Results for the 2008 Creedmoor Cup & CMP Games have been posted on the CMP Competition website. The match, hosted at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, AZ, was hugely successfully drawing hundreds of shooters. You can find the winners of all categories on this Results Page. Then click on the “Ranked” link beside the winner’s name to get a list of all finishers in order of score.
Ronald Zerr, shooting a Match Rifle, won the Creedmoor Cup Aggregate overall with a 791-31X score. Forum member Jerry Tierney was runner-up in the Match Rifle Class with a 774-19X. In the Service Rifle Division, Trent Hering shot an impressive 789-25x, toping a field of 138 Service Rifle Shooters. Forum member Shawn McKenna finished second with a 782-23X score.
21 Teams Compete For Service Rifle Team Title
Among the big attractions of the CMP Games and Creedmoor Cup are the tightly-fought team events. In Service Rifle, 21 Teams competed for honors. This year, the USMC Arrieta team took first place, with a 1915-53X Aggregate. Team members are: MSgt Alex Arrieta (Coach), SW02 Peter Burns (Captain), SSgt Daniel Duitsman, CWO4 James Fraley, and SSgt Jason Haislip. The Oregon State Shooting Assn. Team finished second (1902-46X), with the Bushmaster/Remington Team in third (1892-42X).
Vintage Rifle Matches Are Very Popular
In other Western CMP Games events, Wesley Shumaker won the Garand Match, Arland Anderson won the Springfield Rifle Match, CW02 Peter Burns won the Vintage Rifle Match, and Creedmoor Sports Gen. Manager Dennis DeMille won the Garand Re-Entry Match. For the Overall Three-Gun Aggregate (Garand, Springfield, and Vintage Rifle), the top five shooters were: Michael Miller (823-11X), Arland Anderson 821-9X), James Denovchek (814-11X), Wesley Shumaker, and Ronald Foos. These older military-rifle matches were hugely popular, with large numbers of competitors. There were 135 shooters in the Garand Match and 51 in the Springfield Match. These kind of events, using vintage rifles that can be obtained at moderate cost from the CMP itself, reward fundamental marksmanship skills. They are much more a test of shooter abilities than a technology race.
We told you our friend Vanessa Warner would accomplish good things as the NRA’s new Manager of Disabled Shooting Services. Here’s proof — the NRA has just announced that the first-ever, nationwide indoor Air Rifle Championship series for disabled shooters will be held in 2009. The new event will be conducted at clubs and facilities nationwide, employing a Sectional Championship format. This will give competitors with physical disabilities a chance to compete in national individual and team events by comparing their scores with those fired in clubs all over the country. Scores are comparable because of the similar conditions existing in indoor ranges.
Sectional Championships are already held by the NRA, and now disabled shooters will be part of the action. Each year the NRA conducts National Open Rifle Sectional Championships in NRA 3-position Smallbore Rifle, 4-position Smallbore Rifle, International 3-P Smallbore Rifle and International Air Rifle. The Championships are the largest event of the indoor season and will now include International Indoor Air Rifle for disabled shooters.
“This championship was created with the goal of full integration into the NRA Open Indoor Air Rifle Championships in the future,” stated Vanessa Warner, NRA’s Manager of Disabled Shooting Services. “The plan is to eventually… allow both disabled and able-bodies to compete shoulder to shoulder for the title of National Champion.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau survey in 2003, there are currently 50 million people living with disabilities in America today. The integration of the Disabled Indoor Air Rifle Championships with the Open Indoor Air Rifle Championships will expand opportunities for disabled individuals to participate in the shooting sports. To learn more, visit the NRA’s Disabled Shooting Services Webpage or contact Vanessa Warner at 703-267-1495 or disabled-shooting [at] nra-hq.org.
New Zealand Shooters’ Success Stories
If you want to read about the experiences of a disabled shooter, check out Parashooting.co.nz, the website of Robert Berger, one of New Zealand’s leading Paralympic target shooters. Injured many years ago in a motorcycling accident, Robert took up target shooting in 2007. Under the tutelage of fellow Kiwi and Paralympic Champion shooter Michael Johnson, Robert soon discovered that he has a great aptitude for the sport. In his first year of competition, Robert captured the “Top Shooter” trophy for best combined score in the 36th New Zealand Paralympics National Championship. Robert has also represented his country in the Oceania Games in Sydney, Australia.
