Western Powders has introduced a new spherical powder designed for large magnum cartridges such as the .338 Lapua Magnum. This new powder, Ramshot LRT, has an extremely slow burn rate. Being a spherical (ball) powder it meters well. It also offers very good velocities. The manufacturer states:
“As one of the slowest spherical powders ever developed, Ramshot LRT (Long Range Tactical) was created for high performance at extreme ranges. Designed specifically for the .338 Lapua Magnum using heavy, high ballistic coefficient bullets, LRT offers high load densities and low standard deviations for superior accuracy. Hunters who prefer the advantages of overbore magnums like the .257 Weatherby or 30 Nosler will find that LTR meters more easily and produces flatter trajectories than rival propellants.”
Though Ramshot LRT has just started to ship to retailers, Western Powders has compiled some initial load data for a variety of cartridges. Shown below is official load data for four large cartridge types (this is a partial list). Additional load data for Ramshot powders is found on the Ramshot Load Data Page. As with all load data, start conservatively, and stick to the exact components listed:
At the 2018 NRA Show in Dallas last week, Trijicon unveiled a notable new scope that should interest Benchrest shooters and Long-Range competitors. The all-new Trijicon AccuPower 5-50x56mm Long Range Scope offers an impressive ten times zoom range, plus an illuminated reticle. This RS50 Series Second Focal Plane scope with 34mm main tube is offered in both MOA and MIL systems. The MOA version features 1/8 MOA clicks plus a reticle with 1 MOA subtensions at 40X power. The MIL version has 1/20 Milrad click values and a ranging style reticle with wind hold dot system. Both MOA and MIL versions have a full 100 MOA of elevation travel.
New Trijicon 5-50x56mm Scope Revealed at NRA Show in Dallas:
Credit Erik Cortina for providing this video.
With a $2700 MSRP, we expect Trijicon’s new 5-50X scope to have a “street price” of about $2400. That lines up with the NightForce 15-55x52mm Competition, now priced at $2352.00 on Amazon.
The new Trijicon 5-50x56mm (RS50 Series) scope boasts some nice features. Employing extra-low dispersion glass, the scope offers high light transmission with minimal chromatic aberration. The magnification control lever can be moved to two different positions to suit the operator. Both MOA and MIL reticle styles are illuminated with 5 red and 5 green user-selectable brightness settings.
We hope to get our hands on one of these new Trijicon 5-50X scopes soon for testing. We’ll let you know how it stacks up against other high-magnification zoom scopes, such as the Vortex 10-60x52mm Golden Eagle, the Nightforce 15-55x52mm, and the March 5-50x56mm.
Please note, along with this 5-50x56mm scope, Trijicon has also introduced a 4.5-30x56mm RS30 Series scope. This 4.5-30X optic will be offered in both First Focal Plane and Second Focal Plane versions. SEE AccuPower Scope Brochure.
Product Tip from EdLongrange. Video and Trijicon Brochure from Erik Cortina.
LabRadar owners can celebrate. New mobile-friendly control software is coming soon. Gunsmith and Benchrest Hall of Famer Thomas “Speedy” Gonzalez had some interesting news from the NRA Show in Dallas. He learned that the creators of the LabRadar chronograph systems will soon offer Mobile Apps that can run on your iOS or Android smartphone or tablet. This new software will make it much easier to control the LabRadar, and offer enhanced data editing functionality.
New LabRadar iOS and Android Mobile Apps Coming Soon…
Speedy says: “I just got back from the NRA show in Dallas, Texas. The coolest thing I personally saw at the show was at the LabRadar booth. They had the Beta versions of their new LabRadar Apps for the iPhone and Android phones. These Apps let you control all LabRadar functions from your phone as well as your tablet via Bluetooth connection. The new Apps will also allow the LabRadar owner to store and edit his or her data from a much larger and user friendly screen.”
