Recently, an AccurateShooter team including contributing writer German Salazar visited the Nammo Talley facility in Mesa, Arizona. We were given access to the new Rimfire Service Center and the .338 Lapua Magnum loading facility. The Rimfire Service Center is a brand new facility dedicated to supporting top-level rimfire shooters in all disciplines, including Prone, 3-Position, Silhouette, Benchrest and more. Lapua has over 2 million rounds of various grades of match ammunition on hand for shooters to test and purchase. The RSC has a 100-meter test tunnel where groups are measured under ideal conditions with electronic sensor-equipped “paperless” target frames placed at 50 meters and 100 meters. Shooters can make appointments to visit the center and test ammo in their own rifles. A detailed report on the RSC has just been released on German’s Rifleman’s Journal website.
.338 Lapua Manufacturing and Testing
The .338 Lapua Magnum facility is a super-sized version of the rimfire facility. With a 300-meter tunnel and pressure testing equipment on hand, Nammo’s engineering and loading staff have the ability to develop perfect loads for government clients with a variety of specific requirements. The loading facility has equally impressive technology and is well worth reading about. CLICK HERE to read German’s article about the .338 LM facility.
AccurateShooter.com will have more information on these two state-of-the-art facilitites, including video footage in the coming weeks. So stay tuned!
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The Dolphin Gun Company, based in the United Kingdom, has developed a very stable, yet lightweight wide-base bipod, ideal for F-TR shooters. We expect Dolphin’s new Trakker bipod will also be popular with varmint hunters and some tactical shooters.
Trakker bipods are available in two confirgurations, “Standard” and “Long”. Perhaps they would be better named “Wide” and “Extra-Wide” — the “Long” version has extended legs which can provide a wider base and/or extra elevation. Both versions provide a very stable platform for prone shooting, and both versions are available with either Sling-swivel or rail attachments (see photos below).
Here’s the great news — these Trakker bipods are very light, yet sturdy. The standard version weighs just 21.2 ounces (600 grams), while the long version tips the scales at 24.7 ounces (700 grams). This will help shooters “make weight” in F-TR class even if they have a very long barrel, or jumbo-sized scope. Trakker bipods are offered with multiple color choices: natural (silver) alloy, matte black powder coat, or other powder coat color of the customers’ choice (extra charge may apply for custom colors).
Dolphin’s Trakker bipods have been extensively tested by top F-TR shooters in Europe and we have heard that these bipods work extremely well. They are stable yet easy to adjust, and they are quite a bit lighter than most wide-base bipods on the market. Retail price in the UK is £165.00, which translates to $267.00 US Dollars, but this does not include overseas shipping or possible customs charges. Americans can order direct from Dolphin at this time and Dolphin will ship to the states. (Dolphin is currently in discussions with a US-based company that would produce the Trakker bipod for the North American market, under license). For more information, visit DolphinGunCompany.co.uk or email mik [at] mikdolphin.demon.co.uk. NOTE: The Dolphin Gun Company website is pretty slow. You may have to try multiple times to load the pages.
About Dolphin Gun Company
Dolphin Gun Company was formed several years ago by Mik Maksimovic and Pete Hobson, two active, competitive F-Class shooters. Both Mik and Peter come from engineering backgrounds. They first set up Dolphin Gun Company to build their own competitive shooting gear. From hobby gunsmithing and preparing their own rifles and equipment, Mik and Pete quickly progressed to building rifles for other shooters and creating top-of-the-line shooting accessories such as the Trakker bipod.
Product Tip from Boyd Allen. We welcome reader submissions.
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About 24 miles east of Oceanside, California (near the Camp Pendleton Marine base) is the Pala Reservation. On that Native American land you’ll find a Casino Resort, plus an excellent shooting range. Each month, shooters come to Pala for the Varmint Silhouette Match hosted by the North County Shootist Association. Normally there is one match, held on the first Sunday of even month. But in May, you can “double your fun” because there will be TWO (2) matches. The first will be held this Sunday, May 6th, 2012. The second match takes place on Sunday, May 20th. On both match days, gates open at 7:30 am with practice from 8:00 am to 9:00 am. On Friday, May 4th, the range will be open for practice 9:00 am – 1:00 pm, while on Friday, May 18th, the range opens at 10:30 am.
Course of Fire: Five Yardages, 50 Critters
At five different yardages, ten steel “critter” targets are set as follows: 200 Meters – Field Mice (“pikas”); 300 meters – Crows; 385 meters – Ground Squirrels; 500 meters – Jack Rabbits; 600 yards – Prairie Dogs. The folks at Pala run a tight ship, cycling multiple relays efficiently, so everybody gets to shoot 50 targets (10 each at five different yardages), and the show is usually completed by 1:00 pm. There’s a one-hour sight-in period starting at 8:00 am, and the match starts at 9:00 am sharp. Newcomers should definitely arrive no later than 7:45 am, because you may need that full sight-in period to acquire solid zeros at all five yardages. CLICK HERE for full match INFO.
