The 2026 Southwest Nationals (SWN), one of the major long-range rifle matches of the year, is underway right now in Arizona for three rifle classes: Sling (“Any Sights” and “Palma”), F-Open, and F-TR. Running from February 11th through 15th, the match started with the Mid-Range 600-yard event on Wednesday, February 11th, and concludes with the 2-day 1000-yard match on Saturday the 14th and Sunday the 15th. On Thursday and Friday there were team and individual Palma-format competitions for all three divisions (Sling, F-TR, F-Open). These are multi-distance matches with targets at 800, 900, and 1000 yards. The match continues today (Saturday) and tomorrow (Sunday) with 1000-yard matches. CLICK HERE for all official 2026 Southwest Nationals results on the Desert Sharpshooters website.
The 2026 Southwest Nationals event continues today and tomorrow (Saturday and Sunday) with individual and team competitions at 1000 yards. CLICK HERE for full 2026 SWN Match Program.
Shown below left are results for the 2026 SWN Nationals 2/13/2026 Individual Palma matches for the three divisions: Sling, F-Open, and F-TR. The Palma match is 15 shots each at 800, 900, and 1000 yards. There were some very impressive performances on Friday the 13th. All the top 10 F-Open shooters did not drop a single point, all finishing with 450 scores (before X-count). Below, to the right of the Palma scores, is a video from ace shooter Brandon Green. This shows the Palma stage at 2026 SWN.
2026 SWN Palma 800/900/1000 Match
Sling Division Top 10
Mark Kelley, 449-31X (Match Winner)
Jerrod McGaffic, 448-28X
Avtar Nanrey, 448-24X
Gary Elesio, 448-23X
Phil Hayes, 448-22X
Vern Conant, 447-32X
Nate Guernsey, 447-26X
Brandon Green, 447-21X
Fazal Mohideen, 447-21X
Ken Foster, 447-20X
Gabriel Rowe, 447-20X
F-Open Division Top 10
Joe Traylor, 450-38X (Match Winner)
Brad Johnson, 450-38X (2d on tie-breaker)
Pat Scully, 450-36X
Henry Ferris, 450-36X
Antun Kovacevic, 450-35X
John Girgis, 450-33X
Roger Mayhall, 450-33X
Barry Holcomb, 450-30X
Peter Johns, 450-30X
Tod Hendricks, 450-29X
F-TR Division Top 10
Tracy Hogg, 450-31X (Match Winner)
Keith Trapp, 450-26X
Brad Sauve, 449-30X
Benoit Vautour, 449-25X
Tom Hubbard, 449-23X
Scott Kyle, 449-23X
Alen Tampke, 449-22X
Oleg Savelyev, 448-30X
Gerry Wiens, 447-25X
James Crofts, 447-24X
Alan Barncroft, 447-24X
Travis Elfgren, 447-24X
2026 SWN Individual Palma Day
Video from Brandon Green
15 shots for record each at 800, 900, 1000 yards.
For this Saturday Showcase, we provide videos from past SWN events, plus informative videos that explain how to prepare for the event and pack your gear for air travel and/or lengthy overland trips.
Tips for New Competitors at the Southwest Nationals
Headed to the SW Nationals for the first time? Never shot at the Ben Avery range before? Then definitely watch this F-Class John video. It provides a series of smart tips for SWN first-timers.
Highlights from 2024 SW Nationals with Past Champ Erik Cortina
This video follows long-range competitors at the 2024 Southwest Nationals. The video shows match preparation and competition. There are interviews with participants and highlights of the challenging conditions. The video concludes with the announcement of class winners. 2024 F-Open winner Jay Christopherson is interviewed starting at 12:18 time-mark.
Analyzing Conditions at 2022 SW Nationals
In this video past SWN Champion Erik Cortina and F-Class John analyze relays from the 2022 match, discussing shot holds for specific wind conditions. You can learn quite a bit from this dialog with two top F-Open shooters. Erik won the F-Open LR SWN event in 2023.
