Federal Premium is offering a rebate on three types of Federal Premium Rifle Ammunition as well as shotgun slugs. With this Big Bucks rebate offer, you can get up to $20.00 off Federal Premium Vital-Shok, Power-Shok, and Fusion rifle ammo, or Vital-Shok Slugs. Purchases must be made before December 31, 2012, and you need to return a Rebate Coupon along with box UPCs and original sales receipt. The max rebate is $40.00, with rebates of $2.50 or $5.00 per box, depending on ammo type.
Promo Tip from EdLongrange. We welcome reader submissions.
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Congrats to the U.S.A. F-Class Team which triumphed in the 2012 Stars & Stripes Challenge Match held September 16 at Raton, New Mexico. The showcase event in the Stars & Stripes Match is a team competition with 8-man national teams. Team USA finished first with a 3443-107X combined score. In second place was the South Africa Protea Team with 3428-88X. Team Australia came in thirds with 3398-81X, and Team Canada scored 3364-63X to secure fourth place. In the photo below, Team USA members celebrate their victory. Shown (left to right) are: Charles Ballard, Larry Taite, Laura Perry, John Weil, Trudie Fay, Shiraz Balolia (Captain), Bob Mead, Rick Hunt, Jeff Rorer, Darrell Buell, Jim Murphy and Larry Bartholome.
Along with the signature National Team Event, the Stars & Stripes event featured 4-person team matches for both F-Open and F-TR divisions. Winner of the F-Open 4-person event, with a 1757-65X score, was Team Long Shots, captained by Mark Walker and coached by Michelle Gallagher. Team shooters were: David Baily, David Gosnell, Ken Dickerman, and Mark Walker. Finishing first in the 4-person F-TR team event was Team Misfits, coached and captained by Lige Harris. Lige also shot on the team, along with Leslie Jones, Tom Jones, and John Kills. Team Misfits scored 1710-34X to secure a 16-point victory over F-TR runner-up U.S. Development Team #4.
Do you help conserve wildlands for future generations? Well, if you have ever purchased ammunition or a firearm, you do support conservation directly. This month marks the 75th anniversary of the Wildlife Restoration Act. On September 2, 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, now called the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, which provides funding for wildlife conservation efforts. Since 1937, hunters and shooters have paid for conservation through Federal Excise taxes. Over $4.2 Billion Dollars have been raised for wildlife conservation and habitat restoration through the 10% excise on handgun purchases and 11% excise tax on Long-gun and Ammo purchases.
Funds from excise taxes on arms and ammunition (plus bows and arrows) are apportioned to States by the Dept. of the Interior to pay up to 75% of the cost of approved projects. Project activities include acquisition and improvement of wildlife habitat, introduction of wildlife into suitable habitat, wildlife surveys, hunter education programs, and construction and operation of public target ranges.
The Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act has been the “single-most effective wildlife conservation funding mechanism in U.S. history”. Through their excise tax contributions, hunters and shooters have done more to protect wildlife, dollar for dollar, than have the members of private conservation groups. Nobody likes to pay taxes, but hunters and shooters can be rightfully proud of their role in preserving wildlife habitats and wildlife populations in the United States, over the past 75 years. To learn more about the conservation programs supported by gun excise taxes, visit WSFR75.com.
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Wolf Match Target and Wolf Match Extra ammunition is justifiably popular with competitive 22 LR shooters. Wolf Match Target, at $4.90-$6.20 per box, shoots as well as many types of 22 LR ammo costing much more. (Price varies with quantity purchased.) We recently chronographed Wolf Match Extra ammo (using multiple chronographs), and it showed lower ES and SD than some lots of much more expensive Eley ammo. But Wolf rimfire ammo is often in short supply.
