Since 2010, Lapua has shipped its quality cartridge brass in sturdy blue plastic boxes. Here’s a handy tip for you — don’t toss the plastic boxes when you load up your brass! These are double-duty containers. If you’re not familiar with “Blue Box” Lapua brass, you may not realize that the boxes are designed to serve as 50-round carriers for your loaded ammo and fired cases. (Yes we know some folks who’ve been tossing out their blue boxes without knowing how the boxes work as caddies.)
Snapped in place under the box lid is a rectangular plastic grid that fits in the bottom of the box. Pop the grid loose and slide it into the box with the smooth side facing up. Side supports molded into the lower section hold the grid in place.
Voilà, instant Ammo Box! Each grid contains holes for fifty (50) loaded rounds or empty cases. The convertible plastic container/ammo box is a great idea that Lapua executed very nicely. Now you have even more motivation to purchase your cartridge brass from Lapua.
Here’s a special one-day offer that can save you $20 – $30 (or more) on a big order from Sinclair International. Here’s the deal — TODAY ONLY, December 18, 2013, Sinclair is offering FREE SHIPPING on ALL orders (large or small — no minimum amounts). To get your FREE SHIPPING today, use Discount Code EC7 during checkout. CLICK HERE.
Here is your chance to buy those one or two small items you really need, but hesitated to buy because of shipping costs. Likewise, today’s the day to buy barrels, pedestal rests, reloading presses, and other heavy items that are normally expensive to ship. Free Shipping could save you a bundle on big items. NOTE: Sinclair has Bartlein and Krieger match-grade barrels in-stock right now in .22, 6mm, 6.5 mm, and .308 calibers. AR-15 barrels from Criterion, Krieger, and White Oak Armament are also in-stock.
If you watched the position and prone shooters at the 2012 London Olympic Games, you couldn’t help but notice the exotic rifles competitors were shooting. There were wood stocks, metal stocks, off the shelf rifles and customized specials. Why are there are so many different design features and stock types? To answer this question, the NRAblog’s editors called on Jessie McClain of the NRA Competitive Shooting Division.
“The customized rifles, like the Anschütz you showed me, can make a real difference in a shooter’s performance,” explained McClain. “I went from a decent shooter to making the varsity shooting team my freshman year because of the rifle.” As Jessie explained, one new feature out there is the adjustable stock, which she called the Porsche of the shooting world. Fully adjustable from the butt plate to the check piece to the hand stop and risers and bolt knobs, this component is fully customizable to the athlete … which can be a huge advantage. “Every person is different … a customizable rifle fits anyone. A rifle team can purchase four of these and field a shooting team for years.”
Not for Novices
The one warning she did have is that these are not for the novice shooter. Get a couple of years of shooting under your belt and then think about moving on to a customized rifle. That way, you can learn the basics before investing in the high dollar equipment. “You wouldn’t give your 16 year old a Ferrari for his first car, would you?”
The Modern Anschütz Position Rifle
Smallbore match rifle makers are using modern materials in response to the need for greater adjustability (and enhanced accuracy). One of the popular new designs is the Anschütz model 1913 position rifle with a “1918 ALU Precise” brushed aluminum stock. This looks like it has been crafted in an aircraft plant.
We’ve all seen brightly-colored chamber indicators before. But Chamber-View has come up with a better mousetrap — a solid, precisely-shaped silicone block that holds the firearm action open and prevents the charging mechanism from working. Additionally, unlike flag-type chamber indicators, Chamber-View devices block off the loading/ejector ports to help prevent dirt, moisture, or contaminants from getting inside. The Chamber-View product line includes safety devices for semi-auto/pump shotguns, AR/AK type rifle platforms, breach loading over/under and side-by-side shotguns, along with semi-auto pistols (both centerfire and rimfire). Each Chamber-View product is precisely designed and shaped for good fit and retention. The tapered design of the Shotgun device allows it to be used in a variety of scattergun action sizes and types.
The patent-pending Chamber-View products are made of brightly-colored 100% silicone. This material has many advantages. It lasts a long time, staying flexible and resilient across a wide range of temperatures. The silicone won’t scratch fine metal surfaces. The material is not affected by most fluids and chemicals, and is heat resistant. In fact, the Chamber-View is an excellent heat sink. Chamber-View devices come standard in neon blaze orange, but a variety of bright custom colors are available.