Packing Gear for Air Travel — Tips from F-Class John
It can be very challenging to travel via airline to a major shooting event because of all the gear you’ll need to bring, along with your rifle(s). F-Open shooters must bring a heavy, bulky front rest and rear bag, while F-TR shooters will need a large front tripod and rear bag. Then you’ll need to transport a spotting scope with its adjustable mount, plus a LOT of loaded ammunition. Some shooters will also bring a press and dies to do final seating of their ammo. That’s a lot of gear. In this video, F-Class John shows how to pack rifles, gear, and ammo efficiently so air travel can go safely and smoothly.
Southwest Nationals Video SHORTS
Bird’s Eye Ben Avery — A Look at the Range
If you’ve never visited the Ben Avery Facility north of Phoenix, Arizona, here’s a video that shows the 1000-yard range (including drone footage). The desert range at Ben Avery is something special — check out this “birds-eye view”. This 2016 video also includes an interview with Derek Rodgers, F-TR World Champion, King of 2 Miles, and the only man who who has earned both F-Open AND F-TR USA National titles.
Sling Shooters in Palma Division
For the Palma division, the cartridge of choice is the .308 Winchester (7.62.x51). This versatile cartridge is still capable of extreme accuracy. Never underestimate a skilled sling shooter with a good Palma rifle. Below is multi-time NRA National Long-Range Champion John Whidden in action. John’s rifle features a centerfire action in an aluminum Anschutz small-bore stock.
Ballistics wizard Bryan Litz shoots at the 2015 SW Nationals. Notice how steady he holds his rifle.
Happy Valentine’s Day
Today is February 14th, Valentine’s Day. To celebrate this romantic holiday, talented shooter Kirsten Joy Weiss has devised a cool trick shot with her .22 LR Volquartsen semi-auto rifle.
Kirsten wants to create a heart on a paper card. Braving winter weather, Kirsten drills three shots into a heart shape on her target. This trick shot is performed, Kirsten adds, “for the love of shooting”.
See more cool trick shots on Kirsten’s popular YouTube Channel which now boasts 339,000 subscribers. Learn more about Kirsten’s shooting background on her website, KirstenJoyWeiss.com.
Valentine’s Day 2023 — Best Wishes
That’s right, today is February 14th — Valentine’s Day. While testing a rifle at the range a few seasons back, Forum member Ron B. (aka Snakepit) managed a 3-shot group that would definitely make Mr. Cupid proud. Yep, Ron shot a lovely cluster that formed a sweet little heart in the splatter-type target.
That’s nice enough, mind you — but it gets even better. Ron’s heart-shaped, three-shot group was shot at SIX HUNDRED yards, making this a Valentine’s Day Masterpiece of precision shooting (and, we have to say it, quite a little bit of luck). Good Shootin’ Snakepit!
600-Yard Heart Shot with a Savage and Factory Ammo!
In our Shooter’s Forum, Ron explained that this group was actually shot with factory ammo… from a Savage no less:
“This will be one that may be hard to believe for some but it is my Savage 12 FTR .308 and I was shooting 168gr Federal Gold Medal Match. The stock has been modified for benchrest shooting with a 3″-wide shoe on the forward stock. I do not shoot this rifle very often as most of my time is spent with my 30″ Brux barreled 6BR working up loads and shooting. That day I had put the scope back on it and was sighting it in at 600 yards and those were my last three shots after my last scope correction and then I was out of ammo. This rifle has always been very accurate. The weather was good, no wind or mirage.”
Today marks the third day of competition at the 2026 Berger Southwest Nationals (SWN). And yes, it’s Friday the 13th — causing some concerns among competitors. The superstitious types among the competitors viewed the day with some trepidation. But most shooters didn’t worry too much about the date — they were more concerned about calling the wind correctly. As Bryan Litz said at the SWN a decade ago: “I don’t believe in superstition. We make our own luck”.