SK Ammo — Made by the Folks Who Make Wolf
What to do? Here’s a tip — if you like Wolf Match, try the SK match ammo. SK Jagd Munitions actually manufactures Wolf Match ammo. The gold-box, SK-brand ammo is made in the same German plant as Wolf , and testing shows SK can deliver the same accuracy and reliability as Wolf. The SK Standard Plus is the equivalent of Wolf Match Target, while the SK Rifle Match is the equivalent of Wolf Match Extra. SK offers a wide range of rimfire match ammo at affordable prices. Here are current offerings at Champion Shooters Supply:
SK Rifle Match: $7.90 (50-rd box)
SK Pistol Match: $6.00 (50-rd box)
SK Standard Plus: $5.00 (50-rd box)
SK HiVelocity: $6.50 (50-rd box)
SK HiVelocity SPC: $6.50 (50-rd box)
SK Subsonic: $6.50 (50-rd box)
SK Rifle Match:
“I’ve tried over 20 different brands of match .22LR in my Anschutz 1907 including the various Wolf, RWS, Aquila, Lapua, and Eley loadings and the SK Match was one of the best. It was VERY consistent. 10 shot groups of 0.25″ to 0.3″ are the norm at 50 yards. Unlike most of the other less expensive ‘match’ ammo, the SK has yet to throw a bad flyer in 500 rounds. The Eley Tenex Ultimate EPS and Match EPS gave similar results. I consider the SK Match to be the best value for my rifle.” — D. Fletcher, TN
SK Standard Plus::
“I bought this because the Wolf MT is getting hard to find. This is the same ammo as the Wolf. I tried it in all my rifles and get about the same groups as the Wolf. Had no problems with this ammo and recommend it highly.” — H. Disharoon, VA
“Oh No — The secret’s out! For an exceptional price, this is absolutely the best .22 target ammo. I use it mainly in my Custom Ruger 10/22. CZ 452s just love this stuff. A majority of the silhouette shooters at my club use ‘SK Std Plus’ during matches and practice. I have shot cases of this stuff and can only count very few fliers.” — J. Batterton, AR
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Berger Bullets has announced a new series of “Classic Hunter” Hybrid bullets designed to fit and feed in magazines and perform well in barrels with SAAMI standard chambers. Berger’s Eric Stecker explains: “For the first time in Berger’s history we’ve purposefully designed Hybrid-shaped hunting bullets that comply with the restrictive dimensional standards set by SAAMI. We did this so that hunters can shoot ammo loaded with Berger Hunting bullets in their factory rifles while feeding through a magazine.”
Berger came up with a new hunting bullet design because SAAMI standard dimensions significantly limit the length of the nose (negatively affecting external ballistics performance) in two ways. First, the length from the end of the neck to the tip of the bullet of SAAMI standard ammo is typically so short that to make an ogive that will allow bearing surface to be forward of the neck it must be blunt and therefore have a low BC. The other way SAAMI limits nose length is by specifying longer throat lengths than are optimal. Stecker notes: “When you have a long throat, the nose can’t be too long or the jump to the rifling is considerable. This is typically bad for precision and accuracy. So what you end up with is stubby nose bullets with low BC and poor external ballistics performance.”
To overcome SAAMI-imposed design contraints, Berger’s Bryan Litz designed Hybrid hunting bullets with noses short enough to conform to SAAMI dimensional standards. These bullets should be popular among those who hunt with factory rifles and feed their ammo through a magazine. The bullets use a dual-curve ogive design. As you move forward along the bearing surface, the ogive curve starts as a tangent tangent curve (which is forgiving of seating depth). As you continue forward on the nose the tangent curve transitions into a secant curve. Secant ogives are known to be more efficient in the wind (VLD bullets are pure secant ogives).
When you combine these two shapes you get the best of both worlds (less sensitivity to seating depth differences and improved external ballistics performance). Since these new Berger Classic Hunter bullets must have a nose length that is short enough to comply with SAAMI standards we get the most external ballistics performance possible by making the nose with Bryan’s Hybrid design.
Eric Stecker is enthusiastic about the new Hybrid Hunting Bullets: “We know that this bullet design works [well] because we tested it not only in media but also on game. I took these bullets with me to New Zealand to test them on several animals of various sizes and at various ranges. I know from firsthand experience that hunters who try this bullet in the field will be happy that they did.”
Product Tip by EdLongrange. Product Photos by Robert Whitley, 6mmAR.com.
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McMillan regularly offers a selection of inletted “Specials” stocks. You should check McMillan’s Specials Page regularly to set if there’s a stock that suits your next build. Not only can you save months of wait time, but you save on the cost of the stock. Many of the Specials stocks are priced $100.00 or more below normal retail. From the list on the Stock Specials Page, choose your action and find a great deal on a McMillan stock.
Shown below are inletted “Specials” currently displayed on the McMillan website. This is only a partial list — there are many more stocks available. If you’ve got the appropriate action, you can save big bucks (and avoid wait periods), by ordering from McMillan’s “Specials” list.
