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May 18th, 2008
As most of you know, Cerberus Capital Management acquired Bushmaster Firearms, a leading maker of AR-platform rifles, in April 2006. A year later, Cerberus acquired Remington Arms. Not surprisingly, Cerberus has merged the product lines of these two companies, so AR-style rifles are now marketed under the Remington label.
Yesterday, at the NRA Annual Meeting in Louisville, KY, Remington unveiled its latest semi-auto rifle, dubbed the Remington R-25. The R-25 is based on the AR-10, the “big brother” of the AR15, a heavier, beefier rifle designed to shoot the .308 Winchester and similar cartridges. The R-25 will be offered in three chamberings: .308 Win, .243 Win, and 7mm-08. We were hoping Remington might also offer the .260 Remington or other 6.5mm caliber such as the 6.5 Creedmoor, but right now Remington is sticking to the more mainstream hunting calibers. However, Remington reps indicated that Short Magnum calibers might be added to the line-up in the future.
The basic R-25 features a flat-top receiver and metal float tube. The whole rig is decked out in Mossy Oak® Treestand™ Camo. Barrels for all three calibers are 20″ in length, with a 1:10″ twist rate. Barrels are fluted ahead of the gas block but that’s more for looks than anything else. Remington chose a fairly light barrel contour, keeping the gun’s weight down to 8.75 pounds, without optics. The trigger is a single-stage unit set at 4.5-5 pounds. That’s pretty disappointing, and we expect the first thing many R-25 owners do is modify or swap out the trigger to reduce pull weight. The R-25 ships with a 4-round magazine, but will use any standard AR-10 mag.
The Remington R-25 is priced at $1532 MSRP, and the first units are expected to ship in July 2008. At first blush, the price seems high for a pretty average rifle with a heavy trigger and what, we predict, is a mediocre barrel. Shooters wanting a .308 cartridge-size semi-auto platform for a cross the course rifle or space gun should consider other, less expensive sources such as Armalite for a separate AR-10 lower. Match AR-10 uppers are available from a variety of boutique makers such as Fulton Armory.
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May 18th, 2008
The May 2008 issue of On The Mark, the CMP’s newsletter for junior shooters, has a feature by Gary Anderson on building the proper standing position. Though focused primarily on juniors, all 3P High Power, Service Rifle, and Silhouette shooters can benefit from this article.
CLICK HERE to Download Newsletter as .pdf file
Tips on Hand Position
Here is sample of Gary’s advice: “It is critical not to force the rifle up or down to get the sights pointing at the target. The correct way to do this is to select a left hand-wrist position that fills the support gap between the left hip and the rifle fore-end. A good mid-range starting position is to keep the wrist straight and either set the rifle on top of a closed fit or support the rifle between the thumb and the first knuckle.
Either of these options will work well for most shooters. However, shooters with proportionately longer arms and shorter torsos will have rifle sights pointing high with either of these hand positions. By breaking the wrist and resting the rifle in the flat of the hand or by keeping the wrist straight and dropping the rifle down into the fork of the hand they should be able to comfortably bring the sights down to the target.
Conversely, shooters with proportionately shorter arms and longer torsos need a wrist-hand position that adds more length to the support column. They can achieve this by resting the rifle between the spit fingers and thumb, up on the second knuckles or, highest of all, on the thumb and fingertips.”
In his article, Anderson also explains how to correct the most common mistakes in the standing position:
“1. Incorrect body turn—too little or too much body turn makes it impossible to have a straight column of support under the rifle and upper body and difficult to balance[.]
2. Left elbow not under rifle—incorrect elbow positioning misaligns the column of support.
3. Left hip not under rifle—incorrect hip position misaligns the support column and makes good balance more difficult.
4. Butt too low in shoulder—when the head is tipped down too far to see through the sights comfortably, the butt must be raised in the shoulder and a higher left hand-wrist position must be selected.
5. Left arm not relaxed down onto side or hip—this means the rifle is being supported with muscles instead of bones—relax the arm down onto the side or hip and, if necessary, select a higher hand position.”
The May Issue of On The Mark contains many other useful articles, including a feature on Aerobic Fitness by 2003 Smallbore (3P) National Champion Amber Darland.
(Photos © Copyright 2008 CMP, used by permission.)
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May 17th, 2008
One key issue affecting all shooting sports is how to attract new shooters, particularly juniors. Young people represent the future of the sport, and unless we can get them involved, there will be fewer shooting opportunities for all. Gun manufacturers will see their sales decline and more ranges will be closed, both due to lack of revenue and political pressures. The closing of shooting ranges is a major problem in many areas of the country, particularly in California and other regions where anti-gun politicians and land developers are aggressively working to shut ranges down.
