I believe it depends on the gun, ammo, shooter ability, and goal. Some guns have trouble with more than 3 shots and holding accuracy (Weatherby Sporter Barrels, bad stock/barrel/action fit to mention a couple), Factory or reloaded ammo at what pressures (Developing elk load in 7 Rem mag over published max levels in hot or cold temps may only get 3 shots). Shooter ability may worsen after 5 shots depending on recoil or fatigue. And goal is what you reach for no matter what your shooting. Even hunting loads (as some say) are target loads. This thread reminds me of a test ive been wanting to do for awhile. One shot on 10 different days from a cold bore with my elk gun. Which is a Rem 700 7 Rem Mag with a very warm loaded Berger 168 Classic Hunter. Maybe ill get around to that this year.
I want my cold bore shot to be next to the other 2.
I have found cold clean and oiled first shot will almost always send that shot away from the other 2.
I then got into shorter barrels 18" .308 16" .223 and that first shot is in the same place as the others.
Winner.
I have shot on multiple days different temps with the same load too see if it falls apart. Varget has been the worst powder by far for me when temps change. What works well at 17 degrees falls apart at 55 and what works at 55 will fall apart at 95.
IMR4064 and H4895 have been my best go to powders.
Took my buddies Pump 30-06 out of the gun case last month and loaded a round that I made 2 years ago shot it at 200 yards it was 1" high and about 3/8" to the left. Loaded one more round into it and hit 1/2" high and perfect right and left.
Stuck it back into the gun case and said it was ready to hunt with.
But you only shot it 2 times..Yea and that was 1 time too many.
Annealed and fully prepped R-P cases CCI 200 primer and 52.5gr IMR4064 with 150gr flat base Hornady #3031 bullet NO crimp.
My go to load in 30-06.
That was not quite the 1 shot group since I shot 2.
I have found cold clean and oiled first shot will almost always send that shot away from the other 2.
I then got into shorter barrels 18" .308 16" .223 and that first shot is in the same place as the others.
Winner.
I have shot on multiple days different temps with the same load too see if it falls apart. Varget has been the worst powder by far for me when temps change. What works well at 17 degrees falls apart at 55 and what works at 55 will fall apart at 95.
IMR4064 and H4895 have been my best go to powders.
Took my buddies Pump 30-06 out of the gun case last month and loaded a round that I made 2 years ago shot it at 200 yards it was 1" high and about 3/8" to the left. Loaded one more round into it and hit 1/2" high and perfect right and left.
Stuck it back into the gun case and said it was ready to hunt with.
But you only shot it 2 times..Yea and that was 1 time too many.
Annealed and fully prepped R-P cases CCI 200 primer and 52.5gr IMR4064 with 150gr flat base Hornady #3031 bullet NO crimp.
My go to load in 30-06.
That was not quite the 1 shot group since I shot 2.
So your saying one or two or three shots?
That should keep in One Minute of Cow for next time I am at your range right?
I like that method!!!!!! LOL Most shooters call fliers to fit their goal of an accurate load or rifle, but few call a flier that falls in the group and not use it as part of the group. In other words we all probaly shot and thought oh that wasn't a good shot only to find it went into the group without enlarging it. This is why I mostly use the 5 shot method and very rarely call a flier.
@magna19 I have had that same discussion with people. Unless you know for sure you caused the flyer before seeing where it hit. You can't call every bad shot a flyer and all the bulls as good shots. How many guys ever called a X a flyer.
I have been developing a couple loads recently and was shooting 5 shot groups. Very rarely will I call a flyer. I am just wondering if I should back down to 3 shots when doing the ladders to see whether a load is worth working with or not. I am a firm believer with each shot you subject yourself to much more chance of human error.
I know guys that figure I am shooting 10 or 20 shots in match so if I can't get a group that shoots 10 in the 10 ring I am not there. If you built a load with that mentality you sure would burn up components quickly.
I have been developing a couple loads recently and was shooting 5 shot groups. Very rarely will I call a flyer. I am just wondering if I should back down to 3 shots when doing the ladders to see whether a load is worth working with or not. I am a firm believer with each shot you subject yourself to much more chance of human error.
I know guys that figure I am shooting 10 or 20 shots in match so if I can't get a group that shoots 10 in the 10 ring I am not there. If you built a load with that mentality you sure would burn up components quickly.
I took a shooting class a few years ago taught by Gorty Getters. He liked the ladder load development method. Start with your max load for the bullet you're going to use and drop the charge 3 tenths of a grain each for 20 rounds. Put a 2 inch dot on a plain target at 200 yds. Set the rifle on a good bench using rest , film the target if possible while shooting , and use a chronograph if possible. Start shooting the hot loads first and work your way down in order to the lightest. If you don't have a way to film it, use a scope and number where your hits are on the target. When you're done take the 5 hits that group the tightest and fine tune your loads from there. You may find that your hottest loads hit the lowest on the target and the lightest hit the highest. Because of barrel harmonics the muzzle can be vibrating downward when the hot load left the muzzle making it hit low. You want to pick 5 loads that the muzzle was mostly level when the bullet left the barrel. The SSG 69 I used to have did around 14 inches of vertical stringing doing this method. The Steyr 308 Match I have did 3.8" of vertical stringing at 300 yds. using this method.
Yes that is a good way to do load development also. The vertical string charges that are close together helps determine a working load. Though both vertical and horizontal can be shooter induced it shows what consistent velocity (ES and SD) can do for a good load.
It's in my post ,twenty rounds.
Dang, I never thought about that but yeah, why haven’t I been doing that?!
