First Garand Shots

[Allen Humphrey]

Took my new Garand to the range for the first time today. What a blast! This was the first time firing any Garand for me, so I was ear to ear grins.
I had 40 rounds of 150gr FMJBT over 46.0 gr of IMR 4895. The rifle is a 5.6 mil H&R with a ME of 1 and TE of 2. Centered the front and rear sights and then came up 8 clicks for 100yd and got the first round in the black of an SR-1. My Turner sling isn’t here yet so I was shooting from the bench over bags. I forgot my calipers so I had to do a bit of trial and error to get my front sight zeroed. My front sight and rear aperture look flipp’n GIANT compared to my 03 Springfield. Comparatively the trigger is lighter on the first stage and heavier on the break, so that will take some getting used to. The recoil is substantially less than the straight stock Springfield too. That will make rapid fire strings a lot more fun.

I was satisfied but not astounded by the groups I shot. Came in with a 1.48” average radius. A few flyers were pushing that average up so I think with a bit of practice with this trigger and sight, things will improve. I plan on playing around with some different loads with the 150 bullets and then try some 168s. One thing I did notice during single loading: 3 times I had a little bit of a clik-bang and each time, the shot was about 3” low. I think the bolt was not completely rotated home, but not sure. Never happened with a clip. I may get a sled.

I have been using the “average radius” method for measuring groups. I tend to think that it is a better measurement for shooting open sight mil-surp. Any thoughts on that?

[Liam]

A Garand Collectors Association (GCA) article from last year covered utilizing average radius when assessing groups. Unique in that the "flyers" are not dismissed, but included in the assessment. It sure is easy to describe a 1" group "except for a flyer." I don't have the article at hand, but equally important to the author was shooting a larger number of rounds to get an average. Congrats on your NEW M1. Consider - if you haven't already - joining the GCA. I have but one M1 but still find the articles of educational and entertainment value.

[Allen Humphrey]

Thanks for the suggestions Liam. I'll have to look around and see if I can come up with that article. As more of a shooter than a true "collector" I like to push myself (the biggest factor in accuracy) and my rifles to improve. When I look at groups that I get from iron military sights I usually see a decent cluster at the POI but a lot of static around it. I feel like the average radius eval tends to filter the static a bit. It is so much different than using a target rifle from a bench with a big scope where you get nine shots touching and a single flyer that is easy to discount.

[RobUSMC]

Sounds like your hooked to me!
Just what is the "radius method"? That is new to me.

Semper Fi, Rob

[Allen Humphrey]

In a nutshell, the Average Radius is determined by finding the geometric center of the shot pattern, then measuring the radius from that center to the center of each hole and then average the numbers to get your answer.

http://riflestocks.tripod.com/calculate.html

There is some fancy software you can use but it is really just basic math. Takes about 15minutes for a 15 shot group including a double check and a calculator.

[RobUSMC]

Thank you Allen, now I have another way to occupy myself with shooting knowledge! :)

Semper Fi, Rob