At SHOT Show 2015 Bullets.com President Shiraz Balolia signed a contract with Norma to produce a large quantity of ultra-high-quality .284 Winchester and 6mm Dasher brass. The .284 Win brass is now in the USA and it is very good indeed. Now .284 Win and .284 Shehane shooters have a true premium product, without having to neck-up 6.5-284 brass. In addition, special enhanced quality-control measures were employed by Norma (as a condition of the Bullets.com contract) to ensure this brass is very uniform and very long-lasting. Expect the primer pockets to stay tight for a long time, even with stout loads.
This custom-made .284 Winchester Brass from Norma is double-drawn for body consistency and the heads are double-stamped for longer primer pocket life. This “special run” brass, created exclusively for Bullets.com, is produced to extremely high tolerances from high-grade raw materials.
Bullets.com President Shiraz Balolia (left) and Norma Managing Director Paul-Erik Toivo sign contract for ultra-high-grade Norma brass.
Check it out on our website: http://bit.ly/1KpiVh2
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A very special M1 Garand is going up for auction this September. President John F. Kennedy’s M1 Garand rifle, obtained from the CMP in 1959, will be auctioned by the Rock Island Auction Company (RIAC) as part of RIAC’s September Premiere Auction. RIAC believes JFK’s Garand will fetch from $50,000 to $100,000 at auction.
President Kennedy obtained the M1 Garand in 1959 while he was serving as U.S. Senator from Massachusetts. “Since this rifle was issued to Senator Kennedy in 1959, well before he was elected to the Office of the President of the United States, this rifle could very well have accompanied him directly into the White House,” RIAC stated.
The auction house included a thank-you letter from JFK himself: “Colonel John K. Lee, Jr. has told me of the time and care which you took to accuratize [sic] and test fire the National Match M1 rifle, which I recently purchased. I do want to express my appreciation for your interest and attention in this matter and I am looking forward with pleasure to having an opportunity to use the rifle.”
The rifle is in like-new condition: “Excellent overall with 99% of the original hand polished and blued finish still remaining with just some minor wear on the right side receiver rail, from the limited test firing it has seen. The stock and handguard set are all in mint condition with 99% of the original hand rubbed finish/sealer with no handling marks or dings, with just visible cartouches.”
Writing for OutdoorHub.com, Daniel Xu says this rifle had a special history: “At the time the DCM, the predecessor of today’s Civilian Marksmanship Program, issued rifles based on a lottery system, selling a few hundred to a few thousand firearms annually. According to the RIAC, Kennedy’s rifle came from the Erie Ordnance Depot in Port Clinton and was actually a rifle made late in the M1 Garand’s production lifetime. The Type 1 National Match M1 Garand then received a VIP treatment from a gunsmith attached to an Army marksmanship unit, Master Sergeant Raymond E. Parkinson. Parkison adjusted the trigger, added a glass-bedding compound to the recoil shoulders of the stock, and blued many of the metal parts.”
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McMillan Stocks has released an updated version of its .50-Cal benchrest stock. The new Super 50 BR features an extended-length “wheelbase” with machined aluminum lower surfaces for stiffness and improved tracking. In the video below, Kelly McMillan reviews the features of the new Super 50 BR:
The notable features of the new Super 50 benchrest stock are machined aluminum shoes on the bottom of the forearm and buttstock. These are machined true to each other for perfect alignment in the bags. The removable forearm shoe is available in either a 3.5” or 5” width. This is significant. Kelly McMillan explains: “You’ll be able to shoot this same stock in different classes just by changing the forearm shoe, and that’s something you can do in a match if you want.”
Engineered to be Super-Strong with Minimal Flex
With the interlocking design of the foreand (with 90° blocks that interlock with the aluminum shoe), this is a very rigid stock. In fact, Kelly says: “We’ve molded several 90° angles [into the fiberglass section] that actually increases the stiffness in addition to the stiffness that the aluminum offers. We think this is probably the stiffest fore-end on any stock that we’ve ever made.”
This Super 50 BR stock is approximately 44” long and has a forearm about 20.75” long from the front of the action. And if that’s not long enough, the forward “shoe” can be machined up to 6″ longer to extend the “wheelbase” even further. This stock has a minimum weight of about 9 pounds in Light Gun configuration and a max weight of about 18 pounds (for the stock itself) as a Heavy Gun stock. The Super 50 BR is an ambidextrous design that may be inletted and used both right and left-handed.
