What am I missing?

slammer1 · Post by **slammer1** » 11 Mar 2013 00:07

I recently acquired a Rossi Wizard in .308 Win. To my untrained eye, it resembles the Handi Rifle in appearance. I've scoped it with a Simmons 44 mag scope (4-12x) My problem is: the rifle won't group (10-12 inch spread at 100 yards!).

I have tried the following things to improve it:

1.Put o-ring on forearm stud.
2. Use Wipe-out foam cleaner to clean barrel of copper and other fouling. Clean barrel with Ed's red every 20 shots thereafter.
3. Wipe off latch shelf with isopropyl alchohol to eliminate any traces of oil.
4. Inspect Muzzle (I'm not a gunsmith, but I'm not seeing any weird dings on the exterior surface and pulling a fuzzy Q-tip doesn't snag on any burrs on the last inch of rifling)
5. When shooting from the bench, rest the rifle directly in front of the trigger guard.
6. Wait a couple of minutes between shots.
7. Between shots, make sure all screws on scope mounts remain snug.
8. Start with 2 boxes of factory ammo (Federal 150 grain and then Winchester 150 grain). Now working slowly up through 150 grain reloads. Nothing is standing out...
8. Lay off the coffee on range day...

I'm considering having a gunsmith cut and crown the barrel to ensure a clean crown. I've also thought about having the gunsmith pillar and glass bed the forearm.

Any suggestions? Anything obvious I should be looking at? Your advice is appreciated!

slammer1

Post by **Ranch Dog** » 11 Mar 2013 01:08

Do you have another scope you could try? If not, shoot it at 25 and 50 yards with the open sights and see how it does. It seems you have everything else covered.

...typos courtesy of Tapatalk!

Post by **pricedo** » 11 Mar 2013 02:06

Last option if you got a lemon is to find a nice comfy spot for the recalcitrant rifle on a used gun rack.

slammer1 · Post by **slammer1** » 11 Mar 2013 02:14

I thought of the 2nd scope option. I have a Bushnell 4x that hasn't let me down on a couple of other rifles. I'll see about mounting that to see if my results are any different. (I'd like to say I have a Swarovski or Leica or Leupold in the bull pen, but that's not in my dollar range.)

Thanks,
slammer1

Post by **Ranch Dog** » 11 Mar 2013 08:35

Slammer, I failed to welcome you to the forum! Thanks for signing up!

One additional thought, make sure the butt stock is secured to the receiver. The manual I received with my rifle was for the Single Shot rifles and showed the attachment point being accessed through the base of the butt stock like the H&R. The Wizard though is secured through the pistol grip cap with an allen wrench. The screw was loose on my 4570.

slammer1 · Post by **slammer1** » 11 Mar 2013 18:31

Good suggestion. I checked the butt stock and tightened it down when I first got it as I noticed a bit of wiggle.

My next range session, I'll shoot it without the forend wood on to see if I'm having a bedding problem. If that changes nothing, I'll switch optics and put on my trusted Bushnell to rule out optics issues.

I guess the only issue with pillar/glass bedding would be that I'd lose the ability to interchange barrels- right?

Still really hoping I didn't buy me a canoe paddle...
Thanks again,
slammer1

Post by **Ranch Dog** » 12 Mar 2013 06:22

slammer1 wrote:I guess the only issue with pillar/glass bedding would be that I'd lose the ability to interchange barrels- right

Yes, and you shouldn't have to put that kind of work into a simple rifle. I'm stumped because my 45-70 required no work. In fact, it is rather boring.

Still, I think optics. I just can't think of anything on the rifle that might be wacky. I did have a tough time getting Weaver mounts to secure to the scope base as the width of the base that came with the rifle was a tad to narrow. During this time period, I happened to be at Academy in Victoria and notice they had a Rossi base so I bought it. The new base cured the base to ring fit. Also had this issue with the Circuit Judge bases on the two rifles I bought.

Kentucky · Post by **Kentucky** » 12 Mar 2013 16:20

Seems I'm in the same boat. Got a Wizard in 223 at a good price from Academy. Tried to sight it in with scope and could get 3 inches at only 25 yards. Thought it was the cheapie scope, changed scope the second time, nothing really better then I stuck a red dot on it and got down to 2 inches. Took the Weaver off my 30-06 Savage and put it on the Wizard. The Savage will hold 1 1/4 inches or better at 100 yds. so I can assume the scope works. Tried the 223 Sunday at 100 and bypassed trying at 25 yds. One shot centered in the 1 inch square, some got 6 inch spread and quite a few weren't even on the white of the entire target. Shot off fore and aft sandbags, cleaned the bore, adjusted forearm screw tightness. No consistant accuracy at all. Also ordered a 22-250 barrel, didn't get it off the 20 yard line as st seems to do just as bad as the 223. Not going to buy a higher dollar scope just to try to prove the rifle. After checking the lockup I noticed that the barrels have some lateral movement which can be felt at the reciever cross pin and the 22-250 seems to be wearing the blueing off of the left side of the pin and barely touching the right side. Going to try some reloads and if nothing changes the Wizard will be history. Would probably make a cool shotgun with a red dot on top.

Post by **Ranch Dog** » 12 Mar 2013 17:11

Doesn't sound good Kentucky, I'm with you, it would be out the door and disappointing.

Post by **pricedo** » 12 Mar 2013 20:54

Ranch Dog wrote:
Yes, and you shouldn't have to put that kind of work into a simple rifle. I'm stumped because my 45-70 required no work. In fact, it is rather boring

The 454 was lots of fun though.

Rossi Rifleman

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