Brownells has released its first-ever Personal Protection & Home Defense Catalog. This full-color, 64-page Catalog (issue #1) features the most popular accessories, parts, holsters, magazines, cleaning supplies, and ammunition for home defense and personal protection. Additionally, the “Preparedness” section features an array of compact flashlights, knives, multi-tools, first-aid kits and emergency bags, plus less-lethal devices like the C2 Taser, collapsible batons, and pepper spray.
Frank Brownell Receives Honor From American Custom Gunmakers Guild
Frank Brownell, longtime President and now Chairman of the Board of Brownells, Inc., was recognized by the American Custom Gunmakers Guild (ACGG) on Thursday, March 28, 2013, during the Brownells 7th Annual Gunsmith Conference & Career Fair.
Guild members surprised Brownell by presenting him with an Honorary Life Membership to the American Custom Gunmakers Guild. Brownell is the first and only non-craftsman to receive the prestigious award, according to the President of the ACGG, Michael Ullman.
“I was totally taken aback by this award,” said Frank Brownell. “I love the incredibly beautiful, functional guns the folks in the Guild build. Their craftsmanship is simply superb [and] their passion is creating these amazing works of art[.] I am deeply honored, and thank them all so very much.”
Our IT guy, Jay (aka ‘JayChris’ in the Forum) shoots F-Class with a 31.5″-barreled rifle. He wanted a quality soft-case that could protect his F-Class rifle and the large Nightforce 12-42 NSX scope on top. After looking at many options, Jay selected the Bald Eagle BE1021 Long Rifle Case. Jay tells us: “I just bought one of these, after seeing a couple guys with them at the range. They can easily handle a long prone or F-Class rifle and have good padding (similar to the Creedmoor case) and seem well-built. I also noticed a lot of the sling shooters showing up with them.” Bald Eagle offers this case design in two colors: black (BE1021) or red (BE1020). The BE1020/21 soft cases measure 55″ long by 13″ tall. There is a large, zippered compartment on both sides of the case.
Amazon Buyer Review (by Gonzos):
This is a well-made, sturdy case for large rifles with a scope. Easily fits my 31-inch barreled F-Class rifle with a 12X42 Nightforce scope on it. I have no problems with it at all — in fact this is my third one. I wish the side pocket was full length (to hold a cleaning rod) but other than that it is perfect.
Bigger is Better?
Yes, size matters — at least when it comes to gun safes. Is your current safe bursting at the seams with your ever-growing firearms collection? Perhaps you need a little more vertical clearance for your Lahti L-39 or favorite Punt Gun? Well Superior Safe Co. has a solution for you — a humongous safe that stands 10-feet tall and weighs more than a pick-up truck. For reference, the young man in the picture, Greg from Pyramyd Air, is an honest 6’3″ tall.
Sized Right — For a 7-Footer
Now if you’re not an NBA center, the lock placement on this jumbo safe is not very practical. We note that the keypad is a good foot above Greg’s head, making access somewhat difficult for the “vertically challenged” customer. We’re not sure what Superior Safe hand in mind there — unless this mega-safe was really created for Shaquille O’Neal or Yao Ming. Still, Americans love big stuff — big cars, big houses, and, of course, big guns. At least if you purchase one of these monsters, you’ll have the peace of mind that a smash-and-grab thief can’t roll it away on a hand dolly. Superior Safe, which displayed this yellow giant at last year’s NRA Annual Meeting & Exhibits, explains that this is a “custom model” not on the normal price list — face it, if you need to ask about the price, you can’t afford it. Joking aside, if you really need this kind of capacity for a firearms collection (with a punt gun or Lahti), you’d be wise to consider a custom walk-in vault, built into a room in your house. (Safe photo courtesy Pyramyd Air.)
