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December 20th, 2008
 Minnesotan Stan Ware is an extremely knowledgeable gunsmith, known for his precise machine work and attention to detail. When you have work done by Stan, you know he will “sweat the details” to ensure that everything is assembled to the correct, precise tolerances. Stan is also a successful benchrest competitor, shooting in score matches, and Hunter Benchrest matches using his innovative short-neck Wolf Pup wildcat.
Stan recently received a Remington 40X receiver from a customer on the West Coast. Supposedly, the action had been “trued” by a California gunsmith (who shall remain nameless), who also fitted (using the term loosely) a PT&G replacement bolt. To be brutally honest, the California gunsmith butchered the job, and Stan Ware was called in to “save the day.”
Stan looked over the 40X action carefully and was able to determine flaws in the truing work and serious problems with the way the replacement bolt was fitted and the bolt handle attached. Faulty work by the California smith resulted in a myriad of problems — the bolt timing was off, the bolt was headspacing on the handle (not the lugs), the bolt was not camming correctly, the lugs were lapped improperly and they were not bearing correctly inside the action. All in all, this action needed major surgery. In the videos below, Stan explains how he diagnosed the problems, and he illustrates the work he did to restore the 40X to a safe, functioning condition.
Moral of the story? When you have action work to do, go to a respected smith like Stan Ware (SGR Custom Rifles), rather than some local “gun plumber” who may mess up the action big-time, leaving it downright dangerous. Watch the videos below, and you’ll be amazed at the problems that Stan had to correct.
Part 1 — Diagnosing the Problems
Stan explains: “We recently received this action to be fixed. Because the bolt is such a good example of what the things you want to avoid, I put together this video. It’s a great example of what happens when the bolt is out of time or not in the correct position.”
Part 2 — Fixing the Lugs
According to Stan, “We encountered some more problems after machining the bolt handle off and installing the new Kiff bolt. We found that the lugs were lapped at a angle and that we were loosing cam as we rotated the bolt. So, we decided to go back in and re-cut the integral lugs and true the bolt lugs.”
Part 3 — Final Bolt Installation
Stan notes: “Here we show you what was done to correct the bolt that was not installed correctly. The Kiff bolt (Pacific Tool & Gauge) is a good system and laid out well. I would recommend it to anyone that wants to accurize his 700 Action.”
December 20th, 2008
 John Loh is widely respected for the ultra-high-quality front rests he creates for JJ Industries. These rests exhibit some of the finest machining you’ll find anywhere. John has recently turned his attention to a new product — stainless supports for windflags.
These are not the typical collapsing tripod stands. Rather, they are designed with a strong pointed tip that you drive into the ground. The Loh windflag supports have telescoping segments of stainless rod, with locking collars. This allows you to easily adjust the height of your wind flags, while the telescoping design permits compact storage. You can easily fit three supports under the foam in a hard rifle case (between the foam and case wall) and still have room for your rifle. Built of aircraft-grade stainless steel with TIG-welded joints, these wind-flag supports are extremely rigid and sturdy, despite being relatively compact and easy to store.
John Loh recently introduced his stainless windflag stanchions at Benchrest matches out west. Used by Gary Sinclair, the stands have proven very popular and John sold out his first production run. But he has tooled up to make more, priced at $50.00 each. Contact JJ Industries, (562) 602-5553, info [at] jj-industries.com, for more information or to order. Note, these supports will work well on most terrain, but for some ranges that have very hard or rocky soil, a conventional tripod stand may work better.
December 19th, 2008
We recently had a discussion with the barrel-makers at Bartlein Barrels. They confirmed that they have seen many, many more barrels harmed by crown damage caused by improper cleaning than by anything else. If you use a bronze brush, Bartlein recommends that you remove the brush after it passes through the muzzle. This is because the bristles take a set (pointing to the breech) during the out-stroke. In other words the bristles angle back as you push towards the muzzle from the breech. If you drag the brush backwards at the muzzle, you force these bristles to reverse direction abruptly right as they cross the delicate crown. In time, that can damage the crown. John Krieger of Krieger Barrels also advises his customers not to pull a bronze brush backwards across the crown.
