The 600-yard target has an X-Ring 6 inches (1 MOA) across, while the 10-Ring spans 12 inches (2 MOA).
The following article is about reloading for NRA/CMP Highpower Rifle competition and is geared toward competitors shooting the AR15 Service Rifle. In Highpower Rifle competition, shooters fire in four stages: Standing slow-fire at 200 yards, Sitting rapid-fire at 200 yards, Prone rapid-fire at 300 yards, and Prone slow-fire at 600 yards. Competitors use a sling for support in all positions but standing. A typical AR15 Service Rifle sports a 20″ free-floated barrel and a 4.5-pound trigger. Service Rifle scopes are limited to maximum power of 4.5X.
Thoughts on Loading for Service Rifles, Particularly for 600 Yards
by Danny Arnold, Team CMP Article originally published in CMP Shooting News
Before we get started, I want to stress that all of the information that follows is geared toward the .223/5.56 Service Rifle. That doesn’t mean that there’s nothing here for anyone else, but the .223/5.56 Service Rifle platform is where I’ve spent the majority of my time, so here we go.
There is only one “Perfect” 600–yard load for my rifle, True or False? This example is more anecdotal than scientific, but it provides some food for thought….
Team CMP spent the early part of March competing in the Orange Blossom Regional. As soon as we got on the range, Sara Rozanski (Team CMP member) started having problems with her 600-yard ammunition. Nearly 1/3 of her cases were exiting the chamber minus the primers. I offered to swap my ammunition for hers, suspecting that my Wylde chamber would be more forgiving than her CLE chamber — a solution that seemed to solve the problem. At least neither of us was blowing primers!
Sara’s ammunition was a factory load using a well-known 80+ grain bullet with an unknown primer and powder, using brass from a respected manufacturer. My load was a different brand of 80-grain bullet, with my choice of powder and primer, all in brass made by someone else. Given the color of the primers, the only thing that our ammunition could possibly have had in common was the brand of powder… maybe. So, how did we shoot?
Sara and I shot the two-person team together and the entire 2,400 Aggregate, although on different relays. Sara’s combined 600-yard score was 780-28X (97.5%). Mine was a 783-24X (97.87%). Our scores were never more than two points apart on any of the four days. Keep in mind that we were using each other’s ammunition the entire time.
So, we had different barrels, chambers and ammunition, but similar results. That goes back to the idea that a good load will perform similarly if fired in a good barrel.
Are We Too Focused on Ballistic Coefficients (BCs)?
The revailing wisdom has always trended toward loading the highest-BC bullet we could find and pushing it as fast as possible. Back in the early ’90s when I got started with the AR15, the 80-grain Sierra was state of the art. Actually, I picked up all of my Leg points with it, although today it looks a bit dated — kinda like me.
So, the question I’ll pose is this: Would you rather shoot a high-BC bullet that groups 3/4-MOA (minute of angle) or a lower-BC bullet that groups into one-half-MOA traveling 50 feet-per-second faster? The reason that I posed this question is a situation I found myself in a decade ago. Our coach decided that he wanted us to pair-fire some 600-yard for practice. Unfortunately, I hadn’t gotten the memo and all that I had available was my normal short-line ammunition, loaded with a 77-grain bullet. The shooter I was paired with was using a higher-BC bullet than I was, but in the end, we both shot 198s.
Admittedly, using 77-grainers meant that coach had to work a little harder to keep us together on target, but it was a teaching moment for me. I knew that my upper shot 77s better than the available bullets in the 80-grain range, so I cranked out a windage table for the 77-grain bullet at 600 yards and shot those for the rest of the season. After all, the wind blows ALL bullets around. It’s just a matter of knowing what YOUR bullet is doing.
With the shortages that we’re experiencing right now, a lighter bullet may be all that you have available for the 2021 season. That doesn’t mean that you’re disadvantaged though.
Danny Arnold teaching Highpower Clinic at 2021 CMP Eastern Games
Loading High-BC Bullets
In the past decade, several bullets have appeared that weigh 80-grains or more. One thing that many of them have in common is a very sharp nose profile, whether metal or polymer. The question is: Are you using the right seating stem?
The jacket material in the bullet’s nose is very thin. If you section a bullet, you’ll find that there is a surprising amount of air space in the nose. If you’re using older seating dies, your seating stem may be contacting the bullet nose too close to the tip, where the jacket is the both thinnest and is unsupported by the lead core. This can manifest itself either as a deformation at the very tip of the bullet or as a circular dent around the bullet nose that you can see and feel with your thumbnail. I think we can all agree that denting a bullet is usually considered a bad thing.
