Tag: Mossberg model 152

Rimfire Accuracy Tips for Hunting

By Glen Wunderlich

Charter Member Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA)

Small game season begins September 15th and that means getting gear in order for a trip to Michigan’s North country.  With a camping reservation at the Rifle River Recreation Area, it was time to sight in one of my favorite .22 caliber rimfire rifles: a scoped, 73 year-old, O.F. Mossberg model 152.

Mossberg Model 152 with Folding Forearm and Bushnell 4X Rimfire Scope

First on the agenda was cleaning of the vintage semi-auto carbine – an important step in readiness and often overlooked until feeding or extraction troubles force the issue.

Next, 5 cartridges were removed from a box of Lapua Center X .22 rimfire ammo and loaded into the magazine to begin the process of sighting in.

With a sandbag-rest I fired a total of 3 shots at a target 25 yards downrange and quit.  The reason:  The 3 shots were in a tight cloverleaf group slightly above center – perfect for the desired 50-yard zero with the super accurate, sub-sonic fodder.

A real tack driver

There was no good reason to burn up more expensive ammo, as one critical matter was crossed off the camping list.

Here are some tips to get the most out of your favorite rimfire.

Experiment with sub-sonic ammo, which may be referred to as standard velocity or target ammo.  Most of this type of ammo may cost more than bulk ammo in a milk carton, because of supply and demand, but it is more than adequately effective on small game.  It’s also relatively quiet compared to high-velocity options and that can be helpful in the woods.

Get the proper rimfire scope.  Good glass can be expensive, but most folks will do well with more entry-level optics specifically designed for rimfires’ related distances.  A big mistake is to mount a typical scope designed for high-power calibers.  Although they make look good, they won’t produce the accuracy because of parallax, which is a difference in the apparent position of an object viewed along two different lines of sight.  It can fool a shooter into questioning causes of inaccuracy.

Too see parallax, put the scoped firearm on a bench with a solid rest.  Then, without touching anything, peer through the lens and move your head in different positions, while viewing the target.  If the crosshairs appear to move as you move, you have experienced parallax – an accuracy killer!

Several options exist and include not only rimfire scopes, but red dot optics and those with adjustable objective lenses, referred to as AO.  Red dot scopes essentially eliminate parallax but typically have no magnification, although magnifiers can be added to high-end models.

Adjustable objective scopes eliminate parallax when the proper distance is dialed in; however, they are typically larger optics and somewhat cumbersome to operate during changing field conditions.

An inexpensive alternative is a fixed 4-power rimfire scope for a solid, all-around solution.  Also, air gun scopes are well suited, because their parallax is set at the factory for the shorter ranges of rimfire rounds.

Understand that a reticle for hunting may utilize thicker crosshairs that are visible in low-light; conversely, a target scope will have very fine crosshairs conducive to controlled lighting in target shooting or clear daylight.

Finally, a good trigger is one that breaks cleanly without any stickiness and excess travel.  If yours doesn’t, a qualified gunsmith may be able to help, although results are sometimes limited with old trigger mechanisms.

On the other hand, an example of modern technology is apparent in the highly successful and relatively affordable Ruger model 10/22 semi-auto.  It is a reliable work of engineering that can be modified in any way imaginable to produce the utmost in accuracy.

Ruger 10/22 with silver Nikon Scope

So, there you have it – a few options to achieve more enjoyment from the little .22 – the most popular caliber in the world.

Ammunition, Firearms, Hunting , , ,

Old Mossberg Rimfire Sings a New Tune

Looking at all the new firearms and calibers that have sprung up over the recent past, it’s incomprehensible to imagine where it will all end.  While those in power determine for us which guns are bad – and by omission, which are good – I haven’t bought into the idea that newer is always better.  Over the years I’ve latched onto some well-crafted old-timers that can keep up with anything in the accuracy department currently manufactured.

One of them is an O.F. Mossberg model 152 made in New Haven, Connecticut in .22 rimfire caliber.

Mossberg Model 152 (Red marks indicate shots already on this target before sight-in

It employs a detachable box magazine, sports an 18-inch barrel and weighs a scant 5 pounds.  The Monte Carlo stock is of straight-grained black walnut that subtly conveys quality.  But, here’s where good guns go evil:  It has a hinged forearm that pulls down to form a stabilizing hand grip, and it too is walnut.  Made in year 1948 it shoots only .22 long rifle ammo – no shorts or longs.  It also has sling swivels on the left side of the stock for the sling.

When I began testing the diminutive game-getter, it wasn’t feeding properly, so I took it to a local gun shop offering gunsmithing service.  When I got the call to pick it up, I was happy to learn the bill was only $40 and the employee of the shop said it worked fine now.