One great way to draw new shooters into the fold (particularly youngsters and ladies) is to host an event at your club where novices can try multiple disciplines. This is a user-friendly, low-cost way for newcomers to try different types of firearms in a supervised setting. Every year, the Ojai Valley Gun Club (OVGC) in California hosts a 7-Gun Shoot open to the public. OVGC’s 7-Gun Shoot took place on April 26th, and was a huge success, with 125 new shooters coming to the range for a day of fun, followed by a tri-tip barbecue. Participants ranged from 6 to 89 years of age. For a fee of just $10.00, visitors (of any age) could try seven different types of arms, under the guidance of club members who provided assistance and safety instruction. Guns and ammo were furnished by club members, and hearing and eye protection were offered for a nominal fee.
The 7-Gun Shoot offered a smorgesbord of shooting options: Air Rifle, Small-bore Pistol, Small-bore Rifle, Full-bore Rifle (.223 and .308), Centerfire Handgun, Black-Powder Rifle, and Shotgun (Trap). OVGC even offered an archery clinic, which was very popular with both kids and adults. A full troop of boy scouts attended the 7-Gun Shoot, and there were many families with husband, wife and kids. Participants were issued scorecards covering all 7 disciplines, and prizes were awarded to the highest aggregate totals for junior boy, junior girl, adult women, and adult men. Among the visiting couples, it was not unusual for the wives to outscore the husbands. One lady who came to the 7-Gun Shoot with her husband had never fired a long-gun before, yet she managed a perfect score with air rifle and an impressive 4 for 5 on the trap (shotgun) course.
Even many veteran shooters took the opportunity to try out new disciplines. Handgunners tried out the rifle course and some hard-core trap shooters enjoyed knocking down steel targets with replica black powder rifles. There’s nothing quite like the boom and smoke of the “Holy Black”. The day concluded with a great 4-course all-you-can-eat barbeque, ($8.50 per head), followed by a raffle of shooting and camping accessories. Overall, the event was a great success. The young people seemed to have the best time of all, and more than a few of the Scouts said the 7-Gun Shoot was one of their favorite annual troop activities.
OVGC signed up a number of new members during the shoot, but more importantly, the club gave scores of novices, young and old, the chance to have fun and get hooked on shooting sports. If you are interested in developing a similar program, visit OVGC.net where you can email the organizers.
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May 17th, 2008
 Using wet patches or wet brushes is an inefficient way to really saturate the tight bores of 17s, 20s, and 22s. Even with a cotton bore mop, most of the solvent will be squeezed out before it gets to the end of the bore, where most copper fouling occurs. Here’s a simple solution. Get a small plastic “wash bottle” and fill it with your preferred solvent. Then stick the tapered nozzle right in the chamber. The tapered end will press fit in the throat, sealing off the chamber. With the barrel slightly nose-down, give the bottle a couple good squirts until the solvent mists out the muzzle. In just a few seconds, this will put more solvent in the bore than a half-dozen wet patches. Alternatively, plug the chamber and squirt solvent in from the muzzle. It’s also much easier to saturate a bore brush (without spilling solvent on your stock), by using the wash bottle. You can get these bottles from USPlastic.com or lab supply stores.
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May 17th, 2008
MidwayUSA has Bore-Store synthetic fleece rifle storage bags on sale. We can say, unequivocally, that Bore-Stores are a great product. Every gun in this editor’s safe rests in a Bore-Store. Bore-Stores cushion your guns against dings and scratches while the breathable fabric wicks away moisture and fights rust with a special anti-corrosion coating. The fabric is coated with pure silicon and an extra rust-inhibiting chemical. Bore-Stores are relatively inexpensive and last forever. Unlike cotton, wool, leather or canvas bags, the fibers do not absorb and retain moisture. You really can’t beat them for storage in a safe because they cushion the gun as well as fight rust and aluminum corrosion.
MidwayUSA has the full line of Bore-Store cases on sale. We’ve found that the latest examples run on the roomy side, so the 46″ scoped rifle case, item SRC-1, will fit guns up to 48″ overall, with plenty of clearance for a big scope. The 46″ case is now $9.99 marked down from $11.49. The 40″ Scoped Rifle Case, item SRC-3 ($9.49 on sale), will fit most short-range BR guns up to 42″ in length. There are also models for shotguns, carbines, and pistols.