One company goes so far as to recommend their proprietary seating stem for use with their high-BC bullets. Other companies leave it up to you to find a seating stem that will allow the bullet nose to go deeper into the seating stem, moving the contact point further down the bullet where the jacket is thicker and supported by the core material.
Seating Depth and Bullet Preferences
Some bullets don’t mind some “jump” into the lands, but some really do. Unfortunately, manufacturers don’t tell you much about that. Your chamber configuration (Wylde, CLE, or some hybrid of the two) and the bullet that you choose will determine your optimal seating depth. Long and short of it, a quality measuring tool to determine seating depth is a necessity these days. Keep in mind that if you’re doing this with a brand new barrel, the throat is likely going to change slightly in the first 200 rounds and may need to be re-measured. Actually, since all of your short range ammunition has to be loaded to magazine length, you’re probably better off developing your short range loads before starting on long range load development. That gives the throat a chance to wear in a bit on a new barrel.
Brass Prep — Why It Is Important
When match-grade AR15s first arrived on the scene, it was amazing how little it took to get them to shoot well. Other than making sure that I had brass from the same lot and running it through a set of match-grade dies, I did nothing. Of course, we were also using a post front sight. Was the occasional bad shot me, the rifle, the load or just an archaic sighting system?
Transitioning to optics has caused me to reconsider how and what I do in my reloading process: That, and having some extra time on my hands to experiment.
A little (or a lot) of time spent with a neck turning tool, a primer-pocket uniformer and a flash-hole reamer will quickly show you how consistent brass is by manufacturer and even by individual lot. That exercise also makes the prices charged for high-quality brass seem ridiculously cheap. That doesn’t mean that I advocate neck-turning or other uniforming practices, nor do I advocate spending scandalous amounts of money on long-range brass. However, our sport is about consistency. The consistency of your brass is a matter of choice, whether you choose to simply segregate cases by weight (cheap option), neck turn (labor intensive) or open your wallet a little wider for premium brass.
Weighing Charges vs. Throwing with Powder Measure
To measure or weigh? For a long time, I used a powder measure to throw all of my 600-yard loads. The powder I was using metered well, and the results downrange didn’t justify the extra time spent with a scale. That was in the day of iron sights though. Nowadays, I’m throwing my charges and trickling up to the desired weight as measured on a scale that weighs to a 100th of a grain.
To quantify the difference between individually weighing each charge versus throwing charges with a powder measure, I weighed six kernels of powder that I trickled into the pan and then dumped them into the hopper. Going through that process 10 times, I came up with an average weight of .08 grains for six kernels. Next, I threw 50 charges for weighing using my powder measure. If I felt the measure hanging up as it cut kernels, I put the charge back into the hopper without weighing it.
That’s six kernels of powder sitting in the pan — average weight .08 grains.
Those 50 smoothly-thrown charges varied .26 grains from lowest to highest, with the majority varying no more than .16 grains from highest to lowest. If the desired weight was exactly in the middle, at worst you’d be .13 grains (9-10 kernels) low or high, with the majority being off no more than .08 grains (6 kernels) above or below the desired charge weight. Is that enough to send a shot outside the 2-MOA 10-Ring? Probably not.
Has more consistent brass and weighing charges to one-hundredth (0.01) of a grain added up to higher scores? Honestly, this question is hard to answer. Looking at the results on paper at 200 yards, using a powder that meters well combined with a consistent touch on the loading lever doesn’t appear measurably different than meticulously weighing each and every powder charge. Looking back over my 600-yard plots however, I can see a trend toward a group that is closer to X-Ring height.
Since the bullseye is widest at the center, shooting groups that are the height of the X-ring gives you more room for error when the wind is blowing. That can translate into higher 600-yard scores.
How You Load Your Ammunition vs. How You Load Your Rifle
The loading/chambering cycle of the AR-15 is, in a word, violent. You have a relatively heavy bolt and carrier assembly under power of a stout buffer spring slamming forward to chamber each round of ammunition. By design, those rounds were supposed to be held securely by the magazine feed lips until the bolt stripped them off the follower. Obviously, due to their overall length, 600-yard loads can’t be chambered that way. Although the barrel extension is funnel-shaped, it’s also got a lot of “teeth” ringing the inside of it (see below).
