By Steve Cooper, CMP Writer
Civilian shooter Konrad Powers, 41, of Carol Stream, IL won the storm-shortened 2011 President’s Rifle Trophy Match at Camp Perry Monday, 1 August, with an aggregate score of 295-8X out of 300 points possible, topping SSG Ty Cooper, 26, U.S. Army and SGT Christopher Atkins, 24, U.S. Army Reserve, who placed second and third, respectively. Powers fired a 98-3X in off-hand shooting at 200 yards, 99-3X in rapid-fire prone at 300 yards and 98-2X in prone slow-fire at 600 yards with his service rifle.
In junior shooting, Tyler Rico, 17, of Tucson, Arizona placed first with an aggregate score of 288-8X in an X-count tiebreaker over James London, 17, of Statesville, North Carolina who finished with a 288-4X. Rico’s score also placed him 38th overall in the match. He fired scores of 95-2X, 99-5X, 94-1X in offhand, rapid prone and slow prone, respectively.
First fired in 1878, the President’s Rifle Match, a National Trophy Rifle Match, was incorporated into the National Match program after the Nationals were established in 1903. The President’s Rifle and Pistol Matches have become especially prestigious because the match winners traditionally receive letters of congratulations from the President of the United States of America. Shooters who place 100th or better in the match are given special recognition as members of the President’s Hundred, a distinction highly prized in both civilian and military circles.
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Charter Arms has apparently revived its 40 S&W Rimless Revolver, first announced in 2009. Charter Arms claims its 40 S&W Revolver is the “world’s first .40 caliber Rimless Revolver”.
Built on the same stainless steel frame as the .44 Special Pit Bull wheelgun, the new 5-shot .40 S&W Pit Bull Revolver weighs 20 ounces, and measures 6.75″ overall with a 2.3 inch barrel. The gun has a fixed frame rear sight and a ramped front sight with a standard hammer. A DAO hammer is available upon request. Rubber grips are standard.
Dual Coil Spring Extractor Design Eliminates Need for Moonclips
The Charter Arms .40 S&W Revolver features a rimless cartridge extractor assembly. A dual coil spring assembly is located in the extractor to allow the insertion and retention of a .40 caliber cartridge in each chamber of the revolvers’ cylinder. What sets the new Charter Arms apart from previous revolvers chambered for rimless cartridges is the built-in coil spring that grabs the cartridges’ extractor groove. This enables the gun to work without moon clips used in other revolver designs.
.40 S&W Revolver Makes Sense as Back-Up for .40 S&W Duty Pistol
Why do we need a revolver that shoots .40 S&W when there are perfectly good options for .38 Special, .357 Magnum and other popular rimmed cartridges? According to Charter Arms President Nick Ecker, the firearms industry has had a “long felt need” for a revolver that fires .40 S&W rimless ammo. Ecker explains: “The Pit Bull is the ideal revolver for law enforcement officers to use as their back up, because they can now carry a revolver that utilizes the same ammo as their sidearm. It gives them the first revolver that shoots their [.40 S&W] ammo without utilizing moon clips.” It is not clear whether the new .40-Cal Pit Bull can shoot the hotter 10mm rimless ammo as well. We note that the barrel of the gun is marked “Pit Bull 40 S&W”.
COMMENT: We hope Charter Arms applies its rimless extractor design to a 9mm Parabellum version. A 9mm revolver that works reliably without moon clips should be very popular. In a lightweight wheelgun, the 9mm (with its lesser recoil) would be more controllable than the .40 S&W round. The .40 S&W has a stout kick even in a full-size, all-metal duty pistol. 9mm ammo is also much more affordable than 40 S&W ammunition. We note that when Charter Arms first announced its “Rimless Revolvers” two years ago, it claimed it would also release a .45 ACP version and “90-120 days after the .45 ACP will come the 9mm”. Charter Arms has not revealed whether it still plans to bring out either a .45 ACP or 9mm Rimless Revolver. In 2009, Charter Arms listed these prices: 9mm $399.00, .40 $449.00, .45 ACP $449.00.
Hindsight: Smith & Wesson 9mm Model 547
Historically, the new .40 Cal Pit Bull is not the first revolver from a major manufacturer to chamber rimless cartridges without moon clips. In the 1980s Smith & Wesson marketed a model 547 9mm revolver that used a spring-loaded detent in the cylinder for case retention. Basically a modified model 13 with 3″ barrel, the model 547 is no longer in production.
