loose tophat and POI shift
Can a loose tophat cause POI to shift left or right even though velocities remain consistent?
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Yes, very much so.
Impact causes the tophat to tilt ever so slightly causing the breech to impart side forces on the barrel.
Even though you may think everything is solid and rigid, there is a huge potential for barrel flex.
I had the same problem with the tophat out too far, and the bolt knob was jammed into the locked position. Locked left, the gun shot right. Locked right, the gun shot left. Or vice-versa, I cant remember exactly.
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Thanks Riff. I was also conceptualizing that a loose tophat that turns even a millimeter left or right will cause the tophat to twist sideways along with the breech, and when the breech comes to an abrupt halt it will impart some sideways movement throughout the entire rifle during the firing cycle, thus leading to a horizontal POI shift. I don’t know, this is just my thinking.
I just applied blue Loctite to the valvestem threads. Though my tophat screws don’t get loose, the tophat itself does. While I wait for the Loctite to cure and do some testing, does anyone else have any explanation on this particular phenomenon, or has anybody ever observed this and would like to share their experiences of it leading to POI shift?