|
|
April 4th, 2008
Help keep your prized firearms in good condition with products that keep moisture off guns stored in your safe. Now through April 30, 2008 MidwayUSA has Goldenrod heating units and desiccant packs on sale.
The 40 gram desiccant box, item 799452, is now on sale for $3.99. Containing hydrosorbant Silica Gel in an aluminum shell, each unit protects up to 3 cubic feet of storage space. These desiccant packs can be “recharged” by placing them in an oven for 3 hours at 300° F.
The Goldenrod is a safe, electric heating element that will help prevent rust and corrosion. MidwayUSA has an 18″ unit, item 614184, on sale for $15.99 that will warm and protect up to 200 cubic feet.
GoldenRods are marketed as “dehumidifiers”, but that is a bit of a misnomer. The GoldenRod doesn’t absorb moisture like a desiccant per se. It works by maintaining a constant temperature inside your safe that raises the dew point and alters the relative humidity so that water vapor doesn’t condense on your firearms.
April 3rd, 2008
Alan Orr at Sightron tells us that the much-awaited new Sightron scopes, including the 6-24×50 MilDot and 8-32×50 Target models, are scheduled to arrive in the first week of May. You may want to place orders with vendors soon to be assured of getting one from this shipment.
The new 6-24×50 SIII is an all-new 30mm scope that rivals the Leupold 8-25 LRT in design and performance. Available in target dot or mil-dot reticle, the 6-24x50mm offers a full 100 MOA of windage and elevation in a relatively compact (14.96″) scope weighing 21.90 ounces. Clicks are 1/4 MOA .
NEW 8-32x56mm with 70 MOA of Windage + Elevation
For long-range shooters, the most exciting new offering from Sightron is the SIII 8-32x56mm. This scope has more magnification and a larger front objective than the Leupold 8-25×50 LRT, but with an $825.00 estimated “street price”, the Sightron costs less. Initially, the Sightron 8-32×56 will be offered with 1/4 MOA clicks, and just one reticle, a target dot. Sightron has indicated that other reticles might be offered in the future.
CLICK HERE for Scope SPEC SHEET (MS Excel File)
April 2nd, 2008
Our own 1000-yard Editor, Jason Baney, runs a popular “postal match” called “Smack the Smiley”. Four times a year (Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter) you can shoot an official target at your own range, and then submit it for judging. Over $2000.00 in prizes will be awarded for each 2008 seasonal match. You can compete with shooters from across the continent.
Jason started the Smiley matches in 2004. Since 2005, a share of monies collected from entry fees have been donated to American military marksmen via AmericanSnipers.org. These donations have totaled over $3000.00.
Entries are now open for the current Spring Match. Order your targets no later than May 5, 2008. Your finished Spring targets must be returned (postmarked) by May 27, 2008. Targets will be scored and ranked on shooting forums including SnipersHide.com, West Coast Tactical, SnipersParadise, and the main contest site, SmackTheSmiley.com
Prizes for Smack the Smiley Shooters
Prizes donated by manufacturers are raffled off, lottery-style, after each match. This means that every participant has a chance at wining. The prizelist totals over $2000.00 in value this year. You’re smart to shoot all four seasonal matches (Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter). A four-match Aggregate will be tallied this year with a possible prize for the Agg winner.
CLICK HERE for Smack The Smiley 4-Season Match Calendar
Smack The Smiley Postal Match Rules
● There are two classes, rimfire and centerfire, with no other rifle restrictions. Rimfire guns shoot at 50 yards, while centerfire rifles shoot at 100 yards.
● All rifles must be shot from the ground, either sitting or prone position, with NO tripod rests allowed. Only bipods or other field expedient rests are allowed.
● You must shoot official targets only, ordered from SmackTheSmiley.com. These cost $3.50 each with a max of 4 targets per class. One dollar ($1) from each target goes to Americansnipers.org.
April 2nd, 2008
The third annual Pennsylvania Keep and Bear Arms rally will be held Monday, April 7 in Harrisburg, PA. In addition to interested citizens, representatives of major shooting organizations including the NRA, NSSF, and Second Amendment Foundation will attend the event. Pro-Second Amendment Pennsylvania legislators have also pledged to attend the important rally which begins at 10 a.m. at the State Capitol Rotunda in Harrisburg, PA. Those of you who can make it next Monday should try to attend.
