GA Precision to Build Tactical Rifle with Phoenix Actions

Glen Harrison, creator of the original Nesika actions, has been designing and building precision bolt actions for over 15 years. Glen’s products are known for high-quality machining, precision tolerances, and superior accuracy. Glen’s Nesika Bay operation was sold to Dakota Arms, but Dakota tried to grow too big, too fast, and has experienced some difficulties.

Glen has started a new company, appropriately called Phoenix Machine Technologies. Phoenix is currently up and running, building a variety of actions. Some of the first Phoenix actions will be the new Templar design. The Templar features a Rem 700 footprint, Picatinny rail, precision-ground recoil lug, and oversize bolt knob. The Phoenix Templars will be used in the new Crusader Tactical Rifle built by G.A. Precision, of Kansas City, MO.

George Gardner, owner of G.A. Precision, is pleased that Glen is back in the action-building business. He reports the new Phoenix actions are top-quality: “At G.A. Precision, we use only top notch, field-tested, durable parts and accessories. We are proud to be offering the Templar Action, built by Glen Harrison at Phoenix Machine Technologies.”

For more info about Phoenix Machine Technologies, LLC, call (406) 756-2727, write to 36 Jellison Lane, Suite B, Columbia Falls, MT 59912, or email Lisa [at] boltactions.net .

BoreScope Story Shows Different Types of Fouling

A quality borescope is a pricey tool, but once you have the opportunity to use one, it is hard to imagine how you ever did without it. Rifle Shooter magazine has an excellent article about using a Gradient Lens Corp. HawkEye BoreScope.

In this feature, What the Eye Can See, writer Terry Wieland explains how to inspect for defects in new barrels, how to recognize different kinds of fouling (in both barrels and brass), and how to spot throat erosion in its early stages. The current generation of HawkEyes can be attached to a still or video camera to record digital images of your bore. The most interesting part of the article is on the second page. There, author Wieland provides photos of various types of internal flaws that can appear in barrels. This will help you spot pitting, excessive land wear, rust damage, and damage from corrosive primers.

Wieland also explains that BoreScopes aren’t just for barrels: “The borescope has other uses as well. It can be used to examine the interior of a cartridge case to look for the beginnings of a case separation or to examine the interior of a loading die that is giving you trouble. When you consider the number of tubular objects that play such an important role in rifle shooting, it is a wonder we were ever able to function without such a method of studying bores.”

Schatz Sets Pending IBS Record in South Dakota

Richard Schatz, 2007 IBS 600-Yard Shooter of the Year, has done it again. While competing in the South Dakota 600-yard State Championships, Richard nailed a superb 5-shot group that may be a new IBS 600-yard Heavy Gun score record. Richard tells us: “Got home from the VHA Jamboree and IBS 600-yard South Dakota state championship match held last week at Fort Pierre, SD. During the 600-yard match I managed to lay down a ‘lucky’ 50 for score in Heavy Gun with a 0.634″ group for a potential new score record.” While other perfect 50s have been shot in competition, under current rules, group size is the tie-breaker. Schatz’s impressive 0.634″ group, we believe, is the smallest “50″ shot to date, and one of the smallest groups ever shot at the 600-yard distance. Amazingly, there is just one bullet diameter of vertical:

In the South Dakota Championship, Richard won Heavy Gun group, finished second in HG score, and finished third overall for the Two-Gun. Richard was shooting his trusty 6mm Dasher in both Light Gun and Heavy Gun classes. This rifle features a Shehane Baby Tracker stock, Nesika Model ‘K’ RBLP, right-eject action, and a 27″ Krieger barrel. The chamber is basically a no-turn neck, but Richard does “clean up” his necks, turning them to a uniform .013″ neck-wall thickness. Richard’s match load was 33.0 grains of Reloder 15, with 105 Berger VLDs, seated about .005″ off the lands. This load runs 3020-3050 fps. Richard notes: “That’s the [velocity] spot where every barrel I’ve had likes to run.”

Richard used Sierra 107gr Match-Kings with great success last year. He recently switched to the Berger 105 VLDs. His testing at 250 yards showed that the Bergers “had a very slight edge in agging capability. It wasn’t much…but enough that I decided to go with the Bergers.” Richard’s Krieger barrel has about 800 rounds through it, and he typically cleans the bore every 70-90 rounds: “I’ll clean after a match, and don’t let it go past 100 rounds.”

