Carl Zeiss Sports Optics announced that it is taking over distribution of the Hensoldt line of optics in the United States effective May 1, 2011. The Hensoldt line of riflescopes and other optical instruments for military, law enforcement and civilian applications is produced by the Carl Zeiss Optronics division and had been distributed in the U.S. by HDC, LLC (Hudisco.com) since 2008. Nathan Hunt, president of HDC, has joined the Carl Zeiss Optronics division in the U.S. as Vice President, Sights. In this role, Hunt will focus on the military market and help the Carl Zeiss Sports Optics team in Chester, VA, expand Hensoldt distribution in the USA.
“The Hensoldt line offers exceptional quality and versatility for elite marksmen, and Carl Zeiss Sports Optics is pleased to take over distribution of these optics to select dealers throughout the United States,” said Erik Schumacher, President of Carl Zeiss Sports Optics. “At this year’s SHOT Show in Las Vegas, the Hensoldt line was shown in the same booth as the ZEISS Sports Optics line for the very first time and the response from dealers was overwhelmingly positive. We look forward to expanding the footprint of the Hensoldt line in conjunction with our sports optics business.”
The customer base for Hensoldt optics is comprised of police and law enforcement agency sniper units as well as the most discerning competitive marksmen and shooting enthusiasts who are looking for the absolute finest optics available. Hensolt produce a a select variety of high-end optics, including telescopic sights, spotting scopes, and hterml imaging systems. Hensoldt scopes are very expensive but the optics performance and build quality is absolutely top-of-the-line.
Texas native Trevor Baucom, a former U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter pilot, has joined the ranks of Team Smith & Wesson as the S&W’s first disabled veteran shooter. At the NRA’s 2011 Annual Meeting, Baucom was introduced as the newest member of the S&W Team. One of Baucom’s first events will be the prestigious NRA Bianchi Cup, scheduled for May 25-29 in Columbia, Missouri.
Pilot Wounded in Afghanistan With a distinguished service record of 13 years in the U.S. Army, CW3 Baucom was injured in a helicopter crash while serving his fourth deployment in Afghanistan. The injury, which occurred during a nighttime assault, left the Blackhawk command pilot paralyzed from the waist down. Once back in the USA, Baucom began his rehabilitation in Franklin, TN. There he met Shooting USA host Jim Scoutten, who encouraged Baucom to get involved in competitive shooting. The 31-year-old Vet began training with the goal of competing at the 2011 NRA Nat’l Action Pistol Championship, shooting against able-bodied competitors.
While the NRA Bianchi Cup will be Baucom’s first competitive shooting event, the avid hunter and recreational shooter is more focused on enjoying the experience than wondering what his score will be. That said, Baucom is training diligently to improve his X-count.
“For me, this is all about breaking down barriers,” said Baucom. “This opportunity presents a unique challenge for me to push my abilities. I hope that my participation will lead to other wounded warriors taking an interest in competitive shooting and that more matches like the Bianchi Cup will take a look at how they can open up spots for other disabled shooters.”
We don’t quite know why, but Americans appear to be using their tax refunds to build up their gun collections — April gun sales reached an all-time high. Maybe it’s a concern with looming inflation — a strategy to “buy now” before prices go up. For whatever reason, gun sales are up substantially this April compared to the same period in 2010 (and previous years).
NICS Background Checks in April Are 15.2% Higher Than Last Year
The NSSF announced that gun purchases were up 15.2% in April 2011 compared to April 2010. This is based on the NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 843,484 compared to the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 731,955 in April 2010. This marks the eleventh straight month-over-month increase in NSSF-adjusted NICS figures.
Though not a direct correlation to firearms sales, the NSSF-adjusted NICS data provides a more accurate picture of current market conditions. The adjusted NICS data was derived by NSSF by subtracting out all NICS purpose code permit checks used by several states such as Kentucky, Iowa and Utah for CCW permit application checks as well as checks on active CCW permit databases.
Last night we moved our Shooters’ FORUM to a dedicated server and installed upgraded software. This should make the Forum faster and more secure. Many members have already observed that the Forum threads display more quickly and that the search is much faster. The “Look and Feel” is different, and you should find the layout more user-friendly — the buttons are more prominent and the main font sizes are larger (easier to read).
Thankfully, the FORUM “migration” (and upgrade) went smoothly. As far as we can tell, all the posts came through and there were no glitches with member accounts. NOTE: On the New FORUM you still use your Same Forum Log-in Name and Same Password (remember passwords are case sensitive). If you have bookmarked the previous FORUM location, you will be automatically directed to the new FORUM. However, we do request you re-set your bookmarks to: http://forum.accurateshooter.com.
