04. Rifle Shooter - Juuly, August 2015

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JULY/AUGUST 2015 2 RIFLESHOOTERMAG.COM

VOLUME 17 - ISSUE 4

July/August 2015 RIFLESHOOTERMAG.COM

28 As the World TurnsHow the spin of your bullet and the spin of the planet both affect the path of your long-range shot.by Joseph von Benedikt

38 Mutant!A nifty new rife from CMMG solves the puzzle of chambering 7.62x39 in an AR platform.by David Fortier

46 Stepping DownIf recoil’s got you down and big game is on the menu, don’t despair. You can get by with less power.by Craig Boddington

52 Sportin’ SpringfeldsThe venerable 1903 Springfeld was fertile ground for custom guns—rifes used by some famous clientele.by Layne Simpson

FEATURES

Weatherby Mark V ULRCby Brad Fitzpatrick

6 MailroomFind out what’s on the minds of your fellow readers.

8 Lands & Grooves• Barrel length advice • 6.5x55 vs 7x57 • Zeiss Conquest HD5

18 Tactical TechnologyI.O. Inc. has really stepped up its game and is now making some top- notch AKs.David M. Fortier

22 All That BrassHodgdon’s new Enduron powder fghts copper fouling and is relatively imper- vious to temperature changes.Joseph von Benedikt

72 The Last WordMinimum big game calibers, maximum big game arguments.Craig Boddington

DEPARTMENTSRIFLE REPORTS

66

52

46

28

60 Illuminated OpticsRed dots, refex sights, illuminated reticles and other technology can help extend your shooting or hunting day.by Brad Fitzpatrick

Savage Model 93 FXPby Stan Trzoniec

68

ON THE COVERCMMG MutantLeupold Mark AR 1.5-4x20mmMichael Anschuetz photo

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FOURTH WEEK OF MAY

Kicking off this week’s show is a profle of Hornady’s totally new line of American Gunner handgun ammo. We also take a good

look at a “new/old” Model 1911, as a legendary name reissues a historically correct 1911 that was a household name during the

World War II era. This episode wraps up with “mixing and matching” several Beretta M9 pistols by interchanging parts.

FIRST WEEK OF JUNE

We continue to keep our viewers informed on new frearms this week as we check out Springfeld’s new XD Mod.2 pistol, Ruger’s

new AR556 rife, and SIG’s highly anticipated 10mm P220 pistol. Also this week, Tom Beckstrand welcomes Greg Stubbe to the

range as the two U.S. Army veterans talk about their combat experiences and how a certain pistol played a major role.

SECOND WEEK OF JUNE

New and cutting-edge optics always have a place on “Guns & Ammo TV,” and this week we take a look at a new offering from

Leupold. S&W is back in the news with more new guns from its Performance Center, and we showcase some of the unbelievable

workmanship being done by those able craftsmen. We close out the episode taking a look at Beretta’s 100 years of producing

semiauto pistols.

THIRD WEEK OF JUNE

Featured this week are some of the newest handguns to come to market. We take a close look at new threaded-barrel pistols from

Walther, some of the coolest new 1911s from SIG SAUER, and a new tactical 10mm pistol from Rock Island.

NOT ALL BRASSMEASURES UP TO THENOSLER STANDARD. AND THAT’S OK. THE WORLD NEEDSDOORKNOBS, BELT BUCKLES,AND FRENCH HORNS.

Premium Nosler Brass: Fully Prepped, Ready To Load.Copper and zinc make it brass. Craftsmanship makes it Nosler Brass. We start with the

highest quality material. We trim, chamfer and deburr it. We inspect it by hand. We weight

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to the brass that doesn’t make the cut? We’re sure someone will fi nd a use for it.

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Eye of the BeholderI had been eagerly anticipating a

review of the Mossberg Patriot rife (May/June) ever since I learned of it’s upcoming production. So I was rather disappointed to see that Mr. Sundra felt it necessary to waste the frst fve paragraphs of the article wax-ing philosophically on the perceived beauty of a rife based on the appear-ance of the stock.

Tere are plenty of people out there, myself being one, who believe a hunting rife is a tool to be used—not a piece of art to hang on a wall. How a rife looks takes a distant back seat to how it performs, and many others must feel the same way—unless you have a diferent reason for the surge in popularity of hunting with AR-style rifes, which are downright ugly.

Yes, a beautiful rife is a magnif-cent thing to behold—and my very last choice if I was headed of on a rugged mountain hunt. Drop an expensive rife with a beautiful Claro walnut stock on a rock-strewn hill-side, and feel the tears well out of your eyes as you see dollar signs fying out of your pockets to repair the damage! Drop a synthetic or Kevlar stocked rife in the same manner, and you can repair the damage at home with a can of spray paint.

So how the stock on the new Patriot fts, how good the inletting is, how good a recoil pad it has—all are valid topics on how the test rife performs overall. Extolling the virtues of beautiful wood over a stock with “the visual appeal of a 2x4” is merely a personal preference and not helpful to the review.

What’s the old quote from


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EDITORIAL STAFFEDITOR IN CHIEF J. Scott RuppART DIRECTOR Heather Ferro

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Michael AnschuetzGROUP ART DIRECTOR David Kleckner

COPY EDITOR Michael Brecklin

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSCraig Boddington, Brad Fitzpatrick, David M. Fortier, Rick Hacker, Layne Simpson, Jon R. Sundra, Patrick

Sweeney, James Tarr, Stan Trzoniec

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PUBLISHER Chris AGNESTownsend Whelen, “Only accurate rifes are interesting”? Notice he doesn’t mention anything about eye appeal.

