Is factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition good enough to win a PRS or NRL competition? The answer is a resounding “YES” if we’re talking about Berger ammunition. Produced with Berger match bullets and premium Lapua brass, this Berger 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition demonstrated excellent accuracy, impressive velocity, and very good ES/SD numbers. When tested at 1000 yards with an MPA-stocked PRS rig with Rem 700 action, this ammo showed just half-MOA of vertical, and produced a group that would have been a 50-1X in F-Class competition. That’s quite impressive for a PRS rig.
This ammo test was performed by our friend Erik Cortina from Texas. The reigning SW Nationals F-Open champion, Erik is a top F-Class competitor who also shoots tactical matches (for fun and glory). A couple seasons back, Erik built a new 6.5 Creedmoor with a Remington 700 action. Though this rifle sports a top-shelf MPA chassis and premium Kahles scope, Erik calls this his “budget build” because it has a plain Rem 700 factory action rather than the elite Borden actions he normally runs. Erik’s actions of choice are the Borden Mountaineer for PRS and Borden BRM-XD for F-Class.
Erik posted: “Shot my budget 6.5 Creedmoor … with Berger Bullets factory ammo. I shot five rounds over the chrono to get speed. I used BC info from the box and it all lined up properly. I adjusted my ECTuner to tune load and it took just 15 shots to get it shooting well. It’s simple with good components.”
This Berger factory ammo features Berger 130gr Hybrid OTM Tactical bullets. The Lapua 6.5 Creedmoor cases have a large rifle primer. You can see this ammo displays good velocity with Extreme Spread and Standard Deviation rivaling good hand-loads.
Cortina says the very accurate Brux barrel and razor-sharp 6-24x56mm Kahles scope help achieve this kind of outstanding performance at 1000 yards. Here are the key components for Erik’s latest PRS rig:
Barrel Tuner by Erik Cortina — Fits Behind Muzzle Brake
This rifle features a barrel tuner designed and crafted by Erik Cortina. You can the EC Barrel Tuner alone, or, as you can see, the EC Tuner can be fitted BEHIND a muzzle brake. Erik tells us: “The EC Tuner allowed me to tune the barrel to my ammo rather than tuning the ammo for barrel as is done when reloading. With the tuner, there is no need to try different brands of ammo as they can all be tuned to shoot as good as possible in my rifle.”
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Here are select product images from IWA Outdoor Classics 2023 trade show in Nuremburg (Nürnberg) Germany. We reviewed hundreds of images to find some of the more interesting products on display. We hope our readers enjoy this vicarious look at the IWA Outdoor Classics show.
There are over 220 photos online from the 2023 IWA Outdoor Classics event. You can access them through the IWA 2023 photo archive. Here are a few product images that we thought our readers would enjoy.
Twin CZ 600 Range rifles on display. The CZ 600 Range features a modern wood laminated stock and cold-hammer-forged barred. CZ guarantees 3/4-MOA accuracy at 100 meters.
Young lady looks through the latest Leica GeoVid Pro 8×32 Laser Rangefinder binoculars.
Schmidt & Bender FFP MRAD scope mounted on precision rifle with Masterpiece Arms (MPA) Chassis and 6.5 Creedmoor 1:8″-twist MPA barrel.
The IWA Outdoor Classics show is very much about hunting. Here’s a display of the latest and greatest camo and Hi-Viz (day-glo) apparel for hunters.
All shooters should ALWAYS wear quality eye protection that meets ANSI Z87.1 standards. This display shows that you can choose from a wide spectrum of lens colors and frame types.
Trio of Pulsar Optics — binoculars, thermal monocular, and thermal imaging binoculars.
Here’s a selection of GECO Express, Plus, and Star ammunition. GECO, now part of the Swiss RUAG group, was founded in Germany by Gustav Genschow in 1887. Today, GECO ammunition is manufactured in Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, and Hungary.
IWA Outdoor Classics features traditional hunting gear, such as these handsome brass hunting horns.
Crowd gathers at the Glock booth in the NürnbergMesse in Bavaria, Germany, home of the IWA Outdoor Classics trade show.
