On some internet shooting forums, self-declared “experts” advise new rifle shooters to stick to low-end factory rifles. These “experts” (many of whom don’t own a single really accurate rifle), claim that it will take years for a new shooter to learn how to shoot a rifle accurately. So, the argument goes, the accuracy offered by a precision-chambered rifle, with a custom barrel, is “wasted” on a new shooter.
We disagree with that viewpoint, at least when it comes to rifles shot from a rest. We’ve seen relatively new shooters, with help from a skilled mentor, do remarkably well with precision rifles right from the start. With a good bench gun, many new shooters can shoot well under 1 MOA on the first day. Certainly it takes time for a complete novice to learn how to handle the gun and to work the trigger smoothly. However, this editor has personally seen some inexperienced shooters try their hand at benchrest shooting, and within few month they are doing very well indeed at club shoots.
Accurate Rifles Reward Progress As Novices Build Skills
For bench shooting, we think a highly accurate rifle is a much better training device for a new shooter than a typical, cheap factory sporter. With a gun capable of 1.5-2.0 MOA at best, you can never really determine if a “flyer” is you or the gun. Conversely, when a novice shoots a gun that can put 5 shots through one ragged hole, if a shot goes way high or low, the shooter knows his aim, trigger control, or gun-handling is to blame. He (or she) can then correct the problem. And when the shooter does everything right, he or she will see a nice tight group on the target. The accurate rifle provides more meaningful feedback and it rewards progress. That helps the novice become a better shooter in a shorter period of time.
A while back, Forum Member Preacher and his “bunny hugger” niece from California proved this point. The young lady, with almost no shooting experience, took Preacher’s 6-6.5×47 and shot a sub-quarter-MOA, 3-shot group at 350 yards. Don’t tell her she needs to stick to a cheap factory rifle. Preacher reports: “My niece flew in from the west coast and came up to visit. When she saw a few of my full-blown varmint rifles, she wanted to shoot one. She did a super job even if she IS a ‘bunny hugger’. She pulled the 1.5 ounce Jewell on a few fired cases to check out the trigger pull and then got in behind the gun and put three shots into a 350-yard target with a one-inch circle.” We measured her group at 0.822″ (0.224 MOA). Don’t tell Preacher that accuracy is “wasted” on novices. He joked: “I sure don’t want her shooting at me ….”
Rifle Features BAT Action, Krieger Barrel, and Russo Laminated Stock:
For those who are interested, Preacher’s rifle features a BAT 3-lug action, 30″ Krieger 7.5-twist heavy contour barrel, and Russo stock (with clear coat by Preacher). Chambered in 6-6.5×47 Lapua, this gun “shoots the 108gr Bergers very well” according to Preacher. Yep, we agree with that — even when a novice “bunny-hugger” does the trigger-pulling.
Larry Vickers is a respected firearms trainer who has served with the U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF). In the course of teaching classes he’s learned that many gun owners waste money on impractical gun accessories. In a well-reasoned Ammoland.com article, “Don’t Be a Tacti-Cool Fool”, Vickers examines today’s trend of over-accessorizing firearms, particularly AR-platform rifles. Vickers doesn’t mince words… he states that too many people are spending too much money on poorly-designed hardware that may be “useless” at best.
Equipment Selection Advice from Larry Vickers
Every class I teach I see and hear students talking about the realization that some things about their gear and shooting in general just doesn’t add up on the range. Everything looks good in a Brownells Catalog but a significant amount of the parts and accessories offered on the market today are: a) useless; b) poorly designed; c) of questionable value; or d) downright dangerous.
No one is better at taking fully-functional, factory-made firearms and turning them into junk than a certain segment of the American gun-buying public.
Some people really don’t apply the common sense approach of not messing with what is potentially a life-saving tool. Sadly some of those same people will get on the Internet and talk bad about how the firearm they modified no longer functions and therefore is junk. Or they will recommend to fellow shooters the same parts and modifications they have used to turn their gun into, at best, a range toy.
Some of this shows up in my classes and usually by lunch on the first day the obvious flaws of the equipment at hand become apparent for everyone in the class, most of all to the owner of said equipment. It may have cost the shooter some money but in turn he learned a serious life lesson –be careful what you read on the Internet about firearms modifications and there is no substitute for shaking out your equipment at the range in a structured class.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: you’ll learn more about guns and shooting in one class than you could in a month on the Internet.
