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April 6th, 2013
Story by Lars Dalseide for NRABlog
Bloemfontein, South Africa — The South African Rifle Team jumped out to an early lead in yesterday’s America Match at the General de Wet Range. Gaining ground in each of the four relays, the South Africans’ final tally reached 2362.251 before teams from the U.S. and England fired their final shot. By then, South Africa was in the clubhouse with a 13 point win.
The America Match is a four-round team competition shot at 300, 600, 800 and 900 meters. Made up of eight-man teams, each has the opportunity to score up to 600 points per round. Shot last year during the NRA Long Range High Power Rifle Championships in Camp Perry, this is the first America Match win for South Africa.
Having Long Range High Power Rifle Fun in the African Sun
Though one may try, it is truly impossible to simulate game day situations in practice. All the preparation in the world will never prepare you for the tension or adrenaline spike that accompanies real life. The distractions are even greater when competing in South Africa.
Not only is there the incredibly long plane ride, a new culture to embrace and new cuisines to devour, there’s also the local wildlife to consider. Don’t believe me? Then listen to what Alex Williams had to say on the England Rifle Team website:
Aside from keeping a beady eye on the targets, there were several opportunities to cop a look at the local wildlife – dawn is heralded by the cooing of pigeons and the squeaking of hundreds of small starlings. Zebras and elegant giraffes festoon the grasslands on the drive from the hotel to the range. Springbok prance through the fawn coloured savannah startled by the passing minibuses. Dinner also provides an opportunity to sample some of the local wildlife, which generally appears medium-rare.”
Redemption via the Rifle Awaits
Though the American Match holds a special significance to those of us here in The States, American shooters have to toss those results aside. Same goes for the the English, the Welsh and the Irish. After all, they are only three days into ten day of competition. There are plenty of victories left to be had.
Having the home field advantage has played well into the South African’s hands so far. The heat, the elevation (4,500 feet above sea level) and familiarity with the surroundings makes aiming that rifle all the more favorable for the locals. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. Things can change.
Yesterday’s match saw Team USA finish second. Under the leadership of Head Coach Norm Anderson, along with coaches Emil Praslic and Steve Harding, Team USA’s shooters (including Lane Buxton, Brandon Green, Michael Storer, Ty Cooper, Bob Gill, Nate Guernsey, Anette Wachter and Dave Crandell) are sure to find their mark soon enough.
Thanks to Anette Wachter and James Watson for contributing to this post … both with pictures (Anette’s) and information. Follow Anette’s coverage of her long range high power shooting saga at www.30calgal.com.
March 28th, 2013
Many of our readers ask: “Where can I find a top-quality rifle case that will hold my scoped, long-barreled F-Class, or Benchrest rifle?” Most of the cases you’ll find at retailers are only good for guns with max barrel lengths in the 27-28″ range. And many of these cases are a tight fit if you have a large scope with big tall turrets and side parallax knobs.
Well here’s good news for owners of rifles with long barrels (up to 32″ in length). Starlight Cases offers the SC-081454 Double Rifle Case featuring a deep lid that measures 3″ from top to bottom. The increased clearance provided by the 3″-thick lid provides additional protection, without creating side loads on your scope that can cause reliability issues. What’s more, making the lid taller allows the hard case to better fit wide-forearm rifles and rifles with attached bipods.
SC-081454 cases are currently on sale at StarlightCases.com for $288.00 (10% off). That’s not inexpensive…. but when you’re hauling up to $7000.00 worth of rifle and optics, that’s money well spent for the added protection it provides, particularly during airline transport.
Internally, the SC-081454 Double Rifle Case is 8″ Deep X 14″ Wide X 54″ Long. That’s long enough to hold rifles with barrels up to 32″ — so this case can hold Palma, Long-Range Benchrest, and F-Class rifles. Case weight, unladen, is 26 pounds. You can custom-fit the interior to your rifle by cutting the layered foam with a hot knife. The SC-081454 hard-case also includes a molded-in recessed wheel kit for ease of transport. These cases are offered in black, Olive Drab, and “flat dark earth” colors.
Why the Deep Lid is a Good Thing: We’ve seen issues with bulky rifles (with large scopes) jammed into cases with insufficient clearance from top to bottom. This can put side-loads on your scope turrets that can lead to problems down the road. While you don’t want your rifle to shift during transport, at the same time you don’t want the case lid and bottom pressing on the rifle optics. We do recommend cutting the foam to create a fitted recess for your rifle.
