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February 7th, 2009
One of the largest gun shows in the country runs next weekend, February 13-15, starting at 3:00 pm on Friday. Held at the Dulles Expo in Chantilly, Virginia, the Nation’s Gun Show will feature over 1000 tables of vendors and displays. The show floor covers the equivalent of two football fields, with over 1.5 miles of guns, knives, and accessories.
Free Admission with $25.00 NRA Membership Purchase
Admission is $18.00 for a 3-day pass, or $12.00 each day for adults. You can save $1.00 with the coupon below. Or, you can get FREE ADMISSION to the event if you join the NRA at the show, or renew your NRA membership at the show. (Offer valid on $25.00 or greater membership).
February 5th, 2009
National High Power champion Carl Bernosky will be at the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, PA from February 7 through February 15, 2009. Carl won the 2008 Camp Perry Nat’l High Power Championship — his eighth Camp Perry National title. For our readers in the Northeast, here’s your chance to chat with one of America’s top shooters.
While most well-known for his rifle and pistol shooting skills, Carl is also an outstanding smith and stock-maker. He produces stocks for many of the country’s top High Power and benchrest shooters. Carl, eight time NRA High Power Rifle Champion, builds custom rifles and custom stocks, including many designs for Alex Sittman of Master Class Stocks. While at the show, Carl will be showcasing his work and taking orders for stocks and full custom-rifle builds. You can view Carl’s Stock Patterns on his website, CarlBernosky.com.
At the Harrisburg Sportsman Show, Carl will be working with eyewear-maker SunBuster at booth # 2600. Steve Asman, SunBuster’s president said, “We just returned from SHOT Show in Orlando. Now at Harrisburg, we’ll be able to meet all of the hunters and shooting enthusiasts in person and demonstrate how to be properly fitted for eyewear and why choosing our ColorCorrect™ lens can affect your shooting accuracy.”
February 3rd, 2009
 The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s 25th Annual Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo will be held March 5-8 at the Fort Worth (Texas) Convention Center. The event features many interesting demonstrations and “how-to” seminars. You can learn how to call elk, pack a horse, hunt backcountry, get more from a hunting guide, field dress big game, cook venison, train a retriever and hunt predators — all under one roof. In addition there are seminars on bow-hunting and black powder shooting. These seminars and more, each presented by noted authorities, are free with the price of admission. Daily admission is $12 per person or $25 per family, and free for kids 5 and under.
Photo courtesy Rimrock Elk Hunt Ranch, Rexburg, Idaho
The Elk Foundation’s Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo also features the RMEF/Leupold 2009 World Elk Calling Championships, hundreds of exhibits, displays, activities, auctions, raffles and more. It’s all a public-welcome showcase and fundraiser for one of the nation’s premier conservation organizations. Since launching in 1984, the Elk Foundation has enhanced or protected habitat on over 5.5 million acres.
February 1st, 2009
CNN’s “Lou Dobbs Tonight” featured a segment on gun-owner concerns about the Obama administration, bullet serialization and firearms microstamping. As a state Senator in Illinois, Obama supported a 500% increase in taxes on bullets and ammunition. NSSF Senior V.P. and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane was interviewed for the segment. Keane expressed concern that the Obama Administration favors microstamping of bullets and/or cartridge cases. Though scientists have declared that microstamping is not a viable technology at present, Democrats are still pushing for it. Keane worries that mandatory microstamping could make the shooting sports prohibitively expensive.
CNN’s Lou Dobbs also interviewed Wyoming Senator John Barrasso, a vocal critic of Obama’s selection of Eric Holder as U.S. Attorney General. Barrosso noted that Holder has stated that the Second Amendment does not recognize an individual right to “keep and bear arms”. While Holder has declared that the Obama administration “has no intention of doing anything that would affect a state’s regulation of firearms”, Dobbs pointed out that Holder left open the question of FEDERAL (as opposed to state) regulation of firearms.
January 29th, 2009
The shooting world has lost a noted designer, machinist, barrel-maker, and record-setting shooter. We’re sad to announce that Barney Lawton passed away earlier this week, after a long battle with brain cancer. As Forum member Barry C. wrote to us: “We have lost a great friend and contributor to the shooting world. A fine man is no longer with us. Not only us shooters here in Montana but all over the country will miss Barney.”
Bobby Lawton, Barney’s son, announced on the 27th: “This greatly saddens me, I dont know exactly how I can put this so I will do my best. My father Barney Lawton’s battle with cancer ended tonight. He was born March 26, 1946. He will be greatly missed by all his friends and family. When he was a boy he enjoyed racing his fast cars and working on them when he could. Fast cars was one thing he loved. He was so fascinated with them he quickly became a expert at automotive machining. He was know well for his amazing engines.
