Does anyone have much experience with the Daniel Defense DDM4 Pro 18" rifles?
I got a V7 Pro for 3 gun, and I am not happy with the accuracy. Most of the loads I have tried are 2-5 MOA. I can sometimes manage 1 MOA, but it is very picky - a 75 or 77 grain BTHP with VihtaVuori N140 extruded powder. The extruded powder meters terrible in my Dillon XL650, so I need a rifle that likes spherical powder or something.
The matches have torso silhouette shots out to almost 500 yards, so the farther I get off of 1 MOA increases my misses.
Aside from the accuracy, I like the gun. Do you guys think it could be accurized or something?
What primers are you running? They make a huge difference. I run N135 on my 550b, and it meters good enough to get around MOA. Not sure how the 650 runs though.
Hey Mark. I use a variety of primers - none of which are match primers. I just never really needed them to get an MOA from a bolt gun. What primer do you recommend?
After doing some reading, I am going to check headspace and decide whether to change the barrel or just build another upper. Sounds like the cold hammer forged chrome lined barrels are not known for accuracy.
I ain’t bashing DD, they make good barrels. They are well made, durable, and shoot pretty well. BUT…, if i was looking for consistent 1MOA or better I’d look somewhere else.
I had read that their CHF barrels would outlast a stainless barrel, so I thought I would take a chance that the long heavy profile and competition build would be an accurate rifle, but it just is not.
Well, what you heard is all true. The barrel will last. I’d bet that barrel will still be capable of reasonably good precision long after a stainless barrel has been shot out and replaced. Chrome lining doesn’t ruin the precision capability. I’d also be willing to bet that some examples of that barrel are capable of MOA or better. If you were to test a group of them though I expect you would find that the average to be outside of your desired range.
Trouble is you bought a workhorse when you wanted a barrel racer. No fault of DD, and no shame on you. Swap out the barrel for one designed for the precision you are looking for and chalk this up as a learning experience. I imagine you will have no trouble selling the DD barrel if you don’t want to keep it.
That is interesting. CCI 41s is the main ones I used. During the major shortage I paid a lot more for them than most commercial primers. I don’t get major velocity spreads though.
Interesting too that you use N135 because I think that is a longer stick than N140. The metering problem is it clogs the case mouth, and if I don’t stop and tap each case and pay real close attention it will not fill. I tried N135 too since I had it for 308, but the N140 grouped better.