B. FoxWilsonville, OR

On the MarkYour publication is right on the

mark regarding the CZ-USA 557 rife (May/June). I now have a .270 sporter, which is my fourth .270, and I will rec-ommend it always. I was also glad to see Mossberg has discontinued the 4x4 [and replaced it with the new Patriot]. Tat’s a good thing.

Pete CareagaIva, SC

The .280 RulesI have a habit of starting a maga-

zine from the back, and last issue I began with Craig Boddington’s “Te C Factor” (January/February). I found out that him and Scott Rupp were go-ing on mountain hunts, and I wanted to ask Craig why Scott Rupp is the editor of the magazine and Bodding-ton is just a writer? Answer: Because Rupp is smart! You know why Rupp is smart? Because he shoots a .280, a cartridge Craig says he doesn’t have much confdence in.

Ten, in Brad Fitzpatrick’s “Sec-ond-Fiddle Cartridges,” he writes about the .280 Ackley Improved. Te only competitor it’s got is the 7mm Rem. Mag. I have a .280 AI, and I’ve been reloading for it since 1970. I’ll tell you one thing: If Craig had a .280 AI he’d throw the rest of his guns in the river. My reloads will outrun a fac-tory loaded 7mm Rem. Mag. any day of the week, with a lot less powder.

Although Fitzpatrick’s article was a very good one, he’s a little short on velocities for the Ackley. With H4831 I get an average velocity of 3,035 fps. I’ve since switched Reloder 22 for an average of 2,975 fps for a 160-grain bullet out of a 27-inch Douglas barrel.

Doug EhrkOrland, CA

Tanks, Mr. Ehrk. I’m pretty sure that’s the frst time anyone’s accused me of being smart.—JSR

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Some advertisements in this magazine may concern products that are not legally for sale to California residents or residents in other jurisdictions.

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Does Length Really Matter?

Not long back I read an article written by a fellow who prefers stubby barrels

on rifes. In it he stated that since the barrels of rifes used by top-ranked benchrest competitors are short, it stands to reason short barrels are more accurate than long barrels.

Such a statement may sound logi-cal, but it is far from being true. When it comes down to shooting the smallest groups possible, the diameter of a bar-rel is more important than its length simply because a fat barrel heats up

the rife is allowed to be three pounds heavier than the other.

So how long should a rife barrel be? One answer is just long enough to enable all the powder in the cartridge it is chambered for to burn for maxi-mum velocity. In some cases that can be pretty short. A bullet fred from a cartridge of extremely high expansion ratio, with the .22 Long Rife a classic example, reaches its maximum speed in about 16 inches of barrel.

Friction along with a rapid decline in pressure in a longer barrel can actu-ally cause it to lose a bit of velocity. Target rifes in that caliber often have barrels measuring 24 inches and lon-ger because a bit of velocity loss means nothing in competition while a longer barrel makes them easier to hold steady on the bullseye from various shooting positions, especially ofhand.

Increase the amount of powder burned behind a bullet of a particu-lar diameter and it will need a longer barrel in which to completely burn. Staying with high expansion ratio


BARREL LENGTH IS A HOT TOPIC AMONG SHOOTERS. HERE’S ONE EX-PERT’S TAKE.

LANDS & GROOVES

by Layne Simpson

more slowly than a skinny barrel, and heat is what often causes a barrel to wiggle around while scattering its bul-lets over the target.

A thin barrel can be capable of shooting tiny groups, but when every-thing else is equal, a heavier barrel will be more accurate when a number of shots are fred.

Depending on the class it is to be fred in, a rife used in registered benchrest competition has to com-ply with a certain maximum weight restriction. Examples are 10.5 pounds for Light Varmint and 13.5 pounds for Heavy Varmint classes. Te barrel is made as fat as possible for maximum accuracy, but it is shortened to a length that allows the rife to meet the weight restriction.

I still have a Light Varmint rife in 6mm PPC from my benchrest shooting days, and its barrel measures .940 inch at the muzzle and is just over 21 inches long. But barrels on bench guns are not always short; the one on my Heavy Varmint rife is 26 inches long because


cartridges, the .44 Rem. Mag. reaches its top speed in barrels measuring 18 to 20 inches while the .444 Marlin needs a barrel measuring 22 to 24 inches.

Te same rule applies to bottle-neck cartridges. I have no idea what optimum barrel length is for the .22 Hornet, but it is probably no more than 20 inches. Move way on up to the .220 Swift, which burns more than three times as much powder, and 26 inches becomes the minimum barrel length for top performance and it will actually gain more velocity in an even longer barrel.

Burn gobs of powder in a small bore and optimum barrel length really gets long. A friend of mine has built several rifes on Ruger No. 1 actions in .257 STW, a wildcat cartridge that consumes about a teacup full of slow-burning powder behind bullets weigh-ing 85 to 120 grains. He started with a 26-inch barrel, then tried a 28-inch barrel and is now shooting a 30-incher. Each increase in barrel length has rewarded him with close to 100 fps in velocity. A Ruger No. 1 with a 30-inch barrel, by the way, has the same overall length as a Remington Model 700 with a 25.5 inch barrel.