Response to Skeptics
Whenever we’ve published similar advice, given by guys who are producing some of the most accurate barrels in the world, some readers get extremely angry. They say, “You’re crazy! I’ve was pullin’ triggers when you were still in diapers. I’ve got Hall of Fame points and I say there’s no way a phosphor bronze brush can ever do anything to steel. You’re full of it.” Well, these guys are entitled to their opinion. But here’s our response. Number one, we’re just telling you what the barrel-makers are telling US. Don’t kill the messenger. Number two, many of the guys who say bronze brushes can’t affect the crown are the same guys who feel they need to recrown their barrels every 400-500 rounds (Do we see a connection?). Third, if you don’t think a softer material can affect steel, look at the steel ferrules of a well-used fishing rod — there the steel is worn away by plastic. (With time, water will wear away granite.) Lastly, this Editor can tell you I’ve seen the damage myself, first-hand, using a magnifying glass on much-brushed benchrest barrels. Right at the muzzle, the top edge of the lands had sharp, jagged edges that looked like little shark’s teeth, or the edge of a serrated knife. By contrast, a new barrel will have a nice, smooth straight edge along the top of the lands at the muzzle.
Be Careful with Jags
Bartlein’s experts also told us to be careful about the jags you use. Dewey-style jags in particular can cause problems. These have a long shaft with multiple rings with diamond-pattern “teeth”. The teeth are designed to grip a patch. The problem is that the lower rings may be exposed below the patch fabric, so the teeth can grind directly on the rifling and/or crown. Bartlein says Dewey-style metal jags can damage a crown very quickly if any of the toothed rings are exposed, metal-on-metal. Tim North of Broughton barrels also advises against using the Dewey-style jags with toothed rings. Interestingly, Dewey uses the same type of diamond-shaped teeth on the bottom of its “Crocogator” primer pocket tool, so you know those knurled teeth can scrape.
December 18th, 2008
 The Tooley offset stock has been around since mid-2007, but custom gun-builders may not know it’s available. This radical rig employs an offset design to counter the torque associated with large-caliber benchrest guns. Dave Tooley tells us, “the wide, flat fore-end and offset design really tames the big 30s.” The stock is 4″ wide along the fore-end with the barreled action offset 1.5″ from center. From the trigger guard rearward the stock is pretty much the same as a Tooley MBR, with a bottom flat and slight drop from grip to buttplate. In American walnut laminate or maple laminate the stock weighs 3 lbs., 12 oz., the same as a fiberglass Tooley MBR from McMillan. There is also a lighter “Butternut” wood version that weighs 2 lbs., 12 ounces. So making weight in Light Gun Class should not be an issue.
The stock is legal for NBRSA and IBS 600- and 1000-yard benchrest competition. Dave has shipped many offset stocks to Australia, where they are very popular for the big calibers used in “Fly Shoots” and long-range competitions. For clubs (or disciplines) that may limit fore-end width to 3″, Dave notes that you can simply saw 1″ off the left side (looking from the breech foreward), to make the stock 3″ wide and legal. Dave tells us “the stock still works really well at 3″, it just doesn’t cancel as much torque as it does in a 4″ configuration.” Tests have shown that the 4″-wide stock will effectively soak up 45 inch-pounds of torque, enough to cancel the twisting effect of a 30-caliber rifle shooting 240-grainers at 3100 fps. Dave tells us: “With the offset stock, in competition, you can shoot a 30-caliber the same way you shoot a 6.5-284.” Scott Fletcher, who shot the prototype version with a 338 Lapua Improved, reports the stock “works fantastic. It’s like night and day with a heavy recoiling caliber. It makes a 30-caliber feel like a 6.5. And with a 6.5-284, you can easily shoot the gun free recoil.”
The Tooley offset stock, un-inletted but ready to finish, costs about $350 in walnut or “butternut” laminate. In maple, the un-inletted price starts at $400 and goes up for highly figured wood. Dave notes: “there is no conventional barrel channel so inletting is very easy.” For roughly $800.00 Dave will deliver the stock fully inletted and pillar-bedded for your action, complete with recoil pad. Dave currently has about a half-dozen offset stocks in inventory. Once they sell out, Dave can normally deliver walnut laminates in 2-3 weeks plus shipping time. Upgraded wood stocks will take 3-4 weeks plus shipping time. For more info, email Tooleyrifles[at]carolina.rr.com or call Dave at (704) 864-7525.