Robert writes: “I was introduced to target shooting for the disabled by Michael Johnson, current world champion. I became a paraplegic in 1975 after a [motorcycle accident]. During my rehab, I looked at several sports but because I was not into basketball, rugby etc. I moved on to other things.
Early in 2007, I had a go at target shooting with an air rifle. I was coached by Michael for a while using a borrowed gun from Parafed Auckland. After a short time, I decided to get more serious about the sport and bought my own rifle. Once I had my new Feinwerkbau 700 rifle I became more competitive and practiced harder.
In order to represent New Zealand at Oceania I had to shoot two Paralympics New Zealand Minimum Qualifying Standards (PNZ MQS) in each of the disciplines, Standing and Prone. The MQS for Standing is 570 and Prone 575 out of a possible 600 in 60 shots. With lots of practice and six attempts I got there. As a wheelchair user, ‘standing’ is not quite the right description, but what it means is that you sit holding the rifle without any support from your elbows resting on the table. ‘Prone’ is a similar position but with your elbows on the table.”
Robert’s coach and mentor, Michael Johnson of Auckland, New Zealand, is one of the top disabled shooters in the world. Michael won gold medals at the Athens 2004 Paralympics and at the 2006 World Championships. Michael contributes to another excellent website, Shooting4Disabled.com. Mike offers advice for disabled shooters on positions and equipment, and he explains the Classifications and rules. Mike’s web site also has a great photo gallery of indoor rifle ranges around the world.
Shooting has been part of the Paralympic Games since Toronto in 1976, with competitors now coming from 59 counties. Athletes compete in Rifle and Pistol events from distances of 10, 25 and 50m, in men’s, women’s and mixed competitions. Paralympic shooting utilizes a functional classification system, which enables athletes from different disability classes to compete together either individually or in teams.
Tony Boyer dominated the recent NBRSA Nationals, winning the 4-Gun, 3-Gun, and 2-Gun (LV/Sporter) Overalls, and finishing first in other events. While Boyer’s win was proof of his superior wind-reading and trigger-pulling skills, his equipment didn’t hurt. Boyer was shooting Bartlein gain twist, cut-rifled barrels. These barrels featured a twist rate that increased from 1:15″ to 1:14.25″. Notably, Wayne Campbell and Mike Ratigan, the second-place and third-place finishers in the 4-Gun, were also using Bartlein cut-rifled barrels (twist rate unknown). This was an impressive showing for Bartlein. It also shows that cut-rifled barrels are becoming the “go-to” choice in short-range benchrest, with both Bartlein and Krieger barrels displaying match-winning performance.
Frank Green of Bartlein Barrels told us: “Wayne Campbell did all the barrel fittings for Tony Boyer before Phoenix (NBRSA Nationals) and Kelbly’s (IBS 100/200 Nationals). I know Dwight Scott does work for Tony but not all of it. At Phoenix, Tony Boyer shot all gain-twist-type barrels (in every class). His barrels went from a 15 to a 14.25 twist. At Kelbly’s (the IBS 100/200 Nationals) right before Labor Day, Tony only had gain-twist barrels for his Heavy Varmint, and he proceeded to cream the HV class. At Kelbly’s, Boyer won HV 100 yards, HV 200 and HV Grand Aggregate with a .169 combined Agg.
At Phoenix, Boyer won the Unlimited 100, Unlimited Grand, LV grand, LV/sporter 2 gun, LV/sporter/HV 3 gun, and the Unlimited, LV, Sporter, HV 4 gun. This added up to 11 Hall of Fame points for Tony. In 4-Gun, Wayne Campbell came in second, and Ratigan came in third. In the 3-gun results it was Boyer and Campbell, first and second (both using Bartleins). In 2-Gun it was Boyer, Ratigan, Rodney Brown, and Campbell in that order. All of these we know for sure shot our barrels.”
