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February 6th, 2010
 Mark DeYoung has been named the new President and CEO of Alliant Techsystems (ATK). Prior to his promotion to ATK’s top leadership position, DeYoung served as President of ATK’s Armament Systems Group, which makes commercial ammunition, tactical accessories, and medium-caliber gun systems. DeYoung has lead the way in ATK’s modernization efforts, helping the company adopt “lean manufacturing” methods. Under DeYoung’s guidance, ATK has become the largest producer of ammunition in the world. ATK’s Armament Systems Group will have a projected $2.1 BILLION in revenue this year, up from $600 million in 2003.
The ATK “family of companies” includes some of the most popular brands in the shooting and reloading market segments: Alliant Powder, CCI, Federal, Outers, RCBS, and Speer. With his experience in small arms ammo production, we can expect DeYoung to maintain ATK’s commitment to hunting and recreational shooting. ATK also has very large military and aerospace contracts, but DeYoung is a guy who understands small arms ammo manufacturing. A decade ago, DeYoung was put in charge of ATK’s Lake City Ammunition business, and he headed the commercial ammunition business launched in 2001. In the video below, DeYoung is interviewed at the 2008 SHOT Show by TheStreet.com.
CLICK HERE to WATCH DeYoung ATK Video
Jim Shepherd, on the Shooting Wire, noted: “ATK has more than 18,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of approximately $4.8 billion. Today, it has a President and Chief Executive Officer who may be more knowledgeable about firearms and the firearms industry than any other head of a major corporation in the United States.”
February 5th, 2010
The U.S. Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) has announced the dates of its 2010 National Championships. Divided into four events, the Nationals are expected to draw more than 1,000 top shooters competing in a variety of divisions. Featured in the video below are “Women of USPSA” (including Team Glock’s Jessie Abbate) shooting at the 2009 USPSA Nationals. Be sure to watch this great video. Some very talented ladies demonstrate amazing shooting skills.
 The first event on the calendar, the USPSA Single Stack Nationals, will take place April 28 through May 1 at the PASA Park ranges in Barry, Ill. In 2009 this event drew 270-plus devotees of the venerable 1911 pistol. Next on the schedule is USPSA’s MultiGun Nationals which will take place in Las Vegas, Nev. at the Desert Sportsman’s Rifle & Pistol Club ranges September 9 through 12. The MultiGun championship draws close to 150 shooters using pistol, rifle and shotgun in the Open, Tactical, Limited and Heavy Metal divisions.
The USPSA championship season will wrap up with back-to-back handgun championships also held in Las Vegas from October 8 through 16, 2010. With over 600 shooters participating, the USPSA back-to-back handgun championships represent the largest gathering of Practical Shooting competitors in the USA. In addition to America’s top guns, the match will also draw some of the best shooters from South America, Europe and the Pacific Rim.
USPSA National Championship dates
April 28 – May 1: Single Stack Nationals (PASA Park, Barry, IL)
Sept. 9 – 12: Multi-Gun Nat’ls (Desert Sportsman’s Range, Las Vegas, NV)
Oct. 8 – 12: Open & Limited-10 Nat’ls (Desert Sportsman’s Range, Las Vegas, NV)
Oct. 13 – 16 Limited, Production & Revolver Nat’ls (Desert Sportsman’s Range, Las Vegas, NV)
To learn more about the USPSA National Championships and other major matches on the 2010 schedule, visit www.uspsa.org or call (360) 855-2245.
February 5th, 2010
Grizzly Industrial, makers of gunsmith lathes and other products, offers a Digital Tailstock Readout Kit for just $149.95. This digital readout (DRO), model T10118, is an affordable, helpful tool for shooters who do their own lathe work, and who need a fast, handy way to measure depth of cut with their tailstock. On the www.Grizzly.com website, you’ll find a full description of the Digital Tailstock Readout, complete with photos and product features. The unit is very versatile. It has two (2) digital readouts. One on the unit itself, PLUS a remote display that can be positioned up to 6 feet away. Both displays feature 0.0005″ resolution, inch or millimeter display, zero keys and ON/OFF keys. The scale has an 8-inch range and its display features ABS or INC mode as well as a Hold key. Both displays read independently of each other.