READ about guns, gear, and shooting on the Internet. LEARN about guns, gear, and shooting on the range during well-thought-out and useful training. This approach is proven and consistently produces results and shooter confidence.
Larry Vickers is a retired U.S. Army Special Operations Forces veteran with 20+ years of service. Vickers served in Panama, the Middle East (Desert Storm), Somalia, Bosnia, and other locations. During his time with Delta Force, Vickers worked on weapons R&D, and served as a combat marksmanship instructor training new operational members of Delta.
There’s no question that females can shoot as well as men. In fact, quite a few shooting instructors have told us that women progress faster than men because females are better listeners. Also ladies are less likely to let egos interfere with the training process. Competitive shooting is one of the few sports where ladies compete directly with guys, and the women are fully capable of winning it all. Just ask Nancy Tompkins and her daughter Sherri Gallagher — both past National High Power champions.
To help female shooters improve their game, the Babes with Bullets (BWB) group offers a series of ladies-only shooting seminars around the country. There are both rifle programs and handgun programs. At these camps, BWB supplies all the equipment — including the firearms. The seminar “tuition” covers all expenses — instructor salaries, range fees, lunches, loaner guns, ammo, targets, and other required equipment.
Babes with Bullets Rifle and Handgun Camp
The BWB Rifle and Handgun Camp is for advanced beginner and intermediate shooters. Taught by an all-female team of national and world shooting sports champions, the three-day Handgun Rifle Camp is a wonderful fit for women looking to improve their handgun and holster skills while also learning more about handling a .22 or .223 caliber modern sporting rifle (MSR).
Camp fees cover instructors, range fees, lunches at the range, complementary loaner guns and other equipment. Registration is open for the upcoming Babes with Bullets Handgun Rifle Camp, October 19-21, 2018 at the CMP Talladega Marksmanship Park, Talladega, Alabama.
Babes with Bullets Handgun Camps
Whether an experienced shooter or a newbie to the firearms scene, the Babes with Bullets Handgun Camp is a great place for women to develop and improve their marksmanship skills. Taught by an all-female team of national and world shooting sports champions, these three-day handgun camps are designed to teach women to handle and operate a handgun safely and confidently. Camp fees cover instructors, range fees, lunches at the range, complementary loaner guns and other equipment.
Registration is open for the following BWB Handgun Camps:
July 6-8, 2018 at Buffalo Chip Range, Sturgis, SD
July 20-22, 2018 at Birchwood Recreation & Shooting Park, Chugiak, AK
Sept. 14-16 at Cardinal Shooting Center near Columbus, OH
Nov. 2-4, 2018 at Fresno Rifle & Pistol Club, Fresno, CA
Babes with Bullets Diamond Camp (Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun)
The Diamond Camp — the ultimate Babes camp experience — features expert handgun, rifle, and shotgun training, combined with great luxuries: a celebrity chef, a masseuse, yoga instruction, hosted bar. Plus each of the 10 campers receives aa gift certificate for a Thompson Center bolt action rifle. Taught by an all-female team of national and world shooting sports champions, the four-day Diamond event is perfect for novice through advanced shooters who want a luxurious holiday along with their firearms training. It’s pricey at $2800, but comparable with a deluxe hunting lodge.
The 2018 BWB Diamond Camp features a Celebrity Chef, Massage, Yoga instruction, and more.
This year’s Diamond Camp will be based at the Wild Game Inn, in Darby, Montana, about 90 minutes from the Missoula Airport. The Inn offers ATV rides, fishing, hiking, skeet shooting, and more. Camp will start the afternoon of Wednesday, August 15, with range mornings on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
Report by Craig Arnzen, Area419.com
It’s easy to think about shooting your first precision rifle match and worry about all of the gear and trinkets that you may need to make it through. In reality, the old rules apply — keep it simple.
We wanted to put together for you a no-nonsense list of the Top Five Gear Items you need for your first match. This list focuses on the “must-have” items you’ll need for PRS-Style competitions.
