All the latest information at your fingertips

October 2010 Issue

Imperial Meeting
Part 2
more of ‘This
Smallbore
Business’

Breaking the
Mould
Part 3

F Class and
Centerfire Benchrest
News
Target Shooter 1
UK Rimfire & Air Rifle BR Championship • Project Rifle • New Products • and lots more…..
2 Target Shooter
 Target Shooter 3
Welcome to the October Issue......................

.......of Target Shooter

Sections
12 Project Rifle Part 2
by Vince Bottomley 6 Shooting Sport News

11 Shooters Calendar

21 Shooting Black Powder
16 2010 Pistol by Chris Risebrook
Imperial Meeting
Part 2 25 Breaking the Mould Part 2
by Chris White by Vince Bottomely

41 2010 Diggle Fly Shoot

by Vince Bottomley
33 Custom Rimfire
46 IPAS, AAS & the 1911 by
Benchrest Rifle Build
Vince Bottomley
by Andy Dubreuil
61 Coal!! by Vince Bottomley

67 EVO Engineering

Association Pages
52 Hanloading Bench
by Laurie Holland 82 NRA

85 UKBRA

87 UKBR22

92 F- Class

96 Gallery Rifle
71 This Smallbore
Business 100 UKPSA
by Don Brooke

77 2010 British
Gallery Rifle
Championship
by Gwyn Roberts

4 Target Shooter
 Editor(s).
Carl Boswell and Vince Bottomley
Advertising and Office Manager
email; admin@targetshooter.co.uk
Contributors
Vince Bottomley Tony Saunders Chris White
Laurie Holland Chris Risebrook Carl Boswell
Don Brook Alan Whittle Gwyn Roberts
Les Holgate Andy Dubreuil

Webitorial - October 2010

Our rather abysmal summer is now past and we only have winter of cold, wet shooting days to look
forward to.
One bright spot on the horizon is the British Shooting Show which will once again be held at the
Newark Showground the last weekend in February 2011. I went last year and had a thoroughly
good day and found it to be a good location, excellent value and plenty to see.
Show organiser, John Bertram has already been in touch with us as he is hoping to attract as many
of the shooting Associations as he possibly can. He will be providing space and tables absolutely
free of charge, though in turn, you must be prepared to man your stand over the two days of the
Show. This is a great opportunity to promote your particular discipline to a captive audience. Let
us know please if you would like to be part of this. There’ll be a couple of free admission tickets for
stand-holders.
Of course, not all of us put our rifles away for the winter and one of the biggest shoots of the year
will be taking place at Bisley 5/6/7th November. The European F Class Championship is now in its
fourth year and this year, it will be the largest F Class competition every held – anywhere! There
will be a massive contingent of overseas shooters from Italy, Spain, Russia, France, Ukraine, Ger-
many, Belgium as well as the whole of the UK. Target Shooter will be there, competing as usual, so
look out for a full report in our December issue.
This year, the International Paralympic Committee Shooting World Cup will take place at Stoke
Mandeville Stadium 1/3rd October and following that, we have the Commonwealth Games in New
Delhi to look forward to. Shooting is one of India’s main events, so it should get good TV coverage
but it remains to be seen if the BBC choose pick it up.

Until next month. Vince, Carl & Andy

Carl Boswell - carl@targetshooter.co.uk and Vince Bottomley - vinceb@targetshooter.co.uk and

Andy Dubreuil - admin@targetshooter.co.uk Copyright © Trinity Digital Publishing Ltd
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individuals attempting to recreate such testing using any information, data or other materials in its electronic pages.Publishers of Target Shooter magazine.

Target Shooter 5
 Shooting Sport News
metal.
So, we were interested to see
mention of a new small-scale
production, precision-made
magazine fed hand priming tool
that uses the Auto-Prime operating
method (and the Lee magazine and
primer seating plunger assembly). It
is slightly larger than the Lee tool,
also much more robustly made
with a high-quality aluminium alloy
body and operating handle and
The new 21st Century large diameter steel connecting
Shooting hand rod complete with a brass button
priming tool set up for to ride the body floor smoothly.
.223 Remington Likewise the main hinge-pin is a
goodly sized steel component and
N ew Hand Priming Tool from 21st Century
Shooting Primers and priming are often
neglected parts of the handloading process,
the operating handle is properly locked to it in
use by a setscrew. Everything fits absolutely
precisely, not a trace of slop anywhere. Lee
the cheapest available models of the former
Auto-Prime shellholders fit the body, but a set of
purchased, the latter job often performed on
five precision machined brass shellholders that
a bench press lacking any feel so there is no
cover the PPC, popular 0.473” case-head dia.
guarantee of consistency in the pressure or
numbers (BR, .308W, .30-06 etc); the .222/223
depth applied. Ideally, the primer should be
Rem ‘family’, and magnum cases is supplied with
‘felt’ into the bottom of the case pocket then
the tool. The result is really smooth operation
pushed in marginally further with just the
and lots of ‘feel’. But the benefits don’t stop there
slightest hint of ‘crush-fit’. This can only be
– undoing a small locking setscrew using the
done on a good bench-mounted priming tool,
supplied Allen key and rotating a small disk on
or better still a precision handheld device – but
the end of the operating handle hinge-pin varies
they are invariably expensive (around £120 for
the Sinclair model by the time you pay
for carriage and import duties and that
excludes any shellholders needed) and
limited to handling one primer at a time.
Many handloaders use the cheap and
cheerful magazine fed Lee Auto-Prime,
a little ergonomic miracle, but whose
operating parts fit where they touch. This
tool is best described as ‘semi-sensitive’,
the feel through the handle varying from
case to case during a priming session.
Most long-term Auto-Prime users have
had one component or other break in use Turning the light-coloured
too, although recent production models wheel varies the primer
are more robust and we note that the seating distance, hence
latest version uses an ‘unbreakable’ steel ‘feel’ on the end of the
connecting rod instead of pot or sintered operating handle stroke

6 Target Shooter
the length of seating plunger travel to suit your handling charge. We know of a dealer who is
primer production lot, brass, primer pockets and talking to 21st Century Shooting about importing
personal preference as to how ‘hard’ you seat these tools and if this takes place it would
primers. We’re impressed! The Lee magazine spread carriage and handling charges reducing
/ seating plunger assemblies slot into the tool the unit price somewhat. What you don’t get
body as per the Auto-Prime and allow a quick for your £80 is the Lee Auto-Prime magazine
switch between the two primer sizes. (You may assemblies, so if you don’t have this tool
need to remove moulding sprue frazes from the already, you’ll need to spend another £15 or so.
underside of the plastic magazine bodies such
is their close fit in the 21st Century tool body.)
For further information on this and other specialist
reloading tools from 21st Century Shooting, visit:
The US ex supplier price is $79.99 which http://21stcenturyshooting.com or contact the
becomes $96.44 or around £64 at the current owner on reloadingtools@rocketmail.com.
rate of exchange when you add USA-UK postage The vendor has a PayPal facility, so transatlantic
charges. Unfortunately, Royal Mail ParcelForce purchase is no problem, but as noted, we
International then adds another £16 made up of hope to see a home based seller here soon.
17.5% VAT and its £8.00 customs and import

N ew Lapua Brass competitors in being dimensioned for the Small

Rifle primer and also has the small (0.0615”)
Tim Hannam, the handloading specialist and diameter flash-hole found in precision cartridges
Lapua importer has had two long-awaited such as the BRs and PPCs, the objective being
new cases from the Finnish manufacturer in to reduce velocity spreads. The benefits only
stock for a month or two, and our handloading materialise at very long ranges, so if you shoot
man Laurie Holland recently acquired both up to 600, or even 800 yards, save your pennies
models, .308W ‘Palma’ and .22-250 Rem. and stick to the standard version that uses the
There is nothing ‘special’ about the Lapua .22- Large Rifle primer. If you do go for the ‘Palma’,
250, superb production quality aside – a boon remember you must not use your .308W sizer
given the popularity of the cartridge and its use die with the factory supplied decapping pin –
as the basis for several precision cartridges. it is essential to use the appropriate smaller
Conversely, the .308W ‘Palma’ differs from its diameter version.
Measurement Summary 

      .308W ‘Palma’        .22‐250 Rem 

Weight Range    170.7‐171.9gn (47:170.7‐171.6gn)    160.1‐161.5gn 

Modal weight(s)    171.0‐171.1gn (14); 171.3‐171.4gn (13)   160.5‐160.6 (10); 160.9‐161.0gn (12) 

Length range    2.007‐2.009”        1.901‐1.903” 

Modal length(s)    2.008” (27); 2.009” (18)      1.901” (26); 1.902” (21) 

Neck thickness range (50)  0.0141” – 0.0156”        0.0137” – 0.0143”     

Maximum individual range  0.0013”          0.0004” 

≤0.0005” variation   84% of sample        100% (92%: ≤0.0003”) of sample 

Target Shooter 7
 
Newly introduced Lapua .308 Winchester ‘Palma’ cases with small primer pockets and
flash-holes on the left, and .22-250 Rem examples with standard large primer pockets on the
right with a new large blue cartridge box behind
You might have heard recently produced Lapua
cases referred to as ‘Blue Box’ from their being
supplied in sturdy flip-top injection moulded
boxes of that colour that double up as 50-round
cartridge boxes, but are rather big for our liking
in that role. It is said by some that Lapua has
concurrently reduced neck-thickness specs on
some models, maybe the result of an exercise
in reducing production tolerances even further.
Laurie will report on the effect of the ‘Palma’
small primer / flash-hole on some .308W F/
TR loads in due course, but in the meantime
he’s provided the results of a measurement
exercise on 50-case samples. Both were very
much up to normal Lapua standards in length
and weight control, the former seeing all bar a
handful within a thou’ variation, the latter seeing
a 1.2gn, or less than 1%, spread over the fifty
cases. However, it was measuring case-necks
at three equidistant points that showed the real
consistency of these production lots. The .308W
samples were found to have slightly thinner
necks than seen in previous lots averaging a
little under 0.015” compared to 0.015-0.016”,
and 31 out of 50 gave three readings within a
range of 0.0147” to 0.0150”, not even requiring
a minimal ‘clean-up’ neck-turn. Another 11
displayed almost as small a range but outside
of 0.0147-0.0150”, and normally on the slightly
larger side, so would be neck-turned to the top
end of that range. Only eight cases exceeded
8 Target Shooter
half a thou’ (0.0005”) variation around the neck.
There have been reports that the new Lapua
.22-250 Rem brass is superbly consistent and
Laurie’s 3-point neck measurements on the
50-case sample supported this with a range of
only 0.0006”, or just over half a thousandth of an
inch across 150 readings, the smallest individual
result 0.0137”, the largest 0.0143” (on different
cases). Necks averaged 14 thou’ thickness and
13 actually measured precisely that at all three
points with another 20 producing readings within
a mere 0.0003” range around 14 thou’. I’ve
never previously seen any out of the box brass
anywhere approaching such closely controlled
neck thickness values. All measurements
were taken with a Sinclair/Starrett case-neck
micrometer that reads to 0.0001”.
Laurie found one other difference from other
Lapua brass he’s handled recently – smaller
diameter flash-holes. Lacking any means of
measuring same, his judgement is based on
whether the appropriate Sinclair flash-hole
reamer removes metal or not, the small
diameter example dimensioned at 0.0625”, the
larger at 0.0810”, 0.001” larger than nominal
specifications. Previously, Laurie has found all
Lapua cases to have larger diameter holes than
the reamer (6BR), or mostly (.223 Rem), but
every case in these two samples had a smaller
diameter flash-hole than the reamer, some
needing several turns of the tool.
T HALES AUSTRALIA / A.D.I.
HANDLOADERS’ GUIDE 5th EDITION
ADI (Australian Defence Industries as was, now
won’t find any data for the 6.5X47 Lapua or
its 6X47L wildcat sibling. (You will find data for
6mm X 47, but that is the old pre-PPC benchrest
part of the multinational Thales conglomerate) / varmint ‘wildcat’ that sees the .222 Remington
published its 5th edition handloading guide a Magnum case necked up to take a 6mm
few months ago, and this 174 page document bullet.) Incidentally, the QuickLOAD PC internal
is available free online as a 5.25MB Adobe ballistics program holds ADI powders in its
Acrobat (PDF) file. Why should TargetShooter propellants database and I’ve seen it suggested
mention this when we don’t see ADI powders in that selecting AR2208 provides different and
the UK? Actually, we do – but under Hodgdon more accurate results than are obtained from its
brand names, the American outfit buying its Hodgdon VarGet equivalent – but this may not
extruded stick-form propellants in bulk from apply to more recent versions of the software.
ADI. See the table for ADI-Hodgdon
equivalents. Well, even so, Hodgdon is
very good at providing data for its powders
both in printed and online forms, so we
hardly need another loading guide, do
we? We at TargetShooter would disagree
on the basis that you can’t have too much
information when planning and developing
loads, and this guide provides copious
amounts with 94 pages of rifle cartridge
data. For instance, the popular .223
Remington has 67 combinations listed for
40 to 90gn bullet weights, of which 56 are
for Hodgdon equivalent powders available
here. (This includes an interesting
subsonic 55gn load of 3.2gn ADI AS30N
[Hodgdon Clays] pistol / shotgun powder
for 1,060 fps MV.) Secondly, with the
longstanding Australian interest in small
capacity and calibre precision cartridges
including many ‘wildcats’, data are
available for many unusual cartridges,
or examples not catered for in ‘normal’
manuals including no fewer than seven
.17 calibre examples, the .22 Waldog, and
http://www.adi-powders.com.au/
.22BR to pick a few examples at random.
handloaders-guide/
Downsides? The guide is unusual by
today’s standards in not quoting bullet
make/model, only weight, and surprisingly
given their popularity ‘Down Under’, you

Target Shooter 9
  

MORE SHOOTING SUCCESS FOR GB TEAM 
 

The GB Disability team had more success on Friday at the IPC Shooting World Cup at Stoke 
Mandeville . 

Di Coates won the gold in the R2 Air Rifle Standing event for women with Lotta Helsinger (SWE) in 
second place and Monica Lillehagen (NOR) taking the bronze. 

Di who has competed in 7 Paralympic Games said, “I am fully focused in my attempt to compete in 
my 8th Paralympics in 2012. This event has given all of the GB team a taste of what it will be like to 
compete in a top level event on home soil”. 

In the R1 10m Air Rifle Standing competition for men, Nathan Milgate came first with Werner Muller 
(AUS) and Norbert Gau (GER) in second and third place respectively.  

The final British medal of the day was yet another gold, this time won by Rob McLeary in the R4 10m 
Air Rifle standing (mixed). He beat Victoria Wedin (SWE) and Tanong Chanan (THA). 

This means that Team GB have won five of the possible 6 gold medals to date, and look forward to 
adding to this tally over the weekend.  

You can find news and results from the event on www.ipcshootinggb2010.co.uk. 

10 Target Shooter
 Calendar of events over the next few months
If your club or association has events you want to publicise here then email us.
23 Oct to 24 Oct Club Coach Course (National
Shooting Centre (NSC), Bisley)
Candidates should be experienced shooters who
have already completed a Club Instructor course.
This course covers coaching techniques, and
methods of instruction. Candidates will be
formally assessed on the range and in the delivery
of classroom lesson. Qualified Club Coaches may
run NRA Probationary, Skills and Club Instructor
Courses. Contact Phyllis Farnan via the NRA
23 Oct to 24 Oct Trafalgar Meeting
(National Shooting Centre (NSC), Bisley)
Shooters with a historical Inclination will turn
towards the Trafalgar Meeting as memories of
the Imperial fade. Don’t forget to apply for the well
supported Trafalgar Dinner held on the Saturday
night at the ARA Officers Mess. In addition to the
shooting there Is anArms Fair held In Bisley Pavilion.
Contact Brian Thomas via the NRA
31 Oct GB 300M Club Championships (National
Shooting Centre (NSC), Bisley)
30 Oct to 31 Oct Gallery Rifle - Autumn Action
Weekend (National Shooting Centre (NSC),
Bisley)
This is the last of the 2010 main Gallery Rifle
Action Weekends that encourages ‘Action
Shooting’ for the Gallery Rifle community who
visit Bisley. This includes competitions for Gallery
Rifles both Smallbore and Centrefire and Long
Barrelled Revolvers and Pistols. There are also
competitions for those of you who have an
interest in Target Shotgun. For shooters who
crave longer distances there are Fullbore
‘Action’ competitions are held simultaneously at
200 yards.
Pick your latest free copy of the GR & P
handbook up from the NRA or via the NRA
website.Contact Brian Thomas via the NRA
05 Nov to 07 Nov European F Class
Championships (National Shooting Centre
(NSC), Bisley) Contact(s): Mik Maksimovic
13 Nov to 14 Nov Range Conducting Officer
Course Two day course - successful candidates
will be qualified to conduct live firing on MoD or
TAVRA ranges. Contact Maureen Peach - NRA

Welcome to GT Shooting.
The premier shooting sports shop in Surrey

Fullbore & .22LR Optics

Black Power Ammunition
Air Rifles and Pistols Reloading equipment
Used rifles and Pistols and more...

Our premises are located at

53 Chipstead Valley Road, Coulsdon, Surrey, CR5 2RB
www.gtshooting.co.uk

Tel: 020 8660 6843

Fax: 020 8660 6843
We are conveniently situated near the M23 & M25.Shooter
Target 11
Opening times: Tuesday to Saturday 10.00am - 5.30pm
 Project Rifle Part 2

by Vince Bottomley
believer in never spinning a bullet faster than you
need to but, we are not attempting to set any
benchrest records with this rifle so I’m happy with
the Bartlein’s 1 in 8.5 twist, giving the eventual
owner the option to use a wide range of projectiles.

Our GBR has a separate recoil-lug sandwiched

between the barrel and action and, because I have
more than one barrel for most of my rifles, I’m not
a fan of recoil-lugs of this type. It makes barrel-
In the July issue of Target Shooter, we gathered swaps a little more tedious in that it’s necessary
together all the components for our project rifle to remove the barrelled-action from the stock.
build. This rifle is a tactical-style rifle but really it However, the GBR lug is ‘pinned’ to the action so
will be suitable for many competitions such as F no problem. If the lug isn’t pinned it can be a real
Class and even long range benchrest etc. What pain, especially if the lug is also bedded. When
makes it different is the action – a GBR – a new the barrel is tightened, the lug has a tendancy
all-British action employing the Remington 700 to spin, making exact alignment very tedious.
footprint yet built to custom action standards.
When mating a custom action and barrel,
This month, we will drop our barrelled-action into excessive torque isn’t necessary. Factory
the stock, then we will see if our Bell & Carlson barrels are installed really tight, often using
tactical stock really is a Remmy ‘drop-in’ – though adhesive and can take some shifting! Don’t
I suspect we will need to hog out the barrel overdo it with your custom rifle - especially if
channel for the fluted heavy-profile Bartlein. you are regularly swapping barrels. Make sure
The barrel has a 1 in 8.5 twist, which will stabilise however that the threads are scrupulously clean,
6.5mm bullets up to 139/142 grain, though I lubricate with a quality high melting-point grease
prefer to use the 123 grain Scenar or even the (barrels get hot!) and make sure you apply a
108 grainer in the 260 Rem. Yes, I am a great little grease to the barrel-shoulder and action-
face as well as the threads,
A close-up of Dave’s otherwise the joint may gall
immaculate DuraCoat when you tighten it. Don’t
work overdo the grease and make
sure you don’t leave any
on the inside of the action.
I’ve taken a good cut out
of the Bell & Carlson’s
barrel-channel and our
Bartlein now has a generous
free-float clearance. I don’t
intend to carry out any further
work on bedding until I have
at least shot it but, there is
one more step. I mentioned
that the chrome-moly
action will normally be

12 Target Shooter
 Vit N550, Federal
primers, Lapua Scenar
bullets, Lapua brass and
Forster body-die and
Wilson seater die proved
to be a very effective
combination.

offered with a polished deep blue/black finish
but, as this rifle has a distinct ‘tactical’ feel about
it, I’ve asked Dave Wylde of South Yorkshire
Shooting Supplies to DuraCoat© it for me.
Dave is quickly establishing a reputation for his
gun painting and I have seen some very nice
examples of his work recently. Yes, you can
buy your own can of paint and attempt to do
it yourself but, as the man said – it’s all in the
preparation! Dave starts off by grit-blasting all
surfaces to be painted, followed by a thorough
de-grease. The DuraCoat is then given a low
temperature ‘bake’ which really hardens the
coating and makes for a not only attractive but
also a very durable finish. I’ve seen some of
Dave’s ‘wild ‘n’ wierd’ finishes but for this job I’m
going for a nice drab tactical green which will
tone nicely with the existing green of the Bell &
Carlson stock. (Next month in Target Shooter,
we visit SYSS and watch Dave DuraCoat a rifle).

Running-in and load

development – not
something to be rushed!

Target Shooter 13
 Load development of copper inside the barrel which will take
is quicker if you absolutely hours to remove and, if we don’t
can do it on- remove it, the barrel will never deliver its best.
range. I’m very
lucky to have Running-in is not something to be rushed – it’s taken
covered firing- me a full afternoon and any load-testing will have
point at Diggle - to wait for another day. However, I have arrived
with electricity for at a load which does not exhibit any pressure
my scales. signs and groups already look promising. I’ve
also checked that rounds are feeding smoothly
from the magazine and ejection and extraction
are working properly. The new GBR action feels
like a custom action should and the bolt opens
and closes with that ‘knife through butter’ feel.
The Timney trigger is breaking crisply but a little
heavy but it looks like we have a nice rifle.

