RifleShooter, the magazine dedicated to advanced rifle enthusiasts. All rifle sports are covered including hunting, target shooting and collecting, while focusing on fine custom rifles, great classics, and new high-tech designs.
More Background I really like Craig Boddington’s articles, and I usually read them first. His latest on twist rates boggles this beginner’s mind! I can see that a heavier bullet might drop faster than a lighter one. Or that momentum might keep a heavier bullet on course longer, but I don’t understand why a longer or shorter barrel or a faster or slower twist rate might make a bullet tumble. Nor do I understand how to figure optimum bullet weight vs barrel length vs twist rate. Nor do I understand why my 10/22 has a 1:16 twist rate while my .223 has a 1:8 rate. John Dodds, California Hi, Mr. Dodds: Sorry you found that article confusing. Sometimes we assume everyone is at a certain level when that’s not always…
Wilson Combat is expanding its Berryville, Arkansas, plant by 16,000 square feet—a gain of about 20 percent. The expansion will house new automated machining and grinding centers to enhance parts production. Wilson currently employs more than 200 people at its facility. Kimber is moving its official corporate headquarters to Troy, Alabama, where a 225,000 square-foot facility will house R&D and manufacturing operations. Kimber cited area engineering schools as well as gun- and business-friendly support from the city and state as reasons for the move.…
Got a lot of feedback on our post on the 6.8 Western (second from r., compared to 6.5 Creedmoor, .270 Win., 6.5 PRC and 7mm Rem. Mag.) For an early look at this new round, see “Cartridge Clash” on page 10. These guys keep coming up with new cartridges and you just have to try them out! When will it stop? Mommmm! —Michael Nice. Think I will stick with my .30-06, thank you. —Norman My 7mm SAUM is basically the same as that, so why? —Charlie How does it do against the 7mm STW? —Jon…
There’s no question that, in the competitive rifle shooting world, precision rifle shooting is the hottest game in town. The Precision Rifle Series and National Rifle League organizations have exploded in popularity in recent years, as have smaller local matches. It takes a dedicated rifle to compete in these events, and I decided to build my own. ACTION Custom actions such as those from Defiance and Surgeon rule the roost in PRS-style matches but there’s nothing wrong with an appropriately modified Remington 700, an action I happened to have on hand. The first step on a factory action, generally referred to as “blueprinting,” is to true the relevant surfaces to ensure everything is dimensionally correct—taking out any excessive factory tolerances on the action face, bolt lugs, lug seats, threads and…
If you can remember back when the .22 rimfire market wasn’t dominated by Ruger’s rotary-magazine 10/22 autoloader, chances are you’re pulling Social Security. But believe it or not, there was a time when bolt-action .22s ruled the roost—classics like Winchester’s Model 52 and 69A, Remington’s Model 580 series, and more Mossberg, Marlin, Savage and Stevens tubular and box magazine-fed entries than you could count. Many of those little bolt guns were single-shots, and one of the nicest was the Winchester Model 67. Produced from 1934 to 1963, it was—in various iterations—the mainstay of the company’s “price” line. But in terms of quality, it’s a serious cut above what would classify today as a utility gun. Of the several variants made over the course of the rifle’s production life, two of…
Of the many .30 caliber magnums, the newish .300 PRC is the easiest to handload for optimal long-range performance on targets and for extended-range hunting alike—which is what Hornady intended. The easy-loading characteristic is thanks to its chamber throat dimensions, overall case design and generous head height. This makes the cartridge ultimately compatible with even the longest, sleekest bullets and is a huge deal for extreme-range shooters. For those unfamiliar with the term, “head height” indicates the length from the case mouth to the tip of the bullet. A short head height forces handloaders to seat long, heavy bullets deeply into the cartridge case—the bullet’s shank intruding into propellant capacity. Worse, many of the best long-range bullets aren’t even usable in cartridges with short head height because their long, sleek…
