The CMP National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio commenced July 12, 2026 with Smallbore 3P and Air Rifle events. The Camp Perry matches have been held since 1907 at this location on the shores of Lake Erie. The 2026 First Shot Ceremony took place Saturday, July 13 on the grounds of Camp Perry. Matches have been running for the past three weeks, with the final Mid-Range and Long-Range events scheduled for this coming week August 3-8, 2026. CLICK HERE for National Match INFO and Schedules.
Today, August 1st, the Rimfire Sporter match takes place. This is a hugely popular event that draws hundreds of competitors every year.
Rimfire Sporter Match Today August 1, 2026 Today, August 1st, the Rimfire Sporter match takes place. This is a hugely popular event that draws hundreds of competitors every year.
Saturday at the Movies — National Matches News Reports
Today’s Daily Bulletin Saturday Video Showcase features the CMP’s official National Matches Video News Reports, produced by ShootingUSA TV and hosted on YouTube. Along with range footage from the matches, each weekly report includes interviews with competitors, plus features on rifles and equipment.
2026 CMP National Matches Week 3 Report
Congratulations to MAJ Samuel Freeman, the 2026 President’s Match winner. This is the second time MAJ Freeman has won the President’s Rifle Trophy.
Week 3 of the CMP National Matches video coverage featured High Power action from the Camp Perry ranges, highlights from the 2026 President’s Rifle Match, a Junior Spotlight on Sabrina Smith — who earned a Top 20 finish in the President’s Match. This video also covers the recent announcement that the CMP will be selling semi-auto converted M14 rifles starting late 2026. Correspondent Serena Juchnowski also interviews sling guru Jack Jones.
Mid-Range and Long-Range Matches Starting August 3, 2026
2026 CMP National Matches Week 2 Report
Week 2 of the CMP National Matches at Camp Perry saw a lot of action. From the prestigious National Trophy Pistol Matches, to the Smallbore Matches, and even Air Rifle and Air Pistol, a number of 2026 National Match Champions were announced. This 22-minute video features smallbore matches as well as 600-yard high power shooting. This CMP Week 2 video has a Junior Spotlight, Dominic Baliva, plus a Competitor Spotlight, featuring Serena Juchnowski (photo above).Also included in the Week 2 shot is Scott Rhodes, who discusses woodworking and stock-making.
2026 CMP National Matches Week 1 Report
This video covers the initial week of the 2026 CMP National Matches at Camp Perry. Week 1 coverage includes the First Shot Ceremony, Smallbore 3P and Air Rifle matches, along with Bullseye Pistol Matches. In addition, there is a product feature on Walther .22 LR Rimfire Rifles, Air Rifles, and Air Pistols. This video is worth watching start to finish to see the rimfire, air rifle, and air pistol disciplines.
The prone position (with sling) shown by two talented Service Rifle shooters. At top is Brandon Green, a multi-time U.S. National Highpower and Long Range Champion, who has also won the prestigious King’s Prize in the UK. Below is Tony Chow, a gifted match shooter. NOTE: Current Service Rifle rules allow the use of optics up to 4.5X.
Jay Christopherson, 2024 and 2020 Southwest Nationals F-Open Champion, is one of the nation’s best F-Class shooters. When shooting F-Class, Jay uses a SEB Mini front rest and a large rear sandbag to support his big 22-lb F-Open rifle. Though he loves F-Class, Jay has also been interested in Service Rifle competition where no external supports are allowed. When shooting Service Rifle you hold the rifle with your arms and a sling. Some Service Rifle competitions involve three position (Standing, kneeling/sitting, and prone), while others are prone only. Even in the prone position, the sling is a vital accessory. The USAMU video below shows how to rig your sling properly for use in the prone position.