On Wednesday, February 11th, the 600-yard competition was held for all three competition classes: Sling (Palma), F-Open, and F-TR. 600-Yard match results for all three classes are shown below for the Top 10 in each class. For F-Open, F-TR, and Sling Divisions there were three relays, each with 20 rounds for score. Thus, the maximum possible score was 600-60X. There were some very impressive performances with the top 9 F-Open Shooters, top 5 F-TR Shooters, and Sling Winner Fazal Mohideen not dropping a single point. Congrats to the winners — Fazal Mohideen, Sling P 600-34X; Cal Waldner, F-Open 600-49X; and Brad Sauve, F-TR 600-44X. CLICK HERE for full 600-yard results for all competitors.
600-Yard SWN Top 10 Results
Here are the Top TEN 600-Yard Competitors for each Division:
Sling (Two Divisions, “P” and “A”) 600-yard Top 10
The Southwest Nationals is one of the few American events where sling shooters compete on the same firing line as F-Class competitors (though in separate groups). At the SWN this sling division has two sub-classes: “A” for “Any Rifle, Any Sight” and “P” for Palma rifles.
F-Open 600-yard Top 10
1. Cal Waldner 600-49X (Match Winner, MA)
2. Antun Kovacevic — 600-48X (MA)
3. Joe Traylor — 600-44X (HM)
4. Jason Simes — 600-42X (HM)
5. Dan DiLeva — 600-40X (HM)
6. Brian Bowling — 600-39X (HM)
7. Ryan Pierce — 600-37X (HM)
8. Eric Houser — 600-36X (HM)
9. Martin Tardif — 600-31X (HiGS)
10HM. Peter Johns — 599-47X (HM)
10MA. Noah Burleson — 599-47X (MA)
Modern F-Open Rifle with SEB Mini front rest with Blake Machine accessories.
F-TR 600-yard Top 10
1. Brad Sauve — 600-44X (Match Winner, HM)
2. Keith Trapp — 600-43X (HM)
3. Alan Barnhart — 600-39X (HiGS)
4. Alton Johnson — 600-35X (HiSr)
5. Anthony Jordan — 600-34X (HM)
6. Tracy Hogg — 599-42X (HM)
7. Adam Husted — 599-38X (MA)
8. Ryan Crozier — 599-36X (MA)
9. Benoit Vautour — 598-42X (MA)
10. Jeremy Newell — 598-39X (HM)
F-TR Rifle looking downrange at the targets.
Palma Format Multi-Distance Matches on Friday the 13th
Today, Friday is the Palma format match. This is not limited to “hard-hold” sling Palma rifles, but the match utilizes a multi-distance target sequence similar to Palma rifle matches. All three rifle classes will be shooting: Sling, F-Open, and F-TR. There will be three target distances with 15 shots for record at 800, 900, and 1000 yards.
In the video below, you’ll see highlights from last year’s SW Nationals from the break of dawn throughout the day. This also features new products on display. This video was created by our friend F-Class John, who is competing right now at the 2026 SWN event.
Some custom barrel makers are now honing barrels (after drilling) to improve bore diameter uniformity, smooth the interior finish, and reduce barrel lapping times. For years, large-scale manufacturers of hammer-forged barrels have employed honing. Now the process is being used by smaller, “boutique” barrel-makers. This article explains how and why barrel honing is done. Take the time to watch the video. For anyone with an interest in barrel-making, this video from Sunnen Products Co. is an eye-opener.
Barrel Honing Process Demonstrated (Worth Watching!):
For custom barrel makers, honing is a time-saver and cost cutter. A few minutes on a honing machine can cut lapping times in half, leaving a cross-hatched surface finish in single or low double-digit Ra. Honing is the same process used to make diesel fuel injectors with bore roundness and straightness controlled to fractions of a micron (<0.000040"), with surface finish Ra ≤0.15 µm (6 µin).
