Kinetic Research Group SOTIC?

[DJL2]

Right, so, I unexpectedly had some free time this afternoon. What did I do? I threw out my carefully crafted plan, ran to the range and did about a third of what I wanted to do about half as well as I wanted to do it. On the bright side, my 4 y/o son came out as a shooting buddy...my group sizes include my super ghetto backpack and rolled jacket rest with a wiggly young man on the mat next to me ;-).

Here's what actually went down:
Arrived to the range - calm conditions, right at 6 C. I setup a flat rate box with a water weighted vodka bottle in the bottom and a little square drawn on the front at around 25 meters. I dialed down 7 MRAD (the 4701's worth), right .5 MRAD said "meh, that'll buff" and went to the 100 yard line. Caveat: I did not verify this distance, I'm sure there's error here. That was shot one through three. Let the rifle cool, mucked about with targets.

Fired a three shot group at the 100 yard target, realized I was still 2 MRAD high - which, hilariously, was basically center mass on the upper target. Better to be lucky than good? Shot's 4-6 went into .707 inches. This was at least partly on plan, I started with the Hornady American Gunner 140 gn OTM. I had four rounds that looked sad and lonely, so I fired a four shot group after some cooling at .770 inches. Three of those were touching - it sucks being ham fisted sometimes.

At this point, my inner monologue screamed "Leroooooooooy Jenkins" and on went the APA Little B* as well as my Magnetospeed...so much for only changing one thing at a time and trying to exercise some control. I was on the clock! While a 12.5 lb 6.5 CM doesn't have a lot of recoil, it was noticeably less with the Lil' B* on the muzzle - no complaints on that front. Perhaps it's worth noting that cool down time lessened bit by bit between groups as time ran short and no consideration to cool down was given between shots.

I shifted to my oddball 127 meter targets and fired a very "meh" 1.196"/.823 MOA five shot group. Vavg was 2533 fps, SD was 14.3 fps, ES was 33 fps.
Next was 147 gn ELD-M @ 2550 fps, SD 22.2 fps, ES 56 fps - .656"/.45 MOA five shot group.
Last was SIG 140 gn OTM @ 2617 fps, SD 20.6 fps, ES 50 fps - 1.072"/.74 MOA five shot group.

Given the odd ball ranges, pending verification and a host of other factors, I take all that with a MASSIVE spoonful of salt. The trigger felt good. The velocity surprised me - that's down there in the range of factory 6.5 SKAN loads for 1896 Mausers ;-). That was 25 shots or so spread across roughly 90 mins. I still have two loads to chrono and all need to be shot w/o my chrono hanging off the barrel (and significantly more attention to detail). Wall o' text done on the PC, I'll upload some photo off the phone.

 

[supratt96]

Right, so, I unexpectedly had some free time this afternoon. What did I do? I threw out my carefully crafted plan, ran to the range and did about a third of what I wanted to do about half as well as I wanted to do it. On the bright side, my 4 y/o son came out as a shooting buddy...my group sizes include my super ghetto backpack and rolled jacket rest with a wiggly young man on the mat next to me ;-).

Here's what actually went down:
Arrived to the range - calm conditions, right at 6 C. I setup a flat rate box with a water weighted vodka bottle in the bottom and a little square drawn on the front at around 25 meters. I dialed down 7 MRAD (the 4701's worth), right .5 MRAD said "meh, that'll buff" and went to the 100 yard line. Caveat: I did not verify this distance, I'm sure there's error here. That was shot one through three. Let the rifle cool, mucked about with targets.

Fired a three shot group at the 100 yard target, realized I was still 2 MRAD high - which, hilariously, was basically center mass on the upper target. Better to be lucky than good? Shot's 4-6 went into .707 inches. This was at least partly on plan, I started with the Hornady American Gunner 140 gn OTM. I had four rounds that looked sad and lonely, so I fired a four shot group after some cooling at .770 inches. Three of those were touching - it sucks being ham fisted sometimes.