1. A Rifle (That is Reliable and Sub-MOA Accurate)
Your rifle is the most obvious piece of kit, but we can give you a little more information. Most of the guys you’ll find out there are shooting 6.5 Creedmoor. Yeah, there are guys using .308 Wins and 6mm Dashers, but the 6.5 Creedmoor makes up more than half of the rounds shot in PRS competition, when looking at both national and club matches. Your comp rig needs to be mag-fed and shoot better than 1 MOA. It DOESN’T need to be better than 0.5 MOA (half-MOA). With most targets being 2-3 MOA in size, a half-MOA gun will do just fine. More accuracy is better of course, but you don’t need an exotic quarter-MOA rig to win.
[Editor’s NOTE: PRS does offer a Gas Gun division, but most guys start out with a bolt-action rifle, which will be less maintenance-intensive than an AR-platform rig.]
Muzzle brakes, like our Area 419 Hellfire, are also very popular as much of the PRS game is recoil management. If you can’t see your misses, you’re sure to have more of them.
The rifle also needs an optic with repeatable clicks and a reticle with Mil- or MOA-based hashmarks. The clicks can be either Mil system or MOA system (Mil is more common), so long as the click values match the reticle (i.e. you don’t want 1/4-moa clicks with a Mil-marked reticle). How much power do you need? Anything that zooms in the mid-teens will suffice. I could shoot a match with a fixed 12X scope and not feel disadvantaged. We love the Kahles K624i, if you’re looking for a suggestion.
Oh, and you’ll want a bipod — but the choice in bipod deserves a whole separate article by itself. Nothing wrong with starting out with a Harris swivel. Then you might look at different bipods on other competitors’ rifles for comparison.
2. Ammunition — Factory Ammo and Hand-loads
Good ammo is important, but as we discuss above, 0.5 MOA is good enough. Also, speed is great but it matters FAR less than you’d think. Drop can be calculated with precision, and distances are normally known, so a slightly flatter trajectory doesn’t really matter. Wind matters, but the difference you’ll find when eeking out that last 50 fps is very, very small.
Federal, Hornady, and Prime all make quality ammo that is widely used by shooters from local to national matches. Facebook photo by CReece.
Precision Handloads
If you want to run down the rabbit hole of finding that perfect ammo that shoots in the “twos” (0.2 MOA), get yourself an AutoTrickler and some of our billet aluminum accessories — you’ll love the setup.
3. A Versatile Support Bag
There are countless bag options. But there is ONE bag you’ll see everywhere, and for good reason. The Game-Changer from Armageddon Gear is aptly named. Many shooters use it as a barricade bag as well as a rear bag, meaning a guy could get away with using only this bag for an entire match. If you need another bag when you get there, ask someone in your squad, they’ll share. I promise.
4. DOPE (Reliable Ballistics Info)
We’re not talking the kind of Dope you may find in a match outside Denver — we are talking about the kind that feeds you ballistic solutions. The software-enabled Kestrel is a very common item on the range, but you’ll also see lots of guys using mobile Apps such as Shooter or Applied Ballistics Mobile, and they have great results.
It’s also handy to have an armband or an item like the Hawk Hill data card holder for stages with various targets at differing ranges. Once the RO says “engage” and your mind stops working, you’ll appreciate having it written down.
5. Hearing Protection
PRS Competitors shoot with brakes and sometimes in enclosed spaces. That’s why you need serious hearing protection. We recommend NRR 33 earplugs, doubled up with Electronic Muffs to hear range commands. I have used the 33 dB NRR Mack’s foamies at matches for most of the last year, and the Howard Leight NRR 33 Max-1s are also very effective. The budget-priced (under $50) Howard Leight Impact Sport Electronic muffs work well, but premium electronic muffs may be more comfortable.
Growing in popularity are high-tech, in-ear digital units like the ESP Stealth. I have a set of linked ESP Steaths on the way and hope to evaluate them soon. These are supposed to be very good, but the ESP Stealths cost $2100.00 per pair!
Think we missed something? Have more questions? Let us know.
S&W Model 617 now has a 10-round cylinder, but early models were six-shooters.
While Accurateshooter.com concentrates on high-accuracy rifles, we know that many of our readers enjoy handguns. We are often asked “What is your favorite handgun — Glock? HK? SIG Sauer?” The answer to that question may be surprising. This Editor’s favorite handgun, at least the one that gets shot most often, is a rimfire revolver — that’s right, a wheelgun.
