Q: What’s more important — wind speed, or direction?
A: Obviously they both matter, but they do trade dominance based on direction. For example, a 10 mph wind between 2:30 and 3:30 is only changing its value from 9.7 to 10 to 9.7 mph (bracket of 0.3 mph). However a 10 mph wind between 11:30 and 12:30 is changing its cross wind component value from 2.6 mph left to zero to 2.6 mph right (bracket of 5.2 mph). There is the same 30° change in direction, but this results in a massively different bracket.
Point being, in this case, a direction change is far more critical if it’s near 6 or 12 o’clock. A small direction change when it’s close to 3 or 9 o’clock is negligible.
On the contrary, a change in wind SPEED when it’s near 3 or 9 affects your crosswind component directly. But for a near head or tail wind, a fluctuation in wind speed only causes a small fraction of a change to the crosswind component.
SUMMARY: If you’re in a near full-value wind, pay more attention to wind SPEED. If you’re closer to a head- or tail-wind, nailing the exact DIRECTION will be more important.
Get More Tips on Bryan Litz Ballistics Facebook Page
This post is from the new Bryan Litz Ballistics Facebook Page. FB users should check that page regularly for more tips from Bryan, American’s leading ballistics expert and founder of Applied Ballistics LLC.
Q: What’s more important — wind speed, or direction?
A: Obviously they both matter, but they do trade dominance based on direction. For example, a 10 mph wind between 2:30 and 3:30 is only changing its value from 9.7 to 10 to 9.7 mph (bracket of 0.3 mph). However a 10 mph wind between 11:30 and 12:30 is changing its cross wind component value from 2.6 mph left to zero to 2.6 mph right (bracket of 5.2 mph). There is the same 30° change in direction, but this results in a massively different bracket.
Point being, in this case, a direction change is far more critical if it’s near 6 or 12 o’clock. A small direction change when it’s close to 3 or 9 o’clock is negligible.
On the contrary, a change in wind SPEED when it’s near 3 or 9 affects your crosswind component directly. But for a near head or tail wind, a fluctuation in wind speed only causes a small fraction of a change to the crosswind component.
SUMMARY: If you’re in a near full-value wind, pay more attention to wind SPEED. If you’re closer to a head- or tail-wind, nailing the exact DIRECTION will be more important.
Get More Tips on Bryan Litz Ballistics Facebook Page
This post is from the new Bryan Litz Ballistics Facebook Page. FB users should check that page regularly for more tips from Bryan, American’s leading ballistics expert and founder of Applied Ballistics LLC.
Bryan Litz coaching Team USA in Canada using a WIND PLOT.
BIG NEWS Coming Soon: Bryan Litz and Applied Ballistics will make a Major Announcement tonight, April 19, 2022. The Announcement will be featured on Facebook and other Social Media, and we’ll have a report in tomorrow’s Daily Bulletin.
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“Golf — the willful misuse of a perfectly good rifle range.”
Here’s a humorous illustration that pokes fun at the game of golf. We posted this on Facebook a couple seasons back. To our great surprise this generated 356 shares, and reached 22,000+ readers, making this the most popular AccurateShooter Facebook post ever at the time.
So, what do you think — should golf courses be converted to shooting ranges? Is golf truly a “good [shoot] spoiled”? This photo was shared by our shooting buddy Jim de Kort from Holland.
“Actually golf and shooting are similar sports. Trying to shoot a small object into a small hole from long range.” — Eric A.
“You can hit a golf ball 300 yards, but I can hit a golf ball AT 1000 yards.” — Zach S.
“The game should be changed. You should hit the ball out as far as possible, then get your rifle out and hit the golf ball. The most golf balls hits… with the rifle wins!” — Hui H.
Some rifle ranges certainly are beautiful enough to be country clubs. Here is the scenic General Vokes Range in British Columbia, Canada:
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Sad to say, here’s another example of a large tech enterprise bullying the firearms industry. Some very large credit card processors have refused to process firearms transactions, and we’ve heard reports of business insurers dropping policies for gunsmiths and gun accessory producers, or raising rates by as much as 700%. This is not a good time to be a gun retailer or gun manufacturer. These issues are part of larger battle, with major media, tech, and financial institutions targeting the firearms industry.
