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September 8th, 2008
Robertson Composites has introduced a new benchrest stock design, optimized for 100- to 300-yard group and score shooting. It complies with all IBS, NBRSA, and international stock rules for short-range benchrest and is light enough to be used in a 10.5-lb Light Varmint rifle. Typical inletted bare weight, LV version, is 26 ounces. The stock was designed with input from ace Canadian and American benchresters.
While similar in external appearance to the Speedy BRX stock (also built by Robertson), the new stock has important new features. First, the forearm has raised flats on the sides to improve lateral stability and reduce the tendency to rotate in the bags. Second, the grip area is smaller and not as fat or thick as the BRX design. This should be more comfortable for those who prefer a light hold on the gun. Lastly, there are subtle changes to the area behind the action. The tang area has a greater downward slope to provide more clearance for the bolt when retracted.
Photos Courtesy Gary Walters. Rifle belongs to Victor Smith.
The new stock is currently in production and you can place an order. You can get any color combination you like (orange ‘granite’ is shown in the photo), and the stock can be built extra heavy on request. However, Ian Robertson reports: “we’re up to our ears in business right now, and it will take time to fill all the back-orders.” So, expect to wait a 8-10 weeks for delivery of your order. The new stock starts at $260.00 Canadian for a non-inletted stock in a single color, without buttplate. Two colors will cost $25.00 CND extra, and inletting is available for many popular BR actions for an additional charge.
CLICK HERE for complete Robertson Composites PRICE LIST.
September 8th, 2008
It’s great when a talented person we know gets selected for an important job. It’s even better when that person will now serve the shooting sports community in a key role. Vanessa Warner has accepted the position of Disabled Shooting Services Manager for the NRA. This is a great choice by the NRA, and shooters nationwide will benefit.
Vanessa is a respected long-range shooter with an impressive resume in marketing and communications. She will work within the National Rifle Association’s Competitive Shooting Division to improve the opportunities for disabled and physically-impaired shooters of all ages.
Vanessa Warner (bottom row, left) at 2006 F-Class Nationals. |
Warner’s responsibilities include planning, developing, and implementing shooting and hunting programs for the disabled community. Warner also serves as Secretary for both the NRA Protest Committee and the President’s Committee on Disabled Shooting.
Vanessa has big plans for the future of the NRA’s Disabled Shooting Services: “If you picture a wagon wheel, there is a center hub and a number of spokes that all connect to the outside rim. I want Disabled Shooting Services to be the hub,” Warner said. “Each of the spokes represents a shooting discipline and the outside rim is the shooting community at large. It is my dream to have full inclusion of disabled shooters on the firing lines-to have disabled and able-bodied shooters compete ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ in matches.”
Warner can be reached at NRA Headquarters by calling (703) 267-1495. CLICK HERE to learn more about NRA’s competitive shooting programs.
September 7th, 2008
We recently spoke to Dennis DeMille, General Manager of Creedmoor® Sports and two-time NRA National High Power Rifle Champion. Dennis has been one of the driving forces in the creation of the new 6.5 Creedmoor round (see video below). He alerted us to a recent change in the 120gr version of the factory-loaded 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition.
 120gr Load Changed to Reduce Pressure
Hornady sells two types of 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition, one loaded with 140gr Amax bullets and a second loaded with 120gr Amax bullets. Hornady has changed the 120gr load because there were some reports of pressure issues — stiff bolt lift and primer cratering — with the “first generation” load. The new load for the 120-grainers uses 40.3 grains of Hodgdon Varget. Previously Hornady was pushing the 120s with 44.5 grains of Hodgdon H4350. The old load was rated at 3020 fps from a 28″ barrel. According to Hornady, the new 120gr Varget load “sacrifices about 75 fps”, which means the Varget load should offer about 2945 fps velocity.
New 120gr Load Accurate and Easy on the Shoulder
Dennis DeMille recently tested the new 120gr 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition at the Camp Pendleton range. He tells us: “At 200 and 300 yards, this Varget 120gr load gives up nothing in accuracy to the previous 120gr ammunition. Shooting prone with iron sights, I was able to shoot ‘cleans’ at 200 rapid-fire. The new load is easier on the shoulder too. The 75fps reduction in velocity reduces recoil considerably. The reduced kick was pretty noticeable.”