April 1st, 2008
 This is it — a true revolution in Benchrest technology, a gun that can shoot one-hole groups with boring regularity without wind flags or sighters. Armed with technology from Australian defense contractor Metal Storm Ltd., a team of Aussie benchrest shooters has developed a new unlimited rail gun for international competition. This rig features five rounds pre-loaded into the barrel. Each projectile has propellant in its base that is triggered by an electrical impulse. Metal Storm figured out a way to fire each round individually, and the Aussie Rail Gun team, lead by retired engineer (and part-time barkeep) Tony Dundee, licensed the technology for Benchrest competition. Based in the small town of Merth, New South Wales, Tony said “the blokes at Metal Storm wanted $1,000,000 for the rights, but we nicked ‘em down to a couple cases of Fosters… and our solemn pledge to ‘Spank the Yanks’.”
A local legend in benchrest circles, Tony had been tinkering with a tensioned barrel benchrest gun for many years, until Internet Forum posters, including a noted Rimfire gunsmith, convinced him that set-up wouldn’t work because one can’t “Bong” a tensioned barrel to find the vibration nodes. On the advice of the “experts”, Dundee sold that gun. (The gun’s new owner then used it to win the Australian Long-Range Championship three years in a row.) Learning about the Metal Storm system developed by his countrymen, Dundee figured electronic ignition was the answer.
Dundee tells us: “Once I saw the Metal Storm, I said ‘Crikey!’ that’s the ticket. Five rounds downrange before the conditions change or the barrel moves. Bloody Brilliant! And it’s all-Aussie technology.” Below is video and a still image taken from the video. The video shows the Aussie Rail Gun, dubbed “Downunder Thunder”, firing rounds at various intervals from 1 second through 3 milliseconds.
At the max rate-of-fire setting, the Aussie Rail Gun can shoot all five projectiles in as little as 15 milliseconds. That’s a separation of just 3 milliseconds per projectile. Traveling at roughly 3000 fps, the bullets (more accurately described as “self-propelled electronically-ignited projectiles”) all reach the target in 1/10th of a second. But more importantly, the bullets all arrive on the same spot in a span of just 15 milliseconds–so changes in wind value don’t matter and windflags are no longer needed. “It’s about time”, Dundee said, “a forest of spinnin’ daisies and day-glo windsocks is just about the ugliest sight on God’s earth.”
The proof is on the target, as they say. The Aussie Rail Gun shoots one-holers with boring regularity. Dundee revealed, “You know mate, we don’t even really need a scope anymore for group competition. We just boresight the bugger and let ‘er rip.” All the shooter needs to do is center the Rail Gun on the target and pull the trigger 5 times (antiquated USA benchrest rules require a mechanical trigger, and having one pull per round ensures the gun does not violate machine gun laws). Then after a 1-second delay, a microchip-controlled circuit launches the five projectiles at 3 millisecond intervals. “It’s so easy”, Dundee added with a laugh, “a blind man could make the Hall of Fame with this technology.”
With the new Aussie Rail Gun, wind is no longer a factor. Dundee says: “Forget wind–we’ve taken it out of the equation.” In a rather poor Mexican accent, Dundee joked: “We don’t need no steeeenkin’ windflags”. Dundee notes the new technology makes matches more enjoyable: “This is the ‘no-stress express’. Hook up the battery, click the trigger, then bangity-bang and it’s time for a frostie with me mates. I’ll be drinkin’ while you silly buggers are sweatin’ over the bleedin’ daisy-wheels.”
Revolutionary Performance — At a Price
Technology like this doesn’t come cheap. Dundee admits development costs have been high: “I reckon we’ve got $100K into this rig, easy. But the folks at Metal Storm are picking up the tab for the most part and they’re swimming in cash–thanks to the U.S. Department of Defense and your silly Venture Capitalists.” Dundee concedes that at about $20.00 per round, the gun is a bit pricey to shoot, but he adds “think of the money we save in windflags… and, Hell, $100 a target is cheap if you KNOW it’s going to be a winner.”
