Re: Today was a good day...AE arrived
I was starting to get worn down my the end of the day, so some of the groups were not that steller.
Conditions were 77*F, sunny, 5-10 mph full value wind.
Still it got me the data that I was looking for.
In this rifle Hornady 168gr AMAX Custom is a smoking performer I fired four five shot groups and the smallest was under 1/4" at 100 yards (center to center). The largest was under 1/2" but then had one shot drop out of the group. I am betting it was me that caused it since I was really getting a bit tired at that point, but it will require another box before I can make any definite estimate.
Prvi sucks, but I think we all knew that. It struggled to stay MOA and had several the would jump out of the group.
Hornady 168gr Match was just behind the 168 Amax. This surprised me a little. I would have expected their "match" ammo to shoot better than the "custom" stuff. The difference wasn't great though and they might switch places on a different day.
The real surprise was the 110gr Hornady TAP. The muzzle blast was very noticeable. More so than any of the other loads. I could actually see the muzzle flash in the scope in broad daylight. Accuracy was acceptable for a defensive load, but isn't going to cut it as a match load. Even at 100 yards it showed a 1" wind drift.
I did the velocity testing from the Rock BR rest. The actual accuracy testing was from the ground with bipod and rear bag.
I fired the groups "round robin" but I think that actually caused a problem because anything that followed the Prvi was not as tight as when fired alone. Also the gusting wind prevented me from firing slowly. I had to try to crank off all five while the wind conditions were the same. While at 100 yards wind is not going to be a "hit or miss" it can add 1/4 or more to group sizes. This is one of the reason I am not actually posting the sizes.
This was not a definitive accuracy test. It was more to give me a chance to see how the AE MkII performed with a variety of ammunition. With the exception of the Prvi 168gr Match the AE performed admirably.
I am still waiting on some Black Hills 175gr Match and hopefully I can get ahold of some Corbon match. That will cover just about anything you would use as "duty ammunition" in the AE.
One interesting fact is that the 20" AE produced similar velocities to my 26" barreled 700. In fact my 175gr handloads (43gr RE15) were about 30fps faster in the AE.
I will have the numbers for the velocities in a minute.
