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August 28th, 2013
We all know that precision factory ammo, and all types of reloading components, are in short supply, with demand often out-stripping supply. Now RUAG Ammotec (RUAG), Europe’s leading producer of ammunition, will be stepping up production with the goal of expanding sales in the USA and worldwide. RUAG produces the elite RWS ammo/components and also markets RWS Sport, Geco, Swiss P, MFS, and Rottweil brand products. See the full product line at Ruag-usa.com.
 
RUAG is significantly extending its production capacities and investing in new systems. Ruag states “This step has become necessary because of the [high demand] in Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Hungary and the USA.”
To bring more ammo to market, RUAG Ammotec is hiring new workers and investing over 15 million Euros to enhance production facilities. Increased capacity will be achieved via a “major investment program in the upper double-digit million range” over the coming three years. The production expansion “is the biggest project of its kind in the history of RUAG”, according to Cyril Kubelka, CEO of RUAG Ammotec. “Expanding our production network across all our locations will ideally increase our current capacities. This is the only way for us to be able to meet the high international demand even better in future and reinforce our market position.”
RUAG is a Swiss technology company, with its headquarters in Bern. It has production sites in Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and Austria and USA, and sales companies in UK, France, Belgium, Brasil and Malaysia.
August 27th, 2013
 Months ago, we reported on the new, .17 Winchester Super Magnum (Win Super Mag or WSM) rimfire cartridge. Able to drive a 20gr bullet over 3000 fps, this new .17 Win Super Mag raises the bar for rimfire cartridges. The .17 WSM shoots faster, flies flatter, and bucks the wind better than a .17 HMR.
Sounds good right? Well the only problem is that .17 Win Super Mag cartridges (and a rifle that could shoot them) have been virtually impossible to obtain. In January, Savage unveiled its new B-Mag rifle chambered for the .17 Win Super Mag, but there were delays getting the gun into production.
GunsAmerica Tests .17 Win Super Mag
At last, after many months, the B-mag rifle is ready, and .17 Win Super Mag rimfire ammo is starting to hit dealer’s shelves. GunsAmerica managed to score some .17 WSM rimfire ammo, borrow a B-Mag rifle, and test the new cartridge at the range. GunsAmerica has published its findings in a detailed review on the GunsAmerica Blog.
CLICK HERE for .17 Win Super Mag Rimfire Field Test Report
GunsAmerica Says New 17-Cal Rimfire Cartridge Is Promising:
“Savage sent us this test rifle over two months ago, but we had no ammo, so like everyone else, we waited. Finally, as you can see from these tests, the ammo has started to trickle out. Several of our dealers have reported that they have gotten 40 box orders in (and quickly out) the door, and this ammo you see here was purchased retail at Bass Pro in Hollywood, Florida. We were only able to get the 2600 fps 25 grain load, but it is still a rip-roaring monster for a rimfire, and the accuracy is acceptable, (though not fabulous for a Savage).
The Savage “B-Mag” rifle is currently the only gun for the cartridge, and it carries an MSRP of $349.00. As a first effort on a new and revolutionary rimfire, the B-Mag performed well, and the cartridge looks to have great potential.
The .17WSM is not just a hotter .17HMR. It is a different, and much larger case entirely. Winchester based it on a .27 caliber blank made for industrial nail guns used for cement nails…. They beefed up the case by doubling the wall thickness and added extra meat to the top.”
Photos from GunsAmerica Blog, All Rights Reserved.
August 26th, 2013
 Top marksmen from around the world battled for national honors today during Day 1 of the F-Class Team World Championships. F-Open and F-TR teams from many countries were decked out in their national colors. We saw squads from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Ukraine, and the USA. Other nations were represented as well.
Along with the basic two divisions, F-Open and F-TR, there are separate classifications for 4-man squads and the big 8-member National Teams. One Junior team from the USA is also competing. Right now the 8-man USA F-TR squad has a commanding lead. The talent-laden USA 8-man F-Open squad sits in second place, just three points behind the surprisingly strong Australian squad. But there are hundreds of record rounds left to fire tomorrow, and USA F-Open team members hope to move into the top slot on Day 2. Scroll down the page for a video interview with USA F-Open Team Captain Shiraz Balolia.
More than once in today’s matches dust devils appeared on the range. During the 1000-yard match a large swirling dust cloud formed dead center on the range. We heard coach Mid Tompkins call to his shooters: “Whoa – Whoa, stop firing, stop everything”. Mid told us: “When you have dust devils like that, you have to stop — you can’t out-guess it and you may not even be able to see the target.”
