09-30-2017, 01:31 AM
I love my new rifle. There were ups and downs, but once everything was situated, viola!, she runs fellas, she runs.
First of all, let me describe the facilities. A tunnel, five lanes wide, at which there are lights on the ceiling at 50, then at 100. If they aren't out. If someone hasn't tried to exceed their capabilities and shot out a light, "accidentally". There used to be cameras at 100 that fed target image back to the firing line of each lane... that too has gone away. The target cradle carries it's paper to 25, 50, and 100 accurately, albeit at about a 20degree left cant by the time it gets down there. This means I had to hang a tall target, and staple my 11" wide Larue target with a MOA high right corner. At 100, it was "sorta" level. The "bench" you shoot from is at an extremely awkward height, just above the belly button; and they provide height-adjustable chairs. They are on wheels... Stable positions, if to be had at all - are had without the chair; and at this awkward angle. The window is on your right shoulder, and it too places the firearm at a slightly uncomfortable angle to shoot. This range is definitely not for long term, comfortable position-building or use. Sight in your rifle, and leave. Make minute adjustments elsewhere. I rented my lane for an hour, and used every bit of my time to get 57 rounds down range.
Next, my equipment. Larue Grendel and trimmings. LRRPF52 has already covered far better than I could the details about this rifle. I would add only that holding one is the only real way to understand how great this rifle is. Holding one that is your own - well, that can't be described in words. Bushnell Elite 6500, 4.5-30x50 Mildot reticle-SFP. Hornady ELD-M 123 which will be my general purpose round of choice for now, and Federal 120 OTM for comparison. I am setting my zero at 200 yards, which should mean just over a two inch high group at 100 if I can do my math right.
7 rounds was my sight in. First shot at 50 was 3.75 inches down, and 6ish inches right of the POA. I came off the gun, and sat for a second and actually tried to re-live the first round... Cliche? No sir. It was for posterity. And it was good. So good, I leaned back down without changing anything at all to re-do it. Here is where it started to make me sweat, and the giddiness began to seep out. The second round was TOUCHING the first. Not close, not maybe, not accidental. TOUCHING. And that was all she wrote. I was so excited at this point, that I could have packed up, and been completely satisfied. I shot the first two rounds of my new gun and they touched each other. As if providence had opened the Heavens, shined light from above my target, and God's hand itself guided the second round to impact. It was that easy. The scope hadn't moved. The FATwrench did it's job, the LT104 held the big heavy glass, and the rifle spit two rounds at the exact same azimuth - twice.
But, alas I had to prove to myself I knew how to operate a firearm at appropriate distance. I moved 6 MOA left. Fired. Bullet same elevation, but EXACTLY 3 inches left. Oh yes, I forgot to double the adjustment since it was half the distance. I am so excited at this point that math evades me, and I move the scope another 8MOA left, cause the impact needs to move another bit to the left. Fired. Bullet hole EXACTLY 4 inches left. But, that was just under an inch too far left. So, now, I know the scope moves laterally perfecty, I move the scope one MOA right, and three MOA (I thought) up. Fired, and was flabergasted, there was no new hole. Hmmmmm, bring target in. OH... well, there was a nice half moon in the bottom edge of the target, EXACTLY three inches down and one inch right from the last POI. OK - I moved the scope down not up, but I'll be damned if the horizontal movement wasn't almost perfect. So, I moved the scope up 7 MOA, and left one single click. Fired, and now POI is one inch low at 50. I run the target out to 100, fire, and BAM! one inch high. Almost perfect, up one MOA and <bang>, done. Seven rounds, and three minutes and for the first time in my life, a rifle setup zeroed like I read about in the books. I'm about to lose it - in a good way.
Now, the Larue targets they so generously provided with my rifle came out, and got stapled to the target with a left-ward lean to correct for the right theta at the end of the range from the track twisting as it meandered the 100 yards to the line. Sent my first target down, loaded 5 rounds of ELD, and took a breath (about 3-4 minutes) to allow things to settle back down inside. I wanted this group to really tell me what I and the rifle together were capable of. Well, this group and the next were the best two 5 round groups I've ever shot. This needs proving! Next target on, and on it's way down the track.
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I know, those aren't the 1/2 inch groups I've been seeing all over the forum! I agree, but I could have stopped at 3 rounds too. I wanted to see what I could do, and 5 rounds say so much more than 3. And 10 so much more than 5. Oh, this LT 104 is QD... hmmm wonder what happens if I remove it, and then re-attach it?
