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August 14th, 2007
Just last week the 38th IBS Group National Championships concluded, hosted by the Benchrest Club of St Louis (Wright City, Missouri). During this marathon, 6-day event, 118 shooters competed in four different classes: Heavy Bench, Sporter, Light Varmint, and Heavy Varmint. The match saw some very impressive shooting, with small groups in the .060+ range in many events. Joe Krupa was the big winner in St. Louis. Joe won top honors in Three Gun, and Four Gun, and also placed first in Sporter Class Grand Agg, and Heavy Bench Grand Agg. Lowell Frei captured the Two Gun title, followed by Billy Stevens and Krupa. Benchrest legend Tony Boyer took the HV Grand Agg with an impressive 0.1850 Aggregate, while Bill Goad won the LV Grand Agg, edging runner-up Joe Krupa by a mere .0054! We offer a hearty congratulations to big Joe and to all the shooters who made this a great (and hotly contested) event.
 Four-Gun Overall Results:
1. Joe Krupa 0.2478
2. Tony Boyer 0.2689
3. David Reynolds 0.2690
4. Larry Costa 0.2731
5. L. Hottenstein 0.2733
Heavy Bench Grand Agg:
1. Joe Krupa 0.2934
2. Lee Hachigian 0.3126
3. David Reynolds 0.3176
4. Jay Lynn Gore 0.3188
5. Bill Goad 0.3229
Sporter Grand Agg:
1. Joe Krupa 0.2155
2. Larry Scharnhorst 0.2301
3. Larry Costa 0.2320
4. David Reynolds 0.2323
5. Steve Robbins 0.2331
Light Varmint Grand Agg:
1. Bill Goad 0.2214
2. Joe Krupa 0.2268
3. Billy Stevens 0.2493
4. L. Hottenstein 0.2540
5. Ira Rolley 0.2621
Heavy Varmint Grand Agg:
1. Tony Boyer 0.1850
2. Lowell Frei 0.1993
3. Donal Powell 0.2181
4. Lee Euber 0.2199
5. Bill Symons 0.2219
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August 13th, 2007
 Three-lug BAT Machine actions are the hot ticket right now in short-range benchrest. However you can expect to wait up to 6 months (or more) if you custom order one. To get your hands on a BAT Tri-lug right away, call Lester Bruno at Bruno Shooters Supply. Lester has a standing order for BAT Actions (both two-lug and three-lug), and probably can get you a three-lug as quickly as any vendor. He has 40 BAT actions in stock currently. BAT makes the tri-lug in both stainless and chrome-moly. Lester notes: “Both stainless and chrome-moly work equally well.” Bruno’s gets new BAT actions weekly, in all three bolt configurations: PPC, .308 and Magnum. Prices start at $965 for a two-lug SV action, and $1180 for a three-lug. Call Bruno’s for availability, (623) 587-7641, and tell Lester or Amy that AccurateShooter.com sent you.
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August 13th, 2007
Let’s say you’ve purchased a new scope, and the spec-sheet indicates it is calibrated for quarter-MOA clicks. One MOA is 1.047″ inches at 100 yards, so you figure that’s how far your point of impact (POI) will move with four clicks. Well, unfortunately, you may be wrong. You can’t necessarily rely on what the manufacturer says. Production tolerances being what they are, you should test your scope to determine how much movement it actually delivers with each click of the turret. It may move a quarter-MOA, or maybe a quarter-inch, or maybe something else entirely. (Likewise scopes advertised as having 1/8-MOA clicks may deliver more or less than 1 actual MOA for 8 clicks.)
 Reader Lindy explains how to check your clicks: “First, make sure the rifle is not loaded. Take a 40″ or longer carpenter’s ruler, and put a very visible mark (such as the center of an orange Shoot’N’C dot), at 37.7 inches. (On mine, I placed two dots side by side every 5 inches, so I could quickly count the dots.) Mount the ruler vertically (zero at top) exactly 100 yards away, carefully measured.
