I have a remington 788 in .243. I have tried several times to sight the gun in and once I think I have it, I don't. I get it sighted in on the bullseye at 100 yds. and it is allright for 1-3 shots. After that the bullets just seem to drift up and down and to the sides. I just never know where they are gonna hit after that. I have read some stuff on the internet and been told different things by different people, and was hoping someone on here has enough experience and could give me an honest opinion.

I have been told that the scope lost it's nitrogen, so when I aim for later shots the crosshairs have actually moved. This was from Bass pro, Gander Mountian, and Academy.

I found on the internet and was told by a local gunsmith that the 788's are notorious for fouled headspacing and the rifle was probably shot out. The reason I haven't taken it to a gunsmith yet is that I have no idea if this is made up and I don;t want to get ripped off for something that doesn't need to be done, and to replace the barrel would be not be cost effective considering the value of these rifles.

Any info and opinions are appreciated.

It has been a while since I shot a 788, and mine was chambered for 44 Rem Mag.

Both of the explanations you were given sound some what fishy at best.

To the best of my memory about scopes, nitrogen keeps the lenses from fogging up, and has nothing to do with the crosshairs.

Maybe someone will correct me if I am wrong on that.

You did not say if this was a used rifle or one that you have bought new and have had for a while.

My suggestions, are;

1, sight the rifle in at 50 yards, instead of 100. It will be easier to see when the bullets start walking off. Once you have the bullet printing 5 or 6 shots group where you want them at 50, then you can move out to 100 yards.

2, After firing the first 3 shots, check all of the screws that hold the action and barrel to the stock and make sure they are still tight. Some times those screws will back out a little and allow the barrel to vibrate.

Conversely, the screws especially the one holding the barrel to the fore-end, could be too tight, and the fore-end may be putting pressure on the barrel as it heats up.

3, Check all of the screws on the scope mounts and rings. Some of them could be loose and the scope is moving during recoil.

4, Allow a few seconds between shots for the barrel to cool.

5, What grain weight bullet are you shooting, some rifles prefer either a lighter weight bullet or a heavier weight bullet, it will depend upon the rate of twist of the rifling in that caliber for that rifle.

I look at the advice you were given on the matter with a jaundiced eye, simply because many of the big box stores are looking at making a sale and many of the folks that work in their firearms departments have not had enough experience with fire arm vagaries to understand that not all rifles shoot MOA, especially if they have been out of the box for a while.

This is all JMO, but I think you can fix the problem with your rifle your self.

Like CH said, those are kinda fishy reasons to me too. And yes, the nitrogen is there to keep the scope from fogging up internally. Has nothing to do with the X-hairs moving. So they're just trying to sell you a scope.

Re-barreling...that could be it, but I highly doubt it. It would surely fix it, but not sure that's your only option. And for future reference, you can't place a value on a re-barreled gun, not if it's done right. Because once it's done properly, you'll never find an out-of-the-box rifle that'll hold a candle to it. They'll usually shoot circles around any factory offering.

If it's shooting the first few rounds of a group well, then getting more erratic with the next few shots, it could be a bedding issue. As the barrel heats up, it expands, and pushes against the wood of the stock. This will make a rifle shoot erratic when it gets heat in it. But they can shoot great for the first couple of rounds. Free floating the barrel will fix that. I do it to all of my bolt action rifles before I ever fire a round thru them.

If it's shooting erratically from one group to the next, it could very well be a scope issue (but not the nitrogen), loose screws, a bad crown, or several other things.

But I'd check the bedding on the barrel. Grab a dollar bill. see if it will slide between the stock and barrel, all the way down to the action. If not, take it apart, get some sand paper and a chunk of some round to use as a block (a piece of broom stick usually works), and sand the stock out until the barrel no longer touches it when all of the screws are tight. Once that's complete, get some varnish to reseal the wood, and check it again. Repeat if necessary. Even if that's not the problem, it won't hurt a thing to do it. And it's probably the problem.

IMHO, if it'll shoot 2-3 rounds well, then it should shoot #'s 4&5 almost as well. More than that and your putting a lot of heat in a sporter weight barrel, and degradation in accuracy should be expected.

And like CH said, not all rifles WILL shoot MOA. But most will if set-up properly. I've got a buddy w/a 788 in .223, and that thing shoots 10 rounds into the same hole (handloads). But numbers 11 and up start flying, and the more you shoot, the farther they fly.


Jay

One thought I forgot to add to my other response, is for that barrel to be shot out, that would mean a whole bunch of shots had been run thru it. It could happen but it would have to have been shot a bunch of times to have the barrel shot out. AJMO.

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One thought I forgot to add to my other response

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YOUR KIDDING.

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I found on the internet and was told by a local gunsmith that the 788's are notorious for fouled headspacing and the rifle was probably shot out.

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788's are one of the finest actions ever built; I've owned several and cannibalized many, when I was shooting bench-rest. The above quote makes no sense, if it were either of the 2; you'd have the same problem from the first to the last shot. Nitrogen had nothing to do with the accuracy of a scope, nor would the lack of it, effect it's accuracy. Start with the basics. Check the scope rings and mounts. Check the action, adjust those bolts if necessary, "don't over tighten" then check the bedding.

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What does that comment have to do with the topic?????????

As of right now the rifle is not free floated or glassbedded. I have done the ollar bill trick and it sticks from about halfway between the action to the end of the fore end. The rifle was purchased new by a friend of my dads and only used on a few hunts, before being purchased by my dad over 28 years ago, when he used it two or three times. So I don't think it is shot out, I was just wondering what people with more knowledge on the subject thought.

my remmy 7400 .270 did the same thing.......... it was the scope, see if anyone has a backup scope laying around, put it on and shoot it, dont really have to sight it in as long as it hits where u can see on a target, and they all hit in the same place ( or a good group) thats yer problem right there
I ALWAYS START WITH THE SIMPLEST THING FIRST now im not always right, but it wont cost ya nuthin to try it

That's a neat trick mesiah...
Everyone is right, gas has nothing to do with accuracy.
Check for loose or warped bases.

788 barrels did have some headspace problems, espeically in the 222 and 223's. I agree with RNM try the loose to tight things first, then scope, then gun.

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I ALWAYS START WITH THE SIMPLEST THING FIRST

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That is one of the best comments I have seen in a while, yet it is one of the least used methods of most folks.

When I was growing up, that is the way my Dad and all the other men I was around approached problems.

As I have gotten older and started working around more educated folks, they seem to have the science of looking for the most off the wall or improbable answers and solutions first, and then work their way inward toward simplicity.

It is like some where in the late 80's or early part of the 90's, simple solutions to problems went out of style.