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The right group was the second fired now, and I held one MIL dot down on the reticle and fired all 10. And at this point I'm about to pee my pants. I can repeat the groups with 10 rounds each, and I know my 100 hold is a dot down. All this considering that my position is getting really unfomfortable, and I now have to start watching the clock on my hour. I'm at about 40 minutes... God forbid I go over... Oh hell... I went and bought another hour. Good investment. Because now I'm curious how my Larue likes the Federal.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9850[/ATTACH]
Turns out, she likes it. And now, I am actually dribbling a little. Spittle! C'mon fellas, lets keep it clean... I was kinda dissapointed here. I was hoping this ELD-M would group like this. Hmmm... is it me? New target, one more group, this time the remaining 10 rounds of the Federal, and then I'll swab the barrel, let it cool, and do one more group of 10 of the black.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9851[/ATTACH]
There was one of the 120 I'm going to say was me, but I can't believe it. I know I was holding the same POA, but got a flyer anyway. Must have been me.
The only ripcord I could find in the shop front (of course I left my .264 at home...) was a .270/6.8. It almost - almost made me worry when I got the ripcord started into the bore and it became hard to pull it through. I managed. Three swabs with some BT Eliminator on the first 1/3 and back to the BLACK, with results as you see.
Overall, I would say that I am one happy camper. My rifle felt like it was made to shoot; smooth, quick, balanced, easily benched, carried, cleared. I had one FTE, an empty wound up rammed between the bolt face upward into the CH, which meant I had to clear the round by using my finger to compress the bolt backward to allow the empty to then fall down out of the mag-well. I took a few pics of that and can post if there is interest, but it was the only hiccup and was easily cleared, after diagnosis. That was round 9/10 of the first 10 round group I shot, making it round number 26 on the day, and that same 10 round mag worked the entire time. I think it could be attributed to how I was holding my mouth. When I walked out of the tunnel up to the shop carrying my rifle I bet I looked a lot like the Jack Nicholson Joker... The same face cramps are coming back now as I write this report...
The fact that I sit here re-living the entire event, and as I write I am reminded of things that make me smile, to the point of cramping my cheeks - to me, says volumes about how nice it was to FINALLY own and shoot my own Larue.
This is no sales pitch, but I wouldn't mind selling products as well made and performing as these. Take whats here for what it's worth, and with a grain of salt, YMMV.
I tend to forget details over time, and most of what I am doing here is recording my experience for posterity and for my own fun.
LRRPF52, your reviews were what convinced me to trade off the UU kit I had bought, and to go ahead and get the complete rifle. Now, I say thank you. For the completely accurate and descriptive reviews. Your descriptions were definitely spot on, and I am glad to say publicly now how happy I am to have taken your experience and run with it. I think Mark may well be a genius for sending you a review at the expense of a gift rifle. I know he is a genius when it comes to building rifles... Thank you both.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9852[/ATTACH]
First of all, let me describe the facilities. A tunnel, five lanes wide, at which there are lights on the ceiling at 50, then at 100. If they aren't out. If someone hasn't tried to exceed their capabilities and shot out a light, "accidentally". There used to be cameras at 100 that fed target image back to the firing line of each lane... that too has gone away. The target cradle carries it's paper to 25, 50, and 100 accurately, albeit at about a 20degree left cant by the time it gets down there. This means I had to hang a tall target, and staple my 11" wide Larue target with a MOA high right corner. At 100, it was "sorta" level. The "bench" you shoot from is at an extremely awkward height, just above the belly button; and they provide height-adjustable chairs. They are on wheels... Stable positions, if to be had at all - are had without the chair; and at this awkward angle. The window is on your right shoulder, and it too places the firearm at a slightly uncomfortable angle to shoot. This range is definitely not for long term, comfortable position-building or use. Sight in your rifle, and leave. Make minute adjustments elsewhere. I rented my lane for an hour, and used every bit of my time to get 57 rounds down range.
Next, my equipment. Larue Grendel and trimmings. LRRPF52 has already covered far better than I could the details about this rifle. I would add only that holding one is the only real way to understand how great this rifle is. Holding one that is your own - well, that can't be described in words. Bushnell Elite 6500, 4.5-30x50 Mildot reticle-SFP. Hornady ELD-M 123 which will be my general purpose round of choice for now, and Federal 120 OTM for comparison. I am setting my zero at 200 yards, which should mean just over a two inch high group at 100 if I can do my math right.
7 rounds was my sight in. First shot at 50 was 3.75 inches down, and 6ish inches right of the POA. I came off the gun, and sat for a second and actually tried to re-live the first round... Cliche? No sir. It was for posterity. And it was good. So good, I leaned back down without changing anything at all to re-do it. Here is where it started to make me sweat, and the giddiness began to seep out. The second round was TOUCHING the first. Not close, not maybe, not accidental. TOUCHING. And that was all she wrote. I was so excited at this point, that I could have packed up, and been completely satisfied. I shot the first two rounds of my new gun and they touched each other. As if providence had opened the Heavens, shined light from above my target, and God's hand itself guided the second round to impact. It was that easy. The scope hadn't moved. The FATwrench did it's job, the LT104 held the big heavy glass, and the rifle spit two rounds at the exact same azimuth - twice.