That’s good news. We particularly like the ability to edit LabRadar data on a tablet. Speedy added: “This is going to revolutionize this great product and make it [much more] user-friendly.”
The new LabRadar Mobile Apps will be available free for LabRadar owners. If you own a LabRadar, be sure to register your LabRadar on the LabRadar Website. That will ensure you are notified via email as soon as the software is available. To register, look for the text link at the top right of the LabRadar homepage. It says “Register your LabRadar “. Click the link then fill out the data form.
SIG Sauer and Applied Ballistics showed off impressive new electro-optical technology at the NRA Show in Dallas. Bryan Litz says “SIG Sauer’s Ballistics Data Exchange (BDX) is game changer. Imagine lazing a long range target, and having your exact fire solution (hold-over) automatically projected into your scope based on your ballistic profile.”
BDX takes target range info from a SIG Sauer Laser Rangefinder, calculates a ballistic solution using Applied Ballistics software, then displays the hold-over info directly in the optic (via a wireless BlueTooth connection). Just dial and shoot. Put the calculated BDX dot on the target and shoot. This ground-breaking BDX technology enables key ballistic hold-over information to be exchanged wirelessly among BDX-enabled Electro-Optics products.
You can buy this as a package with scope and LRF, starting at just $700.00 for scope and rangefinder. To our surprise, these scopes have a normal form factor. They look completely “normal”, with no clunky receiver boxes or extra turrets. BDX riflescopes aren’t bulky or heavy even though they include built-in electronics, level, and inclination detection.
“Rangefinding riflescopes of the past have had two major shortcomings: they are either big, boxy and heavy, or extremely expensive. The … BDX system packs advanced ballistics technology into a simple platform that looks just like the rangefinder and riflescope [hunters use] today. It is extremely simple to use. Range a target, put the digital ballistic holdover dot on target, pull the trigger — just connect the dot.” — Andy York, President, SIG Sauer Electro-Optics.
SIG Sauer’s Ballistics Data Exchange (BDX) is an integrated system of devices that talk seamlessly to each other, sharing data. Applied Ballistics says this system be expanded in the months ahead. “This system will be comprised of scopes, rangefinders, binoculars, and more. BDX will even be able to ‘talk’ to Kestrels and Garmins as well as SIG Sauer smart-scopes. This is only the start, over the next year you will see increasing levels of tech becoming available.”
How BDX (Ballistics Data Exchange) Functions — Software and Hardware
How does BDX work? First download the SIG BDX App for Android or iOS. Then pair the KILO BDX rangefinder and SIERRA3BDX riflescope, and set up a basic ballistic profile. Once you are in the field, range your target as you normally would, and the KILO BDX rangefinder will utilize onboard Applied Ballistics Ultralight™ to instantly send your dope to the scope via Bluetooth. Using your basic ballistic profile, the ballistic solution is calculated for your target and will instantly illuminate on the BDX-R1 Digital Ballistic Reticle with windage and elevation holds in the SIERRA3BDX riflescope. A blue LED on the riflescope power selector indicates that the BDX system is paired, and when the reticle has received new ballistic holdover and windage data from the rangefinder.
Tactical-style rifles with metal modular chassis are all the rage right now, and there’s a new player in the game, the T/C Long Range Rifle. It looks good. We like the chassis features, and the chambering choices: 6.5 Creedmoor, .243 Win, and .308 Win. The rifle comes with a 5R-rifled, fluted barrel, and a Performance Center trigger adjustable from 2.5 to 3.5 pounds. The threaded barrel is fitted with a factory muzzle brake. Notably, this rifle ships with a One-MOA three-shot accuracy guarantee.
At the NRA show in Dallas, Thompson/Center Arms announced the launch of a new bolt-action, chassis-style rifle — the Performance Center T/C Long Range Rifle (LRR). The T/C Long Range Rifle is built on an aluminum chassis stock that features an adjustable cheek piece and butt plate for a custom fit, with an angled toe on the buttstock that should work well with bags. The forearm has Magpul® M-LOK® slots for quick, easy mounting of accessories. The new Performance Center T/C Long Range Rifle also includes a 20 MOA Picatinny-style rail. That helps provide more elevation for long-range applications.