This Editor’s first really accurate handgun was a .22 LR Smith & Wesson Model 617 that could easily stack ten shots in a dime at 10 yards. It remains my favorite and most-used handgun. What can we say about the Model 617? The single-action trigger pull is superb, and the accuracy surpasses most any semi-auto rimfire pistol, except for a few, very expensive target pistols. We like the 6″ version for the longer site radius, but the 4″-barrel 617 is also very accurate, and it balances better.
We strongly recommend that new pistol shooters start off with a .22 LR rimfire handgun. The .22 LR cartridge is accurate but has very low recoil, less “bark” than a centerfire, and very little smoke and muzzle flash. New shooters won’t have to fight muzzle flip, and won’t develop a flinch from the sharp recoil and muzzle blast common to larger calibers. With the .22 LR, the trainee can focus on sight alignment, breathing, and trigger pull.
Smith & Wesson Model 617 Video Reviews
Here are three video reviews of the Smith & Wesson Model 617, both 4″-barrel and 6″-barrel versions. All three videos demonstrate the 617’s great accuracy. The reviewers concede that this handgun is pretty expensive, but all agree that the Model 617 will last a lifetime, and hold its value.
Hickok 45 Demos “Wonderful revolver”, a 4″ Model 617. See also Hickok 45 m617 Part 2:
Popular YouTube Host 22 Plinkster Tests Model 617 with 6″ Barrel:
22 Plinkster loves the Model 617, “one of his favorite revolvers in the whole entire world — a great choice”. He reports it “shoots straight [and] functions pretty much flawlessly” with nearly any .22 LR ammo. In this video, 22 Plinkster tests a wide variety of rimfire ammo types including CCI .22 LR Std Velocity, .22 Shorts, .22 LR Shotshells, .22 Stingers, .22 Super Colibri, and .22 LR tracers.
This Video Features the Smaller 4″-Barrel Model 617:
Other Rimfire Revolvers — from Ruger and S&W
If you’re considering a rimfire revolver but would like to see other options, read our Buyers Guide to Rimfire Revolvers. Along with the S&W Model 617, this covers the Ruger GP100 10-shot (5″ bbl), Ruger LCRx 8-shot (3″ bbl), Classic S&W Model 17 6-shot (blued 6″ bbl), and S&W Model 63 (3″ bbl).
TOP FIVE Reasons to Own a Rimfire Revolver:
1. Rimfire .22 LR Ammunition is once again plentiful and affordable. The revolver can shoot all kinds of rimfire ammo — even 22 Shorts.
2. A good, full-size .22 LR revolver will be MORE ACCURATE than the vast majority of semi-auto rimfire handguns. It will shoot all types of .22 rimfire ammo with no cycling issues. With no magazines to jam, a good wheelgun will also be more reliable than most self-loading rimfires.
3. A rimfire revolver can shoot tens of thousands of rounds, with just routine maintenance. The gun can last a lifetime and then be passed on to your kids.
4. On a S&W revolver, it is very easy to tune the pull weight. You can have a safe double-action pull with a very light, crisp single-action release.
5. It is easy to change grips and sights to suit your preference. You can also easily mount a scope on the top-strap.
Recommended .22 LR Revolver Training Targets
The .22 LR cartridge makes small bullet holes in paper. These can be hard to see if you’re shooting at large, black bulls-eyes, particularly at an indoor range. Also, when shooting rimfire, you’ll go through ammo quickly. For that reason we recommend targets with bright-colored, multiple aiming points.
The 19″x25″ Sight-Seer target (left) is great for pistol practice. It features eight red bulls on a 1″-square grid. Ultra bright fluorescent red inks, printed on heavy, 60-lb vellum paper, are highly visible, even indoors. You can use a classic Six O’Clock hold with this target, putting the bottom of each circle on top of your revolver’s front sight.
The smaller, 8.5″x11″ Sinclair Fluorescent Sight-In Target (right) also works well. It has four small diamonds surrounding a large center diamond overlaid on a 1-inch grid. Diamonds and grid are printed in fluorescent red/orange on white, heavy-grade paper so your shots print nice and clean.