Place the rifle in a good hold on sandbags or other rest. With your hundred-yard zero on the rifle, using max magnification, carefully aim your center crosshairs at the top of the ruler (zero end-point). Have an assistant crank on 36 (indicated) MOA (i.e. 144 clicks), being careful not to move the rifle. (You really do need a helper, it’s very difficult to keep the rifle motionless if you crank the knobs yourself.) With each click, the reticle will move a bit down toward the bottom of the ruler. Note where the center crosshairs rest when your helper is done clicking. If the scope is accurately calibrated, it should be right at that 37.7 inch mark. If not, record where 144 clicks puts you on the ruler, to figure out what your actual click value is. (Repeat this several times as necessary, to get a “rock-solid”, repeatable value.) You now know, for that scope, how much each click actually moves the reticle at 100 yards–and, of course, that will scale proportionally at longer distances. This optical method is better than shooting, because you don’t have the uncertainly associated with determining a group center.
Using this method, I discovered that my Leupold 6.5-20X50 M1 has click values that are calibrated in what I called ‘Shooter’s MOA’, rather than true MOA. That is to say, 4 clicks moved POI 1.000″, rather than 1.047″ (true MOA). That’s about a 5% error.
I’ve tested bunches of scopes, and lots have click values which are significantly off what the manufacturer has advertised. You can’t rely on printed specifications–each scope is different. Until you check your particular scope, you can’t be sure how much it really moves with each click.
I’ve found the true click value varies not only by manufacturer, but by model and individual unit. My Leupold 3.5-10 M3LR was dead on. So was my U.S.O. SN-3 with an H25 reticle, but other SN-3s have been off, and so is my Leupold 6.5-20X50M1. So, check ‘em all, is my policy.”
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August 12th, 2007
Natchez Shooters Supplies has advised its customers to complete purchases of loaded factory ammo prior to September 1, 2007. This is because ATK (CCI and Federal), Remington, and Winchester have all distributed notices of major ammunition price hikes to take effect Sept. 1st.
ATK Price Increase Notice (.pdf)
Remington Price Increase Notice (.pdf)
Winchester Price Increse Notice (.pdf)
If you want to purchase .223 Rem ammo before the price hike, Natchez has placed 55gr FMJ from Federal, Sellier & Bellot, PMC and Remington on sale. The Federal American Eagle 55gr ammo is marked down from $13.97 to $7.49 per 20-round box. We’ve shot a ton of American Eagle .223 through AR15s. It is ultra-reliable and as accurate as any of the bargain-priced ammo with FMJ bullets.
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August 12th, 2007
 Forum member RidgeRunner has devised a clever shooting support for field use. He calls it the “Pogo Stick”. It’s simply welded stainless rod with a two-pronged base, and a ‘U’-shaped cradle that adjusts for height along a vertical shaft. RidgeRunner tells us: “It is very solid and made from stainless steel so it won’t rust under sweaty hands. The rifle hook, or support, slides up and down the main stem and secures with the knob. It has two prongs you tramp into the ground and is VERY stable. It is shiny, but I have been using this one since about 1983, and I can’t say I have noticed it spooking any whistlers. Before I had an actual bench to shoot off of, I used it to sight-in rifles. I would lay down and use a sand bag under the butt stock. Worked just fine.”
Yep, that’s one big Pennsylvania groundhog in the photo. RidgeRunner reports: “This old boy has been giving me the slip for a couple weeks. I finally got a 52gr A-Max in him before the hay got high enough to hide him again. This sucker weighed 15 pounds. My heaviest to date I believe. The rifle is a Tikka 22/250 with a 4-16X Weaver 1/8-MOA dot scope. Nice and light for carry, nice and accurate too.”
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August 11th, 2007
Chemist and entrepreneur Terry Paul, creator of Wipe-Out foam bore cleaner, has come up with a new product, “CARB-Out”. This is specifically designed to remove carbon from rifle bores, including the stubborn carbon ring that can build up with extended firings.
Initial test reports are very promising. CARB-out is out-performing Shooters Choice and Hoppes Elite (aka MPro-7), two of the most popular carbon solvents on the market. Terry Paul claims his new “CARB-Out” will “knock out stubborn carbon rings better than anything out there–you don’t need abrasives anymore.” One of the “superstars” of short-range benchrest, we’ll just call him “Mr. T” for his first name, has been using “CARB-Out” in major matches this year. It has replaced Iosso paste in his cleaning kit.
