semi auto question

[team tractor]

I keep hearing a 22lr semi auto is less accurate than a bolt action but why ?

Surely their the same and its just the shooter ?

[Paul223]

possible inconsistency of bolt lock up

[moorvale55]

I've never found a semi auto to be as accurate as a bolt action. Paul 223 has the answer. That's why all top class target shooters have bolt action single shot rifles, (and the fact that NSRA rules say you must!).

[jcbbracken]

some 22 autos have **** triggers on them which makes poor accurate rifles ie cz 511

[walshie]

I've got a bolt-action and a semi-auto in .22rf. On targets up to 50m there is little or no difference, in my experience anyway. Then I'm not a competitive target shooter.

[KFC]

A semi-auto has an action which slides back to eject the spent round then slides forward to load a fresh round. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction so this produces 'movement' in the rifle which can move it slightly off target before the round has left the barrel.

A bolt action does not do this.

Many semi-auto's are accurate enough for the user's need but out to 100yds + the group will open up.

[Sx3 clay breaker]

On our old krico the semi auto was every bit as accurate as the bolt action krico

[JonathanL]

To be honest there shouldn't be a great deal of difference. Yes, in a semi-auto you have bits of the gun moving about but they shouldn't actually start moving until the bullet has left the barrel anyway. It's a pretty east job to chamber a semi-auto with a match reamer and match barrel which should be every bit as accurate as a bolt action.

 

I think that it's probably more to do with the fact that semi-autos are designed to do jobs that often don't require the same level of accuracy that bolt actions will sometimes be called to do so there's little point in spending time making them do it.

 

You can design very accurate semi-autos without too much trouble. You can build a 10/22 to be a ridiculously accurate rifle if you want.

 

J.

[Scully]

If its just rabbits you're shooting, neither you nor them will be able to tell the difference.

Modern machinery is capable of mass producing much finer tolerances during manufacturing processes which wasn't the case during WW 2, but this still didn't deter many troops from using autos in sniping roles during that war.

One of Russia's most successful snipers was a woman,and she used the SVT40 if I recall.

[fieldwanderer]

I used to have a Remington speed master (.22lr semi) which could shoot inch groups all day long at 75-100yds yet looking down the barrel, it was knackered! It had about 2" of rifling each end and a big open space in between!

 

It went to the big melting pot in the sky.

 

 

Lately though, I've been thinking about selling my bolt action and getting a 10/22 just because they're such good fun to shoot.