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August 6th, 2009
Sinclair Int’l has introduced two important new reloading products. Both are items that reloaders have requested for quite some time. Sinclair listened and now offers: 1) a precision large (.081″) flash hole reamer; and 2) a neck-turning tool for large cartridges such as the 50 BMG.
Large Flash-Hole Reamer
Sinclair has released a new, .081″-spec “outside-in” Flash Hole Reamer (item 07-3081) designed to designed to uniform standard flash holes to exactly .081 inch. This 3-piece tool features all stainless steel construction, a double-ended reamer guide for both large and small primer pockets, a knurled handle for easy turning, and a straight-fluted .081 inch reamer. With this tool you can remove burrs or obstructions in the flash hole and ensure that all your flash holes are the same size. NOTE — this tool works for both small primer pockets AND large primer pockets, for cartridges with .080″ nominal diameter flash holes. The new 07-3081 tool costs $37.50.
For quite some time, Sinclair Int’l has sold a similar device for small (PPC and BR-size) flash holes. Like the new 07-3081 unit for large flash holes, the 07-3000 Reamer for small flash holes works from the outside, so it can index off the primer pocket. It reams to .0625″, and also costs $37.50. The standard dimension for Lapua 220 Russian and 6mmBR flash holes is 1.5mm or .0590″. This tool will permit standard-size decapping rods with .0625″ tips to work without binding. However, note that both Forster and Redding normally supply .057″ decapping pins with their PPC and BR dies. So, it is NOT necessary to ream your Lapua BR/PPC flashholes, unless you prefer to do so for uniformity. It IS, however, a good idea to check BR/PPC flash holes for burrs before loading the first time.
NOTE: If you purchase either the 07-3081 or 07-3000 Sinclair Flash Hole Reamer tools, we recommend you mic the cutter tip before you process a bunch of cases. Sometimes a tip comes through that is oversize. This will ream the flash holes larger than you may intend.
Large Caliber (35-50) Neck Turning Tool
Jumbo rifle cartridges, such as the 408 Chey Tac and 50 BMG, are becoming more popular with precision shooters, and Sinclair’s customers have asked for a neck-turning tool which will handle the large calibers. Sinclair’s new NT-5000 Neck Turning Tool will work for cartridges from 35 caliber all the way up to 50 cal, including the 50 BMG. This new tool uses the same smooth, cutter adjustment system as Sinclair’s NT-1000 Neck Turner, but a special oversize case-holder is furnished with each NT-5000 tool. Special large-caliber Expander Dies, and large-caliber turning and expander mandrels are available individually or as part of a Large Caliber Neck Turning Tool Kit.
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August 5th, 2009
It was “Ladies First” at the 2009 NRA National Smallbore Silhouette Championships. Cathy Winstead-Severin shot brilliantly to win both the Rifle AND Hunting Rifle titles, as well as the High Woman title for both classes. We’ve always said women can compete head to head with male shooters and win. Cathy proved that convincingly.
This wasn’t Cathy’s first big victory. She won her first National Smallbore Silhouette title in 1998. Along with husband James Severin, Cathy operates Good Shooting Sales & Service in Joplin, Missouri, a shooting supply business specializing in rimfire and silhouette products.
Smallbore Rifle Championship Top Finishers:
First Place (and High Woman): Cathy Winstead-Severin: 111
Second Place: William Motl: 108
Third Place: Derek Greenaway: 107
High Junior: Tyler Kamp: 104
High Senior: Loren Peter: 96
Team Champions: Texas State Gold: 214
Smallbore Hunting Rifle Championship Top Finishers:
First Place (and High Woman): Cathy Winstead-Severin: 108
Second Place: William Zander: 105
Third Place: Laura Goetsch: 104
High Junior: Tyler Kamp: 98
High Senior: Bob Snyder: 85
Team Champions: Belgrade Air Shooting Sports: 205
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August 5th, 2009
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.”
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August 5th, 2009
Here’s a clever, innovative product from Good Shooting Sales & Service, a shop operated by National Smallbore Silhouette Champion Cathy Winstead-Severin and her husband Jim Severin. The Shooting Skirt, available in either Nylon mesh or Cordura for $32.00, is a cone-shaped, fabric gear-holder that fits around the top of a tripod. The Shooting Skirt has various pockets that can store score cards, timers, Walkie-Talkies, spotting boards, and other accessories. The Shooting Skirt even has a water bottle holder.
We think the Shooting Skirt is a really clever product that can benefit varmint hunters as well as those who are scoring/spotting in shooting matches. For anyone who spends a lot of time working with a tripod in the field or at a range, the Shooting Skirt can be a very handy accessory.
