The T/C Compass is Back!!!

April 15, 2019

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My journey to obtain a 308 has been a long difficult road. Back in the fall, I stumbled across Ocean374‘s deal on a Thompson Center Compass from Kentucky Gun Company. They had a smoking deal, along with a factory rebate, making this rifle $225 in my hands. I picked up a SWFA fixed 20 power scope on a Black Friday deal, and a 20 MOA Base from EGW. I added an eBay muzzle brake, and did my magic on a “Poor Man’s Trigger Job.” I had bought some Speer 168g Match bullets that I would start with. Varget has always been a favorite of mine for 308 so that’s where I started. Two and Three inch groups were the best that I could shoot. One of this rifle’s downfalls is the 1-12 Twist. Most 308s come with a 10 twist, so my thought was maybe try some lighter bullets. I shot some 125g SST’s and some 155g Match bullets next. Although I did have an occasional good/great group, nothing was repeatable. Then the day came that I couldn’t hit a standard piece of computer paper at 100 yards with anything. I had noticed some major gouging in the rifling that I still believe was my problem. It was then that I decided to contact the company about sending it back. I included a few photos of the rifling and they wanted it returned. Returning it was a breeze. They provided a prepaid shipping label, and I dropped it off at my local FedEx pickup location. After about 2 months they contacted me saying they were going to replace the receiver, which would give it a new serial number, so I needed to give my FFL info for shipment back to me. Another month passed with no contact from them, and all of a sudden it showed up at my local FFL. Upon receiving my rifle I discovered that they had just sent me a new one. Everything on this one looked good. The barrel looked acceptable, although these cheap rifles have some tooling marks due to lower quality tooling. I got all my stuff mounted back on the rifle. This time I put my Sightron S-Tac 4-20 on it. Since I took the SWFA off, it found a new home on the 243.

My first loads for this rifle were loaded about a month ago, when they initially contacted me about returning it. I didn’t know that it would take a month to get it back in my hands. I started my test loads with Varget. I used Hornady 155g Match, and Speer 168g Match bullets. I also loaded up a few Sierra 150g Spitzers for zeroing the rifle and giving it a few break in rounds.

Another downfall of this rifle is the pencil thin barrel profile. With the last rifle, I usually shot 4 shot groups to keep the barrel heat down. I decided on 5 shot groups today and would just have to keep an eye on the heat. I shot 40 rounds over an hour and a half to two hours time period.

The first test loads were the Hornady 155g Match bullets. They were loaded into some Starline Brass at an overall length of 2.820″. The charges of Varget were: 44.1g, 44.4g, 44.7g, and 45.0g. The first group was a little disappointing at 1.6 inches but then they tightened up. 44.4g produced a .557″ group, then 44.7g had some vertical stringing. The last group was .570″ and I was very happy with the results.

The next test loads were the Speer 168g Match. I loaded up 43.1g, 43.4g, 43.7g, and 44.0g of Varget into the Starline Brass. I kept the same overall length of 2.820″ These groups were not as good as the 155’s. Other than the first group they stayed just above 1 MOA, which for a cheap gun is very acceptable.

After every group I gave it some cool down time and after every 10 shots I would walk down range and give it some extra time to cool.

Another issue was the trigger pull. Even with my modification, it still has a nasty break. The pull weight is definitely lighter, but it feels like you have to jerk it to get the shot off. I was getting use to it but it really needs some attention.

I am still uncertain about these Speer 168s. I am on my second box and have really never seen anything under 1 inch. I think I will try another flavor of 168s next time I order bullets.

After a lunch break, I loaded up some more 155g’s with the 45g charge of Varget. I had to see if this 1/2 inch group was a fluke or repeatable. I loaded up another 20 and went back to the range. I got some Chronograph data on the first 5. The MagnetoSpeed gave the following results.

By now it was later in the afternoon and the wind was picking up. I decided to try them out at 200, 300, and 400 yards. I shot these consecutively, with no cool down time. I did not dial anything, just hold overs for elevation and wind. I blame myself for the poor 400 yard group. I was holding elevation and windage off the plate, so I really didn’t have a good aiming point.

That sums up today’s outing. I was very pleased with how the rifle preformed. I think it will be a keeper. My plans are to try some IMR4895 next with the Speer 168s and possibly some CFE223.

This will probably be the new format going forward for me. I am not pursuing shooting as I have in the past couple years. I’m still shooting, but just not as much. I plan on doing some first thoughts on the Ruger PC Carbine after I get a few more range sessions with it. Thanks for reading and have a GREAT DAY.

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