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April 8th, 2012
 Creedmoor Sports recently released its new 2012 catalog — with 2011 NRA High Power Champion Carl Bernosky on the cover. Last year Carl won his NINTH National High Power Championship*. There is both a traditional print version of the new Creedmoor catalog, as well as a new digital version online. In the online digital catalog, you can flip the pages just like a real catalog, view page thumbnails, and easily print out catalog pages for future reference.
In the new Creedmoor Catalog, we found some cool products you guys may not have seen before. Of course this is just a small sample of the thousands of items in the current catalog.
 Malcolm Hi-Lux M73G2 Rifle Scope
Item HL-M73G21, $399.95
Modern repro vintage-style scope ideal for Vintage Sniper Rifle Matches. If you shoot a 1903 Springfield or old Mauser in the sniper matches this is just what you need. Fine cross-hair reticle with multi-coated lenses. The M73G2 features internal 1/2-MOA per click elevation and windage adjustment, with 60 clicks (30 MOA) per full turn. Total adjustment for both Elevation and Windage is 50 MOA each, i.e, 25 MOA up and down and 25 MOA left and right from the reticle’s centered position.
 Blank Eyepiece
Item C1038, $6.95
This semi-opaque eye-shield clips on your shooting eyewear on either right or left side. This allows you to shoot with both eyes open, reducing eyestrain and fatigue. For cross-dominant shooters who don’t want to hold their rifle or pistol with their weak-side hand, this device can be very helpful.
 Holland’s Scope Level
Item HOL-LEVEL, $49.95
There are many leveling devices on the market, but we think this is one of the best designs yet (when mounted properly). The T-6 aluminum alloy level fits on your scope tube, with the bubble level set to the side for easy viewing when in firing position. The unit, offered in 1 inch, 30mm, and 34mm sizes, can be flipped so you can place the bubble on either the right side or left side. This unit is easier to see with your left eye than levels mounting in the center of the scope.
 The Score Keeper and Pit Puller (by Jim Owens)
Item JOSKPP, $11.95 (Book on CD/DVD)
Can you explain the 11 Hit Rule, the Excessive Hits Rule, the Insufficient Hits Rule, and what to do for a withdrawn target? If not, and you compete in High Power matches, you need this DVD. This useful resource can help match directors and score keepers, and it is an effective training tool for new pit workers. The DVD features over 300 color slides and shows scoring situations from both the Pit Puller’s POV and the Score Keeper’s POV.
 Anschütz Shaker Pellet Box
Item AHG-1001, $19.95
With this handy item airgun shooters can sort, count and arrange pellets. This is the best set-up for holding 100 match pellets in rows, and protected from damage. (It’s easy to ding the tails of pellets, which can really harm accuracy.) To quickly fill the box, just pour some pellets into the box, press down on the side tabs, and shake gently back and forth. If you sort pellets by weight (or other criteria), you can also place the pellets individually.
*Bernosky has won the High Power Championship in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1992, 2000, 2007, 2008, and 2011. *In 1981 Carl won the Match Rifle division, but D.I. Boyd, a Service Rifle shooter, had the highest overall Aggregate.
April 7th, 2012
 This past weekend, Forum member Ron Boyd shot a 1.462″ five-shot Light Gun group at 1000 yards in an IBS benchrest match at the MidWest Benchrest Club in Yukon, Missouri. Ron shot a 6mm Dasher with Bartlein barrel and PR&T stock. Ron’s 1.462″ group is 0.065″ off the existing IBS 1000-yard Light Gun record. Ron’s group also happens to be .011″ smaller than the current NBRSA 1K Light Gun record, 1.473″ shot by Bill Schrader in 2002. (But this is not counted by the NBRSA since Ron shot in an IBS match.) Ron’s group was shot in the first relay of the day, in good conditions. The group had three (3) shots clustered in under one-third inch (0.03 MOA)!