Heller Files New Lawsuit vs. District of Columbia

It took years of litigation to do so, but Dick Heller and his team of lawyers prevailed in the U.S. Supreme Court, establishing that the U.S. Constitution guarantees Heller’s right to have a handgun in his District of Columbia home for self-protection. Despite that landmark victory, the D.C. politicians charged with complying with the High Court’s ruling are still trying to impose strict requirements on handgun ownership. D.C.’s amended handgun laws limit the types of handguns allowed while imposing strict licensing requirements that are difficult to satisfy.

As a result, Dick Heller, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that overturned Washington’s 32-year-old handgun ban, has filed a new lawsuit against the District of Columbia. In a complaint filed Monday in U.S. District Court, Dick Heller and two other plaintiffs allege that DC’s new gun regulations still violate rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The lawsuit cites the District of Columbia’s ban on firearms that carry more than 12 rounds of ammunition, which includes most semi-automatic handguns. The suit also claims that the city’s regulations make it all but impossible for residents to keep a gun ready for immediate self-defense in the home.

Plainly, the District of Columbia is attempting to skirt the D.C. v. Heller decision. By imposing difficult licensing regulations, the District’s politicians hope to maintain a de facto ban on handguns in place of the previous absolute ban. We applaud Heller’s effort to haul the District back into Federal Court to ensure full compliance with the Supreme Court’s ruling.

U.S. Olympic Shooters on Shooting USA and NBC Television

Members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Shooting team will be featured in an hour-long repeat special of Shooting USA on the Outdoor Channel on Wednesday, July 30 and Wednesday, August 20. The show will air at 4:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 12:00 midnight (ET). Check your local listings or visit www.shootingusa.com or www.outdoorchannel.com for more details.

Photos courtesy USAShooting.org

Shooting USA will profile the competitors and explain the various Olympic shooting disciplines: Air pistol, Air rifle, Smallbore pistol, Smallbore rifle prone, Smallbore rifle 3-position, Skeet shotgun, Trap shotgun. Among the featured competitors will be Olympic Gold Medalists Matt Emmons (Air rifle, Smallbore rifle), and Kim Rhode (Skeet/Trap).

Television and Internet Shooting Sports Coverage for Beijing Olympics
NBC will offer regular broadcast coverage of some Olympic shooting events. In addition, internet users can view live streaming video of shooting events from Beijing as part of 2,200 hours of coverage on NBCOlympics.com. The NBC Olympics website will cover Matt Emmons as he tries for double gold, and cover Kimberly Rhode in her fourth Olympics. If you miss a live television broadcast, more than 3,000 hours of on-demand access to full-event replays and extensive highlights, including daily recaps of key events, best-of montages, commentator analysis and athlete-specific clips and interviews, will be available on NBCOlympics.com. For more info, visit USAShooting.org.

NBC has prepared a complete broadcast schedule for the 2008 Olympic Games. The shooting events are highlighted in yellow. Click the Links below to download broadcast schedule and shooting events schedule as MS Word files.

Complete NBC Broadcast Schedule for the 2008 Olympic Games

Complete 2008 Olympic Shooting Competition Schedule

Alliant Reloder 17 Powder in Stock at Grafs.com

UPDATE: Grafs.com is temporarily SOLD OUT as of 7/31/2008.

Based on German Salazar’s recent Reloder 17 powder test on this website, many readers have been anxious to try out this new double-base powder. German found that Reloder 17 provided dramatically enhanced velocities for his 6XC, and it looks promising for other cartridges which work well with H4350 or H4831sc.

CLICK HERE to order Reloder 17 from Grafs.com

Reloder 17 remains in short supply, but Grafs.com has one-pound containers in stock for $18.59, product # HCRL171. As of 9:00 am July 29, 2008, Graf’s had 300 total pounds in stock. You may want to place your order soon, as we expect this to sell out quickly. Other vendors, such as Powder Valley Inc., should receive shipments soon, but we can’t say just when.

Shehane Big Dawg 4″-Wide MBR Tracker

Bill Shehane has a new version of his MBR Tracker stock. This features a longer, deeper, and wider fore-end for added stability and more resistance to torque with the heavy calibers. Called the MBR ‘Big Dawg’, this stock is cut 4″ longer than a standard Shehane ST-1000 Tracker. This provides a “longer wheelbase” for better balance with very long (30″+) barrels. (The ST-1000 itself is 3″ longer than most benchrest stocks.) The Big Dawg is available with a 4″-wide or 5″-wide forearm, and will handle barrels up to 40″ in length and 1.5″ in diameter. In the top photo, taken by Forum member Preacher, you see a 4″-wide Big Dawg next to a normal ST-1000 Tracker. (Both stocks are symmetrical; there is distortion caused by wide-angle lens.)