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Frank Galli, aka “Lowlight”, runs the popular SnipersHide.com website. Frank recently completed a gunsmithing course with Robert Gradous. Frank recounts the learning process in an informative, nicely-illustrated article on the ‘Hide. Frank explains how he put together a new 6.5 Creedmoor tactical rifle using a Bartlein barrel, Bighorn Action (Rem clone with floating bolt-head), and a “lightly used” Accuracy International 1.5 chassis. The HD video below shows the process start-to-finish. READ Full Article.
During Frank’s “hands-on” training sessions with Gradous, Frank learned to thread and chamber a barrel, fit a recoil lug, and install the barreled action in the AI chassis. Chambering was done with great care: “We spent the better part of the day working the barrel. I feel this is a critical component and seeing the attention to detail in Robert’s approach confirmed it for me. When it came time to chamber Robert had a custom tight chamber reamer there for a 6.5CM but I’m shooting a tactical rifle, tight chambers aren’t for me, and this was clear, as out came the standard SAAMI reamer.”
Frank also learned how to modify an aluminum chassis: “the AI chassis had the recoil lug opened up, but it was opened in the wrong direction. This was going to require milling increasing the gap to at least a 1/2″ in size. Robert was really leery of this, but my attitude was, ‘it’s just a chassis and nothing a little Marine Tex can’t handle’.” Thankfully the chassis mod came out OK.
Once the barreled action was complete and the AI chassis was successfully milled, Frank applied a tan Cerakote finish to the barreled action. This would give a proper tactical look to the rifle, while providing superior corrosion resistance for the metal parts. To learn more about Cerakote finishing, check out the Cerakote Application Video, published last week in the Daily Bulletin.
When the rifle was complete, Frank took it out for testing with a variety of ammo, both factory fodder and handloads. There were some initial worries about accuracy as it took a while for the barrel to break in. A few sessions of bore cleaning were required before the barrel stopped fouling and then — like magic — the rifle started printing really small groups.
By the end of his load testing session, Frank was getting good groups with Hornady 120gr GMX factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammo, and really superb groups with handloads. The 120gr GMX ammo “was going 3100 fps with no ill effects”. The best handloads were approaching 1/4 MOA for three shots, and Frank’s load with Berger 130 VLDs shot even smaller than that: “In my opinion the load development we did was worth its weight in gold. Where else can you build in a rifle in two days, then go out and develop a baseline load using everything from 120gr ammo to 140gr ammo with a few in between? My favorite load and clearly the rifle’s too, was the [Berger] 130gr VLD. This gave us great velocity, awesome groups [with some one-holers] and really nice results at distance.”
Lowlight’s Gunsmithing Story is a ‘Must-Read’
We recommend you read Frank’s story. It shows that, with the right tools, and the supervision of a master smith, even a novice can produce an ultra-accurate rifle. For those of you who have considered taking a gunsmithing class, Frank’s successful experience with gunsmith Robert Gradous should give you plenty of motivation.
Results are in for some of the early high power and service rifle competitions at Camp Perry. SGT Sherri Gallagher took the Coast Artillery Trophy Match, edging runner-up Rodrigo Rosa in a Shoot-Off by three ‘Xs’. Finishing third was Carl Bernosky. Gallagher, Rosa, and Bernosky all shot identical 200-15X scores in the main match. The Coast Artillery Trophy, pictured on the right, is a lidded silver loving cup with the figure of a uniformed U.S. soldier of the 1920s shooting a rifle from the standing position embossed on the side. The trophy was donated to the NRA by the Coast Artillery Association in 1923 to be awarded to the high-scoring Coast Artilleryman in the President’s Match. The Coast Artillery Match is a rapid fire match shot from 300 yards in the prone position.
In the Scott Trophy match, Harry Harrison finished first, winning by tie-breaker over Carl Bernosky. Both Harry and Carl shot identical 200-15X scores. The Scott Trophy match is shot rapid fire in two strings of ten shots — each string lasting only 70 seconds. Competitors have the option to kneel or sit when shooting, although most opt to sit.
The Members Trophy Match is a a slow fire match of 20 shots from 200 yards while standing. First shot (and won by William F. Leushner of New York) in 1901, the original competition called for annual NRA members to shoot five shots at 200 yards while standing and five shots prone at 500 yards.
Coast Artillery Trophy Match*
1. Sherri Gallagher 200-15X (100-10X)
2. Rodrigo Rosa 200-15X (100-7X)
3. Carl Bernosky 200-15X
4. Jack Jones 200-13X
5. David Kerin 200-12X
5. David Tubb 200-12X
5. Harry Harrison 200-12X
Scott Trophy Match
1. Harry Harrison 200-15X
2. Carl Bernosky 200-15X
3. Samuel Freeman 200-14X
4. Kevin Bangen 200-13X
5. John Holliger 200-13X
Members Trophy Match
1. Rodrigo Rosa 199-7X
2. Joseph Hendricks 198-5X
3. Norman Houle 197-11X
4. Carl Bernosky 197-11X
5. Sherri Gallagher 197-8X
*In the Coast Artillery Trophy Match, SGT Gallagher and Rosa fired a shoot-off, as they had an unbreakable tie in the match. In the shoot off, Rosa had a 100-7x, and Gallagher had a perfect 100-10x to win the Coast Artillery Trophy.