 This is truly a spectacular achievement. We think this has to been one of the smallest five-shot groups ever shot at 1000 yards, and probably the smallest ever with a 6mm cartridge. At 1000 yards, 1 MOA is 10.47″. This means that Ron’s group measured in at 0.1396 MOA! To give you an idea of how small Ron’s group really was, at left is a 1.462″ circle shown at 100% scale, along with a quarter at 100% scale.* The circle represents the center-to-center distance of Ron’s five shots at 1000 yards. Total vertical dispersion was just under 1.2″ for five shots. The vertical for the top four shots (measured with OnTarget software) was just 0.398″! Shown below is a flat-bed scan of the actual target. Notice the tight cluster of 3 shots touching. That’s a dime in the photo added for scale.
 Ron Boyd’s 6mm Dasher Load
 Ron loaded a stout charge of Long Range Match surplus powder with Spencer 103gr bullets seated about .010″ OFF the lands. The bullets were “right out of the box”, NOT pointed. This powder has burn-rate characteristics very similar to Alliant Reloder 15, and Ron used his regular RL15 charge, adjusted by half a grain or so. Ron was using no-neck-turn “brown-box” Lapua 6BR brass formed into the 40° improved 6mm Dasher case. The unturned, loaded case necks measure about 0.2695″, yielding .0015″ total clearance in a 0.271″ chamber. The brass used for the 1.462″ group had seven previous firings. Ron anneals his brass after every firing using a Benchsource annealing machine. Ron told us: “The Benchsource is the greatest annealing machine there is, as far as I’m concerned.” Ron ultrasonically cleans his brass and then tumbles his brass after the ultrasound process. He does NOT use an internal neck lubricant. He does NOT uniform his primer pockets and he does NOT ream his flashholes. Ron believes this load was running “right around 3000 fps”, but he has not chron’d it yet using the new Bartlein barrel.
Ron Boyd’s 6mm Dasher Light Gun
Ron’s 17-lb Light Gun featured a BAT SV Action, Bartlein 30″ 1:8″ twist, 0.237″ land barrel, and Precision Rifle & Tool “Hammerhead” benchrest stock with 5″-wide wings in front. This stock weighs 4 lbs 1 oz. with an aluminum butt plate and is about 36.5″ long with integrated rails on the bottom of the “wings”. Ron’s friends Rich Griffin and Jerry Kloeppel did the chambering and bedding. Ron recently put the Bartlein barrel on the gun. Ron estimates that the barrel had only 40 rounds through it when it produced the 1.462″ group. Ron tells us: “This new barrel is great, and the 5″ PR&T stock really works. I luckily pulled the trigger at the right time.” Ron told us that this rifle shot in the high ones/low twos at 100 yards during testing.
PR&T Hammerhead Stock (catalog photo)
*The circle and quarter should appear “true size” when viewed at the most common monitor resolution. If you are running a higher resolution on your monitor, the illustration will appear small than actual size.
April 7th, 2012
 Tom Gresham’s Gun Talk is a popular, nationally-syndicated radio show. FYI, Tom Gresham will be broadcasting live from the NRA Annual Meeting in St. Louis, April 12-15, 2012. We enjoy listening to Gun Talk radio, but we’ve found that Gun Talk is not widely broadcast in some areas of the country, or the radio broadcast times are not convenient for listening. Recognizing this, Gun Talk has recorded many of its popular broadcasts and offered them for FREE as downloadable .MP3 audio files. These “podcast” files can be played by any inexpensive media player (such as the Apple Shuffle), and many current vehicle GPS units can play .MP3 files so you can now listen to Gun Talk in your car whenever you please.
PODCAST SAMPLE: CLICK HERE to download 3/25/2012 PodCast with Bill Gravatt of Sinclair Int’l.
Gun Talk’s podcasts were downloaded over 2 million times in 2011 — proving this is a smart way to access Gresham’s popular radio sessions. To download Gun Talk podcasts, go to www.guntalk.libsyn.com, and simply right-click on each particular file’s “POD” icon to download. The latest 2012 broadcasts are available along with complete archives for 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, and 2006. Just click any year/month on the left to access older broadcasts. You’ll find hundreds of hours of free entertainment.