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Victor Betzold had a Camp Perry experience for the ages. At the 2015 CMP Games, Betzold won the Garand Match, won the M1 Carbine Match (setting a new Record), and took the 3-Gun Aggregate for the second year in a row. Now that’s an impressive performance. Betzhold is no stranger to shooting – beginning in junior high and firing well into college, then taking his love for guns into the Army. After the years went on and work and family became higher priorities, he fell away from the sport he loved. But now that he’s retired at age 60, he’s had time to practice again – practice that has certainly paid off.
During his remarkable showing at the National Games Matches, Betzold won the Carbine Match with a score of 375-6X, setting a new National Record in the process. In the National Garand Match, Betzold fired a score of 290-7X to become the overall winner of a field of 1213 competitors.
“It feels great,” he said. “I’ve been working at this for a long time.” The 60-year-old Betzold was also the top senior for both the Garand Match and the Carbine Match.
With his outstanding performances in the Garand and Springfield Matches, as well as an exceptional seventh-place finish in the Vintage Military Match, Betzold claimed the 3-Gun Aggregate title for the second year in a row — with a combined score of 865-19X.
If you are looking for a great deal on a top-quality scope, visit Kelbly.com. Our friends at Kelbly’s are now discounting their remaining inventory of March Scopes. Bullets.com has taken over distribution of March Scopes in North and South America, but Kelbly’s has a few models remaining at deeply discounted prices. In addition, Kelbly’s has some Vortex Razor HD and Vortex Viper scopes on sale.
If you missed the 2015 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Nashville this year, then tune in to ShootingUSA TV tonight (August 5, 2015). ShootingUSA will be covering the 2015 NRA Convention which took place April 10-12 in Nashville, Tennessee. This television report features interviews with top shooters and previews of new guns and gun-related products.
For many American gun owners and Second Amendment supporters, the NRA’s Annual meeting is the biggest event of the year. This past April, over 78,000 NRA members flooded Nashville to participate in the event. Some folks brought questions and comments for industry leaders, some wanted to see the latest innovations and gear, and others brought their families to introduce their kids to the shooting world. Next year, the NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits will be held in Louisville, Kentucky. The three-day event runs May 20-22, 2016 at the Kentucky Exposition Center.
Along with the NRA Convention feature, this week’s Shooting USA episode includes a pistol training drill with pro shooter Julie Golob plus a feature on the M9 Beretta pistol (the military version of the Beretta Model 92). Here are broadcast times for ShootingUSA on the Outdoor Channel:
The Shooting USA Hour on Wednesday Nights
Eastern Time – 3:00 PM, 9:00 PM, 12:30 AM Thurs
Central Time – 2:00 PM, 8:00 PM, 11:30 PM
Mountain Time – 1:00 PM, 7:00 PM, 10:30 PM
Pacific Time – 12:00 Noon, 6:00 PM, 9:30 PM
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Our friend Vince Bottomley provides this report about an Aussie-style Fun Match held at the Diggle Range in the UK. Read all the details on theTarget Shooter Magazine website.
Fly-Shoot Report by Vince Bottomley
The Fly-Shoot competition involves shooting three, 5-shot groups at 500 yards on a target just eight inches (8″) in diameter. In the middle of the 10-Ring is a fly — bigger than a UK fly admittedly but this is an Aussie competition and I’m told that such flies are normal down-under….
This year’s Fly Shoot enjoyed a record entry with almost 70 shooters turning up to shoot a fly at 500 yards. Quite a few managed that feat! Steve Barrett was the overall winner. Points are awarded for score and group size and of course for hitting the fly. Fly swatters get a commemorative patch and this is what most competitors covet.
For once, the weather was kind – overcast and threatening rain in the morning but, from a shooter’s point of view – perfect, with Diggle’s reservoir resembling the proverbial ‘sheet of glass’ – a rare sight, believe me! The shoot attracts a great variety of custom rifles and with it an equally assorted band of competitors from bunny-bashers to benchresters and, that’s part of the attraction….
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Though most of the action at Camp Perry this summer has been outdoors, there was also an important match conducted indoors at the Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center. The AiR-15 Challenge match attracted nearly 200 competitors this year. Shooters used AR-type air rifles, aiming at reduced-size bullseye targets connected to electronic scoring systems.