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R, OK), successfully added an amendment to the committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, making military surplus previously-fired small arms cartridges available for commercial sale with certain restrictions. It also requires the U.S. Secretary of Defense to ensure compliance with managing commercial sale of spent ammunition.
Sen. Inhofe drafted this provision in response to the controversial destruction of once-fired military brass in recent years. Some military base commanders had arranged with ammunition manufacturers to have once-fired brass demilled and sold as scrap metal. However, the cartridges are worth far less as scrap metal than as reloadable ammo components. The U.S. Treasury was losing money since it was not recovering the full value of the cartridge brass in the surplus marketplace.
“My amendment provides a unique opportunity for the commercial sale of spent small arms cartridges,” said Inhofe. “This is beneficial from a cost saving standpoint. Having worked on this issue for some time, I am pleased to have made this progress. Those that care about Second Amendment Rights have put much effort into this as well.”
NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox said, “It is common sense that serviceable and safe military spent brass cases are made available for commercial sale as military-sourced spent brass cases are of the calibers most widely used for marksmanship training and competition by civilians. In addition to being a revenue source for military bases, reloaded ammunition costs considerably less, and every gun owner and hunter can appreciate the savings during these tough economic times.”
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Every Wednesday night, the popular Shooting USA TV series airs on the Outdoor Channel. The hour-long broadcast covers all aspects of shooting — from cowboy action to the National Matches at Camp Perry. No matter what gun game you play, you’ll probably find something of interest on Shooting USA. However, we know that many cable providers do not offer the Outdoor Channel in an affordable package, so many of you can’t watch the weekly broadcasts.
But here’s some good news — many of Shooting USA’s most popular video segments are now streamed on the internet. Just log on to MyOutdoorTV.com to access dozens of Shooting USA features. Leading off this week is a video that shows how to field-strip and clean an AR, followed by tips on zeroing the rifle with iron sights. Use the scrolling menu (on the right) to find other stories. Topics include: the Camp Perry National Matches, High Power Silhouette, 3-gun Competition, IDPA, the Bianchi Cup, SASS End of Trail. You’ll also find some informative gunsmithing videos. Watching Shooting USA videos online is a good option for readers who lack cable access to the Outdoor Channel.
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The 2011 NRA National High Power Rifle Championships kicked off Sunday August 7th, with the first series of Team matches including the Whistler Boy High Power Team Match and the NRA 2nd Amendment Team Match. Initial Team results are posted below. Sunday was a great day for the young CA Grizzlies– junior shooters from California. One Grizzlies squad won the Whistler Boy match, and a second Grizzlies crew placed fourth. Way to go Grizzlies! Following the Team Matches, the individual competition begins. As results are posted throughout the week, we shall see if last year’s overall champion, Sherri Gallagher, can repeat her winning performance from last year.
High Power Team Match Results (Pending Certification)
Whistler Boy High Power Team Match
1. CA Grizzlies Mother Lode – 965-24X
2. ASRP Gold – 963-24X
3. NCRPA Gold – 959-20X
4. CA Grizzlies Richmond – 957-27X
5. WLCSINC – 952-23X
NRA 2nd Amendment Team Match
1. Sierra Gold – 991-57X
2. Sierra Dave & Ron – 990-47X
3. Richard Associates Frenzl – 989-44X
4. AMU Match Rife – 987-56X
5. Remington Bushmaster – 986-44X
NRA-Springfield M1A Match
1. Bill Bowers – 483-13X
2. William Walter – 480-13X
3. Shawn McKenna – 480-13X
4. Jeremy Castle – 475-5X
5. Sara Rozanski – 474-11X
Last month, Vortex Optics sponsored a new kind of rifle competition that tested competitors’ fitness along with their marksmanship skills. The inaugural Vortex “Extreme Invitational” was held July 16, at the Spirit Ridge Rifle Golf facility near Tremonton, Utah. At most traditional long-range rifle matches, the only hiking required of the shooters is from their vehicles to the firing line, and to the pits if target-pulling duties are required. Vortex has created a new game. At the Extreme Invitational, participants walked, jogged, and sometimes ran over a six-mile course –- all the while knowing a portion of their score was based on how quickly they finished. Strong legs and lungs were a big asset. The event tested long range shooting skills, but it was also was physically challenging (and hot).
