Acceptable accuracy

What are your thoughts on acceptable accuracy for hunting ammo? I know there are some people with equipment and ability to shoot one hole groups.
Personally I have challenges getting a one inch group on an every day basis, but am willing to hunt with these rifles, knowing my shots in the field will be 200 yards or less.


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I tend to hunt in thick new growth forest since that is what we have here for the most part on the east coast and in the Appalachian Mts along with some farm lands and clear cuts.
And I want my rifles to shoot 3/4" or less since I can't make bullets bend around trees and bushes.
You have to find a hole to shoot threw and hope the load is accurate enough to get to the animal.
This is how I find acceptable accuracy for my rifles and what I do to get them there.
I usually start with finding a reload it likes in a bullet weight I want to use and then go from there.
But there are other things you can do to get the rifle to shoot better and one is to bed the action into the stock or replace it with a stock with a full metal action block which I have done with heavy recoiling rifles. I also have the trigger tuned or replaced with something better.
I tend to buy my guns used and cheap and take a sow's ear and turn it into a silk purse. Obviously I also like to tinker and do most of the work myself.

I want all the accuracy I can get...

...but, in all reality a 2 MOA gun will kill stuff for about a far as I'll shoot at it.

hodgeman":2a101mjg said:

I want all the accuracy I can get...

...but, in all reality a 2 MOA gun will kill stuff for about a far as I'll shoot at it.

Click to expand...

Precisely what I would have said. Excellent summation.

For me? .75 or less is acceptable. Handloads and factory

hodgeman":30hjnski said:

I want all the accuracy I can get...

...but, in all reality a 2 MOA gun will kill stuff for about a far as I'll shoot at it.

Click to expand...

Spot on. I strive for the most I can get even knowing that I don't need that kind of accuracy for the average distance I shoot. But the experience and knowledge gained getting the most out of a gun is worth it to me, and fun to boot.

1 moa is more than good out to 300 but what is more important is how close to aiming point can you put the first bullet out of a clean barrel . If you can shoot a 2 " gun better from hunting positions and improvised rests than you can a 1/2" gun then take the 2" gun . Remember the most important shot is the first from a cold barrel .

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These questions always seem so simple until you analyze them. My answer back to you Rich, would be how far are you shooting? When I was growing up 3 inches at 100 yards was considered hunting accuracy. Many rifles still carried iron sights, and if you had a scope it was most likely a 4 or 6, fixed power. There were no turrets, no rangefinders, no ballistic calculators on your phone. In fact phones were still hooked to wires which severely limited there field use. So if your shooting groundhogs at a 1,000 yards, 3 inches isn't going to get it, neither is two. But if your shooting in the deep dark where you live, 3 inches will do great. In fact a bullet the size of a softball at 2500 fps would most likely get the job done 90% of the time. FOTIS and TD want .75 so do I . My three primary hunting rifles will do 1/2 '' day after day. I do frequently shoot out beyond 300 so I have the hardware to do that, and I practice farther than that. So really I think the acceptable accuracy is dependent upon the target and the distance.

I am one that if it is meant to be a hunting weapon and will not shoot moa or better then it goes down the road. I have had a lot of rifles and pistols over the past 40 years of being a hand loader and there have not been many that I could not get moa or better accuracy out of. I have had to glass bead, replace stocks, recrown muzzles, add or tune triggers etc. as well as try many different bullets and powders to get some to shoot but it has been fun. I have two ARs in 6.5 Grendel I am working with right now hoping to use them this deer season. One is a tack driver and the other is a problem child that will be getting a lot of attention.

My 2 main rigs will do better, but I'd be O.K. with anything 2 or under bench accuracy, cold barrel, if it was with the bullet I want to kill with. This is for 200ish yards, figuring in a little fudge factor for field position shooting and other variables. With iron sighted rifles, I like to be consistently around 3 or under, and will generally have an absolute max of 150 yards with those.

If I were hunting in a scenario where I wished to push to 350 or so, I'd try to get much closer to the 1 MOA mark. I believe pushing a big game rifle any tighter is wasted time and money, unless that pursuit gives you intrinsic pleasure, then by all means have at it.

Great question. Depends on the rifle and application. I like to ring steel at 600 with my 6.5 Creedmoor. To do that I like 1 MOA or sometimes a little better. With my open sight .338 Win Mag I'm happy with 3 MOA as I won't use it past 150 yards.

I've shot with A Lot of folks that own and shoot sub-MOA "all day long galloping horseback" rifles, until someone else is around. Then there are lots of "flyers" and bad scopes. [emoji1]

17HMR Rimfire Varmit Rifle 1.25 at 100 yards or better
.223 Rem as much as I can get, so far .77 at 200 yards.
6mm Rem for Fox & Coyotes and Deer & Antelope 1 MOA or better
.264 Win Mag Deer & Antelope 1 MOA or better
300 H&H Large Game ELK & Bear 1.5 MOA or better.

