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July 30th, 2008
Richard Schatz, 2007 IBS 600-Yard Shooter of the Year, has done it again. While competing in the South Dakota 600-yard State Championships, Richard nailed a superb 5-shot group that may be a new IBS 600-yard Heavy Gun score record. Richard tells us: “Got home from the VHA Jamboree and IBS 600-yard South Dakota state championship match held last week at Fort Pierre, SD. During the 600-yard match I managed to lay down a ‘lucky’ 50 for score in Heavy Gun with a 0.634″ group for a potential new score record.” While other perfect 50s have been shot in competition, under current rules, group size is the tie-breaker. Schatz’s impressive 0.634″ group, we believe, is the smallest “50” shot to date, and one of the smallest groups ever shot at the 600-yard distance. Amazingly, there is just one bullet diameter of vertical:
In the South Dakota Championship, Richard won Heavy Gun group, finished second in HG score, and finished third overall for the Two-Gun. Richard was shooting his trusty 6mm Dasher in both Light Gun and Heavy Gun classes. This rifle features a Shehane Baby Tracker stock, Nesika Model ‘K’ RBLP, right-eject action, and a 27″ Krieger barrel. The chamber is basically a no-turn neck, but Richard does “clean up” his necks, turning them to a uniform .013″ neck-wall thickness. Richard’s match load was 33.0 grains of Reloder 15, with 105 Berger VLDs, seated about .005″ off the lands. This load runs 3020-3050 fps. Richard notes: “That’s the [velocity] spot where every barrel I’ve had likes to run.”
Richard used Sierra 107gr Match-Kings with great success last year. He recently switched to the Berger 105 VLDs. His testing at 250 yards showed that the Bergers “had a very slight edge in agging capability. It wasn’t much…but enough that I decided to go with the Bergers.” Richard’s Krieger barrel has about 800 rounds through it, and he typically cleans the bore every 70-90 rounds: “I’ll clean after a match, and don’t let it go past 100 rounds.”
July 30th, 2008
It took years of litigation to do so, but Dick Heller and his team of lawyers prevailed in the U.S. Supreme Court, establishing that the U.S. Constitution guarantees Heller’s right to have a handgun in his District of Columbia home for self-protection. Despite that landmark victory, the D.C. politicians charged with complying with the High Court’s ruling are still trying to impose strict requirements on handgun ownership. D.C.’s amended handgun laws limit the types of handguns allowed while imposing strict licensing requirements that are difficult to satisfy.
As a result, Dick Heller, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that overturned Washington’s 32-year-old handgun ban, has filed a new lawsuit against the District of Columbia. In a complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court, Dick Heller and two other plaintiffs allege that DC’s new gun regulations still violate rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The lawsuit cites the District of Columbia’s ban on firearms that carry more than 12 rounds of ammunition, which includes most semi-automatic handguns. The suit also claims that the city’s regulations make it all but impossible for residents to keep a gun ready for immediate self-defense in the home.
Plainly, the District of Columbia is attempting to skirt the D.C. v. Heller decision. By imposing difficult licensing regulations, the District’s politicians hope to maintain a de facto ban on handguns in place of the previous absolute ban. We applaud Heller’s effort to haul the District back into Federal Court to ensure full compliance with the Supreme Court’s ruling.
July 29th, 2008
Members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Shooting team will be featured in an hour-long repeat special of Shooting USA on the Outdoor Channel on Wednesday, July 30 and Wednesday, August 20. The show will air at 4:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 12:00 midnight (ET). Check your local listings or visit www.shootingusa.com or www.outdoorchannel.com for more details.
Photos courtesy USAShooting.org
Shooting USA will profile the competitors and explain the various Olympic shooting disciplines: Air pistol, Air rifle, Smallbore pistol, Smallbore rifle prone, Smallbore rifle 3-position, Skeet shotgun, Trap shotgun. Among the featured competitors will be Olympic Gold Medalists Matt Emmons (Air rifle, Smallbore rifle), and Kim Rhode (Skeet/Trap).
Television and Internet Shooting Sports Coverage for Beijing Olympics
NBC will offer regular broadcast coverage of some Olympic shooting events. In addition, internet users can view live streaming video of shooting events from Beijing as part of 2,200 hours of coverage on NBCOlympics.com. The NBC Olympics website will cover Matt Emmons as he tries for double gold, and cover Kimberly Rhode in her fourth Olympics. If you miss a live television broadcast, more than 3,000 hours of on-demand access to full-event replays and extensive highlights, including daily recaps of key events, best-of montages, commentator analysis and athlete-specific clips and interviews, will be available on NBCOlympics.com. For more info, visit USAShooting.org.
