Q. I recently acquired a Remington Model 760 in .308 Win. The rifling is pristine, but I have not been able to get this rifle to produce a decent group at 100 yds. My three-shot groups rarely measure less than 4". I’ve used three different scopes from well-respected manufacturers, name-brand rings and bases-all to no avail. I am using 180-gr. Winchester Silvertips that have consistently produced sub-m.o.a. groups in three other rifles including a Browning, a Sako and a Smith & Wesson. Do you have any idea what the problem might be? How can I tune this rifle?
A. I do not blame you for being dissatisfied with 4" groups. If the rifling is, as you say, pristine-I take that to mean that it is neither pitted nor copper-fouled-there is not much you can do to “tune” your slide-action 760. Generally speaking, pumps and semi-automatics are not as accurate as bolt-actions, but you should be able to achieve 2½" groups at 100 yds.
I suspect you have a rifle that does not like 180-gr. bullets. If you try 165-gr. or 150-gr. loads, you are bound to find one or more capable of delivering acceptable accuracy. Unless you are going after elk, either of these bullet weights will perform well on medium-size game.
-Jon R. Sundra
Originally published December, 2006
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