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May 16th, 2008
At the NRA Annual Meeting, Savage Arms has its latest long-range precision rifle on display — a Palma rifle, chambered in .308 Winchester. Team Savage Captain Stan Pate will be manning the Savage booth (#527) during the show and can answer questions about the new gun.
The .308 Palma is made for 1K prone competition with iron sights and sling. It comes with Savage’s Target AccuTrigger, adjustable down to six ounces. The rifle features a 30-inch heavy barrel tapered to accept standard aftermarket sights. The stock has an adjustable cheekpiece, 3-way adjustable buttplate, and forearm accessory rail. Currently, Savage is the only large manufacturer producing “factory rifles” for Palma competition.
Savage also produces rifles for F-Class Open and F-T/R disciplines. The Palma and F-Class guns, including a new 6mmBR F-Classer, “were made to compete and win against the most expensive custom guns.” Savage VP of Sales and Marketing Brian Herrick said. Terry Brady has been testing a 6mmBR Savage F-Classer for AccurateShooter.com. He reports: “It looks good. I still need to work up a load and chron it, but I’ve been able to shoot sub-inch groups at 300 yards in early testing.”
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May 16th, 2008
Ten Intermedia Outdoors television shows, including popular shooting sports shows, will no longer be broadcast on the Outdoor Channel next season. The line-up of shows includes: “Guns & Ammo Television,” “Guns & Ammo Television Classics,” “In-Fisherman Television,” “In-Fisherman Critical Concepts,” “North American Whitetail Television,” “Bowhunter Magazine TV,” “Personal Defense TV,” “Shallow Water Angler,” “In-Fisherman Professional Walleye Trail” and “Petersen’s Hunting ADVENTURE Television.”
These shows will continue to run, but on a different cable network — The Sportsman Channel (TSC), which Intermedia Outdoors acquired last year. (See Related Story).
Intermedia pulled a large block of TV content from the Outdoor Channel and will use those shows in the future as the backbone of its own network. In a press release, Intermedia Outdoors CEO Jeff Paro declared: “We are going to build The Sportsman Channel into the leading outdoor network, both in distribution and ratings. Shifting all of our programming to TSC is a major first step in that direction. We have led in every outdoors category we have entered-magazine, internet, and television production-and now we will lead in networks.” Paro continued: “We will actively and aggressively program TSC with hunting, shooting and fishing content, with a focus on high-quality original programming….”
Jim Shepard, editor of The Outdoor Wire, believes that the Outdoor Channel was hit hard by Intermedia’s decision to move its TV shows: “In one shot, InterMedia Outdoors has announced to the television industry that it not only intends to become the major player in outdoor television, it is quite willing to hammer its former partner in a very public manner.”
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May 15th, 2008
Creedmoor Sports has a new promotion for scope buyers. If you purchase a Nightforce NXS or Benchrest Model scope at regular price, Creedmoor will give you a $75.00 gift cerficate that can be applied to other Creedmoor Sports merchandise. (Note: The certificate can NOT be applied to the original scope sale, or the purchase of another Nightforce product.)
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May 14th, 2008
Just this week, Sightron sent us one of the new Sightron SIII 8-32×56 LR D rifle scopes for evaluation. This new optic features a 30mm main tube and weighs 24.7 ounces. Clicks are set in 1/4-MOA increments. The reticle is a fine cross hair with 1/4-MOA dot. The scope comes with a 3″ sunshade, turret covers, and rubber-connected, see-thru lens caps. Jason Baney had a chance to test the scope and give his initial impressions of its optical qualities. We will follow this “First Look” report with more extensive testing of the scope’s mechanical tracking and long-range resolution.
Overall, Jason was extremely impressed with the new scope. It was very bright, with excellent color rendition and contrast. The image remained bright and sharp out all the way out to the edges, with no shadowing or distortion. Compared to a Nightforce 12-42×56 BR scope set at 32-power, Jason thought the Sightron had better contrast and more vivid colors. Jason concluded: “At this point, the new Sightron seems like a good value, and compares well with the Nightforce BR model.”
Parallax and Focus
Importantly, the Sightron’s parallax control worked perfectly. There was no lash issue and Jason was able to attain minimal parallax with the target at maximum sharpness. With some other scopes, if you set the scope to have the target in best focus, you’ll still have too much parallax.
Elevation and Windage
This is a scope you can use to 1000 yards. Jason ran the adjustments top to bottom and recorded 75 MOA of both Elevation and Windage, based on the stated 1/4-MOA click Value. (That’s 75 total MOA available from one extreme to the other.) The target knobs have 15 MOA per turn and operate VERY smoothly and positively. Jason said the clicks “feel similar to Nightforce NXS clicks, but the Sightron clicks engage with a slightly softer feel, with less resistance.”
