I have a Springfield Scout/Squad riding in a second hand EBR chassis. It took me a while to find a load that I thought she liked, but I eventually found one using LC brass, H4895, and Hornady 175 BTHPs. I get consistent 1-1.5 MOA at 100 yds with this load, which is acceptable to me for this gun. I am also running an adjustable gas plug to try and limit the chances of damaging my op rod with the heavier bullets and the possibility of adding a can in the future. Long story short, I took her out to stretch her legs out to 300 yds and I was appalled at the results. I had about 3 feet of vertical spread, but only about three or four inches of horizontal. Velocity inconsistencies will account for a little dispersion, but not three feet worth.

I am looking for ideas of possible corrections. I plan on removing the pin from the op rod guide based on some things that I have read and playing with the barrel tension screw on the chassis some more, but I was hoping somebody had some experience with similar issues. Unfortunately, it may be a little bit before I get to take her out to 300 yds or more due to my schedule to confirm if something fixed my issue.

Any help is appreciated.

The barrel "whip" screw needs adjusted properly.
Its the set screw on top.

It needs turned in to just make contact with the barrel then lock the two set screws on the sides to retain it.
Your stainless steel crush washer should be installed correctly to stabilize the gas block.

SAGE supplement

The barrel tension screw is on my list of things to “mess” with. I don’t have a crush washer because it came with shims instead, but I have heard about too little or too much tension there causing issues.

From what I have gathered, the most likely issue is going to be the op rod guide causing binding due to the pin being installed and thermal drift of the barrel. Some people have said that removing the pin was enough to fix the issue, but some people have to work a little harder to squeeze the accuracy out of it.

Mine shot decent when I got the SAGE installed then all went bad quick.  POI changed and lots of stringing everywhere.  The crush washer was loose....I got that fixed and was really surprised how well it shot at 5 and 600 yards.  I know on mine that made a HUGE difference once everything was tight.

If the op rod guide is installed properly the retaining pin is optional ( from memory ). I was not pleased with the fit of mine and knurled and pinned it.
The op rod should move freely without any binding or movement.



If its not right I am sure it will not help accuracy but I would make sure your gas cylinder and whip screw are set correctly and try again.
(As well as making sure your top rail bolts are tight, etc)

After looking over her again, the shims were a little loose. They weren’t rattling around, but I could get them to spin if I tried. That should be fixed now. Hopefully that fixes the issue, but I really thought that it was tight from the start. I don’t know if the shims could have settled in and loosen up a little bit in the last few hundred rounds.

I also checked the op rod for sticking or binding, but it felt as smooth as ever. I didn’t say it earlier, but I have checked all the screws and lock up for the scope and mount multiple times. There is no perceivable slop in the trigger group or receiver to chassis mating.

I appreciate the feedback. I know that I am over looking some things (like the shims) and haven’t even thought about looking at some others.