Whether you’re using a standard magazine or a single-round loading device (SLED), dropping a round in the loading port and releasing the bolt is an act of faith in that you’re trusting the bullet to arrive in the chamber undamaged.
Ask yourself, how many times have you seen someone drop a round on the follower, press the bolt release and watch as the bolt jammed on a cockeyed round? If that happens once every 100 tries, how many times did the bolt close on a scratched, dented, or misaligned bullet? Could that be the cause of the occasional errant shot?
My technique is to drop each round on top of the SLED and then push it slightly forward with my finger, partially chambering it before releasing the bolt. Admittedly, some people may be unable to do this due to body configuration or left-handedness, but why go to all the trouble of loading “perfect” ammunition and then damage it on the way into the chamber?
Now that we’ve covered bullets, brass, and assorted errata we can move on to discussing loads for 600 Yards…
The NRA Highpower 600-yard target has a 6-inch (1 MOA) X-Ring, and a 12-inch (2 MOA) 10-Ring.
Load Development for 600 Yards
Finding a load for 600 yards is a lot like finding a load for short range. Once I decide on a bullet, powder, primer, velocity range and a measured guesstimate of seating depth, I load 10 rounds of each test load, increasing in 0.2 (2/10) grain increments. I test them from the prone position at 200 yards. Ideally, I want to see two loads that are 0.2 (2/10) of a grain apart that shoot almost identical groups. The load that I choose will fall in between the two best shooting loads that I tested. If the first load is XX.2 grains and the second is XX.4 grains, my chosen load will be XX.3 grains.
Why develop loads in 0.2-grain (tenths) increments if I have a scale that measures in 0.01-grain (hundredths) increments? Or, why not test in 0.1-grain increments?
For me, working in 0.2-grain increments gets me to the results quicker. Also, there is a difference between accuracy and consistency in this scenario. Developing loads in 0.2-grain increments gets me to an accurate load. Producing that load using a scale that accurately measures to .01-grain insures a consistent load, assuming that I do my part.
Once I’ve settled on a load, it’s time to play with seating depth, if I choose to. If I’m lucky and the groups are acceptable as-is, I won’t do anything. If I think there’s room for improvement, I’ll experiment a little. Depending on the bullet, changing the seating depth by a couple of thousandths one way or the other may change the group size. During this phase of testing, it’s a good idea to chamber a round and see if the entire round will then extract. If you leave a bullet stuck in the throat, your rounds are too long. Finding that out at a match can ruin an otherwise good day.
Danny Arnold shooting his AR15 Service Rifle, standing position at 2021 CMP Eastern Games.
Another thing to keep in mind is that your barrel is not static. Every round fired has an effect on the throat, vaporizing and scouring away metal until the distance the bullet travels before meeting the rifling measurably increases. If you have chosen a bullet that shoots best when close to the lands, you’ll need to periodically re-measure and possibly change your bullet seating depth to maintain that optimal relationship.
The Elephant in the Room — User Skill Level
There’s really not a delicate way to put this, so I won’t try. There’s little point in spending time and effort developing a load that shoots into half-MOA off the bench if you’re only capable of shooting 2 MOA using a sling right now.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no hope. On the contrary, it just means that your time and effort is better spent practicing with some good short-range ammunition on reduced targets at a 100 or 200-yard range. At that distance, wind is not a factor and your technique can be improved more quickly so you’re in a position to benefit from that ½ MOA ammunition.
About Team CMP
CMP has created a Highpower Team with top competitors. Team CMP competes at several events throughout the year and most importantly, helps to teach Highpower Clinics at CMP Competition Events. Learn from Team CMP at Camp Perry during the Advanced Highpower Clinic, scheduled this year for July 30 through August 1, 2021. Visit the Highpower Clinic Web Page for more information.
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally-chartered 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, visit www.TheCMP.org.
Share the post "Sunday Gunday: AR Service Rifle — Reloading and Ammunition"
The 600-yard target has an X-Ring 6 inches (1 MOA) across, while the 10-Ring spans 12 inches (2 MOA).
The following article is about reloading for NRA/CMP Highpower Rifle competition and is geared toward competitors shooting the AR15 Service Rifle. In Highpower Rifle competition, shooters fire in four stages: Standing slow-fire at 200 yards, Sitting rapid-fire at 200 yards, Prone rapid-fire at 300 yards, and Prone slow-fire at 600 yards. Competitors use a sling for support in all positions but standing. A typical AR15 Service Rifle sports a 20″ free-floated barrel and a 4.5-pound trigger. Service Rifle scopes are limited to maximum power of 4.5X.
