.17 WSM ammo comparison and more rifle observations

[Crockett]

I shot mine for the first time today and will be weighing some rounds before i go out again. I really don't like the "toy gun" weight of the gun even in a solid rest, it just doesn't stay solid when my pulse is enough to slightly move the gun!

If someone doesn't make a real stock for this gun, i'm going to be very disapointed. I also think the ammo needs to be manufactured by someone that gives a ****, because there are some big differences in impact!

[fla9-40]

I shot mine for the first time yesterday and gave up after twelve rounds. Winds were calm (light breeze then calm) rain had quit and the sun was peaking through the clouds.

I HOPE it was the scope and not the gun!

Started at 25yrds to site in the OLD Redfield Partner SE 3-12x44 (Have no idea where I got it) After first shot and adjusting the scope next 3 shots you could cover with a nickel. I was feeling pretty good at this point

Moved out to 100yrds and the next shoots were 3.5 to 4ft low and 2ft to the left. I tried to bring the elevation up but ran out of adjustment on the scope. Now shoots 6ins low but windage is good.

All the rest of the shots were in a group about 3 to 4 MOA! I gave up at this point.

I have pulled that scope off and will be seeing about which one I want to use as a donor off another rifle to rule out the scopes

Will let you know next week what it does.

Added Later:

Oh and forgot to mention that on the last round the bolt locked and I had to bump it pretty good with the butt of my hand to get the bolt back. It would lift fine but had to bump it to extract the spent brass.

[sharpshooter]

No doubt in my mind, the scope is toast. I remember when the 17 HMR came out, everybody was rushing to get their hands on a BSA Sweet 17 scope, only to find out that most all of those scopes had a problem. Once zeroed @ 50 yds, it would shoot 4-5 inches high or low @100. The group size would remain good, but the point of impact would be way off. The problem was a tipped lens which would move the image of the reticle. Typically a 17 HMR with 17 gr. bullets will be dead on at 50 and 100 yds.

[n4ue]

airgunner, hi. Yep I recently weighed my ammo and 67.2 gr was a common weight. Haven't had the chance to try shooting with weighed rounds, but hope springs eternal!
Did the new handle interfere with your trigger hand? Mine did (righty)...

ron

[syvairgunner]

No problem with the new bolt handle, I'm a lefty so the bolt is not an issue, I've even learned how to cycle the bolt with my right hand without taking the rifle out of my shoulder. Do hope that when a new stock comes available I can order one with a left hand cheek comb. As mentioned earlier I had to remove a bit of the plastic so the bold would close fully. The instructions from the video explained the back of the bolt needed to be parallel to the base of the receiver which indicates the bold is fully closed and locked. My bolt clears the scope without issue so other than shooting shotgun groups things seem to be working okay.

I mounted my scope on a Burris 1" Signature Zee Weaver-Style Rings and used Burris Pos-Align Offset Inserts. I had to use a +20 shim on the rear mount and a +5 right shim on the front mount to get a bore sight picture that would allow me to use scope elevation and windage with out maxing out the scope. I did the bore sight at 30 mtr. then did my first shooting at 50 yards. The POA/POI from 50 to 100 yards was still within scope adjustment range.

Hope to get out this next week and will report the outcome of shooting rounds of the same weight.

[fla9-40]

I mounted my scope on a Burris 1" Signature Zee Weaver-Style Rings and used Burris Pos-Align Offset Inserts. I had to use a +20 shim on the rear mount and a +5 right shim on the front mount to get a bore sight picture that would allow me to use scope elevation and windage with out maxing out the scope.

I'm was wondering if I did not need to order the Burris rings to solve the same problem I'm having with mine?

Like I stated before, I regretfully did not come here first before I bought mine....I went by some YouTube videos and watched some guy shooting some P-dogs...some out to 200yrds....Looked like the typical accurate gun that Savage puts out!

[n4ue]

OK, airgunner. I was wondering if you were a lefty. I have pretty big hands and I did grind a bit off the handle notch in the stock. This allowed the bolt to close more, but it also made it more difficult to get my mitt in there.....
ah well......
I just used some spare rings I had in my spare parts box. It (the Redfield Revenge) was only off a couple of inches for the first group...
Just 'lucky' from that aspect.
Was gonna shoot yesterday or today, but it's been raining the last couple of days....

ron

[TechHunter]

My observations on the B.Mag are mixed at this point. My local range has recently changed to these crappy targets that are moved by the wind, so my grouping at 100 was about 1.5 at best (some groups in the vicinity of 2”). Might be better at a different range. I don’t like the weight and I don’t like the thin barrel, it does not help steady my shots. I did install a Glades Armory bolt handle and, the first one they sent had a downward bent that left little room for my fingers. I contacted Kevin from Glades Armory about getting a refund and they offered to replace my handle with a straight one. So I decided to give it a try. Am glad I did. They actually straightened my handle and send it back, and it feels much, much better now. Although the tactical handle makes cycling the bolt much easier (besides improving the looks of the rifle 100%), the bolt design still feels weird because it can go down when you pull it back. I do not have any clearance issues with my scope nor with my fingers, but my hands are not that big.

