At SHOT Show 2009, we were impressed with the new Zeiss Victory laser rangefinder (LRF), listing it as one of the highlights of the 2009 Show.
A companion product line, the Zeiss Victory range-finding binoculars, have won a series of prestigious awards. Introduced in early 2008, the Zeiss Victory RF was named a “Leading Edge: The Best of What’s Next” product by National Geographic Adventure magazine, which wrote: “Zoom in on an object through the Zeiss Victory 8×45 rangefinding binoculars and a crisp LED display will give you its exact distance — as if you had Million Dollar Man eyesight. Traditional high-end Zeiss lenses and workmanship and a waterproof body complete this first-of-its-kind package.”
The Victory RF, claimed to be the world’s first premium binoculars with digital laser rangefinder, LED Display AND Ballistic Information System (BIS), also won the prestigious Red Dot Design Award in addition to the Chicago Athenaeum: GOOD DESIGN™ Award. Both are international awards that recognize the best design innovations of the year.
Zeiss Victory RF Binoculars Features:
• Ranges from 10 yards to 1,300 yards.
• Integrated design — Victory RF binoculars are the world’s first binoculars with a hinge bridge that do not require a separate laser emitter.
• Tightly focused Beam — The laser beam used in the Victory RFs is narrow with minimal beam divergence, so you can range small targets even at long distances.
• Accurate “One-Touch” rangefinding for a steadier image.
• Ballistic Information System (BIS) that automatically calculates required aiming hold-over at the ranged distance.
Great Performance, but Extremely Expensive
What’s the downside of the Zeiss Victory RF binoculars? They cost a fortune. The Zeiss Victory 8×45 version retails for about $2900.00, while the 10×45 model runs about $3,000. That makes the Zeiss Victory RF Binoculars MORE Expensive than the Leica 8×56 Geovids which have a much larger objective, providing better low-light performance (and a larger exit pupil). And, you can get the smaller 8×42 BRF Geovids for $2245 at Adorama.com and other large online vendors.
Are the 8×45 Zeiss Victory RFs worth $750 more than the 8×42 Leica Geovids? You’ll really have to make that decision for yourself. The Geovids are a known quantity, having proven themselves in the field over many years. The Zeiss Victory RF offers more sophisticated software (with the BIS), and we think the Victory is more secure and comfortable to hold.
We spotted a couple excellent deals in our Shooters’ Forum Classifieds, if you are looking for a 17-lb class BR gun for 300 to 1000-yard varminting and competition.
DEAL ONE — Matt’s 6-6.5×47 for $2100.00
Matt Dienes is a very well-known and respected shooter at the Williamsport Club. He’s decided to part with his Black 6-6.5×47 Light gun that has performed very well at 1000 yards. Only 125 rounds through the Bartlein barrel. Here are the specs:
6-6.5×47 Lapua Light Gun
Panda RB/LP polished action with Jewell trigger
Bartlein HV Contour 1:8″ twist, 4-groove with nuzzle brake
Chambered as 6-6.5×47 Lapua with a .273″, no-turn neck.
McMillan MBR Tooley stock, black color
Polished Shehane +20 MOA Rings.
Matt notes: “The chamber work and muzzle brake were done by Springman rifles. This rifle has shot 3″ at 1000 yards, and that was backed up with a 5.1″ at the Nationals. With only approximately 125 rounds through the barrel, this gun is ready for the 2009 season.”
DEAL TWO — Turnkey 6mm Dasher Package for $2800.00
Here’s an attractive package deal for someone who wants a 6mm Dasher
bench gun. Seller Brandon has a complete rifle, with fire-formed brass, dies, bullets, and even a spare, new Krieger barrel. Brandon says he’s spent nearly $4000 on the rifle and associated tools and components, but he will part with the whole package for $2800.00. Note, though the action has a left bolt, the stock is ambidextrous, so a right-hander could shoot this from the bench — but you’d have to load with your right hand. There’s a lot of value in this package… heck the Kelbly BR trigger is worth $240.00 by itself.
Reloading Tools & Components:
Forster BR Microm.-top Dasher seater die
Forster Dasher full-length sizing die
Wilson inline Dasher neck-sizing die
Lucas Bore Guide
Close to 200 Lapua 6mmbr cases (Approx. 170 fire-formed Dasher cases; 30 more un-formed cases.)