 Resolution Tests
Jason used two resolution charts, the USAF 1951 Optical Chart, and a line-width/text size chart. To judge resolution, Jason did a comparison test of the new Sightron 8-32×56 and a Nightforce 12-42×56 BR, with both scopes set at 32x with their sunshade attached. Jason looked through both scopes at the resolution test targets at 100 yards, and then at target frames, grass, and flowers at 300 yards. Viewing was done late in the day, with some shadows on the range. Keep in mind these were less than ideal conditions for viewing.
The test charts have incrementally smaller focus lines and text. Both scopes were able to resolve down to the same line/text level on the two resolution charts. The new Sightron showed comparable, but VERY slightly less resolution than the NF. Both could identify the same size of text, but the NF saw it just a bit more crisply. Jason reports: “I could go to the same resolution level with both scopes, but the last line was just a touch more crisp with the Nightforce. Still, the Sightron is very close in resolution.”
Contrast and Color Fidelity
The Sightron was the winner in this category. In fading light, the Sightron delivered better contrast. Green, yellow, red, and white colors showed more differentiation and all the colors were more vivid. Weathered target backer boards also showed more contrast through the Sightron. Jason checked this several times nearing dusk, and the Sightron always seemed more vivid and showed more contrast looking at a patch of grass and colored vegetation. In terms of color temp, the Nightforce has a more whitish tone, whereas the Sightron seemed “warmer” with more vivid colors.
Brightness/Light Transmission
Along with its superior color and contrast, the Sightron seemed to be consistently brighter through the fading light. We note, however, that manufacturers’ published light transmission factors are nearly identical for the Sightron 8-32 and the Nightforce 12-42. The greater brightness of the Sightron is Jason’s subjective perception, but he said “the Sightron definitely seemed brighter.”
View to Edge
With many zoom scopes, at high magnification, the center of the “circle of light” is bright and sharp, but the edges are faded or shadowy. The brightness attenuates (fades out) on the edges. In addition, you sometimes see some image distortion or focus loss at the edges. The Sightron showed none of these issues. At SHOT show, this editor looked through a prototype 8-32 Sightron and it was bright and sharp all the way out to the edges. Jason observed the same thing: “The Sightron was noticeably clear edge to edge, where the Nightforce showed some fading or darkening at the edges. This point was quite surprising to me.” Jason also noted that the Sightron had about a 3-4″ wider field of view at 100 yards.
Fringe Effect with Highly Reflective Subjects
With the Sightron, when looking at extremely bright, reflective objects, such as a car’s chrome trim, Jason did observe some minor fringing–what he called a “thin halo”. This also appeared around the edge of a white target paper viewed in bright light. A through-the-lens photo appeared to show edging colors (purple fringe), so this may be Chromatic Aberration*. It wasn’t a major issue and it did not affect the sharpness or contrast of the viewed object itself. This was visible only on the periphery of very bright objects.
Conclusion–Impressive Optics for $825.00
We only were able to comparison-test one sample of each scope, Sightron vs. Nightforce. As noted, the performance was very close, and it is possible that different samples might perform slightly better or worse in each optical category. In this test the Nightforce had a very slight edge in resolution, while the Sightron was brighter. We plan to do more testing, with bullet-hole targets set at long ranges. That should give us a better sense of how the Sightron can resolve bullet holes and target lines out past 300 yards. Jason will also do a box-test to check the tracking and repeatability of the Sightron. Based on what we’ve seen so far, however, the Sightron, with a “street price” of about $825.00, is a very good value. Jason concludes: “Given the 8-32 Sightron’s price point, I’d say most people will feel it is a great scope for the money.”
*Chromatic aberration occurs in a riflescope when white light, bent by the objective lens, separates into different colors (wavelengths), each color bending at a slightly different angle. When that occurs, the colors don’t focus at the same point. This most often appears as a deep blue/purple or yellow edge on the image, particularly straight black and white edges.
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May 14th, 2008
From May 16-20, the National Rifle Association will hold its NRA Annual Meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. Scheduled events include the Members Meeting, NRA Foundation Banquet, Sportsmen’s Luncheon and Auction, plus a free concert. Many leading firearms manufacturers will also have products on display at the Kentucky Expo Center. In addition, major private collections will be displayed by NRA-affiliated gun collector clubs. Hunting Guides and Outfitters be featured in an exclusive outfitter section.