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Is factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition good enough to win a PRS or NRL competition? The answer is a resounding “YES” if we’re talking about Berger ammunition. Produced with Berger match bullets and premium Lapua brass, this Berger 6.5 ammunition demonstrated excellent accuracy, impressive velocity, and very good ES/SD numbers. When tested at 1000 yards with an MPA-stocked PRS rig with Rem 700 action, this ammo showed just half-MOA of vertical, and produced a group that would have been a 50-1X in F-Class competition. That’s quite impressive for a PRS rig.
This ammo test was performed by our friend Erik Cortina from Texas. Erik is a top F-Class competitor who also shoots tactical matches (for fun and glory). Erik recently built a new 6.5 Creedmoor with a Remington 700 action. Though this rifle sports a top-shelf MPA chassis and premium Kahles scope, Erik calls this his “budget build” because it has a plain Rem 700 factory action rather than the elite Borden actions he normally runs. Erik’s actions of choice are the Borden Mountaineer for PRS and Borden BRM-XD for F-Class.
Erik posted: “Shot my budget 6.5 Creedmoor today with Berger Bullets factory ammo. I shot five rounds over the chrono to get speed. I used BC info from the box and it all lined up properly. I adjusted my ECTuner to tune load and it took just 15 shots to get it shooting well. It’s simple with good components.”
This Berger factory ammo features Berger 130gr Hybrid OTM Tactical bullets. The Lapua 6.5 Creedmoor cases have a large rifle primer. You can see this ammo displays good velocity with Extreme Spread and Standard Deviation rivaling good hand-loads.
Cortina says the very accurate Brux barrel and razor-sharp 6-24x56mm Kahles scope help achieve this kind of outstanding performance at 1000 yards. Here are the key components for Erik’s latest PRS rig:
Barrel Tuner by Erik Cortina — Fits Behind Muzzle Brake
This rifle features a barrel tuner designed and crafted by Erik Cortina. You can the ECTuner alone, or, as you can see, the ECTuner can be fitted BEHIND a muzzle brake. Erik tells us: “The ECTuner allowed me to tune the barrel to my ammo rather than tuning the ammo for barrel as is done when reloading. With the tuner, there is no need to try different brands of ammo as they can all be tuned to shoot as good as possible in my rifle.”
MPA Chassis Configuration Guide
Erik’s “budget” PRS rifle employs a MasterPiece Arms (MPA) BA Competition Chassis with Rapid Adjustment Technology (RAT). This MPA Arms Video shows how to set up an MPA Chassis to suit the owner:
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Today we feature a top-flight tactical .22 LR rig belonging to Jonathan Ocab. A talented Highpower marksman with the Distinguished Rifleman Badge, Jonathan also enjoys rimfire tactical disciplines which he features on his Youtube Channel. Jonathan now runs a monthly NRL22 match in California. His interest in the NRL22 game started with a CZ 455, but soon he stepped up to the impressive rig you see here. This boasts all top-tier components: Vudoo V-22 mag-fed action, Bartlein barrel, MPA Chassis, and Kahles K525i scope. Jonathan carefully selected all this hardware and assembled the rifle himself.
My Vudoo/MPA Rifle for NRL22 and Long Range Rimfire Report by Jonathan Ocab,Ocabj.net.
I became interested in rimfire shooting due to not having as much access to longer distance ranges, and the emergence of NRL22 matches. Back in 2017 I had acquired a CZ 455 and ran it in NRL22 club matches. It worked well, but as I started spending most of my time on my club’s rimfire range, I focused on getting a Vudoo Gun Works V-22. The Vudoo V-22 appeared to offer a true repeater that had the feel of a full-sized centerfire rifle along with high accuracy/precision potential.
After a lot of research, I decided to put in an order for a barreled action and acquired a Vudoo Gun Works V-22 action with a 20″ Bartlein barrel, 1-16″ twist, and MTU contour, all in Flat Dark Earth Cerakote (along with a +30 MOA base). I then acquired the TriggerTech Diamond Trigger Pro Curved, Masterpiece Arms BA Comp chassis (in Flat Dark Earth), American Rifle Company M10 34mm rings (28mm height), and Kahles K525i 5-25x56mm SKMR3 LSW scope.