This color pattern is what Bill calls “Prairie Dog Camo”, a Rutland laminate in orange and dark gray, with olive ‘accent’ layers. The price for a ‘Big Dawg’ in Rutland laminate is $525. In African Obeche wood (any color choice), the price is $725.00. For more info, contact Bill Shehane at (704) 824-7511, or visit his website, www.ScopeUsOut.com.

30-Cal Lapua 155gr Scenar Bullets on Sale

The .308 caliber 155gr Lapua Scenar is one of the top-performing bullets for Palma competition. It is also an excellent choice for any .308 shooter seeking superior long-range match performance with reduced recoil. Lapua bullets, in our experience, have proven extremely uniform, and the forgiving tangent ogive design shoots well both “jumped” and “jammed”. Some shooters prefer these bullets seated firmly into the rifling, while others get best results with the Scenars jumped .015″ or more.

The 155gr Scenars are currently on sale at MidwayUSA, item 203923. As part of an inventory reduction sale, MidwayUSA has cut its price on Scenars from $39.49 to $29.63, a 25% savings.

Save Big on 1000-count Bulk Bullet Packs
For an even better deal, Grafs.com has 1000-count boxes of 155gr Scenars for $256.79 (item LU4HL7073). That works out to just $25.68 per 100 and Graf’s price for the 1000-count box INCLUDES shipping. For an even lower price, Powder Valley sells the 1000-count box of 155gr Scenars for $237.92, item LAPHL70731000. You’ll find other types of Lapua bullets VERY competitively priced at Powder Valley. Note, however, unlike Grafs.com, Powder Valley does not include shipping in the price of the bullets.

Army Marksmanship Unit Teams Dominate Interservice Match

The 2008 Interservice Rifle Match was held recently in Quantico, Virginia. Shooters of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) won EVERY team match of the competition. More than 125 shooters from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Reserve and National Guard competed in the rifle championships at Quantico Marine Corps Base.

The Army Marksmanship Service Rifle Team won the prestigious Interservice Rifle 10-Man Team Match, winning the Service Rifle Interservice Championship Trophy. Team coaches were Sgt. Walter E. Craig Jr. and Sgt. 1st Class Emil Praslick III. Shooters were Sgts. 1st Class Lance D. Dement, Grant L. Singley and Kyle A. Ward, Staff Sgts. Joel S. Micholick and Tobie L. Tomlinson, Sgt. Brandon K. Green, Spcs. Tyrel L. Cooper, Calvin G. Roberts, Matthew T. Sigrist and Nathan J. Verbickas. Ward shot highest score of 495 points out of a possible 500.

The USAMU Team coached by Praslick beat 12 teams to win the Marine Corps Infantry Trophy Team Match. Team shooters were Cooper, Dement, Green, Pace, Singley and Ward. A second USAMU team coached by Tomlinson took second place.

ARs and 6.5×284 Bolt Guns for Long Range
In the 1,000-Yard Team Match, Praslick’s team won in the Any Rifle Any Sights Division by 52 points. Staff Sgt. Daniel J. Peters captained the team made up of Cooper, Green, Tomlinson, Dement, Roberts and Pfc. Sherri Jo Hurd. In the long-range matches, USAMU soldiers shoot modified M-16A2 rifles and the 6.5×284 match rifles with scopes or iron sights to hit a 10-inch X-ring target from the prone position at 800, 900 and 1,000 yards.

The USAMU also took home some individual trophies as well. Green won the Interservice Long Range Championship in the Any Rifle Category and Sigrist took the Service Rifle Category. Green was the winner in the Interservice 1,000-Yard Match. In the 600-Yard Match, Dement won the Any Sight Category while Craig won the Service Rifle Category.

National Database of Shooting Ranges

Are you headed to another part of the USA for a summer holiday and want to find a shooting range near your destination? Perhaps you’ve recently relocated and need to find a nearby shooting facility. Or maybe you’re just looking for a facility close to home that offers instruction or specialized programs for women or juniors. You can quickly find exactly what you want at the WhereToShoot.org website.