The patented Latch-Lock™ System (with O-ring seal) on Starlight Cases ensures an airtight, watertight, chemical resistant protective case. Fitted with a pressure equalizer valve, Starlight cases are tested watertight and airtight to 400′ pressures. These durable hard cases are temp-tested from -65° to 200°. ATA-approved Starlights exceed the stringent Military MIL-C 4150J testing standards. All Starlight cases are Made in the USA and backed by an Unconditional Lifetime Warranty. In addition, If for any reason you are not satisfied with your case when it is delivered, you have 7 days to return the case to the manufacturer for a full refund.
December 4th, 2012
 In his Riflemans Journal Blog, German Salazar has authored an excellent article on IMR 4320 — The Forgotten Powder. German tested IMR 4320 and found that it produced outstanding results both in the .308 Winchester and the 30-06. This means that shooters have another very effective propellant option for their .308 and 30-06 match rifles. With H4895 and Varget being hard to obtain lately, you may want to give IMR 4320 a try.
German writes: “IMR 4320 falls right between 4895 and 4064 on the burn rate scale for most cartridges — in other words, right where Varget falls. Yet, despite having a very useful burn rate, 4320 has languished for decades while newer powders of similar burn rate have gained in popularity. I was interested in seeing what current production IMR 4320 would do in the .308 with the 155gr Palma bullets. My interest was sparked by the obvious fact that Varget and H4895 have been very hard to get lately while IMR 4320 sits on the shelves.”
German loaded up some .308 Win loads with IMR 4320 and moly-coated Sierra 155gr Palma bullets. German’s “practical max” load delivered 2990 fps in his long-barreled Palma rifle. This is certainly competitive speed-wise.
German observed that: “IMR 4320 has very small granules and throws very consistently from the powder measure — it is very much like Reloder 15 in granule size — so for those who prefer to throw charges it’s a good choice.”
Satisfied with the chron results, German loaded more rounds with the two most promising charge weights and used them in a 500-yard prone match at Ben Avery (ambient temps were 60s-80s F). Here is his report:
“As in the chrono tests, all IMR 4320 loads were with moly-coated Sierra 155 Palma bullets, Winchester brass and PMC primers. Powder charges should be reduced at least 1.0 grain for bare bullets. The load with 45.0 grains of IMR 4320 gave me a 199-12X with the single 9 being a high shot just off the 10 ring line at 12:00. Overall, I would rate that load as good, very useable for the intended purpose of 500 or 600 yard shooting (it’s 2844 fps) but no better than my H4895 load for that purpose.
Next I fired the heavier 47.0 grains ‘practical max’ load and that was an eye opener. The score was 200-15X in conditions that were windier than those in which the first load was fired. Elevation was noticeably tighter and shots were exactly on call. This load gives 2990 fps, so it has real potential as a Palma load. While no 500-yard test can ensure results at 1000, given the MV and reasonably low SD of this load as well as the good performance at 500, I won’t hesitate to shoot it at 1000 at the first opportunity. Warning: this was a STRONG LOAD and may not be safe in your gun.
Overall, I’m very satisfied with what I’ve seen in these past few days from IMR 4320 and plan to shoot it in some of our upcoming Palma and 1000-yard matches with the 155s. It appears to be a very useful alternative to some of the harder to get powders.”
CLICK HERE to Read Complete IMR 4320 Story (includes chron data and match test results).
August 19th, 2012
Not content with their great performances at the NRA Long-Range Championships and America Match held at Camp Perry, shooting teams from Australia and Great Britain have crossed our northern border in search of new worlds to conquer. Brit and Aussie shooters are now in Ottawa, Ontario, competing at the 130th Canadian Fullbore Rifle Championships. Held at Ottawa’s famed Connaught Ranges, the Fullbore Championships attract many of the world’s top marksmen, including David Calvert of the Great Britain Rifle team. After completing the initial Ottawa Regiment match, Calvert leads the way in the target rifle division. Calvert posted a 75-12V, narrowing edging Justin Hearn (75-11V)
Along with the sling-shooters, F-Class competitors test their skills this weekend in Ottawa. Alexander Tklitch shot a 75-7V to lead the F-Open Division, while Kevin Chou posted a 74-10V to top the F/F field by two Vs. Why are we referring to “Vs” rather than “Xs”? In international competition, the “V” area is the center-zone equivalent to our X-Ring in the USA. However, the Scoring Ring values are different. On International fullbore and F-Class targets, the highest scoring ring has a value of 5, not 10 as in the USA. So, a 75 score represents the max points possible for 15 shots. If all those shots land in the V zone, the total, for 15 shots, would be 75-15V.