CZ as a Starter NRL22 Option — The CZ 450-series is a solid family of .22 LR rifles, but I wanted to see what existed beyond the CZ level of rimfire rifles. One of my complaints with the CZ 455 is that the trigger leaves much to be desired even with the trigger kits available. Since the Vudoo V-22 action has a Remington 700 footprint and can accept most Rem 700-compatible triggers, I can actually run a top-tier trigger that would exceed anything available for the CZ.
Component Selection for the Ultimate NRL22 Competition Rifle
My choices in components were biased due to my prior experience — I went with quality hardware I knew and trusted…
Barrel Choice — I chose the Bartlein barrel over Vudoo’s in-house Ace barrels because I run a Bartlein barrel on my 6mm Creedmoor rifle and I have become a big Bartlein fan. Secondly, I chose the Masterpiece Arms BA Competition chassis because I also run the MPA BA Comp on my 6mm Creedmoor rifle. You can see the two rifles side-by-side below:
You are not seeing double. There are two rifles, both with an MPA Comp BA chassis, and both weighing about 15 pounds. In front is the featured Vudoo-action .22 LR rimfire rig with 20″ barrel, while behind is Ocab’s ARC Mausingfield 6mm Creedmoor PRS/NRL centerfire rig with 24″ barrel.
After running this rifle build for over a year now, I can say that I am more than happy with this platform as I have it configured. Having a .22 LR rifle in the same chassis as my 6mm Creedmoor rifle makes me feel right at home behind either rimfire or centerfire platform. My Vudoo V-22 weighs 15.2 lbs with Atlas CAL bipod while my 6mm Creedmoor rifle build weighs right at 15.0 lbs with the same Atlas CAL bipod. The “feel” and handling of my Vudoo V-22 MPA is as close to a centerfire gun as you can get.
Scope and Rings — I chose the 5-25x56mm Kahles K525i SKMR3 LSW because I was interested in running the Kahles after handling a few K624i and K525i scopes and hearing about how great they tracked. I run ARC M10 rings on several rifles because I think they are superbly designed.
Trigger Choice — I chose the TriggerTech Diamond because I already have a TriggerTech on one of my centerfire platforms and I wanted to try their Diamond trigger on a gun.
Outstanding Accuracy with Multiple .22 LR Ammo Types — Lapua and SK
My .22 LR ammo of choice is Lapua Center-X. This is the most commonly-chosen ammunition among Vudoo V-22 shooters. I also had good results with SK Rifle Match and Lapua Midas+ in casual 50-yard and 100-yard testing but have stayed with Lapua Center-X because my rifle shot all the lots of Center-X I put into it equally well out to 200 yards.
SUMMARY — The Vudoo V-22 and MPA Package Is Outstanding
I can hands down recommend the Vudoo Gun Works V-22 for anyone who is interested in getting one. The “full-sized” rimfire rifle segment is not a one-horse race anymore and there are other options out there, but I feel very few will regret going with a Vudoo V-22 over another alternative. If you do not have a centerfire rifle designed for NRL/PRS style of shooting, you could probably just opt to go with a CZ 457 or Tikka T1x and have a lot of room to modify and tailor those rifles to your own tastes and still have an accurate rifle for NRL22. But if you also run a precision centerfire rifle, you should seriously consider a Vudoo V-22 or other 700-pattern rimfire action if purchasing a new .22 LR rimfire rig.
My Vudoo Gun Works V-22 build is an all-purpose gun for me. It is setup for NRL22-style matches but can be utilized for (extreme) long range .22 LR shooting (300 yards and beyond). For that rimfire ELR Game, I am seriously considering getting a Vudoo V-22S (single-shot) action to put in an F-Class stock to have a dedicated ELR .22 LR gun. While I built my Vudoo Gun Works V-22 with NRL22 in mind, I realized this gun could do more so I took it out to shoot 300 yards. After that, I stretched it out to 400 yards and then 500 yards in subsequent range visits. Now I am intrigued by extreme long range .22 LR shooting and often shoot 400 yards and beyond with the Vudoo V-22 when I can.
