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February 5th, 2010
Grizzly Industrial, makers of gunsmith lathes and other products, offers a Digital Tailstock Readout Kit for just $149.95. This digital readout (DRO), model T10118, is an affordable, helpful tool for shooters who do their own lathe work, and who need a fast, handy way to measure depth of cut with their tailstock. On the www.Grizzly.com website, you’ll find a full description of the Digital Tailstock Readout, complete with photos and product features. The unit is very versatile. It has two (2) digital readouts. One on the unit itself, PLUS a remote display that can be positioned up to 6 feet away. Both displays feature 0.0005″ resolution, inch or millimeter display, zero keys and ON/OFF keys. The scale has an 8-inch range and its display features ABS or INC mode as well as a Hold key. Both displays read independently of each other.
Shop Review by Mark LaFevers
What I find most helpful using this Grizzly Digital Tailstock Readout is the way it enhances the speed and certainty of multi-step processes. For instance, when preparing to bore a deep hole by first stepping through various bit diameters to get close, you are unlocking and moving the tailstock to change bits. The Grizzly DRO lets you lock down with a new bit in the chuck, hit zero as the leading edge of the flutes align with the face of the bore. As you are backing each bit all the way out to clear chips, the DRO lets you fast return without counting handwheel revolutions to within a hundredth, then slow down to begin the cut. This is very helpful in keeping track of what’s going on, and it’s a good backup for fine control (comparing the last few thousandths with your tailstock’s manual dial). I have a dial indicator set-up for fine work off the tailstock, but opted for this DRO instead because of its greater range and equal accuracy.
Mounting Tips and Splash-Guards
As the digital transducer is sensitive to contamination by liquids, you’ll need to be careful about splash from your cutting fluid sources. I used a simple stationary spring clip to hold a plastic sandwich bag over the face to catch any splash during chamber reaming using high pressure through-the-barrel flushing. The plastic was easy to see through with the eye, but the camera wanted to catch light glare and not show the on-tool digital display well. You can mount the remote readout wherever it is convenient, but I wanted my vision focused only in the working area for this operation.
For the value, I would rate this tool as a “must have” for anyone currently working without a DRO on their lathe tailstock. The Grizzly DRO is simple to set up, easy to operate, and has an ample 8″ range. Durability is unknown at this time as I’ve just started using the unit, but hopes are high. Like all your other electronic tools, keep an extra set of batteries on hand. Also, please note — to keep the price down and make the Grizzly DRO fit anyone’s particular tailstock quill diameter, Grizzly correctly judged that if you were in the market for this tool you will be able to build your own quill adapter.
February 4th, 2010
 Sgt. 1st Class James Henderson, a service pistol shooter with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU), was selected as the Military Marksmanship Association (MMA) Soldier of the Year for 2009. Henderson became the first Soldier in 24 years to win the National Pistol Championship at Camp Perry, Ohio. He won the National Trophy Pistol championship, the President’s Pistol match, and the Interservice Service Pistol championship. He was also a member of the first-place National Trophy Pistol Team and the first-place Interservice Service Pistol team. During the course of 2009, SFC Henderson broke numerous national pistol shooting records and claimed countless other individual and team accolades. He was featured in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” section and was promoted to SFC in 2009.
 Henderson stated: “This is a great honor. I have to thank the guys in the (custom firearms) shop. They help make this all possible. I couldn’t have done it without the support of my team. They push me every day and if I mess up I know one of them will win the match. Being on this team and in this unit is the best job in the Army.”
Henderson first served with the USAMU from 1991-1994 after tours at Fort Benning, Fort Sill and Korea. After a long stint in the Army Reserves, Henderson resumed active duty service and was assigned to the USAMU. Henderson is the only shooter to ever win the “Triple Crown” (President’s Hundred, National Trophy Individual Pistol Championship, and High Team Shooter) in the same year, and he did it twice (2002 and 2009).
