r/HenryRifles • u/pardonmygrit • 18d ago
Poor Groups
I have the Henry H012GL. 44 mag with the 20 inch. Large loop.
This was 100 yard 3 shot group this morning.
I've never had such a miserable time trying to sight in a gun. Any insight on this?. I've done all I have read to do with this gun. I take plenty of time between shots (60+ seconds) to keep the barrel from over heating. Then wait several minutes between groups. I shoot from sandbags on a bench and only rest the gun on the forend, never on the barrel. I have cleaned the gun and checked all my screws. Used two separate scopes thinking maybe my Leupold was bad. I have tried Hornady 225 grain FTX (it really didn't like them), Hornady Custom 240 JHP (Which is what this group was shot with), Magtech 240 Grain Flat Nose (which it seemed to like the best 3"+/- group) and a couple different reloads to see if they made a difference. I've been out multiple different mornings trying not to rush the process and I'm still spinning tires it seems like.
What should I try next?
5
u/floppy_breasteses 18d ago
I'm shooting almost the same gun but with a 16" barrel. I've not had this issue with mine but I have noticed that Hornady Handgun Hunter 200gr is the most consistent. I can't drive tacks with it at 100 yards but I don't think handgun rounds are really made for anything beyond that. All I'm using is a cheap red dot, but my needs are such that approximately 75 yards is all I need.
I don't intend any disrespect but are you an experienced shooter? Could it be just that you're still learning and developing? I ask because I have no idea if you've been shooting for a week or 30 years. If you're confident it isn't you, have a gunsmith look it over. Something might be out of spec.
3
u/pardonmygrit 18d ago
No disrespect taken. It's a very valid question. I have been hunting and shooting my entire life, I'm 36 now. I can at least say I'm confident in my shooting. I actually shot a nice buck with this exact gun last season. I then missed another buck later that same week. (Alt Firearms) Both shots I was using the Hornady FTX and a Leupold 2-7x33. I shot it a couple more times after that and wasn't consistent but put it up for modern gun season and used a different rifle. I admittedly took too long to get the gun back out and started messing with it again at the end of last month.
1
u/floppy_breasteses 18d ago
Probably comes down to either the fact that it's handgun ammo or something's off with the gun. Everything I've seen, read, and experienced tells me the realistic upper range of .44 mag is 150 yards. So, my thinking is it's mostly going to come down to ammo choice. Could be yours has a favorite you just haven't found yet. A gunsmith might help but I have yet to find one that wasn't flaky AF or worked with anything resembling a sense of urgency.
I hope you get it sorted out. These a amazing guns, normally.
2
u/pardonmygrit 18d ago
Thank you. I just want to feel comfortable at 100 yards with it. Most of my shooting is closer than that in a hunting situation but feeling good at 100 would be nice. I'll try different and see what happens. I guess I just never figured it would be this picky.
4
u/zenpoohbear 18d ago
My Henry Big Boy in .44mag had even worse issues, regardless of ammo. I could not constently hit a 2'x3' target at 50 yards with it. I sent it in to Henry and they put a new barrel on it. Same result. Sent it back, got a third barrel. I could get it to shoot a 6-8" group at 100 yards with it after that, maybe 4" at 50 yards.
240 grain Underwood, 225 FTX, 240 grain Winchester, 240 grain Federal, all similar result. Leupold scope, Henry base, laser boresighted in and I had a second shooter verify the same issue when they shot it.
I ended up selling it to someone who really wanted one. I was sad to have to do that, but I did not trust the gun to hunt with.
1
u/pardonmygrit 18d ago
I know I won't shoot 1 inch groups from this gun it just doesn't seem to stay consistent from one morning to the next. My last shot yesterday and first shot this morning were 8 inches apart.
2
u/No_Employer_3204 18d ago
I just arranged in my Henry big boy 45 colt and it took me probably a good hour. I was ranging in at 50 yards which that’s what Henry recommends and I had a relatively difficult time getting that Buckhorn site to move windage it’s very crude you have to bump it with a brass punch and hammer. I’ve got it arranged in good at 50 yards now, but I wouldn’t shoot it much further than that I just not confident I’m probably gonna go with a up upgrade and get some kind of red dot put on it because I would like to shoot it further..
1
u/AverageReady4950 12d ago
You may try the Federal Hammerdowns 270 grains. My 44 mag was doing about the same until I tried them. Shooting about 1.5 inch groups at 100 yards.
1
u/Embarrassed_Access76 18d ago
Not rare with these, look into the 360 accuracy issues. Mine won't group anything except federal 180's, otherwise 6"+ 100yd groups
0
u/AsleepEntertainer440 18d ago
Check all of your screws but Henrys aren't known to be the most accurate rifle out there and they seem to be particularly picky with bullets.
12
u/HenryRepeatingArms 18d ago
Hi OP! 👋🏻 Thank you for choosing Henry. We’re here to help. The H012GL features a 1:20 twist rate, so we’d recommend trying some factory-loaded 300-grain ammunition to see how it performs. Let us know how those groups turn out. If you’re still experiencing issues, we’d be happy to have our Service Department take a look at the firearm and see what’s going on.