Long Range .22 LR Rimfire — Out to 500 Yards
Jonathan shoots his competition rifle in Long Range Rimfire matches with targets out to 500 yards. That’s definitely Extreme Long Range for the little .22 LR cartridge, requiring 27.8 MILs of up elevation! Jonathan notes: “I originally had a +30 MOA base on my rifle and it worked fine to 400 yards, but I ran out of adjustment on the K525i to get to 500 and had to hold over. I ended up getting a +40 MOA base.”
NRL22 Competition — Tactical Rimfire Matches
The NRL22 match format is a great shooting discipline. NRL22 offers a high fun factor at relatively low cost. You don’t have to reload match ammo. A couple of 50-round boxes of .22 LR ammo will get you through the match. While some people bring lots of gear to matches, that’s by choice and not by necessity. You can keep it simple and still be competitive (and win).
Tips for NRL22 Competitors
I am a match director at my gun club and run our local NRL22 matches. People often ask me for tips for competing in NRL22. First, I recommend getting the course of fire for the month in advance and practicing those stages at the range. Here are other specific tips that should help NRL22 competitors improve their gun-handling and match results.
1. Dry Fire Practice — If you are not able to do live fire practice at the range, I encourage shooters to practice their shooting positions at home via dry fire. Setup props or barricades with pasters or other faux targets on a wall in the garage or inside the house and run through each stage.
2. Scope Magnification Level — The most common issue I see with newer shooters in NRL22 is the tendency to maximize their scope magnification. The timer will start, and the shooter gets into position on a target, but the scope is set to 15x or higher and the shooter can’t find the target. The shooter lowers the magnification, locates the target, and then increases the magnification again, takes the shot, transitions to another target, and repeats the process of decreasing magnification, locating target, etc. Novice NRL22 shooters should try using the mid-range magnification. Try shooting 7x-12x and learn to balance field of view and target image.
The author at NRL22 Match at West End Gun Club in San Bernardino, CA.
3. Support Side Shooting — NRL22 matches often include support-side shooting stages. This requires you to shoot with your opposite (non-dominant) hand and eye. I often hear people complain about shooting support-side. My only real tip for this is to actually spend time at the range shooting this way. Practice makes perfect. It’s all a question of learning how to shoot again and using fundamentals. Learn to get a consistent cheek weld and consistent eye relief. If necessary, figure out if you need to set your scope’s diopter for your opposite eye and mark it on the scope.
4. Tripod Practice — Even though tripods are not used in the NRL22 courses of fire, I practice shooting off of a tripod often. I will often setup targets at various distances and spaced far apart to run drills firing shots on each target with the goal of speeding up transitions and target acquisitions. Target acquisition after transition from target to target is where time is lost, so it is good to become efficient in this area.
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Is factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammunition good enough to win a PRS or NRL competition? The answer is a resounding “YES” if we’re talking about Berger ammunition. Produced with Berger match bullets and premium Lapua brass, this Berger 6.5 ammunition demonstrated excellent accuracy, impressive velocity, and very good ES/SD numbers. When tested at 1000 yards with an MPA-stocked PRS rig with Rem 700 action, this ammo showed just half-MOA of vertical, and produced a group that would have been a 50-1X in F-Class competition. That’s quite impressive for a PRS rig.
This ammo test was performed by our friend Erik Cortina from Texas. Erik is a top F-Class competitor who also shoots tactical matches (for fun and glory). Erik recently built a new 6.5 Creedmoor with a Remington 700 action. Though this rifle sports a top-shelf MPA chassis and premium Kahles scope, Erik calls this his “budget build” because it has a plain Rem 700 factory action rather than the elite Borden actions he normally runs. Erik’s actions of choice are the Borden Mountaineer for PRS and Borden BRM-XD for F-Class.
Erik posted: “Shot my budget 6.5 Creedmoor today with Berger Bullets factory ammo. I shot five rounds over the chrono to get speed. I used BC info from the box and it all lined up properly. I adjusted my ECTuner to tune load and it took just 15 shots to get it shooting well. It’s simple with good components.”
