Lots of spring rain in our part of the Maine woods, so I had to keep looking for opportune moments between downfalls to set up a chronograph and get in some live fire time. It took a few days, but eventually we got there. The first task on the agenda was to test the rifle’s performance to the Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 SUB-MOA Accuracy Guarantee. The guarantee ensures .99″ or less 3-shot group at 100 yards when used with Weatherby factory or premium ammunition.
Offering a performance guarantee that is dependent upon person, as well as equipment, is… courageous. Have you ever gone to a crowded rifle range on a weekend, walked out for a target check and heard the number of people who express pride in just getting shots on the paper at 100 yards? Ninety-eight percent of those folks would buy this rifle and be happy to have a good piece of equipment to help develop their shooting skills. Unfortunately, two percent would be all over the message boards, defending their egos by attacking the product. To their pronouncement, it would be the hundredth brand and model of rifle in a row that has exhibited the very same accuracy problems.
I submit my qualifications to assess this rifle’s accuracy – Over a span of many years, most of the nerve endings in my right shoulder have been recoiled into a permanent state of numbness, while my reflexes have slowed with maturity. Subsequently, I’m pretty much flinch free. Transitioned from the eyes of an eagle to the eyes of a beagle, there is no ego-driven open sight attempts at five hundred yard targets, just careful shooting through a quality scope. I shoot a lot, so I am not ashamed to shoot from a rest or a weighted sled when the occasion calls for such equipment.
A basis for evaluation
Vanguard customers may opt for a Range Certified model that includes a confirming factory shot target signed by Ed Weatherby and a sub-MOA certification inscribed on its floorplate. In all other models, including this Series 2 Synthetic, the stake in the ground is the factory sub-MOA guarantee.
Three groups of three rounds, of each ammo type pictured left were shot. There were roughly twenty seconds between individual shots and fifteen minutes between each three shot group. The timing was our control process, not a Weatherby guarantee stipulation.
The average 150 grain group size was just at 0.60″, the average 180 grain group size was 0.80″. The group size is rounded to the nearest hundredth, round half up, because I have never been able to consistently read torn paper in ten thousandths of an inch increments. The rifle was held in a lead sled, bearing twenty five pounds of shot and positioned with the sled’s controls like a piece of field artillery.
Accuracy – the Cheetos deliberation
It’s important to assess expectations for a firearm, perhaps while watching TV and downing a bag of Cheetos or some other setting… as dictated by age, income and market psychographics. After some orange fingered deliberation on my part, I felt Weatherby was to be commended for their willingness to commit to, and deliver on, a factory ammo accuracy guarantee. I also concluded that, justifiably, no manufacturer could guarantee the accuracy of someone’s handloads so it would be up to me to make that assessment.
I am a handloader. I can’t help it. I need to know where every cartridge case comes from, the type of primers that are seated, the type of powder that fills the case, and that the type of bullet chosen is perfect for my application and not a choice forced by a limited selection. I also need to reserve the right to purchase tons of reloading equipment, gadgets and accessories with the hope of shaving two dollars from the cost of a box of factory ammo with every box of ammo I reload. In this particular case, the 30-06 Springfield is an ideal cartridge to handload. It allows a terrific range of bullet types and weights, it’s flat shooting, manageable in recoil, and inexpensive to shoot. Additionally, the Vanguard Series 2 Synthetic, unlike many other brands of rifles chambered for this cartridge, has a 24″ hammer forged barrel, which means higher than typical velocity.
If you’re a 0.308″ handloader, you know there is a myriad of bullets available that are suitable, by weight and construction, for a broad range of applications. So I picked six of my favorites, pictured left to right: 130 grain Hornady SP, 150 grain Hornady BTSP, 165 grain Sierra BTSP, 175 Grain Berger VLDH, 180 Grain Nosler Partition, 200 grain North Fork Bonded Core. A 150 grain Winchester Power Point, was added afterward because it performs well, is sold in bulk, and it is very inexpensive. Some other bullets were tried and set aside where I was unable to get the level of accuracy desired, and the same applied to powder types.