After another session at the range, I now have

Dave really pulled out all the stops and turned the
job around in a week. Because this is a custom
action built to close tolerances, Dave felt it better
not to coat the bolt-body as this would remove
the essential clearance. I was pleased to see
that the recessed bit of the crown was also left
untouched. At this stage the rifle has not been
proofed and I’m wondering if this was a mistake –
I have seen rifles damaged at the proofing stage
by careless handling – fingers crossed!
a rifle which is a genuine sub. half MOA rifle. In
fact, throughout running-in, I don’t think I shot a
group over half an inch. It will push out the 123
grain Scenars at around 3000 feet per second,
which will guarantee supersonic performance all
the way out to 1000 yards. My own 260 Rem.
tactical rifle delivers similar accuracy but, I
wonder – is there any more in this rifle? After all,
it is built on a custom action with Bartlein barrel.
I started playing with the load – knocking off
the odd tenth of a grain. I ended up with a tiny

I’m using Vhitavuoi’s N550 double-base powder

in the 260 Rem. as this powder has worked
very well in my own 260Rem. Using Lapua’s
123 grain Silver Scenar (moly-coated) bullet,
I’m loading to an overall length of 2.8 inches
which will ensure that the round will load into the
Accuracy International 308 magazine, though
for testing, I will be single-loading – no point
slamming the nose of your bullet against the
feed-ramp if you don’t have to! The delicate
nose of a hollow-point bullet is easily damaged.
The flat underside of the Bell & Carlson stock
lends itself to shooting off a benchrest pedestal
for load-testing and I’ve mounted my 8-32
Nightforce scope on the GBR’s tapered Picatinny
rail. Initially, we will carefully run-in the barrel
using the accepted ‘one shot/clean’ for the first Those three shots are
five rounds then four or five, five-shot groups – well under a quarter
carefully cleaning between each one to remove of an inch. This is one
all traces of copper. If we rush the running-in accurate rifle!
process, we will likely get an excessive build-up

14 Target Shooter
group which quite honestly I would have been them below:
happy with from my 6PPC benchgun! Look at
the photo – wow, this has turned out to be one Fox Firearms
accurate gun! For the record, the load was South Yorkshire Shooting Supplies
40.5 grains of Vit N550, Federal primer, Lapua Rhino Rifles
brass and 123 grain Lapua Silver Scenar bullet. Osprey Rifles

WARNING – THIS LOAD WAS SAFE IN MY
RIFLE BUT IT MAY NOT BE SAFE IN YOURS
– ALWAYS WORK UP THE LOAD IN SMALL
INCREMENTS.
I mentioned earlier that we may need to properly
bed the action if it didn’t ‘deliver’ but clearly this
isn’t required and that is a testimony to the Bell
& Carlson stock – for, no matter how well you
build a rifle, it won’t shoot if there is a problem
with the bedding. Although the machined
aluminium bedding-block should - in theory -
provide the perfect bed, it sometimes doesn’t
and the action can end up riding on high-spots.
A quick fix is to skim-bed the aluminium
bedding-block which usually does the trick
but clearly that wasn’t needed with our rifle.
A number of companies have generously
contributed to the building of this rifle and I list
If you were to buy each of the components used
in the build, the total cost would be well over over
£2000. On top of this, you would have to add the
gunsmithing and Dura Coating costs as well. We
thank those who have helped make this project
possible.
Our ‘project rifles’ are usually sold-on following
publication and Target Shooter would like
to offer this rifle to an interested reader. It
is fully sorted, proofed and comes with all
load data and one AI ten-round magazine.
All profit from the sale will go to the Help for
Heroes charity – a very worthwhile cause I’m sure
you will agree. If you are interested in making
an offer, please e-mail me in the first instance at
vinceb@6ppc.fsnet.co.uk. The rifle will be sold
to the reader making the best offer in excess of
£2000.

Portsmouth Gun Centre Ltd

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North End
Portsmouth
PO2 9HF
Opening Times Tel 02392 660574
Mon 9.30 - 5.30 Fax 02392 644666
Tues Closed
Wed Closed E-mail sales@portsmouthguncentre.com
Thur 9.30 - 5.30 Website www.portsmouthguncentre.com
Fri 9.30 - 5.30
Sat 9.30 - 5.30
We stock a full range of Rifles, Pistols, Air Guns, Shotguns, Ammunition,
Reloading Equipment and Accessories. All major brands stocked including BSA,
CZ, Air Arms, Marlin, Ruger, Umarex, Uberti, Cometa, Pedersoli, Berreta, Lincoln,
Webley, Pedersoli, etc.

Target Shooter 15
 2010 Imperial Meeting - Part 2

Chris White continues his report of the annual Bisley Imperial

Meeting, cumulating in the Queen’s prize.
The ‘warm-up’ matches on Friday and Saturday specific problem. The lessons to be learnt here are
morning were conducted in warmish conditions, that if something appears wrong and you don’t find
heavy overnight rain made the air so humid that a the cause of it, have another look. This particular
mirage could not be seen and the windflags were problem wiped out last year’s Scottish Meeting,
clearly frequently not representative of what was may well have had a negative effect on this year’s
happening at ground level. Scottish and had a disastrous result on my Imperial
Grand Aggregate. Readers with long memories
Progressing through Sunday and Monday, may remember that my Steyr appeared to display
temperatures steadily increased up to the high a fluctuating wind zero at 1000 yards in the 2009
twenty centigrade, shooting conditions were very Scottish Meeting.
much ‘more of the same’. An 0840 start for the
Duke of Cambridge at 900 yards on Sunday morning Despite a good look at the rifle, checking it out on
ought to have boded well . The end result was a Precision Rifle Service’s test range and making two
disappointing 48 with one shot well out of the group long trips to evening shoots at Altcar, no problem
- low and at 7 o’clock and one lost to seeing a drop- was found. The finger of suspicion pointed squarely
off which wasn’t there. Wind varied between 4¼ and at the ‘up and down’ foresight and the conclusion
7 left. There is however a lesson to be learnt here. I was driven to was that a bit of grit had got in the
engagement teeth at Blair Atholl, when the sight
Take a look at the pictures. The closest flag would was altered from its 900 to 1000 yard setting. This
on occasions flick down and reverse direction. Think maybe moved about under recoil and thus caused
hard about this. Was that low shot down to an eddy the shifting wind zero scenario. When the sight was
with a vertical wind component? That is had the removed to be examined the grit fell out. With the
wind pushed the shot down? benefit of painful hindsight it’s a weak theory!

The Alexandra at 600 yards at 1100 hrs. was almost
as dire with the wind moving between 3¼ and 6 left.
By the time I got to shoot the Daily Mail at 1700 at
500 yards the wind was much more readable. One
point lost to a declared bad shot and one just out on
the edge of the group.
On Monday temperatures started rising and the
spectre of de-hydration started to raise its head.
On Century, winds were fairly readable but it was
important that the shot went at the right time.
Sudden flicks in angle were still causing problems.
Now we need to take time out to look at a very
The Corporation is shot at 1000 yards on Monday and
is the only 1000 yard shoot in the Grand Aggregate.
Many a Grand has been wiped out by a bad detail in
the ‘Corp’. Once again I was well to the left, target
17, at 1430 and it was hot. I wasn’t exactly sure
about the wind but thought six or seven was about
right. On the basis that there had been a tendency
to underestimate it and the fact that I read 6, I put
7½ on for the first sighter and managed to shoot,
what felt like, a straight shot.
There was a very realistic expectation of a 9 o’clock
bullseye. The target returned with a hit, scoring 1,
on the waterline at the right hand edge of the target.

16 Target Shooter

Sketch of the foresight
problem
As usually Tony Clayton
ran Century Range in his
inimitable style.
This, of course, corrects to around 12½. It would be
arrogant for me to suggest that I can always see the
difference between six and seven at 1000, or even,
sometimes if the angle is a bit tricky between ten
and twelve, but I really ought not to see a thirteen
minute wind as a six minute one! There could have
been many causes, maybe someone cross shot just
as I’d fired, maybe the marker had found a stray
hole, maybe I’d given it a huge hook.
Taking another close look I was convinced that seven
was good enough to get a bull so the shot went with
eight, for safety. This made a downwind magpie,
correcting to 11. Both ‘Get out of jail free’ cards used
and no idea what was going on! Evidently the rifle
had a four to five minute zero error. A quick check of
the sights revealed that all was tight and the foresight
appeared to be rock solid in its engagement. There
was nothing for it but to believe the rifle and go
with eleven which produced an upwind magpie
correcting to nine.
The error had now reduced to about two minutes.
After another couple of upwind shots the corrected
windage and my reading appeared to coincide,
allowing a couple of V bulls to be made, at which
point it drifted again. All this was very tiresome and
a shoot which could have been good enough for a
48, at least, ended up as a 42.2v. The end result was
about fifty places in the Grand. There was no time
for contemplation as I hurried to Century to shoot
the Wimbledon at 600 yards where I again lost a
point to taking wind off when I didn’t need to.
So what of the Steyr? There were two principal clues,
the problem had only manifested itself at 1000 yards
and when it did, the wind zero error seemed to
start off around five minutes (as it had in Scotland
last year) and then drift about. The problem had
to be related to the foresight. Taking the foresight
off revealed nothing. I gave it a scrub with an old
toothbrush but this was merely a formality since
there was evidently nothing stuck in it. I may have left
it at that but this time I looked closer. On examining
the foresight block with my magnifying glass I
spotted a tiny burr around the screw-hole. Close
examination revealed that the screw hole had been
bored a smidgen off centre. And the hole had just
failed to completely break the crest of the serration.
This tiny bit of metal had got peened over, probably
as a result of the foresight being tightened up when
slightly misaligned at sometime. This resulted in two
tiny ‘wings’ of metal projecting into the root of the
serration. I always take an emergency tool kit to the
Imperial, pin punches, Swiss files etc. So I was able
to dress this out with the appropriate Swiss file. I’m
not too sure why it only seemed to pose a problem
at 1,000 but so far it seems to have done the trick.
By Tuesday morning and the first stage of the St
George’s (2&15 @ 300) it was a fairly unbearable
31°. Low nineties in old money. With an apparently
easy but in reality tricky wind, a massive pulse
bounce did not help my score and two points were
lost to not being able to keep the rifle still. It might
have been worse but it needed 74 for a place in the
second stage.
Despite having drunk 500ml of Isotonoic I was
Target Shooter 17
becoming dehydrated and so downed a pint of hundred dropping points is not an option. Even the
lemonade in preparation for County Short in the most experienced feel under pressure, and I have to
afternoon when I was trigger pulling rather than admit to never really looking forward to it.
coaching. This I had been reluctant to do but one
must obey one’s Captain. Things started well enough Shooting on the first detail (0800) at 300 with a gentle
with a ‘possible’ at 300 but the wheels fell off the breeze blowing from 9 o’clock the old strategy of
wagon at 600 where I shot a massive group which putting on ¾ and leaving it alone worked reasonably
was too big despite my coach’s valiant efforts to well but there wasn’t much mirage to see and
centre it. This resulted in me losing three points to there were drop-offs. Occasionally a twiddle on the
elevation and one to wind which was very probably wind knob was obligatory and the resultant 35.3v,
down to the group rather than the coach. In addition, although money in the bank, was not too strong in
wind settings did not agree with what the coach was the V bull department.
reading.
Difficult to read angle changes at 500 cost me a
County Durham shoot in ‘Country Short Junior’ point, with the wind only rarely straying very far
as do our Northern brethren, Northumberland. away from four left. Whilst it doesn’t do to predict
Obviously when we shoot together as the English the outcome I thought 102 would be good enough
Twenty, districts are as one. Not so in County Short. but with only seven V’s in the bag it would need
We are arch rivals and there’s a lot of needle. to be a 103. Depending on one’s viewpoint this is
My performance cost Durham the match, which not a healthy mind-game to play because it may
Northumberland won. Is there a lesson to be pressurise one. On the other hand it may have the
learned? Yes there is! opposite effect because you know you have a margin
for error. Nevertheless if you do think like this and
It is a lesson I learned some time ago in Canada. On then drop your first to count you will be pressurised,
a hot day, myself and another British shooter were believe me!
squadded together at 600 yards. My first sighter went
very high. He was struggling to get a sight picture. Six hundred was a completely different pan of
At the end of the shoot I found I’d got the wrong poisson. With the wind varying from three to five
rearsight on the rifle and he discovered he hadn’t left and some of the changes being all of the two
got his shooting glasses on! French Canadian Leo minutes; windreading was essential and many came
D’Armour explained to me that dehydration does not to grief. With 35 still ‘in the gun’ by the sixth to
only affect your body’s ability to function properly count, I knew I could relax and go for it with bold
and that includes your eyesight but it also effects windchanges and the facility to drop a point if it
your ability to think rationally. The cause of my bad went wrong. The end result was a 35.2v. Many going
shoot was not having locked my foresight up tight back clean lost it here, some in spectacular style.
when I altered it from the 300 to the 600 settings. A One old mate of mine who shoots really tight groups
stupid mistake brought about by dehydration and I and has put in some outstanding performances this
really ought to have known better. year went back clean and dropped six points at 600!
As it turned out 102.6v was good enough but as an
Afternoon temperatures peaked at 37°C which I indication that there were some strong shooters my
calculate as 98.6F. Another litre of Isotonic followed 104.9v was only good enough for 85th place!
by a sneaky half of lager before I coached County
Long in the evening still left me dehydrated and By Friday, Queen’s 2 conditions had changed. It
the pint of cider I had with my dinner did little to was a little cooler and dehydration ceased to be a
improve matters. problem but the strong gusty winds were replaced
by light variable winds. There was enough overcast
And so to Wednesday and Queen’s 1. This is a to give a nice sight picture but a little too much
peculiar shoot. It consists of two sighters but only to give much of a mirage. Lazy flags would lull the
seven shots on score at 300, 500 & 600 yards giving bystanders into believing the wind was almost non
an HPS per range of 35 and 105 overall. To the best existent. At ground level things were very different.
of my recollection it has never needed a score better [Photo 8] My 300 yard wind plot went from one right
than 102 to go into the second stage. Shooting is to ¼ left. Close attention was needed to avoid the
spread out from eight o’clock in the morning until odd shot leaking out. In a reverse of what happened
after six in the evening, with the Conan Doyle (2&10 in Queen’s I, many solid shooters came off the 300
@ 900yards) thrown in just to add variety. There are point wondering how they had managed to drop
long periods of agonising inactivity with short bursts two or three points.
of frenetic effort. With the opening field of twelve
hundred or so being whittled down to just three In theory, Queens II should be much more of a
18 Target Shooter
Two very happy guys, the
author and Zin Zainal after
the
Queen’s Final.

pressure shoot than the first stage because the great anniversary we were treated to a firework display on
majority of the three hundred participants can do Friday night. In the end, Jon ended up seventh having
the business; there may be the odd one who has gone clean back to 1000 and dropping five points at
‘lucked in’ but basically you have to beat around 190 1000. (Made me feel a bit better about dropping six
of the world’s finest shooters. For whatever reason at that distance!). As it happened, I ended up in 80th
I have a better mindset here and seem to be less place with 288.26v.
worried by the event and more able to get stuck in
and enjoy myself. Queen’s final was much the same as the second stage
but more so. By a remarkable coincidence I ended
Back at 500 it was the same but worse, with the up shooting with a fellow City of Newcastle shooter,
plot running from zero to almost two. The record Doug Gass, at 900. So there was more at stake than
score required to qualify is 149. I thought 147 would the Queen’s since C-o-N have a cup for the highest
have been good enough but I would not have put placed member in the Queen’s. I managed to sneak
money on it. However, going back clean was good a point on Doug at 900 and he equalled my score at
but there was little scope for making mistakes. Six 1000.
hundred was dire with the wind going from one left
to one right. There was little mirage and the flags At 1000 yards I had the pleasure of shooting with
were lying. Many met their nemesis. Caution with Zin Zainal from Malaysia, the winner of the 2008
the wind setting and firing straight shots was the Queens. A jolly nice chap he turned out to be and
name of the game. By the Grace of God I only fired being in his company was a great pleasure. First time
one shot with the wind on the wrong side of zero, I’ve had my arm round a Queen’s Prize Winner!
although there was very little evidence to show that
when I committed myself. Looking along the line of Lest anyone still thinks Calvert had it easy, he shot
targets revealed that many copped it, some to the very close to me and my wind plot goes from 8½ left
tune of two off. Mine came uncomfortably close to to ½ left at 900 yards, with the maximum change
dropping two points. My resultant 149.15v was only being four minutes and from 4½ to 10½ at 1,000 with
good enough for 65th place, there were 25 150s and the maximum change being three and half minutes.
seven scorers of 148.18v who tie shot for two places. Putting in a 147 under those conditions was truly
Dropping another point would have put me out. incredible. [Photo 11]
“What of the ammunition?” You may ask.
Top of the pile was the 2006 winner, Jonathon Outstanding! No further comment necessary.
Underwood. The only man ever to win the first
second and third stage of the Queen’s. My money
was on him. In celebration of the NRA’s 150th
Target Shooter 19
 Tel/Fax 01722782432
Email; ags.westlake@virgin.net/ Website; www.westlakeengineering.com

The Taurus ML Revolver is converted from a Taurus .357 Magnum Long Barrelled Revolver.
The cylinder is removed and a Yoke extension fitted, this contains the spring loaded
plunger that frees the action when the yoke is closed. As this extension cannot be removed,
it prevents the re-fitting of the original cylinder. The Barrel is shortened to approximately 5
¼ inches and the wristbrace is removed.
A new cylinder is made which has pockets for shotgun primers at the rear with a small
flash hole through into the chamber at the front. The chamber is made to accept .357” lead
wadcutter bullets. The conversion of your pistol costs £330.00. Extra Cylinders are £180.00
each. If you do not have a pistol I can order a new pistol from the Importers.

20 Target Shooter
 Shooting the Black Powder Pistol
Part 12 - John Maslin Cooper

by Chris Risebrook
Altogether more robust in the
power department.
Pic 1 The story behind the Cooper is
the same as the Manhattan; other
companies champing at the bit
waiting for Colt’s patent to expire
so they could join in the fun.
J.M. Cooper & Co operated from
Pittsburgh Pensylvania from
1864 to 1869 and in all produced
some 15000 guns, only some
ten per cent of Manhattan
production.
This revolver is a Second Model
Navy judging by its serial number
of 10986. Unfortunately, such is
the condition of the gun, this is
the only visible marking on the
Last month we looked at the
Manhattan near copy of the Colt
revolver. This month it is the turn
of the Cooper shown in Photo 1. At
first sight it looks just like an 1849
Colt Pocket Model.However, there
is one important difference - the
Cooper is double acton, a system
Colt did not offer until the breach-
loading Lighting and Thunderer
models. John Maslin Cooper was
granted patent number 40021 on
the 22nd September 1863 for a
double action action revolver. In
size, it is almost exactly the same
as the Colt, but it is a five shot Pic 2
and in .36 calibre as opposed
to the six shot .31 calibre Colt.
Target Shooter 21
 Dixie Arms in Union City,
Tennessee stock various
Pic 3 parts, such as springs
and screws all of which
apparantly will fit Colts,
Manhattans and Coopers,
probably with some fettling,
which at least gives a
chance of keeping these old
guns working. In addition
to the Manhattans, Bacons
and Coopers there were
other near replicas such as
the Metropolitans, which
just shows what a good
job Colt made of the basic
design, since all of these
manufacturers copied his
guns almost line for line,
gun, the legend on the barrel having completely albeit with their own
worn away. The grip strap and trigger guard particular variations and novelties. I often
are brass, but for some reason someone has wonder how these guns happened to be
nickel plated them. It looks quite attractive, but I here. London made or assembled Colts I can
wonder why they bothered. The general understand, but how did something like this
condition is pretty dreadful; it doesn’t hold on full comparatively unusual gun come to be in
cock, but works perfectly on double action, with England and where has it been? It has
very tight lock-up, and no end play. As bought, obviously worked hard but shooting at whom and
the barrel was flopping about on its spindle, where? Was it ever on a stagecoach travelling
but this was cured with a few winds of PTFE West pursued by hostiles or carried by a Pony
tape. Hardly good engineering, but who’s going Express rider? Romantic tosh of course, but one
to shoot it anyway - not me, thank you! The can dream. Years ago, looking at Remington’s
gun has obviously led a hard life with extensive website, there was a space to ask a question. I
wear and pitting overall, all the screw heads are typed in the serial number of my 1858 revolver.
butchered with one replacement. Two repair They replied that it was made in the fall of 1863
sections have been made for the grips. Dixies - gulp! Just missed Gettysburg, but in time for
can supply partly inletted grip blanks for these Appomattox; probably not, but then again, you
guns - “partly” being the operative word. Since never know.
they are one piece, getting them to fit is a To round off, I have included in Photo 3 a pretty
monkey, and taxed my very limited wood- picture of all three; Colt, Manhattan and Cooper,
working skills to the limit with the Colt. Still, if for no other reason that I can sit and gloat!
you really have nothing better to do this winter,
here is a tip; beg, borrow or steal a bandsaw and
saw them into two halves through the backstrap,
fit each side individually and glue them together.
I know it’s cheating, but who’s to know?
Photo 2 shows both guns together, and the
oversize trigger guard seems out of proportion.
In fact, it is much easier to use than the Colt,
except that there is not much room for the
second finger. By comparison, the Colt guard is
very small and fiddly. This model of the Cooper
was made with four, five or six inch barrels
and all had the rebated cylinder. Interestingly,
22 Target Shooter
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Target Shooter 23
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24 Target Shooter
Breaking the mould – part 3

by Vince Bottomley & Laurie Holland

Theory or fact – can a 223 really compete with a 308 at extreme ranges? Laurie is about to
find out.
Our ballistics guru and F/TR shooter Laurie Swapping it for the narrower ‘varmint’ forend
Holland has a theory that a 223 that could stay and bi-pod for F-Class is a simple job involving
with a 308 – all the way to 1000 yards. Last the four attachment set-screws. Moving to the
month (September issue) we put Laurie’s rifle rear, I’d included the optional rear-bag rider
together. It’s nothing special – Savage target and tubular cheek-bar as well as curved alloy
action, True Flite barrel (with a 1 in 7 twist to cheekpieces when I bought the stock kit - the
hopefully stabilise the 90 grain Berger bullet) last named just in case I ever decide to use
and a McRees Precision stock. the rifle in ‘tactical mode’, ie no rear-bag and
needing a cheek-weld with the buttstock.
I handed over the rifle to Laurie a week or two
prior to the GB National F Class League Shoot The McRees bag-rider is a hexagonal-section
at Blair Atholl, which would be the first serious bar measuring a full inch across the flats and
debut for the 223. Blair is notoriously difficult to weighing six ounces. With weight a crucial issue
shoot wind-wise – not a range to debut a 223! for F-TR rifles, Vince sensibly substituted the
What happened? I’ll let Laurie tell you the rest lighter round-section cheek-bar for the bag-rider
of the story. and saved two or three ounces. So what do I
rest my face against? Nothing – you don’t need
Having received the rifle from Vince and got a cheek-weld on a rifle supported at both ends,
used to its appearance – love or loathe the moreover as any benchrest shooter will tell you,
functional-brutal McRees look, it certainly side pressure from the face touching the stock
attracts a lot of firing-point attention, even if risks lateral group dispersion. (Shooting without
some is in the form of facetious questions a rear-bag using an ‘off the shoulder’ hold is
such as “Where are the missing bits?” – a very different matter and requires a strong
Let’s talk about bits, missing or otherwise. cheek-weld.)
All 100 yard load-testing, as well as benchrest-
type competition sees the three-inch wide Moving upwards, I’d intended to use a lightweight
BR forend fitted to ride my Sinclair front-rest. Sightron Series II 36X42 benchrest riflescope,
Target Shooter 25
So you think 69gn is a heavy bullet in .223 Rem? Left to
right: 69gn Sierra MK, 80gn Sierra MK, 90gn Berger Target
BT Long-Range, 90gn Berger Target VLD, and .308W/185
Berger for comparison.

the rationale being that (as with the Weaver T36 weight limit. However, even with the Versa-Pod
on my .308W Barnard / Eliseo tubegun) I’d only instead of a Harris, there was some slack, so a
get away with a one-inch dia. fixed-power job heavier 30mm body Sightron Series III 8-32X56
within the 8.25 kg (18lb 2oz)rifle + bi-pod F-TR LR, that I’d originally bought for the tubegun, was

Suitable powders
for the 223Rem.
with 90 grain
bullets

26 Target Shooter
 of firing three rounds to get a perfect
100 yard zero and barrel run-in
was so easy that those sighters
were virtually all that was needed,
cleaning and de-coppering after each
shot. This has to be a tribute to the
six-groove True-Flite barrel’s finish,
also to Vince’s gunsmithing and
the Pacific Tool & Gauge chamber
reamer employed - as ‘barrel run-in’
is mostly barrel-throat run-in.