Tooley MBR Stocks for Various Actions
#2924 MBR 70% WHITE 30% BLACK MARBLE, LBRP STILLER PYTHON, SINGLE SHOT, REM ADL T/G, NO FR SCREW HOLE, 1.375″ STRAIGHT B/C, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP. $375.00.
#3000 MBR LT BLUE, GRAPE, PURPLE FLAME PATTERN, SOLID GLASS FILL (7LBS), RH L700, SINGLE SHOT, REM ADL T/G, 1.250″ STRAIGHT TAPER, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP. $425.00.
#3001 MBR 70% TURQOUISE 30% BLACK MARBLE, RBLP, LAWTON 7500 LA, 1.36″ DIA, SINGLE SHOT, REM ADL T/G, KRIEG HV B/C WITH 4″ CYL, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP, ALUM. PILLARS. $450.00.
Edge Benchrest Stocks for BAT Actions
#2909 EDGE HV PURPLE TO TURQUOISE FLAME, BASIC INLET FOR BAT SV, STOCK WEIGHS 2 LBS 2 OZ. $225.00.
#2910 EDGE HV BLUE, DK BLUE, PURPLE @ BUTT FLAME PATTERN, RIGHT BOLT LEFT PORT, EJECTION PORT IS 3″ LONG, BAT MB round 1.530″ x 8.5″, SINGLE SHOT, FAC BAT T/G. $300.00.
Stocks for Stiller Actions
#2923 HTG/P 34% BLK 33% DK GRAY 33% LT GRAY MARBLE, MAG FILL, RH TAC 338, BDL F/P, CUSTOM BBL 1.450″ taper to 1.250″ @ 10″, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP, 3 SS STUDS. $400.50.
#2971 LH REM HUNTER 75% BLACK 25% LT GRAY MARBLE, LH PREDATOR LONG ACTION, BADGER M5 DBM, 9/16″ SCREW HOLES, REM VAR B/C, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP. $375.00. 5/15/12 – 3 in stock.
Stocks for Various Remington Actions
#2911 REM VARMINT PAINTED BLACK, RH S700, SURGEON DBM, REM MAG B/C, 13.5″ LOP, 1″ DEC PAD, 3 STUDS, FLUSH CUPS ON LH SIDE, ALUMINUM PILLARS INSTALLED. $450.50.
#2997 MCMILLAN HUNTER PAINTED OLIVE, RH S700, REM DBM, FAC SPORTER B/C, 1″ DEC PAD, 13.5″ LOP, 2 STAINLESS STUDS. $425.00.
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The Spirit of America Match at Raton, New Mexico has concluded. Bryan Litz provided this quick wrap-up last evening: “Just a short time to report the winners before heading to the awards dinner. Larry Bartholome won F-Open, Trudie Fay won F-TR, and Nancy Tompkins won the sling class. The match came down to the last relay at 1000 yards. The photo at right shows a common result in the switching winds. Lots of target uprights were damaged and shooters grateful for hanging a six by half an inch! Congratulations to all competitors for persevering [in] Raton’s difficult conditions!”
Below are match photos taken by Bryan Litz. You’ll find more Spirit of America Match photos on the Applied Ballistics Facebook Page.
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Believe it or not, 90% of non-academic printed books are sold in the last quarter of the year. If you are considering purchasing books for your own gun library or as gifts for family members or friends, we’ve just made your life easier. Over the past few years, we’ve compiled a list of the best-written and most informative books for rifle shooters and precision hand-loaders.
You could spend days compiling your own list and then tracking down all these different titles. Or, with one click, you can find it all in one place in our new AccurateShooter virtual bookstore. We’ve teamed up with Amazon.com to provide the top titles at very competitive prices. All order-taking, payment processing, and shipping is handled by Amazon. We’ve just saved you the effort of finding the best titles.
Shown below are some of the most popular titles we carry. Use the arrows (lower right) to shuffle books from back to front. Click on a book jacket to get more info or start shopping. You’ll find dozens more quality gun-related titles in our Shooters’ Bookstore.
