Surplus ammo accuracy

[Ukraine Train]

I was shooting some Hungarian surplus ammo from my scoped Mosin 91/30 the other weekend. At 30 yards I was getting groups the size of a quarter but at the 100 yard range the groups were terrible, probably 8". Could this be attributed to poor ammunition? Or is it my lack of skill. I think next time I go shooting I'll buy some new ammo and see if it's any better.

 

[Dain Bramage]

It sounds about average for a Russian M-N with surplus ammo. Extra practice can't hurt either. I was getting about 4" groups at 100 yds from my scoped M38 with Wolf 200g SP's. I then tried Yugo surplus and got a fluke 5-shot string that could be covered by a quarter. I had sighted the scope for the Wolf, and the Yugo POI was about 6" away at 10 o'clock.

This is better than I generally get with the Yugo at 25 yds. My usual 2" 25 yd groups can be extrapolated to equal your 8" 100 yard groups. I haven't had a chance to try again at the longer range.

A step up and still within a low budget might be the Sellior and Bellot brand. They have a heavy-ball FMJ round and SP, but I haven't tried them yet. More expensive, but worth a try, are the american brands. I hear they tend to be not as hotly loaded as the Euro rounds. Federal has an old-school SP round that might be worth a look.

I'm thinking that getting pie-plate accuracy at 100 yds is fine for plinking and the brush hunting I have in mind. Plus the surplus and Wolf ammo are a big blast on a budget. I think that should be the M-N owners motto. Now we just need a secret handshake!

 

[moredes]

I know this response doesn't specifically address your M-N issue directly, but it's tangential enough to be 'related'. This is what I posted (concerning M1/M1A milsurp) on another forum:

Milsurp is all over the map. It all depends on your rifle. No one can tell from one rifle to the next what ammo it will like best. I've heard and read countless testimonies about the merits of one milsurp vs. another, but the proof is shooting them out of yours. You'll have to try it to know for sure. I know you're looking for a suggestion on where to start, but it won't work that way.

For instance, Hirtenberger had a great reputation (when you could get it) for accuracy "better than the rest". Port and Radway Green were supposed to be very good, but just a notch below Hirtenberger. My Super Match M1A hated milsurp. H, Port, Radway, South African, it didn't matter. Oh sure, H shot "better" groups, but that was still NINE MOA at its' best. I'd miss the ram at the 500 M line, and couldn't stay on paper at 300yd (w/ NRA 200yd target). Port, Radway, and SA didn't group well enough for me to measure. Literally. I guesstimate 12"-16" at 100yd depending on the country (or lot).

On the other hand, FGM 175's shot .75-1.0 MOA, BH shot just about the same, and handloads shoot .4 MOA out of the same rifle. I took a friend out to the silhouette line, and fed him FGM. He missed one ram out of 30. Never shot a gun before, and knocked them down so routinely with good ammo he got bored; at first he thought it was fun. I fed him some Hirtenberger, and he couldn't stay on the pigs better than 70%. Now he's got the bug.