Story Based on report from NRAblog.com.
August 15th, 2012
SGT Emil Praslick of the USAMU just provided this report from Camp Perry: “The America International Rifle Match is complete. In the end, after shooting virtually level with the powerhouse that is the Great Britain Rifle Team, we held off a late charge by GB at the 1000-yard line to win by 3 points. Both sides fired four hundred and eighty bullets each… and it came down to three points on a ten-point target. Unbelievable.” The final scores (4800-480X possible) are: USA 4784-308X; GBRT 4781-305X; Canada 4743-260X; Australia 4729-233X; Japan 4377-109X.
Praslick commented: “I continue to be impressed not only by the quality of GB shooting and coaching, but by their sportsmanship as well. We could all learn some lessons from their team. You cannot possibly find better sportsmen — within seconds of the final shot they were over here shaking hands. They are the best sportsmen I have ever seen.”
Shot over the course of a day, eight-man teams from each country took faced off at Camp Perry’s Viale Range, with stages at 300, 800, 900 and 1000 yards. Though the Americans leaped ahead in round three, Team Great Britain’s hot shooting in the fourth and final relay was almost enough to make the difference. “If we every have another one like this it’ll be enough to kill me,” joked one U.S. coach.
Established in 2002, the America Match is open any country with an eight-man rifle team. This is a biennial match for .308 Win caliber Palma-type match rifles. The teams gather every two years to test their mettle in one of the toughest shooting competitions in the world. Held every four years in the United States, this is the first time it the match was conducted at Camp Perry. The NRA Whittington Center in Raton, NM, previously served as the USA host venue. With its 2012 victory, Team USA is now tied with Team Great Britain with three America Match wins each.
Story based in part on Report by Lars Dalseide in NRABlog.
August 14th, 2012
Breaking News from Camp Perry – Based on preliminary score tabulations, David Luckman of Great Britain is the 2012 NRA National Long Range Champion. Luckman finished with a 1246-74X.
 As reported on NRABlog.com, Luckman topped a very competitive field, with a strong final day showing: “After a practically perfect performance in today’s Palma Individual Trophy Match (449-31X), it appears that David Luckman of the Great Britain Rifle Team will be crowned tonight as the NRA’s 2012 Long Range High Power Rifle Champion. A veteran of the International Long Range Rifle world, Luckman’s list of accolades includes the 2010 World Individual Long Range Rifle title as well as seventeen consecutive UK Grand Aggregate crosses.”
David started shooting with Sedgemoor Target Shooting Club. He became an Atheling in 1994 and has since toured with the GB team to Canada, the USA, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia. A truly great marksman, in 2010 Luckman shot 4 international matches in four consecutive days (National, Kolapore, Mackinnon and Australia) without dropping a single point.
David works for Clerical Medical in Bristol as an Actuary. In his spare time he is an avid sports player and qualified tennis coach. He competes in triathlons and half marathons as well as enjoying mountain biking, surfing, swimming and other sports.
May 9th, 2012
Forum member Ryan Pierce set a pending new F-Class Open National Long-Range record this past Sunday at a Long Range Regional Palma Match in Lodi, Wisconsin. Ryan shot a “clean” 450 with 24 Xs in a 800/900/1000 match at Winnequah Gun Club. Once certified, Ryan’s 450-24X score tops the 449-33X record set by Robert Bock in 2008. To make the story even better, Ryan smithed the gun himself, doing his own metal and stock work! Ryan’s record-setting rig is a .284 Win with BAT action, Brux barrel, and Precision Rifle & Tool (PR&T) stock. Ryan shot Berger 180gr Hybrids pushed by H4831SC and CCI BR2s. Interestingly, Ryan set the record with a ‘dirty barrel’. By the time he finished the 1000-yard stage on Sunday, he had put over 150 rounds through his barrel since its last cleaning. Ryan wasn’t just being lazy — he had noted that the vertical tightened up the more rounds he shot.