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300m Lapua European Cup Finals are currently underway in Zagreb, Croatia. The prone events have concluded — and Lapua ammo shooters dominated the field, with the little 6mmBR topping all other cartridge types in both the mens’ and womens’ divisions. There have been challengers to the 300m crown, including Norma’s 6XC and Lapua’s own 6.5×47, but it appears that the 6mmBR cartridge is still “King of the Hill” at 300 meters. We know that Lapua’s 6mmBR factory ammo is outstanding. This factory 6mmBR ammo shot well under quarter-MOA in one Eliseo Tubegun we tested (READ 6mmBR Tubegun Story).
The European Cup Finals continue today with mens’ 3×40 and ladies’ 3×20 matches. On Sunday, the last day of the competition, the Mens’ 3×20 Standard Rifle and Super Finals are slated. Here are results from Friday’s 300m Prone matches:
Mens’ 300m Prone Results
1. Antti Puhakka, FIN 599-34X – 6mm BR
2. Juha Rutonen, FIN 598-42X – 6mm BR
3. Josselin Henry, FRA 597-32X – 6.5×47 Lapua
4. M. Ackermann, SUI 597-32X – 6.5×47 Lapua
5. Mikhael D’Halluin, FRA 596-39X – 6mm BR
All Top 5 male shooters used Lapua factory-loaded ammunition.
Women’s 300m Prone Results
1. Catherine Houlmont, FRA 599-39x – 6mm BR
2. Charlotte Jakobsen, DEN 598-38x – 6mm BR
3. Eva Friedel, GER 598-32x – 6mm BR
All Top 3 female shooters used Lapua factory-loaded 6mmBR ammunition.
L to R in photo below:
Jakobsen, Houlmont, Friedel
Need help with your handgunning? Check out the NRA’s Basics of Pistol Shooting DVD. This $19.95 DVD covers the purchase, handling, cleaning, and storage of both revolvers and semi-automatic pistols along with marksmanship fundamentals. Computer animations provide an inside look at how revolvers and semi-automatics function. The Basics of Pistol Shooting DVD is intended for anyone interested in learning how to safely operate, clean and select a pistol for a variety of activities.
Produced as a training aid for NRA’s Basic Pistol and/or FIRST Steps Pistol Courses, the 60-minute DVD provides useful information for all handgun owners, not just novices. We also recommend that NRA Certified Pistol Instructors watch the DVD to familiarize themselves with the most current training methods and safety procedures. The DVD can be ordered through the NRA Program Materials Center or by calling 1-800-336-7402.
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Report by Bryan Litz
Day 3 of the Spirit of America Individual Aggregate (Thursday, 9/13/2012) started out cold and misty. Everyone was pretty much wearing every shred of clothing they had to get thru the morning, but the afternoon warmed up nicely. Short range was typical; constant and relatively calm at 300 and 500, but the wind kicked up about the time we started shooting 600 and some points started falling. After lunch we shot 900 yards and the points really started falling! As expected, the chaos shook up the standings quite a bit.
Controversy in Sling Class
In the sling class, Noma Mayo was the high shooter at 4 points down. Noma shot a miss at 600 yards, challenged it, and lost the challenge. She finished the range, then later went to the stat house and had the miss removed from her score card. A formal protest was filed, but her amended score stood (without a miss). Needless to say, the result is somewhat controversial, especially considering that Noma is in contention to win the tournament. The current standings in the individual sling aggregate are: Nancy Tompkins at 6 points down, Noma Mayo at 8 points down, and Bryan Litz at 9 points down.
Trudie Fay Continues to Lead F-TR
In F-TR, Trudie Fay continues her dominant performance at 13 points down to win the day. Trudie is also leading the F-TR aggregate with one day to go. Tomorrow is the Raton 8-man team match.
Larry Bartholome won the F-Open class at 7 points down for the day (Aggregate standings were not posted as of when we left the range so it’s difficult to calculate those full standings).
Black Powder Cartridge Rifles (BPCR) typically fire cartridges with large capacity — 70 grains or more of the ‘holy black’. For a variety of reasons, BPCR shooters may want to use a black powder substitute when training, hunting, or when competing in matches that allow substitutes. The problem with most smokeless propellants is that they are designed to operate at much higher pressure levels and they don’t fill the case well when loaded to black powder pressure levels. (There are some exceptions).
Allian Black MZ Wins Field & Stream Award
Alliant Powder has developed a new black powder substitute that works well in black powder cartridge rifles and in muzzle-loaders. Alliant’s new Black MZ is an innovative, non-corrosive black powder substitute that resists moisture and reduces cleaning time.