At this point, my inner monologue screamed "Leroooooooooy Jenkins" and on went the APA Little B* as well as my Magnetospeed...so much for only changing one thing at a time and trying to exercise some control. I was on the clock! While a 12.5 lb 6.5 CM doesn't have a lot of recoil, it was noticeably less with the Lil' B* on the muzzle - no complaints on that front. Perhaps it's worth noting that cool down time lessened bit by bit between groups as time ran short and no consideration to cool down was given between shots.

I shifted to my oddball 127 meter targets and fired a very "meh" 1.196"/.823 MOA five shot group. Vavg was 2533 fps, SD was 14.3 fps, ES was 33 fps.
Next was 147 gn ELD-M @ 2550 fps, SD 22.2 fps, ES 56 fps - .656"/.45 MOA five shot group.
Last was SIG 140 gn OTM @ 2617 fps, SD 20.6 fps, ES 50 fps - 1.072"/.74 MOA five shot group.

Given the odd ball ranges, pending verification and a host of other factors, I take all that with a MASSIVE spoonful of salt. The trigger felt good. The velocity surprised me - that's down there in the range of factory 6.5 SKAN loads for 1896 Mausers ;-). That was 25 shots or so spread across roughly 90 mins. I still have two loads to chrono and all need to be shot w/o my chrono hanging off the barrel (and significantly more attention to detail). Wall o' text done on the PC, I'll upload some photo off the phone.

Your velocities do seem low. I haven't chrono'd mine yet, but I will give it shot on my next outing, if possible. My chronograph doesn't do very well when the sun is at a low angle, which is pretty much all the time this time of year.

I'm surprised you didn't see better results from the Sig ammo. Guns and Ammo got extremely good results from them when they did a review, but that was with a Chanlyn barrel I believe.

Give the Hornady 140 ELD-M a try. They shoot really well in mine.

 

[DJL2]

Indeed, I figured I'd be about 50 fps off the 24 inch data...at first blush, it seems a good deal more.

Hornady lists the two loads I tested at 2690 and 2695 fps in a 24 inch tube. SIG lists at 2690, assuming a 24" bbl. Much published data points to around 20-25 fps lost per inch of barrel length up to the point of diminishing returns. My expectation was thus around 2625-2650 - I'm comfortably under that ~100 fps w/ Hornady. The SIG is closer, but still lower than expected. I was also a little surprised by the SD/ES...

If I don't stumble across some 140 ELD-M, it'll be a little wait while I order it. In the mean time, I can see how it likes the Berger 130 (FGMM) and locally sourced 142 SMK.

 

[supratt96]

Indeed, I figured I'd be about 50 fps off the 24 inch data...at first blush, it seems a good deal more.

Hornady lists the two loads I tested at 2690 and 2695 fps in a 24 inch tube. SIG lists at 2690, assuming a 24" bbl. Much published data points to around 20-25 fps lost per inch of barrel length up to the point of diminishing returns. My expectation was thus around 2625-2650 - I'm comfortably under that ~100 fps w/ Hornady. The SIG is closer, but still lower than expected. I was also a little surprised by the SD/ES...

If I don't stumble across some 140 ELD-M, it'll be a little wait while I order it. In the mean time, I can see how it likes the Berger 130 (FGMM) and locally sourced 142 SMK.

New barrels usually speed up after the first 100 rounds or so. Hopefully, this will be true for yours. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

 

[DJL2]

Well, I decided to do some measuring. I also spent much too much on 140 ELD-M and some 129 SST Superformance - the latter is just for giggles. I measured OAL for everything I had on hand and ended up with:

147 ELD-M - 1.915, 2.808
142 SMK - 1.910, 2.805 (Defender)
140 BTHP - 1.912, 2.790 (American Gunner)
140 ELD-M - 1.912, 2.802
140 OTM - 1.910, 2.704 (SIG)
140 SMK - 1.912, 2.711 (FGMM) <— reading is fundamental, thought these were 130...they aren’t.
129 SST - 1.914, 2.684

I’ll have to start measuring to the ogives, get a sense of where these are relative the lands and one another. If I have more time, I’ll sample some more cartridges before I shoot ‘em.

