Thompson Center Compass Accuracy

I have done a small amount of research on this rifle and for the price point for a hunting rifle offering MOA accuracy with all of it's features, I decided to get one. I sold my only .308 And had quite a bit of ammo left over, so that's what I went with. I'm on a tight budget, so I chose the Cabela's Covenant 4-16x44 AO with the 30mm tube. My question to the group is this...Has anyone ever had problems with this or another weapon which had the 5R rifling throwing shots AS SOON as the barrel gets any sort of heat to it? The reason I ask is because while sighting in, I tried several various ammos to see which grouped the best. QUALITY ammo would normally touch the first 2 shots or very close to it. The 3rd would be anywhere from 1/2 to as much as an inch off. I take my time when I shoot and don't just throw lead down range so it's not like it was 3 shot rapid fire hot. The ammunition which performed the best was Winchester Ballistic Silvertip. All were 150 grain. To test the barrel heat theory, I recently went to Kentucky on a visit where it was much cooler. Temp was right around 50 as opposed to the 73 when I shot here in Tx. SAME RESULTS. at 200 yards , cold bore was DEAD ON. second was about 1/4 inch low right, and 3rd was approximately 1 inch lower but dead even. I was using a lead sled. Before mounting the scope, I ensured the bases were purple loc-tited to make sure they didn't come loose. Rings were loc-tited and torqued to specs. A also visually inspected the crowd. I wanted to make sure it wasn't nicked or damaged. Although I did it with the naked eye and a flashlight, it wasn't even scratched. The scope travels as it's supposed to and adjustments are accurate. the ONLY THING That is making sense to me is the barrel heating up. I am getting MOA(BARELY) as advertised, but as close as the first 2 shots are, this rifle has real potential. Would switching to a 165 or 168 grain round possibly help? This thing has me scratching my head!

By all means test other bullet weights. You might also try testing without the lead sled. All that said, a rifle that puts the first shot predictably to point of aim every time is well worth keeping, at least for hunting where the first shot is everything.

I looked at one of these the other day because they were $199. I was shocked by how thin the barrel was. IMO it will definitely heat up in a hurry. But, as syncerus points out, when are you firing that many rounds with a bolt-action hunting rifle? First should do the job.


Question, did you fire shots 4 and 5 to see if those came back in line or were further than #3?

If it's putting #3 in the same spot every time, it's almost definitely due to heat. You can check the torque on the action screws, check the free-float, swap to a different scope for a test but I think you have it narrowed down already.

It's definitely on first shot! One of the brothers from my buddies church we have taken hunting for youth weekend the past 3 years was having problems with his scope so I let him borrow my rifle. He destroyed a deer with that first shot accuracy!

I never shot more than a 3 shot "group". Figured it would be wasting ammo.

Sounds like its fine, barrel heat is an issue in thin barrels. You could let barrel cool all the way to ambient temp between shoots to test your theory.

FWIW, 5r barrels have shot just fine for me. This is a budget hunting rifle and it sounds like it is doing great for the price.

I have a similar issue with my Savage Lightweight hunter. The barrel is thin. If I shoot three rapid shots the first two touch and the third shot will be within a couple of inches of the first. However, if I shoot slowly and cool the barrel with a wet cloth between shots there is no issue with the third shot. This is something that you may want to consider doing to confirm it is due to heat.

I added a muzzle brake and it helped quite a bit. Overall for a hunting rifle where you gotta make the first one count, it's perfect.

Try a different bullet weight, gee getting "barely" MOA out of an under $200. rifle and trolling forums complaining about it!

Rickt300..... Here's an idea..?If you don't have anything positive to add, take your crap somewhere else. I was looking for help, not an [censored].

FWIW, I shot my Ruger American 7-08 the other day, fairly rapid 3 shot group. It also has a really thin barrel. First shot was dead on, second was .8" low, third was 1.25" low and .25" right. This was after shooting a .25" 5-shot group with my Tikka, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't me.

The Ruger's now for sale if anybody's interested.