Normal shot group for a precision AR with plinking ammo?

[heavygunner8]

Below is a picture I took of 10 shot group from 100 yards, shot while I'm sitting and gun with bipod is resting on bench top. Each square is 1 inch in width and length. Relevant gun specs are the following:

Noveske 18" SPR Barrel, about 500 rounds have gone through this gun so far.
Nightforce 2.5-10x42mm mil-dot scope.




Ammo I used are IWI M193 55 grain and American Eagle 223 55 grain. So the ammo used isn't exactly great. My aim was at the center of the red square. Now, I am a pretty noobish shooter and I do realize my scope probably isn't zero'd correctly when I made this shot group, but I always aimed at the center of the red square, so the shots are precise and consistent.

The purpose of my question is to find out if whether the shot group is considered normal for a 18" SPR barrel with not so great plink ammo? Given I'm pretty much a complete noob and the fact that ammo used isn't that good, would the shot groups tighten significantly (say, 1 moa or even sub-moa) with MK262 or some other name brand match ammo + a more experienced hand? I want to be sure there is nothing wrong with my barrel.

[glockshooter]

I have the same barrel as you on a SPR build. The grouping you are seeing is about what you should expect for 193. It is mass produced ammo. However if you load match 69-77 ammo you will see what the gun is actually capable of shooting. My 18” and 16” Noveske barrels both shoot awesome with my 75gr Hornady handloads. Both are sub MOA capable.

[heavygunner8]

I have the same barrel as you on a SPR build. The grouping you are seeing is about what you should expect for 193. It is mass produced ammo. However if you load match 69-77 ammo you will see what the gun is actually capable of shooting. My 18” and 16” Noveske barrels both shoot awesome with my 75gr Hornady handloads. Both are sub MOA capable.

okay! good to hear! I'll purchase some black hill mk262, and try again at a later time.

[Kain]

I don't have a Noveske barrel to go off of, but from my experiences with M193, that is about nominal for most. Better than some, but pretty much what I would expect and be happy with, giving it is M193. As has already been said, get some better ammo to see what the barrel is capable of. Mk262 is a good option, for "budget" precision Hornady Steel cased ammo has been good to me, their 55gr BTHP has always grouped very well for me, and it is usually .40-55 cents a round. Though, some other loadings may be very close to that as well.

[Coal Dragger]

The vertical stringing is probably the shooter getting slightly inconsistent shoulder pocket height contact on the butt stock, something to account for when not using a rear bag.

Otherwise for cheap 55gr FMJ I’d call that pretty solid. Probably a sign you got a good barrel.

Feed it some Federal Gold Medal Match or Black Hills 262 and bag the butt stock. See what it’s really capable of.

[heavygunner8]

The vertical stringing is probably the shooter getting slightly inconsistent shoulder pocket height contact on the butt stock, something to account for when not using a rear bag.

Otherwise for cheap 55gr FMJ I’d call that pretty solid. Probably a sign you got a good barrel.

Feed it some Federal Gold Medal Match or Black Hills 262 and bag the butt stock. See what it’s really capable of.

It's amazing the data you can gather from just a shot group. You're correct about the inconsistent buttstock contact. I was having trouble finding the most comfortable shoulder pocket during those 10 shots or for my entire range time to be more accurate. I am using a sopmod B5 enhanced, I'll have to correct this issue as well.

Edit: by bagging butt stock, do you mean putting sand bags underneath the stock, so that both the front of the gun (supported by bipod) and the buttstock are fully supported, therefore reduced human error.

[DGB]

I did some "just in case it's all I have" 5 shot groups with XM193 with my 20" WOA SAM-R barrel. 4 groups, 1.75 MOA, give or take a very small amount. The same rifle will do 1/2 MOA, or very close, with Hornady 75 grain. No bipod, backpack front and bean filled sock rear. I have found that if I really make an effort to mount the rifle the same way every time, there is no POA POI shift. I struggled with this when I became interested in precision shooting. I don't have any Noveske stainless barrels, but have a number of chrome lined ones. They all shoot very good, and I think yours does too.

[Captains1911]

I have a LaRue 18” barrel that with quality match ammo, like Black Hills 77gr, will shoot close to 1/2 MOA, but with 55gr XM193 is over 3 MOA. It’s all about the ammo.

[heavygunner8]

I did some "just in case it's all I have" 5 shot groups with XM193 with my 20" WOA SAM-R barrel. 4 groups, 1.75 MOA, give or take a very small amount. The same rifle will do 1/2 MOA, or very close, with Hornady 75 grain. No bipod, backpack front and bean filled sock rear. I have found that if I really make an effort to mount the rifle the same way every time, there is no POA POI shift. I struggled with this when I became interested in precision shooting. I don't have any Noveske stainless barrels, but have a number of chrome lined ones. They all shoot very good, and I think yours does too.

You shot 1.75 MOA with xm193 while just holding the rifle?

[heavygunner8]

I have a LaRue 18” barrel that with quality match ammo, like Black Hills 77gr, will shoot close to 1/2 MOA, but with 55gr XM193 i can barely get 3 MOA. It’s all about the ammo.

Is LaRue precision 18" barrels similar in quality to Noveske 18" SPR barrels?