At this close range, the Hornady and FGMM/SMK 140s are nearly indistinguishable - hitting to same POI, between .6 and .8 MOA. Some of that is my error. The temp was up to 14-16 C today, the 140 ELD-M was 2587 fps, SD 11.8, ES 24. The SST was 2861 fps and takes the crown, so far, at 9.3 SD and ES 26. Notably, the SST was almost exactly 50 fps off the box velocity...in line with expectations. Even being a little warmer, the ELD-M was 120 fps below box.

I don’t have any luck with the SIG ammo, probably won’t reorder after I burn the box. I’m reserving judgment on the SST and 142 SMK for now. The Magnetospeed does move POI considerably, so I’ll leave that be and focus on not shooting terrible groups.

ETA: photo in the "wild."

 

[supratt96]

Well, I decided to do some measuring. I also spent much too much on 140 ELD-M and some 129 SST Superformance - the latter is just for giggles. I measured OAL for everything I had on hand and ended up with:

147 ELD-M - 1.915, 2.808
142 SMK - 1.910, 2.805 (Defender)
140 BTHP - 1.912, 2.790 (American Gunner)
140 ELD-M - 1.912, 2.802
140 OTM - 1.910, 2.704 (SIG)
140 SMK - 1.912, 2.711 (FGMM) <— reading is fundamental, thought these were 130...they aren’t.
129 SST - 1.914, 2.684

I’ll have to start measuring to the ogives, get a sense of where these are relative the lands and one another. If I have more time, I’ll sample some more cartridges before I shoot ‘em.

At this close range, the Hornady and FGMM/SMK 140s are nearly indistinguishable - hitting to same POI, between .6 and .8 MOA. Some of that is my error. The temp was up to 14-16 C today, the 140 ELD-M was 2587 fps, SD 11.8, ES 24. The SST was 2861 fps and takes the crown, so far, at 9.3 SD and ES 26. Notably, the SST was almost exactly 50 fps off the box velocity...in line with expectations. Even being a little warmer, the ELD-M was 120 fps below box.

I don’t have any luck with the SIG ammo, probably won’t reorder after I burn the box. I’m reserving judgment on the SST and 142 SMK for now. The Magnetospeed does move POI considerably, so I’ll leave that be and focus on not shooting terrible groups.

Interesting...

I'm surised the Hornady 140 eldm was so slow and that they didn't do better. I didn't have much luck with the Sierra 140s when I tried them in my hand loads but I loaded some more, this time .005 off the lands to see if they do any better. Also loaded up some more of the vvn550/123 SMK load to see if it shoots as well as it did last time. Lastly, I loaded some 140 eldm with h4350 to see if I could duplicate the Hornady factory load.

I might. E able to get out today if the weather holds off. If so, I'll try to get some chrono numbers this time.

 

[DJL2]

I found this while cleaning. Absolutely baffled.

 

[supratt96]

I found this while cleaning. Absolutely baffled.

That raises a few questions...

Did it ship that way?

Does it affect the bolt throw and/or lock-up?

Could that be affecting accuracy?

 

[supratt96]

Interesting...

I'm surised the Hornady 140 eldm was so slow and that they didn't do better. I didn't have much luck with the Sierra 140s when I tried them in my hand loads but I loaded some more, this time .005 off the lands to see if they do any better. Also loaded up some more of the vvn550/123 SMK load to see if it shoots as well as it did last time. Lastly, I loaded some 140 eldm with h4350 to see if I could duplicate the Hornady factory load.

I might. E able to get out today if the weather holds off. If so, I'll try to get some chrono numbers this time.

I was able to beat the coming winter storm and get another range session in, this time using all hand loads. Also was also able to get some good chronograph data. My chronograph actually works much better on overcast days.

