpile of ammo to try out, for the first time, a batch of milsurp ammo I bought from a buddy. The headstamp is BF 80-32, which, according to this website, is either from Bakelittfabrikken A/G, Aurskog, Norway, or from Fábrica Nacional de Munições de Armas Legeiras, in Chelas, Portugal.

I was originally concerned about this ammo, since I gave my LR-308 a trigger from Timney, which is said to be famous for light primer strikes on milsurp ammo. I had no problems with feeding or firing -- so far, so good.

My first shots off of my mechanical rest missed the target completely at 50 yards. Apparently, fiddling with them while moving them to new locations on the rifle totally messed up the alignment. So the next shots were, literally, at 10 yards. That's where I found the cant of the front sight was still way off, and the elevation was bad. I put 6 rounds on paper messing with things -- and instead of messing with the windage adjustment on the rear sight, I adjusted the left-right point of impact by tilting the front sight -- basically, fixing the cant 'on the fly'.

While I'm doing all of this, I'm being impressed with how the Kaw Valley Linear Compensator is sending the noise down-range. The muzzle blast sounds more like a POCK than a tinnitus-inducing CRACK and one of these days I'll shoot without muffs and tell you more.

 

The crisper view of the sights with the longer eye relief improved things, and the smaller front post that is visually smaller against the target.

Lo and behold, I did the below on a target at 50 yards: a 3-round group of 7/8".



Now that outcome for MOA might not be amazing, but I hardly get that on a good day with my Ruger 10/22s at 30. Also with iron sights. So I'm feeling pretty good about this progress, and with some more fiddling around, will work my way up to 100-yard shots with iron sights. If I can get these sights dialed in -- dang, whoever invented adjustable sights is in Heaven -- this rifle and I will be good enough for putting food on the table.

My lessons from this is that I still have to learn not to flinch -- flinching on the LR-308 is something I picked up while using the JP Bennie Cooley muzzle brake. Also, that to reach that 100-yard mark I'll have to move to the 'fine' front post in the front globe sight.

I will have to wonder how much improvement in on-target performance is due to the ammo, and how much is due to adjusting the sights. Cant on a sight can really screw with things, but I'm thinking it's a combination of practice, more eye relief, and maybe -- or even probably -- better ammo. Which could be bad news for PMC 'Bronze' 147 gr.

[tayronachan]

"Mysteries are bad things."

LOL!! I feel the same way.