Recommended .22 LR Ammo Box
When we go to the range with rimfire handguns or rifles we bring this handy $9.99 MTM ammo caddy. The compact carry case will hold boxed ammo, plus you can lay out your ammo in 10-round rows. This makes it easy to fill the 10-Rd cylinder on your Model 617. This ammo case is offered in both blue (as shown), or red.
In the archives of The First Shot (the CMP’s Online Magazine), SGT Walter E. Craig of the USAMU discusses physical conditioning for competitive shooters, particularly High Power competitors. Fitness training is an important subject that, curiously, is rarely featured in the shooting sports media. We seem to focus on hardware, or esoteric details of cartridge reloading. Yet physical fitness also matters, particularly for High Power shooters. In his article, Craig advocates: 1) weight training to strengthen the Skeletal Muscle System; 2) exercises to build endurance and stamina; and 3) cardiovascular conditioning programs to allow the shooter to remain relaxed with a controlled heart beat.
SGT Craig explains: “An individual would not enter a long distance race without first spending many hours conditioning his/her body. One should apply the same conditioning philosophy to [shooting]. Physical conditioning to improve shooting skills will result in better shooting performance…. The objective of an individual physical training program is to condition the muscles, heart, and lungs thereby increasing the shooter’s capability of controlling the body and rifle for sustained periods.”
In addition to weight training and cardio workouts (which can be done in a gym), SGT Craig advocates “some kind of holding drill… to develop the muscles necessary for holding a rifle for extended periods.” For those with range access, Craig recommends a blind standing exercise: “This exercise consists of dry-firing one round, then live-firing one round, at a 200-yard standard SR target. For those who have access only to a 100-yard range, reduced targets will work as well. Begin the exercise with a timer set for 50 minutes. Dry-fire one round, then fire one live round and without looking at the actual impact, plot a call in a data book. Continue the dry fire/live fire sequence for 20 rounds, plotting after each round. After firing is complete, compare the data book to the target. If your zero and position are solid, the plots should resemble the target. As the training days add up and your zero is refined, the groups will shrink and move to the center.”
Fitness training and holding drills help position shooters reach their full potential.
Training for Older Shooters
Tom Alves has written an excellent article A Suggested Training Approach for Older Shooters. This article discusses appropriate low-impact training methods for older shooters. Tom explains: “Many of the articles you will read in books about position shooting and the one mentioned above are directed more toward the younger generation of shooters in their 20s. If you look down the line at a typical high power match these days you are likely to see quite a few folks who are in their middle 30s and up. Many people in that age range have had broken bones and wear and tear on their joints so a training program needs to take that into account. For instance, while jogging for an extended period for heart and lung conditioning may be the recommended approach for younger folks, it may be totally inappropriate for older people.”
National High Power Matches / July 5-24, 2018 / Camp Atterbury, Edinburgh, Indiana
This year, as in 2017, the NRA National High Power Matches will be held at Camp Atterbury in Indiana (no more Camp Perry). The Rifle National Matches, scheduled for July 5-24, will include the High Power Championship, the Long Range Championship, and the Mid-Range Championship, along with other special events. The National Matches attract many of North America’s top marksmen every year. While some competitors miss the Camp Perry experience, we have heard very positive feedback about Camp Atterbury from those who have actually shot there. They like the venue and the ranges.
IMPORTANT: If you want to compete at the National High Power Matches you need to register soon. Entries must be received by Saturday, June 18 for online submissions, and Wednesday, July 2 (by 2:00 p.m.) for on-site and mail-in entries.* For online entry, please visit www.nmentry.com and follow the instructions there. Entry via mail must be made on the appropriate entry card, and be accompanied by full entry fees. To receive an entry card via mail, please email comphelp@nrahq.org. All entries are processed on a first-come, first-served basis. Mailing address for entries is: Camp Atterbury, P.O. Box 5000, Edinburgh, IN 46124 ATTN: NRA. Please note, the postmark will NOT be used to determine whether or not an entry makes the deadline.
This article was prepared with information from the NRA and Shooting Sports USA.
How is Camp Atterbury as a match venue? Very good. Here is a report from a 2017 Nat’l Match competitor, as posted on Facebook:
Just got back from U.S. Nationals at Camp Atterbury … Here are my observations:
1. The range was outstanding. Facing the south wasn’t a problem.
2. On-base accommodations were great and inexpensive.
3. The base is only 45 min from Indianapolis International Airport.
4. The base is close to towns with restaurants and shopping.
5. The transportation to and from the pits [was in] air conditioned vans.
6. By all accounts the event ran smoothly.
Long Range competitors at 2017 NRA National High Power Rifle Championships.