The top row of targets were all shot with VVN550 and 123gr SMKs. Accuracy was mediocre at best and velocities were low considering I was using 123gr bullets. I was disappointed since this load did well a couple weeks ago. There were no pressure signs so I could go higher on the charge, but I don't think I'll bother. The 140s seem to shoot much better, especially the Hornady ELD-M. Standard deviation was ok, but not great.

The bottom row were all H-4350 and 140gr SMKs on the first two (left to right) and 140gr ELD-Ms on the second two. The one flyer on the last target was definitely me. I knew I jerked the shot before I even saw the result.

The SMKs did pretty well loaded .006" off the lands. Definitely a sub 1/2 MOA load. Last time out, I tried them .030" off and results were not very good.

The star of the day however, was the 140 ELD-M. Since the factory Hornady ammo shot so well I figured I would try to duplicate it. I used the factory ammo OAL and loaded the first five with 42.0gr H-4350 and the next five with 42.4gr. Both shot extremely well with super consistent velocities that were an exact match for what the factory ammo says to expect on the box. With just a little bit more fine tuning, I believe this will be a consistent 1/4 MOA load. I had zero pressure signs, so there's probably a higher node I could look for, but for now, I'm satisfied with what I got. Plus, I won't have to worry about this load going too hot when the weather warms up.

So, except for some fine tuning, looks like my load development is done!

 

[never_summer]

That’s some good shooting. Mines been sitting at my ffl since the 8th, can’t wait to pick it up now.

 

[DJL2]

If there’s any downside to the MSv3 at all, it’s certainly the attachment method - I know folks have mounts for them. For doing any prolonged work, a standoff mount would be a must...otherwise you’re shooting for velocity with a different POI...and I’m not convinced the POI shift is repeatable.

As to the dimple on my bolt...no idea when it happened. I don’t remember seeing it when I did the initial once over and installation...but, I also have no idea what could have caused it. I guess I can keep shooting and see what I see.

I’m hopeful the 147 ELD-M will be my “hammer.” At 20 fps difference in MV, it’s compelling. Both are great options. I’m a fan of Hornady projectiles in general (just unearthed some 7mm, 162 grain Amax, actually). Thus far, the 140 ELD-M and the 129 SST displayed the kind of SD you’d want from factory ammo (i.e. <15 fps). The American Gunner was at .7 MOA to start things off...but, that included the cold, clean bore shot as a “flyer.” The remaing four shots were touching, <.5 “ apart. I hate to look a gift horse in the mouth, but the 140 AG is a lot closer to the 120/123 ELD-M in trajectory than the 140, heh.

Today didn’t work for more range time, I’ll have to see if I can find anywhere open tomorrow. I’m already wondering what other barrels I can get spun up for this...with 3” of internal mag length, I wonder what the options would look like in 7mm...

 

[supratt96]

That’s some good shooting. Mines been sitting at my ffl since the 8th, can’t wait to pick it up now.

That’s some good shooting. Mines been sitting at my ffl since the 8th, can’t wait to pick it up now.

Why the delay?

 

[supratt96]

If there’s any downside to the MSv3 at all, it’s certainly the attachment method - I know folks have mounts for them. For doing any prolonged work, a standoff mount would be a must...otherwise you’re shooting for velocity with a different POI...and I’m not convinced the POI shift is repeatable.

As to the dimple on my bolt...no idea when it happened. I don’t remember seeing it when I did the initial once over and installation...but, I also have no idea what could have caused it. I guess I can keep shooting and see what I see.

I’m hopeful the 147 ELD-M will be my “hammer.” At 20 fps difference in MV, it’s compelling. Both are great options. I’m a fan of Hornady projectiles in general (just unearthed some 7mm, 162 grain Amax, actually). Thus far, the 140 ELD-M and the 129 SST displayed the kind of SD you’d want from factory ammo (i.e. <15 fps). The American Gunner was at .7 MOA to start things off...but, that included the cold, clean bore shot as a “flyer.” The remaing four shots were touching, <.5 “ apart. I hate to look a gift horse in the mouth, but the 140 AG is a lot closer to the 120/123 ELD-M in trajectory than the 140, heh.

