What is the differnce in accuracy of a bolt action versus as semi auto rifle?

Question

What is the difference in the accuracy when hitting the target or the groups; is it measured in inches, or is it more like millimeters? Is there a difference in medium rangers such as 100 yards and longer ranges such as 300 and 500 yards, for something like a .308 caliber?

I never hand the chance of firing both a bolt action and semi of the same caliber enough to compare the two.

Unless I'm mistaken the accuracy of a bolt action is mainly (among other things) due to the fit of the round into the chamber. The bolt action has a more precise fit versus the the semi which has a larger chamber due to the rapid loading of the rounds. So it has nothing to do with the time it takes to come down between shots.

What I want to know is how accurate is it if you can only shoot one round for each, or one round at a time before re-aming again.

Answer 1

Bolt action rifles are more consistent because of the solid lock-up. I had a Remington 742 carbine in .30-06 that I sold because it was so inaccurate. I also had an accurized M-1 Garand that would shoot 1 foot groups at 1000 yards. Many semi-autos are quite good as they come out of the box but you tend to get what you pay for. Semi-autos are more likely to need accuracy work to get them to shoot well. They may also be more sensitive to variations in ammunition.

Answer 2

Generally the modern ideas on rifle actions say that all things being equal a bolt action is going to be more accurate than a semi auto for a few reasons. First the bolt action is a fixed linear action, by this i mean that all components are locked in one line. On the bolt action when the bolt is locked in the closed "fire" position it remains there until the shooter pulls it back to eject the spent round. This lends its self to making the action a lot more accurate for the same quality of construction than the semi auto who's action moves as soon as the gases or recoil from the round act on the mechanism. The bottom line give two equal rifles a bolt will be slightly more accurate. Newer semi auto rifle actions are raising the bar and quickly closing the gap in accuracy. (look at the barred .50 cal as an example of this)

Answer 3

The bolt action is more accurate for the following two reasons:

1. Because the round is fed manually rather than through a mechanical feature of the gun, I can use brass that fits my chamber exactly. This "fire formed" brass is dimensionally identical to MY rifle's chamber, which takes out a lot of variability as the round is fired. Semiautos must use brass that is slightly smaller dimensionally so that it will chamber properly and so the round will fit a large variety of firearms. Looser fit equate to not-as-precise once fired, as the bullet is not entering the barrel the same way every time.

2. Because I'm not feeding my rifle from a magazine as is done with a semiauto, I can make my rounds longer by loading my bullet further out than usual. By doing this I can get the bullet to ALMOST touch the lands in the barrel when it's chambered. This also leads to greater accuracy because every bullet is in the same position each and every time.

The net result is that, at least for my rifle, I can consistently put 5-shot groups into a dime-sized hole at 200 yards if I do my part. I've seen semiautos that can come close, but those are typically custom jobs, not off-the-rack, and I've never seen one that can equal the accuracy of a good custom bolt gun.

Answer 4

I have seen a man fire a Browning Automatic Rifle .338 Winchester magnum into 1 and a half inch groups with handloads.

I recently saw an automatic rifle called a Bennelli which could shoot .308 match ammo into 1 inch groups.

I can't shoot like like that. I shoot 4" groups at a hundred yards with a bolt action rifle.

Most guns will shoot better than you can. However, I have also seen a Brand new Remington 742 that you could move the barrel up and down a quarter of an inch. This was out of the box. The gun grouped about 12" at 100 yards.

Answer 5

In todays world the accuracy gap between the two action types is in many cases null and void. I have had both semi auto rifles that would shoot better than many bolt actions and same goes the other way.

With the quality of manufacturing today and the use of highly accurate CNC machineing equipment you are seeing manufacture that was once done by have now done by machines that hold closer tollerances.

Now different shooting sports are dominated by different actions. You will never see a semi-auto on the line at a benchrest match. Just as you will not see a single shot bolt gun on a 3 gun couse any more.

Most of the shooting teams for the national matches are now shooting accurized M-16 with the Army being the first military team to switch form the m-14 to the m-16.

Answer 6

The biggest difference between the two comes down to the shooter.

Mechanically speaking, the number of parts moving around in a semi auto can set up enough vibrations to move the next shot to a different hole.

If you are shooting a single round from each gun and assuming the guns are of the same quality, there won't be that much, if any, difference.

I have a heavy barrel, flat top, AR-15. A buddy has a bolt action varmint (heavy) barreled rifle. He generally out shoots me, but that's because he is a better shot than I am. Both rifles are sighted in at 200 yards and when he shoots my AR, his groups are about the same as with his bolt gun.

Answer 7

i have semi-auto's, bolt actions and single shot rifles. I am a varmint and predator hunter and regularly shoot 300-400 yards. i don't really notice much of a difference. i use a .223 which is an inherently accurate round much like the 308. its always a safe bet that if the military has adapted it in the field it gonna be a good round. to answer your question out to about 200 yds. they will be about the same after that a bolt action or single shot might have a slight edge but i mean slight. my buddy's AR-15 will out shoot my Ruger no 1. Basically what i'm saying is that unless your a dead crack shot (consistently under 1 MOA) you wont notice a bit of difference. but the semi auto's are more pleasant to shoot because of their light recoil.

Answer 8

What is the difference in accuracy of a bolt action versus as semi auto rifle? Truthfully? Answer:

Most modern rifles are as accurate (or more so) than the shooter. If you're going to split hairs the turn-bolt tends to be more accurate. And there are those who will tell you that the single-shots (like the Ruger #1) are even more accurate. I think its a moot point since most hunters aren't going to be making thousand yard shots.

Best.

H

Answer 9

the main difference is gas how it expands and passes through the chamber. semi auto use part of the gas to reload the chamber with a new shell. bolt action you manually feed the cartages into the breach. more expansion out of the muzzle and in the chamber. bolt action helps remove a few things that can come into play.. anyways if you cant hit it with one shot you don't need to be shooting

Answer 10

With a semi auto the gasses created by the weapon being fired are used to cycle the action. This leads to slightly lower velocity. Semi autos do not lock up as solid which leads to you group opening up a bit. Semi autos have much much higher tolerances that they are built to to ensure that they cycle properly. Take the kalashinkov for example. dependable as can be. it will fire when full of sand and keep going. but you would be hard pressed to hit the broad side of a barn while in the barn. A fine tuned semi auto can hang with most bolt guns but you will be spending a lot of money to get it there and then may run into problems with it being picky about what kind of ammo it likes to cycle and what it dosent.

Dollar for dollar bolt actions are more dependable and more accurate. Tighter tolerances, and a solid lock up.

check out this link and see if it clears up any of your questions. http://www.strategypage.com/militaryforums/29-1979.aspx