February 4th, 2010
If you’re looking for an extremely high-quality, 100% reliable semi-auto rifle for defense, three-gun matches, or predator control, you should consider the Sig556. Based on the Sig 550-series rifles used by the Swiss Army, the Sig556 features a piston/op-rod upper for enhanced reliability. The bolt, bolt carrier, and other receiver internals stay much cleaner and cooler in the Sig556 than with a direct-impingement design such as the AR-15. The Sig556 also features ultra-reliable magazines and a true folding stock as an option.
CLICK HERE for Sig556 Rifle Rebate Details
Now through March 8, 2010, Sig Sauer is offering a $300 Rebate on all Sig556 rifles. Customers must purchase a Sig556 rifle from a Sig Sauer commercial dealer before March 8, 2010. NOTE: Rebate Forms must be received by March 22, 2010. Remember, if you wait ’til the last minute to buy, you only have two weeks to submit the Rebate Form.
February 3rd, 2010
Today we wrap up our coverage of the 2010 Shot Show. Jason and I visited scores of booths, inspected hundreds of new products and interviewed dozens of industry insiders and “old friends”. We can’t package all the highlights into a single blog post, but here are some “short takes” on SHOT Show items of interest — the new stuff we really liked and some odd but noteworthy elements of the “Shot Show Experience”.
Most Important New Technology — Burris LaserScope
AccurateShooter.com doesn’t give product awards, but if we did, the new Eliminator LaserScope from Burris would be a leading candidate for “Best in Show” honors. This unit employs modern technology to make the shooter’s job easier. A built-in laser rangefinder finds the distance to your target. Then the scope consults a ballistics table, pre-programmed for your cartridge. The scope’s “brain” calculates the precise holdover for your ranged target distance and displays a bright, red dot on the vertical cross-hair. That dot is your calculated correct point of aim. Just put the red dot on the target and squeeze the trigger. For a varmint hunter, this scope could be the best thing since sliced bread. Shoot all week and never touch the elevation knob. We just wish the Eliminator was offered in a higher-power version — say a 6-24×50. Currently the Eliminator is offered only as a 4-12x42mm optic. The Eliminator is far from perfect, but its technology really could render other conventional hunting riflescopes obsolete.
Important Brass Developments
For Benchrest shooters, the big news was Norma’s introduction of 6 PPC brass. According to Lou Murdica, who has tested the early production brass, this new brass is “outstanding” and is fully competitive with cases fire-formed from Lapua 220 Russian brass. Norma’s production of 6 PPC brass demonstrates that the Swedish company is very serious about benchrest shooting and the American market. We had a long, productive conversation with the CEO of Norma, and we could tell he is committed to expanding Norma’s place in the American market. Expect some major developments in the months ahead, including a joint project with AccurateShooter.com. Norma also showed us the 300 Norma case which we feel will eventually be an important chambering for long-range shooters. This case has “just right” capacity to drive the 200+ grain, high-BC 30-caliber bullets.
Unnoticed Excellence — The Barrel-Makers
Flashy new products get the media attention at SHOT Show every year. But we think the most important “back story” involves American barrel-makers. If you want to do a story on EXCELLENCE in today’s gun industry, you need to focus on the elite barrel-makers. Companies such as Bartlein, Broughton, and Krieger continue to make better barrels every year, with new features such as gain-twist rifling, and 5R rifling. Just this Friday, I witnessed a .308 “tactical” rifle with a new Krieger 5R barrel fire two successive three-shot groups that were each just a ragged hole — and the first two out of three shots in each group literally went through the same hole at 100 yards. And that was during barrel break-in with an untested load and untrimmed brass “right out of the box”. America’s top “boutique” barrel-makers are now producing extraordinarily good products, yet they are rarely mentioned by the popular print gun magazines. At a time when we see recall notices from companies such as Ruger and Remington on a regular basis, our American custom barrel makers are building the best barrels in the world, indeed the best barrels ever made.
