12 LRPV .223 groups at 165 yards

I got my 12 LRPV out yesterday and shot 3 groups. I hadn't shot the rifle more than once or twice in about a year. I shot 3 groups of 5 rounds at about 165 yards and group sizes ranged from .6" to 1.1". The last group had one flier or it would have been better. I actually thought I should have done better than this even though I was shooting with a scope I haven't used that much (a Weaver T-36), a bipod I haven't shot with at all more than once or twice and a table I picked up for $7.50 at a going out of business sale. I used a sand bag for my rear rest. The table is actually pretty stable but I haven't had the chance to work with it like I have the bench rests at my gun club. Am I expecting too much given the new equipment? I was shooting better than this before but health issues have kept me away from the ranges for about 3 years now. Still that gun practically shoots on it's own and does a mighty good job of it. I'm used to groups that size at 300 yards. I was using it's favorite ammo too so that wasn't a factor.

Time erodes shooting skills so that may be why you didn't do as well, along with new equipment your not familiar with yet.

The more I think about it I can think of how I didn't do the things I was doing before. I wasn't controlling my breathing and things like that. I guess I was just thinking out loud when I posted this. I wanted to figure out why I hadn't done as well as before and that is no doubt the problem. You're right that time erodes skills. If you don't practice you lose your skills period. So I'm going to do some more shooting and see what happens.