GunsAmerica checked out the T/C LRR at the NRA Show and said this new rifle looks impressive — the stock is well-designed, and overall fit & finish is good. One observer noted: “Could this be the Ruger RPR killer?” Read Full Report HERE with many large photos.
With a $1211.00 MSRP, this rifle should have a “street price” around $1000. So it will compete directly with the Ruger Precision Rifle. If the T/C LRR proves accurate, it could be a major player in the PRS Factory division. That class is limited to $2000.00 for the rifle and $3000.00 for rifle and optics.
The new Performance Center T/C Long Range Rifle has been on display at Thompson/Center Booth #8555 during the NRA Annual Meetings this weekend in Dallas, Texas. Available in both a Black and Flat Dark Earth (FDE) finish, the Performance Center T/C Long Range Rifle ships with one 10-round detachable magazine, a Caldwell Pic Rail XLA Bipod, and soft case.
Tony Miele, General Manager of Performance Center, said, “With the growing popularity of long range, precision shooting, we wanted to ensure our customers had an option available from the Performance Center. We’ve teamed up with Thompson/Center to design the new Long Range Rifle.” NOTE: Thompson/Center Arms (T/C) is a Smith and Wesson company.
Here’s something you may not have seen before — a left-port, side-charging AR15 Upper. This unit was developed by John Scandale of Keystone Accuracy. While this was designed for left-handed High Power shooters, the lefty upper also works well for right-handed F-TR shooters. This design allows a prone shooter to single-load with his left hand, an efficient system for a right-handed shooter. Here is a review of the lefty upper from GS Arizona, who created the Rifleman’s Journal website. Like John Scandale, GS is a southpaw.
The Lefty AR Upper from Keystone Accuracy
by GS Arizona
We left-handed shooters are always the last to get the benefit of new firearms developments, or so it seems to us most of the time. There is no rifle more popular today than the AR15, whether for competitive shooting or plain recreational use; but even for that ubiquitous black rifle, left-handed items are few and far between. However, Keystone Accuracy run by left-handed High Power shooter John Scandale has some good stuff for us.
John is a long time High Power shooter, a member of the National Guard’s All-Guard rifle team and a Distinguished Rifleman. He knows exactly what makes a good High Power rifle — unlike many of the mail-order parts and pieces you see offered for sale by someone who only shoots his computer keyboard… John is a real shooter, I’ve known him for many years and trust his work.
The most interesting item from Keystone is the left-hand billet upper receiver for the AR15 match rifle. This thick-wall, CNC-machined piece appears to be very durable and fits all existing AR15 lower receivers.
When the AR15 was becoming popular in High Power shooting in the mid-1990s, I had a match rifle built on one. To solve the left-hand problem, I had a second port milled into the left side to allow me to load the rifle comfortably in slow-fire, single-load matches. Unfortunately, sometimes the round I flicked into the left port would fall right out of the right port! That was a bit frustrating and this receiver, along with an appropriate left-handed bolt assembly will work for the lefty just as we desire.
I’ve seen quite a few AR15 based rifles in F-TR at our local club matches over the past year. This upper would be a good choice for many right-handed shooters using the AR for F-Class as it allows loading with the left hand while the right hand remains on the pistol grip and ready to fire when the target appears. In light of the fact that the bolt release is on the left side, that makes life a lot simpler than using the right hand! So if you’re a left-handed shooter or even a right-handed F-Class shooter, give this some thought, it might be just what you’ve been waiting for and didn’t even know it!