A key manufacturing process used for hammer-forged barrels is now getting attention from the makers of custom button-rifled barrels. This process is precision bore-honing. Honing produces a high-quality bore surface fast, which is critical to hammer forging. (Why is honing so important with hammer forging? Surface finish is the one feature of the barrel that cannot be controlled in hammer forging. Surface imperfections in a barrel blank tend to be amplified as the blank is formed on the rifling mandrel. And if the bore is chromed afterwards, imperfections in the surface finish become even more obvious.)
Honing dramatically improves bore diameter size uniformity and accuracy, surface finish and roundness throughout the length of the barrel. It can certainly be used in place of a pre-rifling lap. The chief difference between a lapped and honed bore is the direction of the finish lines in the bore. Honing leaves fine spiraling crosshatch lines, while a lap leaves lines going longitudinally in the bore. After rifling the manufacturer can remove the crosshatch finish with a quick lap if desired. Honing is fast, accurate, and can be automated. Its surface quality and geometry can duplicate lapping, except for the longitudinal lines of the lapped finish.
In 2015 Frank Green of Bartlein Barrels told us: “We worked with Sunnen and we did all the initial testing on the prototype machine for them. The machine works great! We ordered and received … a new manufactured machine with the changes we wanted on it and [subsequently] ordered a second one.”
The Sunnen hone secures the barrel blank in a 3-jaw chuck, with honing oil pumped into one end while the tool works from the opposite end. Sunnen’s specialized Long Bore Tool uses metal-bond diamond or CBN superabrasives to quickly remove reamer marks, waviness, tight spots and other imperfections left by upstream processes.
Sunnen states that: “Honing is an ideal replacement for hand-lapping barrel blanks before rifling. It quickly removes reamer scratches and surface waviness without labor-intensive hand lapping. By producing a consistent bore diameter (±0.0001″ or less), parallelism, roundness and surface finish end to end, honing yields more consistent performance from rifling buttons and cutters, resulting in a constant groove depth. The ideal bore geometry reduces distortion of the bullet shape.”
Computer-Controlled Bore-Honing
Honing can be done with great precision through the use of advanced, computer-controlled honing machines. Sunnen Products Company offers an advanced machine for .17 to .50-caliber barrels (see control panel below). The spindles on this machine can correct bore size imperfections so small only an air gauge can measure them. The consistency this allows improves bore uniformity, which, in turn, produces more accurate barrels for the precision market.
Sunnen Products Company is the world’s largest vertically-integrated manufacturer of honing systems, tooling, abrasives, coolants, and gauging for precision bore-sizing and finishing. Sunnen’s customers include manufacturers of diesel and gas engines, aerospace components, hydraulic components, oil field equipment, and gun/cannon barrels. Sunnen employs more than 600 people worldwide.
Editor: Many new barrels will deliver higher velocities with the same load after 100-150 rounds through the bore. The exact reasons for this speed-up are not 100% certain, and velocity increases (if any) will vary from one barrel to the next. But this “speeding up” phenomenon is common, so be prepared if this happens with your next barrel. If you do experience a significant velocity increase you should probably re-tune your load AFTER the velocity stabilizes at the higher level.
From the Sierra Bullets Blog Article by Mark Walker, Sierra New Product Development Director
In a previous post, I discussed a couple of methods to tune a load to your barrel to help achieve the best accuracy possible. People most often work on load tuning if they get a new rifle or have a different barrel installed. In both instances, the barrel is new and has not been fired very much. According to most competitive shooters, this is the most accurate your barrel will ever be, so getting it tuned and shooting accurately is a priority.