These tasks done, I needed two

things – 90 grain bullet loads that
produced sub half-MOA groups
alongside 2,750 fps or higher MVs
with small extreme spreads and
some ‘trigger time’ - preferably
at long ranges as all the five
Blair matches would be at 1000
yards. Unfortunately, there were
no long-range F-Class matches
in Diggle’s calendar for July, so a
200 and 600yd pair had to suffice.
However, there was an opportunity
to demonstrate the .223/90’s
capabilities at 1000 yards (or
make a complete fool of myself)
in the form of a UKBRA benchrest
fixture on the Diggle range the
weekend before Blair. That would at
least let me get a 1000 yard zero.

Shooting the beast, the striking

impression is of a massive reduction
in recoil and torque compared to
Both 90s grouped well straight off in the True-Flite barrel the similar weight .308 tubegun,
with none of the VLD type’s legendary fussiness. Getting particularly in F-Class mode
ES values down to below 20 fps is more difficult as can using the bi-pod. The key to good
be seen in the MV notations accompanying the groups. rifle behaviour using a Harris or
(Half-inch red aiming marks on a one-inch grid pattern.) Versa-Pod type device is to get
Beware – loads can only be used safely in a suitably their feet positioned correctly and
long-throated chamber! jammed well into the ground,
substituted. This is an ideal scope for F-Class followed by pushing the rifle forward
with its large objective lens, fantastic clarity using shoulder pressure on the buttplate. The
and resolution, and side parallax-adjustment. pressure keeps the legs under stress and forces
On the Range the feet down while counteracting the backwards
With the GB F-Class Association League round recoil impulse. Even so, it’s difficult to stop the
at Blair Atholl only a few weeks away, there whole kit and caboodle moving around under
was a rush to sight-in, run the barrel in, and get the heavy recoil of a .308 load.
loads worked up. Bore-sighting the rifle off a BR
set-up onto a 5½” dia. Birchwood Casey Shoot- No such problem with the .223 – I have no
N-C reactive target at 100 yard was simply a matter sight-picture disturbance with the Sightron on
Target Shooter 27
 Representation of results of the
200 yard F-Class competition shot
on a PL7 25m pistol target with an
early load in gusty crosswind
conditions. The V-Bull (which has a
white circular spot added to act as
aiming mark for F-Class,
omitted here) is 0.95” (0.45-MOA)
dia., the Bull is 1.9” (0.91-MOA).
match risks lost points, as it affects
the accuracy of the scope settings.)
The ‘straight-line’ layout and AR15
pistol grip no doubt assist in achieving
these outcomes. I also find much
less rear-bag movement during a
match, the .308 needing regular
repositioning and realignment, so that
reduces another factor that induces
variability in the shooting position
and risks increased shot dispersion.

Development and Short-Range

Wonderful! This is what the
ballistics programs predicted for
.223 compared to .308 but does it
its maximum 32-power setting, easily seeing perform well enough in precision and
‘blow-off’ shot-strikes on sand backstops and, wind-drift terms? A stable, light recoiling piece
I can even follow the bullet’s flight downrange might be pleasant and easy to shoot but it’s as
in some atmospheric conditions. I now only much use in F-Class competition as a bicycle
need to adjust the rifle’s vertical stance on the is to a fish (to misquote some feminist referring
swivel bi-pod mount occasionally to return the
scope crosshairs to the correct position, such is
the reduction in torque. (Varying rifle cant in a

90gn VLD / Reloder 15 cartridges brought back

from Blair Atholl and shot through a lightly
fouled barrel in a single session at 100yd. The
top group of 9 shots was practice / ‘blow-off’
ammunition using rejected cases from the
component batching and preparation process.
The much smaller lower group of 8 shots was
unused ‘match ammunition’, same load (charg-
es individually weighed in both batches), same
components from the same manufacturing
lots, same number of case-firings from new,
but with fully prepped and batched brass and
sorted bullets. The lower (match ammo) group
is 0.4” centre to centre and with a moderate
crosswind running across the range is prob-
ably slightly smaller in pure precision terms.
Practice load ES was 32 fps; match ammo 25
fps (13 fps for seven of the eight rounds).

28 Target Shooter
 The McRees stocked 223 looks a strange beast
from this angle
to the male of the species’ utility to women) if it
shoots all over the four-ring or lights-out for the
target’s three and nine o’clock extremities with
every little wind change – characteristics that
serious competitors associate with this cartridge,
especially those who’ve used it in 55gn loadings.
Well, 100 yard testing quickly showed it
would group, 24.5gn of Viht N550 behind a
Berger 90gn VLD producing a sub half-inch
five-round group, an MV of 2,545 fps and extreme
spread (ES) of 20 fps. This bullet and powder
grouped well through a 1.5 grain load-test
charge-weight range leading up to that 24.5gn
load, but ES values were generally higher than
I would accept with a .308Win. load - mostly in
the 30s. The other 90 - Berger’s BT Long-Range
- also grouped well with N550 at these sorts of
loads, but saw large spreads - over 60 fps – no
good at all for long ranges. I’ll stress these were
starting loads with me intending to make haste
slowly with this small capacity cartridge and,
pressure signs were still modest.
The 90gn VLD / N550 combination looked
good enough for an imminent 600 yard F-Class
match but the conditions on the day were so
rough – three 2-MOA wind shifts between
consecutive shots during the match – it didn’t
tell me much. Yeah .... but 2,545 fps MV is
pretty pathetic isn’t it? Well here’s a fact that
might surprise you: this high BC – 0.281 (G7) /
0.550 (G1) – bullet at 2,545 fps is the ballistic
equivalent of a 155gn Lapua Scenar at 3,000
fps from a .308W rifle in terms of 1000 yard
wind drift, although the ‘thirty’ has an extra 73
fps of retained velocity.
The next 100 yard test session also tried N550
with both bullets, taking charge weights up
by another five small steps, also introduced
starting loads of Viht N540, Alliant Reloder 15
and Reloder 17. Coincidentally, 24.5gn of N540
grouped well with the VLD too at five shots in
0.3”, but now at 2,741 fps, a combination whose
ballistics outperform any .308/155 load and
approach those of the bigger cartridge with the
higher BC 185 grain bullets. This combination
was used in the 200 yard F-Class match for a
third place on 95.6v but I reckoned it produced
more elevation variation than I liked.
N550 and the 90gn BT Long-Range started
to look good with five combinations in a 0.7gn
charge weight range all running within 0.4-
0.5 MOA and top charge weight MVs just shy
of 2,900 fps. ES values were still higher than
desirable at 25-41 fps depending on load.
Initial Reloder 15 batches also looked good
Target Shooter 29
with both bullets, but needed heavier charges. dropping an extra point in a wind switch for 69.3v
against Stuart’s 70.1v. However, that’s down to
Test session number three took place in dire Laurie v Stuart in wind-reading skill, not .223/90
conditions and struggled to compare the relative v .308/185 capabilities in my opinion!
merits of three models of magnum/benchrest
primers using a small charge range of N550 in an My final outing with the rifle to date was the
attempt to reduce ES sizes, also worked Re15 500yd Diggle Fly Shoot (described elsewhere
charge weights up in small (0.2gn) increments. It in this issue) taking 10th place (out of 41) with
became obvious that this was the better powder the rifle back in benchrest mode, although the
for the bullet weight, in my barrel at any rate, competition is shot from the prone position,
and I settled on combinations using it with the so one can describe this as a one-off ‘hybrid’
two Berger models, the BT L-R (which produces challenge in more senses than one. While the
higher pressures and MVs for any given charge score total (from hits within the main ring target)
weight) chronographing at 2,855 fps (ES:16); could have been better, a 3-group average of
the VLD with 0.4gn more powder for 2,879 fps 3.517” gave little or nothing away to anybody
(ES:19). other than overall winner Chris Parkin in a match
that sees some impressive kit and cartridges
Long-Range ranging from 6BRs to the .338 Lapua Magnum.
Both loads went to the UKBRA 1000 yard BR Astounding – the little .223 Rem in this form is a
match on 1st August, shot in good conditions and formidable and versatile performer!
mild winds by Diggle standards, if still breezy.
Group 1 was badly affected by my pulling the Much of this is down to Berger Bullets which has
Savage AccuTrigger over-fast, causing it to lock produced another pair of winners in these 90gn
up and needing to re-cock the bolt for every shot, bullets. Checking the VLDs out and batching
nevertheless getting 14.713 inch group. It was them before the Blair F-Class round showed
assumed this was a bolt or trigger mechanical superb consistency. You want to try these
problem before realising it was operator induced Bergers or perhaps more vanilla recipes with
and groups two to four were accordingly shot the company’s 80gn and 82gn models? Norman
much more slowly without problems, but Clark Gunsmiths in Rugby and Tim Hannam
probably taking more than double the time in North Yorkshire import, distribute and retail
that a good BR shooter and custom 1000 yard these superb products.
‘Light Gun’ would need to get five shots off –
you shoot long-range groups as fast as you can Downsides? – there must be some! Of course
to ‘catch the wind conditions’ – but produced there are, one being the first shot from a clean
very satisfying results: 4.815”, 7.991”, and 5.62”
barrel running anywhere between 50 and 100
for a four-group ‘agg’ of 8.285”, fourth place fps down on its successors from a fouled bore,
and second smallest group of the day. I was so it’s a poor cold barrel shooter. The small
delighted, ‘mouse gun’ doubters astonished! calibre bore fouls more than the 308 and it likely
Groups 1 and 2 used the 90gn BT L-R; 3 and has a greater effect on MVs and precision. And
4 the 90gn VLD, the latter needing around 1.5- ... .223R in this extreme form is a handloading
MOA less elevation at this range. geek’s number – you have to work hard to get
the group sizes and ES values down, unlike
The GB National F-Class round at Blair Atholl .308W which is much more forgiving. (See the
was almost an anticlimax after this experience. picture of the two groups from ammunition I
I was five or six points off the pace in Match 1 brought back from Blair.) And ... to answer the
although not overly disappointed with 79 ex100 question you’re all asking, you need a 1-7 twist
but improved thereafter. Positions for the five rate barrel to stabilise them. I’ll cover .223/90gn
matches over the weekend being 11th, 7th, 5th, loads in depth in the November and December
3rd, and 4th to get 7th F-TR overall. Squadded issues of Target Shooter but, to answer the
with Stuart Anselm in Match 5 - the overall F-TR late comedian Eric Morecambe’s catchphrase
winner - who was shooting the 185gn Berger question “How’s it going so far?” the answer is
Long-Range in his .308W Savage, I almost but definitely not “RUBBISH!”.
didn’t quite manage to match him shot for shot, .

30 Target Shooter
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32 Target Shooter
 Custom Rimfire Benchrest Rifle Build
Rimfire benchrest shooting is an up and coming
sport in the UK and it takes rimfire accuracy
to the limit in shooting from 25yd to 50m. Like
other shooting sports , the objective is to hit that
maximum score - 250 on our target and hitting
the ‘pin spot’ scores a bonus X.
Initially, 22 rifles for prone shooting were adapted
to shoot benchrest by taking off various
accessories and adding a scope - a great way to
get into benchrest shooting but for shooters who
want to shoot nationally or internationally, a rifle
that is competitive at ‘world level’ will be needed.
Here in the UK, the sport has been slow to catch
up with the top equipment that’s available in the
States. With the forming of the United King-
dom Association of Rimfire & Air Rifle Benchrest
Shooting, members started to seek out the
equipment thatAmerican shooters use. Gunsmiths
in the USA have worked with the top shooters to
develop actions and barrels to make
rimfire benchrest rifles not just accurate
but consistently accurate.
Here in the UK we are slowly learning what
makes a good rimfire benchrest rifle and
Steve Kershaw is now at the forefront of
building accurate rimfire BR rifles for UK shooters.
After Steve built my rifle, I had a chance to
By Andy Dubreuil
catch up with him to find out what got him into
building rifles and his thoughts on my rifle.
Steve got into the business 14 years ago when
he was looking for work to be done on his own
rifle and he couldn’t find anyone to do the work at a
reasonable price. Coming from a game-keeping
background, money was not plentiful in those
days and Steve was looking for someone to do
the work the way he wanted at the right price.
Steve left school and got into engineering and
eventually got himself a lathe with a view to
building rifles that were perfect in every detail.
His first rifles were 22BR Rem. rifles that were
used mainly for foxing and then he naturally
moved onto other calibers. One day, Steve got
a phone call from John Churchly saying that he
couldn’t find any one to take the time to barrel
his rimfire actions properly so he did a .22LR
for him and it just snowballed from there -
Churchly Bros bought ten barrels from Lilja and
then another ten and that is how it all started.
I asked Steve had he ever built a rifle for him-
self and he said no - for the simple reason
that if he did build a ‘killer’ rifle for himself
that he would have no customers! Steve has
never advertised in all the time he has been
in business because his rifles do the talking
Target Shooter 33
and the way he deals with his customers
ensures repeat business by word and mouth.
When I approached Steve about re-barrelling my
rifle, he was happy to listen to what I was looking
for. As I already had an action and wanted to
have a Lilja barrel fitted, Steve ask me what
ammo I was going to use (Eley Tenex) and what
length I wanted the barrel to be - which was
21 inches. From there on, he would ring me
and tell me what was going on, what stage the
build was at and this went on until the rifle was
going to the proof house and when the rifle was
ready to be collected. Steve endeavors to build
what the customers wants, not what he wants.
I asked Steve what were his first thoughts when
he was approached to build a rimfire benchrest
rifle. With my custom build I had told Steve that
I was going to use Eley Tenex. For those who
have fond memories of Bert at Eley, he used to
say to Steve “ How do you get the head space
on a rifle so exact?” Steve told Bert that he
had built a jig that allowed him to do this and
Steve has set the headspace on my rifle to
0.040 inches which is best suited for Tenex.
Getting the headspace just right is critical.
When re-barrelling an Anschutz action, Steve
cuts off the old barrel off leaving a 2 inch stub.
He then chucks this in the lathe to check the
34 Target Shooter
concentricity of the action. Typically Anschutz
headspace is around 0.044 inches so that all
makes of ammo will chamber and will result in
a reasonable overall performance. When Steve
hydraulically pressed the barrel-stub out of my
action he found that the barrel tenon had two steel
location ‘wedges’ fitted at the factory to make the
barrel fit snug. On further investigation, he found
the barrel tenon was 0.001 in. under the internal
diameter of the action. If the wedges had not been
used, the barrel may have worked loose and the
harmonics of the barrel would never have worked.
This had also changed the concentricity of the
action and Steve had to make this right before
going any further with the build. Steve told me
that he had only come across this once in the
past with an Anschutz barreled-action and it
takes time and patience to lap out the score
marks left by the steel wedges and make the ac-
tion concentric again to accept the new barrel.
Attention to detail needs to be given at this point.
Removing too much material from the internals
of the action can result in the two 3mm locking
pins that hold the barrel in place being undersize
and this would allow movement in the barrel
fixing. On this particular action the amount
of material removed was only 0.003 inches.
This cleared the steel wedges that would
interfere with the alignment of the new barrel.
To get maximum performance from have a
new barrel fitted, every part of the build has
to be correct, this includes final head-spacing
and gluing and pinning the new barrel in place.
Lilja rimfire barrels are ‘choked’ and it is
important that the choke is at the muzzle-end
of the barrel so Steve stressed that when
shortening the barrel-blank (in my case down to
21 inches) you must cut the chamber end off the
barrel. I asked if it was necessary to ‘slug’ a Lilja
barrel but Steve pointed out that Lilja does all that
work before they send out the barrels to gunsmiths.
Moving to the muzzle-end of the barrel, I asked
Steve why it was different to the original Anschutz
crown. Steve explained that some manufactures
do what is called a recessed crown which is
basically a flat 90 degree crown. However some
shooters and gunsmiths prefer an 11 degree
crown, which is what he has put on my barrel.
The theory is that this is the angle which gases
leave the muzzle but neither crown has proved
superior; it’s simply down to personal choice.
Taking care of the crown is one of the most
important things to protect. If you are going
to throw the rifle into a case or run a brush
through and pull it back against the crown
you risk damaging it and the rifle will never
shoot as well as it should. Steve says with the
introduction of barrel tuners, it’s important to take
that off after shooting or gases and condensation
will build up. Any fouling needs to be carefully
cleaned off as soon as possible.
At the breech end, it’s real important to have
a bore-guide to prevent damage to the barrel
face, chamber and the rifling during cleaning.
Spending money on decent cleaning equipment
is just common sense to keep your rifle
shooting accurately and consistently. Think of
the money you will save by not having to take
it back to gunsmith to have costly remedial work
carried out, not to mention rifle ‘down-time’.
Steve believes in building rifles in a uniform,
consistent manner and concentricity is the key
to a rifle’s overall performance and for it to shoot
well. But at the same time, the shooter must
play his part. When Steve says that something
will be done by a certain time, you can
guarantee that it will be. He has a way of working
with his clients to produce a rifle that they want and
not the other way round. If you have questions,
he will give you a truthful answer and with
Steve, you get a fine rifle for a fair price.
Just like a Formula 1 racing car, if the wheels and
tyres are out of balance, the car will vibrate badly
and not perform to its best - it’s the same with a rifle.
Key features:
• Getting the balance right
• Concentricity of the action to the barrel
• Correct head-space to suit your preferred
• ammunition
• Length of barrel
• Crown
• Action screws torqued correctly
• Balanced and correctly profiled stock
• Recoil through the stock has to be
consistent moving through the rest
I’ve shot benchrest for around seven years now
Target Shooter 35
and I have used factory-based rifles attempting
to compete against the world’s best. Searching
for equipment for benchrest shooting has been
difficult in the UK as no one had the knowledge
of the sport or was able to supply the equipment.
It’s been down to shooters to talk to gunsmiths
who produce custom rifles and get them to move
into the world of rimfire benchrest shooting.
Steve Kershaw is one of those gunsmiths who
as stepped up to the mark. He wants to be part
of the development of the 22 rimfire benchrest
rifle; he is already making medal winning
rifles and I have not heard anyone say that
they have had a problem with his rifles.
When I got my rifle I was bit like a ‘kid in a candy
store’ as I could not wait to get down to the range
but I had one or two things that I wanted to do.
We all belong to different forums to keep up to
date on what’s going on and, we learn of the
different ideas flying around. One thing that caught
my eye was about the burn-rate of a rimfire round.
The ammo is factory-made so you can’t alter it. I
looked to the rifle to see what I might be able to
change to give maybe a more consistent burn rate.
The bolt has a number of springs in it that are set
at 19 lb and I looked to change these and found
that Wolf Springs did a replacement set for the
Anschutz and the ones for the 1913 were set at
24lb. This got me thinking - would the increase of
poundage help increase the burn rate and make
the round more consistent. Now I am no expert
and a lot of our writers have a greater knowledge
but, I want to test my theory and see if there
would be a difference. As you can see from

To introduce our selves we are the United Kingdom Association of

Rimfire and Air Rifle Benchrest Shooting. By that we mean "True
Benchrest Shooting". The Association is recognised by rimfire
shooters across in the UK, with partners across Europe and the rest of
the world, as the presentative body that promotes rimfire and air rifle
benchrest across this country and with other partners in European and
World events.
Visit our website for news about national and international
competitions that all can ‘have a go at’. From novice to champion
shooter, everyone is welcome
36 Target Shooter www.benchrest22.org
the picture of the shell casing, Wolf Springs do
ensure a better contact - could this potentially
give a faster burn rate. Only by looking at the
target would I be able to see the difference. There
is a difference between the different springs used
for certain but like all things in benchrest, is it just
a ‘feel good’ factor that boosts your confidence!
Steve had to machine an aluminium sleeve to
fit inside my Harrel tuner to make it fit the Lilja
barrel and again did a fine job, so then it was a case
of re- tuning it to suit the barrel. The ammo I had
was left over from my batch-testing with Eley the
year before and I was going to use that up before
sorting out another batch for the new Lilja barrel,
so I wasn’t expecting great results with what I
had. Wow, was I wrong, I couldn’t believe how
consistently the rifle was shooting in just forming
some five-shot groups to get the barrel bedded in.
When I moved to shooting proper cards,
after putting around 600 rounds down the barrel,
it was really coming into it’s own.
When it comes to cleaning a rifle barrel, there
are lots of theories on how and when to clean.
Some only clean once a year, whilst others will
do it after every card.