AiR-15 Match Rifle Based on Anschütz 8001 Creedmoor Sports offers an AR-style air rifle built around an Anschütz 8001 barreled action. This rifle was designed in conjunction with the development of the CMP’s National Match Air Rifle shooting discipline.
Some of the nation’s best marksmen were on hand, including 2015 NRA High Power National Champion SFC Brandon Green, who won the AiR 15 Shoot-Off with an outstanding score of 199-7X. Green’s victory earned him a $700 check from the CMP.
One of the nation’s greatest High Power shooters, SFC Green actually got his start in competitive shooting in sporter air rifle for a JROTC unit in Louisiana. After shooting sporter for a few years, he switched to precision in high school before joining the Army and becoming a member of the USAMU.
“I think, mainly, people come in here to train,” Green explained. “It’s convenient to train and compete – get a little of that match pressure. That’s the reason that I come in to do it. Just to get time on the sights – time on the gun. Plus, it’s exciting to come in and shoot for a little bit of money.”
“Come out and try it,” he added. “It’s a good time.”
The AiR-15 match was part of a series of Air Rifle and Air Pistol Matches held this summer in the Gary Anderson Competition Center, a state-of-the-art indoor facility boasting 80 electronic target-equipped firing points. The center houses classrooms, a large common area, Olympic and other memorabilia and a world-class air range.
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From August 3 through August 14, Camp Perry, Ohio will be the center of the Fullbore (Palma Rifle) universe. From 3-7 August the U.S. Fullbore Championship will take place on the shores of Lake Erie, followed by the ICFRA World Target Rifle (Fullbore) Championships, which runs 8-14 August. The Worlds are a very big deal — just like the Olympics, the ICFRA World Target Rifle (aka Fullbore or Palma) LR Championships event is held every four years. This year the World Championships take place in the USA, at Camp Perry, Ohio. Teams from 11 countries will be competing. The United States won’t host the Worlds again for at least another 25 years.
Our friend Anette Wachter (aka 30CalGal) was on hand for the start of the U.S. Fullbore Championships this week. Here are some images Anette posted from Perry. Many foreign shooters are already in the USA, using the U.S. Fullbore Championship as a “tune-up” for the upcoming World Championships. In addition some of the international events are being held this week such as the ICFRA Veterans World Championship Team Match and the ICFRA Under-25 and Under-21 World Team Championships.
Photos courtesy Anette Wachter. Read Anette’s Shooting Commentaries on 30CalGal.com.
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It’s important to use a good-fitting bore-guide whenever you clean your barrel. A good bore-guide will keep solvents out of your action and help your cleaning rods run straight and true.
Not all bore guides are created equal. Some offer a sloppy fit and/or fail to seal your chamber effectively. 21st Century Shooting has changed all that with a new generation of chamber-specific Bore Guides. These have a close fit (with O-rings) to seal your chamber completely. The design is intelligent — these bore guides are long enough to extend well past the end of your scope, while the minimal rod diameter provides sufficient clearance for most combs. Priced at $49.99, these high-tech guide rods are custom crafted to fit many popular chamberings: 220 Swift, 223 Rem, 22-250, 6PPC, 6mmBR, 6 Dasher, 6×47, 6-284, 6mm Shehane, 243 WSM, 6.5×47 Lapua, 6.5-284, 6.5 Shehane, 6.5 WSM, 25-06, 270 WSM, .284 Win, 7mm Shehane, 7mm WSM, 30 BR, 308 Win, 30-06, 300 WSM.
Email John [at] 21stcenturyshooting.com to ask about your application. These chamber-specific guide rods are designed fit actions with BAT bolts or Rem 700-style bolts (Borden, Kelblys, Ruger, Savage).
In addition to the new chamber-specific Guide Rods, 21st Century just released a clever new product for shooters who regularly swap barrels (or who need to clean dismounted barrels). If you have a switch-barrel rig, check out 21st Century’s new Barrel Off Bore Guides. Like the full-length 21st Century bore guides, these are manufactured specifically for your chamber, for a perfect fit. These chamber-specific “Barrel Off” bore guides cost $19.99.
Product Tip from EdLongrange. We welcome reader submissions.
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It’s great to see young people get involved in the shooting sports and achieve success through dedication, practice, and team-work. We congratulate the Pennsylvania Junior Team which took first place in the 6-man and 2-man Junior team matches this year at Camp Perry. Special kudos go to this year’s High Junior, PA team member Matt Lovre, shown at right.