Improving Prone Shooting with Help from Emil Praslick III
Jay dramatically improved his Service Rifle “hard-holding” technique by enlisting the help of Emil Praslick III, former U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) rifle coach. Emil’s guidance and advice resulted in an immediate increase in Jay’s scores on target, as recorded by his ShotMarker electronic target system. Jay noted: “These targets show the difference between hacking it on your own, and spending an hour with someone who knows what they are doing and can tell you that you are doing it wrong.” These targets show Jay’s “before and after” Service Rifle results shooting slung up prone at 600 yards:
Service Rifle, Prone with Sling at 600 Yards
Here is Jay’s target BEFORE training with Emil Praslick — a 194-3X with lots of vertical.
And here is Jay’s improved target AFTER putting Praslick’s advice to work — impressive 199-8X with significantly less vertical.
You can see on this second target much improved vertical. All 20 shots were in a vertical range much smaller than the vertical height of the 10-Ring. Had shot 16 not gone wide left, this would have been a 200. Shot 16 was OUT of the 10-Ring to the left, but note that vertically it has almost perfect elevation.
Jay stated: “I was pretty amazed at not only the difference on the target, but how much difference the changes Emil suggested made to how my hold felt. The entire feel was different and a ton less stress in my neck and arms compared to what I was feeling before. I was actually feeling pretty good about that 194 yesterday, because I hadn’t slung up in two years and that was my highest score (by one point) after doing some load fixing. But having someone explain what you are doing wrong and why makes a world of difference.
Here’s a simple task you can do that will give your seater die a more perfect fit to your match bullets. You can lap the inside of the seater stem so that it matches the exact profile of the bullet. This spreads out the seating force over a larger area of the bullet jacket. That allows smoother, more consistent seating, without putting dents, creases, or sharp rings in your bullets.
This process is demonstrated here by our friend Erik Cortina of Team Lapua-Brux-Borden. Erik, one of the nation’s top F-Class shooters and a skilled machinist, explains: “Here I’m lapping my new seater die stem with lapping compound. I chuck up a bullet in the lathe and lap the inside of the seating stem. I put lapping compound on the bullet and also in the stem. You can do the same with a hand drill and bore paste. You can see in the piture below how much contact area the stem has on the bullet after being lapped. This bullet is a Berger 7mm 180-grain Hybrid. ”
It can be helpful but it’s not necessary to make your seating stem an exact match to a bullet, particularly if you’re loading hunting or varmint rounds. But it is helpful to do some mild internal stem polishing. This should eliminate any ring (or dent) that forms on the bullet jacket during seating.
Sharp edges on a seating stem can cause a ring to be pressed into the bullet jacket — especially with compressed loads that resist downward bullet movement.
Q2: Is there any down-side to the process?
Not really. However, if you shoot many different bullet types for a particular cartridge, you may not want to conform the stem aggressively to one particular bullet design. Lightly lap the inside of the stem to remove burrs/sharp edges but leave it at that. A light lap will prevent a ring forming when seating bullets.
Do you compete in rimfire benchrest, silhouette, or NRL22 matches? Then you’ll want to check out the Shooting Sports USA .22 LR Ammo Roundup on the SSUSA.org website. That article covers .22 LR ammunition from Lapua, ELEY, SK, RWS, Norma, Wolf, and Aquila. Notably there’s a detailed discussion of Lapua’s new Long Range and Super Long Range ammo. In addition, SSUSA confirms that SK ammo (made in Germany by Nammo, parent of Lapua) and Wolf Match Target ammo (made by ELEY) both offer quite good performance for a moderate price.
The article notes that there is a much wider range of .22 LR ammo types available now than a few years ago. It’s not just a choice between cheap products and high-end match ammo. As SSUSA explains: “It used to be that .22 LR was either quite expensive match grade ammo, or it was cheap plinking or hunting ammo. Today, competitors have choices in grades of .22 LR match ammunition to suit their pocketbook or firearms.” We’ve seen good results with relatively inexpensive Norma Tac-22, and the SSUSA article says that SK performs well above its price level.