Taran Butler, Bruce Piatt and Jerry Miculek claimed national titles at the U.S. Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) Multi-Gun Championships held October 3-5 at the Shootout Range in Princeton, Louisiana. The match drew nearly 120 competitors from 28 states. In Multi-Gun matches, shooters tackle multiple, timed stages, using pistol, rifle and shotgun to engage a variety of paper, steel and moving targets. Matches often require competitors to use all three types of firearms on a single stage. Showcasing remarkable shooter skills (and fast reflexes), Multi-Gun (i.e. “3-Gun”) matches are exciting to watch. Below is a video of USAMU team members at the 2007 USPSA Multi-Gun Nationals:
Nat’l Championship Results
In the Tactical Division, Taran Butler of Simi Valley, California dominated the match, winning five of the 12 stages and leading in overall points on eight. In the end his overall score of 1279.9417 outpaced second place shooter and fellow Golden State resident Keith Garcia of San Ramon by almost 77 points. Butler previously won the Tactical Division in 2006.
Team Smith & Wesson member Jerry Miculek, shooting on his home range, defended his 2007 win by again taking the Open Division title, this time by more than 24 points with a final score of 1278.0090. Miculek won five of the 12 stages and led the field over nine of them. Great Shooting Jerry! Chris Tilley finished second in the Open Division with a score of 1253.6155 edging out the 2006 champion Michael Voigt of Chino, California by just over two points. The Limited Division title went to Bruce Piatt of Montvale, New Jersey, who won by more than 41 points with a final score of 1302.0291. Piatt held the lead on eight stages winning three of them.
About USPSA: The United States Practical Shooting Association is a non-profit membership association and the governing body for the sport of Practical Shooting in America. USPSA has over 17,000 members and more than 350 affiliated clubs. Visit www.uspsa.org.
Late this year or early in 2009, Browning will release a new A-Bolt Target rifle. The new A-Bolt Target rifle represents a whole new direction for Browning — no doubt spurred by the success of Savage’s F-TR and F-Class Target rifles. The A-Bolt Target will be offered in both matte blued and stainless versions, in three calibers: .223 Rem, .308 Win, and 300 WSM.
Featuring a laminated wood stock (with adjustable comb), heavy-contour 28″ button-rifled barrel, and single set-trigger, the new Browning should be effective in F-TR (target rifle) class. (Sorry, Browning hasn’t released the set-trigger’s end pull-weight.) With detachable box magazines, and a quick 60° bolt lift, these rifles may also proove popular with tactical shooters (though tac guys may want to shorten the barrels). The .223 version also would make a nice varminter. The .223 has a 1:9″ twist while the .30-caliber guns come with a 1:10″ twist rate.
The Browning A-Bolt Target rifles have some nice features normally found on custom rifles. The action comes glass-bedded in the stock. According to press releases, the buttoned barrels will all be hand-chambered for improved accuracy. The stocks features a satin finish with nice checkering on the grip. The varmint-style forearm looks rigid enough to work well with a bipod, but we think the forearm should be longer for better weight distribution (longer “wheelbase”). The stock is not 3″ wide, so you’d probably want to mount a 3″-wide sled if you shoot this gun from the bench or in F-Open class. What’s all this cost? MSRP for the stainless .223 and .308 rifles is $1489, while the matted blued guns in the same calibers are $1269. 300 WSM versions cost $30.00 on top of those prices for stainless and blued respectively.
Conditions were hot and windy at the 2008 NBRSA 100/200 Nationals, held this week at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, AZ. When the dust settled Tony Boyer came out on top, again proving his mastery of the sport in very challenging conditions. (During many matches, winds gusted from 15-25 mph.) Boyer, widely regarded as THE best short-range benchrest shooter in history, won the Four-Gun Overall, the Three-Gun Overall, and the Sporter/LV Two-Gun Overall Championships. Consider Boyer’s class by class Grand Agg rankings:
UnLtd.
LV
HV
Sporter
#1, .2710
#1, .2407
#3, .2321
#4, .2298
Tony won all the marbles by showing great consistency with a TOP 10 or better finish in nearly every class and every distance. But it wasn’t easy — Boyer had some very tough competition. Tony’s protegé, Wayne Campbell, finished second in both the Four-Gun and Three-Gun Overall Championship. Mike Ratigan and Harley Baker also shot superbly throughout the match. Mike finished third in the Four-Gun, and second in the Sporter/LV Two-Gun. Larry Costa, Joe Krupa, and Bob Scarbrough were some of the other top performers.