Dennis also told us: “The new 120gr (Varget-loaded) ammo had exactly the same point of impact at 300 yards as the 140gr loaded ammo. The zero was pretty much identical at this distance.”
The new 6.5 Creedmoor 120gr ammo should be available shortly. Creedmoor Sports expects to receive supplies of the Varget-loaded 120gr ammo by the end of September. Creedmoor Sports has 6.5 Creedmoor brass, Amax bullets, and 6.5 Creedmoor reloading dies in stock right now. Click on Video below to learn more about the 6.5 Creedmore cartridge.
September 7th, 2008
As we approach the fall Presidential election, it is important that all gun owners understand the differences between the Democratic Party and Republican Party when it comes to gun regulation. The choice of Vice Presidential candidates speaks volumes about the difference between the parties: Palin is staunchly pro-gun, while Biden is aggressively anti-gun. Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is a long-time NRA member whose family has relied on hunting to “put meat on the table.” By contrast, Delaware Senator Joe Biden has authored major gun ban legislation, and Biden carries an “F” rating on gun issues from the NRA.
How about Barrack Obama — what is his stance on gun rights? In an effort to mollify moderate “swing” voters, Obama hasn’t been talking about gun control much lately. But the fact remains that he is no friend to gun owners. He supports new bans on self-loading rifles, and in 2000 he co-sponsored legislation limiting handgun purchases. To learn more, you should watch the following video. Keep in mind it is a one-sided “advocacy” piece created by the Republican National Committee. Nonetheless, the facts speak for themselves.
September 6th, 2008
The Spirit of America (SOA) National Fullbore Rifle Prone Championship kicks off Sunday, Sept. 7th at Raton, NM, at the Whittington Center Range. The event will run for a full week, concluding with the 3rd U.S. F-Class International Team Challenge Match on Sept. 14th. Members of the Open F-Class teams for the USA and other nations will participate, using this event as a tune-up for the 2009 World Championships in Bisley, England. Open Class Team USA members will all be shooting rifles chambered as 6.5-284s. Overall weight is 22 lbs. for the Open Class rifles, including scope. Shown below is U.S. Team member David Bailey’s rifle, which features a Robertson Composites F-Class stock, with a BAT Action.
The match is sponsored and hosted by the Bald Eagles Rifle Club. A complete 9-page guide to the event is available online. This includes general info, basic match rules, fee schedule, a registration form and match calendar.
CLICK HERE to download SOA Info Form (.pdf file).
Day by day, the scheduled matches include:
Sept. 7 (Sunday): Cunico Tire Service Team Match
Sept. 8 (Monday): Folsom Shooting Club Team Match
Sept. 9 (Tuesday): OK Weber Individual Match — 300, 500, 600 and 900 yards
Sept. 10 (Wednesday): Precision Shooting Individual Match — 300, 500, 600 and 1000 yards
Sept. 11 (Thursday): Sierra Bullets Team Match + McGee Rifle Stocks Match
Sept. 12 (Friday): Sinclair International Individual Match — 300, 500, 600 and 900 yards
Sept. 13 (Saturday): Sierra Bullets Individual Match — 300, 500, 600 and 1000 yards
Sept. 14 (Sunday): F-Class International Team Challenge Match For F-Open Teams
September 6th, 2008
For self-defense in your home or shop, you want quick access to your handgun.
Ideally, both handguns and long guns should be locked up in a heavy, full-size gunsafe that is bolted to the floor. However, if you need quick access to a handgun for personal defense in the home, there are smaller safes that can be opened in a couple of seconds, while still keeping handguns secure from kids or any unwanted visitors.