Eager to give it a go back home, I loaded and fired.  Immediately, it jammed just like before.  Feeding it different ammo didn’t help, either.  Although the shop didn’t tell me how they repaired the malfunction, it wasn’t difficult to see.  The lips of the magazine had been filed in an attempt to solve the feeding issue, but removing material certainly was not the solution.  I now owned a single-shot semi-auto rimfire that was essentially useless.

Before giving up on the notion of bringing the little pea shooter back to its original form, I contacted Numrich Gun Parts, which remanufactures parts for old guns.  The firm showed that the particular magazine I needed was not in stock.  However, sometime in the future, when demand for the part was great enough to warrant manufacturing some of them, they’d have some available.  The good news was that the slick little Mossberg used the same action as other rimfire models the company produced over time and apparently other folks must have had similar issues.  Numrich finally received enough orders to make a new magazine for me for a mere $28.  Heck, that was less than the “gunsmith” bilked me.

Still not knowing if it would solve the feeding issue, I fed it various .22 rimfire ammo and it spit them out like the machine it was over 70 years ago.

Now to make it pretty.  The stock was refinished and coated with Minwax spar urethane and the metal work was cold-blued.  Without a scope, it would still be of no practical use for me, so I installed an inexpensive fixed 4-power Bushnell rimfire scope with a 1-inch tube.

One thing I’ve learned about these old rimfires is that they are extremely accurate with sub-sonic ammo – those that fly below the speed of sound at 1120 feet per second.  I don’t recall what ammo I settled on for the newly revised version of the old classic, but it was then put back into storage until last week.

A target was set up at 25 yards and the old Mossberg was stoked with Federal Gold Medal target ammunition.  With my pal, Joe, spotting over my shoulder, the gun was rested on sand bags and I squeezed off three rounds to see where they were striking the paper.  The first was less than ½-inch from the center and the next two rounds touched each other in the tiny center ring.  The next 3-shot string found all shots touching in the center-X ring measuring a miniscule .245 of an inch!  Unbelievable – and, with absolutely no adjustment to the scope.

Newer is not always better.  Who knew?

Firearms ,

Squirrel Hunting Over Work Any Day

By Glen Wunderlich

Gathering firewood is always on the agenda in September, because we all know what lies ahead. For those that burn wood for winter heat, it seems like a never-ending search for fuel. Free heat? What’s that! Wood is work! Period.

The emerald ash borer has provided some fine hardwood by killing our magnificent, towering trees, while Mother Nature eventually brings the timber down to the forest floor. But, getting it out can be challenging; the cooler mornings we’ve experienced lately are all the impetus I’ve needed to peck away at the monumental task. The poison ivy leaves are still on the vines and must be taken into consideration but at least the number of biting insects has diminished. It doesn’t take long to work up a sweat but it is quite comforting to add to the wood pile a bit each day, because soon the pendulum swings the other way.

And, then it hit me: Another picture-perfect September morning was in the offing and I didn’t want to “waste” it hauling wood. Squirrel hunting inexplicably made it to the top of the agenda. Because nightfall had already arrived, I would have to take a .22 rifle that was already sighted in for a morning adventure: a Mossberg model 152 manufactured in 1948.

Mossberg model 152

Mossberg model 152

The diminutive rimfire weighs a scant 5 pounds and sports a beautiful walnut stock, which was standard issue back in the day. It’s a semi-auto, using the same action as other vintage Mossberg models and works well if kept clean. I gave it a makeover with a new stock finish, rebluing, and an inexpensive Bushnell .22 scope set to be parallax free at 50 yards.

I don’t have much use for the high-velocity rimfire ammo that now costs as much as premium target ammo a few short years ago. In fact, the stuff we used to get at the local Cheap Mart for less than $10 per brick is now $60 or more, if you can find it. None of that stuff has the quality control necessary to consistently shoot groups of one inch or less at 50 yards anyway, so for that kind of cash, I opt for the target ammo, which remains available.

With standard velocity ammo, meaning sub-sonic or below the speed of sound, the old guns can be quite impressive at the target range. And, in the woods there is an added advantage of a mild report.

With typical heavy dew afoot, I slung my folding chair over one shoulder and the Mossberg over the other and hiked to the tall timber in the cover of darkness. Wetness provided soft, quiet footing and a silent approach.

The stillness of the early morning air was interrupted with commotion above. The hungry tree rodents began their day like any other in search of beechnuts and acorns and with a bit of patience, two black squirrels had fallen victim to the little Mossberg. I then set up a few hundred yards away and added a hefty fox squirrel to the morning’s take and called it a day.OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

It was good to be back.

Hunting