A Contrast in Style — American vs. European Optics-Makers
Among the major optics makers, the difference between American and European marketing styles was painfully obvious. Leupold and Burris had fast-talking, glad-handing salesmen, who, for the most part, knew very little about their product line and even less about optics engineering. By contrast, Zeiss and Schmidt & Bender staffed their booths with real optics engineers with Ph.Ds, many of whom were directly involved in the design of the products on display. At Zeiss we spent nearly an hour talking with Stephan Albrecht, the German engineer in charge of the new 20-75X Diascope spotting scope and the new Diavari Flourite riflescopes. During our conversations with Stephan he actually solicited our feedback, took careful notes and promised to explore some of our suggestions. We also were able to share our field test results directly with Eric Schumacher, President of Carl Zeiss Optical, USA. By contrast, Leupold’s decision makers and top-level engineers were nowhere to be found, and when we voiced our (now annual) plea that Leupold stop building scopes with canted reticles, we were greeted with nothing but blank stares. Leupold’s reps couldn’t comprehend the canted reticle problem, even after I pulled a scope (with 3° canted reticle) off their display rack and showed them.
Federal FCPA Sting Rocks SHOT Show
In the mainstream media, SHOT Show 2010 will be remembered for one thing — the “Big Bust”. On January 20th, FBI agents arrested 22 gun industry employees and executives for alleged violations of the FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act). Those arrested, including one of Smith & Wesson’s Vice Presidents, were charged with trying to bribe FBI agents posing as African government officials. This “high-visibility” bust culminated a DOJ sting operation two years in the making that involved 250 federal agents.
Accuracy… Who Needs Accuracy?
There’s a curious thing about SHOT Show. It’s touted as the greatest gunshow in the galaxy, but one thing is sorely missing — really accurate rifles. Heaven forbid there would be a true benchrest rifle or rail gun on display! Many of our readers own more true 1/4-MOA rifles than you’ll find at the entire SHOT Show. We know this is a trade show, but still you’d think somebody would want to show off a really impressive rifle — say the National Championship-winning F-Class rifle or a record-setting rail gun. It would be like having a Top Fuel dragster on display at a car show. But no, what we have instead are acres upon acres of 1-2 MOA factory guns. That’s disappointing to say the least. It’s sort of like going to an air show only to discover the Blue Angles have cancelled and there won’t be any jets at all.
 Pop Stars vs. Legendary Marksmen
At every SHOT Show, I’m struck by some odd ironies. This year I walked past one booth which was absolutely mobbed with people trying to meet an attractive young female celebrity — a contestant from American Idol. Fighting through the throng, I continued down the aisle to the McMillan booth. There was David Tubb, quietly chatting with a McMillan rep. Mind you, David is an 11-time National High Power Champion. He has also won National Silhouette titles and scores of other matches. He is arguably the greatest competitive rifle shooter in American history. Yet hundreds of people walked by without even noticing David. Think of the irony. Imagine if Michael Jordan was sitting in a booth at a sports convention. The place would be mobbed. Yet David has certainly dominated his sport the way Jordan dominated basketball. Jordan won six NBA Championships. Tubb has won ELEVEN National Championships (and he’s not done yet). Yet the vast majority of SHOT attendees don’t seem to care about legends like David Tubb, or about shooting excellence in general… they would rather wait in line to meet a “wannabee” from American Idol than learn something from a truely legendary marksman. Sometimes I DO wonder about our priorities.
Too Many Black Rifles?
After Obama was elected in November 2008, there was a surge in demand for semi-auto, military-style rifles, partcularly AR-platform rifles. Manufacturers of all sizes, from Remington/Bushmaster, to small fabricators, ramped up production of AR uppers, lowers, and complete rifles. Now, 15 months later, demand is slacking off, and there is an over-abundance of ARs. We perceived a notable lack of interest in AR rifles at SHOT Show, unless they had some new bells and whistles. Retailers seemed much more interested in big-bore bolt guns and handguns, or in the completely new semi-auto designs such as Remington’s ACR.
Bring Back the Convention Center
For 2010, SHOT Show was hosted at the Sands Expo Center, behind the Venetian Hotel complex, instead of the Las Vegas Convention Center. On paper, this seemed like a good move. The Sands Expo is nearer the strip and closer to popular hotels. In practice, the Sands Expo proved a poor location for SHOT Show. Outside the main hall, booths were crammed into conference areas with low ceilings and bad lighting. A very large number of exhibitors were assigned to the first-floor “Dungeon”. There, access was difficult, the lighting was bad, and low ceilings and concrete floors worsened the background noise problem.