What is a Punt Gun? A punt gun is an extremely large shotgun used in the 19th and early 20th centuries for shooting large numbers of waterfowl for commercial harvesting operations and private sport. Punt guns could have bore diameters exceeding 2 inches (51 mm) and fire over a pound of shot at a time. A single shot could kill over 50 waterfowl resting on the water’s surface. Punt guns were too big to hold so they were often mounted directly on the punts (boats) used for hunting, hence their name. Generally the gun was fixed to the punt, requiring the hunter to manuever the entire boat to aim the gun. Firing the gun often propelled the punt backwards from recoil. Sometimes fleets of punt gun-boats were used together. In the United States, this practice depleted stocks of wild waterfowl and by the 1860s most states had banned the practice. In the United Kingdom, a 1995 survey showed fewer than 50 active punt guns still in use. UK law limits punt guns to a bore diameter of 1.75 inches (1 1/8 pounder). Learn more at Wikipedia.com.
Lahti L-39 photo, courtesy Gordon Greene, originally appeared in The Gun Zone.
The new 34th Edition Blue Book of Gun Values has just been released, and is available now for $29.38. The Blue Book of Gun Values, by S. P. Fjestad, is the top-selling book in our AccurateShooter Bookstore which operates through Amazon.com. The 34th Edition of the Blue Book has 2,408 pages, easily making it the highest page count of any firearms book currently in print. This resource includes nearly 1,500 gun manufacturers, almost 20,000 gun model descriptions, and over 175,000 prices!
Updated Products and Prices
New 2013 domestic and imported makes and models have been included. All gun values have been thoroughly updated for both modern and antique firearms, including the recent paramilitary style guns. Other features include the 80-page color Photo Percentage Grading System (PPGS) and serialization and proofmark sections to help in identifying firearms. The Blue Book of Gun Values is the firearm industry’s most trusted reference book with over 1.5 million copies in print.
NEW!! CD-ROM and Online Version of Blue Book
The Blue Book’s Publisher now offers a CD-ROM version of the Blue Book of Gun Values. Priced at $34.95, this contains all the information from the printed version of the 34th Edition Blue Book of Gun Values as well as over 3,500 color images packed on an easy-to-use disc.
The Blue Book of Gun Values is now available as an online subscription for $34.95. The online subscription contains the entire database of the current Blue Book of Gun Values, but it also has many features not available with the printed version, including quarterly updates, over 2,500 firearm images, complete search abilities, and inventory capabilities. You can also get a combo package of book and online data access. If you purchase the book directly from the publishers for $44.95, for an additional $5.00 you can get a one-year online subscription. You must use discount code 34GUNSUB5 at checkout to receive the $5 subscription.
Learn About Blue Book of Gun Values NEW Online Database:
Nine-Part Video Guide for Blue Blue Users
To assist Blue Book readers, Blue Book Publications has created a nine-part instructional video series on YouTube. Part 1, the Introduction, provides an overview. Each of the other eight (8) short videos explains a key feature of the Blue Book of Gun Values and how to best utilize it. Watch one or more videos, according to your interests.
Sinclair Int’l now carries Bullet Sample Packs from Bullet Proof Samples LLC. These 12-bullet packs are available for Berger, Barnes, and Nosler bullets in popular weights, types, and calibers. With the sample packs, during load development, you can try out a variety of projectiles without investing in an entire box of each type. That’s smart. Sample packs range in price from $5.99 to $15.99 (for twelve bullets per pack). Most of the Berger bullet packs are priced under $10.00, with many in the $6-$7 range.
CLICK HERE for the Sinclair Int’l bullet sample pack webpage. (Once there, select Barnes, Berger, or Nosler). You’ll also find the sample packs on page six of the Sinclair Int’l print catalog. To place an order, or for additional information, call 800-717-8211 or visit www.sinclairintl.com.
Earlier this month we ran a story on the new Sauer 101 rifle. It turns out the Sauer 101 will be distributed in the U.S. by Blaser USA. Here’s more good news for hunters — we’ve learned that Blaser will be bringing another new German hunting rifle to the USA — the Mauser M 12. You’ll find specs and photos of the M 12 below. This is a rifle with a great heritage, superb build quality, plus some innovative features.