Whilst cleaning the rifle and taking some

photos of the breech, I had a bit of a shock
when I viewed this photograph. As you can see,
there is a tiny bit of brass that has sheared off a
cartridge case. Attempting to see this with
the naked eye is not easy without the aid of a
magnifier. I sent Steve the photograph and, just
as I thought, if this ended up in the barrel it could
cause damage.

I now inspect this area very carefully and

often shards of brass are visible. They are
very small and can be taken out with a needle.
If you have a rifle that is shooting well then
it’s wise to minimize the risk of damage, thus
keeping the rifle accurate for as long as you can.

I started writing this article six weeks before the

UK Nationals (report elsewhere in this issue)
and was really looking forward to taking the
rifle to the event. As many readers know, I am a
disabled shooter and this year has not been a
good one for me health-wise and I was not able to
go to the Europeans where the British team really
shone and I would have loved to have been part
of that process. Also, I missed seeing old friends
from past events. So, going to the Nationals is a

Target Shooter 37
 big occasion for me and I was eager to see how
the rifle would perform. One thing about going to
large events is not to have expectations - either
good or bad - as this can be a real ‘mind-bender’
Turn up with a view that you are simply going to
enjoy yourself, do your best and nothing more.
The Mirfield Rifle Club is just outside
Huddersfield in the north of England and I have
to say they are a real friendly lot and have
some interesting butties – as they call them -
sandwiches to you and me! We had slices of hot
beef cooked and left in a pot of gravy for a time
before being served in a bread roll with gravy
and onions – messy but it does taste really good!
The conditions on the practice day were great
- sunny and calm and everyone was shooting
about the same on the 50m outdoor range, I didn’t
bother shooting the 25yd indoor as it can be a bit
of a lottery as nearly everyone is able to shoot at
least a 249 at worse or hopefully a 250 and it just
comes down to the amount of Xs that are shot.
If anything, I just wanted to focus on the 50m
as that’s the one that I enjoy the most as it’s
more about you against the elements. On the
Saturday I was most disappointed as the
gale-force winds made the wind flags go
completely wild. The range is surrounded by
trees so it’s possible to see the effect of what the
wind was doing in regards how the wind came
in overhead and when there was a steady wind.
At times there was a sand-storm going on in the
stop butt and it would swirl like a mini tornado.
When this happens, sit back as there will be
no point in even thinking of taking a shot. In
conditions like this I won’t even wait for a calm in
the wind. I use the sighters in the different wind
speeds to decide which is the best to go with and
listening to the wind is a great help, allowing me
to put in scores of 247, 249 and a really bad 242.
I say a bad 242 as I had been shooting so well
that this score should have been the same but
obviously I just was not getting it right on that card.

☆ 2007 Pan American Games

3x20 Gold Medalist
☆ 2007 WC Milan 3x20 Silver Medalist
☆ 2008 Olympian 3x20 Fifth Place
☆ 5-Time NRA Camp Perry
3x20 Junior National Champion
☆ Multiple Women’s NRA Camp Perry
National Champion
If you want to shoot like
a champion, choose Lilja!
www.riflebarrels.com
Lilja Precision Rifle Barrels, Inc
PO Box 372 • Plains, MT 59859
Tel: 406-826-3084 • Fax: 406-826-3083

38 Jamie Beyerle
Target Shooter
 Andy winning the 25m and 50m UK National Championship
I have to say that I am not into checking out
who’s doing what as it’s not he good for the
mind, it’s better to stay away so that you
concentrate on the job that you have to do.
At the end of the Nationals, I had won two Gold
medals and one Bronze plus the trophy for
the aggregate for 25yd and the trophy for the
50m aggregate. I look at it in that I just got it
right on the day - could I reproduce that again
on another day? That’s something that no one
can answer and that’s the great thing about
this game - you can never predict the outcome.
To bring and end to this story, all I can say that
having a custom rifle built is a great thing to be
involved in and not as costly as some would think.
But, do your research, there are lots of forums
on benchrest shooting and in them are lots of
ideas which you have to sift through to make the
decision on how to have a rifle-build done. The
idea having interchangeable stocks to be able to
shoot HV and LV I don’t think I have seen anyone
else do, but it works for me and can save money
as you don’t need to have two rifles, scopes etc.
Finding a gunsmith can be easy, but finding
one that will take the time to listen to you and
to go with what you want at times is not easy.
I had an idea and Steve Kershaw went with it
and kept me up to date all the way through the
build, I also have to say a big thank you to Gary
from Tech-Wood Design for doing an amazing
job on the work of the ’ice wood’ stock and
we hope to see great things from Gary in the
making of benchrest stocks for the UK shooters.
I hope that you have enjoyed this insight into a
custom build and how it can work out. I’ve
certainly enjoyed the experience and I hope you
have too.
Target Shooter 39
 Knowing your conditions
Helps to keep your aim true
Weather Meters

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40 Target Shooter
 The 2010 Diggle Fly Shoot

by Vince Bottomley
The Rifle as it was used for the Egg shoot
We have had another horrendous summer with amazingly it continues to grow in popularity –
simultaneous floods and hose-pipe bans in this thanks probably to the odd ‘thread’ on the internet
neck of the woods and predictably, the weather shooting forums which ‘spreads the word’ much
leading up to the Fly shoot was cold and wet. better than I can! Last year, we broke forty entries
I feared that this may affect the entry but no – for the first time and it was the same again this
Sunday was unbelievably warm and sunny and year and I was pleased to meet several new
from half a mile away I could see the sunlight shooters who I knew only by their internet avatar!
glinting off the windscreens in the packed Diggle
Range House car park. The Fly Shoot is simple but unusual in that it
attempts to combine group shooting and score
This is the ninth year of the Fly Shoot and shooting. The Aussies invented it and the rules

They all came to shoot a fly!

Target Shooter 41
 Baldy Dave with the 338 Surgeon

are few - there are no restrictions regarding Ideally, you need something which will group
equipment – any rifle, scope, rest etc. and just around three-inches or better at 500 yards - if
two classes – Factory Class for ‘out of the box’ you want to be in with a chance of picking up
factory rifles and anything else. We don’t mind some money.
if you’ve changed the stock on your factory rifle,
as long as the barrelled-action is standard but The money however is not what attracts shooters
re-barrel it and I’m afraid you will find yourself in
– it’s hitting the fly and winning a coveted Fly
the Open Class! patch – they can’t be bought, they must be won
- here at Diggle. Typically, only a dozen or so
This year, the entry couldn’t have been more shooters will take home a patch. The Aussie flies
diverse with Dave (Baldy) Wylde and his must be a lot bigger than ours and the image of
Surgeon tactical rig chambered in 338 Lapua the fly in the centre of the target is more like a
Magnum, to Laurie Holland with his 223 Rem. beetle but, at 500 yards, it’s barely visible – even
F/TR rifle and everything in between from 1000 less so today with a light mirage evident.
yard benchguns to slick little treble-two foxing
rigs. Anything goes at the Fly Shoot and all sorts Competitors are given an ample sight-in
of rifles have taken the honours over the years. period, then it’s three, five-shot groups with five
minutes allowed for each group. Wind-flags
are not hoisted so competitors must make
what they will of the ‘natural’ wind-indicators.
From the location of groups, it was evident that
winds were reasonably light but still strong
enough to nudge the unwary off the target and
into the ‘no-score’ area.

In addition to cash prizes and Fly patches,

Butt crew ‘join up the dots’ so that each
group is indicated for measuring
42 Target Shooter
small-group patches are also awarded for the
smallest group in each class together with a
cash award. This year, we had a new record
in Open Class when Dave Wylde shot an
amazing 1.153 inch five-shot group with the
aforementioned 338 Lapua Magnum! Best
Factory group was a very creditable 2.92 incher
from Phil Gibbon using his 6.5-284 Savage.
Although Phil’s agg. of his three groups was
slightly smaller than John Anderton’s, John
took the Factory win by virtue of his higher
Dave proudly displays his record 1.152 inch
group in the Diggle clubroom

Overall winner, Chris Parkin – three

well-centred groups
total score of 150 was a full 26 points ahead
of Dave, who tied for second place with Paul
Harper, shooting his 260 Rem. tactical rig.

Fifteen rounds plus half a dozen or so sighters

is not exactly a lot for a day’s shooting but on
a nice warm day it’s great to sit on the grass,
chill-out with fellow shooters and of course
ogle the many interesting rifles on display. If
When it’s warm and sunny, just chill-out this sounds like your kind of shooting, make
a date for next year – check out the calendar
score – attained by have his slightly larger
on the Diggle website www.diggleranges.
groups more central and scoring 99 to Phil’s 82.
com it will be around the same time in August.
Similarly in Open – Dave Wylde’s remarkable
Meanwhile, you can peruse the full results
performance wasn’t quite enough to win. That
on the UKBRA website at www.ukbra.co.uk
honour went to Chris Parkin, using the rifle we
but I list below the first three in each class.
are featuring elsewhere in this issue of Target
All photos courtesy of Steve Thornton
Shooter. Chris, if you remember, also won
the Egg Shoot with the same rifle. It’s not that
exotic – just a well put together rifle using simple
components but clearly in the hands of someone
who knows how to get the best out of it. Chris’s
Open Class 
Shooter  Group 1  Group 2  Group 3 Group bonus Target score  Total 
Chris Parkin  3.251  2.936  2.305 23 127 150 
Dave Wylde  5.088  *1.152  5.459 19 105 124 
Paul Harper  3.082  2.178  4.462 21 103 124 
 
Factory Class 
John Anderton  4.68  4.647  6.4 16 99 115 
Phil Gibbon  6.4  *2.92  4.151 18 82 100 
Adrian Evans  5.839  3.383  3.105 19 80 99 
 
* Small group in Class 
 
Target Shooter 43
44 Target Shooter
 Target Shooter 45
 IPAS, AAS & the 1911

by Vince Bottomley
Next month, we’ll review the superb AAS hopped-up 1911 pistol
If you find that heading a bit confusing – you‘re A typical IPAC competition In any given event
meant to! I’d never heard of IPAS or AAS - there are a number of ‘stages’ - each stage is
Action Air Shooting - either. Hopefully the ‘1911’ a different array of five steel plates fixed to a
bit is ringing the odd distant bell and as for wooden stand approximately one metre off the
IPAS or Iron Plate Action Shooting – read on! ground. The plates vary in size from 8”x 8” to
After the handgun ban, many Practical Pistol 24”x 12”. One of the five plates is painted a
different colour to the other four (usually yellow
shooters took up other disciplines or bailed or red) and this is known as the STOP plate. The
out of the shooting circuit all together. A stop plate must be engaged last.
few however wanted to try to re-create the The shooter begins by standing in the ‘box’ facing
excitement of Practical Pistol competitions with down range; the instruction from the Range Officer
the equipment that was now legally available. is given “Load and make ready” ……..the gun is
There were two options, either Airsoft replica loaded and holstered and the shooters hands are
imitation firearms or Co2 multi-shot air pistols. in the ‘surrender’ position - the shooter is ready.
It became apparent quite quickly that the Airsoft The RO - with shot timer in hand - gives the
guns lent themselves perfectly to IPSC Practical command “Shooter, are you ready?”…….
Shooting and the more powerful Co2 multi shot “Stand by”…….the shot timer is engaged and
air pistol (with some tuning) were perfect for Iron the shooter waits for the ‘beep’ to sound……as
Plate Action Shooting - the UK version of the it does, he goes in to action, engaging the four
‘Steel Challenge’ as it is known around the world. plates in any order he chooses and then the stop
IPAS is the fastest growing sport for Co2 multi- plate. A good time is around three seconds!
shot air pistols in the UK; it is extremely exciting The shooter gets five ‘runs’ on each stage with
and has an extensive competition circuit his worst time being discarded, so there is only
with events taking place throughout the year one ‘throw away’ the other runs must count.
across the country, culminating in the National At the end of the stage the RO gives the command
Championships held in November of each year. “Unload and show clear” - the gun is re-holstered
The object of the sport is very simple - shoot fast and the next competitor is called to the line.
and don’t miss! A visit to the IPAS website at www. The times for each shooter for each stage are
ipas.org.uk and the www.actionairshooting.org added together and the competitor with the
website will tell you all you need to know about fastest overall time wins….simple!
the sport.

46 Target Shooter
Safety, as with all shooting sports, is the number The pellet-weights used in the above calculation
one priority and the IPAS Association are very are typical weights for the sizes of pellet but you
proud of their 100% safety record. Competitions must always check the actual weight of your
are very simple to set up, all you need are pellet before performing your own calculation.
five steel plates on suitable stands, a decent
multi-shot air pistol, safety glasses (worn at As we are a target shooting magazine, I will not
ALL times whilst on the range) and a shot timer. go into the law concerning the shooting of birds
Only a small amount of space is required to and mammals. However, it’s worth pointing
stage a competition and cardboard can be used out that the penalties for misuse are severe
for backstops - the .177 lead pellet simply falls and carry heavy fines and custodial sentences
to the ground after impacting with the steel plate not dissimilar to firearms offences.
but not before sounding a very satisfying ‘ding’.
IPAS is an inclusive sport, with men and
women, young and old from all walks of life Following the enactment of the Violent Crime
taking part. It is fun, fast, competitive and Reduction Act 2006, listed below are the current
above all it doesn’t cost a fortune to take part. regulations relating to the purchase, ownership,
The law pertaining to these air pistols, replicas sale and possession of airguns and ammunition.
and the like is an absolute nightmare and I will
attempt to set it out here. Persons under the age of 14:
1) No person under the age of 14 may purchase,
The Law hire or be given an airgun or ammunition.
You do not need a license to own an air pistol 2) A person under the age of 14 must at all times
but in order to purchase one you do need when shooting be supervised by a person
to be over 18 years of age, be able to prove over the age of 21.
your age to the seller (ie Driving License) and
the sale must be carried out face to face. Mail
order of air pistols and rifles is now banned.  Persons over the age of 14 but under 18:
Air Soft pistols are classified as RIFs (Realistic 1) No person under the age of 18 may purchase,
Imitation Firearms) and these can only be sold hire or be given an airgun or ammunition.
to registered ‘skirmishers’.  2) A person in this age group may shoot
Airguns in the UK are subject to the Firearms Act, unsupervised on private land with the permission
under the Firearms (Dangerous air weapons) of the landowner but must be supervised by
rules 1969 they are classified as low-powered somebody over the age of 21 if in a public place.
air weapons and as such they are restricted to It should be noted that this means that a person
a maximum power of 12 foot pounds of energy aged seventeen and a half, who may have a
for a rifle and 6 foot pounds energy for a pistol. driving licence, cannot take an air rifle from home
Air rifles above 12 ft.lbs. are classified as a s.1 to his club to shoot unless the gun is possessed
Firearm and require an FAC. An air pistol above by somebody over the age of eighteen or the
6 ft.lb. is now a prohibited weapon in the UK. seventeen and a half-year old is supervised
by a person over the age of twenty-one.
UK Legal Limit
To calculate the power of an airgun you need to Persons over the age of 18:
use a chronograph to measure the speed of the A person over the age of eighteen can buy an
pellet (in feet per second) when fired, and you airgun and pellets and use them unsupervised.
need to know the weight of the pellet in grains.
As mentioned, the legal maximum for an General Restrictions:
unlicensed air rifle is 12 ft.lb. which equates to 1 It is an offence to have an airgun in a
the following velocities: public place ‘without good reason’, the proof
A .22 pellet weighing 14.4 grains, maximum being the responsibility of the possessor.
permissible speed is 612 ft/sec 2 It is an offence to discharge an airgun
A .177 pellet weighing 7.9 grains, maximum within fifty feet of the centre of a highway, if doing
permissible speed is 826 ft/sec so would cause a nuisance or endanger the public
The corresponding figures for a pistol are 3 When shooting over private land, it is an
433 ft/sec for a .22 and 584 ft/sec for a .177 offence for the pellet to go beyond the boundary of
Target Shooter 47
the premises on which the gun is being used unless increasing the performance of his own gun,
there is permission from the adjoining landowner. a Co2 Colt 1911 A1 air pistol from German
4 Persons who by way of trade deal in manufactures Umarex and this gave him a clear
airguns, pressure-bearing parts or component advantage. Other shooters, keen not to be left
parts must be a Registered Firearms Dealer and behind in the wake of his continued success,
any transaction must be face-to-face. Ammunition asked if they too could have guns modified for
for airguns may continue to be sold by post. them and so Action Air Shooting came into being.

Exceptions: At present, Action Air Shooting offers two
1 It is not an offence for a person to types of Co2 pistol with various optional extras
have with him an airgun or ammunition whilst available - the Colt 1911A1 SuperSpeed & the
being a member of a Home Office Approved Smith Ultralite Revolver. There are two divisions,
Club in connection with target practice. Open (with optics) and Standard (iron sights)
2 Air rifles with a muzzle energy in excess of and both guns are available for either division.
12 foot pounds (which require licensing) are not Every gun is built to order (so there is a waiting
subject to the general restrictions listed above. list) and each has between 8 and 11 hours of
3 An ‘airgun’ with the kinetic energy of less gunsmithing before it is ready. Many custom
than one joule is considered a toy and is therefore parts are fitted as standard, such as the
not covered by the above restrictions but may be lightweight aluminum shrouds for the revolvers
considered a realistic imitation firearm (if it looks which are 55% lighter than the original part.
like a gun). The sale of realistic imitation firearms For speed shooting this lightened front end
is now banned with one or two minor exceptions, allows for an even faster draw and target
mainly for historical re-enactment, museums acquisition. The gun is lighter whilst retaining
and television/film/theatrical performances or as its potency, this combined with a fully tuned
a recognized member of an airsoft site affiliated trigger makes for an outstanding performance.
to the Association of British AirSoft www.aoba. The customer can choose a variety of options
org.uk such as double-action only, ‘bobbed’ hammer
and even the trigger-guards can be machined
Crime and Security Bill: so they can be used with a speed holster, such
Failing to prevent minors from having air rifles/ as those from Ghost International or Safariland.
pistols. The attention to detail, the finish and the overall
The Firearms Act 1968 is amended as follows: performance of an STC Custom Air Pistol from
It is an offence for a person in possession of an air Action Air Shooting is vastly superior to that
rifle/pistol to fail to take reasonable precautions of an ordinary ‘off the shelf’ air pistol. A truly
to prevent any persons under the age of 18 from bespoke piece of kit, these guns are supplied
having the air rifle/pistol with him.  with a unique build number, chronograph
With that bit of tedious but very essential reading to show the average FPS of each
information out of the way, we can have a look gun, a 10m benchrest test-target to show
at what prompted this article in the first place accuracy and a Cordura double gun bag.
- an e-mail from Mark at Action Air Shooting STC guns are also ideal as a training aid for users
who, in addition to loaning me their ‘hopped-up’ of real firearms outside of the United Kingdom.
1911 pistol, also kindly supplied the foregoing Seasoned shooters looking for a cost-effective
information regarding the sport and legal side. training system or instructors with students new
Action Air Shooting – the Company to firearms keen to learn good gun-control and
The Action Air Shooting company was borne out gun-safety in a controlled environment both
of desire to obtain, produce and provide the best benefit from an STC Co2 Air Pistol. For further
possible equipment for the sport of competition details e-mail info@actionairshooting.org
IPAS for those who wanted to compete at a Have I whetted your appetite? Next month,
serious level. Although standard pistols can we’ll have a closer look at Action Air Shooting’s
be used, as always, those who take their sport remarkable 1911 pistol – don’t miss it!
seriously demand the very best in equipment. The
gunsmith at STC - himself a very accomplished
IPAS competitor - spent years fine-tuning and

48 Target Shooter
Rifle Work Ammunition Development
 Re-barreling work Assistance in Ammunition Development up to and
 Fitting of Moderators and Muzzle brakes - Reproofing of including .50 BMG
Rifle required
 Trigger work – See Trigger work

Ballistics Testing
Offering Ballistics testing for research
and development purposes to Stanag,
NIJ and V50 testing of composite and
steel materials. Including High speed
photography and Certifiable Results of
tests.
Dolphin are now proud to announce
that we are ISO 9001:2008 BSI
certificate No FM32560 for our
Ballistic testing.

Dolphin Gun Company & Ballistic Services (a division of Hobson Industries )

2 Vine Street
STAMFORD
Lincs
PE9 1QE
Tel: 01780 481567 or 0774 7771962
Email: mik@mikdolphin.demon.co.uk

Website: www.dolphinguncompany.co.uk

Please feel free to contact us at any reasonable time to discuss any requirements that you may have.