Seven Brands of .22 LR MATCH AMMUNITION
Lapua Super Long Range and Long Range .22 LR
Lapua Super Long Range and Long Range ammunition comes from Finland, and is designed for the growing long-range rimfire disciplines with targets at 100-300 yards. Lapua says this ammo delivers very low ES and SD numbers. Our friend F-Class John has tested this ammo and confirmed it performs very well (SEE video above). “Each production lot of Lapua’s new rimfire products are test-fired in 50-round groups for dispersion”, Capstone’s Marketing Director, Geoff Esterline, said. “The results determine whether it makes Super Long Range or Long Range packaging.”
ELEY .22 LR Ammunition
ELEY has long been a top choice for .22 LR competition — both position shooting and benchrest. ELEY now offers 11 different varieties of .22 LR match ammunition, ranging in price from $8.50 (Benchrest Outlaw) to $20 (ELEY Tenex). If you compete in the rimfire benchrest, you should definitely try some ELEY ammo.
SK .22 LR Ammunition
Numerous .22 LR ammunition types are offered by SK, suitable for a variety of disciplines — from NRL22 to Biathlon. Generally cheaper than ELEY Match ammo, SK offers good “bang for the buck”. F-Class John says it performs great considering the price. The SSUSA article notes that: “German manufacturer SK has eight match-grade .22 LR offerings, including two for pistols, one for semi-automatic rifles, and one for frigid, wintertime conditions.”
RWS .22 LR Ammunition
Sometimes hard to locate at vendors in the USA, RWS is popular among European competition shooters. The top-tier RWS ammo is a choice of many competitive shooters. RWS currently offers nine Premium Line .22 LR varieties and three Professional Line offerings. The SSUSA tester noted that RWS Rifle Match ammo shot great in his Bergara BMR, shooting one-ragged-hole groups at 50 yards and about one MOA at 100 yards. That’s great performance for $10/box ammo.
Norma .22 LR Ammunition
Norma also offers XTREME LR-22, a new type of competition rimfire ammo with a radical new bullet. This unique, patented bullet design has a special base with a cone (see diagram). Norma claims that this “rocket tail” design reduces drag by creating less negative pressure at the back end of the bullet. It will be interesting to see how this new bullet design works in rimfire ELR competition.
Wolf .22 LR Ammunition
SSUSA says that Wolf Match Target is a top performer in the under-$10 per box category. This is because, according to SSUSA: “It is manufactured by ELEY in England (and loaded with Vihtavuori powder) and re-branded, if online information is correct.” Wolf Match Target is available from Target Sports USA for $70.83 for a 500-pack ($0.142 per round). Or you can get single 50-rd boxes from Champion’s Choice for $7.50/box ($0.15 per round).
Aguila .22 LR Ammunition
Made in Mexico, Aguila .22 LR rimfire ammo is the bargain item among the seven ammo-makers featured by SSUSA. It is usually available at very affordable prices.
We wouldn’t choose Aguila for a benchrest or three -position match, but it could work for a local NRL-22 match or a steel-target competition at relatively short range. Aguila .22 LR ammo starts at under $3.80 per box. Right now many low-cost Aguila .22 LR ammo types are out-of-stock. But you can still find some more expensive varieties such as the Aguila Interceptor High Velocity HP, available for $8.99/50 rounds from Midsouth.
Report from Brandon Green at Camp Perry
Brandon Green — a multi-time Nat’l High Power and Long Range Champion — recently completed a 4-Man Team Match at the CMP Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. His team did well but Brandon is hoping to do better in individual competition. Brandon posted: “Now on to the Civilian Marksmanship Program National Rifle Matches. I just want to thank TJ Jones and Krieger Barrels for cutting hammer barrels and building a lights out upper receiver! I didn’t point it as well as I should have, but the rifle wasn’t the problem! Also a big thank you to ACME Rifles/ACME Machine for a new lower and engraving my signature on the side! How cool is that! And thank you to Jack Abrams and Loader Monkey LLC for the ammo! Hopefully I can hold a little harder tomorrow!”
Rifle Training Clinics
The Junior and Advanced Rifle Clinics are in full swing. If you want to learn the finer points of highpower competition this is a good place to start! Thank you to VFB, ACME Rifles, and Civilian Marksmanship Program for getting events like this together. Iron sharpens iron! I also want to thank Krieger Barrels, Creedmoor Sports, and Berger Bullets.