One of his other loves in life was guns…. He built his first long range gun in 1987. He used the manual machines at his disposal (he made the action) in his automotive machine shop. This 30-378 Wby was the first long range gun i ever got to shoot and enjoyed it ever so much.
In the early 90’s my farther went on a few hunts out west in Wyoming. He quickly decided that the west was the place he wanted to be. In June 1991 we made our big move. He worked for a local automotive machine shop for a few years untill he decided to start up his own business….
I will tell you one thing it did not take this brilliant man long to figure out what made things things really tick. Some of my fondest memories I have of this guys was our great hunting trips and just down right throwing those projos down range. I hope I haven’t talked too much. I would like everyone to know that he was a great man. I could not have asked for a better father. Thanks for your time…. God Bless. Bobby.”
To read comments from Barney’s close friends and associates, and view some candid photos taken over the years, visit THIS THREAD on the SnipersHide.com Forum. If you wish to send condolences to the family, you can write to:
Sue Lawton
580 ½ N. Montana St.
Dillon, MT 59725
As a Shooter, Barney Was Among the Best
Barney was more than a master machinist and barrel-maker. Barney was a great long-range shooter as well. In 2007, Barney used a Lawton Action and Lawton barrel (chambered in 6-6.5×47) to set a spectacular 1000-yard Light Gun record. Lawton’s 10-shot group measured 5.185″. All ten shots were in the 10-Ring for a perfect 100 score. Shown below is Barney with his record target.
Rest in Peace, Barney. You may be gone, but you’re not fogotten.
Lawton Machine Will Stay in Operation
The operations of Lawton Machine, LLC will continue, despite Barney’s passing. Lawton Machine will still build actions and craft barrels. Over the past few months, during Barney’s battle with cancer, Bud Williams and Bruce Baer have visited the shop in Dillon, Montana to assist and train employees. Bud has announced: “All necessary arrangements are in place, assuring the continuity of Barney’s legacy. Lawton Machine is looking forward, with your patronage, to providing quality equipment and service to the shooting community for many years to come.”
January 29th, 2009
 Kim Rhode has competed in four Olympic Games for the United States, winning Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals in shotgun events. She won those medals with a cherished Perazzi MX12 shotgun, a firearm used by Kim throughout her competitive shooting career. Rhode took her trusty 12-gauge Perazzi to the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and became the youngest female gold medalist in the history of Olympic shooting. She won a bronze in double trap at the the 2000 Sydney Games and then won her second gold medal at the 2004 Athens Games. In her 4th Olympic Games, she won a silver medal in skeet shooting in Beijing.
Sadly, Rhode’s gold-medal-winning Perazzi was stolen last September in Lake Elsinore, California, when thieves smashed the window of her truck and grabbed the shotgun which was stored in a locked case.
The theft was highly publicized, and Perazzi generously provided Rhode with a replacement. However, she still missed the trusty MX12 that had carried her to so many victories. She told the media last September: “there’s just no words to describe what the gun means to me…(it’s) a part of me. I’ve traveled all over the world with it.”
Well, there is a happy ending to the story. This week, Rhode was re-united with her Olympic scattergun. On Jan. 27th, Rhode received a call from the Riverside, CA Sheriff’s Department. It turns out that, during a parole inspection at the residence of convicted felon Gergorio Macias, Sheriff’s deputies found the shotgun, still in the original case. The gun itself was undamaged — except for the fact that Macias (or the original thieves) had removed the stickers and decals Rhode had collected over many seasons of international competition.
Rhode was reunited with her Olympic shotgun at a press conference in California this week. She says she plans to use her “old friend” in her quest to compete at the 2012 Olympics in London. According to Jim Shepherd, of the Outdoor Wire, Rhode declared: “I’m planning on getting more stickers… and I plan to include one from London (the next Olympics). This has helped me decide that for the next Olympics, I’m sure going for it.”
January 28th, 2009
 The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) has just released its latest 2009 sales catalog. This includes surplus military rifles (Garand, M1 Carbine, m1903 Springfield), plus .22LR training rifles, and “special-edition” new-production air rifles offered by the CMP.
In addition to rifle sales, the CMP Catalog offers ammo (e.g. 30-06 ammo for Garands), shooting coats, slings, tools, and many other accessories. If you are a classic rifle collector, Service Rifle competitor, or enjoy shooting rimfires and air rifles, you should definitely check out the CMP Catalog. There are some great deals inside. The 2009 CMP Catalog is FREE. If you want a hard copy of the catalog, CLICK HERE to fill in the Mail Request Form. Or, just click the link below to download the CMP 2009 Catalog as an Adobe Acrobat (.PDF) file.
CLICK HERE to Download Complete CMP 2009 Catalog (.pdf file).