Nervous Americans Fear New Australian Technology
The Aussie Rail Gun has caused concern among American Benchrest shooters. Posting on Internet BR forums, many have challenged the legality of the new Rail Gun. One poster wrote: “If it outshoots the gun I just spent $4500 on, it must be illegal.” Others concede that while the Aussie Rail Gun may satisfy the express terms of Unlimited Class Benchrest Rules, it violates their spirit: “As far as I’m concerned, if you don’t have to load your ammo between matches in a big hurry, worry about tune, piss and moan about conditions, and spend your entire afternoon staring at erratic windflags, it ain’t benchrest and I don’t want no part of it.”
Dundee isn’t concerned with the keyboard commandos challenging his new Rail Gun. “Typical Americans–just a bunch of whinging Sheilas. If they can’t beat us, they’ll try to ban us.” Dundee adds confidently, “‘Bring ‘em on’ as your President would say. When the dust settles at the big matches, you Yanks will all be singin’ ‘Waltzing Matilda’.”
March 31st, 2008
A full-time lawyer, Robert Whitley is also an avid prone, Highpower, and cross-course shooter. Over the past two years, Robert has pioneered a cartridge for these disciplines (as well as long-range varminting) based on the 6.5mm Grendel necked down to 6mm. Robert calls the cartridge the “6mmAR”.
The 6mmAR cartridge has performed very well in AR-based comp guns, both with shorter bullets loaded to mag length, and 105-107gr bullets single-loaded. Robert has complete info about the 6mmAR on his website, 6mmAR.com, including recommended loads and field test results.
Though making 6mmAR brass from 6.5 Grendel brass is quite straight-forward and simple, Robert receives many questions about forming the brass, so he recently prepared a video. The two-minute video shows how quick and easy the brass-forming process can be:
Robert also builds and sells products for across-the-course shooters, including complete AR uppers, chambered in a variety of calibers, including 6mmAR. Jerry Tierney, 2005 NBRSA 1000-yard champion, has a 6mmAR upper built by Robert and Jerry says the upper “Absolutely shoots great. I love it.” In the past few months, Jerry has broken many NRA senior records with his new 6mmAR-chambered rifle.
CLICK HERE for Feature Article on 6mmAR and Robert Whitley (many photos)
CLICK HERE for 6mmAR LOAD DATA
March 31st, 2008
The NBRSA 600-Yard Nationals (Sloughhouse 600) will be held April 25 – 27, 2008 at the Sacramento Valley Shooting Center. This 3-day Match is hosted by the Folsom Shooting Club, at the Sacramento Valley Shooting Center in Sloughhouse, CA, a few minutes East of Sacramento. This event grows more popular every year as more and more top shooters are drawn to the relatively new 600-yard benchrest discipline. Last year, Don Nielson (shown in VIDEO below) dominated the field, shooting a 6.5×47 and a 6-6.5×47.
Match information, plus range maps are available at www.sacvalley.org in the “coming events” section, or click the links below:
NBRSA 600 Nationals Match INFO
NBRSA 600 Nationals REGISTRATION FORM
Match fees are $60.00 per class (light gun and heavy gun), if you sign up today. Fees are $65.00 per class after March 31, 2008. If you have further questions, or need forms mailed to you, contact match Director Ed Eckhoff via email: eckran [at] yahoo.com.
March 30th, 2008
Our friend “DesertFrog” enjoys shooting “tactical/practical” rifle matches in Southern California. To maintain his skills, he tries to get quality “trigger time” every week. This helps him work on his body position, rifle handling, and breath control.
Recently DesertFrog acquired a Savage Mark II-BTVS in 22 LR. These retail for about $330.00. The ergonomics of the Savage BTVS rifle were similar to his thumbhole-stock .308 tactical rifle. He decided that having a .22LR practice gun would allow him to maintain his monthly round count at a significantly reduced cost.