Today didn’t work for more range time, I’ll have to see if I can find anywhere open tomorrow. I’m already wondering what other barrels I can get spun up for this...with 3” of internal mag length, I wonder what the options would look like in 7mm...

I'm pretty partial to 7mms myself. I have two 284 Wins and they both hammer. Ones a single shot, so mag length is irrelevant. The other is a conversion for my DTA, so plenty of mag length there even for the longest bullets.

With the SOTIC, I think your choices would be pretty limited since KRG says they have no plans for a magnum bolt face. 7mm-08 would work, but I think I would go for the 284. You would probably be limited to 168gr or less bullets and you would have to seat them a bit deeper than what might be ideal (the OAL I use with 168gr Sierras is 3.050"), but it would still have a big horsepower advantage over a 7mm-08. I get 3000 fps with that bullet (28" barrel) with stellar accuracy.

 

[never_summer]

Work offshore on a drillship, it showed up during the middle of my hitch. I have yet to get a scope and am hoping the Spuhr st-4701 comes back in stock at mile high.

 

[supratt96]

Work offshore on a drillship, it showed up during the middle of my hitch. I have yet to get a scope and am hoping the Spuhr st-4701 comes back in stock at mile high.

If Mile High is still out of stock, try Euro Optics. That's where I got mine.

 

[DJL2]

Celebrated my almost birthday with another 30 rounds down range. It was an eclectic mix of mostly the questionable performers. I had a bizarre group of two and three with the SST and a weird group with the SIG that is basically a horizontal line. The 140 ELD-M could have turned in a truly outstanding group, but my shooting buddy kicked me as I broke a “flyer” - the shot went right to the cross hairs and would have been inside the other four for sure, had it been properly aimed. I’ll post an edit with group sizes later, kids running wild before dinner.

ETA: 1 C, lasered @ 102 yds
1st group (center, AG) - 1.139”, .806” w/o cln/cld bore shot
2nd group (top right, AG) - .837”
3rd group (top left, Def) - .982” (142 SMK)
4th group (btm left, SST) - 1.532”
5th group (btm right, SIG) - .923”
6th group (sep, ELD-M) - 1.03”, .465” w/o called flyer

All in all, pretty poor shooting. I’d call it zeroed with the 140 ELD-M, at least.

 

[supratt96]

These rifles do seem a little picky on ammo but shoot lights out once you find what they like. My TRG seemed to shoot everything well. At least the barrel in my sotic cleans up very easily. No copper at all. My TRG was a copper magnet when it had the factory barrel and a nightmare to clean. I was always amazed that a barrel that fouled as bad as that could shoot so well, even after 100 rounds without cleaning.

 

[never_summer]

Finally got to pick it up today. Has a Broughton 1:8 6.5 creed with .199 freebore

 

[DJL2]

Finally got to pick it up today. Has a Broughton 1:8 6.5 creed with .199 freebore

Nice, welcome to the fam...you and I have twins.

ETA: you'll have to let us know what yours likes, ammo wise. I think that's three of us with barrels and rifles as near the same as KRG and Broughton can make them.

My B-Day netted me a Harris BRM-S from my father in law, so I can see how I like that on my next trip out. Hopefully, I'll burn through the rest of my SMK and, if time permits, get my Hornady stuff back on the chrono.

 

[supratt96]

Finally got to pick it up today. Has a Broughton 1:8 6.5 creed with .199 freebore

Beautiful! Congrats!

Try the Hornady 140gr ELD-m first if you shoot factory ammo. If you reload, 140 ELD-m with 42.4gr H4350 with an OAL of 2.808 and you will probably save yourself some time, money and barrel wear on load development.

 

[DJL2]

I am starting to think he’s right on this. The 140 ELD-M will do most anything that can be done with a 6.5 CM. I know the .326 G7 BC isn’t as awe inspiring these days as it would have been ten years ago, but that’s still a damn slippery bullet. As a bonus, no potential stability issues.