Craft Your Own Custom Shooting Skirt — With High-Tech Options
What’s neat about this basic design is that it could be easily modified to suit your needs. If you (or the significant other) can run a sewing machine, you could make something similar, customized for the particular gear you use. You might add a pocket for a windmeter, or a special section to hold the lens caps for your spotting scope. Or, if you’re really clever, you could add a flexible solar panel to provide back-up power for your PDA, cell phone, or cameras.
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August 4th, 2009
Roughly 130 competitors have gathered at the NRA Whittington Center for the NRA Smallbore Silhouette Championships held August 2-4. Today the final matches will be held for the Smallbore Rifle Class and Hunting Rifle Class Silhouette Championships.
This year, 13 shooters have traveled from Mexico to compete against some of the best Smallbore Silhouette shooters in the United States. Seven of these Mexican competitors made the 20-hour journey together. Surprisingly however, the Mexican contingent did NOT include Agustin Sanchez, Jr. this year. Agustin, the “Tiger Woods of Silhouette” has won the event for the past six years, but now someone else will take his title. “It’s up for grabs,” said NRA Silhouette Program Coordinator Jonathan Leighton. “There are a lot of good shooters here, so it’s anyone’s game right now.”
Above, Gabriel Guerra of Mexico shoots while Carlos Mercado spots for him. Guerra loves Silhouette shooting for the comradery and the challenge: “I enjoy the mental game, and it’s a very fun sport. You meet nice people, here and in Mexico. I like the friendship of the teams.”
Invented in Mexico, Adopted in America
It’s thought that silhouette shooting began in Mexico around 1914 as a marksmanship contest between Pancho Villa’s men. The sport spread throughout Mexico following the Mexican Revolution, eventually making its way to America in the 1960s. Silhouette shooting started as a centerfire sport, but over the years rimfire silhouette has become more popular. CLICK HERE to read about the history of silhouette competition.
If you’re interested in getting involved in smallbore silhouette, a fun yet challenging discipline, you’ll find a Summary of Silhouette Basics in our Daily Bulletin Archives. You’ll also find more information, including current rules, on the Steelchickens.com website.
Smallbore Silhouette Course of Fire and Rifle Classes
At an official Smallbore Silhouette match, you’ll shoot at least 40 shots, ten each at four sets of 1/5th size standard High Power Rifle Silhouette targets. The smallest targets, the chickens, are set at 40 yards, Pigs are at 60 yards, Turkeys are at 77 yards, and Rams are at 100 yards. (Alternatively, metric distances are used.) Though the rams are the largest targets, hitting them is far from easy. At 100 yards, a little bit of wind will blow you off the target. Two classes of rifles are used in Rimfire Silhouette: Standard and Hunter Class. Standard rifles can weigh up to 10 pounds, 2 oz. (with sights) and have no restriction on trigger pull weight. The fore-end shall not exceed 2 1/4″ wide, and 2 1/4″ deep measured from the centerline of the bore.
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August 4th, 2009
You’d never know it, given the way the mainstream media portrays the shooting sports, but hunting/shooting is more important, from an economic standpoint, than golf, tennis, bike-riding, or just about any recreational sport you can name. Americans spent $4.6 Billion on hunting and shooting sports equipment in 2008, a 16% rise from 2007. Yep that’s “B” for Billion.
 According to a new National Sporting Goods Association report, hunting- and firearms-related equipment was the only sporting-goods equipment category to see double-digit sales growth in 2008. Sales rose 16 percent, while overall sporting-goods equipment sales declined 1 percent compared to the previous year. Hunting- and firearms-related equipment ranked second only to exercise equipment in 2008, NSGA reports. Included in the “hunting and firearms” equipment category are rifles, handguns, shotguns, ammunition, airguns, reloading equipment, paintball and cutlery. NSGA reported sales in the hunting and firearms category were $4.6 billion in 2008, up from $3.9 billion the previous year.
In related news, Sturm Ruger & Co. announced a huge spike in its gun sales for 2009. This is probably due to the popularity of Ruger’s new compact handguns, combined with orders for its new AR15 style rifle, the Ruger SR-556 with gas-piston upper. Ruger reported Wednesday that firearms sales grew 94 percent in the second quarter of 2009, compared to the same period last year, and that sales were up 14 percent when compared to the first quarter of this year. Firearms unit production grew 63 percent from the second quarter of 2008.
Call it “panic buying” or the “Obama Effect”, but it’s ironic that the election of President Obama has ignited the greatest surge in guns and ammo sales in recent memory. One firearms marketing rep has suggested, half-seriously, that Pres. Obama should be named “Gun Salesman of the Century”.