Approx. 250 Berger 105gr VLDs
50 105gr Lapua Scenars
25 107gr Sierra MKs
Brandon would like to keep the rifle, but the current economy dictates otherwise. Brandon tells us: “I have several groups in the .1s and .2s at 100 yards working up loads and several under an inch at 300 yards. the rifle has been shot less than 350 times, possibly less than 300. And there is a brand new 31″ Krieger waiting to go on as well. The rifle was built by a well-known smith from the recommended gunsmith list on this site last summer. This is a great opportunity to get a very Accurate rifle with everything you need to reload and start shooting tiny groups at long range. Asking $2,800.”
Creedmoor Sports has introduced a new Air Rifle that mates an Olympic-quality Anschütz 8000-series barreled action (and trigger) with authentic AR15-style stock, chassis, and sights. The new system, dubbed the “AiR-15™”, is designed to allow Service Rifle and High Power competitors to cross-train with a precision air rifle system between matches and during the off-season. Although the rifle is supplied with a mock magazine (for correct off-hand ergonomics), the gun is a single-shot, using manual-fed 0.177 pellets. The AiR-15 combines an Anschutz 8001 junior barreled action with the patent-pending Creedmoor AiR stock kit. The stock kit includes the receiver sleeve, fore-end (with sling swivel, air cylinder, alignment hanger), butt stock, carry handle with National Match rear sight (1/4 min), and a National Match front sight.
Dennis DeMille, past Camp Perry Champion and Creedmoor Sports General Manager, has worked hard to develop the AiR-15 system. He has shot the prototype and he believes it is an ideal training platform for Service Rifle Shooters. Dennis tells us: “Look, you can shoot this in your basement in the dead of winter. The ergonomics are identical to the AR15. The sights, front and rear, are in exactly the same position. And by using Anschütz 8001 barreled actions and triggers, the system offers superb accuracy. The AR Air Rifle will deliver one-pellet-hole accuracy at 10 meters. I’ve visited the Anschütz factory. Every one of these barreled actions is tested and they all come with test targets verifying their accuracy.”
Price and Availability
Creedmoor’s new AiR-15 air rifle should be available as a complete rifle by early summer 2009. The retail price for a complete AiR-15 will be US $1850.00. Though delivery will take a few months, Creedmoor is taking orders right now for the first production run.
There will also be a kit for shooters who already own an Anschütz 8000-series air rifle. The kit will include the full AR-style stock and chassis, including handguard, sights, receiver assembly, and buttstock. The price of the kit will depend on production costs and projected sales demand, but Demille hopes to deliver the kits for under $800.00. With the kit, you can simply “drop-in” your 8000-series barreled action.
AiR-15 to Be Used in New CMP Air Rifle National Match Program
For 2009, the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) has developed a new National Match Air Rifle discipline consisting of High Power-style matches shot at reduced distances with air rifles. At CMP National Match Air Rifle tournaments, you can use sporter, precision or AR-type air rifles to shoot in 10-meter standing and three-position (prone, sitting and standing) courses of fire that simulate outdoor High Power rifle shooting (but with reduced-sized targets). A test match for this new Air Rifle National Match Series will be held this Saturday, March 14th, in Anniston, Alabama. There will be a 20-shot standing event as well as a 60-shot prone + sitting + standing event.
Challenging Even at 10 Meters
While Dennis DeMille believes the AiR-15 will be ideal for introducing new shooters into rifle competition, he wanted to stress that shooting the AiR-15, even at 10 meters, can help even the best High Power shooters improve their scores. Dennis explained: “While this air rifle is capable of one-hole accuracy (at 10m), it is also very unforgiving of flaws in form or hold. Because the pellets are moving so slowly (about 575 ft/sec.), any mistake will move you out in the scoring ring. This air rifle will help you develop perfect trigger control, perfect follow-through, and perfect natural point of aim. Trust me — you can’t BS any part of your hold with an air rifle. I know if you train with an air rifle in the off season, your centerfire scores will improve.”
Creedmoor May Sponsor Winter Indoor ‘Air AR’ matches
If air-powered versions of the AR15 Service Rifle prove popular, Creedmoor Sports is considering sponsoring off-season matches at different locations across the country. These would feature reduced 10m targets that exactly duplicate the sight picture of NRA Across-the-Course targets at 200, 300, and 600 yards.