 

[never_summer]

Dumb question since you both have Spuhrs on these things @DJL2 and @supratt96. I have my st-4701 in and should be getting a minox from the px on Monday. The pin on the bottom of the Spuhr, is that movable for the slots in the reciecer for adjustment?

 

[skatz11]

Dumb question since you both have Spuhrs on these things @DJL2 and @supratt96. I have my st-4701 in and should be getting a minox from the px on Monday. The pin on the bottom of the Spuhr, is that movable for the slots in the reciecer for adjustment?

Yes the recoil pin on Spuhr mounts is threaded and can me moved to adjust placement of the mount on the receiver.

It’s a great setup. I finally broke down got one for my TRG last fall. I wish I would have done it sooner.

 

[never_summer]

Awesome, that’s what I figured messing around with it. Do you run forward against the slot and torque or does it matter?

 

[Mr Flannel]

As to the dimple on my bolt...no idea when it happened. I don’t remember seeing it when I did the initial once over and installation...but, I also have no idea what could have caused it. I guess I can keep shooting and see what I see.

Did you contact KRG about that ding in the bolt head? Either you’ve given it a pretty fair knock or it didn’t pass QC/QA before being sent out?

 

[smcgt]

I got to the range today for the first time with the new SOTIC. Let me tell you the break-in procedure is time well spent. It took a lot of restraint and patience!! However, I will say the break-in was spot on based on the evidence of my patches. I did not pull the chrono out for this session, but this rifle is excellent! I will say the Sig Match 140gr & the ELD-M 140gr both shot very well. Nosler 140gr...Not so much. I even had a round fail to chamber. The 4-shot group (sorry no 5th!) was 0.38MOA with the Hornady. 5-shot group was Sig 140gr Match at 0.64MOA. I know the rifle will shoot better as I get used to it and actually select one ammo. I will do a more in-depth review after the break-in is completed and I get a bit more trigger time.

 

[DJL2]

One of these days I'll get the app that measures your groups for you. I'm always a little envious when I see it.

I'm just burning ammunition at this point. Finished my SMK today, found another 40rds of SIG in my safe, started on that.

I couldn't leave well enough alone and ordered Norma 130s and Federal/Berger 130s, 40 each. I think I'm around 125 fired... It was 100 even this morning, but shooting partial boxes today means I need to go count some brass.

While my own shooting today was pretty mediocre, there was one bright spot... My son fired his first ever shots behind the SOTIC today. He insisted on doing his shooting at 200 yards ?. With a little help from me, he managed to ring some steel and make a very nice head/CNS shot on a silhouette someone left out.

 

[mwd92870]

Just got my scope Mil-XT installed.

 

[never_summer]

very nice, what bipod is that @mwd92870 ?

 

[mwd92870]

very nice, what bipod is that @mwd92870 ?

Ckyepod

 

[winniethepooh]

Maybe I missed it but, is there any chance of KRG @Massoud just selling the action or barreled action?

 

[supratt96]

Maybe I missed it but, is there any chance of KRG @Massoud just selling the action or barreled action?

As far as I know, he is not. He mentioned earlier that the action is very expensive to produce. There are so many moderately priced actions on the market right now that The SOTIC would probably seem overpriced in comparison even though it's a very high quality piece.

 

[supratt96]

Just got my scope Mil-XT installed.

How do you like that scope? I have been trying to convince myself that I need one of those.

 

[mwd92870]

How do you like that scope? I have been trying to convince myself that I need one of those.

It’s nice. Super clear. I can’t wait to put it thru it’s paces. MHSA sent it to me. I’m glad I went with the 7-35

 

[never_summer]

Finally got around to taking the rifle out and see how it shot. Bought 120, 140 and 147 Hornady eldm factory ammo, but only shot the 120 this go around. Shot three rounds to bore sight at 50 yards, then two more at 100 to get where I wanted. After sighting in, did the first initial cleaning, and noticed that it didn’t have much of any copper fouling in the barrel and was very easy to clean up. Shot the first five shot group below, this is my first precision rifle and I’m bad at slapping the trigger.
First time using the group measure on ballistic ae and don’t know if I did the whole scaling process right. Decided to try for another group and it opened up quite a bit, could have been me thou. Decided to clean her up, again there was a little bit of copper fouling but still not much. Shot the remaining into an 8 shot group. The first three were on the left, fourth shot low mid, and remaining four right side trailing in from right to left.

