Hi All,
It's been about 4 months since the original thread I posted on this rifle. That thread can be found here:
https://czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=110440.msg859470#msg859470A lot has changed since then, to say the least. Once I became confident I had an accurate rifle I started pushing for more. First, I was not happy at all with the performance at 100 yards, A lot of this turned out to be me (more on that later). The first thing I addressed was the stock, it just did not fit me. I researched that for over a month and finally went with a KRG Rimfire Bravo. You can see in the next image where I had 2 spacers to the stock. Eventually went to three!
You will also notice that that I have a different scope mounted on it. It's a Vortex Strike Eagle in Mil reticle. Excellent scope for the price. Incredibly easy to make adjustments on the fly. Not meant to be on this rifle though - I'm waiting on a 6mm Creedmoor build (8-10 months out) where it will sit, but I found a great price and bought the scope right then and there.
Well, it all didn't work out as planned. My shots at 100 yards were not grouping as I had expected so there was a lot of thinking, tinkering, leading to a lot adjustments and trial and error. Groups were wildly inconsistent, ranging from tight .5 MOA to 2MOA+!
I reset the scope position at least 3 times. Then I addressed the trigger. The lowest I could adjust the factory trigger was down to 2.5 pounds. In my younger days I shot a Remington 700 BDL in .308 that would put this rifle to shame (well, being a lot younger had a lot to do with it too). I had a perfect trigger on it after my local gunsmith worked on it, best trigger I've ever had.
So, I ordered a trigger spring from YoDave (Canada) and brought the trigger pull down to 1.25 pounds. DISCLAIMER! Don't do this for field use and only do this if you really know what this entails safety wise. It is incredibly easy to make the gun go off when you're not wanting it to.
Finally, I changed my own mechanics on trigger pull. This because even with the lighter trigger this is not the best trigger, like my Remington 700 was. Then it all clicked. I'm still not where I want to be but that is all me! The rifle is very accurate but I'm still making mistakes. When I screw up my groups still go over 1 MOA, But, now I am a hell of a better! The group below (5-shots) is me best so far. Particulars on the photo legend:
I'm comfortable in saying that the rifle is extremely accurate. The rest is now up to me and at my age it gets more and more difficult to do everything exactly the same every single time. Kudos to CZ! I might experiment with a Lilja target barrel at a later date but for now I have to get myself to repeat consistently, and from what I'm seeing that will take a while.
By the way, at my age, targets make a difference. I design and print my own because being a photographer I have all the tools to do that, including Photoshop and a roll paper printer with very thick paper that makes for very clean impact holes. The image below is the one I settled on for 100 yards. they are EXACTLY 1/2 MOA for the center circle, 1 MOA for the next ring, and 2MOA for the outer one. I left the center in white because the Strike Eagle has a tiny dot in the center of the reticle that is difficult to see in light colors and impossible with a black center. Here's the target I print for a complete session. I don't have to walk and change the target on every cease fire:
All the Best,
JAS