Many firearms retailers and ranges may be impacted by a new “Acceptable Use Policy” from Shopify. This policy blocks a wide variety of firearms products from online stores. Many mag-fed semi-auto rifles can no longer be sold, and unfinished lower receivers are also on the “prohibited products” list.
Report by NRA Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA)
Spike’s Tactical, a Florida-based firearms manufacturer and retailer, is just one of the businesses who received an alarming email from its online store management platform, Shopify — a company used by more than 600,000 merchants [for] marketing, inventory management, payments, and shipping.
Cole Leleux, General Manager of Spike’s Tactical, said a three-sentence email from Shopify was the only notice Spike’s Tactical received alerting them to a new change in Shopify’s “Acceptable Use Policy” that will now “restrict the sale of certain firearms and firearm parts.”
According to an article by Ammoland.com, some of the new arbitrarily amended rules in Shopify’s policy “now include banning the sale of semi-automatic firearms that have an ability to accept a detachable magazine and are capable of accepting more than 10 rounds. Additionally, unfinished lower receivers are also prohibited[.] Most of Spike’s Tactical’ s products include AR-15 parts and full rifles, which would fall under those new restrictions.”
“It’s just crazy to go from no firearm policy to no guns overnight,” said Leleux, “We’ve been sitting back quietly while Google stops us from advertising — we can’t advertise on Facebook, we can’t advertise on Instagram. We are a legal business in this country and I can’t use the most popular platforms to advertise.”
Aside from how Shopify’s new policy will affect his business, Leleux says what bothers him most is the hypocrisy… Leleux says Shopify assured him it was firearm-friendly and he would have no problems. Shopify’s about-face came after Leleux spent $100,000 and signed the contract.”
Gun Shops Also Impacted by Shopify Policy Change
Shopify has also restricted a Washington state gun shop and range. Canada-based Shopify recently notified The Marksman, an indoor gun range and retail shop in Puyallup (WA), that it must remove a number of products from its online store, including semi-auto rifles. Shopify’s new Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) no longer allows the sale of many popular (and legal) firearms sold by The Marksman.
The Marksman’s Mike Grabowski explains: “The Marksman has been in business for over 38 years and has always enjoyed great community support by the public and Law Enforcement. We provide a safe place for our community to shoot and learn about safe firearms handling. Over the years we have educated … thousands of people on how to safely handle and use firearms.”
Grabowski says Shopify’s policy change was unwarranted and unexpected: “When we entered into our relationship with Shopify they expressed no concern about the products we sell. We have spent thousands of dollars building and maintaining our e-commerce presence, as well as contributing to Shopify’s income. It is unacceptable to us that they now decided that they don’t like guns and therefore will proceed to terminate their relationship with [us] and many other firearms-related companies.”
Editor’s Comment: It will become increasingly difficult for Americans to exercise their Second Amendment rights, and for hunters and target shooters to pursue their hobbies, if firearms-related enterprises are denied the ability to sell products, collect invoices, insure their facilities, or communicate with the public.
This is a worrisome trend. The example of Shopify and The Marksman is just the tip of the iceberg. Other gun-related businesses are now facing “black-balling” by big companies that handle banking, insurance, and payment processing.
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American Silhouette shooter Eric Mietenkorte delivered a superb performance at the recent Canadian National Silhouette Championships in Fort Steel, British Columbia. Eric recorded a 1-2-3 Trifecta with 1st Place in Master Standard Rifle, 2nd Place in Master Hunter Rifle, and 3rd place in Master Smallbore Hunter. Eric is coming home with quite the trophy harvest. Other top shooters included Team Lapua members Mark Pharr and Cathy Winstead-Severin.
Erich called this a “target rich environment”…
Eric tells us: “The Canadian National Championships are all wrapped up. Thanks to the Bull River Shooters Association (B.R.S.A.) for hosting an incredible event! What a great [week] of shooting! Such a beautiful range with the nicest people! It was great seeing old friends and making new ones. [There were] definitely some challenging wind and mirage conditions, but lots of great shooting, and I even took home some hardware.” Erich has posted these photos from the event.
Erich was quick on the trigger shooting pigs at 300 meters. He says “I love hearing that clang from hitting the steel.” Click speaker icon to hear audio.