Shooting off the bench validates the Rifle, Shooting from different positions validates the Rifle Man.

DrMike":lwnyocvr said:

hodgeman":lwnyocvr said:

I want all the accuracy I can get...

...but, in all reality a 2 MOA gun will kill stuff for about a far as I'll shoot at it.

Click to expand...

Precisely what I would have said. Excellent summation.

Click to expand...

Jack O'Connor said the something similar If I recall correctly. He had rifles that were reportedly more accurate. I cant remember what caliber it was or what kind of groups he got, but his "sheep rifle" was not a calibrate known for stunning accuracy. Accuracy (reasonable) quick handling and light were criteria he espoused so the he could above them and in close enough. The mark of a hunter IMHO. 2MOA will do it for ya, But accurate rifles are fun too. If I could shoot like Fotis I might expect .75 groups too. it aint in me but its fun to try. Maybe that the main thing, keep it fun. CL

Elkman nailed it imo. Depends on how far you're shooting. And at what. Perfect.

For my bolt action and single shot rifles, I prefer MOA or better. Most of my rifles are capable of better than that, when I do my part.
For my lever actions, I prefer them to be capable of 1.5 MOA or better. The main thing is that they will be capable of hitting fist sized targets out to 150-250 yards from field positions with scope or open sights (depending on cartridge).
For the most part, my rifles have met these requirements with factory ammunition. I have been able to tweak for better performance with handloads.

In reality, any 4" shooting firearm at 150 yards, retaining 1000+ ft.lbs of energy will harvest any deer or larger game at average hunting distances and keep the bullets in the vitals, if the hunter does their part. Anything better than that is pure gravy and builds confidence!

Most of my bolt rifles shoot under an inch with the right load. That said, my carry rifle has lately been a Marlin 30-30 with a 2-7 scope. My load is about a 11/2 inch load. Most of my shots are in brush and the scope set on 2 power. The vast majority of my shots are under 75 yards. I use my 270 or 25-06 for some hunting but I strive for tiny groups when working up any load. It's a goal. I love tiny groups but in reality can get by with 2 inch most likely.

I agree with most of the responders that 1 MOA is acceptable. All of my rifles shoots .5 MOA or better and happy with it, not to brag, but I strive to make them shoot good to have confidence in long range shots out to 400 yards for deer and hogs and I do not see a reason to shoot further due to many variables in the field. Most of my rifles shoots 1 inch or better at 300 yards and happy with the exceptional accuracy and my accomplishments with load developments.

At the range, in ‘controlled conditions’, definitely inside 1”@100yds minimum standard.

In the field on live quarry ... anything that knocks the beast over with a clean kill from the wet, shitty, most uncomfortable shooting position I almost always find myself in when hunting.
(But I love it! )

hodgeman":3o4iz97y said:

I want all the accuracy I can get...

...but, in all reality a 2 MOA gun will kill stuff for about a far as I'll shoot at it.

Click to expand...

For big game, I agree! I also agree with Elkman and his approach. When determining my furthest range I want 4 rounds to be within 5" from field positions. What a gun can do off of a bench or led sled is very valuable for load development, but it doesn't provide me (personally) with loads of confidence as it minimizes the nut behind the trigger... And I am the weak link.

For example, I have a 280 Rem that will group 5 rounds to about MOA at 100 yards with a highpower (3-15) scope off a bench, however I normally use a 2-7 power scope on it for hunting. My accuracy with the low power scope drops to about 1.5" at 100 yards from field positions using 4 shots, but the system works well in the field and I'm not shooting game out past 300 yards with it. Handling, good scope eye relief / eye box, and proper weight distribution are very important when lugging it around all day and dealing with living / unpredictable animals.

With varmints, I really like to have 1 MOA or better for the small caliber stuff - 17 hmr, 22 lr, 223, etc.

While I've posted a few groups that I have shot with my new Sako I am not a big believer in bench rest shooting equating to hunting accuracy. My rifles are sighted in with the loads that I prefer and now I am off the bench. I really don't care if the groups are .5 inches or 1.5 inches at 100 yards. My goal is to consistently hit my targets out to 400 yards from hunting positions. I've never shot an elk past 300 yards but I do practice some at longer ranges. Over my lifetime I have taken 39 elk with a variety of calibers 30/30 to 300 Win Mag. Most have been shot at under 200 yards. In fact the last 5 elk (1 bull and 4 cows) have averaged around 125 yards. I get excited by shoot targets at various ranges from various positions stressed and non stressed. Currently, I have put my hunting rifles down and target practice with a 22 and my AR 223 to get better trigger control. In late-june I'll start shooting my hunting rifles again from hunting positions.