Competitors at the start of the match. Christensen Arms Team #1 (top left) ran most of the course.
Demanding Course of Fire Required Position Shooting Skills and Mastery of Angled Shots
At the Extreme Invitational, two-man industry teams vied for honors on a challenging mountain course. Final scores were based on course time and how well each two-man team shot. Shots ranged from 200 to 1200 yards. Each station featured a tough standing, sitting, kneeling or prone shot (no shots from benches). Even highly experienced shooters found the course quite humbling. There were a variety of firearms on the course. Some participants favored the lightest weight rigs possible, while others toted fairly heavy tactical-style rifles with stout barrel contours.
“The goal of the event was to bring industry leaders together for a day of hard-core shooting in a new format that tested physical fitness, long rage marksmanship, team communication and strategy,” said Mark Boardman, Vortex Optics marketing manager. Scenarios mimicked many of the same pressures faced when that big game trophy steps out and you only have precious seconds to find the target, get a range, dial elevation, dope wind and execute a shot — often times with an increased heart rate and breathing heavily. No easy task.”
Wasatch Arms Team Finishes First
In this game, like golf, the lower the score (which factored both time and hits), the higher the finishing position. Wasatch Arms’ team of Kevin Norman and Landon Gines finished in first place with a 39 score. In second place, with a 55 score, was the G7 duo of Todd Sholly and Tyler Scoffield. The Christensen Arms #2 Team (Courtney Crane, Andy Christiansen) scored 62 to finished third . According to Vortex’s Mark Boardman, “Andy Christiansen from Christensen Arms was using one of our new Viper HS LR riflescopes and finished in the top three. He’s a heck of shooter and climbed those hills like a billy goat.”
Starting up the “Hog’s Back”. The course was very challenging, given the hot conditions.
To view more event photos, CLICK HERE to access the Vortex Facebook Photo Album.
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The NBRSA 100/200 yard Nationals will be conducted September 19-24, 2011 at the Midlands Shooters Assn. Range, located at 3212 E. County Road 136, Midland, TX 79706. There are still places available for the Nationals. Fees are: $190 for 3-gun (SP,LV,HV), $250 for 4-Gun, and Juniors shoot for half-price. There is a $40 late fee for registrations received after August, 20, 2011.
NBRSA Membership Meeting on August 22, 2011
The NBRSA’s Annual General Membership Meeting will also be held in Midlands, Texas, in conjunction with the Nationals. The meeting, scheduled for Thursday, September 22, 2011, will be held after the day’s shoot and before the Awards ceremony. All active NBRSA Full Members are welcome to attend, whether they compete in the match or not.
Story Tip by EdLongrange. We welcome user submissions.
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Tactical Defense Institute (TDI) is teaming up with SRT Prosthetics to offer a “Wounded Warrior” training course for injured active/former military personnel. This course will also be open to civilians who are fitted with artificial limbs or other prostheses. The “Wounded Warrior” class will be held on May 14-16, 2012 and will follow TDI’s Handgun 1-2-3 curriculum. For more info, call TDI at (937) 544-7228 or email tdiohio [at] dragonbbs.com.
TDI Operates 186-Acre Training Facility in Ohio
Founded in 1986, TDI is a tactics and training facility located in southern Ohio. TDI’s 186-acre facility features three live fire houses, a 2-story force on force house, 400-yard rifle range, unknown distance range, dueling plate range, vehicle range and a main range with both paper and steel targets. TDI works with civilian, military, Federal, local law enforcement and corporate clients. TDI offers training at both its Ohio facility and at off-site locations around the country.
Video Shows How Wounded Warriors
Successfully Adapt to High-Tech Bionic Limbs
Watch the video below to see TDI’s training program for prosthesis-fitted vets. The video (from WCPO Ch. 9, Cincinnati) shows the new technology that is allowing many combat veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan to resume their lives, and in some cases, their military careers. With rehabilitation and modern prosthetics, 20% of soldiers who have lost one limb are able to return to active duty.
Watch This Video — The New Artificial Legs are Amazing!
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This week, hundreds of the world’s best 3-gunners have been competing in Raton, New Mexico in the prestigious Rocky Mountain 3-Gun Championship. Today (Saturday), is the final day of the popular 3-day event which features nine different stages at the NRA Whittington Center. The elevation at Raton, combined with the rugged terrain of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, have made for a physically challenging match. While this is very much a speed event, long-range skills are tested by some stages with rifle targets placed as far out as 500 yards.