Te American hunter’s preference for short barrels is what killed the .264 Win. Mag. Te Model 70 Westerner in which it was introduced had a 26-inch barrel because the technicians who designed the cartridge knew that to be the absolute minimum length for decent velocities. Winchester fnally succumbed to requests for a shorter tube by ofering the .264 in the Model 70 Featherweight with a 22-inch barrel.

In addition to getting the barrel length they had asked for, the complainers got .270 Win. performance and muzzle fash that set the woods afre with each pull of the trigger.

Velocity is not the only issue; there is also the matter of muzzle blast. When having a rife in .50 B&M Alaskan built on a Marlin 1895 action,

I specifed a 22-inch barrel because when shooting a friend’s rife in the same caliber with an 18-inch barrel, I found muzzle blast to be quite severe. Tat’s not a problem at the range, but it can be in the feld where few of us wear double ear protection. In addition to being easier on the ears, my rife is about 100 fps faster, which is saying a good bit more than you might think when you consider it is shooting a 500-grain bullet.

On more than one occasion a friend of mine has sworn he would sooner hunt elk while wearing a pink beanie with a propeller on top than be caught hunting with a bolt action rife with a barrel longer than 24 inches, and he actually prefers 22 inches.

While planning a Kansas deer hunt not long back, he informed me he had never had the pleasure of hunting with a 6.5mm cartridge, so I loaned him my Ruger Model 77 Hawkeye in 6.5 Creed-moor. It shoots around half an inch

with Hornady ammo loaded with the 129-grain SST so that’s what he used. Long story short, my friend bagged a 160s-class buck with a single shot, and when he returned, I had to pry his hands from my Ruger.

When I asked him if there was anything about the rife that he did not like, he gave me a puzzled look. He had

hunted with it for a week without even noticing its 26-inch barrel.

So how long should a rife barrel be? I prefer the looks of 22 inches on some rifes because it is what I have grown accustomed to (the Winchester 70 Featherweight and Remington 700 Mountain Rife are examples). But by and large, I prefer 24-inch barrels on big game rifes chambered for stan-dard cartridges and 26 inches on the magnums.

Fact is, I would not complain if the barrels of all my big game rifes measured 26 inches. And yes, I have hunted dangerous game such as brown bear and Cape bufalo with rifes that long and all my body parts are still totally intact. On a prairie dog rife I want nothing shorter than 26 inches regardless of its caliber.

Tose barrel lengths are for me. For everyone else, a rife barrel should be precisely as long (or short) as they prefer it to be.

LANDS & GROOVES

FACT IS, I WOULD NOT COMPLAIN IF THE BARRELS OF ALL MY BIG GAME RIFLES

MEASURED 26 INCHES.

SIERRA INFINITY 7If you’ve played around with many exterior ballistics software programs, you know they’re not always super easy to work with. The new Infnity 7 program from Sierra presents a simple navigation interface, thanks to the work of Microsoft software designer and shooting enthusiast Rodney Korn. Infnity 7 allows users to generate multipale trajectory charts and graphics, point blank range, uphill/downhill trajectory, max range and more. Ballistic data are based on the work of Sierra ballistic consultants and retired chief scientists Ted Almgren and Dr. Bill McDonald. Infnity 7 is available as standalone software or packaged with Sierra’s 5th edition reloading manual, the latter either printed or digital. And you can download software updates from the company’s website. Infnity 7 is compat-ible with Windows 8, 7, Vista, XP or Win2K. $40 (standalone), $60 (ballistics program and reloading manual). SierraBulletS.com

6.5x55 vs 7x57

The 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser was used as a military round in the Swedish Mauser rifes and the Nor-wegian Krag-Jorgensen.

Likewise, the 7x57 was an interna-tional success and was a military arm in Europe, Central and South America and Africa. Both cartridges frst gar-nered attention in the United States when 6.5x55 and 7x57 surplus rifes became available in this country.

When WDM “Karamojo” Bell wrote about killing something like 800 ele-phants, many with his .275 Rigby (7x57 Mauser), he helped elevate the 7x57 to legendary status. Bell used 173-grain FMJ bullets, and with a sectional den-sity of .306, this cartridge was capable of impressive penetration despite its modest velocity.

Te 6.5x55 never had the celeb-rity backing of the 7x57, but there are generations of Scandinavian hunt-ers who have relied on the 6.5x55 to harvest moose. Te 6.5x55 loaded with 160-grain bullets has an extremely high sectional density of .328. Mod-ern loads for the 6.5x55 and 7x57 use lighter bullets with lower sectional densities, but heavy-for-caliber bullets gave these two cartridges reputations as overachievers.

Te 7x57 and 6.5x55 have similar case dimensions, and their capaci-ties are close. Te 6.5x55 has a slightly thicker, larger diameter rim, and its shoulder angle is a bit steeper, but the 7x57’s case is a bit longer.

Up until a few years ago, there were far more 7mm hunting bullets avail-able than there were for 6.5mm, but the recent 6.5mm cartridge explosion has pretty well leveled the playing feld. Today, there is more factory am-munition for the 6.5x55 than there is for the 7x57, and even though factory ammunition isn’t as widely available for these two cartridges, it’s still pos-sible to get your hands on some.

