sbaker5 Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 Okay, I need help from all you sharp, smart marksman out there. Sorry if this is wordy but I want to be as accurate as possible. I have three AR-15s that I primarily use. They are: a JP 18 with a Leupold Mark VX 1-6 multigun with AR gold trigger; a JP 16 with vortex razor HD Gen II with a AR gold trigger; and a 16 Daniel Defense with a Leupold Mark 6 1-6 and a Timney trigger. I have never zeroed any of these at a true 200 yard target, always approximated by utilizing a 50 yard zero. Well, this awesome range opened up near where I live, CMP of Talladega with an electronic target system with targets at 200, 300 and 600 yards. I shot my JP 16 first and a got a grouping of 29.9mm at 200 hundred, which 1.177 inches or 0.589 @ 100 yards (pic below for all rifles). I then shot my 18 JP with a grouping of 37.6mm @ 200 or 1.48 giving me 0.74 @ 100 yds. Now to the Daniel Defense. All these rifles are suppose to be MOA or better. Obviously the JPs performed great, especially since I have no idea what I am doing. But the best I could do with the DD was 255.4mm or 10.06 @ 200 yds or 5.03 @ 100 yds. I just dont get it. Is it possible the triggers could make that much of a difference? The JPs are approx. 2-2.5 lb pull and the timney is more like 3.5+ lb. I know it is a difficult question given all the possible variables but any advice or input would be appreciated. One more detail; all the rifles have approx 1000 rounds through them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhr1986 Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 The DD rifle is not likely to be as accurate as the JPs, but it shouldn't be that bad. Start with the easy stuff, ammo, scope mount/rings, barrel touching the rest while firing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbaker5 Posted August 31, 2015 Author Share Posted August 31, 2015 I did all that. Same ammo as JP's, mount is good, barrel not touching at all, free float handguard, etc. I thought about switching scopes on the different rifles. That might tell me a bunch right there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 Consider trying some other ammo. Just because your JP's like it don't mean the DD does. You might be surprised what a difference it could make. When I'm having problems getting the accuracy I expect, I will also pull the compensator and see if that helps. And while its off the gun, take a look at the muzzle. Though it might not help, consider a more powerful scope for testing. Whenever I'm working up accuracy loads, especially at distance, I use a 18X scope. Good luck. Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbaker5 Posted August 31, 2015 Author Share Posted August 31, 2015 Okay thanks. I didn't realize some guns might not like certain kinds of ammo. I am new to all of this so any advice is great. Thanks a bunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 I forgot to ask, do you reload or is this factory ammo you are testing? I have two match rifles that hate all factory ammo. Actually, hate is a little excessive. They just do not do well with factory ammo. Some of the worst groups they have shot is with factory "match" ammo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbaker5 Posted August 31, 2015 Author Share Posted August 31, 2015 All the ammo I use is factory. Today I used all federal 55gr. I wish I could reload but I simply don't have time. Probably would save me a bunch of money though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurtm Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 It,s hard to beat the Federal 55gr ammo, BUT some barrels don't like it. Every barrel is different. A great example of this is my original J.P. from1999. It will shoot 69 SMK grain reloads well under 1 M.O.A. at 200 yds. (1-1.25" groups for 5 shots), but give it Black Hills 68 grain match ammo, and the groups were right at 4 M.O.A. (8" group at 200 yds.) It really likes Sierra Bullets, but detests Nosler in the same weight ranges. It is finicky, but with what it likes it is plenty accurate. Every barrel is different! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lppd4 Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 I was shooting my JP rifle with some Winchester white box and was getting groups so big (3"+) I was beginning to think I had a lemon. I'm not a great rifle shot but I know I'm better than a 3" guy. Then I remembered I had some Federal Gold match in my bag. I switched to the Federal and my groups shrunk to 1/2" Apparently ammo makes a huge difference I would never thought it would make that big of a difference though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterpuc Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 As you mentioned switching scopes could part of your troubleshooting. One other issue I have seen is a barrel not properly torqued, causing a similar issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now