Thoughts on Loading for Service Rifles, Particularly for 600 Yards
by Danny Arnold, Team CMP Article originally published in CMP Shooting News
Before we get started, I want to stress that all of the information that follows is geared toward the .223/5.56 Service Rifle. That doesn’t mean that there’s nothing here for anyone else, but the .223/5.56 Service Rifle platform is where I’ve spent the majority of my time, so here we go.
There is only one “Perfect” 600–yard load for my rifle, True or False? This example is more anecdotal than scientific, but it provides some food for thought….
Team CMP spent the early part of March competing in the Orange Blossom Regional. As soon as we got on the range, Sara Rozanski (Team CMP member) started having problems with her 600-yard ammunition. Nearly 1/3 of her cases were exiting the chamber minus the primers. I offered to swap my ammunition for hers, suspecting that my Wylde chamber would be more forgiving than her CLE chamber — a solution that seemed to solve the problem. At least neither of us was blowing primers!
Sara’s ammunition was a factory load using a well-known 80+ grain bullet with an unknown primer and powder, using brass from a respected manufacturer. My load was a different brand of 80-grain bullet, with my choice of powder and primer, all in brass made by someone else. Given the color of the primers, the only thing that our ammunition could possibly have had in common was the brand of powder… maybe. So, how did we shoot?
Sara and I shot the two-person team together and the entire 2,400 Aggregate, although on different relays. Sara’s combined 600-yard score was 780-28X (97.5%). Mine was a 783-24X (97.87%). Our scores were never more than two points apart on any of the four days. Keep in mind that we were using each other’s ammunition the entire time.
So, we had different barrels, chambers and ammunition, but similar results. That goes back to the idea that a good load will perform similarly if fired in a good barrel.
Are We Too Focused on Ballistic Coefficients (BCs)?
The revailing wisdom has always trended toward loading the highest-BC bullet we could find and pushing it as fast as possible. Back in the early ’90s when I got started with the AR15, the 80-grain Sierra was state of the art. Actually, I picked up all of my Leg points with it, although today it looks a bit dated — kinda like me.
So, the question I’ll pose is this: Would you rather shoot a high-BC bullet that groups 3/4-MOA (minute of angle) or a lower-BC bullet that groups into one-half-MOA traveling 50 feet-per-second faster? The reason that I posed this question is a situation I found myself in a decade ago. Our coach decided that he wanted us to pair-fire some 600-yard for practice. Unfortunately, I hadn’t gotten the memo and all that I had available was my normal short-line ammunition, loaded with a 77-grain bullet. The shooter I was paired with was using a higher-BC bullet than I was, but in the end, we both shot 198s.
Admittedly, using 77-grainers meant that coach had to work a little harder to keep us together on target, but it was a teaching moment for me. I knew that my upper shot 77s better than the available bullets in the 80-grain range, so I cranked out a windage table for the 77-grain bullet at 600 yards and shot those for the rest of the season. After all, the wind blows ALL bullets around. It’s just a matter of knowing what YOUR bullet is doing.
With the shortages that we’re experiencing right now, a lighter bullet may be all that you have available for the 2021 season. That doesn’t mean that you’re disadvantaged though.
Danny Arnold teaching Highpower Clinic at 2021 CMP Eastern Games
Loading High-BC Bullets
In the past decade, several bullets have appeared that weigh 80-grains or more. One thing that many of them have in common is a very sharp nose profile, whether metal or polymer. The question is: Are you using the right seating stem?
The jacket material in the bullet’s nose is very thin. If you section a bullet, you’ll find that there is a surprising amount of air space in the nose. If you’re using older seating dies, your seating stem may be contacting the bullet nose too close to the tip, where the jacket is the both thinnest and is unsupported by the lead core. This can manifest itself either as a deformation at the very tip of the bullet or as a circular dent around the bullet nose that you can see and feel with your thumbnail. I think we can all agree that denting a bullet is usually considered a bad thing.
One company goes so far as to recommend their proprietary seating stem for use with their high-BC bullets. Other companies leave it up to you to find a seating stem that will allow the bullet nose to go deeper into the seating stem, moving the contact point further down the bullet where the jacket is thicker and supported by the core material.