Most factory loads for the 7x57 use 139- or 140-grain bullets. Te 6.5x55 is also most often seen in factory loads with 140-grain bullets, which gives an edge in terms of sectional density to the 6.5x55 (.287 versus .248 for the 140 grain) and a slight edge in velocity to the 7x57 (2,700 fps average versus 2,627 fps average for the 140 grain).

Comparing Federal’s ballistics for its 140-grain softpoint 6.5x55 and 140-grain Speer Hot-Cor 7x57 loads shows just how close these two cartridges really are. When sighted in at 200 yards, the trajectory of the two loads remain within 0.1 inch out to 500 yards, where the 6.5 starts to have a slight (less than half-inch) advantage. Wind drift fgures are roughly the same out to reasonable distances.

Te diference is more pronounced. for handloaders. In Hornady’s Reload-ing Manual 9th edition, the data indicate that, with roughly the same powder volume, only two of the 11 7x57 loads listed reach 2,700 fps with a 139-grain bullet while all four of the 140-grain 6.5x55 loads break 2,700 fps. Couple that with the improved bal-listic coefcient (.520 for the 140-grain 6.5mm SST versus .486 for the 139-grain 7mm SST), the 6.5x55 has a slight ballistic advantage.

Rife selection for both is relatively limited. Howa, CZ-USA, Sako and a few others ofer 6.5x55 rifes, and Montana Rife Company, Winchester, Ruger and others have, at least in the

recent past, chambered for the 7x57. Additionally, there are still a few old Mausers and Krags available, but it’s important to note that older rifes and new, higher-pressure factory loads don’t always mix.

While these two cartridges are similar, they both share a common problem: competition from more modern cartridges such as the 7mm-08 Rem., .260 Rem. and 6.5 Creedmoor that are ballistically similar and more widely available. Nevertheless, these two rounds have survived the intro-duction of rival cartridges for more than 120 years, so the odds are they will be around for years to come.

CARTRIDGE CLASH » Brad Fitzpatrick

HITS• Renewed popularity of 6.5 = more bullets• More companies offering rifes, ammo• Shoots slightly fatter with similar bulletsMISSES• Old military sporters not as prevalent• Doesn’t have the WDM Bell panache• Can’t match modern 6.5 rounds

HITS• Light recoiling and capable• Classic international hunting round• Heavy bullets better suited to larger gameMISSES• Not as many factory loads or rifes• 6.5x55 has slight ballistic edge• The 7mm-08 Rem. isn’t going anywhere

7x576.5x55

LANDS & GROOVES


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and a Weaver KASPA™ scope (MSRP $150), which comes mounted and

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boresighted. All you need to do is open the box, fine tune the zero and hunt.

boresighted. All you need to do is open the box, fine tune the zero and hunt.

Zeiss’s entry into the fve-times-zoom market is the Conquest HD5. Te Con-quest line is the company’s “midpoint” in terms of price.

Te sample I received is the 3-15x50 model. I’d originally intended to use it on an ibex hunt I did last year, pair-ing it with my Model 700 Mountain Rife, but the 42mm objective wasn’t available and the 50mm wasn’t a good match for the gun or the hunt. (I did end up taking an older Zeiss Conquest I own, and it acquitted itself well.)

However, range testing left me impressed with the new HD5. For a big scope it has a decent amount of mount-able tube length—5.25 inches out of its 13.5-inch total length. And even though it’s on the large side for a typi-cal hunting scope, weight is a reason-able one pound, six ounces.

Zeiss is known for its glass and its high-tech coatings. One is its legend-ary T*, an antirefective coating that allows the highest possible amount of light to pass through the lenses. Te result is maximum contrast and true colors and, of special importance to hunters, the ability to see the target clearly in low light.

Te HD5 also features Zeiss’s LotuTec, a hydrophobic coating that sheds water as well as dirt and grease. Essentially, it forces moisture into forming round droplets instead of fat ones, and these spheres of water slide right of the lens. I misted the lens of the Zeiss as well as several other scopes, and the diference was marked. I also dunked the HD5 and froze it, and it passed those tests: no internal fogging.

I’ve long been a fan of the Rapid-Z ballistic reticle, and on this scope it was the 600 version. To get a baseline I jumped on Zeiss’s website and plugged in the pertinent data for a Hornady 180-grain .30-06 load—generating the accompanying chart. It shows the power settings that most closely match the distances to the reticle’s hash marks. My range has steel out to

600 yards, and I was able to confrm the settings as accurate. If you haven’t used a Rapid-Z yet, you should go to the website and play around with the calculator. And Zeiss recently solved one of the only gripes I had with the calculator: It’s now available for Apple and Android phones, so you can take your data in the feld with you.

Te scope provided 67.5 m.o.a. of elevation and 47.5 m.o.a. of windage adjustment, and I’m thrilled Zeiss has adopted the American direction for adjustments on the Conquest: counter-clockwise is up or right. While I didn’t conduct a box test, my range sessions with the scope included a lot of rezero-ing for diferent types of ammo, and the scope always moved the promised 1/4 m.o.a. per click.

Te power ring moves smoothly. Te diopter has just the right amount of tension. It moves easily but not so easily you’re going to change it by ac-cident. And I’m glad to see Zeiss has added resettable turrets, an option not previously available with the Rapid-Z.

Tere can be times when clicking up is preferable to using the yardage markers on the reticle. For instance, when gearing up for the hunt I men-tioned earlier, I based my Rapid-Z calculations on 8,000 feet of elevation, but we ended up hunting at 5,000, and there was no Internet service, so I couldn’t recalculate the reticle. If a truly long shot had presented itself as

the only option, I might’ve wanted to click up since the reticle markers were no longer as precisely accurate due to the elevation change.

However, there are no useful indicators on the adjustment turrets. Tere are only tightly spaced vertical white lines, all of equal length, every ffth one a bit heavier than the rest. Tere are no reference numbers. Short of marking the turret with nail polish, you run the risk of losing your zero.

Similarly, the only reference points on the adjustable parallax knob are 50 and infnity. I prefer marked yard-ages, which I use as a starting point to fne tune parallax at 100-yard inter-vals—marking them with nail polish. Yes, simply getting the target in focus works, but it’s not as precise as it can be, and yardage indicators would help.—J. Scott Rupp

By plugging your ballistic data into the Rapid-Z calculator, you can fnd the power setting that will closely match the reticle’s hash marks with 100-yard intervals.


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LANDS & GROOVES

Alliant Reloder 23If you like Reloder 22 (as I do), you’ll love Reloder 23. A sister powder to AR-Comp, RL 23 delivers the performance of RL 22 with better temperature stability—resisting the tendency to generate higher pressures at high temperatures. It also contains a de-coppering additive to lessen copper fouling. » $26 (1 lb.), $190 (8 lb.), AlliAntPowder.com

Hornady .17 Win. Super Mag.With varmint season in full swing, now you have another ammo option for the hot new cartridge on the block: the .17 WSM. Hornady’s new load features a 20-grain V-Max bullet with a muzzle ve-locity of 3,000 fps, and it’s still traveling faster than 2,000 fps at 200 yards. An excellent round for groundhogs, prairie dogs and the like, the company says it also performs on animals as large as coyotes. » $21 (box of 50), hornAdy.com

Trijicon HDThe pioneering optics company that brought you the ACOG sight and the Ac-cuPoint rifescope has entered the spotting scope feld. The 20-60x82 spotter has a strong, lightweight, magnesium alloy body with additional armor protection, and it features fully multicoated fuoride lenses for maximum light transmission and ac-curate color. An indexing collar allows the scope to be rotated to place the eyepiece in vertical or horizontal positions. There’s a 25-50x82 side-angle eyepiece available as an accessory.» $1,900, trijicon.com

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Once hostilities are over, most U.S. military rifes end up being mustered out of the service and sold to civilians as inexpensive war surplus

arms. As time goes on and supplies dry up, many of these guns become collectibles worth many times their original costs. Te most notable ex-amples in modern times have been the 1903 Springfeld and the M1 Garand. However, pre-dating these was the 1861 Springfeld, ofcially known as the U.S. Springfeld Model 1861.

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sion muzzleloader that utilized the Maynard system loading device, which rotated a new mercury fulmi-nate-primed cap onto the nipple with each cock of the hammer. Unfortu-nately, in battle the Maynard system proved less than reliable. In its place the 1861 Springfeld emerged, which was basically a Model 1855 without the Maynard device.

Being a rife-musket, the Model 1861 had a 40-inch musket-length rifed barrel, and it fred the fast-load-ing .58 Minié ball, which was accurate out to 500 yards on man-size targets. By the end of the Great Rebellion in 1865, more than 1.7 million Model 1861 rifes had been manufactured, at

a cost of $20 each. Many were sold on the civilian market for as little as $2.50 and became economical hunting and self-defense arms for settlers heading west.

Some had their barrels cut down for mounted use, while others were used by bufalo hunters on a budget. Due to their hard use, not many 1861 Spring-felds are found in pristine condition, as evidenced by the photo of this well-used original—which was nonetheless auctioned by Cowan’s (CowansAuc-tions.com) for $1,092.50. For shooters rather than collectors, replicas are available from companies such as Ped-ersoli, Chiappa and Cabela’s.—Rick Hacker

It’s hard to fnd pristine 1861s. Even this fairly rough example fetched $1,093 at auction. If you’re looking for a replica for shooting, though, you’re in luck; several outfts make good reproductions.

LANDS & GROOVES

Cowan’s Auctions photo

I.O. INC. HAS MADE BIG CHANGES IN ITS OPERATION IN THE QUEST TO BUILD A BETTER AK RIFLE.

I have to say I was a bit sur-prised by the resurgence of AK rifes and accessories at

the 2015 SHOT Show. Magpul made a huge splash with its Zhukov and MOE furniture sets. Tese are sure to be hugely popular, and I look forward to testing them. Century Arms, a com-pany built on surplus, has made the transition to manufacturing and was showing of its American-made AKs. Similarly, RWC—the importer for Concern Kalashnikov—announced it will be starting production of AK rifes here in the United States. So while the AR market has gone fat, the AK market seems to be bouncing back.

I.O. Inc. in particular seems to be back in the game. It started out im-porting and selling surplus and then transitioned to manufacturing AK rifes. Initially, though things didn’t go so well. Customers complained about various issues, quality control problems and poor customer service. Tis, in turn, led to many turning their noses up at anything stamped “I.O. Inc.”

What is out of the ordinary, though, is how customer complaints led to a come-to-Jesus moment for

I.O. Inc. To address the problems the company closed down its old facility in North Carolina and started over from scratch at an entirely new facil-ity in Florida. Tis included a huge investment in modern machinery and equipment, careful selection and training of an entire new workforce, new procedures, much higher quality control and a diferent attitude. I.O. Inc. spent 2014 improving the quality of its frearms, its customer service and how customers perceive who the company is.

When I asked I.O. Inc.’s mechani-cal engineer Ramzi Kheireddine about the changes made, he was pretty blunt. “Te old I.O. Inc. in North Carolina was kind of a like

a mom-and-pop shop. One person might answer the phone and work out back and do customer service. All of that has changed. We have an entirely new and well trained customer ser-vice department. Tat’s all they do.”

Kheireddine said the company previously used surplus parts dur-ing assembly in the North Carolina plant, and the parts were not checked under the assumption that as surplus parts they’d already passed European military quality control. Such was not the case.

“Unfortunately, many military parts did not actually meet the required specifcations,” he said. “So when they were assembled onto a rife they gave problems. All of that has


In response to quality-control problems, I.O. Inc’s Kalashnikov rifes now use all-new, American-made parts in its new Florida facility. The results are encouraging.

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changed. Surplus parts are no longer used, everything is new and every-thing is checked by quality control. Individual parts are checked, subas-semblies are checked, and the rife is checked during fnal assembly and again after being test-fred before it’s packaged for shipment.”

Te elimination of surplus parts in favor of new, American-made parts wasn’t without its challenges. “Basi-cally, we had to make new tooling for every part of the Kalashnikov rife when we switched to 100 percent new parts,” he said. “Plus, we developed, designed and fabricated special jigs and fxtures for each station during assembly. Tis allows quality-control checks at each point during the as-sembly process.

“We also developed new methods and procedures for assembling the rife itself. We have a Polish partner intimately familiar with the produc-tion of the Kalashnikov rife. We know exactly how traditional production procedures licensed by the Soviets

occur. However, it’s not 1959 any-more, and technology has changed.”

Modern CNC equipment allows the company to do things Soviet en-gineers never dreamed of more than half a century ago. For example, as-semblers headspace the barrel to the trunnion and then ft the trunnion to the receiver.

“In the old days, the trunnion was frst riveted to the receiver and then the barrel was pressed into it,” he said. “Keep in mind with surplus parts the trunnions were already drilled. Unfortunately, sometimes the holes were not concentric, so the bar-rels were not straight. We use brand new trunnions now, so everything can be made straight.”

Along with its investments in ma-chinery, tooling and worker training, I.O. Inc. also decided to add extra fea-tures to its Kalashnikov rifes. Tese include a bufer to prolong the life of the rife, a bolt hold-open, nitride bar-rel, extended magazine release lever and new furniture options.

And apparently all this investment is paying of. I examined and fred four diferent rifes. Te new I.O.s cer-tainly look better than the old ones. Te riveting looks better, the rifes were actually straight with properly aligned gas blocks and front sight bases. Plus, they zeroed without issue, although one’s front sight ended up a bit lower than I would have preferred.

Function was fawless; there were zero malfunctions. While the bolt carrier assemblies were stif out of the box, they smoothed up after a couple hundred rounds. Triggers were ac-ceptable. All four rifes were shot of a bench at 100 yards. Accuracy aver-aged between 2.9 and 3.7 inches with two diferent loads.

It’s not often you hear a company president say, “We have heard your complaints, and we are making major changes to address them.” I think it says much for I.O. Inc. I’ll be inter-ested to see how they perform out in the wild and what customers think of the changes.

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WITH IMR’S NEW ENDURON POWDER, YOU CAN FOR-GET ABOUT TEMP CHANGES AND KISS COPPER FOULING GOODBYE.

Touted to ofer more cut-ting-edge features than any other propellant line on the market, IMR’s new

Enduron powders are designed to be stable across a broad range of tempera-tures, reduce or even prevent copper fouling, and provide outstanding load densities. Plus, they are environmen-tally friendly.

Tree diferent burn rates enable handloaders to cover most cartridges. IMR 4166 is similar in burn speed to IMR 4064 (but do not assume you can use 4064 data for 4166) and is ideal for midsize cartridges such as .223 Rem., .22-250 Rem., 6.5 Creedmoor, .308 Win. and so forth. IMR 4451 burns a bit slower, similar to IMR 4350, and is well suited to cartridges such as .243 Win., .270 Win., .30-06 and .338 Win. Mag. Te slow-burner of the family is IMR 7977. With a burn rate akin to that of H1000, it’s perfect for overbore cartridges such as the .25-06 Rem., 6.5-284 Norma, 7mm Rem. Mag., .300 Win. Mag. and .300 Wby. Mag.

Temperature insensitivity is prob-ably the Enduron line’s most signif-cant characteristic, closely followed by its copper-reducing properties. Critical

to long-range precision shooting—whether competitive, recreational or while hunting—stability through broad temperature ranges can mean the diference between hitting and missing. With most powders there’s often a broad velocity disparity when going from, say, 90-degree tempera-tures to sub-freezing temperatures. How broad can also depend on car-tridge and projectile type, and, frankly, it matters little inside 400 or even 500 yards. But double that distance and a 100 fps variation can mean the difer-ence between a hit and a miss. Let’s look at some numbers to support that.

For example, when fred at 2,650 fps from a .308 Win., the popular 168-grain Sierra MatchKing projectile drops 167 inches at 800 yards. Tat’s with a 200-yard zero, in 90-degree temps, in typical barometric pressure at my home elevation of 5,050 feet.