Overall, this was a very successful match with 130+ shooters, including most of the big names in the sport. There were Hall of Famers up and down the line. Match Director (and railgun world-record holder) Gary Ocock ran a smooth match.
For complete NBRSA Nationals results, with the scores of all 130+ competitors, visit the NBRSA Nationals Thread on Benchrest.com. Woody from Colorado has posted .pdf and text files with all the Grand Agg details, multi-gun results, plus most of the individual events (e.g. LV 100, HV100, Sporter 200 etc.). Below are highlights, with the top 15 shooters in the 4-Gun, and 3-Gun Grand Agg.
The NBRSA 100-yard and 200-yard Nationals have been underway since Monday, October 6 at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Arizona. The match, which concludes on Oct. 11th, has drawn 120+ top shooters from around the country including Tony Boyer, Lester Bruno, Wayne Campbell, Don Nielson, Mike Ratigan, Bart Sauter, and Col. Billy Stevens.
Four classes will be contested at the NBRSA Nationals: Light Varmint (LV), Heavy Varmint (HV), Sporter, and Unlimited (Rail guns). The Unlimited (rail-gun) 100-yard and 200-yard Matches are complete and results are available. Results for the 100 and 200 Unlimited 10-shot group, 8-group aggregates are:
100-Yard Unlimited Agg
1. Tony Boyer 0.2198
2. Eric Stanton 0.2262
3. Mike Conry 0.2329
4. Wayne Campbell 0.2386
5. Lawrence Weisdorn 0.2440
6. Lester Bruno 0.2490
7. Don Nielson 0.2571
8. Billy Stevens 0.2626
9. Gary Sinclair 0.2735
10. Chris Harris 0.2750
200-Yard Unlimited Agg
1. Charles Huckeba 0.2598
2. Mike Ratigan 0.3057
3. Tony Boyer 0.3217
4. Don Creach 0.3371
5. Wayne Campbell 0.3401
6. Lawrence Weisdorn 0.3416
7. Mike Contry 0.3634
8. Bart Sauter 0.3715
9. Lester Bruno 0.3716
10. Tom Price 0.4004
Jeff Walker has taken some nice photos of the match. Here are photo links:
Stay tuned for more reports as we receive results for the HV, LV, and sporter classes. For more information, email match director Gary Ocock at onehole149 [at] aol.com. For NBRSA membership information and application forms, visit NBRSA.org.
Forum member Charles Ballard, featured in our Gun of the Week section, just won the F-Class Nationals in Lodi, Wisconsin (Open Class). Charles shot a 1337-65X using his .284 Win with Berger 180gr bullets. With 135 shots for record, Charles dropped just 13 points to score 1337 out of 1350 possible points. Great shooting Charles! Congrats on your win. (Charles was “hot” in Lodi — he also won the preliminary “warm-up” match earlier in the week.)
In Open Class, Mike Downey was second at 1333-55X, and Larry Bartholome was third 1332-62X. Larry, who recently won the Spirit of America F-Class match at Raton, shot superbly and posted 27X on Day 1, the high daily X-count for the match. The best one-day Open Class performance was turned in by past Champion Robert Bock, a 449-22X, also on Day 1. (The Day 1 match was shot at 600 yards; Day 2 and Day 3 were at 1000 yards.)
F-TR Class winner was Danny Biggs with an impressive 1305-42X. Not far behind were Dale Rathwell (1300-42X) in second place, and Darrell Buell (1299-26X) in third. Multi-time past F-TR National Champ Brad Sauve finished fourth.
F-Open Grand Agg TOP TEN
Class Shooter Day 1 agg Day 2 agg Day 3 agg Grand Agg.
Open Charles Ballard 443.21 448.24 446.20 1337.65
Open Mike Downey 444.18 445.16 444.21 1333.55
Open Larry Bartholome 446.27 442.19 444.16 1332.62
Open Nikolas Taylor 447.17 445.16 437.17 1329.50
Open Jim Murphy 448.23 439.11 440.14 1327.48
Open John Brewer 443.21 440.14 441.17 1324.52
Open Shawn Ahrens 443.26 437.15 443.16 1323.57
Open Emil Praslick III 443.19 435.14 445.20 1323.53
Open Robert Bock 449.22 437.11 437.16 1323.49
Open Jeff Traylor 448.22 433.14 438.11 1319.47
F-TR Grand Agg TOP TEN
Class Shooter Day 1 agg Day 2 agg Day 3 agg Grand Agg.
