rmfield

Sierra offers some very good material on exterior ballistics here. It is also in the back pages of their reloading manual. I would also recommend Handloading for Competition by Glen Zediker.

I've had a number of DPMS barrels in various sizes and lengths and they have all shot very well. I'm particularly fond of their DCM barrels and have my third one on order.

I'm slow to comment on the match as I took a swing though the Grand Canyon and Indian Country on the way home. In any case, it was a great match! Certainly the best run SMM3G since its inception. No significant delays on any of the stages. Loved the roller coaster. Agree with Trapr on the flipper clays - go back to time bonuses (or get rid of them). I would definately prefer to see some longer shotgun stages - i.e. minimum 20 rounds. Great bunch of ROs and staff. Thank-you all.

In the brief history of our sport, Tactical Class shotgun has always been about loading - i.e. how fast you can grab shotgun shells off your person and shove them into your shotgun. While shooting quickly is a necessary skill, it is secondary to loading as we all shoot faster than we can load. Shooting accurately is probably more important than shooting quickly as it can reduce the amount of reloading that you have to do. Even if you can shoot your shotgun very fast, you won't compete unless you have mastered loading. If we were to allow magazine fed shotguns into Tactical Class at this point, we would be making a fundamental change to our game. Regardless of how fast the best in this game can reload with their thumbs, they will certainly be able to reload faster with magazines. What is currently the single most important skill in the Tactical Class shotgun game would dissappear into history. My point here is that this is an important decision and that it should not be made without carefully considering where we want our sport to go. There is certainly a place for magazine fed shotguns in Open Class, and for now at least, I think that is where they should reside.

Very cool. I can't wait to try it.

Detachable magazine fed shotguns in tactical class is ridiculous. I can't imagine what logic could be behind this decision. The point about not having more than 9 rounds in the gun at any time is strange too. As it stands, such a rule does not apply to tube fed shotguns. In the prior 2-3 SMM3Gs, the 9 round limitation has only applied to the shotgun at the start, but more were allowed after the buzzer.

The aluminum charging handles are succeptable to bending especially when they are equipped with one of the various tactical latches - due to the assymetric force. A few years back, I had one bend in the middle of a SMM3G stage due to my over-aggressive use of a tactical latch and it turned the rifle into a single-shot. I got rid of the tactical latch and haven't had any problems since. My advise would be to get a steel charging handle if you are going to install a tactical latch - otherwise, the aluminum should work fine.

I think this is going to be challenging for the NRA. I'm sure the anti-gun groups monitor their website pretty closely. Any comment about Zumbo is likely to tip off the enemy that there is "descension in the ranks" and they could use it against us. I know that the NRA is aware of this, but it will be interesting to see how they respond.

Here's the original text: Assault Rifles For Hunters? As I write this, I'm hunting coyotes in southeastern Wyoming with Eddie Stevenson, PR Manager for Remington Arms, Greg Dennison, who is senior research engineer for Remington, and several writers. We're testing Remington's brand new .17 cal Spitfire bullet on coyotes. I must be living in a vacuum. The guides on our hunt tell me that the use of AR and AK rifles have a rapidly growing following among hunters, especially prairie dog hunters. I had no clue. Only once in my life have I ever seen anyone using one of these firearms. I call them "assault" rifles, which may upset some people. Excuse me, maybe I'm a traditionalist, but I see no place for these weapons among our hunting fraternity. I'll go so far as to call them "terrorist" rifles. They tell me that some companies are producing assault rifles that are "tackdrivers." Sorry, folks, in my humble opinion, these things have no place in hunting. We don't need to be lumped into the group of people who terrorize the world with them, which is an obvious concern. I've always been comfortable with the statement that hunters don't use assault rifles. We've always been proud of our "sporting firearms." This really has me concerned. As hunters, we don't need the image of walking around the woods carrying one of these weapons. To most of the public, an assault rifle is a terrifying thing. Let's divorce ourselves from them. I say game departments should ban them from the praries and woods.

Based on an earlier e-mail exchange with Barbara, I believe that most of the squad will be back again this year, but I don't know definitively. There may have been some more additions after the lottery. Hopefully, we can focus a little more on shooting and a little less on defending ourselves from the elements this year. In any case, it will be great to see you on this side of the pond again. Cheers!

I'll take a shot at this. Thinking outloud... Lets use rifle as the example. If you double 97, that equals 194. Thats 20 more than 174. I think this means there are 20 steel rifle targets. To test that, subtract the 20 steel targets from 97 and that gives you 77. If 77 is the number of paper targets and you shoot twice at them, thats 154 rounds. Add 20 steel targets and thats 174! So, I think the "Single shots" is the number of rounds you will use if you shoot once at all targets, paper and steel. "Double shots" is the number of rounds you will use if you shoot once at the steel targets and twice at the paper targets.

I just noticed a rules update on the SMM3G website dated 12/29/06. Most of the changes pertain to HM.

