Eley Opens New Rimfire Test Facility in Texas
Rimfire-ammo maker ELEY Ltd. recently opened a new test facility in Winters, Texas. On hand for the opening ceremony were triple Olympic Medal Winner Matt Emmons and 2012 Gold medal Winner Jamie Gray. Other notable shooters at the opening included legendary Olympian Lones Wigger and husband and wife team Sandra and Eric Uptagrafft. Media and industry were represented by NRABlog editor Chip Lohman, Corrie West of USA Shooting, and staff from Shilen Barrels and Stiller’s Precision Firearms.
Eric Uptagrafft praised Eley’s new facility: “To see this come to fruition is very exciting. It shows the level of support and dedication that Eley has as a partner of USA Shooting. I expect this will create a huge advantage for our team and our abilities to diligently do the testing that is required being an elite-level shooter.” Jamie Gray concurred: “It’s good to have a test range of this caliber in the United States because it makes it easier for [American shooters] to get out and test-fire more often. It’s easier for us to bring our guns to Texas than take them overseas, especially in England.”
Eley has invested heavily in the new two-lane test facility which allows pistol, rifle, and benchrest rimfire shooters to test their firearms with ELEY rimfire ammunition. Eley’s new Texas facility allows lot-by-lot batch testing to be done in the USA for the first time. Batch testing used to be limited to the UK, at ELEY’s Head Office. Earlier this year ELEY opened their second range in Stuttgart, Germany and now the third Winters, Texas. The facility will have the ability to test both .22 Rifles and Pistols with electronic target systems and advanced group-measuring software. All three Eley Test Centers have two 50-meter lanes for testing .22 Rifles and Free Pistols. The USA and Germany ranges also allow testing of Free Pistols and Rapid Fire Pistols at 25m.
Meanwhile, Out in Arizona….
We’re pleased that Eley has opened a two-lane facility in the USA. That’s great for shooters. But the new Eley facility is limited to 50m (fifty meters) maximum. By contrast, the new state-of-the-art Lapua Rimfire Service Center in Mesa, Arizona has the ability to record results at 50m AND 100m simultaneously. As your shots pass through special sensor grids positioned at both 50m and 100m, Lapua plots your group size at both distances during on the same string of fire. We think that’s a huge advantage for Lapua’s Arizona Test Center compared to Eley’s Texas facility. Another difference is that at Eley you can only test Tenex ammunition while at Mesa, you can test all types of Lapua rimfire ammo from the top of the line to the more economical products. That’s another significant advantage for the Lapua operation. But it’s great that American shooters now have a choice of two rimfire testing facilities within our national borders.
The new solid brass NECO DaVinci Match Grade 6.5mm burner is an interesting High BC VLD-style design. Precision-machined on Swiss CNC machines, these bullets show exceptional dimensional and weight uniformity. And you won’t ever need to “tip” these bullets. The DaVinci 107-grainers feature a precision-drilled drilled hollow point and machined meplat. The DaVinci 107s are made from high-grade free machining brass. This is softer than copper but much harder and more durable than lead. If you’re wondering about the milled grooves in the body of the bullet, those are there to reduce the bearing surface area — a common design feature on solids. NECO is claiming: “Great lubricity resulting in less pressure than a solid copper or a jacketed bullet.” We haven’t tested this milled bullets yet but we hope to try them out soon in a 6.5×47 we have in the works. Initial tests by the manufacturer have soon good accuracy. 
In Europe, High Power-style shooting with 6.5mm rifles is extremely popular. In Germany and throughout Scandinavia, thousands of shooters compete in matches with 6.5×55 target rifles, notably the Sauer STR 200. One of the most popular projectiles is Norma’s 130gr match bullet. NECO now sells this bullet design in both naked (Golden Target) and moly-coated (Diamond Line) versions. Diamond Line 130s are moly-coated by Norma at the factory under license with NECO.
