cold bore - high

ok - I've been shooting my 93 in 22WMR enough this summer to get real comfortable with it. I've been playing with a copy of a target from "smack the smiley" in which you have to shoot your first shot from a cold bore, i.e. the first shot of the day. Ever since I started shooting this gun, my first cold bore shot will go 3/4 to 1" high at 50 yds. I've done this enough to believe that it's not just me yanking the first round. What I don't understand is the mechanics of that first shot. My point of aim doesn't change from the 1st to the 50th, but after that first round I can consistently hold .5" groups below that first cold bore shot. I wouldn't think a 22WMR would produce enough heat in the barrel to make THAT much difference on one shot.

Any thoughts?

Could be your rear bag, if you are using one. Recoil tends to settle the stock in the rear bag somewhat and once it's compacted, it stays compacted. Try pounding your stock into the rear bag before you take the first shot (even though 22 WMr doesn't have much recoil).

Other thing to think about is your magazine. The spring is pretty compressed feeding first cartridge from a full mag and may cause the bullet to scrape a little going in. You might try loading the first round from a mag with a few rounds in it, put the saftey on, remove the mag, fill it -1 , then reinsert. I have a 10/22 that always tosses the first shot from a full mag, cold or hot.

Once you rule those out, I'd guess the action is shifting a little in the stock the action "settles in" with the first shot.....
Elkbane

Are you cleaning your barrel after range session? If so, "cold bore" equals "oily, clean bore" and that is your answer. Don't clean rimfires until accuracy falls off or you get them wet/dirty when hunting.

BBASSI, Hi Eric - GB45 in Apex -

I always clean my guns after every shoot, especially my .22s because I usually shoot 100 to 200 shots an outing. However, before I go to the range I run a dry patch or 2 through the barrels to clean out any oil.

- - and don't be so surprised at how much heat/energy a .22WMR produces, that 40 grain bullet is going from 0 to around 2000 feet per second coming out the muzzle in a "FLASH".

You clould try running a patch of Lock-Eze through the bore ....Or just throw the first round if you feel the need to clean that often.
I've got a 243 that doesnt get cleaned that often!! It doesnt like it and it takes too many rounds to foul the barrel to pay to clean it before it demands it. Over 1000 rounds through the barrel and it aint sean a cleaning rod for 300 rounds.

To all who suggest it might be from cleaning, all I've done for the last 6 or 7 range sessions is run a bore snake through it. I let my daugher shoot at a woodchuck with it the other night. She is a crack shooter and ranks very high in our clubs junior team. Anyway, her first shot missed at 125 from prone with a bag and bipod. We have no idea where that round went other than it missed the chuck and got his attention. Her second shot settled in just like this gun seems to do. ;D

[img width=337 height=450]http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b340/bbassi/EmisGroundGrizzly.jpg[/img]

had a 17HMR that would do that. It would do it with the first shoot of any group where the gun sat more then 5 minutes. shoot a few rounds, look at the target and come back and shoot a few more rounds it would always toss the first one. gave it to a friend to try and said nothing. He came back and had found the same thing. Sent it back to TC. barrel #234 replaced #6 was was a little disappointing, but it would group.
Had a 6mm rem that would string 5 shouts before it would group.

tighten all you screws up - action and scope and check it again.


If it continues, simply aim low on your first shot for the rest of your life.

This first shot off target is strange and if none of the the suggestions work you can always do as jethro suggests, just aim 3/4" low on your first shot. I just wonder if there is a spot inside the barrel that is causing the first shot problem. Perhaps some kind of a "spot" in the metal that dries out between outings or conversely gets "wet" between outings - after all, steel is porous - who knows for sure.....

I was at a local gun shop just yesterday and looking at some .223 and .308 rifles. They had a couple Savages but not what I am looking for. They had four rifles of another brand known for good shooting rifles, all new trade-ins. The gun clerk told me these guns were bought at a sporting goods store "Clearance Sale" and every one of them just could not be locked on target. The sporting goods store would not take them back due to Clearance so the guys traded them in on other guns at the gun shop - lost money on the deals but what can you do? The shop has checked out the guns and they look fine but all four of the previous owners said they just did not shoot straight. What is it about those particular guns that they will not fly true? Maybe a micron microscope could find something in the metal surface causing it to change the speed or spin of the bullet. We may never know but the shop is straight up and will tell anyone looking at those particular rifles why they were traded in but they will sell them.

First shot or even the first few shots, from most any rifle centerfire or rimfire, out of a cold clean bore will be at a different point of impact than that of the shots after a little fouling.
That is why competition shooters use "foulers" and "sighters" to settle into the true point of impact in relation to point of aim.

I know many say there is no need to clean rimfire barrels very often, as the coating on the bullets will protect the bore. I just can't bring my self to not clean mine tho. I'm more worried about carbon build up than any thing else, so I at least clean that up after every session.

To minimize this change in impact from previous zero, right before i go shootin', I push a few dry patches through the bore of my cleaned rimfire to sop up most of the protective oil that i had left from cleaning.
Even then it'll need a few rounds to "settle in", but shots would be closer to my last zero.

Edit: I re-read the first post, and I realized that usually my first shot is a little low out of the clean oiled barrel. Your high shot might indicate that the bore is too dry, may be a lubed patch then a few dry patches to get the excess out will hep bring your first shot closer to your zero.

I had to do some experimenting on my rifles to see what worked....
Like my centerfire, she likes to be swabbed with rubbing alcohol, then ONE wet patch of alcohol mixed with HBN, then ONE dry patch. When I shoot my HBN coated bullets there is NO different point of impact from the first shots to the last.
In my MKII, can't use HBN, so I use the procedure as stated above. First shots will be close, but not exact, before it settles in.

with my custom rimfire match rifles the first shot from a clean bore always goes high and left. by the third shot i'm back to point of aim. each rifle is different, but all of my match rifles go high left with clean bores. some take 5 shots to get them back to point of aim, some take 3.

are you shooting lead 22 mag bullets or are you shooting copper jacketed bullets? don't think anybody asked that did they? something i learned a long time back is that bore snake is no good. i got rid of all of mine. the barrel may look clean, but it isn't. i use a bore giude and a one piece cleaning rod on all mine now. either a dewy rod or a ivy rod with a bore giude made just for each rifle. the .22lr rifles i never run a brush through them. i use boretech rimfire blend cleaner cut 50/50 with kroil and good patches to clean. believe it or not more rimfire rifle barrels are destroyed by cleaning than by shooting!!!!! those tiny scratches you put in the barrel with the cleanig rod will destroy a barrel faster than shooting. get a good stainless steal cleaning rod and a good bore giude just for that rifle. dump the bore snake. you'll be better off in the long run for sure.