Both the Mauser M 12 and Sauer 101 rifles should be available at retailers in late April. To learn more, visit these websites: www.Mauser-m12.com and www.Sauer-101.com. For additional information on the Blaser line of products visit www.Blaser-USA.com.
Mauser M 12 Specifications
Bolt Features: 6-lug bolt, 60° bolt lift, bolt lugs engage directly in barrel, side bolt release, bolt can be disassembled without tools.
Extraction: Dual, spring loaded-ejectors for positive extraction.
Some times nice guys do finish first. Our buddy Vu Pham, co-founder of the NorCal Practical Precision Rifle Club (NCPPRC) took top honors in the NCPPRC monthly tactical long range match on the 1000 yard range at the Sacramento Valley Shooting Center. Shooting his .260 Remington in a McMillan A5 stock, built by Spartan Rifles, topped with a Bushnell 4-30x50mm from CS Tactical, Vu beat a competitive field on a breezy day that saw the top 6 shooters separated by only 15 points. The Course of Fire had 27 of the 50 rounds shot from 800 to 1000 yards, where the fast-switching winds at 1000 yards were the deciding factor in the outcome. Vu tells us: “This LR Match win has eluded me for seven years now with these guys. I’ve been in the top five quite a few times, but never took home the win. Our matches are so close these days that it usually comes down to one or two bad trigger presses or ‘blown’ wind calls to separate the Top 10 shooters.”
NCPPRC long range tactical matches are held the first Sunday of each month, and are open to anyone 18 or older. No membership in any organization is required. Registration is at Range 12 of the Sacramento Valley Shooting Center from 07:30 to 08:30 in the morning. Cost is $25. To learn more about the match visit the NCPPRC Long Range Match webpage.
New Bushnell 4.5-30x50mm Tactical Scope
Vu Pham was running an all-new Bushnell front focal plane 4.5-30x50mm XRS scope with an amazing 6.7 times zoom range. This 34mm-tube scope features Bushnell’s G2 DMR Reticle. For a scope offering 30X magnification, is it compact at 14″ OAL (only 3/4″ longer than the HDMR). The elevation turret provides 10 mils per revolution with a zero stop. The scope sells for $2149.00 at CS Tactical.
Vu liked the new Bushnell scope and, obviously, it performed well for him. Vu tells us: “I believe this optic just hit the market… and is still pretty new. After having a few days behind the Bushnell XRS 4.5-30, I believe this optic will be a very viable option for the tactical precision rifle game. One of my favorite features of this scope is the mil-based G2DMR reticle. It makes holding over (and holding for windage) fast and easy. I will be doing a full test and evaluation in the next week or two after I get more time behind the optic.” Mike Cecil with CS Tactical provided the scope for this T&E.” Mike notes: “This is not the 4-30 tactical that’s listed as an XRS in the Bushnell online catalog — that’s a 30mm in the 6500 series line. This 34mm-tube XRS is a whole new animal!”
If you want to see the latest and greatest shooting hardware from the other side of the Atlantic, log on to Targetshooter.co.uk, and check out the recently-released April 2013 digital edition of Target Shooter Magazine. Now offered in an easy-to-read scrolling format, the April edition is a gear-head’s delight, with dozens of large photos showing new hardware on display at the IWA Outdoor Classics trade show. You’ll find full IWA show coverage, including coverage of some very exotic rifles and components that have yet to make it across the Atlantic. Target Shooter’s “man on the scene” at the IWA show was our friend Vince Bottomley, and he came away very impressed with many of the new products he saw on display.