Shown above is a GunVault Biometric handgun safe ($299.99 at Cabelas.com). This uses your fingerprint as the “key” to open the safe. Place your index finger in the scanner then press the middle button, and the safe opens up in under 2 seconds. As a back-up, you can can quickly open the safe by pressing buttons on the 4-finger keypad in the right sequence. Gunvault also makes a less costly basic GunVault version without the fingerprint function. The basic GunVault employs the keypad and/or a security lock to open the safe. Both models (biometric and standard) can be secured via a heavy security cable so a thief can’t simply grab the safe and run. Cabela’s has a video showing the biometric Gunvault in action.
 CLICK HERE to watch VIDEO of BIOMETRIC SAFE
September 5th, 2008
The F-Class Nationals are coming up soon. The Fifth Annual F-Class Championship will be hosted Sept. 30 – Oct. 4 in Lodi, Wisconsin (Winnequah Gun Club). Over 140 shooters are expected to attend. The Course of Fire at the F-Class Nationals requires shooting at multiple distances. That means you’ve got to carry your rifle and rest back and forth to various shooting positions. With rifles that top 20 pounds, it’s no fun to haul a super-heavy front rest around. Butch Lambert has come up with a solution — a special light-weight front rest.
Lambert Crafts Light-weight Front Rest
At the request of Larry Bartholome, current member and former captain of the U.S. F-Class team, Butch Lambert of Shadetree Engineering & Accuracy (S.E.A.), has designed and fabricated a lightweight yet stable front rest prototype. Larry wanted a unit that was less burdensome to haul between firing lines than the typical cast-iron or “heavy metal” front pedestal. (That’s Larry with his spectacular “Captain America” Shehane red, white, and blue MBR Tracker stock.)
Other than the steel center hub, the rest is built from aircraft-grade 6061 T-6 aluminum, which can be TIG-welded and hard-anodized. To keep weight down, the three horizontal legs are hollow tubes with flutes or slots milled top and bottom. Butch sent us these photos of the new rest, noting: “It weighs 2.25 lbs without the top. I set one of our unfinished rest tops on it. I moved the back leg to the front to get it out of the way. Larry is ‘wrong handed’, so I made it left-handed. I hope to get it TIG-welded together next week and plated. It is definitely easy to lug around, but I prefer something heavier for benchrest shooting. For F-Class, under a 22-lb rifle, Larry believes it should work well.”
September 5th, 2008
The Beretta Group of companies, led by Beretta U.S.A., Benelli U.S.A., and Burris Optics, have pledged to give the NRA $1 million over the next five years. This gift will benefit the NRA Institute for Legislative Action and the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund.
 The announcement was made by Cav. Ugo Gussalli Beretta at an event at his home in Clinton, Maryland, on August 20. At this event, Cav. Beretta was inducted into the NRA’s Golden Ring of Freedom, the highest level of the Association’s comprehensive donor recognition society. This new pledge brings the Beretta Group’s gift commitments to the NRA to over $2 million. Previous gifts have benefited the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, NRA Youth Programs, Hunting and Wildlife Conservation, and the National Firearms Museum.
The NRA Institute for Legislative Action mobilizes millions of volunteers nationwide on behalf of candidates who support our Second Amendment freedom, and has been very effective in recent elections both on the state and national level. The Civil Rights Defense Fund, the NRA’s sister 501(c)3 organization, supports litigation involving significant legal issues relating to the right to keep and bear arms.
Beretta U.S.A. is part of the Beretta Holding Group. Controlled by the Beretta family, the group includes arms-makers Beretta, Benelli, Franchi and Uberti (Italy), and Sako and Tikka (Finland). The oldest among these companies, Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A., has been operated by 15 generations of the Beretta family, starting in 1526. Cav. Ugo Gussalli Beretta and his sons, Pietro and Franco, run the company today.
September 4th, 2008
Arizona gunsmith Gary Ocock ranks fourth overall on the all-time Benchrest Hall of Fame Points list. This Monday he added two potential NBRSA Unlimited (Rail Gun) records to his list of achievements. Shooting in a special Monday Labor Day match at Visalia, California, Ocock demolished the existing Unlimited 200-yard NBRSA record. Gary’s 5-target, 200-yard aggregate was 0.1129. (That’s the measured average of five, 5-shot targets, divided by two). Once certified, this will be a new NBRSA record. The previous 200-yard record was a 0.1396 shot in 2003 by Bart Sauter. Gary’s 100-yard Agg was also in the “teens”, a 0.1534. So, Ocock’s combined 100 + 200 “Grand Agg” was a stunning 0.1331, which would also be a new record, beating Bill Forrester’s 0.1496 Grand Agg shot in 1989.