Looking for some interesting reading material? How about ten-and-a-half years of Shooting Industry Magazine? One hundred twenty-five issues of this popular magazine are available online in Shooting Industry’s digital archives. The latest May 2018 issue was just released. CLICK HERE to read the latest issue, which is available for FREE online (along with all back issues for the past ten years). NOTE: If you have any trouble with the Chrome browser, access the archives with this link using a different browser, such as Firefox: https://shootingindustry.com/digital-version/
Get Free Digital Magazines, 2008-2018
You can access, for free, ten years of Shooting Industry back issues, plus all the recent 2018 issues. CLICK HERE for the full index of all Shooting Industry back issues for the past decade (2008-2018). The newest issues are at the top, and you can scroll down all the way to 2008. Here are some highlights:
In the September 2017 issue there is an informative article on varmint and predator hunting. This talks about popular equipment for both coyote hunting and prairie-dog safaris.
And in the January, February, and March 2018 issues you’ll find Shooting Industry New Product Showcases. These monthly, multi-page articles highlight dozens of new rifles and shooting products introduced in recent months.
The March 2018 issue also has an interesting article on long gun sales trends. As you might expect, there is an over-supply of AR-platform rifles, which has led to deep discounting by some manufacturers. One vendor lamented: “That [MSR] market is flat-lining… the bottom has really dropped out of the market”. Shotguns remain the top home defense choice. In the bolt-action rifle market, 6.5 Creedmoor rigs are hot sellers, with sales of both competition and hunting rifles in this chambering. For the general hunting market, .30 Cals remain popular: .308 Win, .30-06, and big .300-class magnums.
Ever shot a straight-pull (aka toggle-link) action rifle? We like these action types, which were developed for Biathlon competitors who needed to shoot fast, but were not allowed to use semi-auto actions. The biathlon-style toggle action features a lever on the side of the action. Pull the lever back with your index figure to open the bolt, then push forward with your finger to close the bolt*. It’s fast and efficient. With some practice, you can cycle the action in a couple of seconds — nearly as fast as a semi-auto.
The Volquartsen Summit .22 LR rifle is based on a concept originally developed by Primary Weapons Systems. Designed for both competition shooting as well as small game hunting, this unique rifle features a straight-pull, toggle-style action with a Ruger 10/22 profile. That means you can run 10/22 magazines, swap into stocks inletted for the 10/22, and even use after-market 10/22 barrels. The CNC-machined receiver features an integral 20 MOA Picatinny Rail. The Magpul stock adjusts for length of pull. Weight is 5.8 pounds, so this is easy to carry in the field.
The Summit features a lightweight carbon fiber-wrapped barrel, threaded 1/2×28 at the muzzle to be suppressor-ready. One of our favorite features on this little rifle is the trigger — which has a light, crisp 1.75-lb pull weight. Watch the video above to see the Summit .22 LR in action. The tester, 22 Plinkster, was impressed with the rifle’s ease of use and accuracy. The Summit delivered a 0.277″ group at 50 yards, shot from the bench.
Tech Analysis of PWS-designed Action as used in Summit
Check out the Summit at NRA Show in Dallas
Volquartsen will have the new Summit straight-pull rifle on display, along with a wide variety of rimfire firearms, at its booth at the NRA Annual Meetings in Dallas this week. The Exhibit Hall opens May 4, 2018. You’ll find Volquartsen at booth #2520.
Big Names at Volquartsen Booth at NRA Show
Volquartsen has invited a number of notable shooters to the NRA Show, including 22Plinkster, who did the video review of the Summit included in this story. Here is the list of celebrity guest appearances at the Volquartsen booth (#2520) this week:
Friday May 4, 2:00 – 3:00 pm — 22Plinkster will be there to discuss all things rimfire. 22Plinkster has a great YouTube channel that boasts over 472,000 suscribers.
Friday May 4, 3:00 – 4:00 pm — Team Volquartsen shooters Cheyenne Dalton and Cole Busch talk about rimfire steel shooting
Saturday May 5, 11:00 – 12:00 pm — Fox News commentator and best-selling author Katie Pavlich will discuss Second Amendment issues.