Seating Depth and Bullet Preferences
Some bullets don’t mind some “jump” into the lands, but some really do. Unfortunately, manufacturers don’t tell you much about that. Your chamber configuration (Wylde, CLE, or some hybrid of the two) and the bullet that you choose will determine your optimal seating depth. Long and short of it, a quality measuring tool to determine seating depth is a necessity these days. Keep in mind that if you’re doing this with a brand new barrel, the throat is likely going to change slightly in the first 200 rounds and may need to be re-measured. Actually, since all of your short range ammunition has to be loaded to magazine length, you’re probably better off developing your short range loads before starting on long range load development. That gives the throat a chance to wear in a bit on a new barrel.
Brass Prep — Why It Is Important
When match-grade AR15s first arrived on the scene, it was amazing how little it took to get them to shoot well. Other than making sure that I had brass from the same lot and running it through a set of match-grade dies, I did nothing. Of course, we were also using a post front sight. Was the occasional bad shot me, the rifle, the load or just an archaic sighting system?
Transitioning to optics has caused me to reconsider how and what I do in my reloading process: That, and having some extra time on my hands to experiment.
A little (or a lot) of time spent with a neck turning tool, a primer-pocket uniformer and a flash-hole reamer will quickly show you how consistent brass is by manufacturer and even by individual lot. That exercise also makes the prices charged for high-quality brass seem ridiculously cheap. That doesn’t mean that I advocate neck-turning or other uniforming practices, nor do I advocate spending scandalous amounts of money on long-range brass. However, our sport is about consistency. The consistency of your brass is a matter of choice, whether you choose to simply segregate cases by weight (cheap option), neck turn (labor intensive) or open your wallet a little wider for premium brass.
Weighing Charges vs. Throwing with Powder Measure
To measure or weigh? For a long time, I used a powder measure to throw all of my 600-yard loads. The powder I was using metered well, and the results downrange didn’t justify the extra time spent with a scale. That was in the day of iron sights though. Nowadays, I’m throwing my charges and trickling up to the desired weight as measured on a scale that weighs to a 100th of a grain.
To quantify the difference between individually weighing each charge versus throwing charges with a powder measure, I weighed six kernels of powder that I trickled into the pan and then dumped them into the hopper. Going through that process 10 times, I came up with an average weight of .08 grains for six kernels. Next, I threw 50 charges for weighing using my powder measure. If I felt the measure hanging up as it cut kernels, I put the charge back into the hopper without weighing it.
That’s six kernels of powder sitting in the pan — average weight .08 grains.
Those 50 smoothly-thrown charges varied .26 grains from lowest to highest, with the majority varying no more than .16 grains from highest to lowest. If the desired weight was exactly in the middle, at worst you’d be .13 grains (9-10 kernels) low or high, with the majority being off no more than .08 grains (6 kernels) above or below the desired charge weight. Is that enough to send a shot outside the 2-MOA 10-Ring? Probably not.
Has more consistent brass and weighing charges to one-hundredth (0.01) of a grain added up to higher scores? Honestly, this question is hard to answer. Looking at the results on paper at 200 yards, using a powder that meters well combined with a consistent touch on the loading lever doesn’t appear measurably different than meticulously weighing each and every powder charge. Looking back over my 600-yard plots however, I can see a trend toward a group that is closer to X-Ring height.
Since the bullseye is widest at the center, shooting groups that are the height of the X-ring gives you more room for error when the wind is blowing. That can translate into higher 600-yard scores.
How You Load Your Ammunition vs. How You Load Your Rifle
The loading/chambering cycle of the AR-15 is, in a word, violent. You have a relatively heavy bolt and carrier assembly under power of a stout buffer spring slamming forward to chamber each round of ammunition. By design, those rounds were supposed to be held securely by the magazine feed lips until the bolt stripped them off the follower. Obviously, due to their overall length, 600-yard loads can’t be chambered that way. Although the barrel extension is funnel-shaped, it’s also got a lot of “teeth” ringing the inside of it (see below).
Whether you’re using a standard magazine or a single-round loading device (SLED), dropping a round in the loading port and releasing the bolt is an act of faith in that you’re trusting the bullet to arrive in the chamber undamaged.
Ask yourself, how many times have you seen someone drop a round on the follower, press the bolt release and watch as the bolt jammed on a cockeyed round? If that happens once every 100 tries, how many times did the bolt close on a scratched, dented, or misaligned bullet? Could that be the cause of the occasional errant shot?