April 6th, 2012
 When New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the NY state budget into law last week, this had the effect of immediately eliminating the Combined Ballistics Identification System (CoBIS), New York’s ineffective ballistic identification database. (Importantly, the New York budget bill did NOT contain a microstamping provision.) The end of CoBIS is a major victory for law-abiding firearms owners throughout the state of New York. CoBIS was set up and launched in 2000 by then Gov. George Pataki. In the words of the New York Post: “Trouble is, the Pataki program NEVER worked. Despite the hundreds of thousands of spent shells submitted, not one criminal was ever captured using the extensive and costly-to-maintain database, state officials concede.”
April 5th, 2012
 Here’s a sweet offer from Browning. Purchase a Browning firearm at retail price from April 1, 2012 through April 30, 2012 and Browning will reimburse you up to 8% in U.S. funds for the sales tax. For example, if you spend $1,000 and pay 8% sales tax, you can get $80 back from Browning — that’s like getting an 8% discount. (If you purchase your new Browning in a “no sales tax” state, send in your coupon for special consideration.)
We like Browning’s reasoning for this promotion: “Uncle Sam has picked your pocket all year long. Now is the time for some [tax relief]“. To get your sales tax refund, fill out the Browning Tax Relief Coupon and mail it in, along with a copy of your sales receipt. Participating Browning dealers should also have flyers and coupons available at their stores. NOTE: This offer is available only in the USA, and Buckmark and 1911-22 pistols are excluded.
CLICK HERE to Download and Print “Browning Tax Relief” Program COUPON.
What should you buy? Here are some suggestions:
X-Bolt Composite Stalker: Browning’s X-Bolt series is an affordable line of hunting rifles with adjustable triggers, 60°-lift bolts, and detachable rotary magazines. These guns have glass-bedded receivers and free-floating, hand-chambered barrels. Sixteen (16) different chamberings are offered, from .223 Rem all the way up to .338 Win Mag. Street price on the Composite Stalker is about $750.00.
T-Bolt Target Varmint: Browning makes a sweet, nice-handling rimfire varmint rifle with Browning’s unique, straight-pull T-Bolt action. This is offered in .22 LR, .22 Magnum, and 17 HMR. T-Bolts come in both right-hand or left-hand versions, with wood or synthetic stocks. Street prices on T-Bolt rifles range from about $500.00 to $650.00, depending on configuration.
Restrictions: Offer valid only on the consumer retail purchase of a new Browning firearm (offer excludes Buck Mark and 1911-22 pistols) purchased between April 1, 2012 and April 30, 2012. Documents must be postmarked no later than midnight, May 15, 2012. Browning employees and dealers etc., and members of their immediate families, are not eligible for this promotion. Limited to one offer per person. All purchasers must be U.S. citizens or legal residents.
Story tip by Edlongrange. We welcome reader submissions.
April 5th, 2012
Forum member Stan C. (aka BigBamBoo) has created an impressive FREE online database of shooting ranges and clubs throughout the fifty United States, plus Canada. Stan’s new website, ShootingPlaces.com, is simple to use — and it is wicked fast. A handy state/province pull-down menu lets you instantly find all the shooting venues in any particular U.S. State or Canadian Province. Alternatively, you can search for ranges within a given radius of a location or zip code — that’s great when you want to narrow your focus to a particular metropolitan area. The database is very comprehensive, and search results came up almost instantly for us. We ran searches for a number of zip codes near the AccurateShooter.com offices in southern California. Overall the results were impressive, though there was a prominent omission — the Ojai Valley Gun Club, our ‘home range’, didn’t appear. So be aware that the database may not be 100% just yet. But with time, it should become more complete, as users can submit their entries to augment the database.
ShootingPlaces.com employs Google mapping technology that automatically maps the location of all search results. Each shooting facility (returned by the search) is shown by a “bullseye” tag on a regional map. Click the name of a particular facility, and the display switches to a site-specific layout with details about the facility, plus a street map you can use to get there. See example below:
 ShootingPlaces.com vs. WheretoShoot.org
Credit Stan C. for working very hard over the last couple of years to create a database that is comprehensive, powerful, fast, and easy to use. ShootingPlaces.com is a great resource for shooters throughout the USA and Canada. ShootingPlaces.com is a genuine rival to the well-established WheretoShoot.org, an online database of shooting facilities, maintained by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).