December 18th, 2008
 We’re pleased that Creedmoor Sports (among other vendors), has started carrying the Howard Leight, noise-cancelling “Impact Sport” ear-muffs. This is a good product, that works well, yet costs hundreds of dollars less that many other electronic muffs on the market. The compact, folding design makes storage convenient. Forum member Danny Reever reports: “Off the firing line, while others are shooting, you can easily carry on a conversation while the electronics cancel out the gunfire. Amplification is crisp and clear even at the highest setting. On the firing line, the muffs are comfortable and the slim profile of the muffs does not interfere with cheek weld.”
The Howard Leight Muffs’ 350-hour battery life is excellent and we like the auto shut-off feature, and external audio plug (if you want to listen to music). There is a single switch for both on/off and volume with an automatic 4-hour shutoff to help to extend battery life. The external battery compartment holds two AAA batteries, which are included.
Creedmoor currently sells the Howard Leight Impact Sport model shown above, for $69.99. The Impact Sport muffs have a Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) of 22. You can increase the effective NRR by using foam plugs under the muffs.
December 18th, 2008
 Brownells, responding to customer requests, has created a DVD version of their “How To Build An AR-15″ instructional videos (#080-000-587 – $29.95). Whether you’re building a complete gun, or just installing a new safety, flash hider or stock, this DVD will make the job easier. The DVD is designed for those who don’t can’t access the web video series on Brownells.com, or folks who want to see the videos in high resolution, or use a portable DVD player to follow the step-by-step directions right in their workshop. It provides all the info one needs to build an AR-15 from scratch. (However, we recommend that novices start with small jobs first–such as fitting a trigger–before moving on to tasks such as barrel-fitting.)
The DVD was produced professionally in Brownell’s in-house studio. It is organized into more than 50 chapters so you can access the specific content you need without excessive searching. Plus, you can pause the DVD while you perform each step.
PDF instructions are included on the DVD. (Load the disc into your computer’s DVD drive and print out the illustrated instruction sheet.) Plus, there are checklists to help you make sure you’ve ordered every piece you will need.
The DVD can be purchased for $29.95 from brownells.com. You can also order by phone at 800-741-0015, mention code #PEN. FYI, the videos can still be accessed, FREE, through the website howtobuildanar15.com, or you can click on the links in the tables below.
December 17th, 2008
One click is all it takes to enjoy the Daily Bulletin in a wider, easier-to-read format, with less scrolling. Just click ANY of the links shown below to access our WIDER Daily Bulletin page. Pictures will appear better and the navigation tools won’t block text.
We’ve offered the dedicated Bulletin page for months, plus all these link buttons, but for some reason, many of our readers still only view the Daily Bulletin in the small “preview” window on our home page. (We’re working on making the home page wider, but that requires some major changes.) Recently we added a 6″-wide red button above this preview window saying “CLICK HERE for Daily Bulletin.” That link takes you to www.accurateshooter.com/bulletin.html, our dedicated Bulletin page. You may want to bookmark that page.
Anyway guys, if you currently read the Bulletin only on the home page, that’s like watching a 12″ TV in your kitchen when you’ve got a 50″ Plasma a step away in the living room.
December 17th, 2008
Greg Tannel, owner/operator of Gre-Tan Rifles and GTR Tooling, is a renowned gunsmith and one of the most respected machinists in the business. He invented, and now builds, many of the advanced tools used by other gunsmiths, such as the GTR high pressure pump for chamber flushing systems.
CLICK HERE for Gre-Tan Gunsmithing DVD Order Page. Call (970) 878-5421 for more info.
Greg has created a series of high-quality DVD videos sharing his knowledge of advanced gunsmithing topics. These DVDs range in length from 50 minutes (Tailstock Alignment) to a full 4 hours for the 2-disc Action Blueprinting DVD. All the videos are available from Greg in modern DVD format that can be played through either your television set or your home computer. Here are the gunsmithing DVDs currently offered:
• Action Blueprinting: 2 DVDs / 4 Hrs. $58.00 delivered.
