Schatz Reveals Winning Formula: Krieger, RL15, and Sierra 107s
Recently, Richard Schatz, the “Duke of Dashers”, set a new IBS 600-yard Light Gun World Record, an amazing .888″ five-shot group. We had a chance to chat with Richard after his record-setting performance at the Nationals where he won the LG division Overall and LG Score title along with posting the new single-group record.
Richard attributes much of his success to his choice of bullets and some recent equipment upgrades: “I recently ordered three Kriegers and had Dan Dowling chamber them. These are all 4-grooves with a .236 land dimension. My gun’s been on fire ever since I put on that new Krieger. I’ve been doing really well at matches and this gun has delivered great accuracy AND consistency. And I can’t say enough about the bullets–the new Sierra 107s. The combination of a new Krieger and the Sierra 107s has been amazing.
In late 2006, Rich Machholz at Sierra gave me a call and said I should try the latest batch of 107s. He said they were some of the best they’ve ever made. I was a little skeptical as I had been using another brand. But I bought 500 of the new 107s and tested them against three bullet types. When I tested them head to head with the other bullets I had, the Sierras were just awesome. Flyers just didn’t happen. I consider this batch of Sierra 107s better than great–the equivalent of a ‘hummer’ barrel. They measure exactly .24300 in diameter and seem ideally suited for the Krieger.”
Richard explained his load development process: “First I shoot multiple groups with different bullets to get a sense which has the best potential. I pick the most promising bullet, then experiment with seating depth. Using a Stoney Point tool, I get a baseline OAL with the bullet at the zero position, just touching the lands. Then I’ll seat them long and start testing .020″ into the lands. (I prefer starting in the lands because I don’t want to soot up the throat first–something that can happen when you’re jumping the bullets.) So, starting at .020″ in the lands, I work backwards in .005″ increments, doing .015, .010, .005 and so on. Then I will try the jumping the bullets, going from .005″ to .020″ out. With the Sierra 107s, I found they shot best .005″ into the lands–a bit less jam than I run with Bergers or Lapua Scenars.”
As to powder, Richard remains a fan of Alliant Reloader 15: “I shoot a load of 32.5 to 33.0 grains of RL15 with the 107s, CCI 450s, and Lapua brass. This runs 3015 fps in a 26″ barrel and 3020-3030 fps in my 27″ barrels. I’ve tried other powders and RL15 still seems to provide the best combination of accuracy and velocity in my Dashers.”
Richard’s record-setting 6mm Dasher was smithed by Dan Dowling, and features a .272″ neck with 0.104″ freebore. Here are the components:
Action: Nesika K, RBLP, right micro-port eject, Jewell trigger
Stock: Shehane Baby Tracker Stock, Sierra color scheme
Barrel: 27″ Krieger HV taper 8-twist, 4-groove with .236″ land
Optics: Nightforce NXS 12×42 NPDD, Burris Sig Zee 30mm rings, Nesika 20 moa base
Rest: Sinclair front pedestal with Farley mini-joystick control, Sinclair top, Protektor rear bag