You may be thinking, “OK, if ShootingPlaces.com and WheretoShoot.org both locate shooting venues, which online directory should I use?” Well, it depends… ShootingPlaces.com is “faster” but WheretoShoot.org is “deeper”. If you simply want to locate and map a shooting range, ShootingPlaces.com is hard to beat for speed and ease of use. However, if want to find out what kind of programs and facilities are offered at a particular shooting range or club, then you should use WheretoShoot.org. The typical site profiles on Wheretoshoot.org are more detailed. For larger clubs, you’ll find details such as range yardages, disciplines supported (silhouette, high power etc.), and specific facilities (clubhouse, on-site camping).
Because ShootingPlaces.com and WheretoShoot.org both have their strengths, we suggest you bookmark both sites. Use ShootingPlaces.com for super-quick searches, and then switch to WheretoShoot.org if you want additional details on specific programs and site facilities.
April 4th, 2012
AccurateShooter.com field tester Kelly Bachand returns to Top Shot on the History Channel next week. Kelly is one of two “alumni experts” tasked with helping competitors attempt a 1500-yard shot. Along with fellow Top Shot alumnus George Reinas, Kelly guides Season 4 competitors through the longest-range marksmanship challenge ever undertaken on the Top Shot series. The show will air Tuesday, April 10th at 10:00 pm. Kelly tells us: “OK — I can finally talk about it! I’ll be on Top Shot again [next week]. I’ll be there trying to teach the shooters how to read wind so they can make a 1500-yard shot.” We asked Kelly if he was going to get one of those $2K Bass Pro gift cards for his efforts. Unfortunately the answer was ‘no': “No gift cards….Yeah I wish they gave me four of them to make up for all the elimination challenges in Season One!”
 Kelly instructs this season’s competitors in the skills needed to make a hit at 1500 yards. At right, you’ll see Kelly doing something he’s becoming very familiar with — looking through a spotting scope. At the World Long Range Championships in Australia, Kelly’s spotting skills helped keep the USA Young Eagles in the center to win both Gold and Silver. The teaser for next week’s Top Shot episode shows competitors using an Accuracy Int’l AX 338 to engage a target 1500 yards away. To make shots at that distance successfully, you need to have rock-solid fundamentals, wind-reading abilities, and ballistics info. Tune in next Tuesday to see how Kelly works with competitors trying to make the longest shot ever attempted on Top Shot.
April 4th, 2012
The major American gun-makers are the darlings of Wall Street right now. Smith & Wesson (SWHC) recently traded at $8.60 per share, a 52-week high, up from a 52-week low of $2.29. That’s a whopping 376% increase in stock price in one year! (Current SWHC price is $8.32.) Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. (RGR) traded today as high as $51.87, up from a 52-week low of $18.65 per share. That represents a 278% gain since this time last year. If you had invested in either S&W or Ruger a year ago, you would be sitting pretty right now. Check out SWHC’s stock price trends for the past 52 weeks:
Election-Year Fears Drive Gun Sales
What is driving the rising prices of gun-maker equities? Experts say the main factor is fear — Americans are afraid that, if President Obama is re-elected, he will force through tough new gun laws. That, in turn, is driving increased gun sales, which is good for the gun makers. With increased gun sales, revenues are up and profits are up — and that’s what Wall Street likes to see. S&W got a boost recently when a Wedbush stock analyst Rommel Dionisio re-confirmed S&W’s “Outperform” stock rating, and raised the target price from $7.00 to $10.00. Mr. Dioniso explained that gun sales are starting to rise dramatically because Americans are worried that President Obama will tighten gun laws if he earns a second term.
Other Wall Street “experts” are singing the same tune. Writing on the Motley Fool website, Wall Street reporter Bobbie Johnson opined: “The sales of handguns and ammunition has been on the slow rise over the last few years but the last few months have shown much higher sales. Retailers say it’s due to the upcoming presidential election while others speculate that it is simply the massive uncertainty rippling across our country and others. The industry saw an uptick in sales in the months prior to President Obama’s election in 2008 which was based on the presumption of tougher gun regulations. The general consensus is that more regulations will come into play should the President be re-elected.”
