Diggle Fly Shoot — Fun Match in the UK
Our friend Vince Bottomley provides this report about an Aussie-style Fun Match held at the Diggle Range in the UK. Read all the details on the Target Shooter Magazine website.
Fly-Shoot Report by Vince Bottomley
The Fly-Shoot competition involves shooting three, 5-shot groups at 500 yards on a target just eight inches (8″) in diameter. In the middle of the 10-Ring is a fly — bigger than a UK fly admittedly but this is an Aussie competition and I’m told that such flies are normal down-under….
READ Full Fly Shoot Story on TargetShooter.co.uk
This year’s Fly Shoot enjoyed a record entry with almost 70 shooters turning up to shoot a fly at 500 yards. Quite a few managed that feat! Steve Barrett was the overall winner. Points are awarded for score and group size and of course for hitting the fly. Fly swatters get a commemorative patch and this is what most competitors covet.
For once, the weather was kind – overcast and threatening rain in the morning but, from a shooter’s point of view – perfect, with Diggle’s reservoir resembling the proverbial ‘sheet of glass’ – a rare sight, believe me! The shoot attracts a great variety of custom rifles and with it an equally assorted band of competitors from bunny-bashers to benchresters and, that’s part of the attraction….
Where can I get some of the Targets in the states.
Thud – I can e-mail you a photo of the target if you e-mail me at vinceb@6ppc.fsnet.co.uk
Your printer should be able to work from that.
Whats the difference between factory and Custom Classes? Looks like lots of bench-rest type rifles there with those heavy front supports and joysticks.
Bill,
the difference is exactly as per the class names. ‘Factory Rifle’ must be an out of the box, or virtually out of the box’ model on general sale. That doesn’t exclude single-shot match or varmint models such as the Savage Model 12 ‘Precision Series’ models like the 6BR and 6.5-284 F-Class models, LRPV / LRPs etc. Muzzle recrowning, OEM trigger improvements (but not replacements) and minor bedding work are allowed.
‘Custom’ is everything else, ie gunsmith built or a rebarrelled factory job.
The entry was overwhelmingly ‘Custom’ with a mixture of F-Class, FTR, benchrest, and custom built varmint rifles.
This sounds like a lot of fun. I would like to shrink a target down and use for indoor rim fire shooting.