Target Shooter 49
50 Target Shooter
 Target Shooter 51
HANDLOADING BENCH - BULLET SEATING AND
CARTRIDGE OVERALL LENGTH ISSUES
By Laurie Holland
Above - Vince B caught doing some load development for his new secret 100yd LV benchrest
rifle and experimental 7.62X63PPC cartridge. Alright ... a .30-06 M1917 service rifle. Note the
cleaning rod with collars at his side used to determine COAL. (Interesting front-rest Vince!)
One of the most difficult issues for the handloading
tyro, and not a few experienced practitioners, is
how to determine the correct COAL (cartridge
overall length) of the finished round so that the
seater die can be set correctly. This is determined
by three interlocking issues: bullet length/shape;
bullet type (tangent v secant ogive); and how the
barrel has been chambered, that is how much
‘freebore’the throating reamer has provided ahead
of the cartridge case part of the chamber. Each
bullet that you load needs a different setting and
it applies only to that barrel / chamber at that
particular point in its life (as throats gradually
erode forward with use). Loading manuals rarely
help as they usually quote the SAAMI or CIP
nominal COAL.
Let’s look at rifle chambers – not the bit that
encloses the case, but the section ahead usually
called the ‘throat’, in particular the length of
parallel non-rifled section referred to as ‘freebore’.
I’ll use .223 Remington as an example as my
Savage F/TR rifle has been chambered to suit the
90gn Berger VLD seated so its shank / boat-tail
section junction is seated to the bottom of the
case-neck. I’ll first measure three 0.224” match
bullets from the point on the ogive (bullet
shoulder) where the diameter has reached the
size that will likely make contact with the start
of the rifling (the leade) to the shank / boat-tail
junction using callipers and a pair of .22 calibre
52 Target Shooter
‘comparators’ slotting the bullet between them.
(Actually, as the comparator inserts’ apertures
are cut at 0.208” dia., this process measures the
distance between a point high up on the boat-tail
section to one fractionally above where the ogive
contacts the rifling leade, but it’s close enough to
allow valid comparisons.) A 90gn Berger BT Match
(tangent ogive) chosen at random measures
0.558” between these points, and the
longer-nosed 90gn VLD (secant ogive) model,
0.502”. The 69gn Sierra MatchKing, a bullet that I
would never normally use in this rifle runs at 0.384”.
The .223 Rem case has a 0.203” length neck, so
with each of these bullets seated at the optimal
position in the case, we see their ideal ‘freebores’
run at around 0.35” for the 90gn BT, 0.3” for the 90gn
VLD, and 0.18” for the 69gn SMK. (I say ‘around’
as the case section of the chamber extends
further up the barrel than the maximum allowed
case length of 1.760”, and there are bullet jump
issues, as well as repeating my observation that
comparators exaggerate bullet bearing lengths
slightly.)
Also, the shapes of these three bullets produce
very different lengths above the shank / boat-tail
junction and that changes the OAL markedly when
the bullet is seated optimally. The VLD measures
1.108” from this point to its tip, while the 69gn
SMK measures 0.771”, so subtracting the 0.203”
case-neck length tells us that 0.905” of 90gn VLD
Military rifles are usually given considerable ‘freebore’ to accommodate dirty or out of spec
ammunition, but this applied even more in the days of their using cartridges loaded with
long round-nosed bullets. Left to right: 6.5X55mm Mauser / 160gn; 7X57 Mauser / 175gn;
7.65X53mm Mauser / 210gn; German WW2 7.92X57mm sS with 198gn FMJBT which relied
on massive ‘freebore’ to keep pressures manageable
bullet sticks out of the case, but only 0.57” of the form, has a major effect on what bullets you
69gn SMK. Add 1.760” (case length) to these can load and how well the rifle shoots, as well
values and we get likely COALs for our optimally as peak chamber pressures and MVs that any
seated bullets of 2.665” and 2.33” respectively. given load will produce in that rifle. Many people
I’ve made a bit of a meal about ‘freebore’ know that when Roy Weatherby designed his
because it is important to understand its magnum cartridges in the 1960s, he not only
relationship to the bullet shape. In many cases, used huge cases and powder charges but
you have the ‘freebore’ that the manufacturer specified very long throats (or lots of ‘freebore’)
decides you’ll have, not what you’d specify in a on his rifles to attain the extra couple of hundred
custom-built rifle. Its length and in some cases fps MVs without exceeding safe pressures –

Target Shooter 53
6BR in three loadings that would likely see different chamber forms used in custom rifles.
Left to right: 55gn Sierra BlitzKing, 70gn Sierra MK, 105gn Lapua Scenar
but this practice didn’t make for super-accurate
rifles. What few people know is that the Germans
used the same trick fifty odd years before with
the 7.92X57IS cartridge to get a 154gn bullet
up to the then unheard of MV of 2,880 fps. The
redesigned G98 rifle barrel had a relatively long
parallel ‘freebore’ section that led into an even
longer (4½ calibres or around 1.4”) smoothbore
tapered ‘forcing cone’. This feature later
facilitated the adoption of the heavily loaded
198gn sS FMJBT bullet machinegun version
of the cartridge in the WW2 era KAR98k short
rifle which gave 2,493 fps from a 600mm (23.6”)
barrel. Again, accuracy was militarily adequate
rather than good.
So we’ve learned that throat shape and how the
bullet matches it affects pressures, velocities and
also the likely accuracy. Lots of bullet jump (into
the rifling) generally reduces chamber pressures,
54 Target Shooter
but increases groups sizes; a throat designed
for the bullet to have a short jump (or no jump in
the case of a VLD) with the bullet seated at the
bottom of the case neck is likely to give us
target shooters the best results. What we’re now
seeing is a plethora of chamber forms in rifles –
we’re mostly shooting non-standard versions of
factory cartridges if we have a rifle custom-built
or simply rebarrelled as more often than
not we’ll depart from SAAMI / CIP ‘freebore’
specifications to suit the rifle’s intended use
and bullet type / model. A good example is
6mm BR. Look at the photograph and you
see the same case loaded in three different
forms – a 55gn varmint bullet at a shade over
2” COAL; the 70gn Sierra MK at 2.2” COAL
for short-range target shooting, and the 105gn
Lapua Scenar at 2.44” for longer ranges.
Gunsmiths have customers turn up and ask
for barrels to be throated to suit any of these
An early version of the Dolphin Gun Co. OAL tool kit with several heavy 0.308” bullets
mounted on the rods and extra length tool bodies to suit Laurie’s F/TR Barnard/Eliseo
tubegun
alternatives, or even longer versions at 2.5” and and it depends on what shape of bullet we’re
up to suit 105-115gn bullets – and also anything in loading to some extent. If it’s a secant ogive
between. design as in all models described as VLDs, but
also some that aren’t such as many Hornady
In or Out? A-Max models and the 0.308” 210gn Sierra
Let’s assume we have a well-made rifle that’s MK, the abrupt junction between the shank and
been carefully chambered and some thought nose sections doesn’t centre the bullet well as it
has gone into the throat design to be able to enters the leade, so usual practice is to seat the
seat a particular bullet at that optimum point in bullet in the case so that it is pushed into an
the cartridge case. We now have two questions interference fit with the rifling when the cartridge
to answer. First, what is the optimum relationship is chambered. A typical figure might be 0.015”
between the bullet ogive and the rifling leade? (15 thou’) into the rifling, but some people might
Secondly, having decided that, how do we try 20 or more.
measure what COAL achieves that relationship? However, just to make life difficult, Berger VLDs
There is no simple answer to the first question, sometimes give good results when kept out of

Stoney-Point (now Hornady L-N-L) OAL gauges in two versions, modified .223 Rem case,
comparator bodies, the green one (from Sinclair International) with a .22 cal insert installed,
callipers, and 90gn 0.224” Berger VLD bullet. Just add rifle and cleaning rod

Target Shooter 55
Screw the modified case onto the tool body and insert the bullet into its neck
the leade and ‘jumped’ – but usually with a big cleaning every last kernel of spilt powder out of
jump that might see the bullet move up to 0.120” the locking lug recesses usually terminates the
(120 thou’) before contacting the rifling. Here is fun for the day.
what Berger Bullet’s Eric Stecker advises on the
subject: Tangent ogive bullets which include the Berger
BT Match and new ‘Hybrid’ models, and nearly
Load 24 rounds at the following COAL if all Sierra MatchKings have a rounded ogive
you are a target competition shooter who and a gentle transition from the shank to nose
does not worry about jamming a bullet: section that guides the bullet into the leade on
1. .010 into (touching) the lands (jam) 6 rounds firing, so are normally jump-tolerant. A common
2. .040 off the lands (jump) 6 rounds starting point is 0.015” out of the rifling. It’s
3. .080 off the lands (jump) 6 rounds always worth looking at Internet forums such as the
4. .120 off the lands (jump) 6 rounds accurateshooter.com/forum and US rifle teams.
The problem with seating a bullet so it is pushed com/lrforum to see what others say on this
well into the leade is that it forms an interference issue. Alternatively ask around other shooters
fit with the rifling and will be gripped tightly. If you in your club to see who uses your intended
have to unload a chambered cartridge for any bullet and find out what works for them. The
reason, there is a high probability of pulling the case USrifleteams.com/lrforum has had a lot of
off the bullet leaving it stuck in the barrel. Assuming discussion recently about the new 155gn 0.308”
somebody on the firing line has a cleaning rod Sierra Palma MK (#2156) and how well it does
or set of drop rods, that’s no great problem, but in rifles chambered with the Bisley 150 or

Push the gauge with case / bullet installed fully into the rifle chamber, use the push-rod
to move the bullet so it is jam-seated into the rifling leade and lock the push-rod at that
position

56 Target Shooter
Remove gauge from rifle, knock bullet out of the rifling with cleaning rod and reinsert into
the case to get a dummy round with the bullet seated into the rifling leade
Palma 95 reamers developed for the 155gn RG as well as press operating variations, your
cartridge and/or the old (shorter) Sierra Palma cartridges may not be anything like as
MK (#2155). It turns out that the new model consistent in this regard as you’d expect!
is exceptionally jump-tolerant and may even However, the golden rule is to stick to whatever
prefer a long jump, say 0.040” or more. Why seating depth you started with while working your
did I use the 0.015” figure as a starting point for loads up. Changing this factor is something to try
being ‘in’ or ‘out’? It’s to ensure that every bullet subsequently if you can’t get the combination to
is either properly engaged with the leade or fully perform, or want to fine-tune a load that shows
disengaged. It’s fatal to have some in contact promise.
and some not – they’ll behave differently enough
to give you fliers. With many bullets having Measurement
variations in bearing surface lengths and nose/ Right, I have my F/TR Savage chambered with a
shoulder shapes as they come out of the carton, huge amount of ‘freebore’ for the long thin Berger

That gives a COAL of around 2.695” from cartridge base to bullet tip

Target Shooter 57
But we use a bullet comparator on the calliper to get a more accurate and repeatable
reading, taking a note of this reading – 2.084” to be increased to 2.099” (for the bullet to be
jammed 0.015” into the rifling)
90s, and I’ve decided I’ll start at 0.015” ‘out’ for the
tangent ogive BT version, and the same amount
into the leade for the VLD. How do I now ascertain
the seating depth that delivers these results
give or take a few thou’ in my rifle. The rifle’s
chamber (or its throat / leade) is the gauge we
use, and the starting point is the bullet lightly
engaging with the rifling leade. There are three
basic methods: gradually seating a bullet
deeper into a case until it can just be felt to
chamber without any resistance from the bullet
ogive being forced into the rifling lands; pushing
/ dropping a bullet through the chamber into the
leade and measuring its position in relation to the
bolt face or action using rods with movable collars
either from the muzzle or rear of the action; the
bullet sliding in a case with an oversize neck and
measuring where it lies after chambering the
dummy round.
Method one uses a full length sized case that
chambers easily and has the bullet initially seated
too far out. Use the rifle bolt to gently try to
chamber it. The odds are it won’t so you seat the
bullet slightly deeper and try again, repeating
the process until the inert round just chambers
without any resistance felt at all from the bullet
engaging the rifling lands. To do this
successfully, it’s essential to remove the firing
mechanism from the bolt (as it produces
resistance to bolt operation) and to hold and
move its handle downwards on final closure
ever so slowly and gently. Ideally, the weight of
58 Target Shooter
the bolt-handle alone closes the bolt. If you push
the bolt handle down even lightly, the cams on
the locking lugs will see you chamber a bullet
that just touches the leade so easily that you’ll
probably not notice any resistance. While doing
all this keep examining the bullet for rifling
engagement marks, preferably with a
magnifying glass. As you get down to marginal
bullet-lands engagement, it’s a good idea
to make up a new inert round with a ‘clean’
bullet so that the now ever so thin marks
caused by just kissing the lands can be seen. A
dark-coloured bullet with an oxidised copper
jacket also makes it easier to spot rifling
engagement marks, likewise some people
smoke the bullet shoulder in a candle flame.
You then have an inert round set with the bullet
marginally shy of the rifling – reset the seater die
to push the bullet 15 thou’ deeper into the case
(to get you that amount ‘out’), or back the die
adjuster off for the round to be 15 thou’ longer
(to be that amount ‘in’) with a VLD and retain
the resulting inert round to set the seater die up
each time you load that bullet.
The rod method is often done from the muzzle
using the simple kit that you see in the
photograph of Vince Bottomley range-
testing loads in his M1917 service rifle. A
cleaning rod or similar has two sliding and
lockable collars attached. The rod is pushed
down the muzzle onto the (cocked) bolt face
and the collars are tightened on the rod with
Insert seating dummies set up for the Savage for 80 and 90gn bullets and so marked (with
a strip of tape used to stop the descriptions being worn off).
the lower one touching the muzzle. The bolt and will describe it next month.
and rod are removed, a bullet dropped into the
chamber and pushed into firm contact with the The most commonly used method, although
leade, and the rod reinserted down the barrel not necessarily the most precise is the Hornady
until it just touches the bullet tip, the lower collar L-N-L OAL gauge, or Stoney-Point OAL gauge as
slackened and slid down against the muzzle we old-timers call it. It uses a drilled and tapped
and locked there. The relationship between the cartridge case with slightly oversize neck, (so the
collars’ position on the rod allows you calculate the bullet will slide through it easily), that screws onto
COAL of a chambered round whose bullet is jam the end of the gauge’s tubular body. There is a
seated in the leade and you work from there. Sinclair lockable push-rod inside the gauge and it is
International has a shorter version where the pushed forward to be inside the cartridge case and
rod is inserted through the action rather than the support a deeply seated bullet inside the neck. The
barrel and is used to measure the bullet’s tool and bullet are inserted into the rifle action and
position from the rear, being supported by a the modified case chambered fully in the chamber.
Delrin guide. I have one of these tools on order While holding it there, the push-rod is moved
Target Shooter 59
A 90gn VLD that has been seated around 20 thou’ into the rifling displays a hazy line of
marks visible just above the rod tip that have been left by the rifling lands
forwards until it pushes the bullet into the leade back down onto the bullet.
and is given a couple of taps to seat (jam) the
bullet lightly in the rifling with a thumbnail, Next month, I’ll finish this look at COAL by
whereupon the push-rod is locked at that position considering magazine rifles that may not allow
in the gauge body and the tool withdrawn from you to seat bullets close to the rifling leade, as
the rifle. The bullet is knocked out of the leade well as take a look at the Sinclair Bullet Seating
using a cleaning or drop rod and reinserted into the Depth Tool and also cover one or two related
modified case-mouth and that gives us the COAL issues.
with the bullet in the leade by measuring it with
callipers.

However, measuring COAL from the cartridge

base to bullet tip is not sufficiently accurate as
bullets are not guaranteed to have consistent
dimensions in their shank, shoulder and
especially tip sections, so we measure the COAL
using a ‘bullet comparator’ mounted on a calliper
blade so we’re actually measuring the COAL
to a point on the shoulder behind the tip. Note
the reading, and add or subtract so many thou’
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a more sophisticated version of this principle
using a false chamber and dial gauge, and Vince
Bottomley describes it elsewhere in this issue.
Finally, I make up and mark a ‘seating dummy’
for each bullet at the actual COAL I want to load
cartridges to as well as keeping a record of all Tel: 44 (0) 1424 429343 Fax: 44 (0) 1424 435308
measurements. The dummies allow the seater www.outdoorsman.co.uk
die to be set up quickly by backing the stem out,
operating the press so the round is
fully inserted into the die and screwing the stem

60 Target Shooter
 COAL!

By Vince Bottomley
Gauges - we shove the whole thing into the action as far as it will go making sure the case
is fully in the chamber, then push the ‘bullet rod’ forward until it touches the rifling – in other
words, as far as it will go – and lock the two parts together with the knurled thumb-screw
If you are a serious fullbore target shooter, you are trying to measure to thousandths of an inch.
will already be loading your own ammunition I’ve always used a method which involves
and you will have already found out that your shoving a rod down the bore from the muzzle-end
rifle shoots best – i.e. most accurate – with the until it contacts the bolt-face (with the bolt
bullet touching - or almost touching - the rifling. closed so that the firing-pin is retracted) and
In fact some shooters find best accuracy with the measuring this distance, then taking another
bullet seated a few thou. into the rifling. (Beware measurement to the nose of a bullet, which is
– seating into the rifling can raise pressures). dropped into the bore from the chamber-end
But how do we actually measure our critical COAL with the rifle held vertical. Subtract the two
- or cartridge overall length? There are various measurements and you have your COAL.
ways you can do it – or attempt to do it, for we This is a simple method but it has its drawbacks.

Here’s what comes in the box – your bullet fixed to a stainless-steel rod. Your case,
fixed to another hollow rod, a chamber comparator with dial gauge – plus detailed
instructions

Target Shooter 61
 A Lapua 155gn Scenar mounted on the rod. If you change bullets,
it’s not too difficult to make up a new rod

The main one being that the nose of the bullet
is really a ragged hole (or meplat) on a match
bullet and the overall length of the bullet can
vary by a few thou. Not a good start. Also, I
accept that the rod measurements will be no
better than two or three thou. so I like to take
the measurement several times with different
bullets which gives you maybe a dozen
readings - each differing by a thou. or two.
What do we do with these measurements?
Do we pick the longest – or shortest one?
Do we average them out and use the mean?
When we are attempting to load close to the
rifling, the last thing we want is some bullets
touching the rifling, some a couple of thou. off
the rifling and some a few thou. into the rifling,
so I prefer to average out my measurements,
knock off five or six thou. and settle for a figure
which is close to the rifling but definitely not
touching it. OK, some bullets will closer than
others but, as long as none actually touch, we
should have a reasonably consistent performer.
What about seating the bullet into the rifling?
Could the rifle perform even better? Yes, it
could but all this stuff about seating bullets
into the rifling is a spin-off from benchrest

Here’s the rod with my bullet - a 308 155 grain Lapua Scenar - attached (your chosen bullet
is supplied with the kit)

The supplied rod with case attached – in this case a 308Win. Knurled thumb-screw is
used to lock both rods together

62 Target Shooter
 This is the comparator gauge. Mine is cut away so
you, the reader, can see exactly how it works
competition. In this discipline, shooters are
seeking maximum accuracy but remember, we
can accurately control neck-tension by using a
sizing-die with interchangeable neck-bushings.
Also, our neck-turned brass is thinner – which
in itself gives less neck-tension. By running
less neck-tension, we can confidently seat our
bullets into the rifling, knowing that they will be
pushed back into the case by exactly the same
amount when the bolt is closed thus ensuring
as near as possible, shot to shot consistency.
Unfortunately, when you seat into the rifling,
should the need arise to open the bolt without
firing the shot - e.g. a range emergency – there
is a good chance you will leave the bullet stuck
in the barrel and fill your chamber with powder!
End of your shoot I’m afraid. For this reason,
the range rules of benchrest are different to all
others in that the RO will not ask shooters to
open their bolts in the event of an emergency
cease-fire. Instead, he will ask competitors to
leave their rifle on the rests without opening the
bolt, step back from the bench and await further
Remove from the action and here’s my bullet, seated to ‘just
touch’ the rifling – what we need to know is the length – or
COAL
instruction. Only when the emergency is dealt
with, will shooters be allowed back to the benches.
Now, if you are happily shooting F Class at
say Bisley and an emergency occurs, the RO
will call for a cease-fire and demand that you
unload and insert a breech-flag. For this reason,
I never load into the rifling for competitions
like F Class but, that means it’s even more
critical to get your COAL absolutely spot-on.
If you don’t like my ‘rod down the muzzle’ method
what are the alternatives? Some shooters will
soft-seat a bullet, chamber the round and let
the rifling push the bullet back into the case in
the misguided belief that this will be their COAL.
Beware - using this method, you could easily end
up 40 thou. into the rifling! Not really what you want.
Elsewhere in Target Shooter, Laurie Holland is
looking at COAL measurement methods in depth
but he has given me a new COAL gauge from the
Dolphin Gun Company which approaches the
problem slightly differently. Mik Maksimovik and
Peter Hobson, the guys behind Dolphin are both
experienced F Class shooters are well aware
Target Shooter 63
 Insert the whole lot into the supplied gauge
– this one’s cut away so you can see what’s
happening – the cartridge case is firmly up
against the shoulder in the gauge, just as
it was up against the shoulder in my rifle’s
chamber

of the pitfalls of COAL measuring and claim
to have come up with a device which will aid
shooters to get the best possible accuracy when
attempting to place the bullet close to the rifling.
The Dolphin gauge is an impressive piece of kit
and if you seen the Stoney Point COAL gauge
then look on this one as the Rolls Royce version –
though, as I said, it approaches the problem from
a different direction. Like the Stoney Point, It’s
‘cartridge-specific’ and versions are available for
most popular ‘accuracy’cartridges and Dolphin
will use your own fireformed (neck-turned?) case
if you prefer and even your own bullet if you are

Next, zero the dial gauge by rotating the

bezel

64 Target Shooter
 I’m pleased to see that my bullet is at least
off the rifling but, this is a bit too far at 15
thou. I need to adjust my dies. Either my
method is suspect or it maybe it’s down to
a little bit of throat-erosion. Either way, I’ll
adjust my seating die accordingly to make
it about 5 or 6 thou

using something peculiar – like say a Cauteruccio. the Diggle F Class League Shoot, so now
As with the Stoney Point gauge, a ‘soft-seat’ I’m inserting one into the gauge to check
bullet is inserted into the barrel but rather than my method against the Dolphin gauge.
being pushed into the rifling with a rod, the bullet
is actually attached to the rod. It arrives at the What more can I say? The Dolphin gauge is
COAL in more or less the same way as the Stoney easy to use and very accurate for setting up your
Point but rather than attempting to measure the COAL. The kit is not cheap as it contains the
COAL, you simply insert the locked-up bullet and dial gauge and the machined chamber gauge
rod into the supplied chamber gauge and ‘zero’ and costs £85 incl. VAT. Dolphin currently list 18
the dial gauge. Do this a few times – it only takes cartridge cases they can supply and almost any
seconds – to ensure the indicator ‘zero’ is correct. bullet from the major manufacturers but they
invite you to submit your own bullet and cartridge-
Now, when you come to check your COAL, simply case if you wish. All kits are made ‘to order’
insert a loaded round into the chamber-gauge. and take approximately two weeks to deliver.
Is the gauge reading zero? No – then adjust your Contact Dolphin at www.dolphinguncompany.
die seating-depth until it does. That’s your COAL. co.uk or e-mail mik@mikdolphin.demon.co.uk
Again, the bolt-face measurement - which is A trade discount is available for Registered
essential with my method - doesn’t play a part Firearm Dealers.
in the Dolphin kit and it doesn’t need to, as the
measurement is being made from the shoulder
of the cartridge case – not the base or bolt-face.
This gives you the best of both worlds so to speak
and makes the Dolphin gauge easily the best I
have seen so far. Will I abandon my ‘rod down the
muzzle’ device in favour of the Dolphin? Well, let’s
do a real life test. I think I’m loading ‘just off’ the
rifling but let’s see what our Dolphin gauge says:
When attempting to take any accurate
measurement, it’s advisable to do it a few
times and of course, make sure your rifle is
clean. I had a couple of rounds left over from

Target Shooter 65
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66 Target Shooter
Target Shooter Magazine is a publication of Trinity Digital Publishing Ltd
 A visit to EVO Engineering & Design Ltd

by Vince Bottomley
A few weeks ago a shooting buddy handed me Proprietor Craig Cootes is also a shooter and,
the object you see in the picture below. fearing a dip in automotive sport during the
recession, he looked around for other uses he
Now, if you are anything like me, you will find could find for his CNC machines. As it happens,
this totally fascinating. I also found out that it he needn’t have worried, the motorsports side
was made just half an hour from where I live. I stayed buoyant throughout the recession but
had just to visit EVO Engineering! thankfully (for shooters) Craig had already put
The EVO factory is situated in a dense industrial his talents to good use with the manufacturer of
area on the outskirts of Heckmondwike, West scope rings.
Yorkshire and from the outside, it looks like any
of the other drab looking factories but enter Craig’s rings really are ‘the dogs’. They are
and suddenly you are in a different world. If strong, light and good-looking and come in
you are also motor-racing or a motorbike freak one inch, 30mm and 34mm for the Schmidt &
like me, you will instantly recognise lots of Bender users. They are sold under the EVO
sparkling goodies on show, for EVO specialise ‘Third Eye’ brand though others are selling them
in manufacturing high quality components for with their own brand name – something that
the motorsport fraternity. Craig is happy to do if you order a reasonable
run. Most rings are supplied in a hard satin-
Proprietor Craig programmes one of his CNC black anodised finish but you can polish ‘em if
machines you prefer or what about a really nice drab grey/
green anodising (see pic) these would really
look great on a tactical rifle.

