what happened to my pattern?

[outdoorsmen]

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Ok so after i rotated my aimpoint i shot to double check that im still good. Well i dont know what happened to my pattern. It sure did take a dump. I have been working off a pile of Hevi 13 3.5" #6 2.25oz for the past several years, probably like 7 years. Anyway temps today were 68 and no wind, humidity about 70%. Shot 3 times. The first was on a clean barrel. I did not clean between shots.i tried to post in order but it didnt work but they are labeled 1-3. Ill also dig up some pics of my older patterns for comparison.

[outdoorsmen]

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These are my older patterns. All shot with a winchester sx2 and a IC .655 non wad stripper choke 26" barrel, ported and lengthened cone and trigger job. I "deep cleaned" my barrel last year and normal cleaned it since then.

[SKFOOTER]

Since your first target has he most hits, I'd say that load likes your gun to have a clean barrel.

[Philippe]

It could be a problem with a specific lot of shells you are shooting compared to the first time you patterned it. It looks like the pattern is being blown a bit, look at those large gaps. I'd take the drill and a scotch bright pad and clean that barrel a bit, you might have gunk and wad strippings stuck in the barrel and choke too. You may not see it until it's removed, believe it or not chokes will get build up from the wads, i've peeled off layers of wad skin before so thin I can see thru it, but it was enough to throw off patterns. I saw scrub that barrel good and clean your choke good and try it again. Also check those lot numbers on the shells.

[Gobspur]

Agree with cleaning your barrel.  But you said in beginning you rotated your aimpoint.  Did you check to see if POA is still POI?  I'd start by going back and shooting large 3x3 paper with field loads.  See where your pattern is going.  Get POA/POI lined up at close range, then work out to 40 with your turkey loads and see what you got.

[outdoorsmen]

Before I rotated my AimPoint I checked in on a bore sighter. After rotating my on and off switch on the aimpoint to the 2 o'clock position I returned  it to where it was previously. I went to 15 yards with field loads and point of aim was point of impact. Put my heavy shot in back up to 40 yards it was a bit High 6 clicks down and still shot like that. Last night I scrubbed the barrel with Nitro solvent and gun scrubber for several minutes with a brass brush. Let it sit for 15 minutes came back scrubbed it some more and wiped it out. Like I said last year I did the whole Scotch-Brite steel wool drill cleaning and only been shot a handful of times since then.

[BINK McCARTY]

Not to be a smartass here but why did you rotate your Aimpoint ? Is your choke an Indian Creek or Haymaker?

[davisd9]

Hevi changes their components a lot.  When I bought a box of shells and my pattern dropped from 215 average to 145 average I moved on from Hevi.  HTL is what I shoot but I shoot what I can count on.

[outdoorsmen]

Why did i rotate my aimpoint? Good question. I had the switch in the 10 o'clock position cause i thought it allowed for easier on/off. I dont leave it in the time like most people do. I only turn it on while set up. Well i was playing mind game with my self about the switch obstructing the view from my left eye while mantaining both eyes open. So after many years i flipped the switch to the other side about the 2 o'clock spot. Now nothing blocks my left eye.

[Gobspur]

You get this figured out?  If you suspect messing with your sight is the reason for decreased pattern hits, I would shoot at a large 3 X 3 and see if it is way off.   If its not, and no where on the 3 X 3 do you have a 10 inch with numbers that you used too, then you can rule out the sight.  Has to either be the loads, or some other factor with the gun.  You have said you polished last year, and have cleaned good.  So I would suspect bad loads.

[learn2hide]

I have had some really wierd results at times with Hevi 13 loads, but I also don't deep clean the barrel on my SX2 all that often.  Yet I seem to be able to get good numbers with several different loads including LongBeard XR #5's, H13 #6, and H13 #7.  EnvironMetal has been good about replacing shells where I feel that was really the issue but who knows.  Killed a gobbler stone dead at a yardage much farther than we are allowed to talk about here with the H13 #7's, enough to make a believer out of me.  I'm hoping to find the consistency with the Indian Creek choke this year, just need to play with the constriction.  Not sure .665 is gonna do it

[outdoorsmen]

My surplus of hevi shells are all several years old. Lot number 100xxx and 300xxx. I emailed indain creek and asked about what choke they liked for the setup i have and some back ground of what i had going on. After 5 days of waiting this is the reply i got "I like the .665". I am like wow that is all you have to say....well nice talking to you....