 

[mwd92870]

 

[supratt96]

View attachment 7022466View attachment 7022465

Nice shooting.

I had a pretty interesting day at the range yesterday too. I'll post some pics when I get home from work.

 

[supratt96]

I hit the range again yesterday to do some load fine tuning and to compare full length sized brass to neck sized brass. I loaded up 40 rounds. All 40 were twice shot Hornady brass, 42.2 gr H4350 and 140 gr ELD-M set to an OAL of 2.838". Twenty five rounds were neck sized only and fifteen were FL sized. With most of the other calibers I load for, neck sizing generally produces better accuracy.

The first group went high and right of my zero but it was a nice tight group, especially considering it included my cold bore shot. I had made some slight adjustments to my mount since my last outing, so I thought that was the reason for the change in POI. I adjusted my zero and the second group was almost dead center and measured .217". Off to a good start! Both of those groups were neck sized brass. Then I noticed my muzzle brake (PVA Jet Blast, self timing) was a bit loose. So, I hand tightened it and shot another group, but this one went low and to the left. I now suspected the brake was causing the shift so adjusted again which brought me back to my original zero.

I shot some more groups and all were pretty good, but none were as good as the first two when the brake was loose. Hmmm. Just for shits and giggles, I intentionally loosened the brake and shot my last group. As expected, the zero shifted again and the first 4 rounds grouped .260". I choked on the fifth shot which opened the group up to .600", but this confirmed my suspicion. The rifle groups significantly better with the brake a little loose. Tightening it must be putting some small degree of stress on the muzzle or changing the harmonics ever so slightly. Next time out, I'm going to try a different brake and also no brake at all and see what happens.

Although this is a pain in the ass, it proves this rifle and load are capable of consistent 1/4 moa accuracy if I can nail down this issue, so I'm pretty stoked!

 

[DJL2]

Huh, that’s wild...could be the rear of the brake isn’t true to the thread’s shoulder...or perhaps even an issue towards the front...I completely unfamiliar with how they make that brake - but, it’s hard to imagine ending up with something that is lathe turned and out of true...curious to see what you learn on the brake.

I did some shooting before putting the brake on, meant to do more. Might just mess around a bit. My wife informed me that my rifle is VERY loud. I figured it didn’t matter much since it didn’t bother my four and a half year old or my one and a half year old who are normally pretty sensitive...guess the ear pro is working as intended.

I felt like smashed ass last weekend, so between that and the weather I didn’t get any shooting done.

 

[never_summer]

Just put on an inisite heathen and Harris brms with arca clamp from krg. Gonna be putting on the arca spigot when it comes back in stock, but gonna try shooting a local match this week. @Massoud thanks to you and krg for the quick shipping and helping me get outfitted for the match.

 

[supratt96]

Just put on an inisite heathen and Harris brms with arca clamp from krg. Gonna be putting on the arca spigot when it comes back in stock, but gonna try shooting a local match this week. @Massoud thanks to you and krg for the quick shipping and helping me get outfitted for the match.

Looks great!

Let us know how you do.