Just getting into SHOT show was a challenge. For the majority of visitors staying in hotels on the strip, one had to walk through the maze-like interior of the Venetian to get to the Show. This was annoying to say the least. On 3 out of 4 days I took at least one wrong turn, and on Day 2 I got thoroughly lost. I saw plenty of folks with SHOT Show badges walking in circles, completely disoriented — the Venetian is a building where you can’t walk in a straight line for more than 150 feet or so. And once inside the SHOT Show proper it was very easy to get lost as well. Pete Brownell was heard to say that he needed a map just to find his own booth.
February 2nd, 2010
 Starting March 1, 2010, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) will offer daily 90-second radio spots about the shooting sports and hunting. The new “Insights” radio featurettes, hosted by John Quaintance, will cover a wide variety of shooting topics, including firearms history, self-defense, competitive marksmanship, and firearms industry news. Each week one or more “Insights” segments will offer helpful hunting and shooting tips. According to Mark Thomas (NSSF Marketing Director), this program “will help NSSF reach a new audience of hunters and shooters, and will inspire potential participants … to try our sports.” For those who can’t get the daily NSSF “Insights” via radio, you can download the audio clips at nssf.org/insights and through iTunes.
 Listen to Sample Programs (MP3 files)
– Sight-in your Rifle in Record Time
– Select the Right Bullet for your Game
– Is it a Kentucky or a Pennsylvania Rifle?
– The Return of the 28 Gauge
NSSF encourages readers to let their local radio stations know about this free daily radio program. Station managers should contact NSSF for a sample program and to learn more about adding the show to their lineup.
February 1st, 2010
There were rumors about problems at KBI/Charles Daily during SHOT Show this year. On Friday, January 29th, the company confirmed that it was going out of business. On the www.charlesdaly.com website, K.B.I, Inc. President Michael Kassnar, declared:
“To all our friends, fans, supporters and consumers of Charles Daly and by extension, KBI products, I regret to inform you that the rumors of our demise are true. KBI is going out of business and closing its doors, effective today, January 29, 2010.” Kassner blamed the business closure on a “multitude of events over the past five years”.
The Charles Daly Defense Unit produced US-made AR15 platform rifles for LEO and civilian buyers. Otherwise, most of KBI/Charles Daly’s product line were imported pistols, rifles, and shotguns. The company imported Armscor pistols from the Philippines, Jericho pistols from Israel, and both side-by-side and self-loading shotguns from Turkey.
Third Parties May Provide Product Support
What if you have a KBI or Charles Daly product — can you still get replacement parts and warranty repairs? The Charles Daly website states: “we are currently negotiating with several companies that will be performing after-sale service of Charles Daly, CD Defense and Jericho firearms. As soon as we have finalized a contract with one of these companies we will post the name, address and contact details of that company on www.CharlesDalyForum.com, so you will know who to contact to obtain service on your KBI firearm”.
February 1st, 2010
| If you couldn’t attend SHOT Show 2010, don’t despair. You can now download complete digital editions of the official SHOT Show Daily Magazines provided to SHOT Show attendees and exhibitors.
Each of the four (4) issues contains a major product review, and many interesting shorter features. The Day 1 Daily features new Rifles for 2010, while the Day 2 Daily features new Optics and Ammo. New Knives are featured in the Day 3 Daily. In the Day 4 Report, there is a good summary of new Airgun offerings.
Even if you’re not interested in the latest retail trends it’s worth downloading all four issues, because there are a number of features relating to club operations and range management. In addition, you’ll find many shorter items of interest to rifle shooters. As well there are handy directories of manufacturers and distributors. |
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January 29th, 2010
 Defying its reputation as a stodgy, conservative organization, the IBS will allow AR-style rifles to compete in their own class at IBS benchrest matches next year. Both AR15-platform and AR10-platform rifles can compete in this new, provisional class.