The Speed Up Phenomenon After 100-150 Rounds
Even though after you work up a load and your new barrel is shooting great, a lot of shooters notice that at around 100 to 150 rounds their rifle may stop shooting as accurately. I had this happen to a rifle and I was confused as to why something that worked so well to begin with would all of a sudden quit shooting. I decided to break out the chronograph to do another load work up to see what was going on. To my surprise, the velocity had increased around 80 fps over the original velocity! After performing another ladder test and adjusting the seating depth, the rifle was once again shooting well.
There are several thoughts on why this may happen, however, you can rest assured that it does happen. One thought is that as the barrel breaks in, the tooling marks in the throat of the chamber smooth out and allow less resistance to the bullet as it exits the bore thereby increasing speed. Another idea is that the throat area starts to get a little rough which in turn causes more resistance which increases pressure and therefore more velocity. I’m sure there are some out there who have a better understanding as to why this happens, but it can definitely affect the accuracy of your rifle. So be aware and never be afraid to rework a load to keep your rifle in tune.
Experts Confirm That Barrel Speed-Up Is Common Two respected shooters have observed an increase in velocity with new barrels, typically after 100 rounds. Gunsmith and Hall-of-Fame benchrest shooter Thomas “Speedy” Gonzalez has documented barrel speed-up with testing. Moreover, Speedy’s bore-scope barrel inspections revealed a smoothing of the barrel lands. Jim See, a top PRS competitor, has encountered barrel speed-up many times. Accordingly, he re-tunes his load at 150 rounds.
“Alex Lipworth and I documented this phenomenon about four years ago and I have told all my customers about this. My son Mikee would shoot 100 rounds through all new barrels we planned on shooting before we would begin to do load development. We had a shooting snail that caught all the bullets set up in front of an indoor bench. We called it a wear-in process because upon careful examination of the bore when the ‘Speed Up’ takes place the cut-rifled bore resembles that more of a button-rifled barrels with the lands taking on more the softer look of a buttoned bore.” — Speedy Gonzalez
“Seen it [barrel velocity increase] too many times to count. All my match barrels get a ‘generic round’ loaded for them, which has worked well in barrels historically. After I hit 150 rounds I fine-tune the load and never look back, until the tube starts to slow down at it’s life end.” — Jim See
We really like rimfire revolvers here at AccurateShooter.com. A good .22 LR wheelgun will be fun, accurate, reliable, and inexpensive to shoot. Rimfire revolvers also offer much less recoil and noise than a centerfire pistol. Your Editor has owned a Smith & Wesson Model 617 for over 20 years. That old S&W has probably fired more rounds than all the other handguns I own, combined — yet it still runs flawlessly and still delivers excellent accuracy.
Ruger offers a big stainless .22 LR wheelgun to compete with the S&W Model 617. This rimfire wheelgun is based on Ruger’s trusted GP100 platform. The Ruger GP100® chambered in .22 LR is a good firearm — strong, versatile, and intelligently engineered. A while back, the late Jeff Quinn of Gunblast.com tested the Ruger revolver and gave it high marks: “It’s a good hefty gun [42.6 oz.], but not overly large or heavy for a good trail gun. It’s just a really nice, well-made revolver from Sturm Ruger.” The gun Jeff tested had a 3.7-lb Single action trigger pull and a 9.8-lb Double action pull.
The .22 LR GP100 features a windage and elevation adjustable rear sight with a white outline, a light-gathering fiber optic front sight and the original full-size GP100 rubber grips with hardwood inserts. With all stainless-steel construction, the rimfire GP100 is easy to maintain. Just keep the cylinder chambers and barrel clean and this gun should run forever.
This Review of the .22 LR GP100 by Hickok45 has over 6.9 Million Views:
The 10-shot Ruger GP100 in .22 LR is a durable, well-engineered wheelgun. Ruger’s engineers optimized the GP100’s innards to deliver a smooth double-action pull: “The new GP100 has an improved fire-control system that uses a lighter mainspring than previous Ruger double-action .22 LR revolvers … we’ve done a lot of development on the firing pin location and geometries so that we’re able to put a lighter trigger pull in this gun than you would find in other .22 LR [handguns]. We’ve got a half-underlug barrel, and it’s a smaller diameter so the gun balances real well. We’ve added a narrow-spur hammer and a smooth trigger.”