What to bring to Pala You’ll need an accurate rifle, plus at least 80 rounds of ammo (bring 100 rounds if you have no idea about your come-ups at these distances). You can shoot either rested prone (F-Class style), from bipod, or from a portable bench with front pedestal and rear bag. Most guys shoot from benches. Any rifle 6.5 caliber or under is allowed, with no weight restrictions. Any good varmint rifle can be competitive. Muzzle brakes are permitted. Spotter assistants are allowed, so bring a friend along — he/she can shoot in a different relay. Bring cleaning gear if your rifle can’t run 80+ rounds without losing accuracy. Pastry snacks are often provided, but bring water, a sandwich and your preferred non-alcoholic beverage. You’ll spend some time in the sun helping to set targets, so bring a hat, sunglasses, and sunscreen.
Fun Weekend for the Whole Family There is a deluxe Indian Casino/Spa a half-mile from the range. So don’t hesitate to bring the wife. If she’s not a shooter, she can enjoy a fancy brunch or spa treatment while you’re having fun mowing down metal critters. Pala is a 30 minutes from the Pacific Ocean and beautiful beaches, so you can make this a weekend holiday for the whole family — kids love sand and surf.
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For the second year, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) will make available $100,000 in challenge grants to help expand shooting sports programs at local Boy Scouts of America Councils. The challenge grants from NSSF are available to qualifying BSA Councils that plan to expand their activities in the shooting sports. Such programs teach Scouts marksmanship skills, firearm and range safety, and teamwork.
“Our challenge grant program extends our longstanding partnership with the Boy Scouts of America and presents councils with a great opportunity to teach Scouts about the shooting sports and safe, responsible firearms ownership,” said Melissa Schilling, NSSF’s director of recruitment and retention. “Target shooting is one of the most popular Scouting activities, and NSSF hopes even more Scouts will gain knowledge of the shooting sports by taking advantage of these grants.”
NSSF Grants Supplement Matching Funds
BSA Councils applying for a grant must specifically earmark funds for shooting sports programs and provide matching funds at least equal to the grant request. NSSF will provide funding to the first 50 qualifying applicants up to a maximum of $2,000 in matching support.
Councils must use awarded funds toward the purchase of equipment and supplies for their shooting sports activities from an NSSF member retailer. Examples of qualifying purchases are ammunition, eye and ear protection, firearms, targets and shooting vests.
How to Apply for NSSF Grants
Applicants may view NSSF BSA Council Challenge Grant guidelines and application procedures at www.nssf.org/bsagrant. For more info, contact Melissa Schilling at NSSF at mschilling [at] nssf.org.
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Nancy Tompkins will be bringing out a new Second Edition of her popular book: Prone and Long-Range Rifle Shooting. Nancy hopes to have Second Edition books available by mid-June, 2012. The enhanced Second Edition will feature updates to the current chapters, more photos, plus an entirely new chapter on F-Class Shooting. The Second Edition will be issued as a hardback only, for increased durability. Price isn’t set yet, but Nancy hopes to keep the price “under $40.00″. The book will be available from Sinclair Int’l and direct from Nancy who plans to have a new website for the book running by the end of May.
While visiting the new Lapua Rimfire Test Center in Mesa, Arizona, we had a chance to chat with Nancy, and learn about the Second Edition of Prone and Long-Range Rifle Shooting. Watch the video to hear Nancy talk about her plans for the updated version of her book.
Tompkins Book a Must-Read for Long-Range Shooters
Nancy’s updated treatise is a must-read for serious Palma, F-Class, and High Power shooters. The sections covering Mental & Physical training and Reading Wind & Mirage will benefit all precision shooters, regardless of discipline. Other topics include Shooting Fundamentals, International Competition, and Loading for Long Range. Nancy Tompkins has won the National Long Range Championships four times, and is the first woman ever to win the National High Power Championship. (The second was Nancy’s daughter SGT Sherri Gallagher.) Nancy has also won the prestigious Wimbledon Cup, and is a 5-time Leech Cup winner. Nancy has been on six Palma Teams (as both a shooter and a coach). (Note: photo shows First Edition of book.)
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They have been on the market for nearly a year, but you may not know that Redding sells a line of Micrometer Seater assemblies, which can be used to upgrade Redding’s standard ½-20 thread seater dies. These replacements allow you to enjoy the ease-of-use and precision of a micrometer seater, without buying a whole new die. Redding states that “the new Bullet Seating Micrometers are a direct [retro-fit] replacement for the original seating plugs and can easily be changed from one die to another.” Unfortunately, these add-on micrometer stems haven’t started shipping yet, and Redding has not provided a firm delivery date (or price). We are hoping the products will start arriving by mid-summer.