A service of the NSSF (Nat’l Shooting Sports Foundation), WhereToShoot.org offers a Searchable Database of pistol, rifle, and shotgun ranges around the country. You can search by state, or select a particular distance from any zip code. The database is very complete. The individual range pages also include web addresses, phone numbers, and map links. The example below shows the results of a search for rifle-specific ranges in Arizona:

Five-Star Ranges
Your search results may reveal ranges identified with up to five stars. This is a rating system developed by the National Association of Shooting Ranges (NASR) that distinguishes these ranges as the best at providing quality-level recreational experiences.

Quality Eye Protection at Bargain Prices

Proper eye protection is a “must” for all shooting sports. Even when shooting rimfire guns you should wear eye protection. A wide variety of styles and shapes are available. However, any shooting glasses you choose should provide ANSI Z87+ safety standard impact protection. We see many shooters that just wear ordinary glasses with non-tempered glass lenses. That’s not wise. Ordinary glass lenses can shatter on impact.

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to get superior quality shooting glasses. The UVEX line of safety glasses are durable, comfortable, and inexpensive. Featuring interchangeable lenses, UVEX glasses meet ANSI Z87.1-2003, CSA Z94.3 and MIL-STD-662 standards. Uvex safety glasses are the world’s top-selling protective eyewear brand.

The popular UVEX ‘XC’ style, shown above, comes in a variety of styles, starting at $8.50 per pair (clear lenses). The most expensive you can buy are still under $12.00. Replacement lenses range from $2.50 to $8.50.

The UVEX Genesis, shown below, is our favorite model. It features extended side shields and has been rated #1 for comfort by an independent testing group. The Genesis, starting at $7.65 per pair, has an elastomer brow guard, and soft, pliable nose pads making it very comfortable to wear for extended periods. It meets the Mil V0 ballistic test for impact. Like the ‘XC’, the Genesis features interchangeable lenses (including Clear, Amber, Espresso, Gold Mirror, and SCT glare-reducing lenses), and four different frame colors (black, brown, Vapor Blue, and Patriot RWB).

You can buy UVEX glasses at gunshops or on the internet. You’ll find great prices on UVEX safety glasses (and replacement lenses) at DiscountSafetyGear.com, Cooper Safety, and Tasco-Safety.com. Tasco Safety also carries many other stylish, ANSI Z87.1-approved safety glasses, including the Edge Dakura ($9.25 for Clear, Amber, Smoke, and mirrored lenses), and the Smith & Wesson 30-06 by Olympic Optical ($7.50).

SEB Front-Rest Sand-Bags — Outstanding Product

We’ve had our SEB coaxial front rest now for many months and we are impressed with its quality and performance. One of the great features of the SEB Rest is the front sandbag. It employs double-layer construction on the sides and bottom, and has a unique microfiber material on the surfaces contacting the stock. The bottom of the bag is hard and flat, so the bag sits nice and square. We whole-heartedly endorse the SEB front bag — it is an outstanding product, affordably priced at $20.00.

We’ve tested both 3″-wide and 2 1/4″-wide SEB front bags and they work great. With guns ranging from 22 lbs. to 10.5 lbs. we’ve found that that SEB front bags perform very, very well. They hold their shape, and don’t “hump up” in the middle. The microfiber material, in our opinion, is superior to either Cordura or untreated leather. Even without stock tape on your gun, the microfiber allows the rifle to slide very easily. With stock tape, friction is super-low. You don’t need to put silicone, sailcloth lube, or powder on the front bag — it’s not necessary.

Less Vertical, Better Groups with SEB Front Bag
One of our testers was experiencing vertical when shooting a 6 PPC with a different front bag. He tried both leather and Cordura front bags, and experimented with various amounts of sand fill, but the results were unsatisfactory. The leather and Cordura bags either did not hold their shape, or, with more sand fill, they were too hard and the gun jumped. Then our tester switched to a SEB front bag. He noticed an immediate improvement in gun handling and his targets showed reduced vertical with the same load. Problem solved. That tester is now consistently shooting groups in the low- to mid-ones off a SEB rest with SEB front bag.

While the SEB front bag is optimized for use with the SEB coaxial rest, it can be adapted to other front rest tops. The standard version is made from black microfiber with brown leather, but it is also available with black leather sides. The standard vertical thickness for the 3″ or 2 1/4″ section between the ears is approximately 1″, but other dimensions are available on request. The latest SEB front bags have a filler spout on each side.

SEB front bags are available in the USA from Paul Schmid in Ohio, (330) 684-2596, email: coyote [at] zoominternet.net . Call for current pricing. Price of standard SEB front bag in the USA is $20.00, while a SEB front bag for the big Farley Rest is $25.00.