6.5mm Chamberings Favored for Centerfire (High Power) Silhouette
The 6.5mm caliber seems to be the “sweet spot” for High Power Silhouette shooters. Erich says: “I use the .260 Bobcat (6.5×250) wildcat. Most still use the .260 Remington and 6.5×47 Lapua.” Other popular chamberings for High Power Silhouette include the 6.5 Creedmoor, 6mmBR, 6mm Dasher, 6×47 Lapua, and 7mm-08.
One wicked cool paint job — the Fighter Plane graphics on Erich’s smallbore rifle drew admiring glances.
Here Erich spots for fellow American shooters Mark Pharr and Cathy Winstead-Severin of Team Lapua.
The Cranbrook Daily Townsman News did a nice story on the Championships, complete with this informative video.
Fort Steele in British Columbia is a beautiful venue. Stunning scenery all around…
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Are you feelin’ lucky? Well here’s your chance to win. Over the next twelve days (through December 23, 2016), Powder Valley is giving away a total of $20,000 worth of products from big name suppliers. That’s an average of $1,667 worth of product prizes every day. This is top-of-the-line stuff, including Powder from Accurate, IMR, Ramshot, and Vihtavuori, Bullets from Berger, Berry’s, Hornady, Lapua, and Sierra, Brass from Lapua, Hornady and Nosler, Ammo from Hornady, Nosler, Lapua, and Silver State Armory. Each day there will be a new set of prizes. Today’s prize is a Hornady reloading press.
It’s easy to qualify to win one of the Daily Giveaway prize packages. Simply visit Powder Valley’s Facebook Page, and make a comment on the featured Daily Giveaway Post. You don’t have to fill out any forms, but you must have a Facebook account so you can comment. Each day the folks at Powder Valley will select winners from among the visitors who commented. Today (Dec. 12th) there will be one winner of the Hornady Press. In days ahead there can be multiple daily winners — as many as 20 to 30 per day. NOTE: You can enter multiple times by commenting on multiple days, but sorry, if you win, you are no longer eligible.
Powder Valley Daily Giveaway
The Powder Valley 12 Days of Christmas promotion starts today, December 12th, 2016. To enter, you must visit the Powder Valley Facebook Page. Once there, scroll down to find the Giveaway of the Day. Today’s Giveaway is a Hornady Press. Look for the post shown below. You need to comment on that post to be entered. Winners will be selected by lottery from those who comment. Each successive day through December 23rd, there will be another product giveaway post.
To be entered in this Powder Valley Contest, you need to go to the Powder Valley Facebook Page and post a Facebook Comment for the Daily Prize story. The give-away for today, December 12th, is a Hornady Lock-N-Load AP Press. NOTE: You need to post your comment on Powder Valley’s Facebook Site, NOT HERE. And you need to comment each day to be entered in that particular day’s contest. To have repeat chances to win you need to comment on multiple days. Got it?
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If you enjoy our stories and would like to get daily News Updates and Tech Tips, go to www.facebook.com/accurateshooter and click the “LIKE” button.
We’ve learned that many first-time visitors to AccurateShooter.com may come in via a link to the Daily Bulletin rather than through our home page. As a result, they may not be aware that there is a wealth of other content available to our readers. Our Shooters’ Forum, with nearly 33,000 registered members, is one of the best places on the web to discuss precision shooting and advanced reloading. We also offer FREE Forum Classifieds. On the editorial side, AccurateShooter.com offers hundreds of pages of content, with thousands of photos. Our Cartridge Guides are definitive one-stop resources for popular match calibers, while our Guns of the Week articles spotlight outstanding custom rifles, most with competition pedigrees. In addition, we offer videos, gear reviews, book reviews, gunsmithing tips, and even FREE downloadable targets.
If you’re a new visitor to AccurateShooter.com, you should check out all that we have to offer. There are hundreds of informative articles to read … and they’re all FREE.
Social Media fans take note — Lapua is now on Facebook. Lapua recently launched its official Facebook page focusing on Lapua sport shooting components and ammunition. The page will feature shooting news, match results, product info, shooter profiles, videos, tech tips, and other Lapua-related material. You can follow Lapua on Facebook by visiting www.facebook.com/LapuaAmmunition.