Special Thanks to FORUM Member JayChris We want to give special recognition to JayChris, one of our Forum members (and a darn good shooter). Jay, a super-smart IT specialist, volunteered many hours of skilled labor for this upgrade. He set up our new server and optimized the forum software to run faster and more efficiently. He also created new security protections to shield our FORUM against hackers. Jay went above and beyond the call of duty to ensure the FORUM runs faster and more securely for his fellow forum members. Thanks Jay — you’re the man!
We have some requests for FORUM members using our upgraded FORUM:
PHOTOS: When posting photos, please keep them no larger than 600 pixels in width. This will ensure the layout displays correctly. To size your photos, use a basic image editing program such as Irfanview which is totally free to use.
CLASSIFIEDS: Those using our Free Classifieds are asked to read (and apply) our Guidelines for Avoiding Disputes. To eliminate potential problems, sellers should always disclose any defects, provide good photos, and insure shipments worth more than $50.00.
SAFETY FIRST: At all times, when describing reloading methods or listing suggested loads, remember that safety is the paramount concern. Be aware that a “practical max” load in your gun may very well be too hot in another rifle, so advise others to start at a lower point. Never list loads in terms of powder measure click values — always refer to grains. Don’t advocate reloading methods that depart from generally accepted safe practices. You may have developed some tricks and shortcuts, but remember that many readers are new to the reloading game.
Here’s a “heads up” for our Forum members and site visitors. This evening, we plan to install new software for our SHOOTERS’ FORUM. As a result, the FORUM will be offline for a couple hours on TUESDAY, May 10, starting at about 10:00 pm Central Time. After the upgrade, we will activate a new URL to bookmark. The upgraded forum software will be installed on a dedicated server. This should give us improved security and stability, and it should allow the FORUM to run faster. In addition, the upgraded software has a new “look and feel” that should improve the user experience. You will still be able to use your same forum name and password.
So guys… don’t freak out if you cannot access the FORUM tonight. God willing, everything will be in place within a few hours. If all goes according to plan, all existing FORUM threads and posts will be preserved — there will simply be a “time out” for two or three hours.
SHOT Show, the “Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade” Show, will remain in Las Vegas through the year 2014. That’s the good news, as the vast majority of attendees want to keep the event in Vegas. The bad news is that SHOT Show will remain in the Sands Expo and Convention Center, a notoriously bad venue for both exhibitors and show visitors.
Sands Expo Center a Maze-Like Disappointment
In our view, the old Las Vegas Convention Center was a far better location. What’s wrong with the Sands Expo Center? You name it. The “host” hotel is the Venetian, which is way too expensive for most attendees, not to mention a nightmare to navigate. General “front door” access is poor and there is no on-site parking at all (you have to park at adjacent hotels on the strip). The lower levels are dungeon-like with poor lighting and bad acoustics. The conference rooms are hard to find and most are either too big or too small. The Sands Center has multiple, odd-shaped levels which lack logical ingress/egress points. Floorplans are inconsistent from level to level, and bathrooms are hard to locate. Some popular sections, such as the tactical/police displays, are exiled to upper halls that are hard to reach from the main entrance. Worst of all, to get into the show, most visitors must walk a quarter-mile through the dark, noisy, maze-like interior of the Venetian hotel. It is very easy to get lost in that nightmare of a hotel. On a 1:10 scale, we give the Sands Expo Center a “3” and that’s only because it’s (barely) big enough and the main hall is bright, with high ceilings (albeit with a leaky roof).
For years, the SHOT Show was held at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Paradise Road, adjacent to the Hilton Hotel. Starting in 2009, SHOT Show organizers needed to find another venue because the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) was undergoing a multi-year renovation, including a 500,000 square-foot floor-space expansion. We understand why the Sands Expo was selected as a temporary replacement, despite its many shortcomings. But now it’s time to get out of that poorly-designed facility. Over the past four years, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has pumped $890 million into the LVCC. Most of the work is done, and renovations should be completed by 2012.
Why is SHOT staying at the Sands Expo through 2014 if the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), a much better facility, should be available next year? We have no idea. We consider this a blunder of major proportions, an “epic fail” by the NSSF (owners of SHOT Show), and Reed Exhibitions (producers of SHOT Show).
Perhaps the NSSF was worried that LVCC renovations won’t be completed by January 2012 — but then that still doesn’t justify THREE more years at the Sands. Maybe it was just a money thing — accepting the lowest bid. At least some effort will be made to improve Sands Expo facilities. Steve Sanetti, NSSF President, stated: “SHOT Show attendees have made it clear to us that Las Vegas is their city of choice, and this agreement allows NSSF to meet their expectations. The Sands has responded to our requests for improvements … and this was a key factor in our decision.” The NSSF reports that “improvements will continue over the next three years — including enhanced cellular service, newly renovated lobby areas and rest rooms and other enhancements.” Well, you can put lipstick on a pig….