Ryan Reveals How Record Was Set
Ryan tells us: “I had actually debated using my 6BR last weekend but didn’t and used up my last box of 180 Hybrids. They are seated .025″ off the lands with 56.0 grains of Hodgdon H4831SC and a BR2 primer. This load is running 2900 fps. I had 1 1/2 min of wind on and was favoring another half minute. I had excellent pit service, 6 seconds, by Jeff Dick. I knew he was fast so I figured ‘let’s rock and roll’. I was done in 3 to 3.5 minutes. I was pretty stoked. Halfway through the relay I started shaking pretty bad. After my last shot came up a 10 I was all smiles and couldnt believe I’d shot the 450.”
Above is Ryan with his rifle and 1000-yard target. He had two (2) sighters in the 9-ring, but the rest were 10s and Xs. Jim tells us: “As the string went on Ryan started flirting with the bottom of the 10 ring. Those pasters were removed to validate that they were indeed solid 10s.” Jim adds: “I witnessed Ryan’s 900- and 1000-yard strings and had the pleasure of signing the score card on the 1000-yard string, it was amazing to watch and see Ryan so excited about accomplishing this.”
Ryan Pierce SPEAKS OUT
CLICK “PLAY” to hear Ryan TALK about setting Nat’l Record with .284 Win at Lodi. |
[haiku url=”http://accurateshooter.net/Video/pierceaudio215.mp3″ title=”Ryan Pierce Talk About F-Class Record”] |
Above you can see Ryan’s 800- and 900-yard strings on the same target. Jim See reports that: “Due to the rain delay, and some relay jockeying, Ryan ended up being the last shooter at 800 and the first shooter at 900, all on a clean target. So when [Ryan] hit the pits he took the picture, not knowing what was in his near future.” NOTE: The 800-yard stage allowed unlimited sighters, so there are a few shots out of 10 Ring. At the 900- and 1000-yard distances, two sighters were allowed at each yardage.
We congratulate Ryan for his great shooting. This was a tough record to beat. Forum member Nodak7mm says: “This was great shooting by an awesome up-and-coming shooter in the F-Class arena. Ryan is definitely a force to be reckoned with….”. Click the link below to hear Ryan talk about setting the record, and some surprising changes he made the day of the match.
Ryan Pierce .284 Win F-Open Rig Specifications
Ryan provided this info on his record-setting rifle: “The gun has a BAT ‘M’ action (Jewell trigger), Brux 32″ 1:9″ twist barrel, and a Ray Bowman (PR&T) F-Open ‘low boy’ stock with adjustable cheekpiece and adjustable buttplate. The scope is a Nightforce NXS 12-42x56mm. The barrel has 1300 rounds through it. All the metal and stock work was done by me.” Ryan’s record-setting load consisted of Berger 180gr Hybrids pushed by H4831SC and CCI BR2s at 2900 fps. This was a straight .284 Winchester.
February 14th, 2012
Report by German Salazar
The 2012 Berger Bullets Southwest Long Range Nationals fired last week at Phoenix’s Ben Avery Shooting Facility left competitors from all over the US and Canada smiling and ready to return for next year’s event. With over 200 competitors from 40 states and several Canadian provinces, this was truly a national level event and the scores reflected that intensity. However, it wasn’t just about the shooting; as at any large rifle match, renewing old friendships, seeing friends from the AccurateShooter Forum and enjoying time and a few meals with them are just as important.
Complete Individual and Team Match Results will be linked here as soon as available.
F-Open Individual Grand Aggregate (RTF) | Palma Team Results (interim) (PDF)
The week began on Tuesday with a wind reading clinic by Mid Tompkins who knows more about how air moves across a rifle range than just about anyone. Next in line was Wednesday’s 600-yard match, a nice warm-up for the long-range shooting to come. Thursday we got down to business with a Palma team match. The sling winners were the US National Team composed of Trudie Fay, Bryan Litz, Justin Skaret and Peter Church. In F-Open, the winning team was Team Norma/Berger composed of Larry Bartholome, John Brewer, Danny Biggs, and Jim Murphy. The winning F-TR team was the Arizona State Rifle & Pistol Assn. squad, with Warren Dean, John Chilton, Steve Lockwood and German Salazar.
Individual shooting resumed on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as well as one more team match at 1000 yards. Conditions throughout the week were picture perfect as cool mornings gave way to afternoons in the mid 70’s. One of the Canadian shooters mentioned that it was 35 below at home on Saturday while we were in shirt sleeves! The wind was challenging without ever being as vicious as it can be on certain days in Phoenix. More than one Eastern shooter was heard to comment that they had never seen wind as switchy as this. Overall, it tested one’s ability without reaching a level of frustration — just perfect. Trudie Fay was the overall winner in the sling category, Jim Murphy in F-Open and James Croft in F-TR, but many other shooters won cash and bullets from our generous sponsor Berger Bullets as well as many door prizes at the barbeque from Nightforce, Krieger, Leupold, Sierra and many others.