My technique is to drop each round on top of the SLED and then push it slightly forward with my finger, partially chambering it before releasing the bolt. Admittedly, some people may be unable to do this due to body configuration or left-handedness, but why go to all the trouble of loading “perfect” ammunition and then damage it on the way into the chamber?
Now that we’ve covered bullets, brass, and assorted errata we can move on to discussing loads for 600 Yards…
The NRA Highpower 600-yard target has a 6-inch (1 MOA) X-Ring, and a 12-inch (2 MOA) 10-Ring.
Load Development for 600 Yards
Finding a load for 600 yards is a lot like finding a load for short range. Once I decide on a bullet, powder, primer, velocity range and a measured guesstimate of seating depth, I load 10 rounds of each test load, increasing in 0.2 (2/10) grain increments. I test them from the prone position at 200 yards. Ideally, I want to see two loads that are 0.2 (2/10) of a grain apart that shoot almost identical groups. The load that I choose will fall in between the two best shooting loads that I tested. If the first load is XX.2 grains and the second is XX.4 grains, my chosen load will be XX.3 grains.
Why develop loads in 0.2-grain (tenths) increments if I have a scale that measures in 0.01-grain (hundredths) increments? Or, why not test in 0.1-grain increments?
For me, working in 0.2-grain increments gets me to the results quicker. Also, there is a difference between accuracy and consistency in this scenario. Developing loads in 0.2-grain increments gets me to an accurate load. Producing that load using a scale that accurately measures to .01-grain insures a consistent load, assuming that I do my part.
Once I’ve settled on a load, it’s time to play with seating depth, if I choose to. If I’m lucky and the groups are acceptable as-is, I won’t do anything. If I think there’s room for improvement, I’ll experiment a little. Depending on the bullet, changing the seating depth by a couple of thousandths one way or the other may change the group size. During this phase of testing, it’s a good idea to chamber a round and see if the entire round will then extract. If you leave a bullet stuck in the throat, your rounds are too long. Finding that out at a match can ruin an otherwise good day.
Danny Arnold shooting his AR15 Service Rifle, standing position at 2021 CMP Eastern Games.
Another thing to keep in mind is that your barrel is not static. Every round fired has an effect on the throat, vaporizing and scouring away metal until the distance the bullet travels before meeting the rifling measurably increases. If you have chosen a bullet that shoots best when close to the lands, you’ll need to periodically re-measure and possibly change your bullet seating depth to maintain that optimal relationship.
The Elephant in the Room — User Skill Level
There’s really not a delicate way to put this, so I won’t try. There’s little point in spending time and effort developing a load that shoots into half-MOA off the bench if you’re only capable of shooting 2 MOA using a sling right now.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no hope. On the contrary, it just means that your time and effort is better spent practicing with some good short-range ammunition on reduced targets at a 100 or 200-yard range. At that distance, wind is not a factor and your technique can be improved more quickly so you’re in a position to benefit from that ½ MOA ammunition.
About Team CMP
CMP has created a Highpower Team with top competitors. Team CMP competes at several events throughout the year and most importantly, helps to teach Highpower Clinics at CMP Competition Events. Learn from Team CMP at Camp Perry during the Advanced Highpower Clinic, scheduled this year for July 30 through August 1, 2021. Visit the Highpower Clinic Web Page for more information.
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally-chartered 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, visit www.TheCMP.org.
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The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) returns to its regular competition schedule in 2021 and will add a few new events around the country. And for the first time, pistol matches will be offered at ALL major CMP competition events. The 2021 season kicks off March 12-21, at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Arizona, with the Western CMP High Power and Games Matches. The Western Games, entering its 17th year, has added new competitions — pistol matches — that have been long anticipated but never fired at the annual event. Registration for the Western CMP Highpower and Games Matches opened November 1, 2020. CLICK Here for Western Games INFO.
Following the Western Games on the other side of the country will be the Eastern CMP Games & CMP HP Rifle Matches, set for April 23-May 2, 2021, at the Camp Butner National Guard Facility in North Carolina. Eastern Games will follow the same lineup of rifle and pistol clinics and competitions (including the Pistol Marksmanship 101 course) as the Western Games. Registration for the CMP Eastern Games opens December 1, 2020. CLICK Here for Eastern Games INFO.