Saturday May 5, 1:00 – 2:00 pm — Multi-time world champion shooter KC Eusebio will answer questions about action shooting.
* Biathlon shooters cycle their Fortner toggle actions even faster, using their THUMB to close the bolt. This allows them to get the index finger on to the trigger blade faster. The whole process takes maybe a second — as fast as you can say “snick-snick”. To use the thumb effectively, you need a stock with a more vertical pistol grip. The Magpul stock on the Summit moves your thumb a bit too far back to use comfortably to close the lever without shifting the hand.
Montana-based PROOF Research has released a revealing new video showcasing carbon fiber firearms technology and the company’s barrel-making process. Viewers will find the 8-minute film an intriguing introduction to composite barrel-making, which employs aerospace carbon fiber wrapped around a steel barrel core. The video showcases the high-tech machines used at PROOF’s production facilities.
PROOF’s CEO Larry Murphy explains that PROOF’s barrel technology is state-of-the-art: “What PROOF Research is doing is bringing disruption into our industry. We’re doing things that have never been done here before. That’s going to help the warfighter, and it’s going to help the average hunter … it’s going to do a lot of things.” The video shows how the company employs aerospace-grade, high-temperature composite materials to build match-grade carbon fiber-wrapped barrels, and composite rifle systems.
Dr. David Curliss, General Manager of PROOF Research’s Advanced Composite Division, and former head of the U.S. Air Force High Temperature Composites Laboratory, explains how aerospace expertise helps in the development of PROOF’s firearms-related products: “We are able to provide premier materials for PROOF Research for firearms barrels applications as well as the aerospace market. We’re probably the only firearms technology company that has composite materials in orbit around the earth.”
Our friend Gavin Gear of UltimateReloader.com recently tested the nicely-crafted Buchanan Hand Press. This symmetrical, twin-lever tool can handle pretty much any sizing and/or seating task as it offers plenty of leverage — even for full-length case resizing. Crafted by Buchanan Precision Machine, this Hand Press has a central mount for the die on top with a conventional shell-holder at the bottom. There is a handy spent primer catcher, plus an optional Lock-N-Load die insert adapter. This press is well-built, but the $245.00 price is steep. You can buy FIVE Lee Hand Presses for the cost of this Buchanan.
You can see how this press works in this recent UltimateReloader video. Gavin demonstrates all the key functions, including decapping, sizing, and bullet seating. You can see that Gavin was impressed with this hand press, which is well-suited for loading at the range:
Gavin explains that the modern Buchanan Hand Press is based on a previous design: “This press is an evolution of an old press that has been out of production for years: the Huntington Industries Decker Hand Press. While it shares some of the basic design features, the Buchanan Precision Machine Hand Reloading Press takes quality and functionality to the next level. This press accepts standard shell holders, uses standard 7/8×14 dies (or dies with Hornady Lock-N-Load bushings as I showed in the above video), and has a COL capacity of 3 3/4″. Need to load 30-06 away from the bench? No problem, this press can handle it. Unlike other hand presses, this one stands by itself on a flat/level surface, and can be clamped to a bench in order to stay in one spot.”
Speedy says: “I just got back from the NRA show in Dallas, Texas. The coolest thing I personally saw at the show was at the LabRadar booth. They had the Beta versions of their new LabRadar Apps for the iPhone and Android phones. These Apps let you control all LabRadar functions from your phone as well as your tablet via Bluetooth connection. The new Apps will also allow the LabRadar owner to store and edit his or her data from a much larger and user friendly screen.”
With a $1211.00 MSRP, this rifle should have a “street price” around $1000. So it will compete directly with the Ruger Precision Rifle. If the T/C LRR proves accurate, it could be a major player in the PRS Factory division. That class is limited to $2000.00 for the rifle and $3000.00 for rifle and optics.