The Youth Shooting Sports Alliance (YSSA) has introduced a new Donated Firearms Program to help support youth shooting programs. If you donate a “previously-owned” firearm, the YSSA will auction the gun on Gunbroker.com. After the gun is sold, the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance, a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation, will provide the donor with a receipt showing the sale value. You can then claim this amount as a charitable deduction on your income taxes.
“The Donated Firearms Program provides an opportunity for sportsmen and women to donate their old guns and help the YSSA build the next generation of shooters” said David Baron, President of Baron Technology, Inc. and President of YSSA. Baron added “It may be just your old gun, but put in the right hands, it can help … the next generation of shooters and hunters.”
Prospective donors are asked to complete a sign-up form, available on YSSA’s website (or by clicking the above link). In addition to collecting the donor’s contact info, the form requests a description of the donated firearm(s) (including any known defects). The donor must also supply contact information for the Federal Firearms License (FFL) holder who will be shipping the donor’s firearm. The donor will be provided copies of all communications between the FFL holders involved. The donor must agree to pay for shipping of the firearm to the YSSA’s designated FFL holder — Red’s Army/Navy, Kitty Hawk, NC.
Auction proceeds will be used to purchase equipment and supplies for priority youth shooting sports programs nationwide. This is a worthy program that allows you to get a tax deduction for those old guns that may be sitting in your say. Visit the YSSA website for more information.
Putting an end to nine years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear New York City’s request to continue a lawsuit that sought to hold firearms manufacturers responsible for the criminal misuse of firearms. Among the companies sued were Beretta USA Corp., Smith & Wesson Holding Corp., Colt’s Manufacturing Co. LLC, Sturm, Ruger & Co. and Glock GmbH.
“We are very pleased by today’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to not review lower appellate court rulings that dismissed cases based on the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act,” said Steve Sanetti, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation. “These baseless lawsuits against responsible, law-abiding companies are the type that Congress intended to prevent by passing the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.”
The city’s lawsuit was originally filed in 2000 by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and was continued by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. After the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act was passed by Congress in 2005, a federal judge threw out the New York lawsuit. Then in April of 2008, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision, saying the new law was constitutional. New York City’s final recourse was to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but on March 9th the High Court refused the case.
Here’s a good deal if you’re looking for reliable, fixed-focal length optic for benchrest competition. MidwayUSA has knocked $43.79 off the price of Sightron SII 36x42mm BRD target scopes — they are now on sale for just $369.99. These same scopes sell elsewhere for up to $450.00. We’ve used this scope model on rimfire and centerfire benchrest rifles from 50 yards to 600 yards, and it worked well. The 1/8-MOA clicks were repeatable and the front-parallax adjustment worked “as advertised”.
Newer Model Available
The scope that is on sale is the SII model that has been available for quite some time. Be aware that Sightron recently introduced an updated “Big Sky” version of its 36-power target scope. This is officially the SIIB 36×42 BRD. This newer SIIB version is slightly longer than the earlier model, and the new model has a bit more eye relief. The main difference is that the earlier model has more elevation adjustment — 50 MOA vs. 40 MOA.
Quite a few portable, electronic reloading scales have been introduced in the last year or so, and now Hornady has joined the game. Hornady’s new compact (3″x5″ footprint) GS-1500 portable scale will weigh up to 1500 grains — offering more capacity than most other portables. 1500 Grain capacity means that this compact scale can handle just about any reloading task for calibers all the way up to 50 BMG.
The GS-1500 scale features a 2.5″ x 3″ weighing platform, an aluminum measuring pan, and a 100-grain calibration weight. The scale will run on two (2) regular AAA batteries, which are included. The new GS-1500 scale is ON SALE this month for just $26.65 at Midsouth Shooters Supply, item 005-050107. This is a good deal. By comparison, MidwayUSA’s price for the GS-1500 is $34.99.
Editor’s NOTE: This product is so new that we have not yet been able to test it for function. Hornady usually can be counted on to do its homework before introducing new reloading tools. Hornady also stands behind their products when it comes to warranty repair.