This will NOT displace any of the current classes (e.g. Sporter, LV, HV, Unlimited), nor change any rules for current classes. The “AR Experiment” will last for one year and then the IBS will determine whether to make the class permanent. IBS President Jeff Stover stressed three points:
1. This is an experiment for a one-year trial.
2. Clubs MAY have an AR class, but they are not required to do so.
3. The IBS Nationals are NOT affected — there will be no ARs at any Nationals
The IBS has distributed proposed draft rules, and the IBS plans to adopt final rules on March 1, 2010. Here are some of the key proposed rules:
January 28th, 2010
Savage Arms caused quite a stir at Media Day when it unveiled its new 110 BA big-bore tactical rifle. The 110 BA is initially available in two chamberings: 300 Win Mag, and .338 Lapua Magnum. The .338 version of this rifle is Savage’s first-ever .338 Lapua Magnum, and it is VERY affordable compared to .338 LM tactical rifles from other manufacturers. We predict this gun will be a big hit with shooters who want the long-range capability of the .338 Lapua Magnum cartridge but who don’t want to sell the farm to acquire a capable rifle. Once the initial demand settles down, you should be able to find a 110 BA for around $2000 (not including optics).
NOTE: Jason removed his eye protection for this photo. We recommend that shooters ALWAYS wear ANSI-certified eye protection.
The 110 BA gun comes complete with a detachable box magazine (DBM), target grip with base, a +20 MOA scope rail, and Picatinny accessory rails ahead of the action and on the side of the chassis. The stock has a comfortable cheekpiece that adjusts for height using a handy rotary knob. A similar knob controls the buttpad position, allowing you to “dial in” length of pull. As you’d expect, the 110 BA features a Savage Accutrigger.
CLICK HERE for large photo of Savage 110 BA (shows buttstock details)
On the gun we tested, the AccuTrigger broke clean and crisp under 2.5 pounds, with little overtravel. Fitted with an oversize bolt handle from the factory, the action was smooth in operation and effortlessly fed and extracted the big .338 LM cartridges. The gun demonstrated good accuracy with Hornady .338 Lapua Mag factory ammo, allowing Jason to make a first-round hit at about 800 yards. Jason liked the gun, telling us it “feels solid and well-balanced”. Jason did note that the large muzzle brake creates quite a side-blast. When this Editor was taking video, Jason warned me to get out of the way of the blast. I moved back behind the shooter, but even there, the brake’s blast could be felt.
Quality Big-Bore Tactical for under Two Grand
The 110 BA establishes a new, affordable price point for a true big-bore tactical rifle. Both the 300 Win Mag and the 338 Lapua Mag versions have an MSRP of just $2267.00. We expect to see the “street price” on these rifles peg below $2000.00. That makes the .338 LM version of the 110 BA one of the most affordable .338 Lapua magnum tactical rifles yet offered to the public.
January 26th, 2010
The AccurateShooter.com Shooters’ Forum hit a major milestone on January 23, 2010, logging our 10,000th registered Forum member. Matt G. from Castalia, Ohio is now officially “Member10K” in our Forum. In recognition of Matt’s milestone membership, Matt will receive a pack of prizes including an official “limited edition” AccurateShooter.com T-shirt, a box of Berger bullets, a box of Lapua cartridge brass, and a Gift Certificate good at Grafs.com.
 Matt tells us: “I am just getting into precision shooting, actually built my first rifle over the winter! Well, still working on it as I am about to order up a Russo stock. But, this is a new hobby I am just getting into along with a couple other buddies of mine. We are going to try out the 300-yard matches at our local conservation club this year. I was just searching for some neck-turning and case annealing info, and came across the AccurateShooter.com website. I just finished reading the case annealing write-up on the site and decided to register.”
Well, Matt picked the right time to visit the site and register. Over the past few days we added many other new Forum Members, bringing the total, as of 1/26/2010, to 10,114. We wish to thank ALL our Forum members, both the old guard and the newcomers, for participating in our site.
Shooters’ Forum Offers Active Discussions and FREE Classifieds
Our Shooters’ Forum, launched in 2004, is a great resource where you can find answers to your reloading and gunsmithing questions. As well we offer FREE Forum classifieds for registered members. The Forum Classifieds sections are a great place to sell your guns and gear quickly, with zero transaction fees. And for buyers, you’ll find outstanding deals on everything from dies and bullets to complete rifles.
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