For those who like to plan ahead, here are SHOT Show dates for the next three years:
SHOT 2012: January 17-20 | SHOT 2013: January 15-18 | SHOT 2014: January 14-17
This story, by Lars Dalseide, appears courtesy the NRA Blog
Chris Reed of The History Channel’s Top Shot TV Show has been a busy man as of late. The final episode of Season 2, which aired just over a week ago, saw Chris get the best of 10-time NRA pistol Champ Brian Zins during the final round to officially claim the title of Top Shot. Two days later, reporter Lars Dalseide found him on the floor of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center for the NRA’s 140th Annual Meetings and Exhibits.
“Oh man it’s been crazy at times,” said Reed. “Every day events like grocery shopping or a thing with the kids can turn into a mad house. But I’m enjoying it all while I can.”
A self-described “good ole country boy” from Tennessee, Chris Reed’s sudden rise to fame doesn’t mean his role in the household has changed all that much. He still gets the kids ready for school, performs assigned chores around the house, and prepares a mean dinner. Still, they were nice enough to reserve Tuesday nights to see if Dad could survive one more week on the show. “My friends and family have been very supportive throughout the show,” Reed explained. “We’ve all got together for a Top Shot party every Tuesday night for the last 12 weeks. It’s been a blast.”
Read has received plenty of attention: “It’s almost rock star status — Lot of folks ask for pictures and autographs … it’s been real nice. Get this, people in charge of my high school reunion called. They want to move it up a year and give it a Top Shot theme. That’s something.”
Even though season two of The History Channel’s Top Shot has officially come to a close, that doesn’t mean the relationship built in the hills of Santa Clarita, California have ended as well.
“I still keep up with George and Joe. I’ve talked to Gunny quite a bit. We all stay fairly close and talk about once a week. If I can work it out, maybe come up to Camp Perry (for the Pistol Championships) and give Gunny the what for. I’m squared away on that.”
An impressive new, 26-bay, 1200-yard rifle range has been constructed at the Midlands National Shooting Centre of Ireland. Dubbed the “Creedmoor” Range, the new 1200-yard facility, the only one of its kind in Ireland, will host long-range matches. These will include an historic F-Class Challenge match to be held June 25, 2011 between U.S. and Irish Teams. This event, the 2011 Creedmoor Cup, harkens back to the classic rifle matches of the late 19th Century.
Creedmoor Competition in the 1800s
History buffs will know that the NRA Range at Creedmoor, New York, was the site of many famous long-range rifle tournaments in the 19th Century. The great rifle matches of 1874 and 1875 between Ireland and America were a fantastic saga in the history of our two nations. The NY Creedmoor range continued to host a series of international matches during the 1870s and 1880s until public interest eventually declined and sadly, in 1910, shooting finally ceased at Creedmoor and the land was deeded back to the state of New York. Much history has passed between then and now in our two countries. Throughout all those years the NRA in America has grown enormously, becoming an integral part of America’s sporting identity. Ireland, sadly, had seen a decline in long range shooting. But that all began to change at the start of the 21st century….
Midlands National Shooting Centre of Ireland
In the year 2000, the National Rifle Association of Ireland (NRAI) was formed. One of its primary goals was to promote fullbore target shooting in Ireland. The NRAI needed a home and that home was found on the bog of Derrymore in Blueball just outside Tullamore in County Offaly. In 2000, a 400-yard range was built on the site. Three years later the 600-yard “Windmill” range, the first of its kind in modern Ireland, was also built to allow for mid-range target shooting. The site was christened the Midlands National Shooting Centre of Ireland (MNSCI) and with it the story of Irish F-Class began. No sooner had the 600-yard range been built at the MNSCI, when the NRAI formed a national F-Class league bringing together like-minded shooters from all over Ireland to compete in the modern F-Class discipline. The league continued to grow over the following six years, and, in 2008, a temporary 1000-yard range was built to facilitate Ireland’s bid to compete in the 2009 F-Class World Championships.
The 2011 Creedmoor Cup
Following the 2009 World Championships, America’s F-Classers issued a challenge to the F-Class riflemen of Ireland for an International Rifle Match. The challenge was made by then-president of the American NRA, John Sigler, to the chairman of the NRAI, Noel Kelly, who accepted the challenge on behalf of the riflemen of Ireland. The match will be called “The Creedmoor Cup” and will be held every four years, alternating between Ireland and America. The first Creedmoor Cup of the modern era in Ireland is scheduled for June 25, 2011 at the MNSCI range outside Tullamore.
To coincide with the Creedmoor Cup, two other events will be held at the start of that week. First will be the Irish Open, two days of F-Class shooting for individual competitors. This will be followed by the Europe vs. America team match. Think of this as a “Ryder Cup with Rifles”. The Europe vs. USA team competition, first held at the Lodi, Wisconsin range in 2008, is always a fiercely-fought grudge match between the Yanks and the “Continentals”.