Shop Review by Mark LaFevers
What I find most helpful using this Grizzly Digital Tailstock Readout is the way it enhances the speed and certainty of multi-step processes. For instance, when preparing to bore a deep hole by first stepping through various bit diameters to get close, you are unlocking and moving the tailstock to change bits. The Grizzly DRO lets you lock down with a new bit in the chuck, hit zero as the leading edge of the flutes align with the face of the bore. As you are backing each bit all the way out to clear chips, the DRO lets you fast return without counting handwheel revolutions to within a hundredth, then slow down to begin the cut. This is very helpful in keeping track of what’s going on, and it’s a good backup for fine control (comparing the last few thousandths with your tailstock’s manual dial). I have a dial indicator set-up for fine work off the tailstock, but opted for this DRO instead because of its greater range and equal accuracy.
Mounting Tips and Splash-Guards
As the digital transducer is sensitive to contamination by liquids, you’ll need to be careful about splash from your cutting fluid sources. I used a simple stationary spring clip to hold a plastic sandwich bag over the face to catch any splash during chamber reaming using high pressure through-the-barrel flushing. The plastic was easy to see through with the eye, but the camera wanted to catch light glare and not show the on-tool digital display well. You can mount the remote readout wherever it is convenient, but I wanted my vision focused only in the working area for this operation.
For the value, I would rate this tool as a “must have” for anyone currently working without a DRO on their lathe tailstock. The Grizzly DRO is simple to set up, easy to operate, and has an ample 8″ range. Durability is unknown at this time as I’ve just started using the unit, but hopes are high. Like all your other electronic tools, keep an extra set of batteries on hand. Also, please note — to keep the price down and make the Grizzly DRO fit anyone’s particular tailstock quill diameter, Grizzly correctly judged that if you were in the market for this tool you will be able to build your own quill adapter.
February 4th, 2010
Forum member Thomas Haugland (aka “Roe”) from Norway has created an excellent video comparing the features on four long-range scopes: Schmidt & Bender PMII 3-12x50mm, Schmidt & Bender PMII 12-50x56mm, Leupold MK IV, and Zeiss Diavari Victory 6-24x56mm. Thomas shows how the adjustments function, he records the available vertical elevation, and he takes apart the turrets to show how the weather seals work. While the Leupold MK IV has MOA clicks, the three Euro scopes tested by Thomas have mil-based or mil/cm adjustments. These mil-based clicks work well with first focal plane reticles that have mil or half-mil hash marks.
Thomas explains:
These films emphasize the shooter’s Point of View (POV) and ‘user friendliness’. ALL these scopes get the job done, but they have some similarities and differences in the details and your own personal preferences would decide what scope can be labeled ‘best’. The perfect scope doesn’t exist, you’ll have a compromise somewhere — be that economy, magnification, reticle, turret, optical quality, sturdiness…
In these films I’ve set the Schmidt & Bender PMII 3-12×50 as the benchmark for comparison. Not because it is ‘best’ (it isn’t!) but because S&B is one of the manufacturers which first recognized the needs of professional Long Range shooters and put together products [optimized to work well] in high stress environments. The features that are important are: First focal plane, MIL reticles and MIL turrets, plenty of adjustment and suitable magnification.
Note that S&B and Zeiss scopes are also available in the USA with MOA-based turrets and/or second focal plane (SFP) reticles, for those shooters who prefer the MOA system, and SFP. A first focal plane reticle is best for ranging, but a target shooter working at known distances will probably prefer a second focal plane reticle that doesn’t change in size with magnification.
February 4th, 2010
 Sgt. 1st Class James Henderson, a service pistol shooter with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU), was selected as the Military Marksmanship Association (MMA) Soldier of the Year for 2009. Henderson became the first Soldier in 24 years to win the National Pistol Championship at Camp Perry, Ohio. He won the National Trophy Pistol championship, the President’s Pistol match, and the Interservice Service Pistol championship. He was also a member of the first-place National Trophy Pistol Team and the first-place Interservice Service Pistol team. During the course of 2009, SFC Henderson broke numerous national pistol shooting records and claimed countless other individual and team accolades. He was featured in Sports Illustrated’s “Faces in the Crowd” section and was promoted to SFC in 2009.
 Henderson stated: “This is a great honor. I have to thank the guys in the (custom firearms) shop. They help make this all possible. I couldn’t have done it without the support of my team. They push me every day and if I mess up I know one of them will win the match. Being on this team and in this unit is the best job in the Army.”
Henderson first served with the USAMU from 1991-1994 after tours at Fort Benning, Fort Sill and Korea. After a long stint in the Army Reserves, Henderson resumed active duty service and was assigned to the USAMU. Henderson is the only shooter to ever win the “Triple Crown” (President’s Hundred, National Trophy Individual Pistol Championship, and High Team Shooter) in the same year, and he did it twice (2002 and 2009).