Vince notes that the IWA show had more than 1200 exhibitors. That’s a big presence, even compared to the 1600 exhibitors at SHOT Show. IWA also had many of the larger European exhibitors who don’t exhibit in Vegas. Interestingly, Vince noted that “aluminum stocks are becoming the ‘industry standard’ — particularly for competition and tactical rifles. Thanks to… CNC machinery, these stocks are generally reasonably priced (often less than the fiberglass equivalent) and require little or no gunsmithing[.] In most cases, they also look superb, especially when anodized or Ceracoated. Even major manufacturers are offering aluminum-stocked rifles — check out Blaser, Steyr, Haenel, Zastava and of course Unique Alpine, Accuracy International, and Desert Tactical Arms.” There were also many interesting bipods, actions, and optics on display.
In addition to the IWA report by Vince Bottomley, the April edition of Target Shooter has a field test by Chris Parkin of the Savage Model 25 Lightweight Varminter, chambered in 17 Hornet. With a comfortable thumbhole stock, Savage’s Model 25 performed well and was ultra-silent as fitted with a suppressor. The April issue also spotlights a carbon-fiber-stocked beauty — the Ataman M2 Benchrest Air Rifle. This is the second of a two-part report by Carl Boswell.
Fire-forming improved cases can be time-consuming and expensive. Now with just a mallet, a Hornady hydro-forming die kit, and a little H20, you can form Dasher and other improved cartridge cases easily and safely. And you won’t consume costly bullets, powder, and primers, or use up precious barrel life.
Three or Four Whacks Produces a 95%-Formed Case
With a Hornady hydro-forming die, water pressure does the job of blowing out the shoulders of your improved case. The process is relatively simple. Place a spent primer in the bottom of a new piece of brass. Fill the case with water, and then slip it into a special Hornady shell-holder with no hole in the middle. Then you run the case up into the forming die. Now comes the fun part. You gently insert a plunger (hydraulic ram) from the top, and give it three or four stiff whacks with a mallet (or better yet, a dead-blow hammer). Remove the plunger and you have a 95% formed case, ready to load.
Forum member Walter Queen (aka Queen_Stick) acquired a Hornady Hydraulic forming die kit through our Forum Classifieds. He used this to form 6mm Dasher cases. Walter tested to see how many mallet blows would be required to form his dasher cases. Using a regular mallet, four or five blows was the magic number (with a Dead-blow hammer, one can often do the job with three strong whacks). Shown below are test cases with 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 (X) mallet strikes. Walter explained: “It helps to use a consistent yet aggressive swing with the mallet. I did a little test to show what’s happening to the case with each swing. The numbers on the cases refer to the number of swings with the mallet. The last case, with the ‘X’ on it, I actually hit it 10 times. The extra effort made no difference; anything beyond 5 swings is likely a waste of time!”
What’s the “happy face” case with the split shoulder? Well, as a test, Walter tried one older, work-hardened piece of brass. This split its shoulder on the third strike. Walter concluded: “You MUST have new brass, or freshly annealed brass. The ‘smiley case’ shows a split neck. For that case, on the third swing of the mallet the piston slammed down into the die and bottomed out [and] the water shot out of the split in the neck.”
Read More on RiflemansJournal.com
You can learn more about the hydro-forming process in a detailed article on German Salazar’s Rifleman’s Journal website. There, you’ll find more photos, and Walter provides helpful tips on how to hydro-form cases most efficiently (and with the least spilled H20). One tip is to “fill the cases with a syringe of some sort.”
Hornady supplies a shell holder made specifically for the hydro die; there’s no hole in the bottom of it. Just insert a spent primer into the primer pocket and you’re ready to go. The spent primer combined with the solid shell holder, keeps the water from seeping out of the primer pocket. The primer pushes out a little bit during this process, but it’s impossible for it to come out because of the way the shell holder is designed. The shell holder has a grove which allows the case to slide out of the shell holder even when the primer protrudes a bit.