NOTE: the seater assemblies are a component of the bullet seating die. These are not the dies themselves. It is the top portion of the die that contains the plunger, which pushes the bullet into the case. And here is something important: these new Bullet Seating Micrometers are available for both traditional tangent ogive bullet shapes as well as for VLD (secant ogive) bullets.
That’s right, Redding now offers micrometer seater assemblies made specifically for Berger VLD bullets. These Seating Micrometers allow you to convert a standard seater to a Micrometer seater optimized for VLDs. That’s great news for VLD fans. Eric Stecker of Berger Bullets tells us: “We have confirmed with Redding that each of the new micrometer plugs in the VLD group were designed based on Berger VLD bullets. We provided all of our VLD bullets to Redding, from which they took deliberate measurements and made these new plugs.”
New VLD-specific Seater Stems Improve Bullet Seating Depth Consistency
Stecker explains how the new VLD-specific seater assemblies produce better, more accurate ammo: “Many shooters have problems getting the VLD bullets to shoot because of the bullet seater die they are using. VLD bullet noses are so long and sharp that, in many dies, the bullet tip bottoms out in the bullet seater stem instead of touching on the side of the ogive like it should. Seating depth inconsistencies up to .025″ can occur if the seater stem bottoms out on the bullet tip. The worst part is that many shooters have no idea that this is the root cause of their poor performance. This new product can help turn a frustrating shooting experience into an enjoyable one.”
Story tip from Edlongrange. We welcome submissions from our readers.
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Recently, an AccurateShooter team including contributing writer German Salazar visited the Nammo Talley facility in Mesa, Arizona. We were given access to the new Rimfire Service Center and the .338 Lapua Magnum loading facility. The Rimfire Service Center is a brand new facility dedicated to supporting top-level rimfire shooters in all disciplines, including Prone, 3-Position, Silhouette, Benchrest and more. Lapua has over 2 million rounds of various grades of match ammunition on hand for shooters to test and purchase. The RSC has a 100-meter test tunnel where groups are measured under ideal conditions with electronic sensor-equipped “paperless” target frames placed at 50 meters and 100 meters. Shooters can make appointments to visit the center and test ammo in their own rifles. A detailed report on the RSC has just been released on German’s Rifleman’s Journal website.
The 
You’ll need an accurate rifle, plus at least 80 rounds of ammo (bring 100 rounds if you have no idea about your come-ups at these distances). You can shoot either rested prone (F-Class style), from bipod, or from a portable bench with front pedestal and rear bag. Most guys shoot from benches. Any rifle 6.5 caliber or under is allowed, with no weight restrictions. Any good varmint rifle can be competitive. Muzzle brakes are permitted. Spotter assistants are allowed, so bring a friend along — he/she can shoot in a different relay. Bring cleaning gear if your rifle can’t run 80+ rounds without losing accuracy. Pastry snacks are often provided, but bring water, a sandwich and your preferred non-alcoholic beverage. You’ll spend some time in the sun helping to set targets, so bring a hat, sunglasses, and sunscreen.
There is a deluxe Indian Casino/Spa a half-mile from the range. So don’t hesitate to bring the wife. If she’s not a shooter, she can enjoy a fancy brunch or spa treatment while you’re having fun mowing down metal critters. Pala is a 30 minutes from the Pacific Ocean and beautiful beaches, so you can make this a weekend holiday for the whole family — kids love sand and surf.
For the second year, the 
Nancy Tompkins will be bringing out a new Second Edition of her popular book: Prone and Long-Range Rifle Shooting. Nancy hopes to have Second Edition books available by mid-June, 2012. The enhanced Second Edition will feature updates to the current chapters, more photos, plus an entirely new chapter on F-Class Shooting. The Second Edition will be issued as a hardback only, for increased durability. Price isn’t set yet, but Nancy hopes to keep the price “under $40.00″. The book will be available from 
Tompkins Book a Must-Read for Long-Range Shooters
They have been on the market for nearly a year, but you may not know that Redding sells a line of 
That’s right, Redding now offers micrometer seater assemblies made specifically for Berger VLD bullets. These Seating Micrometers allow you to convert a standard seater to a Micrometer seater optimized for VLDs. That’s great news for VLD fans. Eric Stecker of Berger Bullets tells us: “We have confirmed with Redding that each of the new micrometer plugs in the VLD group were designed based on Berger VLD bullets. We provided all of our VLD bullets to Redding, from which they took deliberate measurements and made these new plugs.”