This Berger factory ammo features Berger 130gr Hybrid OTM Tactical bullets. The Lapua 6.5 Creedmoor cases have a large rifle primer. You can see this ammo displays good velocity with Extreme Spread and Standard Deviation rivaling good hand-loads.
Cortina says the very accurate Brux barrel and razor-sharp 6-24x56mm Kahles scope help achieve this kind of outstanding performance at 1000 yards. Here are the key components for Erik’s latest PRS rig:
Barrel Tuner by Erik Cortina — Fits Behind Muzzle Brake
This rifle features a barrel tuner designed and crafted by Erik Cortina. You can the ECTuner alone, or, as you can see, the ECTuner can be fitted BEHIND a muzzle brake. Erik tells us: “The ECTuner allowed me to tune the barrel to my ammo rather than tuning the ammo for barrel as is done when reloading. With the tuner, there is no need to try different brands of ammo as they can all be tuned to shoot as good as possible in my rifle.”
MPA Chassis Configuration Guide
Erik’s “budget” PRS rifle employs a MasterPiece Arms (MPA) BA Competition Chassis with Rapid Adjustment Technology (RAT). This MPA Arms Video shows how to set up an MPA Chassis to suit the owner:
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Practical/Tactical fans, mark your calendars. The Precision Rifle EXPO is back for its second year, running September 28-29, 2019 at the Arena Training Facility in Blakely, Georgia. Last year, over 800 attendees came to the two-day event. This year, manufacturers will be showing off actions, optics, ammo, reloading equipment, stocks, chassis, electronics, supporting equipment (bags and tripods), rifles, triggers, suppressors, and much more. There will be training sessions on precision handloading, wind reading, marksmanship, ballistic devices, and introduction to competition.
Video Shows Arena Training Facility And EXPO Live-Fire Demos
The event lets precision rifle enthusiasts connect with top manufacturers, rifle instructors, and leading tactical competitors. You can Pre-Register for $35, or pay $50 at the door Sept. 28-29. Registration includes access to the exhibition tent and the range locations, plus the educational classes for both days.
All Types of Products Will Be on Display
The 2019 Precision Rifle EXPO will present products from dozens of top companies all in one place. This year over 50 companies will be at the EXPO, displaying complete rifles, actions, triggers, stocks, optics, reloading gear, ammo, electronics, rangefinders, chronographs, ear protection, support bags, bipods, tripods, and all manner of accessories.
Video Showcases Last Year’s Precision Rifle EXPO:
Precision Rifle EXPO 2019 Exhibitor List
At the 2019 EXPO, there will be over 50 Exhibitors. On hand will be leading rifle-makers along with producers of chassis, optics, barrels, and stocks. There will also be specialty manufacturers such as AMP Annealing, Kestrel, and Magnetospeed. And the Capstone Group will be there with Berger Bullets, Lapua Brass/Ammo, SK Ammo, and Vihtavuori Powder.
Accurate Ordnance
Alpha Munitions
Annealing Made Perfect AMP
Applied Ballistics
Area 419
Armageddon Gear
Army Sniper Assoc.
Atlas Bipod/AccuShot
BadRock
Barrett
Beretta
Bergara
Berger Bullets
Bore Tech
BraceBuilt
Burris
Cole-TAC
Daniel Defense
Defiance
Devil Dog Arms
Federal
Helix 6 Precision
ISC
Kahles
Kestrel
KG Mada
Kiote
Knights Armament
Lapua
Arena Training Facility — 2300 Acres with Ranges out to 2100m
The 2300-acre Arena Training Facility is a premier shooting facility with multiple shooting ranges from 50m to 2100m. Arena’s 1000-yard covered Known Distance range offers multiple benches, steel and paper targets out to 1000 yards. On Arena’s UKD (unknown distance) range shooters can engage steel out to 2300 yards. This 2100m UKD range boasts a 3-Story Shooting Tower, Air-Conditioned Shoot House, and multiple Positional Challenges.
