Range report, sick to my stomach

[blk223]

Crying the blues also...just picked up a Browning A bolt hunter, not varmint contour, my usual preference. Looked like a beautiful truck gun! It has been free floated and the trigger worked to perfection. The previous owner shot less than 200 factory Hornady rounds thru it. He provided a box of 40 gr. VMAX. Couldn't get a group less than 1 inch. Totally unacceptable for this caliber. The question now is sell it or buy the reloading dies and accessories to try to dial this bad boy in? Comments?

P.S. I have all the real deal varminters I need .22-250s, .222, .223, .243 and .308s, even a .220 Swift. They work great, should I even bother?

[Rick in Oregon]

Yes! I have the other calibers mentioned too, and the 204 has won my heart. It is the most grabbed rifle out of the safe when headed to the varmint patch. Trust me on this, once you light off a few rounds from your dialed in rifle, you'll be glad you kept it and dinked with it to get it right.

[gwglave]

blk223 I agree wholeheartedly with Rick in Oregon. I also have all those calibers you speak of (except the Swift) and shoot them frequently. But not as frequently as the .204.
The great thing about the .204, if you have a HB varmint model, is the recoil is almost non-existent. You can actually see Skippy fly while looking through the scope .
I don't think you can say that about any of the others, even the .222 or .223.

Rgds, Gerry

[WrzWaldo]

blk223

Grab a box of the 32gr loads and give them a try. Your barrel is still a baby at under 200 rounds.

[Rugerdogdog]

DITTO. Brownings are very accurate rifles but most factory guns are pretty picky about factory ammo in .204. I would at least buy 1 box of each to try before you give up on it. Then if it still wont shoot under 1" I'm sure Browning would like to know about it and would probably help you get it fixed up.

[blk223]

Thanks for the replies. I usually don't shoot factory. I think I'll order the supplies, brass and some Sierra and Hornady bullets and see if the Sierra accuracy loads will work with the little jewel. Have had great luck with their loads in the other guns.

[rexxon23]

My browning varmint stalker would not shoot 40s at all, but shoots 32s factory Hornadys great.

[Varmonter]

That makes me feel much better ragin'. Tomorrow she gets shipped back to remmy. I have my fingers crossed. If not: $195.00 for a blueprint, $300 for new tube and $200 for chamber. I hope I don't need to use plan B.

man if they would refund your money you could get a cooper or kimber
for less than what you would have in the remmy after the tweeking.

[Titegrupes]

Man, I am very sorry to hear about your lemon. It sounds like you're very knowledgeable and have done everything within reason to get your gun to group. I had some beginning luck with my LVSF 204. My first time out I shot sub MOA groups and even managed a 5-shot 1/2 MOA group with factory Hornady 40Vmax I didn't clean it for the first 30 rounds. (I've listened to all the barrel break in procedures and none have convinced me that it's worth the trouble and probably only helps to wear out the barrel.) I'll give it a good cleaning though with Wipeout before taking it back out. I also plan to lighten up the lawyer-designed trigger. Lordy, that must be about a 7-pound break and I'll lighten it to about 2 or 3 pounds. There's some good advice here for reloading it and I plan to try out some of the ideas I've learned thus far.

[wadevb1]

UPS pulled into my drive today with a package from Big Green. Box was quickly opened and was a lilttle dissapointed with a letter and simple explanation, "barrel lapped, muzzle cowned." Leupy mounted and I was expecting the worse. I fired three rounds at 100 yards and achieved a 3/4 inch group. I fired a few more groups and detwrmined that this rifle is now a one inch or better rifle. This was with the terrible factory trigger to boot.

Stomach is doing well now.

[acloco]

Well, at least you got a rifle that will probably go "minute of skippy" as somebody on this board is infamous as saying.

Just sucks what you had to go through though.

[gwglave]

I agree, it sucks what you had to go through.......but, apparently, Remington fixed the problem. The alternative would be you still have a crappy shooter.....what would you do with it after it's been to the factory already for repair
It would be difficult to sell it and unload it on some other poor chap.
Oh well, glad it worked out. Let us know how it shoots with some good handloads. My Rem 700 VLS shoots in the 0.2's and 0.3's. So, they're not all bad.

Rgds, Gerry

[wadevb1]

I'm debating on reloading for this rifle. For one, I already own several wildcats and its getting to be a drag fireforming and turning necks. I also understand that there isn't many powder options to reach Hornady velocities. Shooting a 22" barrel is probably going to handicap me also.

I'm looking for a rifle where I can purchase ammo off the shelf and be minute of coyote out to 200 yards.

I have plans on getting the rifle glass-bedded. Tomorrow I'll call Remmy and try to twist their arm on sending me their '07 trigger to compensate me for the ten plus boxes of ammo I burned trying to get it to shoot.

[acloco]

Why waste your time on anything else - I bet you are minute of coyote now with off the shelf ammo.

[TD-Max]

I have a Sako like Rick in Oregon. I'm not that great a shooter, and haven't got the best bench setup yet (ordered BR pivot lite from Rick) and only have a 60 yd range. My 10/22 is shooting better than the 204 with some factory loads.

First I thought that I totally sucked. Then I shot some more and saw a pattern develop. I have repeated the pattern a few times with all but the 32 gr Winchesters. I'm afraid I'll disappoint myself.

32 gr Remingtons are terrible
40gr Rem OK
32 Gr Hornady very good
40gr Hornady good
39gr Federal/Sierra very good
32 Grain Winchester 5 shots in one ragged hole...


BR pivot Lite and front rest etc should be here for the weekend. We'll try ranging at 100yds at neighbors place and see what happens...