To host the 2011 Creedmoor Cup events, a spectacular 1200-yard rifle range has been built at Ireland’s Midlands National Shooting Centre. The new 1200-yard range has been christened the NRAI “Creedmoor” Range, honoring the place where the sporting rifle traditions of America and Ireland became forever entwined. This venue was completed at the end of 2010, exactly one hundred years after the closing of the original Creedmoor range in America.
Notable developments in Ireland over the last decade — the formation of the NRAI and the opening of the Midlands National Shooting Centre — parallel what occurred in America during the 1870s with the founding of the NRA and the dedication of the Creedmoor range in New York state. The Midlands National Shooting Centre is an outstanding facility that has spurred the growth of the shooting sports in Ireland. We envy those who will compete in next month’s inaugural Ireland vs. USA Creedmoor Tournament at Tullamore.
Shooting USA has officially become a one-hour television show. The “Sighting In” segments will no longer air as a separate half-hour series. Instead, “Sighting In” will be included in the new one-hour format on the Outdoor Channel. Look for Shooting USA as a single listing in your cable and satellite menus. Here are air times for the Shooting USA hour, Wednesdays :
Shooting USA SHOT Show Special on May 11
The next hour-long Shooting USA episode airs Wednesday May 11, 2011 — and it’s worth watching. On May 11, Shooting USA serves up its SHOT Show special from the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas. Shooting USA’s reporters interview gun industry notables and spotlight new products. You’ll see some of the best new firearms for 2011, along with other new outdoor gear. If you could not attend SHOT Show, don’t miss the May 11 episode of Shooting USA.
Fans of high-grade precision hardware should log on to the all-new Barnard Precision NZ Ltd. website. Barnard’s new site is easy to navigate, and you’ll find plenty of eye candy — large-size, high-quality photos. Many handsome Barnard-actioned rifles are showcased, including rifles belonging to AccurateShooter.com FORUM members. And of course there are complete, detailed specs (with weights and dimensions) for all the Barnard rifle actions.
The new site showcases Barnard’s full line of actions, plus complete rifles, and accessories such as V-blocks and sight bases. For more than 18 years Barnard Precision has crafted some of the highest-quality actions available, and now there are more options than ever, in both Barnard P-type actions and Rem footprint actions. Click the links below to see particular action variants:
Barnard Offers Complete .338 Lapua Tactical Rifle — the Mighty Model ’10’
One of the highlights on the new Barnard web site is the new Barnard ’10’ Rifle. If you’re interested in a serious, heavy-caliber Tactical rig, the Model ’10’ is very appealing. The Model ’10’ is designed around the .338 Lapua case and Accuracy International 5-shot magazine.
The Model ’10’ chassis is constructed predominantly from billet 6061 aluminum, with heavy-duty, marine-grade anodizing. It can be fitted with either a Right-Hand or Left-Hand Barnard .338 actions. Both the cheekpiece and the butt plate are adjustable, and the Model ’10’ also has a combo rear buttspike/bag rider.
Story tip from Edlongrange. We welcome submissions from our readers.
Carl Zeiss Sports Optics announced that it is taking over distribution of the Hensoldt line of optics in the United States effective May 1, 2011. The Hensoldt line of riflescopes and other optical instruments for military, law enforcement and civilian applications is produced by the Carl Zeiss Optronics division and had been distributed in the U.S. by HDC, LLC (Hudisco.com) since 2008. Nathan Hunt, president of HDC, has joined the Carl Zeiss Optronics division in the U.S. as Vice President, Sights. In this role, Hunt will focus on the military market and help the Carl Zeiss Sports Optics team in Chester, VA, expand Hensoldt distribution in the USA.
“The Hensoldt line offers exceptional quality and versatility for elite marksmen, and Carl Zeiss Sports Optics is pleased to take over distribution of these optics to select dealers throughout the United States,” said Erik Schumacher, President of Carl Zeiss Sports Optics. “At this year’s SHOT Show in Las Vegas, the Hensoldt line was shown in the same booth as the ZEISS Sports Optics line for the very first time and the response from dealers was overwhelmingly positive. We look forward to expanding the footprint of the Hensoldt line in conjunction with our sports optics business.”
With a distinguished service record of 13 years in the U.S. Army, CW3 Baucom was injured in a helicopter crash while serving his fourth deployment in Afghanistan. The injury, which occurred during a nighttime assault, left the Blackhawk command pilot paralyzed from the waist down. Once back in the USA, Baucom began his rehabilitation in Franklin, TN. There he met 
Special Thanks to FORUM Member JayChris
Chris Reed of The History Channel’s 
Even though season two of The History Channel’s Top Shot has officially come to a close, that doesn’t mean the relationship built in the hills of Santa Clarita, California have ended as well. 
Midlands National Shooting Centre of Ireland
