45-120 stabilization

Big Medicine · Post by **Big Medicine** » Sun Nov 09, 2003 4:49 pm

Hello,

I have a Farmingdale Sporter #3 in 45-120 that I can't get to stabilize bullets for the life of me! I have tried a number of weights and profiles with no luck. They keyhole and fly off course at 50 yards! I have been given advice by numerous "experts". Everything from," Reduce your powder charge." to " you have a bad barrel." The barrel is in perfect shape. I have a Farmingdale Sporter #3 in 45-70 tht will drive tacks, but I can't get the 120 to group. I want this to be a hunting rifle, so I want to drive the bullets as fast as possible, without reducing the powder charge to 45-70 velocities.

HELP!

Omaha Poke · Post by **Omaha Poke** » Sun Nov 09, 2003 5:02 pm

Big, I don't know if you have already done this, but one of the first things I would do is slug the barrel and chamber, and the next would be to have the crown of the muzzle checked and possibly trued up. I would be sure to use the correct size bullet dia. You may have already done all of these things, but that would be where I would start. Good Luck, Randy

Ray Newman · Post by **Ray Newman** » Sun Nov 09, 2003 5:05 pm

Since the bullets "keyhole & fly off course @ 50yds", my first question is have you slugged the barrel to determine its dia. vis-a-vis the dia. of the bullet(s) that you are shooting? (As you probably are already aware, a bullet too small or too big will do strange things.....)

Next I would look @ the crown w/ a lupe or magnifying glass--any damage?

Then I would take a chamber cast to determine the condition of the throat/leade. (My original Shiloh barrel had very shallow lands & grooves & wouldn't shoot too well.)

A few other thoughts: are you applying any type of crimp to your bullet & if so how much?

Are you casting your own bullets or are they "store bought"?

If you compress the powder, do you utilize a compression die/plug or do you compress the powder when seating the bullet?

Are you the original owner? If not, do you know how well (or poorly) the rifle shot for the original owner?

Ray Newman · Post by **Ray Newman** » Sun Nov 09, 2003 5:12 pm

I 4got to add that I would thoroughly clean the barrel w/ one 1 of the lead removal products on the market. Or you could take a "Chore Boy" pot scrubber, remove some of the material & wrap that around a bore brush & start to clean the barrel that way. It could be that you have just enough lead in the barrel to cause problems....

Howard Haworth · Post by **Howard Haworth** » Sun Nov 09, 2003 5:13 pm

Big, Does this Bbl. have a Paper Patch chamber in it? I had an LRE in the same Cal. and could not get a group with anything but 500 Gr. Horndy bullets. Had to have it rebarreld to get it to shoot. Howard

JAGG · Post by **JAGG** » Sat Nov 15, 2003 1:39 pm

B M ! What load and bullet alloy are you using to load this powder burner ? JAGG