Here’s a pretty cool offer. If you purchase two (2) boxes of CCI rimfire ammo, CCI will send you a FREE T-shirt (well, almost free… you do have to pay $3.95 for shipping). The T-Shirt is a handsome dark green color. On the back is the white outline of a dead prairie dog. Over the outline runs a broad yellow stripe, like the tape that police use to cordon off a crime scene. It’s a clever concept and the graphics are nicely done.
How to Get Your T-Shirt
You must purchase at least two (2) boxes of CCI rimfire ammunition between April 1 and June 30, 2009. Then you need to fill out a coupon, and send it in, along with your original purchase receipt, and the UPC (universal product code) from the ammo boxes. The coupon, receipts, UPCs, AND $3.95 for shipping must be received by CCI no later than July 31, 2009. Mail everything to the address below. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.
Mail Coupon, Ammo Sale Receipts, UPCs and $3.95 to:
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, affirming a decision of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), has removed the gray wolf from protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). However, this ONLY applies to Idaho, Montana, the Western Great Lakes, and some (but not all) areas of Washington, Oregon, and Utah. Wolves in other parts of the 48 states, including the Southwest states, remain endangered and are not affected by Salazar’s ruling. Wolf hunters should check carefully to ensure that the area(s) where they intend to hunt are not subject to ESA controls. Wolves in Wyoming remain specifically protected.
Hunters are advised to wait before planning a hunt. Salazar’s ruling could be stalled by litigation from environmental groups. The Sierra Club has announced: “Aggressive wolf-killing practices, coupled with genetic isolation and plans to institute hunts in Idaho and Montana, could push wolf numbers dangerously low and reverse decades of recovery work. The Sierra Club, along with other conservation groups, plans to challenge the wolf delisting decision in court.”
Praise for Interior Secretary’s Decision
Safari Club International President Merle Shepard hailed the announcement, saying “This decision is the right one and we commend Secretary Salazar for reaching it so quickly. Delisting the gray wolf came about as a result of years of effort involving the states, tribes, landowners, academic researchers, sportsmen and other conservation groups, the Canadian government and many other partners.”
In making the announcement, Secretary Salazar reviewed the numbers behind the decision. “When it was listed as endangered in 1974, the wolf had almost disappeared from the continental United States. Today, we have more than 5,500 wolves, including more than 1,600 in the Rockies,” Salazar said. Gray wolves were previously listed as endangered in the lower 48 states, except in Minnesota where they were listed as threatened. The USFWS oversees three separate recovery programs for the gray wolf; each has its own recovery plan and recovery goals based on the unique characteristics of wolf populations in each geographic area.
We regret that the AccurateShooter Forum is still not 100% right, but there is progress. As of 1300 Pacific time the Forum could be accessed and we were able to open and read threads, but the formatting was still not completely right.
What’s been happening? On Saturday morning, the hosting company installed some new software. We were told the Forum would be up and running “within 2-3 hours”. Obviously the hosting company encountered more serious problems than it anticipated. The problems were caused by a software update that did not work properly. This update was initiated by the third-party hosting company and is NOT something we requested (or even knew was coming).
We understand there is a high level of frustration, and we have commenced the process of moving the entire forum to a new hosting system. Unfortunately, with thousands of members and nearly 100,000 threads, that is a process which needs to be done very carefully. Full conversion take some time.
Reloading Tools & Components:
Price and Availability
Putting an end to nine years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear New York City’s request to continue a lawsuit that sought to hold firearms manufacturers responsible for the criminal misuse of firearms. Among the companies sued were Beretta USA Corp., Smith & Wesson Holding Corp., Colt’s Manufacturing Co. LLC, Sturm, Ruger & Co. and Glock GmbH.
Here’s a good deal if you’re looking for reliable, fixed-focal length optic for benchrest competition. 
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, affirming a decision of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), has removed the gray wolf from protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). However, this ONLY applies to Idaho, Montana, the Western Great Lakes, and some (but not all) areas of Washington, Oregon, and Utah. Wolves in other parts of the 48 states, including the Southwest states, remain endangered and are not affected by Salazar’s ruling. Wolf hunters should check carefully to ensure that the area(s) where they intend to hunt are not subject to ESA controls. Wolves in Wyoming remain specifically protected.
We regret that the AccurateShooter Forum is still not 100% right, but there is progress. As of 1300 Pacific time the Forum could be accessed and we were able to open and read threads, but the formatting was still not completely right.