This report courtesy NSSF.org
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August 3rd, 2009
The August issue of Target Shooter, the excellent UK-based webzine, is now available FREE online. As usual, this edition is chock full of interesting feature articles written “by shooters, for shooters”. You can either read the monthly e-magazine online, OR you can now download the entire August issue to your computer. This lets you peruse multiple articles at your leisure. (For readers with a slow web connection, reading offline may be more convenient, once you’ve downloaded the file.)
 Among the featured articles this month are an authoritative section on rifle maintenance and scope-mounting by Vince Bottomley (p. 13), a user’s guide to the Redding T7 press by Laurie Holland (p. 55), and an excellent guide to Rimfire Ammo selection and sorting by Carl Boswell (p. 40). If you follow Carl’s procedures (including the visual inspections shown at right), you’ll experience fewer unexplained “flyers” — we can guarantee that.
Complete F-Class Worlds Report
Amazingly, Target Shooter’s August issue contains a detailed, 4-page report on the 2009 F-Class World Championships which concluded just a few days ago in England. You’ll enjoy the reports from the field and interviews with top F-Classers from around the world. In addition to the match report, the August Target Shooter profiles Britain’s Gary Costello, the winner of the Individual World F-Class Championship.
Gary’s rifle was built by American gunsmith Alan Warner and is chambered as a 7mm-270 WSM. (The 270 case is used because it has a slightly longer neck and slightly less capacity). The action is an aluminium Stolle Panda with RBLP configuration. The scope is a March 10-60X mounted in Kelbly rings. The stock is an Alex Sitman Master Class laminated long-range thumbhole model. Sadly, the handsome gray/blue stock broke at the thumb-hole during shipping from the USA. However, Pet Walker of Walker Customer Rifles in West Yorkshire restored the stock to better than new condition, providing Gary with a beautiful rig that carried him to victory.
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August 3rd, 2009
We regularly visit vendor websites looking for good deals. Here are a pair of attractive bargains we found at Midsouth Shooters Supply.
The RCBS ChargeMaster 1500 Combo (with scale and dispenser) is now on sale for just $299.99, item # 044-98923. This remains our top-rated electronic powder dispenser system. You can watch one in action below. This video, created by a shooter in Norway, shows a Chargemaster dispensing Vihtavuori N140 powder. Using a Casio EX-F1 camera, the video was recorded at a high frame rate — up to 1200 frames per second. This allows “Slow-Motion” playback. At the end of the video you can watch the charge being thrown in normal time. Note how it slows down to trickle the last few tenths of a grain.
 Midsouth also has the Caldwell Rock BR Competition front rest on sale for just $149.99, item 094-440907.
While many “Rock” owners end up replacing the front bag, this unit is a surprisingly good rest for the money. With a 15.5-lb cast-iron “slingshot” base similar to the Bald Eagle design, the Caldwell Rock is very stable. The captain’s wheel works fine for elevation adjustments. Windage adjustment is less than ideal, as a threaded shaft rotates the whole head to adjust windage, rather than sliding the head back and forth in a straight line. At the extremes of adjustment, that can cause some binding, but most of the time it works just fine. For Varminters this may be all the rest you need.
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August 3rd, 2009
Veteran pilot, rifle shooter, hunter, and AccurateShooter forum member Dave Funk is running as a Republican candidate for U.S. Congress in Iowa. Dave Funk, known as ‘Captain Dave’ by many, served as Co-chair of Iowa Sportsmen for McCain-Palin and has been active in conservative political circles for most of his adult life. He recently serviced as co-chair of the Iowa Sportsmen for McCain-Palin. He is also is the current President of the Iowa Chapter of Safari Club International.
 Now working as an aviation security consultant, Dave served for nearly ten years as an attack helicopter pilot with the Iowa Army National Guard. He has over three decades of aviation experience, most recently as a Boeing 757 Captain for Northwest Airlines.
Why does a family man, living in rural Iowa with his wife and children, want to go to Washington? Dave Funk, a “tried and true conservative”, believes the country is at a crossroads and basic American values and freedoms are being challenged.
Dave explained: “Last fall, in the President’s Message in the Safari Club International’s Iowa Chapter quarterly newsletter, I wrote the following regarding the then-pending election: ‘As a nation we are at a fork in the road, one turn, towards the left, is in a direction much like our European allies have gone, to more government intrusion, higher taxes, fewer individual rights, and unrelenting attacks on our traditions as hunters and, to top it all off… stagnant economies. The other turn is toward the right, to freedom and liberty, lower taxes, [and] a vibrant economy.'”
Dave continued: “The ‘hope’ and ‘change’ thing sold to the American people last fall is not really working out. Democrats took control of Congress… and through a series of legislative missteps have increased the costs of doing business for all of us through higher taxes, excessive spending and massive federal intrusion into the private sector — including taking over banks and manufacturing companies.
