RAMBLINGS OF A SHOOTING BUM
Gun project
I've been a long range Target Rifle shooter for years but have been unable to compete due to knee trouble for the last few years.
I'm excited because I had double knee replacement surgery early this year and I'm looking forward to improved mobility and hopefully getting back to work.
The operation was a bear and recovery during the last 4 months has been steady but painfully slow.
I needed a good gun project to think about !
Thinking about it was all I could manage for nearly 3 months but in the last month I've been able to spend a few hours in my shop.
Being a competitive shooter I wanted to build a gun that could be used in local organized shoots so I looked at the organized rifle shooting programs available .
There is growing interest in PRS type shooting and the RNBRA is offering a couple matches this year as well as some club matches in the province this summer.
So in a huge leap of faith that I'd even be able to carry a heavy rifle over rough ground again, I decided to put together a rifle for practical long range shooting. It should help motivate me to push the PT and get out to a few shoots this summer.
Fortunately I had a good doner platform that provided a previously tuned 700 Remington action with a 26" M24 profile 1/8" twist Krieger 6mm barrel that I had recently installed and chambered for 6 XC. It had proven itself to be capable of 1/2 MOA accuracy in a pillar bedded Boyd's thumbhole varmint stock.
The Boyd's stock has been very serviceable but I never found it easy to shoot good with.
My Grandfather taught me a little about stock making over 40 years ago and I've made several over the years so I thought I'd make one.
I laminated Baltic Birch plywood and cut a stock blank that I started work on. Then I started to look for good bottom metal for detachable mags and I quickly found the better options are not cheap.
About this time I read a thread on a Canadian Gun Nutz forum where a well respected member of our national shooting community suggested looking at the KRG Bravo chassis. I looked at it on line and then contacted GO BIG TACTICAL in BC
who were very helpful and about a week later the new chassis arrived with two 10s and a 5 round mag from Cadex.
I'm pretty fussy but the new chassis has met or exceeded all my expectations.
I inquired to and received a very quick reply from KRG about the durability of the front sling swivel stud attachment. They assured me they have had no failures or even any cracking of the polymer attachment point.
I would suggest to anyone setting one up make sure to centre the action screws in their holes before tightening
and to check the fit of the flush cup installation bolt because the bolt head needed a little thinning before a quick disconnect swivel would attach properly on mine.
After several trips to the range and shooting from various improvised positions I've found the chassis to be very easy to shoot with. The mags feed perfectly and fit like a glove.
Out of the box accuracy was acceptable and once the action was bedded with Devcon the rifle went from 3/4 to 1/2 MOA
Coincidently I found my primer seater was broken and not seating primers consistently at the time I bedded the rifle.
Perhaps the bigger initial groups were caused by my inconsistent primer seating ?
I started the project using my beloved old 6-24 S3 Sightron but I was pretty sure I wanted to try a good FFP scope with a large objective lens and an illuminated reticule.
I knew that I couldn't justify the cost of a real high end optic but I wanted to at least match the quality of my Sightron.
I considered the Athlon Aries BTR but I don't know anyone that is using one and some of the internet reviews claim the turret clicks are not good. Next after a discussion with and recommendation from my friend and fellow shooter Peter Dobson from Hirsch Precision, I decided that a Sightron S3 6-24 ffp in MOA would be a safe bet even though is doesn't have an illuminated reticule. Unfortunately there would be a bit of a wait for that scope. Peter then mentioned a couple other options from Delta optics. After reading several online reviews and also watching a couple on utube I decided to try a Delta Striker 4.5-30 x 56 mm ffp with the Christmas tree reticule.
A 34 mm tube meant I needed new rings so I decided; in for a penny in for a pound and ordered Nightforce lightweight 6 screw medium height rings to mount the scope.
As I unboxed and mounted the scope I was pleased with the look and apparent quality of both it and the rings but I couldn't help wondering if the performance would justify the cost.
I've had it to the range several times now and it has functioned flawlessly.
Im not an optic critic and have little experience evaluating glass but I'm very happy with the brightness and quality of the picture through this scope. I think it's a nicer picture than my S3 Sightron and quite close when set up side by side with my Kowa 66mm Prominar spotting scope with 25 x ler eyepiece.
The reticule is amazing and I'm looking forward to learning how to use it as I convert my thinking to mills from MOA.
I still need to purchase or make a level because as with the rings my old stuff doesn't fit.
The whole rig is a little past 15 lbs but it balances nicely for carry just ahead of the magwell. I installed a cheap two point Tactical sling from Condor to carry the gun and it works pretty good as a shooting aid as well.
I don't normally name my guns but I'm calling this one Midlife Crises.
Now all I have to do is have fun learning to shoot it ?