Interview with USA F-Open Team Captain Shiraz Balolia
Many of the top teams are using “comm packages” with microphones and headsets. This allows the coaches to communicate with each other, conferring on observations and wind calls. Wireless communicators are not allowed, so cords are strung between the coaching stations.
August 26th, 2013
 K&M Precision Shooting Products has two very handy products you may not know about yet. The first, a brilliantly simple device that lets you see your case necks as you expand them, can be used by anyone who necks-up brass (with a compatible expander die body). The second new product is a specialized “fat grip” holder that will make neck-turning easier for those of you out there who use K&M neck-turners.
 K&M Expand Mandrel Window Riser
This is a simple threaded extension placed between your expander die body (K&M Expand Iron) and the top of your press. It carries the expander mandrel higher, above the press, and has a cut-out view port so you can see the mandrel as it passes through the neck. Smart, eh? This provides visual feedback during the process of expanding your brass. The patent-pending view riser costs $20.00. Will it expand necks faster, or reduce run-out? We doubt it, but we still would like to have one, if only to eyeball the mandrel to control the neck-entry rate more consistently from case to case.
Installation: Thread the Expand Mandrel Window Riser into the top of your loading press, then thread the K&M Expand-Iron (Expander Die Body) fully into the top of the window riser and adjust each so you can stroke out the press completely without driving the case mouth into the press adapter. This allows you to view the expanding operation which is typically blind under the press. The riser also eliminates the need for the stop screw in the expander mandrel. LINK: Expand Window Riser Instructions (PDF).
 Ergo Holder for K&M Neck-Turning Tool
K&M’s rounded, oversized Ergo Holder lets you hold the K&M neck-turning body more securely (and with less hand cramping). Priced at $35.00, it is an expensive accessory, but we suspect many guys with K&M neck-turners will spring for an Ergo holder just because it gives you a more secure and comfortable grip on the small, square-edged K&M neck-turner.
Customer Feedback Inspired K&M’s Ergo Holder
The folks at K&M told us that their new Ergo Holder was produced in response to customer requests: “[Customers reported that] the neck turner can be hard to hold due to its compact size, especially in high-volume use. The Ergo Holder is machined from aluminum, providing a fatigue-proof grasp of the neck turner. Its mass works like a heat sink to help dissipate heat from the pilot during the turning process. The neck-turner body easily assembles into the Ergo Holder and is held in place with one set screw. The Ergo holder is also designed with the dial indicator in mind and actually makes its use more convenient”.
LINK: Ergo Holder Installation/Use Instructions (PDF).
August 26th, 2013
 Here’s a shocker — Leupold has built a 7-42X long range scope. This new scope has a 34mm tube, and target turrets with a zero stop for BOTH windage and elevation. That’s right, there’s a zero stop on the windage turret.
We were shown this new 7-42X Leupold by USA F-TR Team Vice Captain Mike Miller. Mike literally grabbed this editor’s arm and said “You’ve got to see this new Leupold — it’s fantastic.”
First Field Tests Show Great Promise
Mike has compared this new Leupold 7-42X scope on his rifles with high-magnification scopez from Nightforce and March and he told us: “You’re going to love this Leupold. It’s bright, really, really sharp and it has a great field of view”. Mike said that the new Leupold, when compared to a Nightforce at similar magnification, has a wider field of view: “I can see more of the range, more flags, with the Leupold.” Mike also praised the new, unique Windage Zero Stop: “With a stop on the Windage, I can just move back to my baseline and never worry that I’m off a full turn — that’s important for competition.”
How the Windage Control Works
Mike Miller explained that, while Leupold has used the terminology of “windage zero stop”, the feature is more an adjustable windage center. You can still go both ways (left and right) after setting the stop. However you have the ability to adjust the horizontal turret markings so the zero indicator on the windage dial is at true horizontal center — for your gun and barrel. That way you can dial to zero on the windage dial and know that your horizontal POI will be dead center for a no-wind condition. But you do have the ability to adjust both left and right. It is not an end-of-travel “zero stop” as that term is used for elevation turrets.
The new 7-42X is not in production yet. Mike reports: “Leupold has built just six (6) of these new scope and we’ll be testing a couple here at Raton.” We don’t know the exact weight of the new scope — Leupold has not provided detailed specifications. However, we couldn’t help but notice the big 34mm tube. Mike says there is over 50 MOA of elevation available. As for price — your guess is as good as ours. This is still a prototype, so we have no idea what the scope will cost, or when it will hit the market. But we can say that Leupold now has a scope to compete directly with the high-magnification scopes from March and Nightforce. We presume that the new 7-42X Leupold will eventually sell for less than the Nightforce 15-55x52mm Competition scope. Stay tuned for more information.