I don’t want to face my son 20 years from now when he asks me, ‘Dad, in 2010, when there was still time to save this country, why didn’t you do something?’ It’s time that real Americans step up… before it’s too late. That’s why I’m running for Congress.” To learn more about Dave Funk and his campaign visit www.FunkforCongress.com, or call (515) 966-2066.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Whatever your political leanings, you have to admire Dave for undertaking this campaign. We applaud the fact that a fellow shooter is making the effort to get involved in the national politics. It is easy to sit back and complain about the state of affairs in the nation. It takes courage and commitment to do what Dave is doing.
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August 2nd, 2009
 Tony Boyer is, without question, the greatest short-range Benchrest for Group shooter who has ever lived. In a rare interview for the August 2009 issue of Precision Shooting magazine, Tony shares many of his “secrets of success” with his friend (and fellow benchrester) James Mock. James also interviews Tony’s wife Faye, a superb shooter in her own right.
This Boyer interview is now, for a limited time, available online. CLICK HERE to READ INTERVIEW. Every short-range and mid-range benchrest shooter should read this article word for word, at least twice. Tony reveals insights that may surprise you, and will certainly enlighten you. You may be surprised that Tony is now shooting a .268″ neck.
And in the article Tony challenges many commonly-held ideas. For example he doesn’t think vertical is mostly load-related: “Most shooters think that vertical groups are caused by too light a powder charge. This may be true, but more often than not, the rifle has more to do with this than the load. If the rifle is muzzle heavy, this can cause vertical. Also, the way the action is set in the stock can cause vertical as can handling problems…such as shouldering the rifle.”
Barrel Quality is All-Important
What is the main secret to Benchrest accuracy? Throughout the interview, Boyer stresses the importance of barrel quality. Tony can quickly identify barrels with winning potential. He has “developed a system that takes no more than 30 rounds to determine if it is going to shoot”. Tony needs that kind of efficiency because he burns through barrels very quickly: “Contrary to what many say, I rarely shoot a barrel more than 600 rounds in competition. I can remember only one barrel that exceeded 1200 rounds.”
When asked if there was one paramount “secret” he could share to help new shooters, Tony replied: “If you have the means, buy as many barrels as possible. A great barrel is the real secret of this game. There are barrels out there that shoot better than they should. They have been given the name ‘hummer’. I can assure you that they exist.”
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August 1st, 2009
The Smallbore Prone Championship matches have concluded at Camp Perry, and we have a new National Champion, Spc. Joseph Hine from the U.S. Army.
As the Smallbore prone champ and winner of the Critchfield Trophy, Specialist Joseph Hein was awarded the Critchfield trophy plaque, a gold tone national champion, a medallion, a Chiappa blackpowder muzzleloading rifle, and a $500 Visa gift card. Here are the top finishers and their final scores.
1. SPC Joseph Hein – 4790×354 | National Champion
2. Richard Fowke – 4790×355 | Civilian Champion
3. Reya Kempley – 4789×374 | Woman Champion
Runner-up Richard Fowke was crowned the Civilian Champion. Fowke actually outscored Hein by one “X”. But as a British citizen, Fowke wasn’t eligible for the U.S. National Championship. Third-Place finisher Reya Kempley also received an award as Top Female Shooter. Reya also shoots a 6mmBR centerfire rifle in international 300m competition.
This story was provided by the NRA Blog. You’ll find many more photos of the Camp Perry Smallbore competition and awards ceremonies on the NRA Media Relations Public Gallery. On that page, click on any thumbnail to view a slideshow of related photos.
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August 1st, 2009
Hornady has been selected as the official ammunition supplier for the 2009 National Springfield and Garand Matches, to be held August 7 and 8, in Camp Perry, Ohio. Hornady’s 30-06 Garand Match Ammunition will be issued to all shooters competing in the Springfield Rifle Match, John C. Garand Match, and the Vintage Military Rifle Match.
Hornady 30-06 M1 Garand Match Ammunition delivers a 168gr A-Max bullet at 2710 fps MV. Hornady’s Garand ammo is purpose-built for the Garand platform, employing medium burn-rate propellants that protect the M1 rifle’s gas port system, meeting all SAAMI guidelines.
According to Hornady, some 30-06 military surplus ammunition and current 30-06 commercial ammunition is too powerful for the gas operating system of the M1 Garand. “Permanent damage can occur while shooting standard [modern] factory-loaded 30-06 ammunition in the M1 Garand,” said Dave Emary, Hornady Chief Ballistic Scientist. “Typical factory loads contain propellants that when fired, result in port pressures and gas volumes that are too high, causing violent stress to the rifle’s operating rod, bolt, and receiver.”
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