Drifting POI with mag release?

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   So Im not sure if this is just a "me" problem or if others have experienced/solved it... hoping its something other people know the fix for though, because Im stumped.
I have a 1966 ishapore 2a1 that Im trying to get shooting well enough for my kid to use for hunting. Right now it'll reliably shoot 5 shot groups into a 1.5"x2" egg shaped group at 100 yd, which Id be comfortable calling good enough... except that each time I drop the mag and reload (has a capacity reducing mag block to meet local hunting regs), the poi changes vertically by between 1" and 3". Not seeing any windage change, just elevation.

The rifle came to me as a sporter (I know the common opinion about sporters. Trying to keep this one on the firing line and out of the bin) and Ive put a lot of time into restoring the accuracy/consistency. I thought I was done, but this problem just cropped up and Im at a loss rgarding where to start troubleshooting it. Any help would be appreciated.

I will add that since the rifle has been altered, I dont have any qualms about doing additional alterations to fix the problem. 

Thanks everyone 

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Hal9000 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 14 2024 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 23	Post Options Post Reply Quote Hal9000 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Drifting POI with mag release? Posted: January 11 2026 at 8:05pm
	So Im not sure if this is just a "me" problem or if others have experienced/solved it... hoping its something other people know the fix for though, because Im stumped. I have a 1966 ishapore 2a1 that Im trying to get shooting well enough for my kid to use for hunting. Right now it'll reliably shoot 5 shot groups into a 1.5"x2" egg shaped group at 100 yd, which Id be comfortable calling good enough... except that each time I drop the mag and reload (has a capacity reducing mag block to meet local hunting regs), the poi changes vertically by between 1" and 3". Not seeing any windage change, just elevation. The rifle came to me as a sporter (I know the common opinion about sporters. Trying to keep this one on the firing line and out of the bin) and Ive put a lot of time into restoring the accuracy/consistency. I thought I was done, but this problem just cropped up and Im at a loss rgarding where to start troubleshooting it. Any help would be appreciated. I will add that since the rifle has been altered, I dont have any qualms about doing additional alterations to fix the problem. Thanks everyone

DisasterDog Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: February 21 2025 Location: Brewery Status: Offline Points: 256	Post Options Post Reply Quote DisasterDog Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: January 11 2026 at 9:56pm
	The magazine was intended to be filled from the top, through the action, using chargers (or stripper clips as they are known). So the first thing I’d do is see if that solves the problem. If the charger guide has been lopped off, just feed them into the magazine by hand with the magazine still in the gun. There’s really no need to remove it.

britrifles Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: February 03 2018 Location: Georgia, USA Status: Online Points: 8404	Post Options Post Reply Quote britrifles Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: January 12 2026 at 3:42am
	That was my first thought too, don't remove the mag to reload and see if the POI stays put. Might be a co-incidence; and the POI shift may not be related to removing/replacing the mag. A shifting POI usually means either a poorly fitted fore-end, loose butt stock or a problem with barrel contacting the fore-end where it shouldn't. Barrel heating up the fore-end and causing it to change shape could also do this.

DisasterDog Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: February 21 2025 Location: Brewery Status: Offline Points: 256	Post Options Post Reply Quote DisasterDog Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: January 12 2026 at 7:49am
	The other thing I was thinking is that mag insertion may be positional, therefore affecting the trigger pull (since the mag catch & sear share a spring).

paddyofurniture Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: December 26 2011 Location: NC Status: Offline Points: 7942	Post Options Post Reply Quote paddyofurniture Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: January 12 2026 at 9:36am
	Good point about the spring.

Hal9000 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: November 14 2024 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 23	Post Options Post Reply Quote Hal9000 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: January 12 2026 at 1:10pm
	Thanks for the tips guys. No loose bolts. I policed that prior to this outing. Stripper Clips are not an option (Scope installed), but I'll try hand feeding from the top and see what happens. Regarding barrel contact.... I thought about that but the groups are very consistent within the magazine capacity. It doesn't seem like a heating/cooling issue to me for that reason. Over the weekend I ran 5 shot strings ranging from 1-2 minutes between shots, to <20 seconds between shots and the groups were stable. Environmental conditions were also stable. That said, the OEM barrel contact regime is completely non-existent (Sporter configuration!). The action has been carefully bedded with attention to the draws, Nox form, bottom edge of the receiver, and bottom metal. The rear of the forend contacts the wrist firmly, and it's free floated in front of the nox form with the option of a screw adjustable pressure pad at the location of the original mid band. I started with the screw backed fully out with the intention of finding the sweet spot, but when this problem popped up, I just returned it to the position I'd found previously for different ammo. That didn't change the behavior but did provide the data point that it doesn't seem to be responsive to changes in barrel pressure. It'll be a few weeks before I go back out but if top loading resolves the problem I'll report back. The magazine isn't loose in the action, but it's not exactly rigid either. You can grab it and perceive a few thousandths of movement in any number of directions. Should I work on resolving that? Shouldn't be too difficult. Thanks again!