I've got nothing against Bushmaster, but DPMS certainly puts out more products that cater to our game and the quality is as good or better (I think better). On top of that they put lots of their dollars into 3-gun. Whats not to like about these guys?

I've found that my Benellis prefer the Federal and Winchester reduced recoil slugs with a slight edge to the Federals. I generally use a LM choke.

For matches with targets beyond 250 yards, I like to shoot a 20" barrel because it gives me good velocity and flat trajectory with the heavier bullets (77 gr SMKs). I like the heavier bullets for less wind drift. For shorter ranges, I often shoot a 16" gun with 52 or 55 grain bullets. IMHO, If you don't plan to shoot heavy bullets, then the barrel length is just a matter of personal preference. What is important is that you can keep your groups under 1 moa or so, know your zeros, and find (and practice) what shooting positions work for you.

Kurt: Thanks. I'll take a look and see what I find. mf Update: All disconnector parts checked out as well as the stops on the trigger. There wasn't even any wear on the stops either.

My point is that the problem the SMM3G staff faces is a symptom of the bigger problem --not enough folks willing to step up and organize/plan/execute major 3-gun matches. Since the early days of SOF, the number of competitors has grown enormously while the number of first class matches has not. I understand your point about the match being popular, but if there were more quality matches out there to choose from, I think the problem would go away by itself. I think most local 3-gun clubs see this problem at their local matches as well. There are those who love the sport and will do what it takes to make matches happen. And then there are those that arrive just in time to sign-up and always have an excuse to leave the instant they are done with their last stage. As to the lottery system, I'll leave my judgement aside until I see how it works this year. Its worth a try as what they did last year was not the right answer. In any case, I'm just glad the folks at SMM3G continue to put the match on.

The problem here is simple. There are alot more people who like to shoot 3-gun matches than there are folks willing to do all of the work to put a first class match on. The solution is a bit more difficult. 3-gunning needs more people stepping up and helping to plan and run matches. If you don't like this situation, quit whining and think about how you might be able to contribute solving the problem.

I took apart my M1S90 today, cleaned and reassembled. I've done this many, many times before with no issues, but today something strange developed in the trigger pull after I put it back together. I now have a audible "click" in the trigger pull before the hammer is released. I looked at the trigger assembly and found that the hammer is catching on a slight rise in the trigger/sear piece before it gets to the proper engagement point. When the trigger is pulled, the hammer first drops to the correct enagement point and upon futher pull, releases the hammer normally. Here is a picture of the hammer hung up before it get to the proper engagement point: It appears that this problem only occurs when the disconnector does not catch the hammer. The gun shot fine yesterday in a local match, so I fugure I did something to it when I disassembled/reassembled. Anybody have any idea what's up. Kurt? Benny?

Trapr: I've got a Sendero in 300 Win Mag and it shoots OK - say 1 to 1 1/4 MOA, although sometime better. I shoot the 200 grain accubonds so that I can hunt with it too. I've dabled with the Berger 190s and had decent success there as well, but I need to work on them a bit more. They're OAL sensitive, but I got better results with them. Alan has one as well and he is doing a bit better with his. I believe he is staying in the 3/4 range fairly consistently. Both of us are planning on shooting these barrels up and then replaceing them with something better. Say high to the mut for me. Michael

The manual that came with my Beta recommends taking it apart (partially) and cleaning it periodically. Its not hard and the instructions are very clear. It manual also provides instructions on where and how much graphite to use. Based on this, I would say the Army folks are running a little less graphite than recommended.

I like the Beta mags, but don't use mine when there is ample time to reload. If they are kept clean and well maintained, they seem to work very well. I'm a fanatic about maintaining mine and I only recall one minor malfuction during a course of fire in 6-7 years. They can also be a great platform to shoot off of with some shooting positions. Also, I can say that I have seen far more 40 round magazines fail than Betas. Use a Lula Loader to help avoid damaging the Beta's feed lips. That said, I wouldn't think about dropping one and I think they are way too fickle and fragile for real combat. One other thing: If you haven't located your manual yet, it is under a velcro flap in the pouch.

KellyN: I've got to agree with you on the pistol. I fired seven rounds during the match. I actually think I might have fired more rounds at snakes while helping to set up! The worst of it was that I carried around a high-cap Para .45 for three days. Something plastic might of put a little less wear and tear on the old body.

This was a really great match and I'm already planning to be there next year. Zak, Jimmy, Eric, Alan, Scott, Kurt, and all of the others that helped out did a fantastic job of putting on a true rifleman's match in some of the most beautiful country in the West. With 60-500 yard "carbine" shots and rifle shots out to 1200 yards, it was both challenging and a lot of fun. Also, I thought this match was a great test of what works/doesn't work in the way of equipment - especially in the way of optics. If you like to shoot rifles, this match should be on your "must do" list for 2007. By the way, I think Mike K. was the other guy who hit the 1200 yard plate.

I've not tried the Russian primers, but I've heard some good things about them. Apparently they run slightly larger and can be a little harder to seat. On the other hand, they are supposed to produce good accuracy with low extreme spreads.