I am currently in a state of disbelief over what I discovered today on the first trip to the range with my brand new Nightforce ATACR 5-25x56. I can't hold an acceptably accurate group with it. This scope was purchased as a step up from the Nightforce NXS 3.5-15x50 F1 that has been atop my Remington 700 in .308 caliber for the past year and a half. Out of the box, the ATACR appeared to be everything I'd hoped for. The glass is amazing. The magnification range is just right for the type of shooting I do (tactical long range precision). The MIL - R reticle is fantastic. I can live with SFP. So, before actually shooting with it, this scope seemed to be a great choice to replace my Nightforce 3.5-15 F1. However, after trying to make it work all day, that's not the case. A 3 inch spread at 100 yards equates to a possible 30+ inch miss at 1000 yards and resulting elevation and windage adjustments chasing a hit that would actually be luck at that point.
My new ATACR is mounted on the same Nightforce 20 MOA base that my old Nightforce F1 was on and I'm using brand new Nightforce 34mm Ultralite rings in 1" height. First, I got it on paper at 50 yards and moved to the 100 yard range where the rifle could be supported on sandbags on top of a concrete bench rest to establish my zero. That's when the trouble began. The best 5 shot group was over 3". I hadn't shot this rifle in about 3 weeks so at first I decided I was just not shooting well. My prior experience with this rifle set up and the old NF F1 scope mounted was very consistently achieving quarter size 5 shot groups under the same conditions at 100 yards. I rechecked all the hardware to verify that everything was torqued to factory spec. I cleaned the barrel. I practiced dry firing for 30 minutes. Then fired another 5 live rounds but there was no improvement in pattern or grouping.
During my dry fire routine, I noticed that occasionally the reticle appeared to jump or skip appreciably from my point of aim in the sight picture at the moment the firing pin was released. I thought this must surely be an indication that I was anticipating the shot and jerking the trigger. So I called on a fellow long range shooter who I know to be an experienced marksman with precision accuracy skills to give it a try. His results were no better than mine. Together we went over my entire set up and tried to determine what was causing the problem. We removed the new ATACR from the rings and disconnected the cross bolts securing the rings to the base. I thoroughly cleaned the scope tube and rings, and then remounted it to the rifle. After double checking the torque settings, we bore sighted, and got back on paper but still no improvement in pattern or grouping at 100 yards. Out of a last ditch attempt to figure out what was causing the issue (read as: "we know it can't possibly be a problem with the new Nightforce ATACR scope), we decided to put the Nightforce F1 scope back on the rifle to see what would happen. The first 3 rounds using the old Nightforce were touching and the overall 5 shot group at 100 yards was less than 1 MOA.
Our conclusion, based on these events, is that there is something wrong with my brand new Nightforce ATACR. This is almost unbelievable, given Nightforce's well deserved reputation for the highest standard of quality, but I don't know what else to think. It's a huge disappointment. I will be in contact with Nightforce this week and guess I'll get to find out how good their legendary customer service is.
Has anyone else had this type of problem with a Nightforce scope? Any ideas on what the nature of the problem is?
My new ATACR is mounted on the same Nightforce 20 MOA base that my old Nightforce F1 was on and I'm using brand new Nightforce 34mm Ultralite rings in 1" height. First, I got it on paper at 50 yards and moved to the 100 yard range where the rifle could be supported on sandbags on top of a concrete bench rest to establish my zero. That's when the trouble began. The best 5 shot group was over 3". I hadn't shot this rifle in about 3 weeks so at first I decided I was just not shooting well. My prior experience with this rifle set up and the old NF F1 scope mounted was very consistently achieving quarter size 5 shot groups under the same conditions at 100 yards. I rechecked all the hardware to verify that everything was torqued to factory spec. I cleaned the barrel. I practiced dry firing for 30 minutes. Then fired another 5 live rounds but there was no improvement in pattern or grouping.
During my dry fire routine, I noticed that occasionally the reticle appeared to jump or skip appreciably from my point of aim in the sight picture at the moment the firing pin was released. I thought this must surely be an indication that I was anticipating the shot and jerking the trigger. So I called on a fellow long range shooter who I know to be an experienced marksman with precision accuracy skills to give it a try. His results were no better than mine. Together we went over my entire set up and tried to determine what was causing the problem. We removed the new ATACR from the rings and disconnected the cross bolts securing the rings to the base. I thoroughly cleaned the scope tube and rings, and then remounted it to the rifle. After double checking the torque settings, we bore sighted, and got back on paper but still no improvement in pattern or grouping at 100 yards. Out of a last ditch attempt to figure out what was causing the issue (read as: "we know it can't possibly be a problem with the new Nightforce ATACR scope), we decided to put the Nightforce F1 scope back on the rifle to see what would happen. The first 3 rounds using the old Nightforce were touching and the overall 5 shot group at 100 yards was less than 1 MOA.
Our conclusion, based on these events, is that there is something wrong with my brand new Nightforce ATACR. This is almost unbelievable, given Nightforce's well deserved reputation for the highest standard of quality, but I don't know what else to think. It's a huge disappointment. I will be in contact with Nightforce this week and guess I'll get to find out how good their legendary customer service is.
Has anyone else had this type of problem with a Nightforce scope? Any ideas on what the nature of the problem is?
Duhfuhk?