January 27th, 2009
K&M Services, maker of such popular products as the K&M Neck Turner, Arbor Press, case mouth reamers, flash hole uniformers, and primer tools, has been sold. Ken Markle, at the age of 71, has decided to retire. The new owner is Roger Miller Jr. of Michigan. Roger is in the process of launching a New K&M website. Hopefully, that will be up and running soon. As far as we know, Roger Miller will continue to offer all the products Ken Markle was producing prior to his retirement. For more information, contact:
K&M Precision Shooting Products
Roger Miller Jr.
6852 Lakeshore Road
West Olive, MI 49460
Telephone: 616-399-7894
E-Mail: info@KMShooting.com | sales@KMShooting.com
Most K&M products can still be purchased through Precision Reloading, a full-service vendor with print catalog and online store.
January 27th, 2009
 President Obama has chosen Eric Holder to be his new Attorney General (subject to Senate confirmation). Holder is no friend to gun owners, and his selection has caused grave concern among gun advocacy groups.
UPDATE: Senate Committee Approves Holder
The Gun Owners of America (GOA), a 300,000 member-strong gun rights organization, has declared: “With the selection of Eric Holder, President Barack Obama could not have picked a more anti-Second Amendment nominee for U.S. Attorney General.”
According to John Velleco, the director of Federal Affairs for the GOA: “Eric Holder has a long history of anti-Second Amendment activism, going back to the days when he was the go-to guy for gun control in the Clinton administration. Holder’s record includes his support of a three-day waiting period for handgun purchases, handgun rationing of one gun per month, renewing the semi-automatic gun ban, gun owner registration and licensing, and much more.
 Perhaps most egregiously, in 2008, Mr. Holder signed on to a brief before the Supreme Court that argued that the Second Amendment does not protect an individual’s right to own a firearm. This is not the type of person who should be confirmed to a position that carries the responsibility of enforcing most of the gun control laws in this country.”
Today, the Washington Times, in its “Inside Outside” Blog, posed the question: “Should Americans want an Attorney General whose beliefs are so skewed that he thinks the Second Amendment of the Constitution, the right to keep and bear arms, does not apply to law-abiding citizens? All this after the Supreme Court only recently affirmed that basic right.”
Wyoming Senator John Barrasso is one of the few politicians openly opposing Holder’s nomination. In a letter to his constituents, Sen. Barrasso wrote:
“Given Holder’s career of attacks on the Second Amendment, his nomination continues to be of great concern to me. I am not convinced his philosophy on the Second Amendment is acceptable to the people of Wyoming and gun owners across the United States…. Our nation’s highest law enforcement officer must be committed to protecting and defending our individual rights to keep and bear arms. I intend to vote no on the nomination of Eric Holder.”
Senate Considers Holder Appointment Tomorrow
The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on Holder on Wednesday, January 28. The full Senate will take up the nomination shortly thereafter. It is likely that Holder’s appointment will be confirmed. NBC News noted that “Holder has held three jobs over his career that required U.S. Senate confirmation and he has yet to see a recorded vote against him.”
January 27th, 2009
The NRA National Indoor Championships is a unique event for both adults and juniors. At different locations throughout the country, multi-discipline smallbore and air rifle regional (aka “sectional”) matches are held. The scores from all the sectionals are collected and compared, and the NRA announces National Champions based on the scores. This is a great way for your local club to have its members involved in a national program. There is still time for clubs to request to sponsor a Sectional in their area.
Indoor Championship Junior Program | Indoor Championship Open Program
First Matches held in January
The National Indoor Championships commenced on January 1, 2009, with the first sectional tournament being shot January 3. These championships will continue through March for Open Adults and through April for Juniors. Both the Open and the Junior Sectionals are now being conducted throughout the country. Open Sectionals are available for NRA 3-Position, NRA Conventional 4-Position, International Air Rifle, and International Smallbore Rifle. Junior Sectionals are being conducted in NRA 3-Position, NRA 4-Position, International Air Rifle, 3-Position Sporter Air Rifle, and 3-Position Precision Air Rifle.
NRA Postal Matches
The NRA also offers a wide variety of Postal Matches in 2009. A Postal Match is an event in which competitors fire on their home ranges using targets which have been marked for identification. The fired targets are then sent to NRA for scoring and ranking for awards. The NRA conducts various postal matches, many of which are in cooperation with national and fraternal organizations such as the Boy Scouts of America, 4-H Clubs, FFA, and JROTC. Like the National Indoor Championships, Postal Matches allow local clubs to participate in a nation-wide program.
CLICK HERE for Postal Match Information.
For more information on the NRA Indoor Championships call Dian Bullock, (703) 267-1482, or email dbullock [at] nrahq.org. To learn about the NRA Postal Match program, email postals [at] nrahq.org.
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