Do you have trouble seeing your bullet holes (on paper) when shooting past 400 yards? That’s a common issue even with premium ($2000+) high-magnification scopes. Here’s a target that solves that problem. A hit creates a larger black circle “halo” that’s much more visible than a plain bullet hole, making this target ideal for use at longer range (500 yards and beyond).
The 12″ square Birchwood Casey white background Sight-In Target displays a black “halo” around each hit (like the yellow circle on a conventional Shoot-N-C). Larger than bullet diameter, the “halos” can be easily seen with a high-magnification scope at long range (see video below). The self-adhesive target features five diamonds with contrasting red box centers. For precise aiming, you can position your cross-hairs to align with the corners of the boxes. Or, you can put a target dot sticker in the middle.
This video shows Black Shot Halos on white background:
While we envision using this target with optics at long range, Birchwood Casey says that open sights show up well against the white background, making these targets well-suited for indoor ranges or use in low light conditions.
This reactive white background grid target has 5 aiming points and a 1-inch grid overlay for easy, precise sight adjustments. It comes with target pasters to cover up the bullet holes (halos). The White/Black Shoot-N-C 12″ Square GRID Sight-In Targets come in 5-packs with target pasters for $9.49 from MidwayUSA or $8.69 from Palmetto SA. If you prefer reactive Shoot-N-C circle targets, there is an 8″ circle target, a 12″ circle target, and a large 17.5″ circle target with red diamond center (photo right). These all have bullet pasters.
High-Viz Option — Yellow on Black Grid with Yellow Halos
If you prefer seeing ultra-high-contrast yellow/green “halos” for your hits, Birchwood Casey also makes adhesive grid targets with five yellow-edged diamonds. Red circles provide precise aiming points in the middle of each box. You can quickly estimate group size or dial-in your zero using the hi-viz yellow 1″ grid lines. These yellow-on-black targets are available in three sizes: 8″ square, 12″ square, and 17.25″ square. These yellow-on-black grid targets start at $9.99 for an 8″ six-pack.
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Do you have some ammo that got loaded incorrectly, perhaps with the wrong powder? Then you’ll want to disassemble the ammo for safety’s sake. You can use an impact puller to do this task, but if you have more than a dozen rounds or so, you may prefer to use a collet-style bullet puller. These work very quickly and positively, making quick work of big jobs. The efficiency of the collet-style puller is worth the investment if you frequently disassemble ammo. These devices retail for under $35.00 (collets sold separately). Normally, you’ll need a specific collet for each bullet diameter. But collets are not that costly, so this isn’t a big deal, particularly if you only load a few calibers, such as .223, 6mm, and .308.
Hornady and RCBS use different mechanisms to tighten the collet around the bullet. On the red lever Hornady Cam-Lock Bullet Puller, a lever-arm on the top of the bullet puller serves to tighten the collet around the bullet. Simply rotate the lever from the vertical to the horizontal position to grab the bullet. Lower the ram to remove the case. The bullet will drop out when you return the lever arm to the vertical position. This is demonstrated in the video below:
Hornady Cam-Lock Bullet Puller Demonstrated
Collet bullet-pullers resemble a loading die with a lever or handle on the top. They screw into a standard reloading press. Hornady and RCBS both make collet-style bullet pullers. They use the same basic principle — the device tightens a collet around the bullet, and then the bullet is separated from the case by lowering the press ram. NOTE: Collet pullers may leave small marks on your bullets, unlike impact (kinetic) pullers.*
Like the Hornady tool, the RCBS Bullet Puller employs a collet to grab the bullet. However, the RCBS tool tightens the collet in a different way. The head of the RCBS tool is threaded internally. By rotating the lever arm clockwise in a horizontal circle you squeeze the collet around the bullet. To remove the bullet, after lowering the press ram, simply spin the lever arm back in the opposite direction. The use of the RCBS tool is demonstrated in these two videos:
RCBS Collet Bullet Puller Demonstrated:
WARNING: When removing bullets from loaded cartridges, always make sure there are no obstructions or debris in your shell-holder or under the loaded round. NEVER engage a primer seating accessory on your press when working with loaded rounds. You can cause a round to discharge by contacting the primer! Also, we recommend you keep your head and torso away from the bullet puller tool at all times.