NBC has prepared a complete broadcast schedule for the 2008 Olympic Games. The shooting events are highlighted in yellow. Click the Links below to download broadcast schedule and shooting events schedule as MS Word files.
Complete NBC Broadcast Schedule for the 2008 Olympic Games
Complete 2008 Olympic Shooting Competition Schedule
July 29th, 2008
 UPDATE: Grafs.com is temporarily SOLD OUT as of 7/31/2008.
Based on German Salazar’s recent Reloder 17 powder test on this website, many readers have been anxious to try out this new double-base powder. German found that Reloder 17 provided dramatically enhanced velocities for his 6XC, and it looks promising for other cartridges which work well with H4350 or H4831sc.
CLICK HERE to order Reloder 17 from Grafs.com
Reloder 17 remains in short supply, but Grafs.com has one-pound containers in stock for $18.59, product # HCRL171. As of 9:00 am July 29, 2008, Graf’s had 300 total pounds in stock. You may want to place your order soon, as we expect this to sell out quickly. Other vendors, such as Powder Valley Inc., should receive shipments soon, but we can’t say just when.
July 28th, 2008
The .308 caliber 155gr Lapua Scenar is one of the top-performing bullets for Palma competition. It is also an excellent choice for any .308 shooter seeking superior long-range match performance with reduced recoil. Lapua bullets, in our experience, have proven extremely uniform, and the forgiving tangent ogive design shoots well both “jumped” and “jammed”. Some shooters prefer these bullets seated firmly into the rifling, while others get best results with the Scenars jumped .015″ or more.
The 155gr Scenars are currently on sale at MidwayUSA, item 203923. As part of an inventory reduction sale, MidwayUSA has cut its price on Scenars from $39.49 to $29.63, a 25% savings.
Save Big on 1000-count Bulk Bullet Packs
For an even better deal, Grafs.com has 1000-count boxes of 155gr Scenars for $256.79 (item LU4HL7073). That works out to just $25.68 per 100 and Graf’s price for the 1000-count box INCLUDES shipping. For an even lower price, Powder Valley sells the 1000-count box of 155gr Scenars for $237.92, item LAPHL70731000. You’ll find other types of Lapua bullets VERY competitively priced at Powder Valley. Note, however, unlike Grafs.com, Powder Valley does not include shipping in the price of the bullets.
July 27th, 2008
Are you headed to another part of the USA for a summer holiday and want to find a shooting range near your destination? Perhaps you’ve recently relocated and need to find a nearby shooting facility. Or maybe you’re just looking for a facility close to home that offers instruction or specialized programs for women or juniors. You can quickly find exactly what you want at the WhereToShoot.org website.
A service of the NSSF (Nat’l Shooting Sports Foundation), WhereToShoot.org offers a Searchable Database of pistol, rifle, and shotgun ranges around the country. You can search by state, or select a particular distance from any zip code. The database is very complete. The individual range pages also include web addresses, phone numbers, and map links. The example below shows the results of a search for rifle-specific ranges in Arizona:
Five-Star Ranges
Your search results may reveal ranges identified with up to five stars. This is a rating system developed by the National Association of Shooting Ranges (NASR) that distinguishes these ranges as the best at providing quality-level recreational experiences.
July 24th, 2008
 Up-to-date results of the NRA National Rifle & Pistol Championships are available online at the NRA website. The Pistol events are concluded, the Smallbore (rimfire) 3-position matches finished on July 18, and the Smallbore prone events will wrap up today, July 24. The High Power Rifle Championships commence August 4th.
CLICK HERE for current Camp Perry Results
Daily updates, complete with interviews with shooters, are being published on the new NRA BLOG. This blog, with daily entries from two correspondents at Camp Perry, features plenty of photos, late-breaking news, a full schedule of events, and links of special interest. You should check it out.
July 22nd, 2008
Bob Boch, current captain of the U.S. F-Class Open Rifle Team, has posted a new multi-distance F-Class record, a fantastic 449-32x. The new record was shot at the Forbes Rifle & Pistol Club in New York state. This was the “long-range” Palma-style match with targets at 800, 900, and 1000 yards. The Palma course of fire is 15 shots at 800 yards, 15 shots at 900 yards, and 15 shots at 1000 yards. Unlimited sighters precede the 800-yard stage, there are two sighters for 900, and two sighters for 1000.