February 4th, 2010
If you’re looking for an extremely high-quality, 100% reliable semi-auto rifle for defense, three-gun matches, or predator control, you should consider the Sig556. Based on the Sig 550-series rifles used by the Swiss Army, the Sig556 features a piston/op-rod upper for enhanced reliability. The bolt, bolt carrier, and other receiver internals stay much cleaner and cooler in the Sig556 than with a direct-impingement design such as the AR-15. The Sig556 also features ultra-reliable magazines and a true folding stock as an option.
CLICK HERE for Sig556 Rifle Rebate Details
Now through March 8, 2010, Sig Sauer is offering a $300 Rebate on all Sig556 rifles. Customers must purchase a Sig556 rifle from a Sig Sauer commercial dealer before March 8, 2010. NOTE: Rebate Forms must be received by March 22, 2010. Remember, if you wait ’til the last minute to buy, you only have two weeks to submit the Rebate Form.
February 3rd, 2010
Today we wrap up our coverage of the 2010 Shot Show. Jason and I visited scores of booths, inspected hundreds of new products and interviewed dozens of industry insiders and “old friends”. We can’t package all the highlights into a single blog post, but here are some “short takes” on SHOT Show items of interest — the new stuff we really liked and some odd but noteworthy elements of the “Shot Show Experience”.
Most Important New Technology — Burris LaserScope
AccurateShooter.com doesn’t give product awards, but if we did, the new Eliminator LaserScope from Burris would be a leading candidate for “Best in Show” honors. This unit employs modern technology to make the shooter’s job easier. A built-in laser rangefinder finds the distance to your target. Then the scope consults a ballistics table, pre-programmed for your cartridge. The scope’s “brain” calculates the precise holdover for your ranged target distance and displays a bright, red dot on the vertical cross-hair. That dot is your calculated correct point of aim. Just put the red dot on the target and squeeze the trigger. For a varmint hunter, this scope could be the best thing since sliced bread. Shoot all week and never touch the elevation knob. We just wish the Eliminator was offered in a higher-power version — say a 6-24×50. Currently the Eliminator is offered only as a 4-12x42mm optic. The Eliminator is far from perfect, but its technology really could render other conventional hunting riflescopes obsolete.
Important Brass Developments
For Benchrest shooters, the big news was Norma’s introduction of 6 PPC brass. According to Lou Murdica, who has tested the early production brass, this new brass is “outstanding” and is fully competitive with cases fire-formed from Lapua 220 Russian brass. Norma’s production of 6 PPC brass demonstrates that the Swedish company is very serious about benchrest shooting and the American market. We had a long, productive conversation with the CEO of Norma, and we could tell he is committed to expanding Norma’s place in the American market. Expect some major developments in the months ahead, including a joint project with AccurateShooter.com. Norma also showed us the 300 Norma case which we feel will eventually be an important chambering for long-range shooters. This case has “just right” capacity to drive the 200+ grain, high-BC 30-caliber bullets.
Unnoticed Excellence — The Barrel-Makers
Flashy new products get the media attention at SHOT Show every year. But we think the most important “back story” involves American barrel-makers. If you want to do a story on EXCELLENCE in today’s gun industry, you need to focus on the elite barrel-makers. Companies such as Bartlein, Broughton, and Krieger continue to make better barrels every year, with new features such as gain-twist rifling, and 5R rifling. Just this Friday, I witnessed a .308 “tactical” rifle with a new Krieger 5R barrel fire two successive three-shot groups that were each just a ragged hole — and the first two out of three shots in each group literally went through the same hole at 100 yards. And that was during barrel break-in with an untested load and untrimmed brass “right out of the box”. America’s top “boutique” barrel-makers are now producing extraordinarily good products, yet they are rarely mentioned by the popular print gun magazines. At a time when we see recall notices from companies such as Ruger and Remington on a regular basis, our American custom barrel makers are building the best barrels in the world, indeed the best barrels ever made.