*By contrast, impact pullers rarely mark bullets, particularly if you put a little bit of foam or paper wadding in the closed end of your impact puller. When dismantling loaded rounds, powder kernels can get trapped in the wadding, so you should remove and replace the wadding before changing to cartridges loaded with a different powder type (assuming you intend to save the powder).
The 2026 Southwest Nationals (SWN) start today, 2/11/2026, at the Ben Avery Range outside Phoenix, AZ. The big event starts with a 600-yard Mid-Range Match. Many of the nation’s most talented F-Class and sling shooters will be there. But no matter what your skill level, it is still possible to make major mistakes that can spoil the day and/or put you out of the running for the entire match. This article aims to help competitors avoid the big errors/oversights/failures, aka “train wrecks”, that can ruin a match.
Photo by Sherri Jo Gallagher.
In any shooting competition, you must try to avoid major screw-ups that can ruin your day (or your match). In this article, past F-TR National Mid-Range and Long Range Champion Bryan Litz talks about “Train Wrecks”, i.e. those big disasters (such as equipment failures) that can ruin a whole match. Bryan illustrates the types of “train wrecks” that commonly befall competitors, and he explains how to avoid these “unmitigated disasters”.
Urban Dictionary “Train Wreck” Definition: “A total @#$&! disaster … the kind that makes you want to shake your head.”
Success in long range competition depends on many things. Those who aspire to be competitive are usually detail-oriented, and focused on all the small things that might give them an edge. Unfortunately it’s common for shooters lose sight of the big picture — missing the forest for the trees, so to speak.
Consistency is one of the universal principles of successful shooting. The tournament champion is the shooter with the highest average performance over several days, often times not winning a single match. While you can win tournaments without an isolated stellar performance, you cannot win tournaments if you have a single train wreck performance. And this is why it’s important for the detail-oriented shooter to keep an eye out for potential “big picture” problems that can derail the train of success!
Train wrecks can be defined differently by shooters of various skill levels and categories. Anything from problems causing a miss, to problems causing a 3/4-MOA shift in wind zero can manifest as a train wreck, depending on the kind of shooting you’re doing.
Below is a list of common Shooting Match Train Wrecks, and suggestions for avoiding them.
1. Cross-Firing. The fastest and most common way to destroy your score (and any hopes of winning a tournament) is to cross-fire. The cure is obviously basic awareness of your target number on each shot, but you can stack the odds in your favor if you’re smart. For sling shooters, establish your Natural Point of Aim (NPA) and monitor that it doesn’t shift during your course of fire. If you’re doing this right, you’ll always come back on your target naturally, without deliberately checking each time. You should be doing this anyway, but avoiding cross-fires is another incentive for monitoring this important fundamental. In F-Class shooting, pay attention to how the rifle recoils, and where the crosshairs settle. If the crosshairs always settle to the right, either make an adjustment to your bipod, hold, or simply make sure to move back each shot. Also consider your scope. Running super high magnification can leave the number board out of the scope’s field view. That can really increase the risk of cross-firing.