Chris has now expanded the shooting side and

he now makes muzzle brakes (similar to Vais)
and Picatinny-style scope rails - with built-in
taper if required - to fit several of the popular
actions. His latest venture is moderators.

These are almost too good to put on a rifle and

the strippable innards are a work of art. The
Target Shooter 67
 Just look at the detail on these rings and
Chuck a piece of aluminium bar in the CNC that finish looks great on a tactical rifle
machine, press the button and 13 minutes
later..........a scope ring!

404 312 to discuss trade prices.

Craig likes to keep his CNC machines running
so if you have a requirement for a product, it
unique thing with the EVO mod. is that it can be might just be worth giving Craig a call.
assembled to fit on the end of the barrel or as a
reverse – or reflex – moderator, over the barrel
and they are amazing value.
You can order via your local dealer or deal direct
with Craig if you wish. Dealers, please contact
Craig at info@evoeng.com or telephone 01924

Too nice for a moderator!

The mod. measures
220mm x 40mm diameter. A
stripping tool is included

68 Target Shooter
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 This Smallbore Business

Let’s have a look at Shooting Jackets. They are
really important!
Following along from the basic position articles,
where the shooters needed to adhere to a certain
protocol of position assembly to achieve good
results, it is a normal flow factor from these articles
that brings us to the accessory equipment of a
shooter’s clothing decision.
During this article I will examine a number of the
available shooting jackets on a highly competitive
market.
The readers will find that personal choice, and
By Don Brook
cost may help make the selective process a more
complicated matter, as well as the off the hook
choices that abound around this small bore business.
Shooting jackets are available in all leather, a full
canvas, or a combination of both in custom tailored,
or off the hook sizing, and there is a plethora of them
on the market.
This can often be confusing for both the new chum to
the sport, and also the seasoned shooter!
The shooting jacket performs a number of important
factors, not the least of which is the ability to ensure

The sling keeper

attached to the arm
can be a source of
problems. Note how
the sleeve is being
pulled down the
arm. This results in
a loose sling over
the latter stages, as
the adjustment is
lost. The real fault
is not with the sling,
but with the fit of the
coat.

Target Shooter 71

the sling stays exactly where it should be…
It is fine to have a sling loop fitted to the sleeve of
the jacket, but if the coat does not fit properly then
problems can develop with the shooters technique
that is extremely difficult to trace.
I have seen shooters that struggle for some form
of solution to a series of worries that is preventing
improvement, never giving an iota of thought that the
This photograph indicates
the measurement discussed
in the text. It is crucial that
this measurement is correct
across the back of the jacket
from armpit to armpit.
72 Target Shooter
This photograph shows the
back of the jacket discussed
in the text. Note the firm fit,
without coat wrinkles across
the back of the jacket. This
coat is a Stenvaag used by
the author for many years.
sling is exacerbating the problem simply because it
is tied up securely within the sling loop on the sleeve
of the coat. They simply lock it up and then forget
about it!
The most important measurement on any shooting
coat is that across the back of the coat between the
arm pits. I cannot stress this more forcibly than that.
Showing the author in
preparation mode behind
the firing point. It is just
a matter of etiquette
to allow the shooter
to prepare without
disruption.

If you examine photo “A’ which shows my own
Stenvaag jacket, which I started to use in 1980 giving
a very good example of this measurement. Note how
the jacket is quite firm across the back without any
form of folds in the leather. The tape shows where
the measurement is taken.
Now, photo “B” shows the sleeve with the sling
attached, and you will note that the sleeve is not
pulled down the arm and so the sling loop remains
exactly where it was placed before I assumed
the prone position. The position of the sling is
constantly monitored as the shoot unfolds, and is
something that I never lose, or overlook during the
stage of shots.

Target Shooter 73
Now examine photo “C” which indicates the very
same problem of the sleeve moving down the arm,
because of the fit of the shooting jacket. You can
easily see the way the sleeve is pulled down towards
the elbow. This eventually causes shot loss, and
if it is not modified can destroy an otherwise good
performance quite quickly, particularly in this day and
age where prone scores are extremely high.
These photographs give a good indication of what is
needed, and obviously you can understand why the
measurement across the back is so important. A coat
that is loose across the back is a complete “ no no”
for a serious prone shooter.
OK, having established this, what coats are available
that can be seen as better than most?
This, plus before we start, I recommend that a
shooting jacket needs to be tailored to fit, and most
manufacturers supply this detail .
It is probably far too complex to set out the complete
details of all the manufacturers for you, so I will take
the bit into my teeth and recommend those that I
consider to be the best available..
1. Mouche jackets
In my opinion, the stand out jacket of them all is the
Mouche, manufactured by Ursula Hurth-Schuler from
Germany.
These coats are incredibly well made, with a
complex tailoring format based on a highly detailed
measurement system. Just the seams of the coat,
where nothing becomes a problem to the shooter
is what has sold me on this jacket. I have seen a
number of them worn by competitors and the design
work is amazing. From the smallest shooter, to the
very tall, a feature is the absolute fit. These are not
cheap as are any of the good jackets, but are easily
my pick of the jackets available today. In my opinion it
is essential to have these tailored to take advantage
of the measurement chart and tailoring expertise.
2. The Stenvaag range.
Designed by Harald Stenvaag from Norway, for
a long time one of the best shooters in the world,
these are available now through AHG Anschutz. My
own jacket is a Stenvaag, which I have been using
since 1980. You can see this coat in the photographs
included in this article. I reiterate that the jacket was
expertly tailored for me, and has seen a great deal
of work in 30 years. This gives a good example of
the longevity built into all shooting coats. It should
also be noted that the “Top Grip” elbow and shoulder
pads are original on my jacket. Most of the available
jackets have this form of rubber fitted on the pads
these days.
3 AHG Anschutz jackets.
Available world wide through the Anschutz system,
74 Target Shooter
these jackets are also well made, particularly if they
are tailored for the individual shooter.
AHG also have an excellent off the hook example,
and if the shooter selects with a tape measure
to check the measurements across the back as I
mentioned above, then these jackets will serve them
well.
4 Kurt Thune, from Finland.
These are a popular choice among shooters, with
some of the best in the world using them. Very well
made, available in a number of colours, in either
leather or canvas, Thune coats are of good design,
and the tailored versions fit extremely well. As I said
above, it is well worth the effort to have your jacket
tailored, and really the initial outlay of funds do not
matter a lot when you consider the length of time you
can use them!
5 Kustermann.
These are designed and made in Germany. Gottfried
Kustermann was himself a world class small bore
shooter, and has incorporated a lot of his knowledge
in the design work. These too are very well made,
though I am not sure if Gottfried has a tailored
example in his catalogue. The off the hook items I
have seen do fit quite well, and operate beautifully in
three position shooting.
Finally for this article, the Maennel jackets made in
Austria. These are new on the market, and while I
have not see them “in the flesh” so to speak, I have
had a good look at them on the Maennel web site.
These too seem well designed, and a number of top
Austrian shooters are using them.
It must be understood when reading this article, that
I have listed them in my own pecking order, as I
knew them from my own experience. All the jackets
examined above are European in origin. There are a
number of other manufacturers with coats available
from Korea and China, as well as from the United
States, and it would not hurt those looking for jackets
to have a really good look around before choosing.
It is crucial that the jacket does fit, and the extra
expense of the tailored article is bickies well spent in
the long run.
For my money though, were I in the market for a new
shooting jacket, I would make a bee line for Ursula
Hurth-Schuler and her Mouche products.
Another gem to finish this article for you….
Buy the best, but understand you still have to shoot
well with whatever you are using!
Talk again soon,
Brooksie.
INTERSHOOT
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Target Shooter 75
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0208 647 7742
open: Monday - Saturday 9am - 5pm
email: INFO@SURREYGUNS.COM
7 Manor Road, Wallington, Surrey, SM6 0BW

A wide range of pistols and rifles available, -

Anschütz, Walther, Morini, BSA, Air Arms,
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Gehmann, HPS, VFG, Walther; AHG, Knobloch,
Champion, Opticron, Hawke, BSA and many more.
Shooting Mats from Evans and HPS.
Gun Safes from Bratton Sound.
Ammunition from Eley, RWS, HPS Target Master,
SK, Lapua - including Air Gun Ammunition
Optics from Tasco, BSA, Hawke, MTC, AGS.
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Anschütz, Gehmann, AKAH.
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and Hunter Field Target Disciplines
With many more items too numerous to mention so
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Shop Tel: 01483 485510
Shop Fax: 01483 488817
E-mail: sales@nsra.co.uk

76 Target Shooter
By Gwyn Roberts
As usual, this year’s British Gallery Rifle
Championships were held over the Bank Holiday
weekend at the end of August and once again the
number of shooters taking part in the grand finale of
our competition season is rising steadily. This year
224 shooters took part in 1412 individual matches
which is a rise of around 10% on last year’s figures,
although the latter figure was boosted almost single
handedly by our very own GB Team shooter, Alan
Whittle. Not one to pass up on an opportunity, Alan
made the most of the “free entry” that he won in the
Phoenix Meeting raffle and set a new record himself
by entering a total of nearly 30 matches. They did
take him the best part of 4 days to complete though
and I saw him having to sit down and take a breather
on more than one occasion, but fair play to him he
got there in the end and thoroughly enjoyed himself
at the same time. God knows what his ammunition
bill came to though as even .22lr is not exactly
cheap to shoot nowadays is it?
the look of. There are obviously some that take it
a bit more seriously and see competitive shooting
as an enjoyable learning exercise from which they
can gain valuable experience and improve their
performances, by both talking to and shooting
alongside some of the more experienced shooters
who frequent the GR “circuit.” Then of course there
are those who look upon it as the ultimate test of
nerve and skill and either want to beat their friends or
rivals in their particular classification, or gauge their
performance against the maximum score possible
for each of the given disciplines. It really doesn’t
matter which of these categories you fall into as long
as you turn up and enjoy yourselves, as that’s all that
counts at the end of the day.
Some people still don’t enter because they don’t think
they are good enough or that it’s only for the elite
shooters (which it isn’t, it’s for everyone!) but Greg

The ‘Nationals’ as we often

refer to it means different things
to many of the 200 hundred
plus shooters who take part
in it. For some people it’s an
opportunity to get out of the
house, and possibly away
from the missus or kids and
put some rounds down the
range with a few mates from
their club, whilst others are just
curious to see what it’s all
about and simply turn up on Match Director Brian Thomas
the day and enter a couple of
competitions that they like

Target Shooter 77
 Chris West & Mick Tedesco man v man
Rastall wasn’t put off by the title of the event and
decided to make the long trip down from Scotland
to take part in his first ever ‘Nationals’ match. Greg
has been shooting shotguns for around 20 years so
he’s no stranger to pulling a trigger but he decided
to take up Gallery Rifle shooting about a year ago
after trying it out at his local club. The broad range
of skills that need to be mastered in order to shoot at
the top level in a wide range of disciplines certainly
appealed to him and after reading a few articles to
get an idea of what he needed to be concentrating
on, he then went out and put in the required amount
of time and effort at the range, and it certainly worked
out well for him too! Greg ended up being placed in
the top 5 overall in seven of his events, including a
197 22x in the GRCF Phoenix A match netting him
a very credible 2nd place on the day in the process.
Excellent shooting without a doubt! He also posted
the highest GRSB score for the Scottish team in the
Home Countries match and will certainly be one to
watch out for in the future if he continues to improve
like this. Let’s just hope that he doesn’t though eh!
The weather for the majority of this year’s
Championships wasn’t bad at all to be fair although
Mel Beard
78 Target Shooter
we still had the occasional downpours and high
winds at some time or another, which is typical of
what we have to shoot in most of the time. This didn’t
affect the high level of shooting though as confirmed
by the final results with many of the matches
having to be decided on X count, or even count back
in a few of them to decide the eventual winner on
the day! Another shooter to make his mark at this
year’s championships was Paul Hunter who shot
a very impressive 1916pts 168x with his Southern
Gun Company 9mm rifle in the Open class, and
although there were many other personal best scores
shot over the weekend this year, only 3 new British
records were actually recorded. Ash Dagger was
one of these and he was the only shooter to clean
the GRCF Multi Target match this time using the new
targets (including the much needed X ring) with a
score of 120 17x. John Robinson upped the Phoenix
A LBP score to 192 18x and Layne Chisholm recorded
an excellent 1916 163x with his LBP in the Bianchi
match smashing the old record by some considerable
margin, so well done to these three guys.
We all have disasters from time to time but there
seemed to be more than usual at this year’s
meeting with guns breaking or jamming
up pretty much everywhere you went
on the ranges. Despite this though
everyone was still enjoying themselves
catching up with old friends and the like,
and again the R.O’s went out of their
way to help look after the newcomers
(and everyone else of course) to make
sure their first big event was both a
positive and enjoyable experience on the
day so thanks again as usual to them for
doing an excellent job! Although there
is no trade show at this meeting, Mike
Chinnery from Stockade Products was
certainly kept busy fitting his excellent
adjustable cheek pieces to customers
stocks, in between shooting his own
matches of course and Neil Jones was
also on hand over the weekend with
a wide range of his top quality ammo holders and
other leather wear for shooters to purchase on the
day.
There are many types of disciplines for people to
choose from at this meeting but the highlight for
most of us was the welcome return of the LBR Man
v Man match, using the proper steels set up this time
instead of the usual fairy lights system. For those
who are unfamiliar with it, there are two identical
lanes with two shooters on each, and within each
lane there are 3 steel targets placed roughly out at
10, 15 and 20yds with a stop plate at 25yds for each
shooter. The stop plates are angled slightly so that in
a close match the plate of the winning shooter plate
will always be the one on the bottom. Four shooters
start with their revolvers loaded and holstered and
with an empty can in their hand, and with their heels
touching a wooden board behind them on the start
line. When the air horn is sounded they run (or walk
if you want to but you will lose time) forwards to the
firing line, place the can on the end of a post and
then continue to knock down the 3 plates in the des-
ignated order (ie middle, left then right as you look at
them). You then had to perform a compulsory reload
before finally knocking down your stop plate, which
was the one that was on your side of the pair of
targets.
Now in theory, as you can use any type of sighting
Paul Hunter
system on your revolver and carrying as much
ammunition on your person as you like, this whole
exercise should take just 4 rounds and about 8 –
10 seconds to accomplish from start to finish. This
however for the majority of shooters was nothing like
what actually happened on the day although I did
witness some good runs by Mick Tedesco (red dot)
and Vanessa Duffy (iron sights) on the side of the
range that I was R.Oing on, as were most of the runs
shot by the eventual winner Mel Beard of course.
Now for me, the most entertaining part of the man v
man competition isn’t the speed and precision that
some of the shooters demonstrate during their runs,
but the comedy of errors that also goes with it, which
begs the question why? For instance, the stop plate
is a pretty straight forward item really as there are
only two of them on the range in front of you. Yes,
I know they both look the same and they’re also
painted white just like the other plates, but if you
are shooting on the left side of the range why would
you rattle a number of shots off and shoot down the
right hand stop plate then, knocking yourself out of
a place in the final in the process? Why would you
shoot down the first 3 plates in totally the wrong
order and then just stand there with a sheepish
grin looking at the R.O as if it were their fault? Why
would you keep putting your ammo in the same
holders that just dump the rounds back out all over
the floor as soon as you start to move forwards on
Target Shooter 79
 Scotlands Les Kong shooting Multi Target
every run? Why would you take a full cylinder of
ammo to completely miss the first plate that you
engage? If you are going to take 14 shots at the first
3 plates, why not take at least 14 rounds of ammo
with you when you start your run? All these are
questions that people should have asked themselves
before they started shooting, but that’s the beauty
of man v man as everyone always tries to shoot
faster and faster, instead of concentrating more on
80 Target Shooter
the accuracy side of things. Using the brain a bit
more and adopting a one shot, one hit philosophy
is definitely the way to do it properly, but thankfully
most it goes out of the window once most people
step up to the line making it much more entertaining
for the spectators! Going back to this original format
is all thanks to Match Director Brian Thomas
from the NSC and it’s bound to attract plenty of
entries next time around. I for one am very much
looking forwards to making a complete fool of myself
shooting this match next time, but the fun factor on
the day will definitely be worth it that’s for sure, so
keep a lookout on the entry forms for the next time
it’s going to be shot at Bisley or anywhere else for
that matter.
As always a huge thank you must go to all of the
people who were involved in the organisation and
running of the 2010 British Gallery Rifle
Championships
as without them we wouldn’t be shooting it at all.
Thanks must also go to all of the shooters who
attend our GR events as without you our sport would
not have been able to grow and develop into what
it is today. Unfortunately space does not allow a full
listing of the prize winners and placings so here is a
list of the main winners, with a full set of results being
available on either the Galleryrifle.com or NRA
websites.
2010 British Gallery Rifle Champions
1500 GRSB John Robinson 1488 114X
1500 GRCF John Robinson 1499 122X
Bianchi GRSB Layne Chisholm 1902 145X
Bianchi GRCF Gwyn Roberts 1916 158X
Aggregates
Precision GRSB Brian Girling 565 17X
Precision GRCF Layne Chisholm 580 17X
Short Events GRSB Keith Cox 417 33X
Short Events GRCF Gwyn Roberts 419 49X
Target Shotgun Layne Chisholm 396 15
1500 Aggregate (GRSB & GRCF) John Robinson
2987 236X
Bianchi Aggregate (GRSB & GRCF) Gwyn Roberts
3802 305X
Overall GR Aggregate (1500 & Bianchi) Gwyn
Roberts 6780 535X
Over the winter months I’ll be taking a look at all of
the firearms and some of the equipment that we use
in Gallery Rifle to see what can be done to make
them better and more suited for the job. I’ll start with
the standard Ruger 10/22 who many people out
there completely write off saying the only good thing
about it is the receiver, but are they right? Nobody
really needs a £1000+ custom gun in order to get
started in GR as you can do a bit of work on them
yourself, and still get reasonable results with it at the
end of the day.

