Memorial Day 2008 — Remember the Fallen

Above is “Vietnam Reflections” by Lee Teter. Prints are available from VVA Chapter 172. All proceeds benefit the Vietnam Veterans of America.

6.5 Creedmoor for Tactical Shooters

While the new 6.5 Creedmoor cartridge was devised primarily for High Power and Across the Course shooters, it is starting to find favor with tactical shooters looking for a highly accurate round that feeds well from a magazine, but offers significantly less recoil than a .308 Winchester.

CLICK HERE for 6.5 Creedmoor Video and Specifications

6.5 Creedmoor vs. 6.5×47 Lapua — Cost Factor
The 6.5×47 Lapua and 6.5 Creedmoor offer very similar ballistics with 120gr and 140gr bullets. However, 6.5 Creedmoor brass AND loaded ammo are cheaper. That’s a big plus in the tactical game. At tactical competitions, there are “move and shoot” stages where you need to shoot quickly and then move to another position. It’s very difficult to recover all your brass. Losing a piece of 6.5×47 brass (at 83 cents a pop) is painful. The Hornady brass is $32.49 per 50 (65 cents each) at MidwayUSA or Creedmoor Sports. And we expect the price may drop a bit, in time.

6.5 Creedmoor loaded ammunition is also much less expensive than the loaded 6.5×47 Lapua rounds. For shooters that don’t have the time (or skills) to reload, the 6.5 Creedmoor (at about $24 per 20-rd box) makes more financial sense. Grafs.com currently sells loaded 123gr 6.5×47 ammo for $42.99/20 rounds.

On the other hand, the Lapua brass is tougher. Forum member Mudcat observes: “[As to] the Hornady brass, while it’s good, it ain’t no Lapua, so don’t try to run hot loads cause all you are going to do is blow out the primer pockets. Keep your loads reasonable and you will get over 20 loads out of em. I have some I have loaded well over 20 times during testing…they grow like a mother though, as they are a lot softer than Win or Lapua, which is why the pockets will go. However the necks haven’t been splitting.”

Barrel Life Looks Promising
Barrel life appears to be pretty good with the 6.5 Creedmoor. Early reports indicate that barrels should last significantly longer than with a .243 Win or 6.5-284. Forum Member Mudcat reports: “Based on my throat wear at 600 rounds on my 6.5 Creedmoor barrel, I bet we are looking at 2500 rounds EASY of great accuracy and then probably to at least 3000 where you ain’t going to notice it shooting Cross the Course — you might see something at 600, but nothing worse than a few less Xs. At 600 rounds, I have not had to move my VLD seating depth yet.” Forum member Rob1 concurs: “The round shoots at lower pressures than other 6.5s and barrel life should be pretty good.” Rob1, who shoots tactical comps with Team Blaster, notes that Hornady puts its load and velocity on every box, so it’s easy for reloaders to replicate the performance of factory ammo. That way you can start with a few boxes of factory fodder, and then load your own once you have the brass.

Super Shoot Report — Early Results

The Firearm Industry Super Shoot is underway right now at the Kelbly’s Range in North Lawrence, Ohio. We’re told that Tony Boyer, the all-time Hall of Fame points leader, won the Heavy Varmint 100 on Thursday, with a “teen” Agg. For you non-benchresters, that means a 5-target, 5-shot per target average of 0.1300″- 0.1999″.

Lou Murdica, who dominated the Cactus Classic earlier this year, had a 4th and 5th going into Friday’s events, making him the current two-gun leader with a .2195″ combined Aggregate, after two days.

Conditions were not as blustery as in previous years. Shooters reported consistant, cool temperatures with considerable humidity but no rain. Wind so far have not been bad, with average speeds in the 3-6 mph range with some gusts to 15 mph. Stronger winds are predicted for the shooting today (Friday) and Saturday.

Simple, Low-Cost Length-to-Lands Gauge

RELOADING TIP: Andris Silins has come up with a simple way to measure length to the lands in your rifle:

“Here’s what I did to find length to lands for seating my bullets. I made four cuts into the neck of fire-formed brass. Then I pressed the bullet in lightly and chambered the entire gauge. As the cartridge chambers, the bullet slides back into the case to give you length to lands. It took less than five minutes to get it cut and working. A little light oil in the barrel just past the chamber helps ensure the bullet does not get stuck in the lands. It works great and is very accurate.

I made the cuts using a Dremel with a cut-off wheel. You can adjust tension two ways. First, you can make the cuts longer or shorter. Longer cuts = less tension. If you used only three cuts insted of four you would get more tension. The trick is to be gentle when you open and close the bolt. If you ram the bolt closed you may wedge the bullet into the lands. When you open the bolt it helps to keep a finger or two near by to guide the case out straight because the ejector wants to push it sideways.”

17 Fireball Ammo Wins Award

The 17 Remington Fireball has received the 2008 NRA Golden Bullseye Award for “Ammunition Product of the Year” from Shooting Illustrated magazine. This award recognizes innovative new products introduced in 2007 which offer outstanding performance in their respective category.

The 17 Remington Fireball is a necked-down version of the .221 Remington Fireball case. It is very similar to the popular 17 Mach IV wildcat, but the cartridge dimensions are NOT identical. If you want to shoot this cartridge we recommend you chamber your rifle specifically for 17 Rem Fireball rather than use a Mach IV reamer.

Along with the 17 Remington, the 17 Fireball is the ONLY factory-loaded 17-caliber centerfire round. As a cartridge for squirrels, gophers, and small varmints, the 17 Rem Fireball is a very efficient cartridge that achieves high velocities with a modest powder charge — roughly half the powder charge of a 22-250. When loaded with Remington’s 20gr AccuTip-V bullet, .17 Rem Fireball factory loads deliver 4000 fps, closely matching the velocity of the .204 Ruger. With the 17 Fireball, it’s easy to see your hits, even without a muzzle brake, as the 17 Fireball has 86% less recoil than the 22-250.

17 Fireball reloading recipes are now available at the Hodgdon Reloading Data Center.

D.C. v. Heller — Supreme Court Argument Audio Offered

Most legal experts agree that the case of District of Columbia v. Heller is the most important Second Amendment case in nearly 70 years. The case, brought by Dick Heller, a security guard who lives in the District of Columbia, seeks to overturn the District’s complete ban on handguns for personal defense in the home. This case presents a Second Amendment issue front and center — the Supreme Court must decide whether the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution confers an individual right to “keep and bear arms” or whether it only empowers an organized militia.

Oral arguments in the case were heard on March 18, 2008. The final, written decision is expected by mid-summer, maybe even in June. Until then, we wait with anticipation. It appeared, based on the statements of the Justices during oral arguments, that a majority of High Court members (including Chief Justice Roberts) agree that the Second Amendment recognizes an individual right. If that’s how the Supreme Court rules, it will be a major victory for gun rights advocates. However, that could give rise to further legal battles, to determine what is “reasonable regulation”.

If you haven’t listened to the D.C. v. Heller Oral Arguments yet, you owe it to yourself to do so. Michael Bane of DownRangeTV has collected the official audio recordings of the DC vs. Heller oral argument. These are now available in MP3, streaming audio versions, on the DownRangeTV website.

CLICK HERE to Access Oral Arguments (MP3 AUDIO)