I had a chance to take this rifle to the range where I could give it a proper try. Wednesday a front came in, so it was a chilly and windy morning. The wind was blowing downrange, however(mostly), so it wasn't too bad. And I needed to sight in my .308 in case I have a chance to go out after deer.
Here's the star of the day:
Along with all the other crap on my bench and the one next to it. Ammo used was Eley Sport and Federal Lightning. Started off at 50 yards with the Ross aperture sight flipped up, and at the lowest position:
Then with the open rear sight. You can remove the Ross from the mounting bracket by pulling one screw, so it's easy to get it out of the way. This is with the sight at the lowest setting(200 yards):
The #1 rear sight has a straight-sided notch; this one has the notch widened out to a 'V' because with the aperture all the way down(which put it just a touch high at 50) the notch would be in the way. It's a little bit in the way as is.
The Federal shot about the same size groups, but about 3/4" higher. So after sighting in the deer rifle, I set up some targets at 100 yards. No, I don't have those targets. Did I mention it was a bit windy? 'Nuff said. I was getting 3-4" groups with both brands, and considering the light, the wind and my eyes I thought that was pretty good. The sights aren't up to the Parker-Hale match sights on the Martini, but this rifle still shot quite well. I'll note that I shot at 100 with both rear sights, and the widened notch on the open sight didn't help matters, but it still did a quite respectable job for a 91 year old rifle. I'll also note that recoil, as expected is almost non-existent; with the weight of a rifle designed for .303 plus the extra weight in the barrel from the smaller bore, it shifts the piece- slightly- when you fire. The trigger is the standard two-stage military, kind of heavy on the break; I've got a Enfield trigger, so I think I'll do a bit of careful polishing and fitting and see how it comes out.
Especially after this, I'm damn glad that Ross sight caught my eye. I'm going to enjoy being the caretaker for this piece for a while.
As a side note, the .308 I was sighting in was the Savage Scout. After the last time I shot it I found that the scope mount was loose, so I needed to make sure it was shooting where it was supposed to. Damn good thing I checked; it was off. Shooting this rifle is a pleasure, it's got a wonderful trigger and the three-point sling setup is great for steadying your aim. If I am able to go out, and get a shot, all my excuses are gone.
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