 

[never_summer]

Well went and shot 100 rounds on Friday in a class pre match and shot 80 rounds today during the match. Came in 11th out of 30, wasn’t that bad considering it was my first prs match. Learned quite a few things on gear and what I’m gonna outfit the gun with next. Heard this isn’t just a problem isolated to the sotic, but upward pressure on the magazine would cause the bolt to bind against it and not go forward. After playing with and watching some AI ATs run, I’m not gonna lie I had some envy of them and the aw mags. The chamber on the sotic must be pretty tight, because during the class and match I had a few rounds not fully chamber. I had to slam the bolt home hard and a few times to get the rounds to chamber, and the extractor wouldn’t engage them until after they were fully locked in battery. This May have been an issue with the ammo, 140 eldm match Hornady, because it occurred on the second round of the match after I had fully cleaned the rifle including the chamber the night before. The rifle really started to break in with use, which now is 240 rounds on the clock. Muzzle velocity was a blistering 2670 FPS with factory ammo ?.
Either way I’m impressed with how the sotic performed the past two days. Watched a lot of guns have issues throughout the match that caused people points and time. Definitely hooked on prs shooting now, and can’t wait til the next outing.

 

[Massoud]

The chamber on the 6.5CM SOTIC's is a SAAMI spec chamber, it's not a custom one like the .308. You might check the chamber for debris, especially the shoulder where the round headspaces.

People like the shortness of the AW mags but they actually fed stiffer in the Badger action we have here than the AICS mags. TRG mags might be an option in the future if you don't mind cutting on that chassis.

Thank you again everyone for your business.
Justin

 

[never_summer]

@Massoud hey do you know when the weighted bag rider and t slot are gonna be in stock? Gonna pick up an Arca Spigot when they come in also.
Hoping this next time home to have my reloading bench setup and start fine tuning a load for this thing!
Thanks,

Frank

 

[Massoud]

@Massoud hey do you know when the weighted bag rider and t slot are gonna be in stock? Gonna pick up an Arca Spigot when they come in also.
Hoping this next time home to have my reloading bench setup and start fine tuning a load for this thing!
Thanks,

Frank

We should have them ready within a week or two, they're up on the site, just waiting on a couple last things. The Arca Spigots are long long overdue but again we should have them in two weeks although that one is more up in the air.
Thank you,
Justin

 

[supratt96]

I now have about 300 rounds through my SOTIC and it's thoroughly broken in. It's now consistenly averaging less than 3/8" groups at 100 yds. The Pic below is four, 5 shot groups from earlier today. Best group was .240" and the worst was .427". I very pleased with this as it now matches the accuracy I was getting from TRG when it had the factory barrel.

However, last weekend I shot my RPR which I had re-barreled to 6mm Dasher and shot some ridiculously good groups, the best of which measured .116" for 5 shots (see pic below). This got me thinking. Would the SOTIC action extract and eject 6mm Dasher cartridges? It takes AICS mags which I run in my RPR with a modified spacer and it runs flawlessly, so the mags shouldn't be an issue. I could actually use the same mags I run in my RPR. The amazing inherent accuracy of the Dasher combined with the SOTIC's refinement would be a truly awesome package!

So, what do you say, Massoud? Will the SOTIC action function reliably with 6BR variants? If so, would it be possible to get a barrel chambered in 6mm Dasher?

 

[never_summer]

@supratt96 26” in a heavy Palma 6 dasher?

 

[Massoud]

We don't know if you can run the 6BR rounds. We do have one that runs .223 and that one has been working well.

We probably won't do a barrel in a Dasher but any smith who can do a metric thread can spin one up for you, we'll be happy to send them the specs.

Keep in mind you can modify the mag height if you need to on the SOTIC, just pull the triggers and shift the trigger guard up or down by loosening the screws that hold it to the trigger body.

Thank you for the reports guys and for your business!
Justin

 

[DJL2]

I've done hardly any shooting lately...have ammo from "they who shall not be named" to burn through as well as some other 130 gr stuff to chrono...oddly, the 130 gn stuff in general seems pretty close to expectation (i.e. about 50 fps less than advertised for 24 inch barrels). I need to go back an re-chrono my 140 gr stuff too.

The only 30 rounds I've fired in the last month or so went out of my new Winchester Model 70 this past Sunday...which looks to be a shooter.

 

[Stag556]

@Massoud

Will the new T slot weight work with the enclosed forend? Thanks. Hoping you guys release them soon.