Put this match on your list for next year, it’s well worth the effort. We have 100 firing points (check out the photo below) and we’re ready to put them all to use!
All-Star Instructors Lead Clinic
 A training clinic was held on Feb. 7th (Day 1), with a true all-star cadre of instructors. The clinic started with Nancy Tompkins instructing sling shooters on proper position/shooting style, while Darrell Buell and Larry Bartholome did the same for F-TR and F-Open shooters. Mid Tompkins then conducted a lengthy wind clinic which featured a series of drills at 1000 yards to observe specific wind trends. Many shooters commented on the benefits of the exercise as well as the opportunity to get some ‘trigger time’ before the main event. Finally, Bryan Litz (photo right) gave a class on long-range ballistics.
October 22nd, 2011
 It’s Sunday, October 22nd in Australia, on the other side of the International Dateline. That means that the World Long Range Rifle Championships (WLRC) has concluded. The last major event was the Palma Cup Match, the most prestigious event in full-bore competition. The 2011 Palma Match has been completed with Team Great Britain the clear winner with a total Aggregate of 7027-651V. That’s 35 points ahead of South Africa which took second with a score of 6992-651V. (Interestingly had exactly the same V-count, for Center hits). Team USA captured the Bronze Medal, finishing third with a total of 6980-655.
 Yanks Finish Third
Our friend Kelly Bachand, one of the Team USA Palma shooters, reports: “I’m a very proud member of the 2011 bronze medal winning USA Palma Team! There was very, very stiff competition and the conditions on the range tested our coaches and shooters thoroughly. After two long days of shooting we found ourselves bested by Great Britain and South Africa. While we did not win gold, this was still a tremendous accomplishment for our team, and I was very proud to shoot alongside the best rifle shooters in our country and from around the world.”
Link for Match Results
Preliminary results for the Palma Team Match and all the 2011 World Championships events are available online. For results for both individual and team events, visit the WLRC Results Page.
October 20th, 2011
Great Britain’s Richard Jeens won the Individual World Long Range Full-Bore Rifle Championship in Brisbane, Australia with a final score of 725-49V. (A “V” is a center-ring hit, equivalent to an “X” in American matches). Ceremonially hoisted in the air by his fellow competitors at the awards ceremony, Jeens was all smiles, having earned a title he’ll retain until the next World Championships in 2015. Jeens topped a field of 374 shooters from seven countries. Andre Du Toit of South Africa took the Silver Medal after a shoot-off for 2nd/3rd position against bronze-medal winner David Luckman of Great Britain. CLICK HERE for complete results.
Finishing 5th overall in the Three-Day Aggregate, Jeens had to rely on his shooting skills (plus a little bit of luck) to win the shoot-off (the top ten competitors after three days of competition advance to a final shoot-off.) The little bit of luck came by way of the winds during the 1,000-yard phase of the competition. Long Range shooters usually deal with all sorts of conditions, but the day’s wind was enough to knock a few of the favorites (such as SGT Sherri Gallagher) out of the Top Ten. Nonetheless, it was a well-deserved win, and we congratulate Richard on his achievement. Looking at Richard’s winning rifle, we surmise his victory settles the question whether a thumb-hole stock will work for long-range prone shooting — it seemed to suit Jeens just fine.
Jeens wasn’t the only hot-shooting marksman from Great Britain in the competition. Fellow Brit David Luckman shot a 723-68V, matching South African Andre Du Toit for the second highest score (Du Toit then prevailed in a shoot-off for second place). Only 4 Vs behind her team-mate Luckman, Great Britain’s Jane Messer finished fourth with 723-62V. Notably, three women finished in the Top 10, led by Messer, with Americans Trudie Fay and Nancy Tompkins in sixth and tenth, respectively. Heading into the final day of the Individual Championships, Nancy’s daughter SGT Sherri Gallagher was in the lead, but she dropped points in the very windy conditions on the last day.
With the individual side of the competition complete, all that remains is the Palma Match. Here are the final individual scores:
Photo Credit: US Palma Team member Dave Cloft. Report by Lars Dalseide for The NRA Blog.
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