2021 CMP Competition Schedule
January 12-18 – Talladega 600 Matches (rescheduled from 2020) | Talladega, Alabama
March 12-21 – Western CMP Games & CMP HP Rifle Matches | Phoenix, Arizona
April 23-May 2– Eastern CMP Games & CMP HP Rifle Matches | Camp Butner, North Carolina
June 8-13 – Talladega D-Day Matches | Talladega, Alabama
September 19-26 – New England CMP Games & CMP HP Rifle Matches | Jericho, Vermont
October 17-24 – Oklahoma CMP Games & CMP HP Rifle Matches | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
November 16-21 – Talladega 600 | Talladega, Alabama
Electronic Targets — As in previous years, rifle competitions will be fired on CMP Targets, a user-friendly electronic target system that instantly displays shot placement. These electronic targets eliminate the need for pit duty, allowing matches to run more efficiently.
About CMP Competitions and Travel Games
These competitions are regional competitions held throughout the year, featuring CMP’s unique rifle and pistol outdoor events. Recognized as staple events of the CMP schedule, Travel Games are centered around recreation-oriented competition and educational activities that are designed to accommodate experienced marksmen as well as those hoping to learn more. The CMP will continue to adhere to evolving safety precautions, including mask wearing and social distancing, that may be in place while events are held.
Classification System (including Match Pistol Classification)
Competitor scores in the 80 Shot and/or EIC Rifle matches will count towards CMP’s HP Rifle Classification System. The CMP also has introduced the Match Pistol Classification. Competitors firing in the CMP Pistol 2700 will have their scores count towards their CMP Match Pistol Classification. Classifications are based on a competitor’s average scores fired in his or her most recent competitions. The CMP maintains a national database of competitors and scores that are used to establish competitor classifications. Competitors can view his/her current CMP Classification by logging into CMP Competition Tracker and clicking in his/her personal “Competitions” and “EIC Results” files.
CMP Adds Pistol Events for Major Matches
For the first time, pistol opportunities will be available at all CMP competition events.
Registration for the Western CMP Highpower and Games Matches opened Nov. 1, 2020. Learn more about the event by visiting the CMP website.
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U.S. Army SGT Benjamin Cleland recently won the 2019 CMP Cup at the CMP Eastern Games in Camp Butner, North Carolina. And in taking that impressive victory, the USAMU’s Cleland set a new CMP Cup Record of 2389-133X.
The CMP Cup, a 3-day course of fire, includes four stages: 20 standing shots at 200 yards in 22 minutes; two series of sitting/kneeling 10 shots at 200 yards in 60 seconds; two series of 10 prone shots at 300 yards in 70 seconds; and then 20 prone shots at 600 yards in 22 minutes.
Cleland’s new Aggregate Record of 2389-133X beat out his own 2018 CMP Cup record of 2368-111X. What’s even more impressive, Cleland’s score tops the NRA Service Rifle Championship Record of 2386-128X, which the talented SGT Cleland himself set in 2018*.
More Great Performances by USAMU Shooters
SGT Cleland wasn’t the only USAMU hotshot at the Eastern CMP Games. Sgt. Jarrod McGaffic won the CMP Eastern Games’ EIC Match with a 491-21X. SFC Brandon Green won Silver at CMP Cup with a 3-day aggregate of 2385-118X. And SSG Amanda Elsenboss (below) finished as High Woman and 4th Overall in the CMP Eastern Games with a 2378-114X.
The CMP Cup and Eastern Games are shot on Electronic Targets with portable wireless monitors.
* The NRA lists a “Service” record of 2396-181 set in 2009 by SFC Sherri Gallagher. But that was with a Match Rifle. SGT Cleland now holds both the CMP Record and the NRA Record for this Course of Fire with an actual Service Rifle. The USAMU explains: “SFC Gallagher’s record was in a different class, or category: Match Rifle. But since she is military, it may have been labeled as a ‘service record’ and caused confusion. SGT Cleland’s records mentioned above were all in the Service Rifle class, or category. The 2389-133X is the new, 2019 CMP record for this course of fire. In 2018, at the same CMP course of fire, he set a record with his 2368-111X. So he broke his own CMP record this year. However, also in 2018, he set the NRA Rifle Championship record by shooting a 2386-128X. It’s the same course of fire but in an NRA match, so technically, a different “record” since CMP and NRA keep separate records.”
