Yesterday morning I went to the range to sight in a Remington Model 7 .243. I took along my Rem 700 BDL Varmint .308, thinking after I was done shooting in the .243 in, maybe I'd try some .308 125 grainers I'd loaded up.
I already had the .243 bore sighted so I slapped a few stick on targets on an ISPC target and set it on the target stand at 100 yards. After I sat up the Model 7 on the bench, I suddenly had the bright idea of shooting a quick five shot group with the .308, while lying prone on the concrete and using nothing but the bipod for support.
I loaded the magazine all the the way, then pressed them down and put one in the chamber, now it was going to be a six shot group. I set the 3-9 scope on six power and lay down on the cold 35 degree concrete. I got comfortable and hit the go button on my range timer, when the buzzer went off, I aimed at the lower left target, squeezed the trigger and blah, blah, blah...
20.8 seconds latter I was empty. Then I fired three shots off the bench in about a minute, with the unsighted in .243 Model 7.
The .308, off the bipod in 20.8 seconds group, measured 2.5 inches exactly from outside edge to outside edge. The .243 group(first one I ever fired with that rifle by the way) measures 9/10ths of an inch.
Several things going on here. I haven't fired a rifle in several weeks. My 700 BDL Varmint is sighted in with 150 grain Ballistic Tips. I had never tried that 125 grain load in any of my four .308 rifles. I shot off the cold concrete, with no mat and only the bipod for support and I shot fast.
Is it a good group under the circumstances? I don't know, its kind of mediocre in my mind, but its real, honest and every shot would have been deadly to pretty far out there.