New 7mm-08 owner

[ocean15]

New member and first time poster; bought a new 7mm-08 with a Bushnell 9X40 scope to share with my 15 yr old son. we Just finished firing 2 boxes of Hornady superperformance rounds at the range to get a feel for it. Wow! We are both newbies to rifles in general so we are taking it slow and easy. Couple of questions for the seasoned rifle types;

1. Thinking of getting a bipod mount. Saw some videos on Youtube and it looks like this would be a good thing for target practice. Any pros or cons?
2. I went out and bought a box of Remington low-recoil rounds to help with sighting in as the Hornady's were a little too powerful and it was hard to judge what was offset vs. error due to recoil. Haven't fired the Remington's yet but hoping to get a better 3-shot pattern to really tell if the scope needs adjusting. Any recommendations?
3. My son has friends who have more rifle and hunting experience, they say dry-firing is not recommended. How do Savage's hold up to occasional dry-fire? According to most forums this is ok for bolt action as it helps get a feel for the trigger pull and saves ammo when practicing. Is snapping ok or am I looking at a new firing pin in a short time?
Thanks, enjoying the new Savage.

[fgw_in_fla]

I've dry fired my rifles with no trouble but, because it is a bit of a concern I use an uncharged case with bullet pressed in & no primer. In the primer pocket I stick a small piece of pencil eraser for the firing pin to hit.

I make 4 - 5 rounds for each caliber & practice dry fire sighting with them.
Or...
pick up a couple of dummy rounds. They're not too costly.

Error due to recoil? or are you fliching? I thought the 7-08 was pretty mild in the recoil dept.

Bipod? Love 'em...
Couldn't live without. Beats using a cement block.
Or maybe try a nice bag. I've seen shooting rests at walmart.

[pisgah]

A bipod used correctly can be a great aid; used improperly, it can be worse than useless. Either get 10 minutes' instruction from someone who knows how, or search online for articles about shooting off of a bipod. They are out there.

Dryfiring is not only harmless to your rifle but essential to honing trigger control skills. Practice tripping the trigger with minimal motion while concentrating on your sight picture, and breaking the shot just when you know your crosshairs will be on-target. Pulling the trigger should become almost an automatic, subconscious event. Also, learn to "follow through" on your shot.

[fgw_in_fla]

Good stuff to read at Accurateshooter.com:
Q: Do you sometimes use the free-recoil method? Can it ever work with a bipod?

Free recoil will not produce the desired result with a .308. I tried that more than a couple of times. No dice. My technique works for me. But I won’t argue with the way Tony Boyer shoots a 6PPC.

And don’t even think of shooting free recoil off a bipod. It just doesn’t work because you don’t want those legs bouncing backwards out of control.

When shooting with a bipod it is essential that the bipod be adjusted properly for elevation and cant. The bipod must be of good quality. I like Harris swivel bipods with notched legs. When the bipod is set up properly, and if you push slightly forward with the rifle to firm up the ‘pod’s legs, excellent results can be realized with lots of practice.

Q: What is best advice to newbies looking to improve their accuracy?

The most accuracy that you can get out of a .308 (or any centerfire rifle for that matter) will always be by handloading your own ammunition. You can tune the load to your gun and realize its full potential.

My suggestion to a new shooter would be to get some good instruction from a pro, take a class in precision shooting, read everything you can about all of the shooting sports and get on the internet if you have access and talk to forum groups. Most of these guys will give you tons of great advice.

Visit websites such as Snipers Hide, Westcoast Tactical, Benchrest Central–there are numerous other sites. Log on, ask good questions, be respectful, listen, learn and practice as much as you can.

There is still no substitute for trigger time. I shoot 3500-4000 centerfire rifle rounds a year in three different calibers. Plus a lot of rimfire.

BTW, anyone looking to improve their centerfire rifle skills should spent a LOT of time behind the trigger of an accurate .22 rifle. Rimfire practice, even at 50 yards, really helps improve your focus and trigger control. I have a couple of 10/22s I accurized myself, and they are tack-drivers

[ocean15]

Good stuff to read at Accurateshooter.com:

BTW, anyone looking to improve their centerfire rifle skills should spent a LOT of time behind the trigger of an accurate .22 rifle. Rimfire practice, even at 50 yards, really helps improve your focus and trigger control. I have a couple of 10/22s I accurized myself, and they are tack-drivers

Thank you all for the replies and advice. fgw_in_fl, I should have replaced the word 'recoil' with flinching which is probably more the case with me being a new shooter. We will check out the recommended websites and see about a precision shooting course. I'm interested in learning how to handload. I haven't investigated the cost of the equipment but buying rounds at approx $40 a box I would think you would start saving some money after a while.

[fgw_in_fla]

When I found out how consistantly accurate Federal Vital-Shok 30.06 - w/ the Nosler Ballistic tip bullet was, I started to use them exclusively. When I realised I was going to have to apply for a mortgage to afford them (at $45 a box) I started reloading. I highly recommend it.
Pick yourself up a Lyman 49th reloading manual. The 1st half is very informative. Lots of great info on how to reload. The 2nd half is all recipes for almost every caliber.
The AccurateShooter.com site has alot of good reloading info as well.
Have fun....