There’s a new Leupold VX-6 Long-Range Scope to compete with the Nightforce Benchrest and NXS Models. In a surprise unveiling, Leupold send a couple prototype 7-42X scopes to Raton.
August 26th, 2013
 Congratulations to American shooters Kenny Adams (F-Open) and Nikolas Taylor (F-TR), newly crowned F-Class World Champions.
The Individual half of the F-Class World Championships (FCWC) has concluded and Americans dominated the Top Ten Standings in both classes (see Agg Charts below). Conditions were very difficult on both days of the competition, which included a thunderstorm on Day One. On Day Two, winds were switchy with velocities that seemed to change by the minute. The men and women who performed well in these conditions certainly deserved their trophies.
As F-Open Champ Kenny Adams told us: “You might look at the scores and think it was easy. But actually conditions were very, very challenging. And with the quality of this field, if you dropped just one point you could fall way down in the standings.”
F-Open World Champion Kenny Adams Talks About His Hard-Fought Victory
Kenny won the F-Open Title is an tough battle with Australian shooter Marty Lobert that went down to the wire on Sunday. Both men finished with identical scores of 466, but Adams had the edge in V-Count, 51 Vs compared to 43 Vs for Lobert. We talked with Marty after the match, and he told us: “It was tight, but Kenny deserved the win — eight more Vs.” Still Marty said that a tight finish like this causes one to think about the “what ifs”: “Losing on Vs — well it makes you think — what if I got one more point in that first relay on Day One, what if I’d held off a little further on just one shot.”
Nikolas Taylor Wins F-TR Championship, Simmonds Second, Buell Third
In F-TR Class, Nikolas Taylor (450-33V) edged the UK’s Russell Simmonds (449-31V) by one point. Simmonds, a past F-TR world champion, shot great on Sunday, picking up five points on Taylor, but that left Russell just one point short. Taylor had built a six-point margin over Simmonds on Day One, and that was enough to secure the victory. F-TR Team USA shooter Darrell Buell finished third with a 445-29V score.
FCWC — Two-Day Grand Aggregate, F-Open and F-TR
FCWC Individual Results August 24 — F-Open and F-TR
FCWC Individual Results August 25 — F-Open and F-TR
FCWC F-Open GRAND AGG TOP 10
Competitor | DAY-1 | DAY-2 | GRAND AGG
KENNY ADAMS: 221-26V 245-25V 466-51V — World Champion
MARTIN LOBERT: 222-17V 244-26V 466-43V
BOB MEAD: 222-24V 243-29V 465-53V
HERBERT EDWARDS: 220-27V 244-19V 464-46V
KEN DICKERMAN: 216-20V 245-29V 461-49V
FREDDY HALTOM: 216-20V 245-26V 461-46V
ALAN FRASER: 214-17V 246-28V 46-45V
BOB SEBOLD: 220-18V 239-22V 459-40V
WILLIAM WITTMAN: 217-15V 242-19V 459-34V
DON NAGEL: 217-13V 242-19V 459-32V
FCWC F-TR GRAND AGG TOP 10
Competitor | DAY-1 | DAY-2 | GRAND AGG
NIKOLAS TAYLOR: 221-18V 229-15V 450-33V – World Champion
RUSSELL SIMMONDS: 215-16V 234-15V 449-31V
DARRELL BUELL: 214-14V 231-15V 445-29V
HILIP KELLEY: 210-11V 235-17V 445-28V
JAMES CROFTS: 215-19V 228-12V 443-31V
BRAD SAUVE: 208-14V 233-15V 441-29V
TRUDIE FAY 215-16V 226-10V 441-26V
KEVIN CHOU: 208 9V 233 11V 441 20V
DEREK RODGERS: 215-12V 226-8V 441-20V
DARYL BARLOW: 207-9V 232-11V 439-20V
F-Open Silver Medalist Talks About the .284 Winchester
August 26th, 2013
This week, the popular Guns & Gear TV show reviews one of our favorite types of varmint ammo — the Varmageddon line-up from Nosler. In addition, this week’s show features the Ruger M77 Hawkeye, Smith & Wesson’s legendary Model 41 .22LR pistol, plus 9mm XDs from Springfield Armory. Watch show segments, learn more about the products, and get the latest news at Gunsandgeartv.com
Guns & Gear TV, now in its fifth season, showcases new gun products every week. Each episode delivers in-studio interviews, field and range demonstrations, and tips from top shooting instructors. Guns & Gear TV airs on Pursuit Channel on Mondays at 8:30 a.m. ET, Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. Eastern, Fridays at 10:30 p.m. ET and Sundays at 1:30 a.m. ET.