2. Equipment Failure. There are a wide variety of equipment failures you may encounter at a match, from loose sight fasteners, to broken bipods, to high-round-count barrels that that suddenly “go south” (just to mention a few possibilities). Mechanical components can and do fail. The best policy is to put some thought into what the critical failure points are, monitor wear of these parts, and have spares ready. This is where an ounce of prevention can prevent a ton of train wreck. On this note, if you like running hot loads, consider whether that extra 20 fps is worth blowing up a bullet (10 points), sticking a bolt (DNF), or worse yet, causing injury to yourself or someone nearby.
3. Scoring/Pit Malfunction. Although not related to your shooting technique, doing things to insure you get at least fair treatment from your scorer and pit puller is a good idea. Try to meet the others on your target so they can associate a face with the shooter for whom they’re pulling. If you learn your scorer is a Democrat, it’s probably best not to tell Obama jokes before you go for record. If your pit puller is elderly, it may be unwise to shoot very rapidly and risk a shot being missed (by the pit worker), or having to call for a mark. Slowing down a second or two between shots might prevent a 5-minute delay and possibly an undeserved miss.
Photo by Sherri Jo Gallagher.
4. Wind Issues. Tricky winds derail many trains. A lot can be written about wind strategies, but here’s a simple tip about how to take the edge off a worse case scenario. You don’t have to start blazing away on the command of “Commence fire”. If the wind is blowing like a bastard when your time starts, just wait! You’re allotted 30 minutes to fire your string in long range slow fire. With average pit service, it might take you 10 minutes if you hustle, less in F-Class. Point being, you have about three times longer than you need. So let everyone else shoot through the storm and look for a window (or windows) of time which are not so adverse. Of course this is a risk, conditions might get worse if you wait. This is where judgment comes in. Just know you have options for managing time and keep an eye on the clock. Saving rounds in a slow fire match is a costly and embarrassing train wreck.
5. Mind Your Physical Health. While traveling for shooting matches, most shooters break their normal patterns of diet, sleep, alcohol consumption, etc. These disruptions to the norm can have detrimental effects on your body and your ability to shoot and even think clearly. If you’re used to an indoor job and eating salads in air-conditioned break rooms and you travel to a week-long rifle match which keeps you on your feet all day in 90-degree heat and high humidity, while eating greasy restaurant food, drinking beer and getting little sleep, then you might as well plan on daily train wrecks. If the match is four hours away, rather than leaving at 3:00 am and drinking five cups of coffee on the morning drive, arrive the night before and get a good night’s sleep.”
Keep focused on the important stuff. You never want to lose sight of the big picture. Keep the important, common sense things in mind as well as the minutia of meplat trimming, weighing powder to the kernel, and cleaning your barrel ’til it’s squeaky clean. Remember, all the little enhancements can’t make up for one big train wreck!
Happy Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day 2023 — Best Wishes
Two respected shooters have observed an increase in velocity with new barrels, typically after 100 rounds. Gunsmith and Hall-of-Fame benchrest shooter Thomas “Speedy” Gonzalez has documented barrel speed-up with testing. Moreover, Speedy’s bore-scope barrel inspections revealed a smoothing of the barrel lands. Jim See, a top PRS competitor, has encountered barrel speed-up many times. Accordingly, he re-tunes his load at 150 rounds.
Like the Hornady tool, the 
Train Wrecks (and How to Avoid Them)
4. Wind Issues. Tricky winds derail many trains. A lot can be written about wind strategies, but here’s a simple tip about how to take the edge off a worse case scenario. You don’t have to start blazing away on the command of “Commence fire”. If the wind is blowing like a bastard when your time starts, just wait! You’re allotted 30 minutes to fire your string in long range slow fire. With average pit service, it might take you 10 minutes if you hustle, less in F-Class. Point being, you have about three times longer than you need. So let everyone else shoot through the storm and look for a window (or windows) of time which are not so adverse. Of course this is a risk, conditions might get worse if you wait. This is where judgment comes in. Just know you have options for managing time and keep an eye on the clock. Saving rounds in a slow fire match is a costly and embarrassing train wreck.