You go girl! Jessie Duff is the first woman in history to earn the title of USPSA Grand Master (GM), the highest rating conferred by the U.S. Practical Shooting Association (USPSA). To earn this prestigious ranking, Duff had to maintain an average above 95% in shooting classification courses, something never before achieved by a lady shooter. Jessie finished the year with a 95.39% average.
2013 was a banner year for Duff, who scored Open, Limited, and Single Stack Division wins at the USPSA National Championships. Duff also took multiple wins in the Steel Challenge World Championships, Steel Challenge Nat’l Championships, and Arkansas Sectional Championships.
“I am honored to have earned the designation of Grand Master with USPSA” said Duff. “This is something I have been working toward my entire shooting career and I’ve come this far thanks to a lot of hard work and a lot of support,” she added.
Duff, one of the most accomplished competition shooters in the world, has “raised the bar” for female shooters across the country. As female participation in shooting sports has grown, Duff’s accomplishments and continued success have blazed a path for women in competitive action shooting. “Jessie is one of the best shooters in the world,” said USPSA Executive Director Kim Williams. “USPSA is proud to announce her historic record as the first woman to ever reach this ranking in Practical Shooting,” added Williams.
In his Guns & Ammo Blog, Top Shot (Season 1) Champion Iain Harrison explains how to get started in 3-Gun Competition. Iain begins with some very practical advice: “Don’t worry too much about the gear. Spending a ton of money to get into the game, only to discover a few months later that you want to head in another direction, is a surefire way to alienate your significant other…. Go shoot what you have, even if it’s not ideal; you’ll learn much more about what works and what doesn’t by shooting in a match than you ever will by reading blogs like this.”
It’s obvious that you’ll need three firearms — pistol, carbine/rifle, and shotgun. But Harrison explains you don’t have to go out an get the most expensive (or complex) weaponry. For the rifle/carbine segment, Harrison says: “A vanilla AR15 with a low-power variable scope is a good place to start. Pretty much any flat top AR15 [will do].” For a scattergun, yes it would be nice to have an exotic Benelli M1 Super 90, but a low cost semi-auto from Remington, Winchester, or Mossberg will be competitive. And many guys start off with their “old reliable” Rem model 870 pump shotgun. Harrison explains: “Add an extended mag tube to the Remington 1100 lurking in the back of the safe and you have the shotgun component covered, though if you’d rather run your trusty pump gun… that’s cool too.”
Choice of Pistol and Caliber
The best handgun brand and caliber is really a matter of personal choice. You want a “dead-nuts” reliable pistol, for which you can get affordable accessories (holster, mag pouches, high-cap magazines). Glocks, 1911s, HKs, Sigs, S&W M&Ps are all popular. As for caliber choice, Harrison notes: “Most guys run 9 mm handguns as the capacity advantage over a .40 or .45 is significant, but whatever you choose, your holster is as important as the piece it contains. Bump a loaded pistol out of your holster in the middle of a stage and you’ll be going home early.”
Video Shows Highlights from 3-Gun Nation 2011 Championship
In his Guns & Ammo Blog post, Harrison also give advice about 3-Gun optics and he lists particular firearms models that are favored by competitors. Learn more about these topics by visiting the 3-Gun Nation website. When it comes to gun shopping, Harrison does advise to “buy new” — that’s because active 3-gunners fire so many rounds in practice and competition that they really can wear out their firearms. Click Here to read Harrison’s full Getting Started in 3-Gun Blog article. While visiting GunsandAmmo.com, check out Harrison’s amusing Top Five Reasons to Try 3-Gun. Here’s Reason Number One: “It’s sexy. So sexy in fact, it’s the only shooting sport with its own TV show!”
Kirsten Joy Weiss is one of America’s top smallbore shooters. Her many titles include the 2012 NRA National Women’s Smallbore 3P Championship. Using her Anschütz target rifle and Lapua ammunition, she has competed at top-level national and international events. To help demonstrate the fun of shooting, Kirsten has started her own YouTube Channel, Facebook Page, and her own website, www.KirstenJoyWeiss.com. There you’ll find shooting tips, gear reviews, and videos. Each week Kirsten does a new trick shot video. Here are three of our favorites.