A Contrast in Style — American vs. European Optics-Makers
Among the major optics makers, the difference between American and European marketing styles was painfully obvious. Leupold and Burris had fast-talking, glad-handing salesmen, who, for the most part, knew very little about their product line and even less about optics engineering. By contrast, Zeiss and Schmidt & Bender staffed their booths with real optics engineers with Ph.Ds, many of whom were directly involved in the design of the products on display. At Zeiss we spent nearly an hour talking with Stephan Albrecht, the German engineer in charge of the new 20-75X Diascope spotting scope and the new Diavari Flourite riflescopes. During our conversations with Stephan he actually solicited our feedback, took careful notes and promised to explore some of our suggestions. We also were able to share our field test results directly with Eric Schumacher, President of Carl Zeiss Optical, USA. By contrast, Leupold’s decision makers and top-level engineers were nowhere to be found, and when we voiced our (now annual) plea that Leupold stop building scopes with canted reticles, we were greeted with nothing but blank stares. Leupold’s reps couldn’t comprehend the canted reticle problem, even after I pulled a scope (with 3° canted reticle) off their display rack and showed them.
Federal FCPA Sting Rocks SHOT Show
In the mainstream media, SHOT Show 2010 will be remembered for one thing — the “Big Bust”. On January 20th, FBI agents arrested 22 gun industry employees and executives for alleged violations of the FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act). Those arrested, including one of Smith & Wesson’s Vice Presidents, were charged with trying to bribe FBI agents posing as African government officials. This “high-visibility” bust culminated a DOJ sting operation two years in the making that involved 250 federal agents.
Accuracy… Who Needs Accuracy?
There’s a curious thing about SHOT Show. It’s touted as the greatest gunshow in the galaxy, but one thing is sorely missing — really accurate rifles. Heaven forbid there would be a true benchrest rifle or rail gun on display! Many of our readers own more true 1/4-MOA rifles than you’ll find at the entire SHOT Show. We know this is a trade show, but still you’d think somebody would want to show off a really impressive rifle — say the National Championship-winning F-Class rifle or a record-setting rail gun. It would be like having a Top Fuel dragster on display at a car show. But no, what we have instead are acres upon acres of 1-2 MOA factory guns. That’s disappointing to say the least. It’s sort of like going to an air show only to discover the Blue Angles have cancelled and there won’t be any jets at all.
 Pop Stars vs. Legendary Marksmen
At every SHOT Show, I’m struck by some odd ironies. This year I walked past one booth which was absolutely mobbed with people trying to meet an attractive young female celebrity — a contestant from American Idol. Fighting through the throng, I continued down the aisle to the McMillan booth. There was David Tubb, quietly chatting with a McMillan rep. Mind you, David is an 11-time National High Power Champion. He has also won National Silhouette titles and scores of other matches. He is arguably the greatest competitive rifle shooter in American history. Yet hundreds of people walked by without even noticing David. Think of the irony. Imagine if Michael Jordan was sitting in a booth at a sports convention. The place would be mobbed. Yet David has certainly dominated his sport the way Jordan dominated basketball. Jordan won six NBA Championships. Tubb has won ELEVEN National Championships (and he’s not done yet). Yet the vast majority of SHOT attendees don’t seem to care about legends like David Tubb, or about shooting excellence in general… they would rather wait in line to meet a “wannabee” from American Idol than learn something from a truely legendary marksman. Sometimes I DO wonder about our priorities.
Too Many Black Rifles?
After Obama was elected in November 2008, there was a surge in demand for semi-auto, military-style rifles, partcularly AR-platform rifles. Manufacturers of all sizes, from Remington/Bushmaster, to small fabricators, ramped up production of AR uppers, lowers, and complete rifles. Now, 15 months later, demand is slacking off, and there is an over-abundance of ARs. We perceived a notable lack of interest in AR rifles at SHOT Show, unless they had some new bells and whistles. Retailers seemed much more interested in big-bore bolt guns and handguns, or in the completely new semi-auto designs such as Remington’s ACR.
Bring Back the Convention Center
For 2010, SHOT Show was hosted at the Sands Expo Center, behind the Venetian Hotel complex, instead of the Las Vegas Convention Center. On paper, this seemed like a good move. The Sands Expo is nearer the strip and closer to popular hotels. In practice, the Sands Expo proved a poor location for SHOT Show. Outside the main hall, booths were crammed into conference areas with low ceilings and bad lighting. A very large number of exhibitors were assigned to the first-floor “Dungeon”. There, access was difficult, the lighting was bad, and low ceilings and concrete floors worsened the background noise problem.
