Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Improvised Sitting II

I was able to get to the range the other day. I got a chance to practice a bit with the Improvised Sitting position I had written about last year. To be sure, I have used the position a bit here and there since I first wrote that article, however, this trip, I made an effort to make extensive use of the position.


Took the ol' M16A4 clone -





The only difference was, I was using the detachable carry handle as iron sights, and not the ACOG you see in the picture above. I alternated with an optic - a Primary Arms PAC3X.


Statistics
Ammo - Federal American Eagle 556 (55 gr)
Distance - 100 yards.

Groups fired with the optic were 2.5" - 3" on average, with 3.5" being the extreme. I was able to sneak out some groups under 2" from magazine rested prone. 

Groups fired with the carry handle were fairly consistent at 5" from 100 yards.


Summary
In my previous article, I stated I'd be comfortable out to 400 with the improvised sitting. I have shot this particular ammo at 400 yards before - ironically enough, it was from the improvised sitting position!

My actual distance shooting last fall at 400 yards resulted in a group under 12" - which represents a sub 3 MOA performance (3 MOA at 400 yards would be ~12.5"). My shooting more recently was on par with that result - ~3.1" at 100 yards is approximately 3 MOA.


Next Steps
With really good ammo, a free floated barrel, and a bipod, I am able to shoot groups out of an AR15 that measure well under 1 inch at 100 yards.

The really good barrel is a stainless steel HBAR. It weighs much more. The trade off is accuracy vs. weight. Since the A4 platform is already heavier than most carbines, even more weight is not necessarily a good thing.

As a trade off, I have decided that a LaRue quad rail on this A4 clone would likely be a good investment. It is my opinion that I might be able to squeeze another MOA of accuracy from the barrel. At the same time, I would no longer have to factor in barrel deflection from the occasional bipod use or sling use. Also, the LaRue rail is lightweight - easily as light as the KAC that is currently on the rifle.


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