Originally Posted by
Hsing-ee
Hmm. Years ago Gerald Cardew did an accuracy experiment with springers of various qualities. He put them into a jig which clamped them very firmly by the barrel only. He found that even the cheapest, most inconsistent rifles would shoot extremely small groups at 10 yards.
I know 10 yards is not far, but the emphasis that is put on consistency and barrel quality may be misplaced, at least at the shorter ranges (say 25 yards and less).
I think he concluded that the trigger unit was responsible for some of the increased 'human fired' accuracy of the quality springers over the poorer guns, and also the less violent nature of the recoil and vibration characteristics of the 'quality' guns were a big factor.
So, an easy trigger release and a smooth firing cycle are probably more important than consistency of velocity and barrel quality.
Where does this leave us with the remarkable faux Rossi Fusil Automatique Léger?
Well, according to the interweb, it has additional weight added to the stock to make it up to the 8.5 lbs of the 'real thing' - at least in the models that were used by the Brazilian military. If the rifle that J & J have is the militarised one, then its great weight relative to its power will not only damp spring-surge and recoil, but will also make 'wobbles' caused by a heavy, gritty trigger, gives less dispersion than if the rifle was lighter, by sheer inertia.
Ultimately, I think you could make an appalling rifle like a B2 or DB4 shoot accurately if you drilled out the stock and added about 6 lbs of lead shot to it. I cannot be arsed to test this theory however.
Of course you are now going to tell me the Rossi you have is the sporter and weighs the normal 6 lbs or whatever.
Rossi did make some lovely little pump-action .22 rimfires modelled on the old Winchesters. They can be fed .22 short without modification which is useful if you find yourself trapped in a barn full of tin cans.