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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.
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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.”
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.
August 8th, 2007
 HPS Target Rifles Ltd., Britain’s leading competition shooting supply vendor, offers a new sling design that should benefit smaller shooters or those whose rifles have shallow fore-ends. The HPS AKTIV Flex Sling, made of non-stretch, reinforced PVC webbing, is designed to overcome the problems of the sling fouling on the trigger guard or rubbing on the underside of the stock. The section of the sling that runs under the rifle is replaced with coated wire. The wire center section can be positioned directly under the stock to give maximum clearance. The front strap can be adjusted to the size of hand and to clear the wrist. The arm cuff can be adjusted in length for arm size and position, while sling length is controlled by a buckle that positions the ‘tail’ of the sling so that there is no fouling under the rifle. The HPS AKTIV Flex Sling comes in three colours: blue (shown), dark green and black. The price is U.S. $120.44, or 105.78 Euros.
August 7th, 2007
Recently one of our Forum members complained that he wasn’t able to set his primers flush to the rim. He tried a variety of primer tools, yet no matter what he used, the primers still didn’t seat deep enough. He measured his primers, and they were the right thickness, but it seemed like his primer pockets just weren’t deep enough. He was mystified as to the cause of the problem.
Well, our friend Boyd Allen diagnosed the problem. It was the decapping rod. If the rod is adjusted too low, the base of the full-diameter rod shaft (just above the pin) will contact the inside of the case. That shaft is steel whereas your case is brass, a softer, weaker metal. What happens is, when you run the case up into the die, the shaft can actually push the base of the primer pocket outward. Most presses have enough leverage to do this. If you bell the base of the primer pocket outwards, you’ve essentially ruined your case, and there is no way a primer can seat correctly.
The fix is simple. Just make sure to adjust the decapping rod so that the base of the rod shaft does not bottom out on the inside of the case. All you need is for the pin to extend through the flash hole far enough to knock the primer out. The photo show a Lyman Universal decapping die. But the same thing can happen with any die used for decapping.
Whenever you use a die with a decapping pin for the first time, OR when you move the die to a different press, make sure to check the decapping rod length. And it’s a good idea, with full-length sizing dies, to always re-check the height setting when changing presses. We had a full-length die set up to give .0015″ shoulder bump when used with a turret press. When that same die was switched into a more rigid Rockchucker press that had less play and “thread slop”, the die bumped the shoulder over .004″. We had to back-off the die and re-set the lock-ring to maintain the proper bump.
August 7th, 2007
Is it time for the precision shooting community to “raise its sights” and explore ways to attract more shooters and increase major manufacturer and sponsor involvement? Does it make sense to look at ways our sport can be more “media-friendly” and attract big corporate sponsors the way golf and tennis does?
Right now we have three different 1000-yard Benchrest organizations, operating under three different sets of rules. A recent 1000-yard “National Championship” attracted less than 80 shooters, with almost no media coverage, and the prizes totaled less than $8,000 in collective value.
 Consider what’s happening in the shotgun world by contrast. This month, From August 6-18, the 108th Grand American World Trapshooting Championships will be held at the new Shooting and Recreational Complex in Sparta, Illinois. This year’s “Grand” will consist of 26 events spanning over 12 days. New events that have been added to this year’s Grand American include the Budweiser Handicap, and the Federal Premium shoot-out. In addition, all events from previous years will return. Collectively there will be over $1,000,000 in event monies/trophies and $100,000 in promotional give-aways.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if rifle shooting managed to attract that kind of prize money, and major participation by Fortune 500 companies? Should there be a “Grand American” for rifle shooters? Something that, unlike Camp Perry, could include Benchrest shooting, 3-Gun, Varmint comps, and maybe a combination of position and bench shooting with a true “factory class”?
There are MORE rifle shooters in America than there are trap and skeet shooters. Way more. So why can the Grand American Shotgun event attract seven-figure sponsorship and prime-time television coverage, while most major rifle events generate no such interest. Likewise, we should ask ourselves why is Cowboy Action Shooting growing so rapidly (77,000 registered members of SASS and counting), while participation levels in some of our precision shooting disciplines are declining?
Is there a way we could create a “Super Championship” where top shooters of various disciplines could compete in the same venue? Would it draw media attention to have Tony Boyer, David Tubb, and the 600-yard and 1000-yard Shooters of the Year all in the same place? Perhaps shooting the same type of rifle marketed by a major manufacturer such as Remington, Beretta (SAKO), or Springfield Arms?
Please understand, I am NOT advocating that existing disciplines be erased. However, when you look at what the shotgun world has accomplished, there are lessons to be learned. Trap and Skeet shooting is widely perceived as a high-prestige pastime–a sport associated with successful (read wealthy) men and women who have leadership roles in our society. I think the precision rifle sports could benefit by cultivating the same kind of perception for our activities.
This is important because rifle shooters currently face some very real challenges. Every year politicians pass more restrictive regulations, and more of our rifle ranges are closed. We can start to reverse these trends if we do a better, more creative job in promoting our sports and making rifle shooting more interesting and palatable for the average citizen as well as corporate marketers.
People may say “Who cares what the shotgunners do? We don’t need the likes of Budweiser and GMC at our matches, and the Kelbly Firearms Industry SuperShoot and Camp Perry National Championships are plenty big already.” I understand that sentiment, but I still think it makes sense to study the shotgun sports (and the golf industry). The shotgunners have been very, very successful in cultivating the right image for their sport, an image that attracts new shooters, placates politicians, and makes the big corporate sponsors want to affiliate their companies with trap-shooting.
We could learn some important lessons from that. We need to look at the big picture, explore ways to exhance the general appeal of competitive rifle shooting, and bring the various disciplines together.
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