"Keep your powder dry"
Mike Lutes
Gun project
I've been a long range Target Rifle shooter for years but have been unable to compete due to knee trouble for the last few years.
I'm excited because I had double knee replacement surgery early this year and I'm looking forward to improved mobility and hopefully getting back to work.
The operation was a bear and recovery during the last 4 months has been steady but painfully slow.
I needed a good gun project to think about !
Thinking about it was all I could manage for nearly 3 months but in the last month I've been able to spend a few hours in my shop.
Being a competitive shooter I wanted to build a gun that could be used in local organized shoots so I looked at the organized rifle shooting programs available .
There is growing interest in PRS type shooting and the RNBRA is offering a couple matches this year as well as some club matches in the province this summer.
So in a huge leap of faith that I'd even be able to carry a heavy rifle over rough ground again, I decided to put together a rifle for practical long range shooting. It should help motivate me to push the PT and get out to a few shoots this summer.
Fortunately I had a good doner platform that provided a previously tuned 700 Remington action with a 26" M24 profile 1/8" twist Krieger 6mm barrel that I had recently installed and chambered for 6 XC. It had proven itself to be capable of 1/2 MOA accuracy in a pillar bedded Boyd's thumbhole varmint stock.
The Boyd's stock has been very serviceable but I never found it easy to shoot good with.
My Grandfather taught me a little about stock making over 40 years ago and I've made several over the years so I thought I'd make one.
I laminated Baltic Birch plywood and cut a stock blank that I started work on. Then I started to look for good bottom metal for detachable mags and I quickly found the better options are not cheap.
About this time I read a thread on a Canadian Gun Nutz forum where a well respected member of our national shooting community suggested looking at the KRG Bravo chassis. I looked at it on line and then contacted GO BIG TACTICAL in BC
who were very helpful and about a week later the new chassis arrived with two 10s and a 5 round mag from Cadex.
I'm pretty fussy but the new chassis has met or exceeded all my expectations.
I inquired to and received a very quick reply from KRG about the durability of the front sling swivel stud attachment. They assured me they have had no failures or even any cracking of the polymer attachment point.
I would suggest to anyone setting one up make sure to centre the action screws in their holes before tightening
and to check the fit of the flush cup installation bolt because the bolt head needed a little thinning before a quick disconnect swivel would attach properly on mine.
After several trips to the range and shooting from various improvised positions I've found the chassis to be very easy to shoot with. The mags feed perfectly and fit like a glove.
Out of the box accuracy was acceptable and once the action was bedded with Devcon the rifle went from 3/4 to 1/2 MOA
Coincidently I found my primer seater was broken and not seating primers consistently at the time I bedded the rifle.
Perhaps the bigger initial groups were caused by my inconsistent primer seating ?
I started the project using my beloved old 6-24 S3 Sightron but I was pretty sure I wanted to try a good FFP scope with a large objective lens and an illuminated reticule.
I knew that I couldn't justify the cost of a real high end optic but I wanted to at least match the quality of my Sightron.
I considered the Athlon Aries BTR but I don't know anyone that is using one and some of the internet reviews claim the turret clicks are not good. Next after a discussion with and recommendation from my friend and fellow shooter Peter Dobson from Hirsch Precision, I decided that a Sightron S3 6-24 ffp in MOA would be a safe bet even though is doesn't have an illuminated reticule. Unfortunately there would be a bit of a wait for that scope. Peter then mentioned a couple other options from Delta optics. After reading several online reviews and also watching a couple on utube I decided to try a Delta Striker 4.5-30 x 56 mm ffp with the Christmas tree reticule.
A 34 mm tube meant I needed new rings so I decided; in for a penny in for a pound and ordered Nightforce lightweight 6 screw medium height rings to mount the scope.
As I unboxed and mounted the scope I was pleased with the look and apparent quality of both it and the rings but I couldn't help wondering if the performance would justify the cost.
I've had it to the range several times now and it has functioned flawlessly.
Im not an optic critic and have little experience evaluating glass but I'm very happy with the brightness and quality of the picture through this scope. I think it's a nicer picture than my S3 Sightron and quite close when set up side by side with my Kowa 66mm Prominar spotting scope with 25 x ler eyepiece.
The reticule is amazing and I'm looking forward to learning how to use it as I convert my thinking to mills from MOA.
I still need to purchase or make a level because as with the rings my old stuff doesn't fit.
The whole rig is a little past 15 lbs but it balances nicely for carry just ahead of the magwell. I installed a cheap two point Tactical sling from Condor to carry the gun and it works pretty good as a shooting aid as well.
I don't normally name my guns but I'm calling this one Midlife Crises.
Now all I have to do is have fun learning to shoot it ?
"Keep your powder dry"
Mike Lutes