April 4th, 2012
This 8-minute video, filmed at the Ojai Valley Gun Club in California, shows a 200m metallic silhouette match for handguns. Noted IHMSA shooter Jim Harris describes the course and shooters demonstrate their technique. With these iron-sight, single-shot centerfire pistols, when shooting “freestyle”, most shooters prefer the lying down, feet-first Creedmoor position. This allows them to steady their pistols along the side of the front leg. In the 1800s, long-range rifle shooters also commonly used a Creedmoor position, sometimes resting the barrel on the toes of their boots.
In this second video, Jim compares two “Unlimited” pistols, one in 6.5 BR and the other in 7mm BR. Jim explains the pistols’ features and chamberings. Then the video offers a “shooter’s eye” view of Jim and Scott Mann firing the pistols at half-size pig silhouettes. Watch Jim and Scott both “clean” all five of their respective targets at 100m.
Shown below is an Anschütz Model 1416 MSP E Silhouette pistol, similar to the custom pistols you’ll see in the video. The Anschütz 6836 rear sight was specifically developed for handgun silhouette competition. The folding rear sight cover and anti-glare front sight tube greatly improve the sight picture. This 4.1-lb, single-shot pistol has a trigger pull weight of about 300 grams, roughly 10 ounces.
 Jim Harris (“Gunzorro”) has posted many other shooting videos, which you’ll find on the “related videos” section of the YouTube page to which we’ve linked. Jim Harris has won several NRA National and IHMSA International championships in metallic handgun silhouette competition. He is also active in High Power Rifle Silhouette and Black Powder Cartridge Silhouette. In the silhouette arena, he helped popularize the 6.5BR, 6.5PPC, 6.5TKS (improved BR), .260 Remington and .22 PPC, and pioneered the use of Vihtavuori powders in the mid-90s. Jim is also a successful professional freelance photographer, specializing in commercial photography and architecture. Contact Jim at JimHarrisPhotography.com.
April 3rd, 2012
 The impressive new Lapua Rimfire Service Center opens in Mesa, Arizona on April 24, 2012. Patterned after the world-renowned Lapua Service Center in Schönebeck, Germany, this facility gives American shooters the same opportunity to test various types and lots of rimfire ammunition, in their own firearms, under ideal conditions. This assures that customers can purchase not only the best type of ammunition for his or her particular rifle, but also the specific lots of ammo that perform best. Experienced competitive rimfire shooters know that the ability to select a particular lot of ammunition that performs best in their firearm(s) means a world of difference in a match.
Until now, the ability of a shooter to do this vital testing was dependent on the small quantities of ammunition of various lots on hand, generally without any guarantee that a vendor could provide more of whatever lot turned in the best results. Lapua will maintain an inventory of approximately two million rounds of rimfire ammunition on site — a wide variety of different types and grades, and many different lots. Lapua states that: “Our goal is that you, the shooter, will be able to purchase sufficient quantities of the best ammo for your needs. In future matches, you’ll be able to know that the ammo you take to the line is truly the very best.”
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CLICK “PLAY” to HEAR Adam Braverman TALK about Lapua’s New Arizona Rimfire Test Center:
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High-Tech Electronic Targets in 100m Test Tunnel
At the heart of Lapua’s operation is a new 100m test tunnel. Fully instrumented with state-of-the-art Meyton electronic targeting systems, the Mesa facility offers the unique ability to test ammunition at both 50 meters and 100 meters, simultaneously with a single string. As the bullets pass through the screen at 50 meters, a group will appear on the first targeting screen. As the bullet continues its flight downrange, it will also be picked up on a second screen at the 100 meter line. This approach allows the shooter to see, instantly, which ammunition performs best at both 50m and 100m distances.
Shooters are encouraged to visit the new Rimfire Service Center. Testing is by appointment only, with a $50.00 range fee. For more information, visit www.Lapua.com or email lapua [at] nammoinc.com. The Lapua Rimfire Service Center is located at 4051 N. Higley Road, Mesa, AZ 85215, on the grounds of Nammo Tactical Ammunition. The Lapua Service Center, just 20 miles from Phoenix Sky Harbor Int’l Airport, is easy to reach by major roadways. Not far away, in the general Phoenix area, you’ll find a wide variety of hotels, restaurants, golf courses, plus the outstanding Ben Avery Shooting Range.
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