In the slide show above, you can see top competitors (including Team S&W Captain Julie Golob and Safariland’s Scott Carnahan) engage Stage 2 of the event. Sponsored by the U.S. Marine Corps’ Combat Shooting Team from Quantico, Stage 2 is named “OO-RAH” and includes all three firearms. Competitors start the stage with shotguns, shooting a series of steel targets. Then shooters transition to pistols to shoot paper and steel targets. Finally, they engage paper, steel, and even stationary clay targets with their rifles.
Rocky Mountain 3-Gun Will Be Broadcast on 3-Gun Nation
The Rocky Mountain 3-Gun is being filmed as part of the second season of the 3-Gun Nation TV show. After completion of the Raton tournament on Saturday afternoon, there will be a 3-Gun Nation shoot-off, where top-ranked competitors will compete head-to-head for bragging rights and a fat check. Last year, Remington’s Robby Johnson beat out Jerry Miculek for a $5,000 check from Safariland. In the slide show below you can see Robby Johnson competing at Raton, as well as ace USAMU shooter SGT Dan Horner, 3-Gun Nation’s 2010 Champion.
Check out gun industry insider info in the latest issue of SHOT Business magazine, now available online at www.shotbusiness.com. This month the magazine explores the growing interest of female shooters in “modern sporting rifles” — ARs aren’t just for guys anymore. Those of our readers who sell firearm gear will appreciate this month’s analysis of hot selling new products. The interesting new Vortek muzzle-loading pistol is reviewed. This is a long-barrel hunting pistol, similar in appearance to a T/C Contender (but without the break-open action). Other features in this month’s issue include a Q&A discussion about ATF regulations, a feature on air rifles, and a commentary on the upcoming 2012 SHOT Show.
First fired in 1878, the President’s Rifle Match, a National Trophy Rifle Match, was incorporated into the National Match program after the Nationals were established in 1903. The President’s Rifle and Pistol Matches have become especially prestigious because the match winners traditionally receive letters of congratulations from the President of the United States of America. Shooters who place 100th or better in the match are given special recognition as members of the President’s Hundred, a distinction highly prized in both civilian and military circles.
Once the barreled action was complete and the AI chassis was successfully milled, Frank applied a tan Cerakote finish to the barreled action. This would give a proper tactical look to the rifle, while providing superior corrosion resistance for the metal parts. To learn more about Cerakote finishing, check out the 
By the end of his load testing session, Frank was getting good groups with Hornady 120gr GMX factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammo, and really superb groups with handloads. The 120gr GMX ammo “was going 3100 fps with no ill effects”. The best handloads were approaching 1/4 MOA for three shots, and Frank’s load with Berger 130 VLDs shot even smaller than that: “In my opinion the load development we did was worth its weight in gold. Where else can you build in a rifle in two days, then go out and develop a baseline load using everything from 120gr ammo to 140gr ammo with a few in between? My favorite load and clearly the rifle’s too, was the [Berger] 130gr VLD. This gave us great velocity, awesome groups [with some one-holers] and really nice results at distance.”
Results are in for some of the early high power and service rifle competitions at Camp Perry. SGT Sherri Gallagher took the Coast Artillery Trophy Match, edging runner-up Rodrigo Rosa in a Shoot-Off by three ‘Xs’. Finishing third was Carl Bernosky. Gallagher, Rosa, and Bernosky all shot identical 200-15X scores in the main match. The Coast Artillery Trophy, pictured on the right, is a lidded silver loving cup with the figure of a uniformed U.S. soldier of the 1920s shooting a rifle from the standing position embossed on the side. The trophy was donated to the NRA by the Coast Artillery Association in 1923 to be awarded to the high-scoring Coast Artilleryman in the President’s Match. The Coast Artillery Match is a rapid fire match shot from 300 yards in the prone position.
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R, OK), successfully added an amendment to the committee-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, making military surplus previously-fired small arms cartridges available for commercial sale with certain restrictions. It also requires the U.S. Secretary of Defense to ensure compliance with managing commercial sale of spent ammunition.
The 2011 NRA National High Power Rifle Championships kicked off Sunday August 7th, with the first series of Team matches including the Whistler Boy High Power Team Match and the NRA 2nd Amendment Team Match. Initial Team results are posted below. Sunday was a great day for the young CA Grizzlies– junior shooters from California. One Grizzlies squad won the Whistler Boy match, and a second Grizzlies crew placed fourth. Way to go Grizzlies! Following the Team Matches, the individual competition begins. As results are posted throughout the week, we shall see if last year’s overall champion, Sherri Gallagher, can repeat her winning performance from last year.
The 