You can order “CARB-Out” from SharpShoot-R™ Precision Products, Terry’s company, or from MidwayUSA, which expects to receive its first supplies of CARB-Out next week. At MidwayUSA, CARB-Out costs $8.49 for an 8 oz. aerosol bottle (item #312649). For more info, call SharpShoot-R™ at (785) 883-4444. Terry himself might just answer the phone.
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August 11th, 2007
Those who are far-sighted, and older shooters with presbyopia, may have difficultly focusing on close objects. At the range, this may make it difficult to read range cards, printed come-up tables, or even the “fine print” found in manuals for chronographs and othershooting accessories. The instructions for this writer’s chronograph are sufficiently obtuse and hard-to-remember that I always bring the operator’s manual to the range. But if I can’t read the print, having the instructions won’t help.
Here’s a solution for shooters who need better close-up vision. Magellan’s sells stick-on inserts that mount to any glass or plastic lenses. Water is the adhesive–the surface tension effect of H20 is enough to keep the lens inserts in place. But this also lets you easily move the magnifying lenses from one set of glasses to another. These Optx 20/20 Lenses, Magellan’s Item #BA726, cost $24.85. Magellan’s notes: “Flexible Optx 20/20 lenses hold fast by their own molecular attraction (no adhesive needed) and can be peeled off and reattached many times.”
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August 10th, 2007
Forum member “Preacher” reports amazing consistency from his 6BR load of Alliant Reloader 15 with “White Box” Russian Primers. (These small rifle magnum primers are currently sold under the Wolf label, and can be purchased from Grafs.com.) He tells us: “I finally broke down and checked out the 6BR, shooting 105 Berger VLDs over the chronograph yesterday. I have never seen numbers crunch [this well] in more years than I’ll admit.”
Preacher added: “My green rifle (photo below) shoots those bullets like little lasers at 350 yards. Not bad for a old groundhog shooter that only in the past few years got into this extreme accuracy stuff with a BAT SV action and an 8-twist, 28″ Pac-Nor that shoots into way less than a inch at 350 yards most any time. I have a .110″ freebore on the green rifle and the bullets are jammed .020″+ into the rifling.”
Preacher cautions: “My load of RL-15 is real close to the edge with the 105 Berger VLD but the primer pockets are still tight after 15 firings. I do anneal them with a BC1000 every fourth time out and then clean them in my ultra-sonic. The Russian Small Rifle Mag primers in the White box have done very well in both my 6BRs with Pac-Nors.”
EDITOR’s NOTE: Preacher’s results are amazing to say the least. It would be wrong, however, to expect that changing to Russian primers will guarantee you single-digit ES and SD. You might find your velocity spreads don’t change significantly, or they might even get worse. Still, Preacher’s findings suggest that it is worth trying the Russian primers if you haven’t done so yet.
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August 10th, 2007
On August 5, over 500 shooters vied for honors and $25,000 in cash and prizes at the first-ever NRA/Springfield Armory M1A Rifle Match at Camp Perry, Ohio. Held as part of the Centennial NRA National Rifle Championships, this was the first dedicated M1A match of its kind at Perry.
 With $25,000 of awards up for grabs, thanks to Springfield Armory, the match drew large numbers of competitors and rekindled interest in the M14-style .308 rifles for match competition. (AR15-style “Black Rifles” currently dominate regular NRA Service Rifle matches.) The course of fire was five sighter shots and 50 shots for record at 300 yards using the new MR-65F target. Shots for record consisted of: 20 shots slow fire in the prone position; 10 shots rapid fire in the prone position; 10 shots rapid fire in the kneeling or sitting position; and 10 shots show fire in the standing position.
The match was shot under rainy skies, but competitors still shot some impressive scores. The overall Match Winner was Ryan Castonguay of New Hartford, Connecticut, a 17-year-old shooter. Despite the fact that he was relatively new to the Springfield M1A rifle, Castonguay took top match honors with a fine 463-8X score. David Chase of Tujunga, California, won the First Place Civilian title with a score of 447-8X, U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Allen Spiker of Philomath, Oregon, took the Armed Services title with a 456-4X. U.S. Navy Lt. Commander Yvonne Lyda of Woodbridge, Virginia, was top female shooter with a 428-5X, U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Albert Wood of Merrillan, Wisconsin, was top Senior with 446-6X, while Chad Kurgan of Murphys, California, took High Junior honors with his 434-4X.