But, alas I had to prove to myself I knew how to operate a firearm at appropriate distance. I moved 6 MOA left. Fired. Bullet same elevation, but EXACTLY 3 inches left. Oh yes, I forgot to double the adjustment since it was half the distance. I am so excited at this point that math evades me, and I move the scope another 8MOA left, cause the impact needs to move another bit to the left. Fired. Bullet hole EXACTLY 4 inches left. But, that was just under an inch too far left. So, now, I know the scope moves laterally perfecty, I move the scope one MOA right, and three MOA (I thought) up. Fired, and was flabergasted, there was no new hole. Hmmmmm, bring target in. OH... well, there was a nice half moon in the bottom edge of the target, EXACTLY three inches down and one inch right from the last POI. OK - I moved the scope down not up, but I'll be damned if the horizontal movement wasn't almost perfect. So, I moved the scope up 7 MOA, and left one single click. Fired, and now POI is one inch low at 50. I run the target out to 100, fire, and BAM! one inch high. Almost perfect, up one MOA and <bang>, done. Seven rounds, and three minutes and for the first time in my life, a rifle setup zeroed like I read about in the books. I'm about to lose it - in a good way.
Now, the Larue targets they so generously provided with my rifle came out, and got stapled to the target with a left-ward lean to correct for the right theta at the end of the range from the track twisting as it meandered the 100 yards to the line. Sent my first target down, loaded 5 rounds of ELD, and took a breath (about 3-4 minutes) to allow things to settle back down inside. I wanted this group to really tell me what I and the rifle together were capable of. Well, this group and the next were the best two 5 round groups I've ever shot. This needs proving! Next target on, and on it's way down the track.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9848[/ATTACH]
I know, those aren't the 1/2 inch groups I've been seeing all over the forum! I agree, but I could have stopped at 3 rounds too. I wanted to see what I could do, and 5 rounds say so much more than 3. And 10 so much more than 5. Oh, this LT 104 is QD... hmmm wonder what happens if I remove it, and then re-attach it?
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9849[/ATTACH]
The right group was the second fired now, and I held one MIL dot down on the reticle and fired all 10. And at this point I'm about to pee my pants. I can repeat the groups with 10 rounds each, and I know my 100 hold is a dot down. All this considering that my position is getting really unfomfortable, and I now have to start watching the clock on my hour. I'm at about 40 minutes... God forbid I go over... Oh hell... I went and bought another hour. Good investment. Because now I'm curious how my Larue likes the Federal.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9850[/ATTACH]
Turns out, she likes it. And now, I am actually dribbling a little. Spittle! C'mon fellas, lets keep it clean... I was kinda dissapointed here. I was hoping this ELD-M would group like this. Hmmm... is it me? New target, one more group, this time the remaining 10 rounds of the Federal, and then I'll swab the barrel, let it cool, and do one more group of 10 of the black.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9851[/ATTACH]
There was one of the 120 I'm going to say was me, but I can't believe it. I know I was holding the same POA, but got a flyer anyway. Must have been me.
The only ripcord I could find in the shop front (of course I left my .264 at home...) was a .270/6.8. It almost - almost made me worry when I got the ripcord started into the bore and it became hard to pull it through. I managed. Three swabs with some BT Eliminator on the first 1/3 and back to the BLACK, with results as you see.
Overall, I would say that I am one happy camper. My rifle felt like it was made to shoot; smooth, quick, balanced, easily benched, carried, cleared. I had one FTE, an empty wound up rammed between the bolt face upward into the CH, which meant I had to clear the round by using my finger to compress the bolt backward to allow the empty to then fall down out of the mag-well. I took a few pics of that and can post if there is interest, but it was the only hiccup and was easily cleared, after diagnosis. That was round 9/10 of the first 10 round group I shot, making it round number 26 on the day, and that same 10 round mag worked the entire time. I think it could be attributed to how I was holding my mouth. When I walked out of the tunnel up to the shop carrying my rifle I bet I looked a lot like the Jack Nicholson Joker... The same face cramps are coming back now as I write this report...
The fact that I sit here re-living the entire event, and as I write I am reminded of things that make me smile, to the point of cramping my cheeks - to me, says volumes about how nice it was to FINALLY own and shoot my own Larue.
This is no sales pitch, but I wouldn't mind selling products as well made and performing as these. Take whats here for what it's worth, and with a grain of salt, YMMV.
I tend to forget details over time, and most of what I am doing here is recording my experience for posterity and for my own fun.
LRRPF52, your reviews were what convinced me to trade off the UU kit I had bought, and to go ahead and get the complete rifle. Now, I say thank you. For the completely accurate and descriptive reviews. Your descriptions were definitely spot on, and I am glad to say publicly now how happy I am to have taken your experience and run with it. I think Mark may well be a genius for sending you a review at the expense of a gift rifle. I know he is a genius when it comes to building rifles... Thank you both.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9852[/ATTACH]