Alliant claims that Black MZ “burns cleaner for less residue and easier cleaning” and that Black MZ can deliver “better velocities at lower pressures.” In fact, Black MZ performs so well that it was recently awarded Field & Stream’s “Best of the Best” award in its product category.
Field & Stream reports: “[Black MZ] performed so well… that the test team was able to fire muzzleloaders repeatedly without any cleaning. And when a patch was run through the barrel, there was far less fouling than is normally seen. The loose grains also can be packed tightly, producing great energy results while maintaining low barrel pressure.” Alliant states that: “Moisture resistant and virtually non-corrosive, Black MZ replicates black powder performance without the ignition headaches and cleaning hassles common to traditional black powder use.”
Alliant Brand Director Rick Stoeckel declares: “We are excited to win the Best of the Best from Field & Stream. We strive to provide the best products for our consumers, and this recognition reaffirms the effectiveness of Black MZ” [for both muzzle-loaders and Black Powder Cartridge Rifles].
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Federal Premium is offering a rebate on three types of Federal Premium Rifle Ammunition as well as shotgun slugs. With this Big Bucks rebate offer, you can get up to $20.00 off Federal Premium Vital-Shok, Power-Shok, and Fusion rifle ammo, or Vital-Shok Slugs. Purchases must be made before December 31, 2012, and you need to return a Rebate Coupon along with box UPCs and original sales receipt. The max rebate is $40.00, with rebates of $2.50 or $5.00 per box, depending on ammo type.
Do you help conserve wildlands for future generations? Well, if you have ever purchased ammunition or a firearm, you do support conservation directly. This month marks the 75th anniversary of the Wildlife Restoration Act. On September 2, 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, now called the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, which provides funding for wildlife conservation efforts. Since 1937, hunters and shooters have paid for conservation through Federal Excise taxes. Over $4.2 Billion Dollars have been raised for wildlife conservation and habitat restoration through the 10% excise on handgun purchases and 11% excise tax on Long-gun and Ammo purchases.
SK Ammo — Made by the Folks Who Make Wolf
When you combine these two shapes you get the best of both worlds (less sensitivity to seating depth differences and improved external ballistics performance). Since these new Berger Classic Hunter bullets must have a nose length that is short enough to comply with SAAMI standards we get the most external ballistics performance possible by making the nose with Bryan’s Hybrid design.
The Spirit of America Match at Raton, New Mexico has concluded. Bryan Litz provided this quick wrap-up last evening: “Just a short time to report the winners before heading to the awards dinner. Larry Bartholome won F-Open, Trudie Fay won F-TR, and Nancy Tompkins won the sling class. The match came down to the last relay at 1000 yards. The photo at right shows a common result in the switching winds. Lots of target uprights were damaged and shooters grateful for hanging a six by half an inch! Congratulations to all competitors for persevering [in] Raton’s difficult conditions!”
300m Lapua European Cup Finals are currently underway in Zagreb, Croatia. The prone events have concluded — and Lapua ammo shooters dominated the field, with the little 6mmBR topping all other cartridge types in both the mens’ and womens’ divisions. There have been challengers to the 300m crown, including Norma’s 6XC and Lapua’s own 6.5×47, but it appears that the 6mmBR cartridge is still “King of the Hill” at 300 meters. We know that Lapua’s 6mmBR factory ammo is outstanding. This factory 6mmBR ammo shot well under quarter-MOA in one Eliseo Tubegun we tested (
Need help with your handgunning? Check out the NRA’s 
Black Powder Cartridge Rifles (BPCR) typically fire cartridges with large capacity — 70 grains or more of the ‘holy black’. For a variety of reasons, BPCR shooters may want to use a black powder substitute when training, hunting, or when competing in matches that allow substitutes. The problem with most smokeless propellants is that they are designed to operate at much higher pressure levels and they don’t fill the case well when loaded to black powder pressure levels. (There are some exceptions).
Field & Stream reports: “[Black MZ] performed so well… that the test team was able to fire muzzleloaders repeatedly without any cleaning. And when a patch was run through the barrel, there was far less fouling than is normally seen. The loose grains also can be packed tightly, producing great energy results while maintaining low barrel pressure.” Alliant states that: “Moisture resistant and virtually non-corrosive, Black MZ replicates black powder performance without the ignition headaches and cleaning hassles common to traditional black powder use.”