Rude Fat Dog

Custom Firearms
RFD 621 Devon & Cornwall
Section 5
We are the ONLY dedicated company who can supply the products and
technical expertise to help you become more competitive in your
Gallery Rifle competitions

Introducing the Target-Hunter barrel from KID. This high accuracy .920”
solid Stainless Steel ‘Bull’ barrel is available in 12.5”, 14” and 16”
versions. The barrel is threaded ½”x 28 and is supplied with a stainless
steel thread protector. We can supply moderators to suit.
www.rudefatdog.com
Tel: +44(0)1271 865865 Fax: +44(0)1271
865830
Target Shooter 81
Hi there, from sunny Cyprus....well at least
that’s where I was when I wrote this. Don’t
worry though it was actually too hot to be out
so I didn’t miss out on my tanning or swim.
The Saturday of the August bank holiday
weekend saw the NRA up at Altcar ranges near
Formby running our annual Open Day there.
The weather managed to be pretty good with
little rain even if a bit blustery. We were pleased
that attendance was up on last year but we still
have problems with encouraging volunteers in
some disciplines to help on the day. Surprisingly
it’s gallery rifle and black powder that we have
difficulties with, causing long queues which
aren’t ideal. As a result Charles Perry and Chris
Webb helped out on both disciplines for a while
to clear some of the queues. However the
vast majority of people attending had a great
day and we had a lot of enquiries about how
to start shooting and the ins & outs of firearm
ownership. If you or your club would like to
help next year, please contact Chris Webb on
regman@nra.org.uk, and he will be delighted
to tell you all about it. This is a good way to
advertise your club to new members as well. Keeping a close eye
It seemed that we had barely got back to Bisley
and it was all hands to the pump for our
September Open Day. We had over 900
guests at this one and, despite a few drops
of rain early on, the day
went well. Your scribe got
roped into coaching F
Class for a couple of hours.
However I did enjoy it,
especially when you
can coach bulls at 1000
yards with people who
have never shot that
distance before. We had a
lot of interest in membership
from this one as well.
Our thanks go to everyone
who worked so hard to
make both the Open Days
such a success.
The season is starting
to wind down now
however there is still the
Trafalgar Meeting (23rd
Part of A range
Oct) and the Gallery Rifle

82 Target Shooter
 Autumn Action Weekend (30th / 31st Oct). The 30th
October also sees our annual fireworks display set
to music and put on by Dragon Fireworks. The show
starts at 7pm and tickets are available to purchase
online from our website. I’m sure I’ll have a few
pictures of them next month.
Both the certification and renewal periods will be
upon us soon and the membership department
will start its annual ‘wading through paperwork’
process. Last year we tried sending out as much
as possible by email, doing our bit to save the
forests! This was quite successful, apart from those
who didn’t read their emails..... and we will be
doing the same again this year. So, if you or your
club affiliate to the NRA, please ensure that we
have your correct email address. If in doubt, email
memsec@nra.org.uk and I will update your record.
A rough guide as to when to expect your renewals is:
1st October 2010 – Club, school and association
certification renewals sent out to secretaries
by email for those whose addresses we hold.
4th October 2010 - Club, school and association
certification renewals sent out to secretaries
by mail for those who we don’t hold email
addresses for and for those whose emails bounced.
15th October 2010 – Individual member
certification renewals sent out by email.
1st November 2010 – Individual member

Setting up a range

Target Shooter 83

Teamwork
membership renewals sent out by email.
2nd November 2010 – Individual member
certification and membership renewals start to go
out by mail, including any whose emails bounced.
1st Week February 2011 – Membership renewals
for clubs, schools and associations sent out by mail.
Hopefully this will help your planning. Well, it’s cooled
down a bit now so I think it must be time for a dip fol-
lowed by a long cool drink – non alcoholic of course!
Heather Webb – Membership Secretary
Cumbria and Northumberland Incidents
At present the political response to the incidents
in Cumbria and Northumberland has appeared to
be quite responsible with no real drive to change
legislation from the Government of the day.
However, in the background the Home Affairs
Committee has set out its stall and seems intent
upon changing this mood by raising the tempo,
potentially forcing the Government to change its
agenda to focus upon changes to firearms legislation.
At the same time the police appear to be holding back
on releasing their reports related to the incidents
until October. I am not sure if this is an attempt to play
things long, in an effort to take some heat out of the
situation. There must be serious questions about the
operational fitness of Cumbria Constabulary in
particular.
In the background the NRA working with the other
84 Target Shooter
shooting bodies are delivering their messages
through BSSC. We are talking to politicians
in both the Lords and Commons, meeting with
Ministers and representing the wider shooting
community by giving evidence to the Home
Affairs Committee. As our approach develops
we will routinely report on progress particularly
in our dealings with the Home Affairs Committee.
At another level we have provided
all of our members and clubs with BSSC
briefing documents regarding the key issues
raised during this debate and the agreed re-
sponses to date.
The time is fast approaching when as well
as writing to the Home Affairs Committee
offering evidence, individual shooters
and clubs should seek to cultivate a closer
relationship with their local MP.
I would encourage individuals and clubs to
be organised and think seriously about how
they would approach their MP to get them
interested. The personal approach is probably
the best one, visiting a MP at their surgery
demonstrates you are a voter and your
views need to be considered. Rather than
attempt to overwhelm an MP with numbers it
might be better for a selected individual or
deputation to represent you locally. Individuals
need to be well briefed and able to put across
the issues and solutions in a moderate way.
Having built a rapport it might be useful to invite the
MP to a club to witness or more usefully take part
in a shoot, demonstrating how ranges or shoots
are managed in terms of safety, explaining fully the
restrictions and controls placed upon individuals
and clubs in terms of legislation and management.
Having developed an appropriate relationship
the local representative could then brief their MP as
issues and proposals develop.
If you unsure as to whom your MP is they can be
found either on the Parliamentary website http://
findyourmp.parliament.uk/ or by telephoning your
local authority offices.
Glynn Alger
Secretary General
 VINCE’S REGULAR COLUMN WHEREBY
ACCURACY NUTS CAN KEEP UP TO
DATE WITH THE ACTIVITIES OF THE UKBRA

Competitions 2nd Jack Searle 6PPC Stolle

0.2934
The big one this month is the Europeans, held in 3rd Bruce Lenton 6PPC Stolle
Holles Austria and you can read a report elsewhere 0.2980
in this issue of Target Shooter.
Small group: Jack Searle
Our September UKBRA 100 yard shoot was, for 0.135 inches
once, held in warm sunny conditions with light
winds. It shouldn’t have been too difficult to shoot Factory Sporter
small groups but, as usual, the switchy breeze
caught out many of us. Last month, Neil Hutton 1st Darrel Evans 6PPC Sako
won his very first competition – this month, he did 0.3658 inches
it again! Once you know you can do it, confidence
rises and you realise anything is possible. 2nd Andy Woolley 6PPC Sako
0.6274
Results: Heavy Varmint
3rd Darren Grundle 308 Sako
1st Neil Hutton 6PPC TGP Borden 0.6456
0.2858 inches (av.of five, 5-shot groups)
Small group: Darrel Evans 0.232 inches

Toni Young with handbag at the

ready, prepares to shoot another
group

Target Shooter 85
Unfortunately, the balmy conditions didn’t hold
for our 1000 yard shoot on the following day and
as the day wore on, the wind got stronger! There
were several penalties awarded for shots off the
target and some quite horrendous groups were
recorded.
However, perhaps not everyone would agree that
the conditions were difficult. Not only did lady
shooter Toni Young dominate the event by winning
the Light Gun class but, she had the audacity to
do it with a Factory Sporter rifle – a bog-standard
308 Remington no less! Only once before has a
shooter with a Factory Sporter rifle won the Light
Gun class and that was Garry Green shooting a
300 Winchester magnum – about 10 years ago. A
lesson for us all.
A phenomenal performance from Toni. Her best
group (and smallest in factory Sporter) was a
creditable seven-incher but, I somehow managed
to shoot a ‘six’, thus preventing total humiliation of
the male contingent!
Results: Light Gun Championships on October2/3rd, then our 600
1st Toni Young 308 Remington 9.30am at Diggle Ranges of course.
9.936 inches (av. of four, 5-shot groups)
3rd Alan Seagrave 6.5x55 Sako
15.273
Small group Toni Young
7.897 inches
New Stuff
Elsewhere in this issue, you will read my write-
up on a visit to EVO Engineering. Amongst other
things, they make really great scope rings which,
in my opinion, should be on the shopping list of
any accuracy-nut seeking a top-class set of scope
rings to complement a custom rifle. These rings
really are superb, being light, very accurately
manufactured and very strong. A website at www.
evoeng.com is under construction but you can
e-mail info@evoeng.com or go through your
local dealer. Have a look at my article – it has a
few pics of the rings etc.
Events
Just one weekend remains for our 100/1000 yard
yard winter series kicks into action – first shoot
will be held on Saturday 30th October. Registration

2nd Mike Weatherhead 7mm Walker Sako

10.042

3rd Steve Dunn 7mm Dunn BAT

10.348

Small Group Vince Bottomley 6mm TGP

BAT 6.908 inches

Factory Sporter

1st Toni Young 308 Remington

9.936 inches

2nd Ian Kellet 6.5-284 Savage

15.215

86 Target Shooter
 In association with
UKBR22 Nationals - Mirfield Rifle Ranges,
Yorkshire
Although I am an avid centrefire benchrest
shooter and veteran of a few World and European
Championships, this was my first foray into the
rimfire benchrest arena – but only as a spectator
I hasten to add!
As a northerner, I have visited Paul Lane (as
Match Director John Farrell takes a well –earned
break in front of the ‘wailing wall’
Mirfield Rifle Ranges are known colloquially) a
couple of times previously but not for a good five
years and, after a couple of dead-ends, the Tom
Tom finally got me there – after all, it’s only half an
hour from where I live!
On arrival, at around 9.30am on the Saturday
morning, the car park was already full with the
‘hustle and bustle’ of competitors and I was
warmly greeted by Match Director
John Farrell, who kindly took me on
a conducted tour of all the indoor
and outdoor ranges and introduced
me to the various ROs, explaining
that I would be taking photographs
etc. on behalf of Target Shooter.
I could see that an awful lot of
work had been done since my last
visit to Paul Lane. An impressive
new concrete ramp and pathway
now connected the car park and
the 50/100m range to make life
easier for disabled shooters and a
completely new 25m outdoor air-rifle
range now graced a once vacant
grassed area at the top of the car
park. Having carried out my share of
building benchrest ranges, this really
impressed me. All the work had been
carried out in a very short space of
time and although the benches were
‘portable’ they were very solid - about
the best I have seen in fact.
An air-rifle match was already
in progress, so I watched with
admiration as these guys (and gals)
coped with a quite fierce wind in their
30 minute match, which requires
one shot at each of 25 ‘bulls’ plus
sighters. What a great introduction
to the sport of benchrest – no FAC
or ammunition required, no ‘officially
approved’ range, just some land,
an air-rifle, a box of pellets and a
Target Shooter 87
 This is the place to learn to shoot benchrest –
outdoor at 25m with an air-rifle!

sensible attitude to safety . OK, maybe that is an
over-simplification but an ideal way to appreciate
the effect of shooting in the wind and get
accustomed to the discipline of ‘shoulder to
shoulder’ match shooting. If you have a small
restricted outdoor range, this is a great discipline
to get into and ideal for bringing youngsters into
the sport.
As I made my way to the 50m range, I couldn’t
help smell the aroma of breakfast so, some
refreshment was next on the agenda - from one
of the best little caterers I have ever encountered.
Their £2 steak sandwich was a real lunchtime
treat! But, I digress, back to the shooting.
It was great to meet up with Andy Dubrieul –

John Farrell and our Andy prepare to do battle at 50m

88 Target Shooter
 Scott Grayson is another young shooter who has learned his craft
well and had a very successful Europeans. Here, Scot takes on the
challenge of 50m outdoors.
one third of our Target Shooter team - who was firing-point for the first of his details.
debuting his ‘snow leopard’ rifle for the first time The Paul Lane 50/100m range is completely
in serious competition. Third member Carl was surrounded by embankments and trees but it can
still recovering from his outstanding success still produce a fearsome wind and although 30
in the ‘Europeans’. You’ve already seen the minutes is allowed for one shot on each of the
photographs of Andy’s rifle in Target Shooter but 25 bulls, when you knock off a few minutes for
it looks even better in the flesh – all credit to Gary sighters, you are looking at less than a minute per
Kane who was, I believe, responsible for bedding shot. Remove the time taken to unload, load and
and finishing the Parmoor ‘ice-wood’ stock for aim and it’s more like 30 seconds a bang – not a
Andy. I followed Andy onto the outdoor 50m lot of time to hang around for the wind – you gotta

Target Shooter 89

The hard-working scorers
were kept busy all weekend
read it! This is the element of benchrest shooting
not always appreciated by those who have never
tried it – except when plinking. Guys, it’s a whole
different ‘ball game’ when you have to sit down
and do it – now!
I’m pleased to report that Andy won the Heavy
Varmint class and his performance in the LV class
was enough to take the 50m aggregate, plus he
also won the 25m aggregate, which makes him
British Champion! Young Jake Healey won the
50m Light Varmint – great shooting from a junior
shooter and this follows on from Jake’s outstanding
success at the recent European Championships!
Other disciplines on offer were 25m indoors – much
less of a challenge without the wind of course but,
it’s the same for everyone and whereas maximum
250 scores were rare outdoors, here the result
is decided on the X count. For a X, you need to
completely remove the tiny circle in the centre of
the ten-ring – not easy and again, an excellent
training-ground to learn the basics of benchrest
rifle set-up and trigger-control. Andy won that
one (LV Class) as well with a perfect 750 ex. 750
racking up an impressive fifty Xs in the process.
Equipment
As a centrefire benchrest shooter, it was
90 Target Shooter
interesting to see the similarities – and
differences – in equipment. One of the
attractions of rimfire benchrest is the
modest cost of putting a rifle together.
There are legions of redundant 22
‘prone’ rifles languishing on the shelves
of gunshops, dating back to the days
when every town hall had a range in the
cellar. Although these rifles may have
had many thousands of rounds down
the barrel, they are still capable of
excellent accuracy. If re-stocked - with
something which will ‘ride the bags’
better - you are well on the way to a
competitive ‘club’ rifle.
Although you might pick up a decent
rifle for a couple of hundred pounds, the
same isn’t true of scopes and although
many of the cheapo Chinese offerings
have surprisingly good optics, build
quality is another matter and this may
be causing your unexplained flyer. The
Chinese are quick learners – they soon
realised that we choose our scopes by
peering through them - not by taking
them apart! Wisely, many shooters
had realised this and, in certain cases,
had spent more on the scope than the
rifle. This is not as daft as it may seem. You might
sell-on your starter rifle but a good scope will
stay with you – for life! Remember, Leupold and
Sightron have a lifetime ‘no quibble’ guarantee.
You have your rifle and scope. Now you need
a front rest and rear bag. Again, not an area to
compromise and I learnt a few things I didn’t
know. Firstly, the very desirable SEB joystick rest
will not ‘cover’ the whole of a 25 bull target at 25m
if you are using a 36X scope. The stability of the
rear-bag is crucial – you don’t want to start shuffling
it around halfway through your match to reach the
fifth row! 50m no problem – but a SEB and a 36X
Leupold are no good at 25m. Maybe the answer is
a zoom scope so you can step-down the down the
power but that means more weight and expense.
That back bag must be ‘rock’ solid on the bench.
OK, not everyone can afford a SEB front rest
and must make do with something cheaper but
please, spend your money on a proper back bag
and fill it with Zircon (heavy) sand. Buy a bag
with Cordura ‘ears’ – not leather. That rifle must
be as slippery as a greased pig in the bags with
no ‘stiction’, otherwise shots will be lost. Make
 All the medal winners
sure the base is absolutely flat – if not, sit it on
one of those sand-filled suede-leather donoughts
available from Sinclair.
Technique
With a centrefire BR rifle, recoil is significant. If
you ‘shoulder’ it, then the rifle’s muzzle will rise
up on firing - if it can’t slide backwards on the
bags. You must let the rifle recoil or you will get
‘vertical’. With a rimfire, the recoil is much less
and shooters may be tempted to ignore it but the
same rules apply – let the rifle recoil! I know you
love your rifle but please don’t cuddle it! You do
not need to hang onto your rifle when you fire it
– touch it only with your trigger-finger. This is fine
with a light trigger of 2 – 3 ounces but it doesn’t
work so well with a heavier trigger, so try ‘pinching’
your trigger. Place your thumb behind the
trigger-guard and pinch the trigger gently between
thumb and forefinger. Keep your cheek, muffs,
shoulder and other fingers OFF THE RIFLE! Rest
your trigger-hand on another bag if it helps. Also,
be careful not to ‘shoulder’ the rear bag.
Results
All in all a fascinating weekend of shooting in
challenging conditions which was obviously
enjoyed by a lot of friendly folk but yet, a well run,
serious competition - thanks to John Farrell and
his willing band of helpers. It looked a whole lot of
fun and it was great to see so many youngsters
involved. The abbreviated results are listed below,
full results on the UKBR22 website at www.
benchrest22.org
Finally, congratulations to junior shooter, Jake
Healey (front row, second from right). His
achievements at the recent Czech Europeans
and these Nationals have not gone un-noticed
and Sightron Scopes USA and Aimfield Sports UK
have given a brand-new 36X Sightron scope and
an Aimfield rifle bag to young Jake. Well done - an
inspiration and an incentive to all young shooters.
Air rifle Hunter 25m:
1st G Freeman 715.13x
2nd S Grayson (J) 711.12x
3rd A Evans 701.10x
Air rifle Unlimited 25m:
1st G Freeman 700.30x
2
nd
R Harrison 698.13x
3rd G Kingaby 695.14x
Light Varmint Rimfire 25m:
1st A Dubreuil 750.50x
2nd J Farrell 749.46x
3rd A Evans 748.50x
Heavy Varmint Rimfire 25m:
1st P Barker 750.57x
2nd R Evans (JL) 750.56x
3
rd
R Harrison 750.48x
Light Varmint Rimfire 50m:
1st J Healey (J) 729.17x
2
nd
J Farrell 728.30x
3rd A Dubreuil 728.22x
Heavy Varmint Rimfire 50m:
1st A Dubreuil 739.29x
2nd P Barker 731.33x
3
rd
J Andrews 731.28x
Target Shooter 91
 The Long View
News from the GB
F-Class Association
by Les Holgate
Our long run of luck with the weather came to an end,
partly at least, with the GB F-Class Association 2010
League Round 6 held over the weekend of 11/12th
September. And, if you’re going to get wet anywhere,
my home range, good old windy Diggle has to be the
bookies’ favourite! Actually, by local standards, we got
off fairly mildly, the main downside being a late start
on the Saturday morning thanks to heavy rain and low
cloud obscuring the top end of the range, the start of
proceedings postponed until just before 11.00 am.
The course of fire was 2+15 matches at 800 yards
then 1000 yards on each day, F/TR going out first on
Saturday, Open on Sunday, past history showing the
morning shooters usually get easier wind conditions.
The maximum level entry saw the growth in F/TR
numbers continue, the 21 strong ‘Open’ contingent
outnumbered by 25 F/TR lads and one lass. We just
managed to squeeze everybody into four relays that
segregated the classes fully, but at the expense of
employing six closely spaced targets. This plus, shall we
say rather ‘odd’ target numbering, led a few to cross-shoot
onto their neighbour’s targets and significantly affect
the overall results for two individuals and both classes.
Threatening conditions on the Sunday morning start
92 Target Shooter
Wet but Warm
The weather might have improved enough to get
things started but it didn’t stop a couple of classic
stonking-heavy Diggle showers from soaking the F/TR
shooters on the first relay at 800 yards and other
‘precipitation events’ affecting subsequent proceedings,
fortunately becoming less extreme and further apart
as the day progressed. The good news was that while
we were being rained on, the winds weren’t too bad –
that came later in the day as conditions became drier
and brighter. Moreover, it was surprisingly warm too,
so wet clothes and gear soon dried out in a mild wind!
Meanwhile, back in Match 1 Relay 1, mere difficulty in
seeing the targets through driving rain didn’t stop Russell
Simmonds handing over a soggy score card that had a
superb 72.2v in the bottom corner, with Steve Donaldson
on 71; Adam Bagnall, Paul Harkins, and Russell Howard
all on 70 showing how well the .308 can shoot at this
distance in the hands of experts irrespective of conditions.
The assumption was that this would settle the contest
for this F/TR match at any rate, nobody expecting a
better score. However, Diggle aficionado Vince Bottomley
had other ideas as he exchanged his yellow RCO
jacket for shooting gear to participate in Relay 2,
 ‘Open’ shooters take aim from the 1,000yd firing point under dramatic skies

proceeding to astound the assembled throng with a
magnificent 74.5v, a score that wouldn’t go amiss in ‘Open’.
Were we about see ‘another Blair’ where the ongoing
Bagnall-Simmonds championship battle would be
sidelined? Match 2 at 1000 yards left things open with
three northern shooters leading the field, Altcar 101
Club’s Stephen Lynch shooting a very creditable 65.1v
in increasingly difficult winds ahead of Diggle member
Russell Howard on 63.3v and 101/PSSA shooter Adam
Bagnall on 61.1v. The other Russell was just behind
on 59.1v leading a wide range of scores that started in
the mid 30s! F/TR finished Day 1 with Russell Howard
leading on 133.5v ahead of messrs Bagnall, Simmonds
and Lynch on 131 in that order through V-count. An
on-form Steve Donaldson was just behind despite
blowing four points and 2nd place by cross-shooting in
Match 2.
After a few minutes food and comfort break, it was
F-Open’s chance to shine at 800 yards in what was
a now dry and surprisingly warm mid-afternoon but
seeing strengthening, twitchy winds. And shine the Open

Overall League Round 6 winner Andy Massingham

shooting in the 800yard Match 3 where he scored an
astounding 75.12v

Target Shooter 93
 Adam Bagnall, who eventually took the F/TR division shoots at 800yd partnering 5th
place man Stuart Anselm
shooters did, at least at 800 yards. Gary Costello and
Peter Wilson scored ‘possibles’, Gary taking the match
with 11 Vs against 10 and six other shooters snapped at
their heels with 74s, Andy Massingham and Grant Taylor
leading this group both on 9 Vs. Think about those scores
– Gary had put eleven out of fifteen shots into a five-inch
circle and the remainder into a ten-incher on a target 800
yards, nearly half a mile away and on a breezy day! Who
says that 7mm/300WSM isn’t accurate or controllable?
The move back to 1000 yards in still strengthening winds
took its toll though. Mik Maksimovic, Andy Massingham,
David Kent, and Peter Hobson took top honours with a
shared 68, Mik getting the match medal on a 7-V count.
At the 5.30pm finish, Andy Massingham led overall on
94 Target Shooter
142.14v just ahead of Gary Costello, Mik Maksimovic
and David Kent on 141 in that order through V-count,
then reigning GB champion Grant Taylor on 140.13v.
Not everybody who’d done well at 800 yards managed
to keep the standard up in the longer range match,
Peter Wilson being one of several who’d struggled and
was now well off the pace 10 points down on the leaders,
classic ‘Diggle Dolloper’ behaviour to use the local
patois (ie snatching defeat from the jaws of victory).
Day Two
Sunday initially looked like a rerun of the previous
day weather-wise, apart from yet stronger winds with
dark low cloud and intermittent showers threatening
proceedings, despite a Met Office regional forecast for
Ta r g e t S h o o t e r ’ s
Vince Bottomley won
the 800 yard stage,
Match 1 F/TR on the
Saturday morning
using a rifle he built
himself

