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June 2nd, 2007
The new ONIX 400 GPS from Bushnell, slated for summer 2007 release, offers live weather feeds utilizing XM Satellite broadcasts (XM NavWeather subscription required). In addition, this portable GPS can store aerial photos and topo maps, with GPS info and way points layered on top. Along with Latitude/Longitude and UTM, other internal map data and grid systems can be selected.
The ONIX 400/400CR is the first handheld GPS to integrate satellite weather information with GPS maps and navigation data. While the Bushnell ONIX 200 also offers layering of topo maps and satellite photos, only the ONIX 400 series has the ability to layer weather information on the screen. This could be a real boon for hunters, as well as match shooters looking to predict incoming weather patterns. The compact, waterproof ONIX 400 is powered by a rechargeable Li-Ion battery, with a sleep mode allowing up to 32 hours run-time. An embedded 64 or 128 MB micro SD card holds weather data, maps, photos, and saved locations. Internal memory will store up to 1000 waypoints, 20 trails and 20 routes. (A limited number of map/image downloads are included with each ONIX 400. You can download more photos/maps for a fee.) Models come with a USB cable for connecting to a laptop or home computer. Suggested retail is $499.99. (NOTE–This is just a preview; test units haven’t shipped yet.)
 
Click HERE and HERE for more ONIX 400 product previews.
June 1st, 2007
While the Benchresters were drilling bugholes at the Super Shoot, west coast tactical devotees were slapping steel at 75 to 1000 yards in Sacramento. In the first-ever Nor-Cal Tactical Bolt Rifle Challenge, 43 shooters battled through a variety of innovative scenarios, many involving shooter movement or targets at unknown distances. This was a far cry from a static benchrest match or even a Highpower match, though participants shot from all positions–prone, kneeling, sitting, and standing. Though this was the first match of its kind at Sac Valley, all available spots “sold out”, and the match attracted big-time sponsorship. The happy winner was Dave McGrath who came home with a $2200+ U.S Optics scope. Dennis Lorenzo finished second, while Mark Soulie took third.
There were a variety of stages in the two-day match, held May 26-27. One of the timed action stages started with the shooter 20 yards behind his rifle. On a signal, the shooter ran to his rifle and engaged a mini-popper at 75 yards, then moved to a barricade and engaged 3 more medium poppers at 175 yards. But there’s more–next he targeted four clay birds at 175 yards (from prone) and finished on another mini-popper at 60 yards. All this had to be done in just 2 minutes! In another multi-target stage, the shooter started on an elevated wooden ramp. On the signal, he engaged an MGM target with two rounds at 100 yards. This was immediately followed by two rounds at a pair of 10″ plates at 250 yards, then two rounds at a pair of steel targets at 330 yards. Then, with action open, he moved off the raised ramp, re-positioned on the trunk of a car and engaged two more steel plates at 540 yards. There were eight rounds total for that stage, with a two-minute time limit. A more conventional evolution involved taking successive shots at two steel targets from standing, kneeling, sitting and prone positions.
Below is Bolo, whose “Lucky Dragon” Benchrest Rifles were featured in last month’s Blog. He demonstrates that you can have fun shooting a variety of disciplines, with very different rifles. And what you learn via one discipline can often help another. Whether it’s benchrest or “move and shoot” action, the common denominator is shooting skill and rifle accuracy. For more information on this interesting match, read this Snipers’ Hide thread or visit WestCoastTactical.com.
Click HERE and HERE for more full-size photos.
June 1st, 2007
RCBS recently introduced a handy new product. No longer will you have to rummage through multiple boxes to find the shell holder you need. The new RCBS Shell Holder Rack has twelve positions that hold two shell holders on each post. There is also room to store six Trim Pro® Shell Holders. The clear cover keeps out dust and dirt while allowing you to quickly select the shell-holder you need. Most folks will place the Rack on their bench, but the Shell Holder Rack can also be wall-mounted with standard 1” pegboard hooks. In addition, support legs can raise the rear for bench use, or, when wall-mounted, the legs can angle the bottom out. Several Shell Holder Racks can be snapped together for more storage, and stickers are included to label shell holder posts. The new Rack, RCBS product 9461, retails for about $10.00.
