trouble shooting old gun? scope maybe?

[muskiehunter369]

i was given an old 270 wby mag a few years from my grandfather and used it for hunting last year and loved it. the gun shoot great, 125 yard shot on that buck was spot on and the deer maybe made it 40 yeads and died. i cleaned it and put in the gun locker until now. i got it out to be sure it was til on and i could hardly hit a target about 12 by 12 at fifty yards. the first shot was only about was only maybe an inch off and the 2nd and 3rd shot didnt even hit the target. i put 20 rounds down range and the shots would be in every dirrection.left, right, high, low and everything in between. hit the target about half time in with little to no patern. the ammo i was shooting was pretty darn old as well. the scope is around the same age as the gun, around fourty to fifty years old, its a redfield 2-7 power. i took it to the local gun shop and was told the gun looks just fine and its most likely the scope. he didnt seem like the smartest gunsmith ive ever seen. would you agree with him its the scope? im a college kid with budget and i wanted to do some research before i spend money on a high end scope that can handle the recoil of that load. thank you for your input.

- Bundy

[96trigger]

I would also have to believe that it is the scope. If you can strap it to a bench, so It cannot move, put the crosshairs on the target and shoot a couple. You should at least be ablet get a group. Also, might want to clean the gun again.

[SmilinBob]

If you took the stock off there is a chance you didn't seat it like it was or torqued the screws different than they should be, causing pressure on the barrel. Also try looking through the scope and giving the rifle a couple smacks with your hand to see maybe on the outside chance the crosshairs have broken, it does occasionally happen. Out of curosity, how and what did you use to clean it? And lastly, I know you don't want to hear this, was it the correct ammo? Even old ammo should still give some sort of group on the target. And try another through cleaning and shooting off a bench, thats about the best test for it.

[muskiehunter369]

i never took the stock off at all im not that great with guns and i didnt want to break it. i just ran i bore snake down it with hopps number 9. and lubed it. i just clean it the best i can with just taking out the bolt. it was the correct ammo, the only one who makes the 270 wby mag ammo is wetherby itself. i looked to see how old that ammo was and it was around fourty to fifty years old, bad i know. yeah i think shooting it once more with fresh ammo is the best think to do for now.

[Ufatz]

Seriously doubt there is any real problem with the old ammo but you most likely DO have a big time problem with the scope or the way the scope is mounted. If nothing else, take the rifle back to your "gunsmith" and have him bore-sight if for you and check scope mounts.

Don't panic: that sounds like a nice old rifle and you are a lucky guy.

[Jim Almquist]

Were you in a hurry the day you were sighting it in ?

I had the same type of issue with Remington 30.06 one season and the only thing I could figure was that I was in too much of a hurry. Went back a few days later and took my time and made sure to use good breathing and just squeeze the trigger and only shoot 3 rounds at a time and the rifle was sighted in within 9 rounds. I really believe it was good right from the start and that I moved it when it was ALL operator error the first time out.

I had a friend who swore his gun was off because he could not put one shot inside a paper plate at 100 yards so he hands it to me and I was able to put my only 3 shots in the plate

Make sure to have a rest even if it is just a pile of jackets. Right before you pull the trigger hold your breath. Make sure to squeeze the trigger--Don't pull it. If you find you have a hard time holding the rifle right on the spot you can always try moving by the target real slow and squeeze off a round when it is centered.

Sounds like you have a cool old gun so I really hope nothing is broke.

[96trigger]

Are you shooting off a bench?