He reports: “I used to shoot an average of 200 rounds of .308 Match ammo a month for training (50 per weekend). In the last two months, I’ve shot maybe an average of 50 rounds of .308 per month and probably around 600 rounds of 22 LR. In the last two local tactical precision matches in Saugus, I still finished in the top three. That’s pretty good considering the quality of shooters in SoCal those days. So using mainly the 22LR for practice did NOT hurt my standings in actual competitions. I shot my .308 just as well in matches, but saved the cost of hundreds of rounds of 308. If I didn’t reload and was still buying boxes of Federal Gold Match .308, this would be a savings of more than $380 (minus $120 for the rimfire ammo) in two months. In three months, one can save enough to essentially pay for the price of the Savage Mark II. Even compared to the cost of reloading .308, I probably saved $140.00 in two months. Not bad!”
March 29th, 2008
As shooters seek less expensive ways to shoot, rimfire competition of all types is becoming more popular. Silhouette shooting is fun because you get to knock down small steel targets, just like in a shooting gallery at a County Fair. But don’t let anyone suggest Silhouette is easy. All shots are taken from the standing position. If you haven’t tried that recently, you’ll find that your crosshairs will be dancing all around the target.
At an official match, you’ll shoot at least 40 shots, ten each at four sets of 1/5th size standard High Power Rifle Silhouette targets. The smallest targets, the chickens, are set at 40 yards, Pigs are at 60 yards, Turkeys are at 77 yards, and Rams are at 100 yards. (Alternatively, metric distances are used.) Though the rams are the largest targets, hitting them is far from easy, given the ballistics of 22 rimfire ammo. At 100 yards, a little bit of wind will blow you off the target.
Two classes of rifles are used in Rimfire Silhouette: Standard and Hunter Class. Standard rifles can weigh up to 10 pounds, 2 oz. (with sights) and have no restriction on trigger pull weight. The fore-end shall not exceed 2 1/4″ wide, and 2 1/4″ deep measured from the centerline of the bore. Bull barrels are common, and the gun of choice is the Anschutz 54.18 MS (Metallic Silhouette) or 1808 (thumbhole version of the 54.18). A 54.18, if you can find one, will set you back $1200.00 – $1700 depending on condition. The 54:18 is in limited production and even good used models are hard to find.
Hunter Class rifles must have a more conventional “sporter-style” stock, typically with a narrow fore-end. A high comb is used to provide a good cheek weld. Hunter Class Rifles are limited to 8.5 pounds (with scope), and the trigger pull weight shall not be less than 2 pounds. No bull barrels are allowed — you must use a conventional tapered hunting barrel. Among production rifles, the Anschutz 1712 is the rifle to beat. These guns are very accurate out of the box, and come with an outstanding two-stage trigger that breaks cleanly right at two pounds. Kimber and CZ also make factory silhouette rifles for the Hunter Class. Though not on a par with the Anschutz 1712, the Kimber and CZ are viable options for novices or shooters on a tight budget.
Many top silhouette shooters like Mark Pharr will shoot the lighter Hunter rifle in both classes. Pharr and others have found that accurized Hunter Class guns can be competitive even against the heavier guns. While a stock Anschutz 1712 Hunter is impressive, many competitors will hot-rod their gun, putting a 1710 or 1712 action in a Mark Pharr-designed stock. They will then add a match barrel from Lilja, Shilen or other top barrel maker. Shown below is an Anschutz 1712 action in Pharr stock.
If you want to learn more about rimfire silhouette, visit SteelChickens.com. To order a Mark Pharr stock (built by Robertson Composites), contact Chickens Shooting Supply.
CLICK HERE for Summary of Rimfire Silhouette Rifle Rules.
March 29th, 2008
Butch Lambert, who distributes the Elliott “Aussie” BRT wind flags, gave us some expert advice on wind flags. Butch writes: “Chatting with the top shooters in our sport about flags gave me some surprising insights. You do not want your flags balanced. The weight should be biased to the vane side. That will help take the twitch out of your flags. It will take the windshield wiper effect out. The Aussie propellers are used for velocity reading only at very low wind velocity. They are mainly to let you see a pickup or a let up. The sailcloth tails are attached with a clip that does not allow the tail to twist and it also holds the shape of the flag in a V so that it doesn’t flop in the wind. Daisy wheels slow response of the vane, puts a shake in your wind flag, and hides the vane on any tailwind.” If you have more questions about wind flags, contact Butch at ShadeTree Engineering.
|