Prior to the M1A Match, on July 13, 2007, Co-CEO of Springfield Armory Dennis Reese announced that Springfield Armory will provide $1,000,000 to kick-off the NRA’s new Competitive Shooting & National Championships Endowment. Reese challenged other firearms manufacturers to contribute to the Endowment: “Springfield is committed to ensuring that competitive shooting is alive and thriving for years to come. By supporting this endowment, we are giving back to the sport that is such an important part of our lives…. We hope that others in the industry will join us in supporting the future of competitive shooting.”
The Competitive Shooting & National Championships Endowment supports a wide range of programs offered through the NRA’s Competitive Shooting Division. Each year, the NRA sanctions over 10,000 shooting tournaments and sponsors over 50 national championships. Over 125,000 men, women, and juniors compete in NRA Approved and Registered matches annually.
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August 10th, 2007
Quite a few readers have noted that they saw an interesting feature in our Daily Bulletin, but after a few days it was replaced by more current items. Well, don’t despair. ALL our Bulletin entries are archived and available. You can find them many different ways. First, at the bottom of the page, you can click to “Older Posts” page by page. Second, you can look for posts by category, such as “Optics” or “Reloading”. Third, you can do a Keyword Search for any word in any article. Lastly, you can call up all the posts in a given month by clicking on the appropriate month.
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August 9th, 2007
The new Savage Arms Precision Target F-Class Rifle, chambered in 6.5-284 Norma, is now reaching dealers and distributions. Brian Herrick, Savage Marketing Director, told us on 8/8/2007: “The first units have shipped and we expect full production flow by the end of August.” The F-Class rifle, shown below, has a gray laminated stock with a 3″-wide ventilated forend, and 30″ extra-heavy barrel. The stock is straight from the base of the grip back to the buttplate with a flat on the bottom. It is currently available in Right Bolt, Right Port, but Savage might ship Right Bolt, Left Port versions in the future if there is sufficient demand. MSRP on the 6.5-284 Savage F-Classer is $1,211, with “real world” selling prices just under $1000.00.
The production version of the 6.5-284 rifle features the new triple-pillar Precision Target Action (RB/RP) with a “match” Accutrigger that adjusts from about 6 ounces to 2.5 pounds. The F-Class rifle is currently chambered only in 6.5-284, but Savage may consider other chamberings in the future.
Savage also makes an F-TR rifle chambered in .308 Winchester. Weighing 12.65 lbs. with a 30″ heavy barrel, the Savage F-TR features a more conventional-style stock with a narrower fore-end for use with a bipod, and more drop in the buttstock. The F-TR (MSRP $1142) also ships with two polymer cheek-pieces (high and low), similar to those used on Choate stocks. Herrick commented, “The F-TR has been popular–we’ve shipped over 1000 units already.”
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August 9th, 2007
Glen Harrison, originator of the Nesika Bay actions, is starting a new action-building company. His Nesika Bay operation was integrated into Dakota Arms two years ago, but Dakota Arms is now in Chapter 11 re-organization. It looks like Glen is moving back out on his own, separate from Dakota/Nesika, to produce an action with a new name, produced by a new company. Harrison has partnered with industry experts and financial backers to form a brand new company. The actions will be available for custom hunting rifle makers as well as upscale rifle builders. The company is being formed with Harrison’s input. The new company plans to debut its new bolt actions at the 2008 SHOT Show in Las Vegas.
Harrison, an active benchrest competitive shooter, has been building precision bolt actions for over 15 years. His actions are renowned for tight tolerances and outstanding accuracy. Harrison-designed actions have won numerous Benchrest, Palma, Silhouette, 1000-yard Benchrest, and Tactical matches throughout the world.
Below is a beautiful Palma rifle built with a Harrison-designed action and Robertson Composites stock. Be sure to Click Here for large photo.
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