CLICK HERE for Schedule of Events
 Throughout the 3-day event, there will be Special Seminars, including an African Hunting Seminar, Reloading Seminar, and a full, day-long Firearms Law Seminar with officials from the FBI, Law Professor Glenn Reynolds, and Kentucky Supreme Court Deputy Chief Justice Will Scott. The Seminars take place at the Kentucky Exposition Center, 937 Phillips Lane, which is also the site of all Exhibits. The Foundation Dinner and NRA Celebration of American Values Banquet will be at the Kentucky International Convention Center (221 Fourth Street).
Live Radio Coverage Offered
“Tom Gresham’s Gun Talk”, will broadcast live from the NRA Annual Meeting, Sunday, May 18. The 3-hour radio program will feature appearances by spokespeople from the NRA, the NSSF, and leading firearms companies.
“Gun Talk” will air from 2:00pm until 5:00pm Eastern time, and from 8:00pm til 11:00pm Eastern on XM Satellite Channel 166. “Folks who miss the live broadcast,” said Gresham, “can always download the show from www.guntalk.com.”
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May 13th, 2008
The regular, monthly 600-yard benchrest match at the Piedmont Gun Club in Rutherfordton, NC rivals a National event in terms of the quality of the shooters and the rifles. On May 10th, there were multiple IBS-record holders in every relay, with a dozen rifles capable of going sub-inch at 600 yards. Piedmont, the “home of world records”, attracts many of the top mid-range benchrest shooters, such as Terry Brady, Mike Davis, Sam Hall, Larry Isenhour, Joel Kendrick, Buster Long, Mark Schronce, and Rodney Wagner. That line-up includes some IBS Shooters of the Year.
Piedmont Gun Club:
CLICK HERE for Equipment List and Match Results
There was a very competitive field on May 10th at Piedmont. Larry Isenhour, shooting a 6 BRX, took Light Gun Overall by winning the Light Gun Group size Agg, and placing third in Score. In Heavy Gun, Mark Schronce combined a fourth in Group and first in Score to take the HG Overall. Schronce also shoots a 6 BRX. Rodney Wagner, yet another 6BRX pilot, shot a very consistent match, with all four targets under 2.55″ to place first in HG group Agg.
In both Light Gun and Heavy Gun, about half the guns were straight 6BRs, with quite a few BRXs. There were a half-dozen 6.5x47s or 6-6.5x47s, and a few 6.5-284s and 243 AIs. Learn more about the shooters’ rigs by reading the Equipment List (scroll to bottom of linked page).
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May 13th, 2008
 The NRA has selected four women to receive the 2008 Marion P. Hammer Woman of Distinction Award for their contributions to the Second Amendment and the shooting sports. This year, the prestigious award, named for the NRA’s first female president, was presented to: Linda Hill of Pueblo West, CO; Cathy Lynch of Renton, WA; Paula Radcliff of Dexter, KS; and Patricia Stoneking of Bonner Springs, KS.
Linda Hill is on the board of directors of the Pueblo Municipal Shooting Range in Colorado. She started a women’s shooting group at the range and a youth shooting program. An NRA Certified Instructor, Hill is involved with Women On Target® Instructional Shooting Clinics, NRA Basic Pistol classes, NRA Range Safety Officer training, and personal protection seminars. An experienced hunter education instructor, Hill has taught in both Alaska and Montana.
Cathy Lynch is a shooting sports director at the Cascade Scout Reservation for the Boy Scouts of America. An NRA Certified Range Safety Officer and Instructor in rifle, shotgun, and muzzleloading firearms, she is an instructor at the Boy Scout National Camp School, and a hunter education instructor for the WA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.
Paula Radcliff is a member of the Kansas State Rifle Assn. and served as the group’s legislative representative when Kansas’ concealed carry law was passed in 2006. Her efforts were instrumental in Kansans winning the right to carry concealed firearms. Radcliff has supported the NRA’s Women On Target® and Youth Hunter Education Challenge programs, hosting events for both programs on her ranch.
Patricia Stoneking is a legislative advocate, and NRA Certified Instructor in multiple disciplines. Stoneking owns Target Master Shooting Academy in Bonner Springs and is head instructor at The Bullet Hole Shooting Range. She led a grassroots effort to pass Kansas’ concealed carry law, hand-delivering a petition to the governor’s office.
For more info on the Marion P. Hammer award, and to nominate a deserving woman, visit www.nrahq.org/women/awards.asp or call (800) 861-1166.
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