Video from CMP Range with Junior and Advanced Rifle Clinics in Progress
Winner of President’s Shoot-Off
Congratulations to MAJ Samuel Freeman, who was the top competitor in the 2026 President’s Shoot-off! Each year, the top 20 competitors of the President’s Rifle Match meet on the firing line for a 10-shot shoot-off to determine the overall winner. This is the second time MAJ Freeman will be bringing home the President’s Rifle Trophy. Congrats to Samuel.
Most gun guys know that the NRA publishes a monthly magazine called American Rifleman. What you may not know is that NRA also offers a series of American Rifleman videos with recent American Rifleman TV episodes on the Outdoor Channel and over 4000 videos on the NRA Publication YouTube Channel. For today’s Saturday Showcase we offer seven noteworthy NRA-produced gun videos currently hosted on YouTube. CLICK HERE to access all NRA Videos.
Highlights from American Rifleman TV Episodes
Currently on YouTube you can access dozens of past episodes of the American Rifle television series, along with many recent gun/gear reviews. Here are eight NRA videos featuring important or interesting rifle types plus a Remington ammunition factory tour.
Remington Model 700 ADL and BDL
After Winchester came out with the Model 70, Remington Arms answered with the Model 700, one of the most recognized bolt-action designs of all time. The design emerged in 1962, as Remington sought to improve on its previous Models 721 and 722. Two versions of the Remington Model 700 existed at launch: ADL and BDL models. “You know, you could have it two ways. You had the ADL and the BDL,” said NRA Publications Editorial Director Mark Keefe. “You had the plainer ADL at a better price point, then you had the BDL and that had fleur-de-lis checkering and white spacers and a gloss finish and, you know, it was shinier.” The commercial market wasn’t the only area where the Model 700 was successful, as it was also adapted into the U.S. Army as the M24 sniper rifle. To this day, the Model 700 continues to be a popular bolt-action rifle platform for both commercial and military use.
CMP M1 Garand Matches
The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) runs matches throughout the country, including the major summertime Camp Perry matches. This American Rifleman video covers the CMP’s M1 Garand Match, one of the most popular matches at Camp Perry every year. The Garand shoots the .30-06 Springfield cartridge. It is a surprisingly accurate semi-auto rifle, when fitted with an aftermarket barrel. The CMP recently started a program where the CMP is producing M1 Garands with completely new actions and barrels.
Rifleman Review: Tikka T3X Ace Target
Tikka’s T3x line of rifles is very popular, and Tikka currently offers the T3x Ace Target model, specifically designed for tactical competition. If you are looking for a good factory rifle for PRS/NRL centerfire competition, the T3x Ace Target is definitely worth checking out. It has been produced in multiple chamberings: .223 Rem, .22-250, 6mm Creedmoor, 6.5 Creedmoor, and .308 Win. Current selling price is $1799.99 – $1959.00 at EuroOptic, making this rifle eligible for PRS Factory Class. This is a recent up-to-date video, released on July 22, 2026.
Springfield M1A — Popular .308 Win (7.62×51) Semi-Auto Rifle
The M1A is one of the most popular rifles sold today by Springfield Armory. The M1A is a semi-auto version of the select-fire military M14 rifle developed in the 1950s. Designers adapted the action of the M1 Garand with a different gas system and dropped the 8-round internal magazine for 20-round detachable box magazines. Chambered for the 7.62×51 NATO cartridge, the M14 was adopted by the military in 1959, replacing the M1 Garand. However, its term as the official U.S. service rifle was short-lived, as Armalite was developing the M16, which evolved into the semi-auto AR15 for civilian use. Despite the M14 having a short-lived career as a service rifle, the semi-auto M1A remains quite popular for CMP rifle matches.
Model 1903-A3 Springfield — History of Wartime Rifle
While the U.S. Army’s Model 1903 Springfield rifle is one of the most well-recognized small arms of the 20th century, a lesser-known variant served as an important stop-gap rifle in the early years of World War II. Thanks to the efforts of engineers and arms designers at Remington, the U.S. Army eventually adopted an official pattern of the Springfield termed the “Model of 1903A3.” This NRA video covers the interesting history of the Springfield model 1903-A3.