At last year’s EXPO, Long-Range Clinics were held on the 1000-yard Range:
The Arena Training Facility is located approximately two hours from the Hartsfield Airport in Atlanta, Georgia and is centrally located in the Southeastern USA.
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What does it take to win in the tactical game? Ask Oregon’s Jon Pynch. He won the 2018 National Rifle League (NRL) 2018 Championship event along with three out of six of the bolt-action PRS matches in which he competed this year. And with 300 points overall this season, Jon has been a #1-rated shooter within the Precision Rifle Series (PRS). In most sports you’d call that an MVP performance.
PRS Competitor Jon Pynch had a superlative run in 2018, scoring victories in many big matches, capped off by winning top honors at the 2018 NRL Championship. And as you read this, this very day (December 2nd) Jon is shooting at the PRS Season Finale at the Triple C Range in Cresson, Texas. Here is Jon Pynch’s 2018 competition record:
2018 National Rifle League Champion
2018 National Rifle League Finale Winner
2018 Rock Lake NRL Match – Jon Pynch – 1st Place
2018 JC Steel High Mountain PRS Match – Jon Pynch – 1st Place
2018 Meaford PRS Match – Jon Pynch – 1st Place
2018 NCPPRC NRL Match – Jon Pynch – 1st Place
2018 Gunwerks PRS Match – Jon Pynch — 1st Place
NRL Champ Jon Pynch was interviewed for the NRL’s Precision Rifle Channel. Click the Red Arrow above to hear a wide-ranging 45-minute audio interview with Jon, with highlights listed below, so you can skip to key sections.
JON PYNCH PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS:
0:00 to 8:45 — 2018 NRL Championship
9:00 – The mental aspect of shooting
16:30 – Jon’s mindset going into a match
20:30 – What gear Jon ran this season
28:20 – Jon’s hunting background
30:55 – The next up-and-comers in the sport
41:20 – Plans and goals for 2019
43:55 – Three (3) under-rated items Jon can’t shoot without
Pynch won 3 out of 6 PRS bolt-action matches he shot in 2018. Pynch runs a landscaping business in Oregon. When time permits, he travels around the country to tactical matches. He grew up around guns, starting with his trusty BB gun, and the passion grew. About 14 years ago, Pynch started to dabble in long-range shooting from the hunting side. In the past few years, he has focused more on competition, observing how the sport has changed: “Over the past couple of years, I’ve noticed it feels like the level of competition and the level of quality products are growing at an incredible rate.”
CLICK HERE for full size image showing gun details.
The MPA BA Competition Chassis has many notable features: RAT System and multi-function Arca Swiss Rail provide a variety of bipod locations. There is a special rotating barricade stop, plus a spigot mount on the front of the fore-end which can extend the “wheelbase” between front and rear support. A clever Weight Tuning System allows competitors to adjust gun balance and reduce felt recoil.
State of the Art PRS/NRL Tactical Rifle:
Above is Jon’s Match Rifle shown from summer 2018 with older barrel chambered for 6mm Dasher. These shots were taken during a fire-forming session. John says: “On right (below) is unfired Lapua 6mmBR round. Shoot it and it turns in the case on the left. 6mm Dasher. 25 formed… 975 to go! Alamo Precision Rifles did a great job on this chamber/barrel. It’s won a few matches and placed well in a few others, but after 1800 rounds I think I’ll use the rest of its life as a practice/fireforming barrel.”
Making Brass — 6mmBR loaded round is fire-formed into 6mm Dasher 40° improved case:
Jon Pynch’s Favored Hardware — Curtis Vector Action, Kahles Scope, MPA Comp Chassis
Like many PRS/NRL competitors, Jon uses the MPA Competition Chassis, the most-utilized chassis in the 2016 and 2017 PRS series. The match rifle above sports a Curtis Custom Vector Action with Proof Research barrel. For optics Jon has recently used a Kahles scope in the rock-solid, MPA BA Mount, the #1 Mount used in the PRS in 2017.
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Cortina says the very accurate Brux barrel and razor-sharp 6-24x56mm Kahles scope help achieve this kind of outstanding performance at 1000 yards. Here are the key components for Erik’s latest PRS rig:
