Merry Christmas all, I wonder what you are wishing for Christmas.
I would love to try a new magic Muller if Santa is reading, as I just can not get one.
I am an equipment junkie, always have been with my hobbies, I still have all my rock climbing gear.
Barrels, Stocks, triggers, scopes, and tunners are pretty well known, tried and tested. This year I have been lucky to play with some new actions. I sold my Baitys Falcon and Blackhawk rifles and built up my current rifle on a 3 lug Turbo. Its tough to use with the heavy bolt lift but I can not fault its performance and I have not done a thing too it. I have listened to one of Australias most experienced shooters tell me of the many hours he he had to put in blue printing his Turbo and it does shoot amazingly well. Then I read with interest on a USA website the trouble Ben had with his, I must have got lucky with mine but I will use the off season to strip the bolt and inspect the internals.
I have had a lot to do with Stiller 2500X actions importing and building the first ones in Australia and I love them. In my opinion they have the highest build quality and are the current go to action, but also are the most expensive. However I like 3 lug actions.
We do now have other options, with the Holeshot Arms Trident and team 10X X3L. The Trident is out of Jerry Stillers new factory and is a 3 lug version on the 2500X. I have had a close look at 2 of these and built 1 up and I am impressed, same high quality with an extra lug but still a high price tag. The 10X I have wanted to try for years but could never get 1 exported, but this year I got one. I have not had the time to build it up yet and maybe I will just sell it however it looks the part and is a much better price.
So what surprise would you like to find under your Christmas tree?
Ammo, ammo,ammo,ammo ............................................. ammo.
Not a lot, just the stuff which works in my rifle as the 2014 Tenex has all but gone. Just enough for next year's IRB nationals and Spain.
Have managed to find some 2017 Tenex for the light rifle(2 lug turbo /octagon sporter barrel) that shoots around 0.180" for the average of 5x5 shot groups which is better than I can see with a 6x scope. Trouble is it wont shot for s..t in the 3 lug rachet. I do have a brick of 2017 Tenex to test when it gets a little cooler so that may just be santa's present.
Oh.... then there's the centrefire stuff but that's another story.
Team KAOS - Catch us if you can! - Ya got no chance
Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain.
I'm in two minds about actions. The falcon shoots well and I don't know weather a supposedly better action would help because I don't read the wind well. I would probably be better of buying more ammo and practicing more.
If I was going to buy a new action then it would have to be a 2500x.
Kim
I finally have found the time to build the Team 10X 3 lug action into a rifle.
Current set up is with a Shilen 4R barrel, Harrel Tuner, Jewell Trigger, 10X scope bases, Bigstick Bamboo stock, KSS trigger guard.
For testing I have my spare Weaver T36 fitted.
I am very happy with the final product, testing begins Tuesday next week.
Looks great Brett and I wish you all the best with it
Be nice to hear what you think of how the action performs compared to the Turbo
If it shoots as well as it does I am sure you will be wrapped
Guns & Roses the Trident has arrived and in my hands
I will get to shoot it real soon as well love new toys
Team KAOS
All the gear and no idea
Thanks Ben
I will provide an update next week after the test.
Sadly I have had to sell this to fund the trip to Spain.
Great news your Trident has arrived they are a nice action.
A picture would be great and a report after testing.
What's with the paint? Looks like someone played with it before it was dry.
Kim
No worries
Kim I reckon its the tape residue he used to bed the action thats my guess
Team KAOS
All the gear and no idea
Kim, Ben
Its a special effect put into the paint job, quite amazing when you see it in the flesh.
My paint guy likes to spice things up, you should see the green see through bamboo one I did for a WA client.
The next job done in 2 colour plus black pinstrips will be special as well.
Its not a glamour shot but its really something in the flesh
Team KAOS
All the gear and no idea
Wow that sure does look good.
My next project might just have to be built with a nice piece of timber.
Aussie hardwood I think.
Brett
Some people have wonderful the gift of art, I am afraid I never received that one,
Looks cool mate
Team KAOS
All the gear and no idea
That is some pretty paint, but have a heart he was beating up on us with the Falcon now you send this over to prolong our misery:) excellent build.
Peter Oliver
I agree with Dig. AMO,AMO,AMO and more AMO. I sold my sporter a few years ago because I couldn't see with a six power scope. Now I have had my eyes fixed I would love to build a new sporter but getting a barrel is almost impossible. A shilen ratchet or a Muller is my wish but I think I would be too old to shoot by the time they were available here in Oz. Either of these barrels coupled to a Stiller 2500 X would be magic as the 2500 X in my opinion is the best, smooth as silk and true as a laser beam.
However, we can all dream but I have a great rifle built on a 50 year old Annie 54 with a Shillen ratchet barrel. It will hold it's own against all comers. All I need is good Ammo so ammo is my top wish.
Team KAOS
Calm and Relentless
If you are serious Knighty, I might just know where there is a rachet sporter barrel.
Offer only valid for the southern chapter members of Team KAOS.
Dig
Team KAOS - Catch us if you can! - Ya got no chance
Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain.
I went to SISC last night with the purple Team 10X new build.
Happy to say its an impressive rifle, I just guessed a tune setting shot nice groups with all 4 of my ammo options and shot tidy 248 with good X count in conditions and only 1 flag.
Most important part of the test for me was to get a feel for the action.
I really liked it, much nicer to use then my 3 lug turbo, the bolt lift was easier, the loading port is bigger and the feed ramp works well so really nice to shoot. I had concerns that the extractors not flicking the spent case clear of the loading port would be a problem, but the open loading port made it real easy to clear the brass, if you work the bolt back a little quicker the brass ejects easy. I think with just a little work I cound get the brass to flick out.
Is it as smooth as a Stiller, no, but if you believe any of the 3 lug vs 2 lug or PAS vs SAP ignition stuff it gives us another action option, a much cheaper option at that.
I will be ordering a bunch more and will have to keep one for me thus time.
Brett
Hi Bill, in the 2017 nationals a score of 636 with a 9.6 flyer, ( 600.59 ) was fired on day 1, and a 637.3 on day 2, total 1273.3. This can be checked in TRA records.
This is A very interesting subject.
If I’m to express my opinion this may be lengthy, I’m sorry.
When I started rimfire Benchrest I found it difficult to get them to shoot, after having shot centre fire for 24years, my centre fire could shoot a one hole group at 25 yards, could I do that with an Anschutz 1807, not on your Nelly. I reckon I just about wore the screws out taking the thing apart,I could bed a centre fire fairly successfully.
The centre fire bedding just wouldn’t work on a rimfire.
In 5 years of reading shooting forums I’ve not read anything on rimfire bedding and the method to do so, I’ve shown people how I do it, wether the they try it or not I don’t know, although a well known American says if you hit on to something don’t tell.
I tried everything I knew on this rimfire to no avail. I saw in an anschutz catalogue barrel weights for air rifles, so tried some sort of weight on my rimfire, I cut 20 lengths 2” long of some telecom lead wire maybe 6mm thick with thin wire running through it, i wrapped the leads tightly around the muzzle end of the barrel with duct tape, it looked rough, I never heard so much laughter and sh.t before on a rifle range, after 20 shots things were fairly quiet, the bloke who laughed the loudest was no longer the top shot, I had a steel gadget made up the same weight.
I bed my rifles on a steel block 15mm thick and coming up the sides a fair bit, my original rifle, a 2013 was bedded this way and it hasn’t been taken down in 5+ years, I sold that rifle to a club mate, it’s still a hard rifle to beat.
My rifle ( a Turbo V2 s/n 0009 ) may not have conventional bedding, ( equal beds fore and aft of the front screw, and 30mm under the tang, ( there must be absolutely no lift of the barrel up front, I repeat absolutely no lift up front ) This rifle shot a record 1st day score of 636, the next day it broke that record with 637.3, and a record 2 day aggregate of 1273.3. to win the 2017 Australian National championships, as an aside to that our club won the A grade 2017 nationals, the runner up in B grade ( having been counted out ), won the C grade 2017 nationals, and won the junior 2017 nationals.
Dealing with wind is also an important area in shooting, My centre fire days were invaluable to me for rimfire Benchrest, I still use some of those techniques today.
With a new shooter one really need to sit beside them on a day when say a 5k an hour wind is present and offering a POA for a particular flag angle, and maybe which row of flags to watch and why, here again it is imperative to allow a new shooter to shoot a top shooting rifle, it can be confusing to a new shooter if a shot doesn’t come up where it should.
I hope this all makes some sort of sense.
Kind regards, RAH.
I believe the best gun and amo will not help you
IF you can not read the wind
May be the clubs can have a payed instructor on a hourly bases and learner pays harlf the fee or wind reading class now and then
ROCK1
For some normality and regularity to return to all our clubs and comps, training has started back for most (Sorry Mexicans) and i look forward to the 1st comp being the QLD RBA Titles later this month even with a 3 hour traffic jam at the border.
Bill Collaros Australia
"Shoot to Thrill"