This selection provides hunting coverage for everything from coyote to bear. All are conventional construction with the exception of the Nosler Partition, which is an H jacket type bullet with a jacket partition between fore and aft lead cores and the North Fork which has a solid copper shank and bonded lead core tip. The conventional jacket bullets are constructed to expand on thin skinned game such as deer and antelope. The Nosler and North Fork bullets are designed for greater penetration on heavier game.
No special case prep was done just the routine of working from a single lot of once fired brass, cleaned, sized and trimmed for uniform length, then numbered for data recording.
Not of particular consequence, but the dies used were a Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension full length sizer set. Powder was measured with an RCBS Charge Master electric scale. The press was a Redding Turret and all cases were primed with an RCBS APS hand primer. A Hornady Lock-N-Load COL gauge, Brownells # 749-004-956WB,
was used to qualify maximum overall length with each bullet type.
The only unexpected issue encountered was having to seat the blunt ogive Sierra 165 grain bullet to a 3.200″ COL, rather than Sierra’s manual recommended 3.330″. Not a big deal. I think I am just conditioned to Weatherby Mark V throats that usually have a good deal of leade. The finished product appears below, actual size, and in descending order on the load data table that follows. Yes, I agree, that was a feeble attempt at subtle humor.
Seven Sub MOA handloads… Really
 Warning: Bullet selections are specific, and loads are not valid with substitutions of different bullets of the same weight. Variations in bullet material and length will alter net case capacity, pressure and velocity results. Primer selection is specific and primer types are not interchangeable. These data represents maximum loads in our firearms and test equipment and may easily be excessive in other applications. All loads should be reduced by 3%, and developed following safe handloading practices as represented in established reloading manuals produced by component manufacturers. Presentation of these loads does not constitute a solicitation for their use, nor a recommendation.
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Firearm: Weatherby Vanguard S2Reloading Notes
H414 proved to be the most predictable and consistent performer of the powder tried. Ram Shot powder did OK, but delivered well below software and manual predicted velocity, while BL-C2 exceeded predictions to the greatest extent. I attribute the Berger bullet’s velocity to the long tapered ogive and the bearing surface which yields reduced bore friction.
Several bullets were tried that did not make the accuracy cut. Nosler Ballistic Tip and CT Silvertip bullets would not close on an inch or better, nor would Barnes Triple Shock. None of them were much greater in group size, but the exercise was to load for sub MOA accuracy. Again, this is in no way a contradiction to Weatherby’s accuracy guarantee of sub-MOA accuracy with Weatherby and other premium factory ammunition. If anything, it was relatively easy for me to get sub MOA performance out of a select group of handloads.
Closing notes on the Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 Synthetic DBM
I still have a hard time believing the under $500 discount retail price for this rifle. I’ve handled a number of newer value guns from leading manufacturers over the past year and none of them came close to achieving this level of low price and elegant hunting rifle, let alone consistent high level of accuracy. The fit and finish are high quality, operation is reliable and the gun could deliver as necessary is most hunting scenarios.
For some, the detachable magazine will be a big draw. Not so much for me… probably because I am an old guy and conditioned to a different approach to loading a hunting rifle. So I would opt for the hinged floor plate, five shot capacity and the ability to top off by opening the bolt. Either configuration is available. For that matter, the rifle is also available in stainless, or with fancy walnut stock and a couple of certified accurate versions with an inscribed floorplate, pillar bedded composite stock and an Ed Weatherby personal sign off on certification targets. There are even youth models, carbine length guns and models supplied with scopes. The Vanguard is chambered for cartridges from 223 Remington to 338 Winchester Magnum. Nice gun. See details at Weatherby.Com.
Weatherby’s Vanguard® Series 2 Synthetic DBM Part I
Weatherby’s Vanguard® Series 2 Synthetic DBM Part II
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