Need help with .22lr accuracy problem

rabbit assassin

I have a .22s/l/lr made by Henry , model H001. It has an 18 inch barrel, Its a lever action rifle that holds 15lr rounds and 18short rounds. I have it just over a year now and havent put a scope on it yet ,
I just used it around the farm with the open sights for rats and the odd crow and some plinking. I recently put a cheap scope on it ( Tasco 3-7x20) just because we have a bit of a rabbit problem and I wanted to extend my range so I can pick them off more accurately. Ive noticed that no matter what ammo I use ,
the best group I can get is about 5 inches at 60 yards. Ive tried various types of ammo incase it was the ammo that the gun didnt like .

Im an experienced shooter and have never come across this before. I tried zeroing it at 60 yards because thats as close as i can get to these rabbits ,
I have a .17hmr and I can shoot sub inch groups at 100 yards with it. but the problems with my .22 and Ive no idea of its the gun or the scope thats the problem. Ive been told its when the barrel heats up it gets less accurate but this happens with a cold barrel also, sometimes when im trying to zero it , the bullet hits 4 or 5 inches to the left or right , up or down , almost like its a flyer from **** ammo , but it couldnt be the ammo Ive tried every type and weight with the same result.. so im thinkin its the scope or rifle .....Anyone got any ideas?

Cass

rabbit assassin wrote: »

............ Ive been told its when the barrel heats up it gets less accurate ........

True but not so much with .22s. You would need to be firing continuously and rapidly to experience bullet spread with a ,22 and even then you are looking at 1" or less at 50yards. Its more common in centrefire rifles.

.. so im thinkin its the scope or rifle .....Anyone got any ideas?

Scope. Nealry definitely. If its doing it with any ammo then for some reason the scope is moving. As its a lever action i'm guessing it could be when you cycle the next round as a .22 would not have sufficient recoil to knock off a scopes zero.

If possible try another scope. Wither the one off your .17 or if you can get a loan of a scope of someone else. Also check the mounts. They may be loose and shifting when you fire or cycle the next round. So when you remove your Tasco check the screws/nuts before mounting the other scope.

If the problem disappears when another scope is mounted then you may get another scope. If it persists and other scopes are not helping, and you have tightened all screws/mounts/rings, etc then there is obviously another more "serious" issue causing this.

First things first though. Take off your old scope, check mounts, screws, rings, then mount another scope. Come back and let us know how you get on with it.

rabbit assassin

well its just a cheap scope , i got it in America it costed $20 . im prety sure its locked down securely and not moving at all ! would there be a chance that its something inside the scope moving?? I have a different scope Im going to put on tomorrow It has a 1" tube and is made by Hawke . I used to have it on my .17 but got a new scope for that . thanks a million for the help

Cass

rabbit assassin wrote: »

......... . im prety sure its locked down securely and not moving at all ! would there be a chance that its something inside the scope moving??

Yes. Hence the reason i suggested changing scope for another that is proven to be spot on. All scopes have a mechanism built into them to allow them to deal with the recoil from a fired shot. The cheaper the scope the less "dependable" this feature may be. Thats not a "given", but usually the case.

In most cases with a .22 the recoil is so low it does not enter into the equation when facing a problem like this however it does not exclude it as a cause. When you have the scopes changed will find out if your Tasco is the problem.

rabbit assassin

Thanks a million , I was almost going to trade it in for a Cz455 thumbhole , hopefully its just the scope. ill know tomorrow anyway ! thanks again!

clivej

Wots it shoot like using the open sights??? If it shoots good then it must be the scope. Try bringing the target to 25 yards and shoot a group with the open sights and then put the scope back on. If the groups are bad with the scope just then bin it.