National Matches at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, 2018 Schedule:
Monday, July 2: NRA Range Personnel Arrive
Tuesday, July 3: NRA Orientation
Thursday, July 5: High Power Rifle Packet Pickup
Friday, July 6: Whistler Boy Junior Team, 2nd Amendment Team Match, NRA Awards Ceremony, Competitor Meeting
Saturday, July 7 – Wednesday, July 11: NRA High Power Rifle (awards ceremony on concluding day)
Thursday, July 12: Long Range Packet Pickup and Competitor Meeting
Friday, July 13 – Monday, July 16: NRA Long Range (awards ceremony on concluding day)
Tuesday, July 17: NRA Long Range Palma, Palma Team Awards Ceremony
Wednesday, July 18 – Saturday, July 21: NRA Mid Range Individual
Sunday, July 22: NRA Mid Range Teams, Mid Range Awards Ceremony
Monday, July 23: Range Clean Up/Clear Out
2017 marked the first year the NRA National High Power Championships were held in Indiana at Camp Atterbury. Previously they took place at Camp Perry in Ohio.
Competitor Badges and Info Packets
All competitors must pick up a packet for their particular discipline on the dates listed below. Without exception, an ID badge for each team member must be provided before packets will be issued.
Thursday, July 5: NRA High Power 9:00 a.m.
Wednesday, July 11: One Mile Shot 9:00 a.m.
Thursday, July 12: NRA Long Range 1:00 p.m.
Tuesday, July 17: NRA Mid-Range 9:00 a.m.
Lodging at Camp Atterbury and Nearby
There is on-base lodging — rooms and cabins will be available to all competitors 18 and over. To book a room, or for any questions about lodging, please call (812) 526-1128. Camp Atterbury lodging includes suites and standard rooms as well as the MWR Campground and the MWR Cabins. Lodging is controlled by the Camp Atterbury Lodging Office, not by the NRA. Entry fees DO NOT include lodging costs. There are also a number of hotels nearby, including Charwood Suites. Nearby campground Johnson County Park also offers special rates for High Power competitors.
*Four exceptions to this rule are: Whistler Boy and 2nd Amendment (High Power; by mail or onsite) which will be accepted until Thursday, July 5, and Enlisted Men’s and Rumbold and RNDC (High Power; by mail or onsite) which will be accepted until Friday, July 6.
For the shooting sports to survive, and thrive, we need to bring new shooters into the game. It’s vital that young people get involved in compeitive shooting at an early age. It’s equally important that novice shooters get instruction and encouragement from skilled mentors.
Thankfully the Civilian Marksmanship Program is providing that kind of knowledgeable skills training through programs conducted throughout the country. Recently, at Camp Butner (North Carolina), the CMP offered a Small Arms Firing School (SAFS) taught by U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) experts. The USAMU trainers had a chance to teach members of the Liberty University Shooting Team. Here is the CMP’s report on the successful SAFS:
Liberty University Rifle Team Attends CMP’s Small Arms Firing School Story based on report by Ashley Brugnone, CMP Writer
On a beautiful, sunny morning in North Carolina, over 40 bright-eyed students of all ages set foot on the grounds of Camp Butner Training Facility to take part in a century-old tradition that has trained thousands of new marksmen around the country — the Small Arms Firing School (SAFS). The class was held during the CMP’s Eastern Travel Games at the end of April.
Attending the SAFS were student-athletes of Liberty University, a private institution in Virginia. This year the school launched a new program with four shooting teams: rifle, pistol, shotgun, and three-gun. Among the Liberty University Flames and Lady Flames rifle team member are some accomplished shooters, but others are relatively inexperienced.
Susie Krupp of the Liberty Lady Flames team was the High Non-Distinguished competitor of the event, earning her introductory EIC points.
The SAFS course is a combination of classroom education and hands-on competition and safety instruction on the firing line. At the conclusion, students fire a true M16 rifle match, with the chance to receive Excellence-in-Competition (EIC) points towards earning a Distinguished Rifleman Badge – a prestigious achievement. All equipment is provided by the CMP — even the rifles.