Greg notes: “No other video ever made comes close to this Hi-tech, in-depth look at what is involved to blueprint an action. This video is not candy-coated. It reveals the inherent gross misconceptions of action truing with facts and dial indicators. All machining is single point, including the recutting of the threads. This includes an in-depth instruction section on setup of the threading tool bit and how to pickup the internal thread in an action for recutting for professional truing of threads.”
• Bolt Sleeving Video: 2 DVDs / 2 Hrs. 30 mins. $55.00 delivered.
This video starts by showing bolt lug deflection off of the receiver lug. This will open your eyes. Next the use of the action bolt bore reamer/mandrel is shown and demonstrated on an action that is being blueprinted. Then the nitty gritty of sleeving a bolt body is presented. All setups for machining are shown from the start to finish on the bolt.
• Tailstock Alignment For Reaming: 1 DVD / 50 mins. $41.00 delivered.
This video shows how to dial in the tailstock and explains why the turning of a shaft for alignment may be fighting and ruining all your chamber reaming efforts.To achieve repeatability when moving the tailstock for depth of cut, like head space readings, the tailstock has to come back into axial alignment when slide back up the barrel for resuming the reaming operations.
• Sako Extractor Install: 1 DVD / 1 Hr. 59 mins. $25.00 delivered.
This video covers installation of all styles of Sako extractors. It also covers set up and machining of the bolt for the SAKO extractors.
• G.T.R. High Pressure Pump: 1 DVD / 2 Hrs. $31.00 delivered.
Whether you purchased a flushing system from G.T.R. or built your own. You will want this full information video, which will save you time & money. All important matters concerning chamber flushing are covered in detail.
December 17th, 2008
The 2009 Edition of the Hodgdon Annual Manual will be available in the second week of January, 2009, at newsstands and gun dealers. The 2009 Manual, priced at $8.99, is the most complete reloading resource yet produced for Hodgdon, IMR® and Winchester® powders. The Manual includes usage recommendations, product descriptions, and burn rate charts for over 50 powders, including Winchester’s new AutoComp™ pistol powder. Along with comprehensive load data for most popular cartridges, the 2009 Manual has 271 recipes for four new cartridges: 300 Ruger Compact Magnum, 30 TC, 338 Ruger Compact Magnum, and 327 Federal Magnum. The 2009 Annual Manual also features nine informative articles from well-known gun writers. For more info, visit www.Hodgdon.com, or call Hodgdon at 913-362-9455.
December 16th, 2008
We recently shopped the web to find a new pair of protective shooting glasses. Expecting to pay $20 or more per pair, we were surprised to find high-quality UVEX safety glasses for under $9.00! Available from CooperSafety.com, UVEX glasses feature wrap-around lenses and comfortable padded temples and nose bridges. The UVEX line of safety eyewear passes ANSI Z87+ and CSA Z94.3 standards and meets the MIL VO ballistic test for impact protection. UVEX offers a lifetime frame guarantee–something you won’t get with many $100.00 sunglasses. Among the UVEX product line, we liked the UVEX Skyper ($7.80) with its extended side-shields, the UVEX Genesis ($7.75 -$9.92), and the lightweight UVEX XC ($9.07-$10.55). All three come in a variety of lens shades, and replacement lenses are available for under $5.00 per set.
For more information on protective eyewear, read our comprehensive Guide to Shooting Glasses. It explains the various safety standards which apply and gives the pros and cons of the various preferred lens materials: Polycarbonate, Trivex, and SR-91.
CLICK HERE to learn more ….
EDITORIAL — Zero Tolerance Needed on Protective Eyewear
I’ve noticed a disturbing percentage of shooters, novice and expert alike, who fail to wear proper eye protection when shooting from the bench. You’ve probably seen this yourself — experienced shooters who’ll grudgingly wear protective glasses in a match (only because they are required), but who won’t wear glasses while practicing. Or, you may have noticed young shooters who shun protective eyewear because they think safety glasses “look dorky”.
To be honest, guys, I think we need to exercise “ZERO Tolerance” when it comes to eye safety. “Mandatory eye protection” rules need to be enforced… no safety glasses = no shooting, period. Rangemasters must INSIST that ALL shooters on the line wear protective glasses. And when you’re out practicing on your own, wear your safety glasses… always… no matter whether you’re shooting centerfire, rimfire, or even air rifles. One little shard of brass or a popped primer and you could be blinded. Your eyesight is precious. Take care of it!
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