August 25th, 2013
We’re halfway through the F-Class World Championships, with the individual matches completed. We should be able to announce the winner very soon, when the final individual scores have been certified. We can report that this match went down to the wire, with the top two places decided on V-Count (the international equivalent of our X-Count). Final results of both Individual and Team FCWC matches will be posted at: fcwc-usa.org/results.
One Very Patriotic Shooter at the F-Class World Championships.
It has been a very tough two days for most competitors. One late relay on Saturday faced a rain squall that resulted in many off-target misses. On Sunday, from mid-morning on, the wind was switching angles all the time with ups and downs in wind speeds. There were apparent lulls that seemed steady, but quite suddenly the wind angle could switch 40° or more, while gusting. Nonetheless, shooters turned in some great performances. During his 800-yard relay, Australia’s Marty Lobert shot a perfect 75-15V for fifteen shots (max shot value at the Worlds is a five).
The individual F-Open and F-TR World Champions will be crowned tonight. Team competition begins tomorrow (Monday). We’ll post video interviews with the top shooters soon. Here are some photo highlights from Sunday at the F-Class World Championships.
August 25th, 2013
There’s a new score game in town — it’s called Ultimate Benchrest (UBR). You don’t have to purchase a membership to compete, and the rules are designed to equalize calibers, so you can shoot a .223, a 6mm (.243), or a .30 caliber benchrest gun — all with an equal chance to win. There’s a special class for factory guns, so you can have fun with Savages, Coopers, Kimbers, and Remingtons. The next step up is the Modified Class — this is for factory guns that have been re-barreled or had the action moved to a flat-bottom, Benchrest-style stock. The Custom Class is for guns with custom actions, benchrest stocks, and premium barrels. Max weight is 13.5 lbs for Factory, Modified, and Custom Class rifles. Any rig over 13.5 lbs competes in the Unlimited Class. Here pretty much anything goes, including one-piece rests.
Ultimate Benchrest Equipment Rules | Ultimate Benchrest Equalized Target System Rules
Next month, the Ultimate Benchrest Nationals will be held September 27-28 at the Buck Creek Range in Kentucky. There’s no limit on shooters and all classes can compete. This two-day event features 100-yard matches on the 27th, with 200-yard competition on the 28th. Many prizes will be awarded, including products from 21st Century Shooting, Benchmark Barrels, Berger Bullets, Cooper Firearms, Krieger Barrels, PMA Tools, Shilen Rifles, and Sinclair/Brownells. If you’re in the area, you should check it out. There’s a class for everyone, and hot food (and cold drinks) will be provided.
For more info, visit UltimateBenchrest.com or email George Coleman, georgeky [at] live.com. To register for the UBR Nationals, call jackie stogsdill at 606-382-5152 or send email to: jackie_stogsdill [at] hotmail.com .
Watch Video Highlights from the 2012 UBR Nationals
August 24th, 2013
 The F-Class World Championships are now underway at Raton, New Mexico. The turn-out is impressive — 17 different countries are represented by roughly 425 shooters. There will be two (2) days of individual competition, followed by the “Battle of the Nations” — the two-day team competition. It is warm and clear today, with a slight chance of a late thunderstorm. The weather gurus are predicting sunny skies for the remainder of the event, with peak temps in the high 80s and 10-20 mph winds.
LINK to Detailed Raton Weather Report.
The F-Class World Championships commenced with opening ceremonies this Saturday morning. At right, Dan Pohlabel and Mike Miller are shown raising the US flag during opening ceremonies. Let the competition begin!
Here are the Schedule and Course of Fire
for the World Championships:
Sat 24 August 2013 — Day 1 of FCWC Individual Championships
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 800 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 900 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 1,000 yards
Sun 25 August 2013 — Day 2 of FCWC Individual Championships
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 800 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 900 yards
2 convertible sighters and 20 for record @ 1,000 yards
Mon 26 August 2013 — Day 1 of FCWC Team Championships
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 800 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 900 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 1,000 yards
Tue 27 August 2013 — Day 2 of FCWC Team Championships
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 800 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 900 yards
2 convertible sighters and 15 for record @ 1,000 yards
Photos courtesy U.S. F-Class Rifle Team (F-TR).
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