Lose 100 fps, as commonly occurs when shooting in cold weather, and the same bullet drops 185 inches at 800 yards. Tat’s a signifcant 18-inch diference.

How about a cartridge/projec-tile popular with the extreme-range crowd, say the 180-grain Berger Hunt-ing VLD fred from a 7mm Rem. Mag? Exiting the muzzle at 2,900 fps, it drops 106 inches at 800 yards. Reduce the velocity to 2,800 fps, and it drops 117 inches. Te 11-inch disparity is less than with the .308, but it’s still plenty enough to cause a miss.

Frankly, most powders will exhibit a disparity of at least 100 fps when fred in hot versus frigidly cold tem-peratures—and sometimes as much as double that. Fortunately for long-distance shooters, a few propellants ofer better-than-average stability. Hodgdon’s Extreme line has fronted


IMR’s new Enduron line of powder is temperature insensitive, reduces or eliminates cop-per fouling and offers outstanding load densities. Plus, it’s safe for the environment.

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the trend for many years. Considering recent advancements in engineering, the Enduron line is conceivably the most temperature-stable propellant available.

In Hodgdon’s 2015 Annual Re-loading Manual, the three difer-ent Enduron powders are reviewed exhaustively. Writer Layne Simpson tested IMR’s claims to Enduron stabil-ity via a 15-below-zero deep freeze and ice packs on one end of the spectrum all the way up to cartridges heated to 140 degrees over a Jetboil stove (please don’t try this at home). Even in such extremes, the two handloads he tested in his 7mm STW exhibited disparities of only 86 fps (160-grain Swift A-Frame) and 74 fps (175-grain Sierra GameKing). Writer John Barsness challenged temperature stability in less-aggressive, more real-use condi-tions—between 70 degrees and zero degrees—using .223 Rem., .303 British and .47-70 Gov’t. handloads and found velocity and accuracy both basically unchanged.

I fred the frozen rounds frst, trig-gering the rife as quickly as I could after chambering each cartridge. Te cold ammo averaged 0.84 inch at 100 yards, and velocity averaged 2,828 fps through my Shooting Chrony. Stan-dard deviation, at four fps, was surpris-

ingly low for cold-temp shooting.With the rife hot, I tested the hot

cartridges (and though I didn’t have a way to test their actual temperature, they were hot). Accuracy average was a slightly larger 1.07 inches, but veloc-ity—to my delight—was 2,844 fps. Tere was only a 16 fps diference in the velocity average between the very cold and very hot ammo. I haven’t tested every powder type available,


To conduct my own test, I loaded 12 rounds for my .300 Win. Mag., using 75 grains of IMR 7977 under a 180-grain Barnes TSX. Te rife is a fnely cus-tomized Kimber with a Bartlein barrel, and with loads it likes, it will group around 0.75 m.o.a.

I placed six of the rounds overnight in my deep freeze and kept them in a cooler to maintain cartridge tem-perature for the seven-minute trip to the range the next day. Te other six I sandwiched between a pair of hot water bottles flled with boiling water before setting out to shoot. Dawn was a brisk 22 degrees, and I set the rife outside my truck to chill before begin-ning the test.

THERE WAS ONLY A 16 FPS DIFFERENCE IN THE VELOCITY AVERAGE BETWEEN THE VERY COLD AND VERY HOT AMMO.

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but of those I have tested, the IMR 7977 displayed outstanding stability in extreme temperatures.

On to other features destined to make the Enduron line a best-seller. According to product manager Ron Reiber, the three new IMR powders contain a copper fouling reducing agent that “creates a layer of a material which adheres to the steel in the barrel and prevents copper from adhering to it. It’s a preventative solution that becomes impregnated in the pores of the metal and prevents the copper from sticking.”

Reiber said that in a perfectly clean barrel, the frst bullet down the squeaky-clean rifing may lay down a bit of copper, but the copper reducer prevents following projectiles from depositing additional copper, and eventually, the agent will break down the traces from the initial bullet.

Te copper fouling reducer works the same in fast magnums as it does in slower rounds, which is good news for shooters who frequently battle aggres-

sive copper deposits in precision rifes intended for extreme-range shooting.

Rifes with smooth bores, such as the custom barrels I’ve been shooting Enduron powders with so far, collect little copper to begin with. As a result, the reducing agent has little work to do to prevent copper from building up. But what about production-grade barrels with rough interiors that collect copper in thick, shiny layers? I asked Reiber whether rougher bores would derive even more benefts from Endu-ron’s copper-reducing technology. His reply: Tey absolutely can.

Another advantage ofered by Enduron powders comes in the form of load density. Cartridges with almost no air space inside—meaning the gunpowder flls or almost flls all the available room—tend to ofer the most consistent standard deviations and extreme spreads in terms of veloc-ity. Also, according to Reiber—and I confess I didn’t know this—the less air space inside a cartridge case the less susceptible it is to temperature change.

Enduron powders are bulky, making it easier to achieve complete fll (speak-ing in terms of the case capacity with a bullet seated) or a slightly compressed load.

It’s worth noting Enduron powders are IMR’s frst-ever double-base pro-pellants, meaning they have nitro-glycerin in them. Nitroglycerin makes gunpowder slightly harder to light, but Reiber pointed out shooters needn’t be concerned.