Henry U.S. AR-7 Survival Rifle
This is an interesting video of a compact rimfire rifle originally issued to U.S. Air Force crews. In the event a crew was downed in a wilderness area, the rifle could be assembled and used to shoot game for food. Civilian versions of this ultra-lightweight 3.5-lb rifle are also available. In this video, American Rifleman contributor Jeremiah Knupp puts the Henry U.S. AR-7 Survival Rifle to the water test. The civilian version is sold by Henry as the Henry U.S. Survival Rifle. With the action, barrel, and magazines housed INSIDE the stock assembly, this rifle can easily be carried in a pack or stowed in a vehicle.
Revival of Remington Ammunition Production by Vista Outdoor
Remington Ammunition filed for bankruptcy in July 2020. Vista Outdoor, owner of Federal, CCI, and Speer, purchased the assets of Remington Ammunition. This video explains how Vista Outdoor revived Remington’s Lonoke, Arkansas plant. “This is one of the largest ammunition manufacturing plants in the world. It was set up in 1969 by DuPont, who owned Remington at the time” notes Mark Keefe, NRA Publications editorial director. Over the first 18 months of Vista’s ownership of Remington Ammunition, the facility added more than 1500 employees and increased centerfire-handgun ammunition production more than 40 percent, while shotshell production increased 15 percent.
With two years remaining until the Olympic and Paralympic Games return to American soil in Los Angeles, USA Shooting’s 2026 National Championships showed what it takes to build a medal-winning team. Held throughout May and June, the championships brought together Olympians, Paralympians, National Team members, collegiate standouts, and the nation’s top junior athletes to compete for national titles across rifle, pistol, and shotgun. More than a championship season, the events served as a benchmark for the athletes pursuing Team USA selection while showcasing the growing depth of American shooting sports.
“This season is proof our pipeline is deep, and it’s growing,” said USA Shooting CEO Kelly Reisdorf. “We saw 3-year highs in participation across rifle, pistol, and shotgun, with some of the biggest gains coming from our women athletes. We also watched proven champions like Vincent Hancock and Samantha Simonton get pushed by a rising class of juniors who are closing the gap fast. That competitive pressure, top to bottom, is exactly what builds a team that wins in 2028.”
Throughout the season, Olympic veterans reaffirmed their place among the nation’s best while emerging athletes continued closing the gap. Every event carried significance as athletes battled not only for national titles but for momentum heading toward future National Team selections and international competition.
Smallbore Rifle and Air Rifle National Championships
Hosted by the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) in Anniston and Talladega, Alabama, the Rifle National Championships showcased excellence across Olympic and Paralympic rifle events. Peter Fiori claimed the Men’s 10m Air Rifle National Championship while Griffin Lake earned the Junior National title. Isabella Baldwin won Women’s Air Rifle, and Elizabeth Probst captured the Junior Championship.
Lake added another national title in Men’s 50m Rifle Three Positions. Cecelia Ossi won Women’s 50m Rifle Three Positions. Para rifle competition featured standout performances across multiple classifications, highlighting the continued growth of the Paralympic program.
The CMP 2026 National Matches run July 12 through August 8, 2026. Right now the Smallbore Prone Matches are underway, running Friday, July 17 through Wednesday, July 22, 2026. Many of America’s most talented smallbore shooters are competing. Today, the event starts with competitors’ Check-In, Practice, and the initial Prone Metric Dewar Match. The National Smallbore rifle series will utilize electronic targets, which speeds up matches and allows fans to follow scoring in real time.
SCHEDULE
July 17, 2026 – Prone Metric Dewar, Check-in & Practice
July 18-19, 2026 – Prone Iron Sight Championship
July 20, 2026 – Prone Team Match, Prone Elimination Match
July 21-22, 2026 – Prone Any Sight Championship
Camp Perry is a National Guard facility located on the shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio near Port Clinton. The shooting ranges have been modernized in recent years, with the installation of advanced electronic targets for many disciplines. SEE Full Camp Perry NM Calendar.