May 31st, 2007
Recently, Jason Baney got hold of some of the new 103+ gr Spencer 6mm match bullets. Jason noted that these are some of the most consistent bullets he’s measured, and he hopes to test them soon at 1000 yards. We talked to Clay Spencer and Clay explained: “These bullets are so good because of the extra effort we put into making them–plus outstanding Niemi dies. We inspect each batch of jackets. If the jackets don’t meet my standards, they go back to J4. We also have very expensive pointing dies that do a superior job.”
Are the 103s available? Clay replied: “Right now we’re waiting on jackets, and I’ve got 9,000 bullets advanced-ordered. So folks will have to stand in line. But let me tell you, if I had 100,000 sitting here now, I could sell them all in a couple of days.” Clay does have 1400 6mm 95-grainers in stock that use the same design as the 103s, they are just scaled down. The first lots of the 103s were priced at $37.50/100, but Clay says the price will go up because jackets and cores have increased in price.
The big news is that Clay is working on a radical new 210gr long-range 30-caliber bullet, using completely new dies from Niemi. Clay reports: “We’ve produced the first 200 of these 210-grain 30s. Bobby Rosen will be testing them shortly. If these bullets shoot as well as we think, I’ll be committing to $11,500 in equipment and we’ll put the 30s in production. These 30s will be different than anything you can buy now–we’ve developed a new, shorter boat-tail design.”
Clay also produces 68gr 6mm match bullets, 52gr 22-caliber match bullets, and a 115gr 30-caliber bullet for the 30BR Score Shooters. For more info on the new 103+ gr 6mms, and the prototype 210gr 30-caliber projectile, visit Spencer Rifle Barrels, or call Clay Spencer at (434) 293-6836.
May 31st, 2007
The 2007 NRA National Silhouette Championships will be held, from June 2 to August 22, over a number of weekends, at the NRA Whittington Center in Raton, NM. The first set of matches, for Long Range Pistol and Smallbore (rimfire) pistol, will run June 2-9. Other National Champrionship matches are scheduled as follows:
Jul. 8-10 Smallbore Rifle | Smallbore Hunting Rifle
Jul. 12-14 High Power Rifle | High Power Hunting Rifle
Aug. 6-9 Black Powder Cartridge Rifle
Aug. 10-11 Black Powder Cartridge Rifle—Scope
Aug. 13-16 Cowboy Rifle
Aug. 19-22 Hunter’s Pistol | Smallbore Hunter’s Pistol
Entry forms and programs are available from NRA Competitive Shooting Division, Attn: Silhouette Dept., 11250 Waples Mill Rd., Fairfax, VA 22030. Be sure to include your complete mailing address and specify which championship you wish to enter. You can also call (703) 267-1474, send a fax to (703) 267-3941, or e-mail silhouette@hrahq.org. For more information on silhouette shooting see: Rifle Silhouette Shooting, and SteelChickens.com.
May 30th, 2007
There’s been some controversy surrounding the “ideal” 6mm bullet diameter. This is compounded by the fact that 6mm match barrels are available with both .236″ and .237″ land diameters. It has become quite clear to us that bullet diameter is an important variable to consider when choosing the best projectile for your particular barrel. Some barrels prefer “fat” bullets while other barrels prefer “skinny” bullets.
Jason Baney recently took the time to measure 12 different sets of 6mm Match Bullets, including a couple different lots of the same bullet design. Interestingly, Jason did measure the “old” Berger 105 VLD, the “new” Berger 105 VLD (first lot from the new die), and the “new, improved” Berger 105 VLD from the new die, after it was polished. Ten (10) Bullets were measured per type. Each bullet was measured three times (3X) around the largest circumference, normally where a pressure ring would be located (some bullets have a pronounced pressure ring, others do not).
Download this CHART as an MS Word Document.
Columns one and two of the chart show the smallest and largest bullet diameters measured for each 10-bullet sample. The third column shows the extreme spread over each 10-bullet set. Note, these numbers are NOT averages, but represent the “low” and “high” diameters for each set. (FYI: Jason noted that while the Lapua Scenars measured very consistently the earlier 2005 “JEVDAK” lot had noticeably smaller meplats than the current 2007 lot.) A Mitutoyo Micrometer was used, zero-checked for each bullet.
May 30th, 2007
If you don’t have a vibratory tumbler yet, here’s a real bargain. Now through the end of June, 2007, MidwayUSA is selling its “Quick-N-EZ Tumbler”, item #587176, for just $29.99. At that price you can afford one of these just as a dedicated bullet-coater or parts cleaner. Most of the user reviews have been very positive, though some folks felt the older-style pumpkin-shaped bowl provided better agitation. Personally we think the wide-mouth bowl with clear top is a great idea. This lets you see the “work in progress” without having to unscrew the top. Click HERE for product reviews.