F-T/R Danny Biggs 444.19 424.05 437.18 1305.42
F-T/R Dale Rathwell 440.20 427.08 433.10 1300.38
F-T/R Darrell Buell 432.08 434.10 433.08 1299.26
F-T/R Brad Sauve 436.10 426.07 431.07 1293.24
F-T/R Jeff Rorer 439.22 419.06 428.06 1286.34
F-T/R Peter Church 437.10 426.09 422.07 1285.26
F-T/R Warren Dean 435.14 425.06 424.07 1284.27
F-T/R William Lair 434.11 425.11 423.10 1282.32
F-T/R Dale Carpenter 436.20 414.06 430.09 1280.35
F-T/R Paul Phillips 434.12 425.05 420.05 1279.22
Up in the woods of Wisconsin, the “Guns of October” are cutting loose. Many of America’s (and Europe’s) top F-Class shooters are competing in the Fifth Annual F-Class Championship in Lodi, WI. The 5-day event at the Winnequah Gun Club continues through October 4th. The event kicked off with a practice match (won by Forum member Charles Ballard), followed by team competition. (The individual championship will be contested last.)
Hard-Fought Team Matches and Record-Breaking Performances
Team match results are available, with complete results posted on Long-Range.com. In the US Nationals Open Class Team Match, Team Spindle Shooters prevailed with a 1590-81X score, followed by Team Berger (1569-62X), and Team 4 Aces (1565-60X). Spindle Shooters’ Coach Praslik praised his shooters: “These guys shot very straight and fast. I believe we broke two national records today. The 600-yard team score of 797-42x is a new record. The 1000-yard team score of 793-39x is a new record. The aggregate of the two scores, 1590-81x, is a National Championship record. Well done, Spindle Shooters. It was a privilege to coach you.”
Open Class Teams
F-TR (Target Rifle) Teams
Spindle Shooters 1590-81X
Captain: Jeff Cochran / Coach: Emil Praslik III
Shawn Ahrens
Jeff Cochran
Jeff Traylor
Brett Solomon
Team Berger 1569-62X
Captain: Larry Bartholome / Coach: Jim Murphy
Bob Bock
John Brewer
Jim Murphy
Larry Bartholome
Team 4 Aces 1565-60X
Captain: David Bailey / Coach: Emil Praslik (older)
David Gosnell
David Bailey
Rick Jensen
Emil Praslik
Team Sinclair 1544-47X
Captain: Dan Phillips / Coach: Raymond Gross/Paul Phillips
Brad Sauve
Paul Phillips
John Droelle
Raymond Gross
Team USA F-T/R 1535-50X
Captain: Darrell Buell / Coach: Mike Miller/Dale Carpenter
Mike Miller
Warren Dean
Dale Carpenter
Jeff Rorer
Team Savage 1509-26X
Captain: Stan Pate / Coach: Darrell Buell
Monte Milanuk
John Weil
Darrell Buell
Stan Pate
USA Wins Challenge Match
In addition to the regular Team Competition, International honors were at stake in a USA vs. Europe challenge match. Facing the combined forces of multiple European nations, the American shooters prevailed in both F-Open and F-TR Classes. Team USA-Open posted a 3117-121X score to best the Europeans, who totaled 3073-73. That was a great performance by Team USA-Open members Eric Bair, Shiraz Balolia, Robert Bock Jr., Mike Downey, Dagbs McIntosh, Dean Morris, Bryan Otey, and Larry Taite. In the F-TR division, the American team of Dale Carpenter, Warren Dean, Mike Miller, and Jeff Rorer outscored their European counterparts 1535-5X to 1447-16X to notch another victory for the Red, White, and Blue.
New Records Set Last Weekend
Preceding the Nationals, during last weekend, Wisconsin long-range team matches were held. Larry Bartholome reports: “The weather was near perfect with light, but tricky winds and sun shine some of the time. Six F-Class and Five Sling teams competed. I only have F-Class scores. USFCT1 (Team Berger/Norma) won Saturday’s Palma match with a new US record of 1781-94x. Two points back was USFCT2 (Spindle Shooters). The new record is 54 points and 45Xs ahead of the old one. Four of the five F-Class teams broke the old record.”
