This Friday, July 17th, the CMP hosts the Vintage Sniper Rifle Match at Camp Perry. One of the most popular vintage rifle matches held each summer at Perry, this is a two-man team competition using scoped rifles of WWI and WWII Vintage. Many competitors use some version of the M1903 Springfield, but you’ll also see scoped M1 Garands, K31s, Mausers, and even a Lee-Enfield or two.

Two-person teams will fire 10 rounds in 20-second intervals from scoped vintage military rifles set on sand bags. One team marksman shoots from the prone position at 300 and 600 yards, while the other serves as a spotter to relay shot position. Marksman and spotter switch positions on the firing lines, allowing each teammate to play both roles. Scores are then combined for an Aggregate team total.

Two M1 Garands, fitted with scopes and lace-on cheekpads.

Who can identify this rifle, with its unusual scope mount?

Our friends at Criterion Barrels have written an interesting article about last year’s Vintage Sniper Rifle Match. It you want an “insider’s perspective” on the 2014 Match, plus Vintage Sniper gunsmithing tips, read this article. Here are some highlights:

About the Match and the Rifles
The Vintage Sniper Match was the brainchild of Hornady’s Dave Emary. The competition was inspired by his father, a World War II scout sniper, who carried a rifle similar to the 1903A4 rifle builds that can be found today on the Camp Perry firing line. Bob Schanen worked alongside Dave and the CMP staff in establishing the various competition rules prior to the first official Vintage Sniper Match in 2011. The match developers made a point to offer some level of flexibility in rifle configuration, allowing specific types of non-issue optics and rifle rebuilds. This helped make the match more inclusive.

Hornady’s Dave Emary and “Gunny” R. Lee Ermey (right):

Bob Shanen has two vintage sniper competition rifles. Both builds are based off of the USMC Model 1941 sniper rifle, a design similar to the M1903A1 National Match rifle. Bob’s rifles both carry 8x Lyman Junior Target Spotter scopes with a thin crosshair reticle. Bob attributes a large part of his rifle’s accuracy to the Criterion M1903 match-grade barrels installed on each rifle by Rick Humphreys, a Milwaukee area gunsmith. These tack-driving barrels are capable of half-MOA accuracy.

Camp Perry — The Venue
The hallowed grounds of Camp Perry have hosted some of the nation’s finest shooters each summer for more than a century. Some of the world’s greatest marksmen have accomplished remarkable feats on the ranges of this lakeside military outpost. Located on the coast of Lake Erie, Camp Perry is positioned just outside of the scenic town of Port Clinton, Ohio. It is our firm belief that every shooter should make the pilgrimage to the Camp Perry at least once in their lifetime. If not participating in an event, visitors should at least make an attempt to meet the competitors, witness the wide selection of firearms used by participants, and pay a visit to the various vendors on base.

Photos from Garand Thumb Blog and NRA Blog.

Scopes of this design, with micrometer click external adjustment, were once favored by long range shooters. The Marine Corps utilized this style of externally-adjusting scope on sniper rifles during WWII, Korea, and the early stages of the Vietnam conflict. Today, a mint-condition, original USMC-marked scope can sell for as much as $5,000. And with the current interest in vintage sniper rifles, just a working standard model Unertl scope in good condition can still bring $2,000 or more.

With its $549.00 price at Creedmoor Sports, the Hi-Lux USMC-Sniper repro scope is far more affordable than a serviceable original. Like all Leatherwood/Hi-Lux Optics, the Wm. Malcolm USMC-Sniper model comes backed with a limited lifetime warranty. Each 8X USMC-Sniper repro scopes will be serial numbered — as were the original USMC models. Leatherwood/Hi-Lux also sells a variety of long-tube, external-adjusting scopes that are quite popular with BPCR shooters and vintage rifle fans.

Leatherwood/Hi-Lux already markets a variety of long-tube, external-adjusting scopes that are quite popular with BPCR shooters and vintage rifle fans. The new USMC repro scope, priced at $549.00, duplicates the original windage and elevation controls on the 50s/60s-era USMC scope. But the new Hi-Lux offers modern multi-coated lenses. Hi-Lux claims this scope offers the “brightest and sharpest optics ever in a riflescope of this design”. That’s quite a boast — the “real deal” Unertls were pretty darn good.

The 8X USMC repro scopes are marked with the “Wm. Malcolm” name over the USMC-SNIPER model designation, and each will be serial numbered — as were the original USMC models. The Marine Corps utilized this style of externally-adjusting scope on sniper rifles during WWII, Korea, and the early stages of the Vietnam conflict.

With its $549.00 MSRP, the Hilux USMC-SNIPER repro scope is far more affordable than a serviceable original. Like all Leatherwood/Hi-Lux Optics, the Wm. Malcolm USMC-SNIPER model comes backed with a limited lifetime warranty. If this scope proves to be of decent quality, we expect it will become popular for the growing Vintage Sniper Rifle discipline, which allows reproduction optics.