[n4ue]

Hi. The issue of 'RifleShooter' magazine (that I received yesterday) had an article in the 'cartridge clash' series titled: ".17 Hornet vs .17 Win Super Mag".
Since I purchased a new Savage rifle in each of these calibers, as soon as they were announced, I feel (??) qualified to comment.

My .17 Hornet is a Model 25. In my opinion, the M25 is an order of magnitude better than the B Mag rifle. I reload, so the price of factory ammo is not relevant. The .17 Hornet uses only 12 gr of powder so it's very cheap to reload. Almost 1000 fps faster.....
See the article for the author's "hits and misses".
One thing mentioned for the .17 WSM is " cool option in Winchester 1885 Low Wall". Anyone seen one of these???

ron

[fla9-40]

Went back to the range this past Saturday with a different scope and EGW one piece mount.

Only had 20gr that I separated by weight and we had a slight head wind.

I setup first at 50yrds and hard to believe the scope was on paper and was only about two inches low and maybe 1 inch to the left. I adjusted my elevation to be even with the bull eyes dot but left the windage alone. At this range I shot 5 rounds and got maybe 3 MOA. Moved windage to shot right of bulls eye and shot 5 more same results.

Moved target out to the hundred yard mark....did not do so well. I think the best I could do was 8 to 10 MOA!

I had 4 rounds that the bolt was hard to open (Lift was fine) and had 1 split brass! The split brass was on the round that weight was less then all the others.

I wished I could find 25gr's before I wright this one off as Junk! :mad:

Red "X" was shot at 100yrds. Red dot is 3/4in

http://www.nettally.com/kwd/17wsm.JPG

[Va Hunter]

I have only shot the 20's out of mine and was happy with it. Just a tad under 1" at 100 3 shot groups. Not bad for a light cheap gun.

[gsperaz]

Well I have put 240 rds thru my replacement Bmag and so far its a 50-75yd gun for accuracy. At 100yd I have 2-3 groups with either flavor of ammo. All my ammo has been weighed and sorted into weight groups. The gun came with a qualification sheet from savage saying it passed the 100yd range test with 25gr ammo. I achieved that accuracy 1 time with a 3 shot group within the first 30 rounds. Never been duplicated since then. I use a sturdy bench, bags with the front rest close to the receiver. I let the gun cool between groups and have cleaned the bore during shooting sessions to see if fouling in an issue with no success. The ammo has variation and I have collected 25 split cases out of the 240 fired along with 3 FTF's which did fire after multiple firing pin hits.
So is it the rifle or the ammo ? I fired my 22 mag the same day just to see if the weather, ME or even the alignment of the stars had anything to do with it.
I easily achieved 1/2'' groups at 50 yds and 1.2" groups at 100 yds , repeatedly !
Now I really like the 17WSM but what's the deal, is the stock playing a big enough role to impede accuracy that much for so many Bmag owners? My barrel is free floating and action screws torqued to 50 in/lbs, as it was when I received it.
I am at a loss, and looking at reinforcing the stock with fiberglass mat and resin.

[Crockett]

I'm very sorry to here this about your B mag...i won't expect to much when mine returns. I guess i will have to see what i get back and adjust accordingly. I have some West system ready to stiffen the fore arm and some mold silicone to fill the stock butt ready to go.

[Eric Mayer]

*snip*

If you already answered this, I apologize. What have you done to verify it is not the scope, rings, or bases? It is typically the first place I check when there is any issues with accuracy.

Please let me know, as I am extremely curious.

Thanks!

Eric :cool:

[gsperaz]

Hey Eric,
The scope is fairly new and was mounted on my 22 mag before the Bmag. I torqued the bases and rings and have double checked them. The elevation and windage also adjust correctly. Since the gun can group often at 1" @ 50 yds I have not looked at replacing the scope.
I really hope to get this gun to shoot well, I don't need a tack driving sub MOA gun just a good shooter out to 150yds. Where I live I need a rim-fire to hunt fox & coyotes in the national forest during small game season. The 17 WSM is a neat cartridge and would hate not to be able to use it to its full potential.

[gsperaz]

I'm very sorry to here this about your B mag...i won't expect to much when mine returns. I guess i will have to see what i get back and adjust accordingly. I have some West system ready to stiffen the fore arm and some mold silicone to fill the stock butt ready to go.

There are several out there with very good shooting Bmags, so don't give up yet. If Boyds starts making a replacement stock things should improve for us with stock concerns.

[Eric Mayer]

I hope you get it figured out as well. As one of those with a good shooting B.MAG, I don't like to see others who have rifles that don't shoot.

Let us know!

Eric :cool:

[gsperaz]

I'm sure I will Eric. I'm hoping some stock work does the trick as it has for others.

[Downunderimfire]

Hmm, nevermind.

[gsperaz]

Stock work complete, but I do not think it helped as much as I hade hoped for. I have yet to shoot it due to weather but there is still to much flex in the magazine section where the stock is the thinnest.