Maybe this is a stupid question, but is there anything special about sighting in a big bore gun, anything different from sighting in a smaller caliber gun. I will be sighting in my Uncles .404 next weekend, so anything special?

Plan on taking plenty of breaks between shot strings to allow your barrel to cool and for you to accustomize yourself with the recoil. 404 Jeffery isn't too bad to shoot, and most can do it seated from the bench. if it is a bit much, you may have to develop a sighting stand.

John

It ain't sissy to use a sissy pad.

quote:

Originally posted by JudgeG:
It ain't sissy to use a sissy pad.

Good points all, for sighting in, above.
And:

1. Use a more upright sit at the bench, whenever you don't have a standing rest.
Adjust the front rest higher and pile the rear bags higher.
Use some sandbags or folded-towel pad to rest your forearms wherever you might touch the bench surface or edges. Prevent "elbow banging" in recoil.

2. Grip the forearm firmly with your front hand, and the trigger hand.
All is snugged up except the trigger finger, until the final squeeze.

3. Don't hold the rifle downward hard onto the bag, make it float on the bag,
or let it rest with downward force no more than the weight of the rifle.
Snug it back into your shoulder and bunch the pectoral and shoulder muscles into a muscular pocket for the rifle butt.
If you wear the recommended "sissy pad," you wont have the multicolored pectoral badge of bruised honor,
so snug that pad into the same place, between the rifle and you.

4. You must be consistent when zeroing, repeatable in all the forces applied,
all the positioning of the rifle on the bags and in your hands.
Exactly the same for each shot.

5. If using a scope, ensure adequate eye relief, and don't crawl the stock,
keep head and neck upright, and cheek snug against the rifle.
Same contact points and zero-parallax eye position each time.
Did I say keep everything consistent, exactly repeatable?


6. Keep a proper mental attitude. A 404 Jeffery is not one of these:

Yes it is diff. RIP nailed it. When I shoot off a bench, sitting as upright as you can, use a Past pad & grip the forend. Gripping the forend is the biggest diff for me. On lighter guns, 375h&h & down, I don't. On 404j & up, it;'s a must, especially w/ scopes.

I agree with the above regarding gripping the foreend. That's the biggest difference I found between .404 and say a 30-06. The recoil is not so much a smack as a big push but your front hand will get away with you if you don't hold tight.
kh

depends on how its loaded.. at classic velocities, its a POP GUN .. i am not being macho .. its a nice round to shoot..

sit upright, pull it into your shoulder, and the first 2 rounds are just to get aquainted with it. its a POP gun, and wonderful fun to shoot

Good advice from JudgeG. I use the Past Magnum Recoil Shield. Be sure you have plenty of eye relief from scope (if using one). And, keep scope weight as low as possible to minimize moment of inertia on scope rings.

In a pinch I use my wallet as a recoil shield. I even put a little extra in it for that purpose...can also be used to supplement the Past.

And, I've gotten small dents in monte carlo stocks from the ear muffs, so to protect a nice stock at the range I fasten a piece of thick leather around it.

The forearm pads are a good idea. Prevents the elbow banging and is more comfortable anyway. I cut a couple small squares of thick carpet for that and to further avoid scratches on nice wood, a long slender piece for when the gun's just resting on the bench.

I never count on there being wooden blocks or sand bags available at the club and just leave in the car trunk several 18" pieces of 1x4s and 2x4s, a thick rug and a couple of old boat cushions to build my own rest when I get there. For magnum handguns I use a rubber floor mat for a blast shield...don't have to worry about it catching fire or being blackened. Sometimes the club's seats are the wrong height so I also take along a folding dove hunting stool.

And, this will sound totally unnecessary, but I've found out the hard way a couple times to make sure before leaving for the range that the scope is still good and tight. They do on occasion get loose especially when not fitted properly in the first place.

Agreed about the mental attitude. My three rules...think death grip...then tell yourself it's just a .22...and pretend no one's watching..

Let us know how it goes. I'm beginning the process of having a .404 built.

two words; lead sled

put one 25lb bag of lead shot on it and you can shoot it all day, yet it still allows the rifle to move so the force isn't solely absorbed by the stock.

Failing that, read what the Judge said.

What RIP said!

My .404Jeffrey is a pussycat compared to my .416 Rigby.

Terry
Not to open OLD WOUNDS on this forum BUT...
Tell us about Stock Splitting with a Lead-Sled??? Any Concerns??
And I of course don't mean synthetics...
We have our own stories here at the shop,but I would love to have new/more input from experiences of others.

I have not had a problem with stock splitting with a lead sled (sound of knocking on wood). I have used it on a 458 WM with a laminated stock and a 404J with a wood stock. I only use it to zero the rifle and then move to sticks. I also do not load the sled down to the point that no movement occurs. I basically put 25lbs on it and that takes the sting out but still allows the sled and rifle do move with the recoil.

Great stuff, exactly what I was looking for. Will let you all know how is goes.

Storm,

Great advise here. I might add that I would keep my teeth clamped together during every shot. It's possible to bite yout tongue and cheek quite badly in recoil. Hurts like Hell.

Mark