Tom Manners of Manners Composite Stocks has a new F-Class stock that’s long, low, and very stiff. The first three examples get their “trial by fire” this week at the F-Class Nationals in Lodi, Wisconsin. The stock is derivative of some other familiar designs, particularly in the grip area, but the underside of the stock is radically new, and the stock promises to be very rigid in all planes, without the fore-arm lift or flex found in some other F-Class stocks.
Tom says: “The shell is 100% carbon fiber with a molded-in action and barrel area. This design features a very long, stiff fore-end. From the back of the action to the tip of the fore-end the stock measures 27″ long which is around 7 1/2″ longer than our T4 stock.” The idea is to provide a “longer wheelbase” to better balance the long, 30-32″ barrels favored by many F-Class competitors.
The front half of the fore-end is very thin (from top to bottom) to achieve a low profile on the bags. The McMillan F-Class stock uses such a design, and a thin fore-end can definitely lower the center of gravity. However, some other thin-forearm designs have suffered from a springboard effect. This should not be the case with the new Manners stock. Much thought has gone into controlling fore-end flex. Manners’ design achieves greater vertical rigidity (less deflection under load) through an innovative “fish belly” design. The rounded undersection, like a canoe hull, strengthens the fore-end considerably. Carbon fiber construction also adds stiffness.
Another nice feature of the fore-end are the molded-in “rails”. On the underside of the forearm, an area is relieved for a few inches in the center. This allows the stock to contact the front bag on the two outer edges or rails. The relieved center area can ride above the “hump” typically found in the middle of the front sand-bag. Other stock designs have proven the merits of this “twin rail” feature. It works. Eliminating contact with the “hump” reduces rock and wobble, and the twin rails allow smooth tracking.
Overall, we like the stock design very much except for one thing. The stock has a pronounced corner or knuckle at the top rear of the pistol grip. This creates a sharp transition from the tang to the area relieved for your thumb. A similar (though less extreme) knuckle is found on the McMillan A-series designs. Our testers have shot stocks with grips like this and the reaction was mixed. IF you have big hands and can wrap your thumb all the way around the grip, this design can work well with a hard hold. The vertical section right below the knuckle can help distribute some of the recoil into the web of the hand. However, for people with smaller hands, your thumb is forced into an awkward position. Additionally, many shooters use a lighter hold, or prefer to place the thumb parallel to the bore axis, resting on the stock, just behind the tang. This allows you to apply some down-pressure, WITHOUT side force (a shooting style that some rifles prefer). You can do this easily with a Tooley MBR-style stock, or a Franklin low-rider. With a hard knuckle like you find on the Manners stock, resting your thumb behind the tang doesn’t work well at all. Looking at the photos, we also think the pistol grip is quite fat, further causing problems with shooters with small to medium hands. That said, we know many shooters, particularly “tactical” competitors, who like this kind of grip. Tom Manners wants to “get feedback” on the new stock at the Nationals. It will be interesting to learn if some shooters ask for a different style grip.
Results for the 2008 Creedmoor Cup & CMP Games have been posted on the CMP Competition website. The match, hosted at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, AZ, was hugely successfully drawing hundreds of shooters. You can find the winners of all categories on this Results Page. Then click on the “Ranked” link beside the winner’s name to get a list of all finishers in order of score.
We told you our friend Vanessa Warner would accomplish good things as the NRA’s new Manager of Disabled Shooting Services. Here’s proof — the NRA has just announced that the first-ever, nationwide indoor Air Rifle Championship series for disabled shooters will be held in 2009. The new event will be conducted at clubs and facilities nationwide, employing a Sectional Championship format. This will give competitors with physical disabilities a chance to compete in national individual and team events by comparing their scores with those fired in clubs all over the country. Scores are comparable because of the similar conditions existing in indoor ranges.
Sectional Championships are already held by the NRA, and now disabled shooters will be part of the action. Each year the NRA conducts National Open Rifle Sectional Championships in NRA 3-position Smallbore Rifle, 4-position Smallbore Rifle, International 3-P Smallbore Rifle and International Air Rifle. The Championships are the largest event of the indoor season and will now include International Indoor Air Rifle for disabled shooters.