Here Kirsten Drills the Center of Two Apples with One Shot:
In this Video, Kirsten Shoots from Pilates Position with Rifle Held Upside-Down (Wow!):
For this Trick Shot, Kirsten Shoots the Lead Tip off a Pencil without Breaking the Wood:
Kirsten Joy Weiss Competition Highlights
Kirsten is from Pennsylvania. A 3-time All-American in smallbore, Kirsten led the Univ. of Nebraska Cornhuskers to a 4th-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Weiss was an NRA Second-Team All-American and was named to the CRCA All-Collegiate Team twice. In 2012, Kirsten was the top USA athlete-shooter at the Munich World Cup. She won the 2012 NRA Three-Position Women’s Smallbore Championship and also won the Standing Position, while finishing as the National Overall Woman Champion.
This week’s episode of Shooting USA TV features the NRA Annual meeting and the U.S. National Steel Championships, two segments worth watching. Shooting USA airs Wednesdays on the Outdoor Channel, at 3:30 pm, 8:30 pm, and 12:00 midnight (Thursday) Eastern Time (check with your TV carrier for other time zones).
Over 86,000 members attended the NRA’s Annual Meeting and new Product Show held this year in Houston’s giant convention center. With gun issues being so prominent in recent months, the NRA added over 1,000,000 new members in 2013. Not surprisingly, there was a huge turn-out in Houston. Shooting USA interviews industry leaders and spotlights Product Show highlights.
U.S. National Steel Championship
In the world of action shooting, there is no other sound that instantly draws the attention like a round hitting a steel plate. It’s been called “bang and clang” and “drag racing with guns”. For three days, at the U.S. National Steel Championships in Florida, the fastest pistol shooters from across the nation competed for glory, prize money, and the title of “America’s Fastest Gun”. This year the Main Match came down to an epic battle between KC Eusebio and Max Michel, two of the fastest shooters on the planet. Visit www.USSteelshoot.com for more info and complete match results.
Watch Video of KC Eusebio in Action at 2013 U.S. National Steel Championships:
California shooter Mark LaFevers has come up with a slick, adjustable fixture that delivers a precise, repeatable inside-neck chamfer every time. He uses a Holland Case Mouth Chamfer Tool with a 14° cutter, but this set-up works equally well with other chamferers with an extended handle. With Mark’s tool jig, the Holland Tool inserts through the top, indexing vertically off a shoulder. A small recess is cut in the center of the wood base for the case head. The tool mount can be raised or lowered with the adjusting bolts on all four corners. Simply slide a trimmed-to-length case in the middle, give the Holland Tool a few spins, and you get a perfect, identical chamfer every time. Now that’s ingenuity! Mark isn’t planning to produce these commercially, but he’s happy if someone wants to copy his jig design.
NOTE: In the photos above, you see an older version of the tool. Hollands has improved the design of its current 14° Chamfer Tool. The cutting head now has a 3-flute design that provides a smoother, chatterless cut. The head is now made of carbide so it cuts faster and holds its cutting edge longer. This tool is available from Holland’s Shooters Supplies for $32.00 (item CMCT-CAR).
Football fans and Harley guys like to show their loyalty with branded stickers on their cars and trucks. Why shouldn’t benchresters do this same? Well now this is possible for fans of the 6mmBR, PPC, and 6mm Dasher cartridges. These small but ultra-accurate cartridges have set the “gold standard” for rifle precision. Now you can “represent” your favorite chambering — but in a subtle way that won’t spook anti-gunners on the road (or draw unwanted attention from the local constabulary).
PMA Tool offers Euro-style, black-on-white, oval stickers that look cool on your car, truck, SUV, RV, or camping trailer. As PMA says: “Let your shooting buddies know what you shoot, while leaving your non-shooting neighbors scratching their heads.” Place the stickers in the corner of a rear window or slap ‘em on a bumper. They also look nice on a range box or plastic rifle case.
There are currently three sticker versions, “6BR”, “PPC”, and “Dasher”, priced at $5.95 per sticker. PMA Tool may produce stickers for other chamberings if there is sufficient demand. What other cartridge types would you like to see? Perhaps generic “6mm”, “6.5mm”, and “7mm” stickers?
If you watched the position and prone shooters at the 2012 London Olympic Games, you couldn’t help but notice the exotic rifles competitors were shooting. There were wood stocks, metal stocks, off the shelf rifles and customized specials. Why are there are so many different design features and stock types? To answer this question, the NRAblog’s editors called on Jessie McClain of the NRA Competitive Shooting Division. 
You go girl! 
In his 
Kirsten Joy Weiss Competition Highlights