How to Order Hydro-Forming Die Kits
Hydro-forming die kits, which include forming die, plunger, and special shell-holder can be ordered through the Hornady Custom Shop. Hornady can create a forming die kit for most popular cartridges, if you provide a die print or some full-formed sample cases. To order, contact Ben Syring at Hornady: 800-338-3220 (ext. 261) or bsyring [at] hornady.com. If you have an oddball wildcat, send Ben the specs for your chamber and three (3) pieces of fire-formed brass.
Next month, the Lone Star State hosts the 2013 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits. From May 2-5, an estimated 550 companies will display their latest products across 445,000 square feet of space in Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center. There will be scores of new guns and firearms accessories on display.
Here are some of the New Products that will be on display at the NRA Meetings in Houston:
BARRETT: MRAD multi-caliber rifle (.338 LM, .300 WM, .308 Win). BENELLI USA: New M2 Field shotgun variants. BERETTA: New competition over/under shotguns, the 692 Sporting and XT, and DT11. BERGARA USA: New line of “semi-custom” hunting and tactical rifles. BROWNING: New AB3 A-Bolt with new bolt, action, trigger. BUSHMASTER: 308 Hunter, Predator, Varminter rifles now have Magpul stocks. CROSMAN: New AR-style air rifle (MSR77 NP), and MK-177 tactical pump pellet rifle. CZ: New 455 rimfire bolt-actions –Tacticool, SST Varmint, and Varmint Thumbhole. FNH USA: New FN SC 1 over/under target shotgun with 30″ barrel. GAMO: New “Bull Whispers”, bull-barrel air rifles with NS-52 dampener to lower noise. MOSSBERG: New pump-action shotguns wiht Harmonic Damper Technology to reduce perceived recoil. NOSLER CUSTOM: New Model 48 Outfitter Rifle with custom action and hand-lapped ss barrel. REMINGTON: New Model 783, low-priced bolt-action rifle with adjustable ‘Crossfire’ trigger. RUGER: New 6-lb, compact American Rifle models in .243 and 7mm-08. SAVAGE: New B-Mag 17 WSM rifle, chambered for the new .17 Win Super Mag rimfire cartridge. SMITH & WESSON: New M&P 10 flat-top .308 Win AR-platform rifle with factory camo finish. STEYR: Mannlicher Pro African rifle with new soft-finish composite stock that is quiet in bush. THOMPSON/CENTER: New Venture Compact, with shorter barrel and composite stock with LOP spacers. WEATHERBY: Upgraded Back Country Vanguard S2 rifle with Cerakote Tactical Grey metalwork. WINCHESTER: “Ultimate Shadow” m70 bolt-action hunting rifles in stocks with rubberized surfaces.
Guild members surprised Brownell by presenting him with an Honorary Life Membership to the American Custom Gunmakers Guild. Brownell is the first and only non-craftsman to receive the prestigious award, according to the President of the ACGG, Michael Ullman.
Bigger is Better?
A punt gun is an extremely large shotgun used in the 19th and early 20th centuries for shooting large numbers of waterfowl for commercial harvesting operations and private sport. Punt guns could have bore diameters exceeding 2 inches (51 mm) and fire over a pound of shot at a time. A single shot could kill over 50 waterfowl resting on the water’s surface. Punt guns were too big to hold so they were often mounted directly on the punts (boats) used for hunting, hence their name. Generally the gun was fixed to the punt, requiring the hunter to manuever the entire boat to aim the gun. Firing the gun often propelled the punt backwards from recoil. Sometimes fleets of punt gun-boats were used together. In the United States, this practice depleted stocks of wild waterfowl and by the 1860s most states had banned the practice. In the United Kingdom, a 1995 survey showed fewer than 50 active punt guns still in use. UK law limits punt guns to a bore diameter of 1.75 inches (1 1/8 pounder). Learn more at 
NEW!! CD-ROM and Online Version of Blue Book
Earlier this month we ran a story on the new 
Next month, the Lone Star State hosts the 