Smallbore Rifle
The National Smallbore events will be fired on the same electronic targets as Rimfire Sporter — also setup on Camp Perry’s Petrarca Range. The full match schedule includes three-position and prone events, complete with an F-Class category for interested individuals.
“The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.” — William Arthur Ward
Readers often ask us: “Is there a decent, easy-to-comprehend book that can help my wind-reading?” Many of our Forum members have recommended The Wind Book for Rifle Shooters by Linda Miller and Keith Cunningham.
New Edition — Hardback and eBook
The latest, updated edition of The Wind Book for Rifle Shooters was released in May 2020. This 144-page book, first published in 2007, is a great resource. But you don’t have to take our word for it. If you click this link, you can read book excerpts and decide for yourself. When the Amazon page opens, look below the book cover photo, and click the bar labeled “Read Sample”. This lets you preview chapters from the Wind Book, and view some illustrations. Along with the hardback edition ($22.99), Amazon offers a Kindle (eBook) edition for $14.99.
Other books cover wind reading in a broader discussion of ballistics or long-range shooting, such as Applied Ballistics for Long-Range Shooting by Bryan Litz. But the Miller & Cunningham book is ALL about wind reading from cover to cover, and that is its strength. The book focuses on real world skills that can help you accurately gauge wind angle, wind velocity, and wind cycles.
All other factors being equal, it is your ability to read the wind that will make the most difference in your shooting accuracy. The better you understand the behavior of the wind, the better you will understand the behavior of your bullet. — The Wind Book for Rifle Shooters
The Wind Book for Rifle Shooters covers techniques and tactics used by expert wind-readers. There are numerous charts and illustrations. The authors show you how to put together a simple wind-reading “toolbox” for calculating wind speed, direction, deflection and drift. Then they explain how to use these tools to read flags and mirage, record and interpret your observations, and time your shots to compensate for wind.
I believe this is a must-have book if you are a long-range sport shooter. I compete in F-Class Open and when I first purchased this book and read it from cover to cover, it helped me understand wind reading and making accurate scope corrections. Buy this book, read it, put into practice what it tells you, you will not be disappointed. — P. Janzso
If you have one book for wind reading, this should be it. Whether you’re a novice or experienced wind shooter this book has something for you. It covers how to get wind speed and direction from flags, mirage, and natural phenomenon. In my opinion this is the best book for learning to read wind speed and direction. — Muddler
Today we share some smart tips from a past F-Class and Sling Champion who is both a great shooter AND a ballistics wizard. Founder of Applied Ballistics LLC, Bryan Litz is the author of multiple books and creator of advanced Ballistics Software.
Bryan is also a highly skilled competitor. In 2015, Bryan Litz won the F-TR Mid-Range AND Long-Range National Championships hosted at Ben Avery. And at the 2014 Berger SW Nationals (SWN), Bryan took top honors among all sling shooters. If you only know Bryan Litz from his Applied Ballistics Books and DVDs, you may not realize that this guy is a also great marksman along with being an actual rocket scientist!
Given his impressive track record in both F-Class and Palma (Fullbore) out to 1000 yards, we asked Bryan if he had any advice for other long-range competitors.
First Bryan provided three tips concerning Ballistics, his special area of expertise. Next Bryan offered three more general tips about long-range competition — how to analyze your shooting, how to choose your ‘wind strategy’, and how to avoid the most costly mistakes, i.e. how to avoid the “train-wrecks”.
Bryan Litz won the 2015 F-TR Mid-Range and Long-Range Championships with this sleek rig:
Litz Ballistics Tips
Ballistics TIP ONE. If you’re having trouble getting your ballistic software to match actual drops, you need to look at a number of possible reasons. Here are some common issues that can cause problems.