New Zealand Shooters’ Success Stories
In order to represent New Zealand at Oceania I had to shoot two Paralympics New Zealand Minimum Qualifying Standards (PNZ MQS) in each of the disciplines, Standing and Prone. The MQS for Standing is 570 and Prone 575 out of a possible 600 in 60 shots. With lots of practice and six attempts I got there. As a wheelchair user, ‘standing’ is not quite the right description, but what it means is that you sit holding the rifle without any support from your elbows resting on the table. ‘Prone’ is a similar position but with your elbows on the table.”
Tony Boyer dominated the recent NBRSA Nationals, winning the 4-Gun, 3-Gun, and 2-Gun (LV/Sporter) Overalls, and finishing first in other events. While Boyer’s win was proof of his superior wind-reading and trigger-pulling skills, his equipment didn’t hurt. Boyer was shooting Bartlein gain twist, cut-rifled barrels. These barrels featured a twist rate that increased from 1:15″ to 1:14.25″. Notably, Wayne Campbell and Mike Ratigan, the second-place and third-place finishers in the 4-Gun, were also using Bartlein cut-rifled barrels (twist rate unknown). This was an impressive showing for Bartlein. It also shows that cut-rifled barrels are becoming the “go-to” choice in short-range benchrest, with both Bartlein and Krieger barrels displaying match-winning performance.
Frank Green of Bartlein Barrels told us: “Wayne Campbell did all the barrel fittings for Tony Boyer before Phoenix (NBRSA Nationals) and Kelbly’s (IBS 100/200 Nationals). I know Dwight Scott does work for Tony but not all of it. At Phoenix, Tony Boyer shot all gain-twist-type barrels (in every class). His barrels went from a 15 to a 14.25 twist. At Kelbly’s (the IBS 100/200 Nationals) right before Labor Day, Tony only had gain-twist barrels for his Heavy Varmint, and he proceeded to cream the HV class. At Kelbly’s, Boyer won HV 100 yards, HV 200 and HV Grand Aggregate with a .169 combined Agg.
Nat’l Championship Results
Conditions were hot and windy at the 2008 NBRSA 100/200 Nationals, held this week at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, AZ. When the dust settled Tony Boyer came out on top, again proving his mastery of the sport in very challenging conditions. (During many matches, winds gusted from 15-25 mph.) Boyer, widely regarded as THE best short-range benchrest shooter in history, won the Four-Gun Overall, the Three-Gun Overall, and the Sporter/LV Two-Gun Overall Championships. Consider Boyer’s class by class Grand Agg rankings:
The NBRSA 100-yard and 200-yard Nationals have been underway since Monday, October 6 at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix, Arizona. The match, which concludes on Oct. 11th, has drawn 120+ top shooters from around the country including Tony Boyer, Lester Bruno, Wayne Campbell, Don Nielson, Mike Ratigan, Bart Sauter, and Col. Billy Stevens.
Overall, we like the stock design very much except for one thing. The stock has a pronounced corner or knuckle at the top rear of the pistol grip. This creates a sharp transition from the tang to the area relieved for your thumb. A similar (though less extreme) knuckle is found on the McMillan A-series designs. Our testers have shot stocks with grips like this and the reaction was mixed. IF you have big hands and can wrap your thumb all the way around the grip, this design can work well with a hard hold. The vertical section right below the knuckle can help distribute some of the recoil into the web of the hand. However, for people with smaller hands, your thumb is forced into an awkward position. Additionally, many shooters use a lighter hold, or prefer to place the thumb parallel to the bore axis, resting on the stock, just behind the tang. This allows you to apply some down-pressure, WITHOUT side force (a shooting style that some rifles prefer). You can do this easily with a Tooley MBR-style stock, or a Franklin low-rider. With a hard knuckle like you find on the Manners stock, resting your thumb behind the tang doesn’t work well at all. Looking at the photos, we also think the pistol grip is quite fat, further causing problems with shooters with small to medium hands. That said, we know many shooters, particularly “tactical” competitors, who like this kind of grip. Tom Manners wants to “get feedback” on the new stock at the Nationals. It will be interesting to learn if some shooters ask for a different style grip.