Just getting into SHOT show was a challenge. For the majority of visitors staying in hotels on the strip, one had to walk through the maze-like interior of the Venetian to get to the Show. This was annoying to say the least. On 3 out of 4 days I took at least one wrong turn, and on Day 2 I got thoroughly lost. I saw plenty of folks with SHOT Show badges walking in circles, completely disoriented — the Venetian is a building where you can’t walk in a straight line for more than 150 feet or so. And once inside the SHOT Show proper it was very easy to get lost as well. Pete Brownell was heard to say that he needed a map just to find his own booth.
February 3rd, 2010
Many of our readers have been looking for a folding shooting mat that does double duty as a rifle case. Well, the NRA just released such a combo mat/carry case that appears to have all the needed capabilities. In carry mode, the case is 48″ long by 13″ wide. The rifle is stowed in a padded center section, and held in place with velcro straps. A center handle lets you carry the bag like a suitcase, or optional shoulder straps allow backpack-style carry. These straps stow away in a zippered compartment when not in use.
When you arrive at the range, just open up the bag and you have a 3 foot wide by 6 foot long shooting mat with rubberized “elbow” contact zones. In shooting position you’ll find a convenient pouch for ammo on the right, and a place for your log-book on the left. Constructed of tough, 600D polyester with heavy-duty silent zippers, the NRA Mat includes four multi-position pouches: a 9″ x 8″ clear map / document pouch, a 10″ x 10″ zippered ammo pouch with 20 cartridge loops, a 9½” x 10″ exterior MOLLE pouch, and a 9″ x 18″ utility / strap pouch. The front exterior has MOLLE loops to attach additional pouches.
The NRA combo carry case/shooting mat costs $99.95, in either “coyote” tan or black. We think thats a pretty good price considering that a quality roll-up mat by itself can cost $80.00 or more and you still need a rifle case. This mat would be a good choice for F-Class shooters, and for long-range High Power shooters, provided their rifle is less than 45-46″ overall. Measure your gun before you order this product from the NRA Store.
February 2nd, 2010
 Nightforce Optics has enhanced their elevation adjustments in this year’s lineup of high-magnification Nightforce scopes. Now you can get DOUBLE the elevation travel with a SINGLE TURN of the elevation knob. For an NXS with 1/4-MOA clicks, this means you can get a full 20 MOA of elevation travel with a single turn of the knob.
Bravo, Nightforce — this simple enhancement can make a BIG difference in the field. With most “high-performance” calibers, 20 MOA will get you to 700 yards or beyond. This means that the varminter can zero at all likely hunting yardages within the same revolution of the turret. That makes life much simpler, and reduces the chance of being way off in your elevation. No more confusion about which revolution you’re on….
Likewise, a tactical shooter, moving from near to far targets and back again, can likely stay on the same revolution at most target yardages. Even if you shoot out to 1000 yards, you will be able to get all the way out to 1K within two complete revolutions. This upgrade — doubling the elevation travel in each turret revolution — gives Nightforce scopes practical performance (inside 700 yards) similar to much more expensive scopes fitted with a single-turn or double-turn elevation systems (such as the U.S. Optics EREK knob). The new high-speed adjustment system will be offered in Nightforce’s 15x, 22x, 32x, and 42x series of scopes. Anticipated delivery date for scopes with the high-speed adjustment is May, 2010.
What About Retro-fitting Older NF Scopes?
Nightforce plans to provide an upgrade path for existing Nightforce scopes “eventually, but not right away”. The upgrade would allow installation of the “high-speed adjustment” system on older NF scopes. We don’t have any more specifics. Nightforce has NOT revealed how much the high-speed conversion would cost or when it might be available for pre-2010 scopes.
February 2nd, 2010
 Starting March 1, 2010, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) will offer daily 90-second radio spots about the shooting sports and hunting. The new “Insights” radio featurettes, hosted by John Quaintance, will cover a wide variety of shooting topics, including firearms history, self-defense, competitive marksmanship, and firearms industry news. Each week one or more “Insights” segments will offer helpful hunting and shooting tips. According to Mark Thomas (NSSF Marketing Director), this program “will help NSSF reach a new audience of hunters and shooters, and will inspire potential participants … to try our sports.” For those who can’t get the daily NSSF “Insights” via radio, you can download the audio clips at nssf.org/insights and through iTunes.
 Listen to Sample Programs (MP3 files)
– Sight-in your Rifle in Record Time
– Select the Right Bullet for your Game
– Is it a Kentucky or a Pennsylvania Rifle?
– The Return of the 28 Gauge
NSSF encourages readers to let their local radio stations know about this free daily radio program. Station managers should contact NSSF for a sample program and to learn more about adding the show to their lineup.
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