Bob was shooting a 6.5-284 with a 30″ Bartlein barrel, 5R rifling, 1:8.5″ twist, 1.250″ straight contour. Barrel fitting and metal work was done by Warner Tool Co. in Keene, NH. Bob says: “My 6.5-284 load consist of the best bullet ever made, the 140 grain Berger VLD, behind 48.4 to 49.0 grains of H4350, depending on the particular barrel I am shooting. I have been shooting Norma brass in the past six months.
 Setting the Record — Just one “9”, On the Very Last Shot
Bob reports: “The conditions were good in my opinion, but conditions are like beauty, it is in the eye of the beholder. It was hot and humid, over 90 degrees by the time we got to the 1000 yard, with probably 90% humidity. Lots of grumbling on the line. The wind was light, but the flags are in the trees on the Forbes range. Very little if any use. It was overcast at 800, sun breaking in/out at 900 and very sunny by the 1000. Mirage varied between boiling, running and disappearing. The 9 was my 45th shot. The rifle/ammo performed superbly, the 9 was operator error for sure. Last-shot-itis or missing the change, you take your pick.”
Congratulations to Bob for setting an impressive new mark for the F-Class open division. A retired mechanical engineer, Bob was born in Hungary and moved to the United States in 1964. He has been involved in all kinds of shooting including pistol silhouettes, IPSIC and combat sniper rifle in various parts of the country. He has been shooting F-Class since 2001. Bob won the 2007 U.S. F-Class Open National Championship in Raton. He was a member of the 2005 U.S. F-Class Team and placed 7th in the individual World Championship, plus was a member of the 4-man team that won the Rutland Cup at the World Championship in South Africa. Bob also won the McDonald Stewart Grand Aggregate in the F-Class final of the 2007 Canadian Fullbore Championship.
July 21st, 2008
The Varmint Hunters Association Jamboree takes place this week, July 21 – 25th, in Pierre, South Dakota. This 5-day event features a 2-Day Shootout, 3-Man Team Competition, and 3-Gun Match with prizes valued at over $4900. Classes for the Shootout are: Stock, Modified, Limited Open, and Unlimited Open. CLICK HERE for complete Shootout Rules.
This is a family event with fun shoots Monday through Friday. There will be live and silent auctions, symposiums, special Ladies’ Events, regularly nightly speakers or entertainment, and a big Jamboree Banquet at the Ramkota Lounge on Friday. For more information, visit www.Varminthunter.org/jamboree.html, or call VHA members services, 1-800-528-4868.
CLICK HERE FOR VHA Shootout and Jamboree SCHEDULE of EVENTS.
Registration during Jamboree cost $40.00. A Shootout ticket alone is $25.00, while a Banquet ticket costs $25.00. You must be a member of the V.H.A. and registered for the Jamboree in order to compete in the Shootout.
July 20th, 2008
Earlier this week, German Salazar tested the new Alliant Reloder 17 (RL17) powder, checking for velocity and pressure. Using the 6XC cartridge, German found that RL17 could drive Sierra 107gr MKs over 200 fps faster than could H4831sc. RL17 likewise delivered big velocity gains with 115gr Bergers in the 6XC.
Salazar Shoots 600-39x with Reloder 17 at 500 Yards
On July 20 (this morning), shooting at the Phoenix Rod & Gun Club, German confirmed that RL17 can deliver real-world, match-winning accuracy. Shooting a 500-yard prone High Power match on the NRA MR65 target, using iron sights, German posted a very impressive 600-39X score. The three relays were shot with Sierra 107s, using three different loads of RL17 in progressively “hotter” increments: 40.6 grains (3215 fps), 41.2 grains (3290 fps), and 41.8 grains (3311 fps). Salazar shot 200-14X with the low load, 200-15X with the middle load, and 200-10X with the hottest load. German felt the middle load was the most consistent. (NOTE: these loads are all with moly-coated bullets. You should reduce the load by at least one full grain for “naked” bullets”.)
 German explains: “Ask any high power shooter and he’ll tell you 600-39X is quite an achievement with iron sights on the new (smaller) MR65 target at 500 yards. I can say with assurance now that this powder will shoot accurately in the 6XC. Last week, using H4831sc, shooting the same 6XC rifle, at the same range, with the same course of fire, I shot a 598-29x. I do think Reloder 17 helped me shoot a higher score this week, with 10 more Xs. The extra velocity afforded by RL17 reduces wind drift considerably, and the elevation held very consistently, particularly with the first two loads.”
Even at the hottest load, 41.8 grains (3311 fps) of RL17, German did not observe sticky bolt lift or other notable signs of pressure. So far, then, what we’ve learned about Reloder 17 is “all good” — in the appropriate cartridge, it will boost velocities dramatically, and it can deliver competitive accuracy in High Power competition.
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