Click Values Are Not Exact. Scopes and iron sights don’t always produce accurate adjustments. In other words, if your ballistics program predicts 30 MOA of drop, and you dial 30 MOA but hit low, it might be that your sight actually only moved 28 MOA (for example). To see if your sight is adjusting accurately, shoot a tall target at 100 yards and measure group separation when dialing your sight.
Barometric vs. Station Pressure. This is a commonly misunderstood input to ballistics programs. You can avoid this pitfall by remembering the following: station pressure is the actual measured pressure at your location, and you don’t need to tell the program your altitude when using station pressure. Barometric pressure is corrected for sea level. If you’re using barometric pressure, you also have to input your altitude.
Muzzle Velocity. Chronographs are not always as accurate as shooters think they are — your true MV may be off by 10-20 fps (or more). If your drop is different than predicted at long range, it might be because your muzzle velocity input is wrong.
Mixing Up BC (G1 vs. G7). Knowledgeable long range shooters know that the G7 standard is a more representative standard for modern LR bullets. However, using G7 BCs isn’t just a matter of clicking the ‘G7′ option in the program. The numeric value of the BC is different for G1 and G7. For example, the G1 BC of the Berger 155.5 grain Fullbore bullet is .464 but the G7 BC is .237. If you were to enter .464 but click on G7, the results would be way off.
Ballistics TIP TWO. A properly installed level is absolutely essential for long range shooting. Without a good level reference, your long range wind zero will be off due to minor canting of the rifle from side to side. You can verify that your level is installed correctly on a 100-yard ‘tall target’. Draw a plumb line straight up the target and verify that your groups track straight up this line as you go up in elevation.
Ballistics TIP THREE. If your long range ballistic predictions aren’t tracking, always come back and verify your 100-yard zero. Sometimes a simple zero shift can be misconstrued as errors in long range ballistics predictions.
Litz Competition Shooting Tips
Competition TIP ONE. Improving your scores in long range competition is a constant process of self-assessment. After each match, carefully analyze how you lost points and make a plan to improve. Beginning shooters will lose a lot of points to fundamental things like sight alignment and trigger control. Veteran shooters will lose far fewer points to a smaller list of mistakes. At every step along the way, always ask yourself why you’re losing points and address the issues. Sometimes the weak links that you need to work on aren’t your favorite thing to do, and success will take work in these areas as well.
Competition TIP TWO. Select your wind shooting strategy carefully. For beginners and veterans, most points are typically lost to wind. Successful shooters put a lot of thought into their approach to wind shooting. Sometimes it’s best to shoot fast and minimize the changes you’ll have to navigate. Other times it’s best to wait out a condition which may take several minutes. Develop a comfortable rest position so you have an easier time waiting when you should be waiting.
Competition TIP THREE. Actively avoid major train wrecks. Sounds obvious but it happens a lot. Select equipment that is reliable, get comfortable with it and have back-ups for important things. Don’t load on the verge of max pressure, don’t go to an important match with a barrel that’s near shot out, physically check tightness of all important screws prior to shooting each string. Observe what train wrecks you and others experience, and put measures in place to avoid them.
Looking down-range with F-TR rifle at Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Arizona.
Bullet Stability and Twist Rates
In this video, Bryan Litz talks about bullet in-flight stability and how to calculate barrel twist-rate requirements for long-range bullets. Bryan explains that bullet stability (for conventional projectiles) is basically provided by the spinning of the bullet. But this spin rate is a function of BOTH the nominal twist rate of the barrel AND the velocity of the projectile. Thus, when shooting the same bullet, a very high-speed cartridge may work with a slower barrel twist rate than is required for a lower-speed (less powerful) cartridge. For match bullets, shot at ranges to 1000 yards and beyond, Bryan recommends a twist rate that offers good stability.
You’ll find more expert information on long-range shooting and ballistics on the Applied Ballistics website and the Bryan Litz Ballistics Facebook page. Bryan’s most recent Facebook post talks about the Coriolis effect — the apparent drift of a rifle trajectory due to the rotation of the earth.
To learn more, we recommend you subscribe to the Applied Ballistics Science of Accuracy — with in-depth articles, brilliant podcasts, exclusive videos and more.