PSSA Chairman Mike Weatherhead on the left
presents a Diggle Dolloper prize (a blown-up rifle
action) to GB-FCA Chairman Mik Maksimovic for
throwing away a stage-win, not to mention possible
overall win, through cross-shooting in the final match
no rain, sunny intervals and 12 mph average speed
winds gusting to 25 mph. (Well, the weathermen got the
last part right, anyway.) In any event, Open shooters
on Relay 1 took no chances and individuals and gear
disappeared under copious quantities of waterproof
clothing, towels and various alfresco keep-water-out-of
the-rifle devices. (Chopped up sections of rubber car
floor-mats were a new one on me, apparently effective too.)
The wind was now coming from the WNW direction
which places the buttress of a huge hill between it and
the range. Unfortunately, they’re cunning these Northern
winds – instead of going over the top and missing
the range, the wind seemingly deviates around the
hill, sweeping up the valley from the 5-6 o’clock
(westerly) direction, but displaying even greater minute
to minute variability than a proper SW or West wind.
Despite this, Sunday morning’s 800 yard ‘Open’ scores
were a re-run of the previous day’s even if the leaders
changed, it being Andy Massingham and John
Carmichael’s turn to shoot ‘possibles’, Andy getting the
medal on a superb 12 Vs to John’s six. (Comments
about big 7mm cartridges’ accuracy and controllability
apply again, even more so with 80% of Andy’s shots in
five-inches.) Grant Taylor and Mik Maksimovich were only
just behind sharing 74.7v with Tony Marsh also on 74 but
one V adrift. Peter Wilson recovered strongly to be one
of four who shot 73, David Kent leading the group on Vs.
When the Open shooters moved back to 1000 yards,
Mik Maksimovic narrowly led the field by a single point
over Andy Massingham and messrs Kent, Costello, and
Taylor by four points – everything to play for! Match 4
turned out to be a major surprise with German shooters
Olaf Erichson and Michael Meyer taking the first two
spots, Olaf’s score rising to 70.3v from a lowly 47.1v
at 1000 the previous day – now that’s what I call an
improvement! The wind was getting decidedly hard
to read by now and the Brits’ scores reflected this
with Grant Taylor in 3rd on 66.3v, David Kent and Ian
Chapman sharing 65.2v. Where was our erstwhile leader
Mr Maksimovic? Oh dear, a cross-shot helped him drop
to 60.3v. Andy Massingham shot 63.2v, enough to propel
him ahead and share an aggregate of 280 points with
Grant Taylor, to take the overall win by 28 to 23 Vs. Poor
Mik was down in 6th largely due to that one careless shot
showing how close competition is these days. With only a
single point separating the first three places, nobody can
afford to throw away four or five – and amazingly, exactly
the same situation pertained to the final F/TR position too.
Finally, it was the F/TR shooters’ turn in what had
become distinctly ‘challenging’ conditions. Match
3 (800 yards) still saw several on the right side of 70
with soft spoken Irishman Liam Fenlon on great form to
take the match with 72.7v beating off local man Stuart
Anselm with the same number of points but three Vs.
Fellow north of England shooter Paul Harkins was
third on 71.7v keeping Russell Simmonds at bay on
V-count and Adam Bagnall was just behind, one of three
scoring 70. So the F/TR top spots were still very much
up for grabs as shooters humped their gear back
another 200 yards, Russell Simmonds only one point
ahead of Steve Lynch, Russell Howard, and Adam Bagnall.
Many F/TR shooters described the now prevailing 1000
yard wind-conditions as ‘nightmarish’ with 3-MOA shifts
between shots, misses regularly called. Only twelve
competitors achieved or bettered 50 in this match,
and only two scored 60. While on about lies, damned
lies and statistics, only a meagre 10 of the 345 bullets
fired downrange in this match made it into the
V-Bull and half of those came from just two entrants’
muzzles, those of Stuart Anselm and Andy Duffy! It was
also League regular Andy Duffy who now took his first
ever stage win on 60.2, beating off Steve Donaldson
by a V, Adam Bagnall third on 57.0v ahead of Stuart
Anselm on 56.3v. Both Russells scored 54, pushing
them down to third (Simmonds) and 4th (Howard)
overall behind Adam Bagnall and Steve Donaldson.
Steve’s Saturday cross-shoot had cost him four points
and 1st F/TR, but from the row he was making, he
appeared pleased with his second place, (difficult to tell
with this Scouser since pleasure and displeasure produce
similar that is LOUD noises), his best result for a long time.
So where do the Championship placings stand now
after six out of seven rounds? There is no change
to the ‘Open’ positions, Grant Taylor still leading
David Kent and Gary Costello but Diggle made a
major change in F/TR, Adam Bagnall’s third win of the
year putting him a point ahead of reigning champion
Russell Simmonds with Stuart Anselm still in third place.
Laurie Holland took some photographs on Sunday
and they can be viewed on Photobucket:
http://s912.photobucket.com/home/laurieh2
For further information on F-Class in the UK visit the
GB-FCA’s website:
http://www.f-class.org.uk
Target Shooter 95
 Gallery Rifle & Pistol News

Top Loads – the Gallery Rifle Ammunition are used in self loading pistols and there is
used by the GB Squad another factor to consider – safety! The nose
to tail configuration of the rounds in any tubular
Thus far I have described the rifles used in magazine rifle means that the recoil forces can
centre-fire GR, the modifications you can cause the tip of a bullet to impact with the primer
make to them and the types of scopes that are of the round in front of it causing it to detonate
mounted on top, now it is time to look at what we and probably the round in front of that as well. To
can feed them on by investigating the favourite avoid this flat tipped bullet profiles are essential,
loads of the GB Squad members.. and the most common types are the truncated
cone (TC) or round nosed flat point (RNFP).
I suppose by the end of this short article I will
have gone one step further towards proving Plate 1 shows a selection of suitable bullet
that there is more than one way to skin a cat types the 38 TCs on the left increase in weight
and by that I mean that all the various loads by simply lengthening the overall bullet length
described here despite being different have a whilst retaining the nose profile, three weights
track record of consistently delivering similar are shown 140, 158 and 180 grains (with
high performance at the target. I was told some 7000 grains to the pound). Once loaded is it
years ago that reloading was rather like wine therefore difficult to spot any difference between
tasting, with shooters trying all the recipes in the them. The RNFP type in the centre is in .38”
pursuit of satisfying their own individual taste – calibre (actually .358” true diameter) and is an
and so it proved to be. adaptation of the round nosed types used for
speed reloading in revolvers, the flattened top
The standard target loadings of 38 and 44 pistol is clearly visible. The 44 bullet on the right
ammunition were wad cutter bullets; with all the completes the set, with all the 44 shooters using
ballistic performance of dustbins but extremely the same 240 grain style.
accurate at short range and making nice clean
holes on the target for ease of scoring. Loading Despite my comments on bullet profile there is
these blunt nosed bullets was not an issue with one shooter who still uses full wad cutter bullets
a revolver but to ensure smooth and reliable and he is adamant that they feed reliably through
operation from a tube fed under-lever rifle the his 38 Marlin, although on the 30 second rapid
preferred profile needs to nearer those that stages he will admit to using other types. Wad
cutters are usually seated
flush with the case neck but
Burning Rates this gives a short cartridge
Vihtavuori N310 overall length (COL), but the
Marlin manual recommends
Alliant Bullseye/Hodgdons Titegroup
a minimum COL of 1.46”
Fastest Vihtavuori N320 and to accommodate this
to Vectan AS the wad cutters need to be
Slowest Unique/Accurate Number 5 seated proud of the case
neck giving a rather peculiar
Hodgdons HS6 appearance, as shown by
Vihtavuori N340 the two cartridges on the left
of Plate 2.

96 Target Shooter
The high volumes of ammunition used by GR 44 Special performances but no one uses 44
shooters make lead bullets a good costs option Special cases, I guess it’s all about availability.
and lead is a must be used for reactive targets The loads currently in use are: -
such as steel plates, so there are no examples I use the Titegroup loading which is shown to give
of jacketed types in this survey. 801 fps from a handgun on Hodgdons Website
but from my 20” Marlin it provides 897 fps on
Next consideration is powder and the fast burning average, again this is a considerable increase
pistol powders used in handguns at first appear of around 12%. Using this as the par measure
inappropriate for longer barrel of a rifle but it looks like the top shooters are striving for
remember the objective is not maximum muzzle between 900 and 1000 fps from their 44s when
velocity. Listed below are the powders used by shooting the 1500 Match.
the GB Squad according to their burning rate,
as shown in the Vihtavuori Reloading Manual: - In summary we all seem to have re-invented the
same wheel and my only recommendation would
38 Special and 357 Magnums. be to conduct some tests with you own guns to
see what suit your best. So has my time
Bullet Bullet
Charge been wasted, well I think not because
Powder Weight Primer
weight Profile
(grains) there are some general conclusions you
158 LTC Vihtavuori N310 4.2 Sellier and Bellot can apply when developing loads for your
158 LTC Vihtavuori N320 3.9 Winchester gallery rifle: -
158 LTC Howitzer Zero 3.6 Federal
158 LTC SNIA GM3 3.3 Sellier and Bellot
158 RNFP SNIA GM3 4.4 Federal 1. Most shooters use fast burning
158 LTC Alliant Bullseye 3.8 no preference pistol powders but never slow powders for
158 LTC Alliant Bullseye 4 Federal short and medium range. This provides
180 LTC Vihtavuori N340 3.7 no preference
good value as small charge weights make
180 LTC Hodgdons HS6 6.5 no preference
a can of powder go further.
Federal, Remington
160 HBWC Vihtavuori N340 4.7
or Winchester
2. The favourite bullet profiles are
the round nosed and truncated cone
First thing to say is that nobody uses full power types – no surprise there because this shape
.357” Magnum loads for gallery rifle events, was designed for the tubular magazine rifle.
other than the long range 100/200/300 yard
Match shot at the Phoenix Meeting so effectively 3. Favourite bullet weight is 158 grains for
all these loads deliver 38 Special performance. 38 calibre and exclusively 240 grains for 44.
Opinion on whether to use of 38 Special or
Magnum cases seem about evenly split. The 4. You should be trying for between 1000 -
38/357 loads used by the GB Squad are shown 1100 fps for 38 rifles and 900 – 1000 fps in 44
in the table below: - calibres. This keeps barrel leading to a minimum
I have done some research in the reloading and recoil controllable.
manuals and have found that my favourite 3.8
grains of Bullseye behind a 158 grain lead bullet
is reported to gives 874 fps from handgun length
Warning
Please be warned that these loads have been
barrels but from Marlin it provides an average
1046 fps measured about 10 feet from
the muzzle of the 18½” barrel, nearly Bullet Bullet
Charge
20% additional speed. If we take this Powder Weight Primer
weight Profile
(grains)
as the norm then it would appear that
240 RNFP Vihtavouri N320 6.1 Federal
each of these loads would give muzzle 240 RNFP SNIA GM3 5.3 Federal
velocities in the range of 1000 to 1100 240 RNFP Hodgdons Titegroup 4.7 Federal
fps. 240 RNFP Vectan AS 5.5 no preference
240 RNFP Alliant Unique 6.5 Federal
44 Magnums 240 RNFP Accurate No 5 6.3 no preference
Again shooters are striving to achieve

Target Shooter 97
 Plate 1

Plate 2

used regularly by experienced shooters without
problem but I can accept no responsibility for
their safety. I must recommend that they are
tried only by those experience reloaders who
observe good reloading practice and follow
the usual precaution of starting 10% below the
stated charge and working up for their to ensure
they are safe for use in their firearms.
were shot in 77 different events and that must
be a record in itself.
The National GR Championships also host the
Home International Match, contested annually by
England, Wales and Scotland. Congratulation to
Norman Brown and his Team on what can only
be described as a narrow margin of victory: -

Gallery Rifle Update

Unlike the European Internationals the Home
The National Gallery Rifle Championships were Matches comprise both small-bore and
held at Bisley over the August Bank Holiday centre-fire Teams shooting the Timed and
weekend 28th and 29th August. In addition Precision One and Multi-target Matches
to the individual championship winners there shoulder to shoulder over three bays in Melville
were aggregate winners for small-bore and Range. The four best scores from the teams of
centre-fire in the 1500 Match, Bianchi Cup, five are aggregated to give a maximum possible
combined Timed and Precision One and 3360 points. If you want to be considered to
Multi-target Matches and the Precision Matches, represent your country please indicate your
there was even a shotgun aggregate! There qualification by ticking the box on the NRA GR
were also team matches for clubs to enter. Entry Forms and your scores from all classified
Great fun and some new national records set; matches will be automatically passed on to
MarlinonCompetition
check out the results Specialand the appropriate Captain for consideration. It is
the www.nra.org.uk
www.galleryrifle.com. Over 1250 match cards hoped that Northern Ireland can soon make up

98 Target Shooter
 Small-bore Centre-fire Overall Total

England 1636 1670 3306

Wales 1634 1638 3272
Scotland 1615 1640 3255

the quartet in the Home Internationals, so if you GR International 1500 Matches. The event is
qualify register now! open to all and details will be available on the
Gallery Rifle Website soon.
Coming up is the Trafalgar Meeting over the
weekend of 23rd and 24th October and there
are gallery rifle matches for classic rifles. Take a
look at the NRA Website and download the entry
form for full details. The following weekend 30th
and 31st October the clocks go back signalling
the end to the busy domestic GR calendar with
the Autumn Action Weekend.

Although the domestic calendar my end in

October the GB Squad will be travelling to
Leitmar in Germany for the last of the annual

Plate 3

Target Shooter 99
 Paul Boland with Benelli Supernova

UKPSA Welsh Championships Level III Practical shooting is so much more than simply hitting a target.
Shotgun match There were several new shooters at this year’s
September 2010 :: Part 1 of 2 championships, fresh off a recent UKPSA Safety
Course held at Border Guns PSG Club. Two lads –
The start of September came round quickly this year Paul Cannon and Paul Boland, and one lass Sam
it seemed. Kids about to go back to school; folks Hindhaugh. It’s always good to see new shooters,
just back from their annual holiday in the sun, and and particularly good to see new female shooters.
that inevitable realisation that summer is fading fast. Both Sam and Paul Boland came to PSG with lots
For me though, nothing brings this home quicker I of prior shooting experience and they already had
find than the realisation that a match that seemed FAC’s. Paul opted for a Benelli SuperNova pump
so distant and hazily in the future when we started 12g, while Sam went for the more expensive Benelli
the shooting calendar back in March suddenly looms M2 semi-auto in 12g.
into your life the next weekend. This year, it was off Paul Cannon didn’t have a license and hadn’t done
to the border ranges of Border Guns PSG club for much in the way of shooting, but did the Safety
the return of the Welsh Championships. Course with a supervised three-shot 12g pump
shotgun and has since applied for and got his first
I’ve decided to break this article into two parts this FAC with which he went straight out and bought a
time, partly because I want to adequately cover some Benelli SuperNova 12g pump shotgun.
of the twelve stages in some detail, but also because
I want to try to put some meat on the bones with Border Guns is a Practical Shotgun (PSG) only club
regard to the stage design itself, and why practical run from the farm belonging to Martin and Jo Davies

100 Target Shooter

 Paul Cannon taking careful aim under watchful eye of the RO
with their two children George and Sophie. Set high
in the Shropshire hills, it’s not an easy venue to find,
and even more so in the winter months when the
narrow, sunken lanes fill with snow. Nestled at the
edge of a deep valley, it is within a two minute drive
from the Offas Dyke long distance path.
Border Guns has been home to the British Open
Championships PSG matches for the last two years,
having last held the Welsh Champs back in the
summer of 2007, so it was a welcome return home
for the challenging three-day shoot. Well, I say three
day – Friday is reserved for RO’s (Range Officers)
and build crew, with the main crowd of competitors
shooting on the Saturday and Sunday.
Now, before I get castigated by some well-meaning
geographic pedant, Border Guns is not actually IN
Wales – it’s very close though as evidenced by the
surnames of the club owners and the predominance
of some bone-hard sheep. I mean, these aren’t
the serene fleecy bundles on sticks we’re used to
in the Peak District (where I live). No, these sheep
seriously look like they’d give you a good kicking.
For me, it’s my home club and for the last four years I
have spent time at Border helping to build the stages,
which is always a mammoth task. Practical Shooting
stages are very rarely simple to construct because
they have to present a new set of challenges to the
shooters based on a set of rules to ensure they are
safe, fair, repeatable and unbiased, as well as being
novel (where possible) and ideally to present the
shooter with a freestyle course of fire (CoF). The real
art to this is the presenting of targets in such a way
as to allow a multitude of strategies rather than a
simple fixed “obvious” solution.
To illustrate this, take the following (very simple)
example as shown in the diagram “Simple Course of
Fire Example 1”.
This is an aerial view of a very simple CoF. The black
area is wall or “hard cover” high enough that you
cannot shoot over it. In the front of the shooting area
(bounded by the red box) are two apertures either
side of a small wall. Through these apertures are two
targets – in other words, the only way to shoot the
targets is to shoot through the holes in the wall.
So, the shooter can choose to start at either side of
the shooting area in one of the orange boxes marked
S. This allows left or right handed shooters the same
opportunity to tackle the stage (unbiased).
The obvious solution here is to move to Aperture
A and shoot Target A, then quickly go around to
Aperture B and shoot Target B. Simple right?
Well, not necessarily... it does mean you have to
move to two shooting positions, re-aiming each time
which is going to slow you down.
Okay. Perhaps a quicker way would be to move
to Position C and shoot both targets through the
apertures as shown by the dotted line. This means
Target Shooter 101

you only have one shooting position, and although
you have to re-aim, you are not moving other than to
swivel around keeping the gun in aim all the time. It
is also less distance from the start box to Position C
than from the start box to Positions A and B (or vice
versa).
Better yes?... well, the downside to this faster
strategy is that you need to aim a little more carefully
which will cost extra time... This is why practical
shooting is more than simply shooting accurately.
Each competitor weighs up different approaches to
the same stage and tries to find the optimum way to
shoot all targets accurately in the fastest time.
But, wait a minute... if you look at the stage design
again, it may be possible to see (and thus shoot) both
targets from one aperture is you can lean through
and get a sight picture (as shown by the dotted lines
running from Aperture B.
To ensure this isn’t the obvious fast solution, stage
designers will perhaps put another obstacle or a
no-shoot target (as show here by the No-Shoot (NS)
target on the diagram) between the targets so that
both could be shot from one aperture, but there
would be a risk of missing or hitting the no-shoot.
So even with this simple design with two targets,
it is possible to create a shooting problem with
three possible solutions. Once we introduce eight,
or twenty eight targets, it goes to a different level.
Designing courses is easy – designing good courses
is very difficult.
Of the twelve stages in a level three match such
102 Target Shooter
Sam Hindhaugh on stage 12
as this, there is a proportional mix of stage sizes,
from small stages with anywhere from three targets
up to about eight targets; intermediate stages with
9 to about 14 or so targets, and large stages with
anything up to twenty eight or so targets.
Without going into the granular details, the standard
targets are usually 150mm square steel plates, but
with a mixture of perhaps larger steel plates; “pepper
popper” targets that are taller and have a distinct
circular area at the top – looking a little like an
ice-cream cone; and both cardboard IPSC standard
targets or frangible targets (clays).
Some will have no-shoot targets inter-mixed which
incur penalties if shot and mean that you have to find
the balance between speed and accuracy (bearing
in mind this is a shotgun – not a precision rifle).
Some targets are bonus targets. For example,
several of the stages this year featured clay traps
and “rabbit” clay traps that were activated either by a
falling target or the competitor’s foot. These do not
have to be shot at, but they are worth double points
if you choose to take your chances.
Additionally, swinging clay targets were present on
one stage, activated by shooting a pepper popper.
These are simple metal poles with a mount for a
clay at the end. When activated, they swing like a
pendulum. The trick with these is to try to anticipate
the timing so you can shoot the target as it reaches
the end of its’ swing – not follow it like a hypnotist’s
pocket watch, or you’ll risk taking lots of shots and
missing (as some find out).
Part 2 next month will look at some of the specific
  
stages and reference one to the original stage 3rd Iain Corrigan 75.71%
design diagram that was sanctioned for the match.
We’ll look at how it could be shot, how it was shot Modified Division
and try to illustrate the challenges and pitfalls. 1st James Harris 100.00%
2nd Colin Alden 90.63%
Finally this month, here are the scores-on-the-doors 3rd Peter Starley 76.70%
for the Welsh Championships 2010. After the last
shooters had packed up their kit, Stats Director Standard Auto Division
Neil Evans spent his evening churning the scores 1st Barry Sullivan 100.00%
through his computer. Significantly, Master shooter 2nd James Starley 97.32%
Mike Darby was absent this year. Mike pretty much 3rd Dave Dowding 89.63%
dominates the Standard Auto division in the UK and
it was the first time in years he has had to miss a Standard Manual Division
match at Border. Neil Smith has decided to have a 1st Martin Davies 100.00%
year off this year from serious competing, but for fun 2nd Iain Guy 87.29%
has shot in a different division at each match this 3rd Jon Holloway 86.47%
year and managed a Master Grade score in each
(above 92%) which is a great achievement. Article and Pictures by Tony Saunders

Final Results: 2010 Welsh Championships

UKPSA PSG Match
Open Division
1st Neil Smith 100.00%
2nd Mike Scarlett 81.32%

Target Shooter 103

 Next time in.....

The November issue will be out on the at the beginning of the month. Lots of follow up articles, new
reviews, news and as ever packed with the articles you want to read.
All the latest information at your fingertips

November 2010 Issue

On Test Reviews
Regular
Columns

Features ...and lots more

104 See you next month.......................................
Target Shooter