Have you ever been perplexed by a rifle that “should shoot but won’t”? I know I have! It’s easy to get frustrated and overwhelmed when troubleshooting these kinds of issues, but there’s hope! While at Gordy Gritters’ week long Precision Rifle Building Class, I sat down and discussed with Gordy his systematic approach to isolating and evaluating the mechanical aspects of a rifle in order to determine what problems may be affecting accuracy.

If you haven’t already, you’ll want to check out my first two stories with Gordy:

Meet Gordy Gritters: Record-Setting Master Gunsmith, In-Depth Discussion

Rifle Accuracy Factors: A Discussion with Gordy Gritters

Now on to troubleshooting rifle accuracy issues!

Rifle Accuracy Evaluation Steps

To summarize from the video, here are the most important things that Gordy checks when evaluating a rifle:

• Headspace Check and Sizing, Twist Rate
• Borescope check, bore condition, chamber alignment
• Slugging barrel, checking bore consistency
• Muzzle crown
• Muzzle brake alignment
• Bolt lug contact
• Bolt handle clearance
• Fire pin protrusion, primer strike energy
• Bedding, check with indicators while tightening action screws
• Trigger (pull weight, creep, overtravel)
• Scope and mounts: bases, rings, tracking

I’ll note that each one of these evaluation criteria could be one or more in-depth stories, so please stay tuned as I elaborate on these evaluation steps. I’m working hard to get fully trained (thanks to help from Gordy) and equipped with all of the necessary tools to go “in-depth” on these areas of evaluation.

Do you have specific evaluation criteria that have helped you troubleshoot rifle accuracy? Please leave a comment!

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Thanks,
Gavin