Most shooters pull a new rifle out of the box and head straight to the range. That approach works — until it doesn't. Loose bases, unchecked torque specs, and poorly leveled optics have a way of showing up at the worst possible moment. Usually on a hunt. Usually far from home.
This is the process we run every time a new rifle comes through Outdoor Solutions.
We recently put it to work on the new Allttera X, and we brought a camera along for all of it.
We have been running Allterra rifles in our Long Range Shooting Schools for a few years. Those guns have been workhorses. They perform, and our students trust them. So when Altera came out with an updated model featuring their new in-house carbon fiber barrel, we were glad to put it through the same setup we give every rifle that comes through the program.
Steve handled the setup while Greg was out on the range filming. The goal was the same as always: get this rifle zeroed and ready to trust before a single student ever picks it up.
This is the first thing we do on any rifle we did not build ourselves. If you buy a factory gun, buy a used gun, or receive a gun from a manufacturer, the base needs to be locked down with red Loctite and proper torque.
We are not talking about your rings. Never red Loctite your rings. You will hate yourself, or someone else will hate you. But the base-to-receiver connection is one you want to be permanent. If it ever comes off, you want that to be a deliberate decision that requires heat. We have seen bases come loose during classes, and it is a full reset. Scope off, retorque, re-zero. On a hunt, you do not have that luxury.
The Altera X came with this already done. We checked it, confirmed it, and moved on.
We are running a Zeiss S3 4-25x first focal plane optic on this rifle.
Ring position on the scope body. We want the rings centered on the body of the scope, not pushed toward the objective bell or the magnification ring. This gives us the most flexibility to adjust eye relief for different shooters without running out of room.
Push the rings forward on the rail. When you torque your rings down, push them toward the muzzle. Under recoil, the rifle moves rearward. If the rings have any play and they are already pushed back, they could slide forward. Pushed forward, there is nowhere to go.
Torque to spec, not to feel. The Zeiss rings on this setup called for 35 to 40 inch pounds on the cross bolts and 18 to 20 inch pounds on the scope rings. We used a Fix-It Sticks torque driver. Those little kits are worth every penny. Put them on your Christmas list.
Use blue Loctite on the scope ring screws if the rifle is going to see hard use. This rifle is going into the school rotation and will get run hard. A small amount of blue Loctite on those T15 screws gives us confidence without creating a permanent situation.
Mind the gap. As you tighten the scope rings, watch both sides. You do not want one side completely closed while the other still has a large opening. Work in a sequence, keep both sides even, and do not torque to final spec on the first pass. Work up to it.
This step gets skipped more than any other. Do not skip it.
We use a level system that mounts to the rail and gives us a reference while we set the reticle. Instead of trying to float the bubble exactly in the center of the two lines, we aim for the bubble to just barely touch one line. It gives a finer reference point and a more consistent result.
Take your time here. A canted reticle will cause your shots to walk at distance in ways that are hard to diagnose. Get it right on the bench.
The Altera X came set up for a Dead Air Nomad XC TI on a tapered mount. That means it runs a muzzle brake and accepts the suppressor via taper rather than direct thread. The advantage is flexibility. Run it suppressed when you want. Run it without the can when you do not. The brake alone makes the rifle very shootable either way.
Torque the muzzle device to spec and you are done.
Bore sighting is not a precision step. It is a time-saving step. The goal is to get close enough that your first rounds land on paper, which makes zeroing go faster and wastes less ammo.
We set a paper target at 100 yards, aligned the bore with the center of the target, then adjusted the reticle to sit in the upper two thirds of the paper. The offset accounts for the difference in sight height between the bore and the optic.
When we walked to the line, the first shot told us we were about three minutes low and two minutes left. That is a good bore sight. A few adjustments and we were on target.
Five rounds. Clean barrel, just beginning to foul. Wind moving across the range in Oklahoma the way it always does.
The group measured right around half MOA. Horizontal spread, which matched what we expected given the crosswind. The rifle was shooting like a laser. The wind was the variable, not the gun.
Muzzle velocity averaged 2,737 fps with the Center Strike ammo we were running. That tracks with what you would expect from this cartridge and barrel combination.
After dialing the quarter-minute adjustment to center the group, the next string shot nearly identically. This rifle is consistent.
Beyond how it shot, here is what stands out about the design:
The carbon fiber barrel is not outsourced. Altera makes it in-house with their own patented process. That matters for consistency and quality control.
The stock is well thought out. There is an ARCA Swiss rail on the bottom for tripod attachment, a traditional Picatinny up front for a bipod, a QD socket, and an adjustable cheek pad. The flat fore end sits well in a bag, and the thumb shelf keeps your hand in a natural position without forcing your thumb to cross over the top. That detail alone improves how naturally you drive the trigger straight back.
They lined the back of the stock with closed-cell neoprene. Small thing. Makes a difference.
The Trigger Tech trigger breaks cleanly. The action is their own. Even with the S3 optic and a suppressor mounted, the rifle stays packable and huntable, which is exactly the point.
One note worth making. After zeroing, we were sitting about a quarter minute low of center. You have two options in that situation. You can make the adjustment and re-zero to true center. Or you can leave it and enter that offset into your ballistic software so it accounts for where you are actually starting.
At 300 yards on a deer, a quarter minute is not going to decide anything. But when we are building data we can trust at distance, we want to start with the cleanest baseline we can get. We made the adjustment.
The Allterra X is going into the rotation at our Long Range Shooting Schools at Cross Bell Ranch. If you want to put rounds through it in a structured setting and see how it performs in your hands, that is the place to do it.
We run 3-night, 2.5-day immersive courses. Everything you need to shoot with confidence and understand what your rifle is actually capable of.
Register at outdoorsolutionscorp.com or reach out directly to get on the schedule.
Want to shoot an Allterra rifle with the Allterra crew? Come to our first Allterra specific class this September at our Texas location.