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Registration is now open for all of the Civilian Marksmanship Program’s (CMP) 2018 Travel Games, featuring a variety of rifle and pistol events held around the country throughout the year. The CMP has revamped its 2018 Travel Games schedule by adding matches and establishing its own Classification System. Moreover, the CMP will take over the Creedmoor Cup Matches, and all matches will now follow CMP High Power Rifle Competition Rules. CLICK HERE for Travel Games INFO.
The 2018 Travel Games schedule now includes the Cup Matches (formally the Creedmoor Cup Matches), now administered by the CMP. These will be part of the Eastern Games and the Western Games.
Events fired at the Travel Games include a mix of modern and vintage military rifle competitions like the John C. Garand, Springfield, Rimfire Sporter, Carbine and Vintage Sniper Matches. The Travel Games also feature pistol matches, as well as a Small Arms Firing School and other training clinics taught by qualified CMP staff members.
Registration Procedures
Upon registration, competitors will choose match date, relay, relay time and rifle for the Garand/Springfield/Vintage/Modern Military Rifle Matches only. There will be different relays and relay time choices available for competitors to fire Garand (GAR), Springfield (SF), Vintage Military (VM) or Modern Military (MM) rifles. Competitors may only choose a maximum of FOUR relays per day to allow the opportunity to fire the GSM 3-Gun and 4-Gun Aggregates.
New Classification System
Additionally, the CMP has created a new Classification System. Competitor scores in the 80 Shot, 100 Shot or EIC Rifle matches will count towards CMP Classification. Competitor classifications are based on a competitor’s average scores fired in his or her most recent competitions. The CMP maintains a national database of competitors and scores that are used to establish competitor classifications. Competitors can view his/her current CMP Classification by logging into CMP Competition Tacker and clicking in his/her personal “Competitions” and “EIC Results” files.
Electronic Targets at Travel Games
As last year, rifle competitions will be fired on CMP Targets, a user-friendly electronic target system shows shot placement and records scores. This system and eliminates the need for pit duty — allowing matches to run more quickly with less physical strain.
New Pay-Back Program for Clubs
A Club Pay Back Program is also being introduced during the 2018 Games season, where $5.00 per competitor will be awarded to any CMP Affiliated Club that has five or more of their members attending and participating in the marksmanship competitions held at the event.
About the CMP Travel Games
The Travel Games are regional competitions held throughout the year, featuring exclusive CMP rifle and pistol outdoor events. A common part of the CMP schedule for the last decade, the Games are centered around recreation-oriented competition and educational activities that are designed to accommodate experienced marksmen as well as those hoping to learn more.
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The 2014 Eastern CMP Games and Creedmoor Cup Matches are underway at Camp Butner, NC. This popular event, held May 2-11, offers a wide variety of shooting competitions, including: Rimfire Sporter Match, M16 Match, M1 Garand Match, Springfield Match, M1-Carbine Match, Vintage Military Match, Modern Military Match, Vintage Sniper Match, Pistol Matches and more. The Eastern CMP Games kicked off Friday, May 2nd. Set for the next two days are the Garand/Springfield/Vintage & Modern Military Match (two days), Carbine Match (Monday), and Vintage Sniper Team Match (Tuesday). The Creedmoor Cup Matches segment commences on May 7th with a Highpower Clinic and 4-man Team Match.
The 2011 CMP Eastern Games and Creedmoor Cup Matches took place the first week of May at Camp Butner, NC. The overall winner (no surprise) was current NRA National High Power Champion SGT Sherri Gallagher, who tallied a spectacular 797-50X. Finishing second was fellow USAMU shooter SSG Tyrell Cooper, with 794-41X. Sherri also had the highest individual score, 499-29X, in the 4-person Team Event. Sherri showed, once again, that she leads the field in High Power Match Rifle shooting. When Sherri is “on her game”, she’s hard to beat. You can see a large collection of Eastern Games photos from the Garand and Springfield matches (on Day 1) at the CMP online photo archive.
Sean Leighton won the Garand Match (289-3X) AND the Springfield Match (290-9X), and had the highest Three-Gun Aggregate with an 870-15X combined score. Great shooting Sean! In other specialty matches, Ken Lygren won the Carbine Match (356-1X), Doug Armstrong won the individual Vintage Sniper match (194-6X), and William Flagg Jr. won the Rimfire Sporter match. In 4-person team competition, USAMU teams took both Service Rifle (Craig Team, 1967-74X) and Match Rifle Divisions (Praslick Team, 1991-103X).
New Classification System
The 2011 