Record-Setting Railgun with Delrin Barrel Sleeve
Gary Ocock was using a Jay Young Railgun with some custom “enhancements” by Gary. As with most railguns, the barrel is held by a barrel block. But Gary employs something pretty unique. Between the metal halves of the 7″-long barrel block, Gary has fitted a Delrin sleeve around the barrel. This is then clamped in place when the block is bolted together. What’s the advantage of the Delrin sleeve? According to Gary “The Delrin seems to help with accuracy. I had a couple barrels that just didn’t seem to shoot well no matter what load I tried. I first tried a sleeve made from lead and epoxy in an effort to make those barrels competitive. The barrels did shoot better, but the epoxy/lead sleeve was a pain to make. So, I came up with the Delrin sleeve and it works just as well or better. I can’t tell you exactly why it works, but it probably is damping the barrel vibration. With the Delrin sleeve I’ve turned average barrels into winners.”
| Jay Young Railgun
At right is a Jay Young Railgun, similar to the Unlimited gun used by Gary Ocock to set two new records. Gary’s gun has a longer barrel (26″) and Gary has devised a special Delrin sleeve that fits between barrel and barrel block. Gary believes the Delrin Sleeve dampens barrel vibration. For more info, email Gary Ocock: onehole149 [at] aol.com |
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Bullets Seated OFF the Lands
For his record-breaking effort on Monday, Gary used a 26″-long, 1.350″-diameter straight-contour 6mm Krieger barrel. Twist is 1:13.5″, and the chambering was a tight-neck 6PPC using Gary’s own 67gr BT match bullets. Gary shot a relatively “mild load” and interestingly his bullets were NOT engaging the barrel rifling. That’s right, he figures his seating depth was about .005-.010″ OFF the lands. The action was a BAT SV with a non-ejector bolt borrowed from another BAT. Scope was a March 50X.
Smart Wind Calls Helped Gary at 200
Watching the wind was key to his amazing 200-yard performance, Gary said: “Mirage was quite heavy, but I noticed things worked best in a light left to right condition. I tried to wait for that condition on most of my shots at 200 yards. On three of the five groups I didn’t hold off at all. On two groups I held off a little. The key was waiting to shoot in that left to right condition.”
September 4th, 2008
Here’s another outdoor industry business consolidation, another big fish swallowing little fish. Beretta Holdings, through its Burris division, has acquired Germany’s Steiner-Optik GmbH. Steiner, a respected maker of optics, particularly binoculars, is based in Bayreuth, Germany, and now employs 120 workers. Steiner will be integrated into the Beretta Group through its optics subsidiary, Burris, based in Colorado. So now the Germans will be making binoculars for a US-based company owned by Italians.
 Why did this acquisition take place? Steiner has not been very successful in the North American market. Steiner’s President and CEO, Carl Steiner, needed the help of an international group with strong distribution and plenty of marketing clout. Beretta Holdings doubtless believes that the addition of Steiner, a “prestige” optics name for over 50 years, will help Burris compete against high-end brands such as Leica and Swarovski. This is a good thing for Burris. Steiner has a record of innovation: Steiner produced the first pocket-sized binoculars, the first commercial binoculars with rubber armor, and the first binoculars with an anti-UV protective lens coating.
Burris General Manager, Steve Bennetts, said both Burris and Steiner have strong brand identification, and he suggested that the two companies will soon coordinate their product development efforts. We suspect this means the high-end optics will carry the Steiner name while mid- and low-cost optics will be sold as Burris products.
Beretta’s companies offer a vast range of products, with optic devices representing an increasingly important component. Current companies owned by Beretta Holdings include: Beretta, Benelli, Burris, Franchi, Meccanica Del Sarca, Sako, Stoeger, Tikka, Uberti Replicas.
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