The winning 6-Man Pennsylvania squad included Jack Graw, Joe Hendricks, Kevin Kerin, Matt Lovre, Alexander Thomas and Wyatt Thomas. Alexander Thomas reports: “Great day, great coach, [Berger] bullets flying true. Conditions were tough, but team members held together to shoot awesome scores and take the number 1 spot at Nationals!”
The Pennsylvania Junior Team’s match load featured .22 cal Berger 77gr OTM bullets pushed by Alliant Reloder 15 powder. The team’s AR-platform rifles were smithed by Dead Center Sports with White Oak upper receivers and Geissele triggers.
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The matriarch of American Long Range Shooting has done it again. The amazing Nancy Tompkins won the 2015 NRA Long Range Championship with an impressive performance. This marks the fifth time Nancy has won the LR Championship. This year’s LR match went down to the wire after many days of shooting. It all came down to X-Count, with two talented ladies tied for score. Shooting a 1242-58X over the multi-day competition, Nancy finished four Xs ahead of SSG Amanda Elsenboss (1242-54X). Both women dropped only 8 points out of 1250 possible. Amanda’s USAMU team-mate, SFC Brandon Green, finished third, one point back, at 1241-75X. SFC Green, the newly-crowned 2015 High Power National Champion, had high X-Count by a wide margin.
This year’s Long Range Championships event was hugely popular, with 321 competitors on the match roster. Many familiar faces ranked among the Special Award winners. Our friends David Tubb (1241-69X) and Jim O’Connell (1235-66X) were High Senior and High Grand Senior, respectively. Tubb finished fourth overall, with the second-highest X-Count. There were also talented newcomers, such as High Junior Charlotte Flanagan, a young Kiwi from far-away New Zealand. Firing a 1236-40X, Charlotte is shooting at an extremely high level for someone so young. As Ken Littlefield noted: “It’s pretty impressive to come into Camp Perry for the first time and win the Junior Championship!” Charlotte could be formidable at the World Fullbore LR Championships slated for 3-9 August at Camp Perry.
Here are the overall Top 10 finishers. Note that Michelle Gallager, Nancy Tompkins’s daughter, made the Top 10, making this a “family affair” for the Tompkins/Gallagher clan:
1. NANCY TOMPKINS (1242-58X), HM, Div. B – U.S. Match ‘Any’ Rifle*, Rule 3.2, 3.7(c)
2. SSG AMANDA ELSENBOSS (1242-54X), HM, USA REG W Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
3. SFC BRANDON GREEN (1241-75X), HM, USA REG Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
4. DAVID TUBB (1241-69X), HM, Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
5. DAVID CALVERT (1241-63X), MA, Palma Rifle (NRA Rule 3.3.3 (b))
6. JANE MESSER (1240-60X), HM, Palma Rifle (NRA Rule 3.3.3 (b))
7. DAVID LUCKMAN (1239-68X), MA, Palma Rifle (NRA Rule 3.3.3 (b))
8. SGT DICONZA (1238-59X), HM, USMC REG Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
9. PHILLIP CROWE (1238-54X), HM, Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
10. MICHELLE GALLAGHER (1237-64X), HM, Div. B – U.S. Palma Rifle, Rule 3.3.1(a)
*The NRA Match bulletin lists Palma Rifle, but Nancy said she shot her “Any Rifle”.
In this photo, Michelle Gallagher is missing … but someone had to take the photo.
Here is Nancy with the Tompkins Trophy. And yes, if you are wondering, that trophy was donated, decades ago, by hubby Mid Tompkins as the top prize for the Long Range High Power Rifle competition.
For many American gun owners and Second Amendment supporters, the NRA’s Annual meeting is the biggest event of the year. This past April, over 78,000 NRA members flooded Nashville to participate in the event. Some folks brought questions and comments for industry leaders, some wanted to see the latest innovations and gear, and others brought their families to introduce their kids to the shooting world. Next year, the NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits will be held in Louisville, Kentucky. The three-day event runs May 20-22, 2016 at the Kentucky Exposition Center.
It’s great to see young people get involved in the shooting sports and achieve success through dedication, practice, and team-work. We congratulate the Pennsylvania Junior Team which took first place in the 6-man and 2-man Junior team matches this year at Camp Perry. Special kudos go to this year’s High Junior, PA team member Matt Lovre, shown at right.