This year members of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) trained students. Here SSG Amanda Elsenboss offers pointers to a Liberty University Service Rifle shooter. The USAMU video below features SSG Elsenboss, who has served in the U.S. Army for 8.5 years.
Executive director and head coach of the Liberty University shooting sports program, Dave Hartman, was impressed by the SAFS event and grateful for the education his team received. The university is already looking forward to next year’s Eastern Games: “What’s beautiful about this event is that our competitors can come to this event without any prior knowledge, they don’t need to have a rifle. They go through the classroom portion, and they learn a vast amount of information. And having the USAMU here was fantastic.”
Here’s a simple procedure that lets you get a solid zero for a hunting rifle in just four shots. Of course you probably want to fire a few more rounds to confirm your zero before you head off to your hunting grounds, but this will let you get on-target with a minimum amount of time and ammo expended. (This assumes your scope is securely mounted, and the bases are not drastically out of alignment.)
QUICK-TIP: The Key to this procedure is Dialing to Shot One Point of Impact (POI). Re-aim at center of target after SHOT ONE. Then with the rifle motionless, use the turrets to put the middle of the cross-hair on the first shot location.
1. First, remove the bolt and boresight the rifle. Adjust the position of the rifle so that, looking through the bore, you can see the center of the target with your eyes. Secure the rifle in the rests to maintain its position as boresighted. Then, without moving the rifle, center the reticle. That should get you on paper. With the rifle solidly secured in front and rear rests or sandbags, aim at the center of a target placed at your zeroing distance (50 or 100 yards). Confirm there are no obstructions in the barrel! Then load and fire SHOT ONE. Then, return the gun to the exact position it was when you pulled the trigger, with the cross-hair centered on the target as before.
2. Locate, in the scope, where your first bullet landed on the target. Now, while you grip the rifle firmly so it doesn’t move, have a friend adjust the turrets on your scope. While you look through the scope, have your friend turn the windage and elevation turrets until the cross-hairs, as viewed through the scope, bisect the first bullet hole on the target. In other words, use the turrets to move the center of the reticle to the actual position of shot number one. IMPORTANT: Dial the crosshairs to the hole — don’t move the rifle.
3. After you’ve adjusted the turrets, now re-aim the rifle so the cross-hairs are, once again, positioned on the target center. Keep the rifle firmly supported by your rest or sandbag. Take the SECOND SHOT. You should find that the bullet now strikes in the center of the target.
4. Take a THIRD SHOT with the cross-hairs aligned in the center of the target to confirm your zero. Make minor modifications to the windage and elevation as necessary.
5. Finally, shoot the rifle from a field rest (shooting sticks, bipod, or rucksack) as you would use when actually hunting. Confirm, with SHOT FOUR, that your zero is unchanged. You may need to make slight adjustments. Some rifles, particularly those with flexy fore-arms, exhibit a different POI (point of impact) when fired from a bipod or ruck vs. a sandbag rest.
If you recently cleaned your rifle, you may want to fire two or three fouling shots before you start this procedure. But keep in mind that you want to duplicate the typical cold bore conditions that you’ll experience during the hunt. If you set your zero after three fouling shots, then make sure the bore is in a similar condition when you actually go out hunting.
Can’t get enough gun content on your home computer? Now you can stream informative audio broadcasts to your mobile device. In addition to its popular weekly TV shows, Shooting USA now offers podcasts on gun topics. These podcasts feature interviews with ace shooters, notable gunsmiths, and leading firearms industry executives. There are now 123 Shooting USA Podcast episodes available for streaming. Or you can download a podcast to your mobile device for later listening. All Shooting USA Podcast content is free. Use these links to access all Shooting USA Podcasts (123 audio shows):
Now you can listen to timely and entertaining Shooting USA Podcasts, hosted by Jim and John Scoutten. They are available on both Podbean and iTunes.
Here are four (4) of our favorite Shooting USA Podcasts. These include interviews with legendary shooter Jerry Miculek, and ace pistolero Max Michel, perhaps the fastest handgunner on the planet. Click each graphic to launch the PodBean player page for that Podcast.
Watch Max Michel Speed Drill (This Guy is Blazing Fast!)
In the archives of 
Fitness training and holding drills help position shooters reach their full potential.