Lapua Products and Company History
Lapua (officially Nammo Lapua Oy), is part of the large Nordic Nammo Group. Lapua’s main products include premium cartridge brass, bullets, small caliber cartridges, rimfire cartridges, and reloading components for civilian and professional use. The Lapua cartridge factory was established in 1923. From a modest and practical beginning, Lapua has grown into one of the most respected brands in the industry. The best shooters in the world choose Lapua cartridges and components. In 2014, Nammo acquired the Vihtavuori smokeless powder factory.
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Our friend Dennis Santiago was doing pits duty during the Small Arms Firing School (SAFS) phase of the CMP Western Games. Here are some views from the pits at the Ben Avery Range in Phoenix, Arizona. Dennis also took a video from the pits during live fire. Listen to rounds zip over-head and impact into the berm beyond the targets, in the video below.
Watch Video with rounds flying over the pit zone:
Dennis reports: “Here’s a slice of life at the receiving end of live fire. This is a rapid fire stage as seen from the target pits at the 2015 CMP Western Games. The targets are placed up in the air. The bullets go through them over the heads of competitors protected behind an earth berm. The bullets land in a designated impact area (berm) beyond the target frames.”
At the CMP Western Games, participants shoot, score and do pit service. The pit workers are positioned on a catwalk behind a concrete wall. There is a thick, earth-works berm on the other side.
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As more competitive shooting organizations (such as the U.S. F-TR Team) and manufacturers (such as Berger Bullets), turn to social media to distribute news and information, Facebook has become a much more valuable resource for shooters. Match reports (and photos) often appear first on Facebook, and many vendors post exclusive discount offers for their Facebook “friends”. AccurateShooter has an active Facebook page, and we are close to reaching 7000 “Likes”. Will you help us reach the 7000 mark?
UPDATE: Thanks Facebook Fans! We now have 6816 Likes (and counting!).
If you haven’t visited Facebook lately, check it out. You’ll find lots of valuable information being shared among serious shooters. And Accurateshooter.com also posts popular news items and updates on our AccurateShooter Facebook Page. You’ll find links to many other Facebook pages of interest, such as the USAMU Page, the Sinclair Int’l Page, the USA F-TR Team Page, the CMP Page, the Berger Bullets Page, and the Target Shooter Magazine page. Visit the page at www.facebook.com/AccurateShooter.
Facebook members can network with our page by simply clicking the “Like” (thumbs up) button near the top of the page. Facebook users who click the “Like” button can comment on our Facebook postings. In addition, if you visit our Facebook Page and click on the “MORE” button, you’ll find a Blog link with our latest Daily Bulletin items, complete with thumbnails and story summaries. You can also register with our Shooters’ Forum by clicking on the “Sign Up” button. There is no fee to join our Forum.
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Here’s a humorous illustration that pokes fun at golf. We posted this on Facebook recently. To our surprise this generated 356 shares, and reached 22,000+ readers, making this the most popular AccurateShooter Facebook post ever. “Golf — the willful misuse of a perfectly good rifle range.”
So, what do you think — should golf courses be converted to shooting ranges? Is golf truly a “good [shoot] spoiled”? This photo was shared by our shooting buddy Jim de Kort from Holland.
“Actually golf and shooting are similar sports. Trying to shoot a small object into a small hole from long range.” — Eric A.
“You can hit a golf ball 300 yards, but I can hit a golf ball AT 1000 yards.” — Zach S.
“The game should be changed. You should hit the ball out as far as possible, then get your rifle out and hit the golf ball. The most golf balls hits… with the rifle wins!” — Hui H.
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Ten bucks off an order of $25.00 or more? Now that’s a deal. Applied Ballistics LLC is making this limited-time one-week special offer as a way of thanking its Facebook followers. Bryan Litz explains: “To show our appreciation and celebrate reaching 2,500 likes, we are offering everyone $10 off your entire purchase of $25 or more. This offer is good today (November 4, 2013) through Sunday, November 10, 2013.” To get your onetime discount, simply enter offer Code ‘FBLike’ when shopping via the Applied Ballistics Webstore. NOTE: You do NOT need to be registered with Facebook to qualify for the ten-dollar discount. This deal is for everybody. Can’t complain about that.
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