May 30th, 2007
Berger Bullets plans to release a new Loading Manual at the 2008 Shot Show. This book, a collaboration between Walt Berger and writer Richard Mann, will include some of the history of Berger Bullets as well as load information. This is the first time Walt Berger’s load data has ever been published and the first time the story of Walt Berger and his bullets has been put in print. In the new book, Walt will cover many topics including the development of J4 Jackets and the VLD bullet, and how the bench rest world championships were started. Whether you’re a benchrest shooter, a big game hunter, or a collector of outdoor books, this new reference should be of great interest.
May 29th, 2007
 The overall winner of the Super Shoot was Steve Robbins, topping a field of 346 competitors. Steve won the Two-Gun with a “Low Two” agg. Congrats Steve! His winning rig (built by Dwight Scott) featured a BAT Machines action, Scoville stock, Krieger barrel, March scope. He was shooting Bart’s Ultra bullets pushed by Vihtavuori N133 powder.
Lowell Hottenstein was second in the Two-Gun. Lowell also won the LV Grand Agg. Kent Harshman won the HV Grand Aggregate. Congrats to Kent Harshman for an impressive showing in challenging conditions. Steve Robbins was runner-up in the HV Grand Agg and HV 200.
HV Grand Agg Top 10:
1. KENT HARSHMAN .2092
2. STEVE ROBBINS .2240
3. LEE EUBER .2307
4. GENE BUCKYS .2443
5. JOE KRUPA .2457
6. DAVE BRUNO .2463
7T. JEFF SUMMERS .2521
7T. BOB SCARBROUGH, JR. .2521
9. JIM CARMICHEL .2548
10. BART SAUTER .2555
Top 5 Shooters in the HV 200 were:
1. JOEL NADER .2195
2. STEVE ROBBINS .2268
3. KENT HARSHMAN .2279
4. GENE BUCKYS .2495
5. DAVE BRUNO .2536
Bob Hesotian had .199 Small Group.
Note, for the 200 yard scores, the actual average group size (in inches) is divided by two. Then this is combined with the 100-yard score for the Grand Aggregate.
May 29th, 2007
Highpower shooters have a bunch of gear to carry to the firing line–pad, shooting jacket, scope stand, spotting scope, ammo, log-book and rifle(s). If you’re shooting F-Class, add a heavy front rest and 15-lb sand-bag to the list. A range cart makes life much easier, particularly if the shooting area’s a long way from the parking lot. Creedmoor Sports makes a folding range cart that is very popular with the iron sights crowd. This unit features 14″ ball-bearing wheels and the frame is made from solid aluminum–not lightweight tubing that can bend or crack. Lift a simple locking lever and the cart folds. The cart can be completely dis-assembled, without tools, to fit in a suitcase (collapsed size 30″ x 17″ x 8″). The Creedmoor cart retails for $499.00, and that includes a rifle case, tray, and rain-cover. The rifle case doubles as a rack/holster.
If $499.00 isn’t in the budget, or you’d like to build your own range cart with a lockable storage compartment, you should look at the carts used by Cowboy Action shooters. These wooden carts are heavy, but they provide a stable platform for multiple guns and a nice, solid perch for sitting. There are many do-it-yourself designs available. One of our favorites is the GateSlinger cart shown below. This well-balanced design breaks down into two pieces for transport. Click Here for cart plans, and read this “How-to Article” for complete instructions with many photos.
 The least expensive way to go is to purchase a Dolly (Hand Truck) at Harbor Freight, or a large warehouse store such as Home Depot. Make sure to get one with wheels at least 10″ in diameter, or you’ll have problems in rough terrain. The bigger the wheels the better. Normally you can find dollies for under $30.00. Just bolt a large box or milk crate to the bottom, and voilà, instant range cart. You can clamp a piece of wood at the top with slots for barrels on one side and a flat tray for ammo on the other. Use bungee cord or leather straps to hold the barrels in place. Having built a couple all-wood range carts (both collapsible and one-piece), this editor can assure you that starting with an inexpensive welded hand truck is the cheapest, simplest way to go overall. You can buy oversize, spoked wheels from NorthernTool.com. (From the Northern Tool home page, search for “spoked wheels”.)
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