“Use primers typical for the car-tridge,” he said. “In extremely cold weather, sure, nitroglycerin makes for slightly harder ignition, but it’s insig-nifcant. Don’t worry about it.”

With my cold-weather tests com-plete, I shot three, three-shot groups us-ing IMR 7977 with a Hornady 178-grain A-Max bullet in the same rife. Without any load development, groups averaged 0.66 inch, and standard deviation was 14 fps. And while I performed no quan-tifable test, when I cleaned it there was little copper in the barrel. I believe I’ve found a new favorite powder.


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by Joseph von Benediktillustrations by alfredo rico

Beyond basic trajectory charts and wind drift tables, ballistics dive into a murky world of bizarre physical ef-fects and the mind-numbing

calculations necessary to compensate for them. However, inside about 1,000 yards, there are some practical solutions enabling shooters to deal with defection without math or a wizard’s staf.

To begin with, we’re going to leave fairly common factors that infuence a bullet’s path—altitude, temperature and

the other elements that afect air den-sity—alone. Most long-distance shooters have a fairly decent grasp on them and how to compensate for them, and Craig Boddington covered these in his July/August 2013 article “Going To Extremes” (which you can view at RifleShooter Mag.com).

Te two factors that we’ll attack are spin drift and the Coriolis Efect. Unless you are a sniper or long-range hunter who wants to make extreme-range frst-round hits, dealing with spin drift and

Coriolis isn’t necessary. Even long-range highpower shooters can more or less trust to their sighters to get their point of impact tweaked to perfection before shooting for record.

I’m no scientist, and complex math-ematical formulas trouble me, so for my own use I have to break these two con-cepts down for practical use in the feld. To be honest, I never could get a grasp on Coriolis Efect until Aaron Davidson of Gunwerks explained it to me during a long-range shooting and reloading clinic


Mathematicians with an interest can look up and become adept at the formulas that solve spin drift problems, but running those formulas in the feld when a target—whether steel, animal or enemy—is about to disappear isn’t even a little practical. Today’s ballistic calculators spit out spin drift solutions in seconds, and shooters engaging tiny targets with incredibly accurate rifes can print out spin drift charts that can help them signifcantly.

For practical purposes, there’s a much easier way. By sighting long-range, high-velocity rifes to impact an inch left at 200 yards, spin drift can be mentally discard-ed inside 1,000 yards. Sighted thus, aero-dynamic projectiles from high-velocity cartridges won’t deviate much more than two inches from the line of sight.

For example, a 168-grain Berger Hunting VLD fred from a 7mm Rem. Mag. at 3,050 fps at my home elevation and in standardized pressure—zeroed as above—will reach a maximum devia-tion of 1.34 inches left at 450 yards. It will cross the shooter’s line of sight at roughly 800 yards and will deviate to the right approximately 1.63 inches at 1,000 yards. From there, deviation will build quickly, but impact will still be less than fve inches right at 1,200 yards.

How about a more common, mid-range precision round, such as a 168-grain Sierra MatchKing fred from a .308 Win. at 2,650 fps? Given lower veloc-ity, fight time to 1,000 yards is greater, and thus spin drift is increased, making it necessary to zero a bit farther left at 200 yards. With 200-yard impact adjusted to 1.5 inches left, maximum left deviation is a shade over two inches at 450 yards; the bullet crosses line of sight at about 775 yards. Right deviation is about two inches at 900 yards and a little over four inches at 1,000 yards.

Spin drift is at its max at sea level be-cause the air is denser. Te thinner the air, the less the drift. However, the diference isn’t enough to fret about. For example, with no zero ofset to compensate, 1,000-yard spin drift on the 168-grain Serra MatchKing .308 load discussed above is just over 15 inches at sea level in standard atmospheric conditions; all other condi-tions being equal, spin drift at 9,000 feet


elevation is a shade over 12 inches. While it’s worth being aware of when setting up drop and wind charts for a hunt or competitive event, the three inches of dif-ference is of little practical value.

Coriolis EfectNow let’s move on to Coriolis Efect.

Once you turn a bullet loose into the atmosphere, the Earth turns independent of it, and believe it or not, the Earth’s movement can reposition the target during the bullet’s fight enough to make you miss at extreme range. And while inside 1,000 yards you’ve got to be a most accomplished shooter with an extremely accurate rife to recognize Coriolis Efect in your shot placement, it’s still worth knowing—if nothing else because it’s an interesting aspect of rife shooting.

Tere are two types of bullet path defection caused by Coriolis Efect: vertical and horizontal. Latitude dictates which one has the more efect on bullet path defection. At the equator, horizon-tal defection is nonexistent and vertical defection is at its maximum. At the poles, vertical defection is nonexistent, while horizontal defection is at its maximum.

Tere are a few rules to Coriolis Efect worth memorizing. For vertical defec-tion—which for practical purposes is the one worth worrying about—the amount of defection changes as you change fring direction. If you’re fring east and west, Coriolis is having its greatest efect; fring north and south, there is none at all. As I mentioned, the closer you are to the poles, the lesser the dispersion; the closer you are to the equator, the greater the dispersion.

Finally, when fring to the east, your point of impact will defect high; when shooting west, your point of impact will defect low. Which brings us to how Coriolis-caused vertical dispersion works.

Imagine you’re taking a 1,000-yard shot toward the east. As you set up and aim, you, the rife and the target are all ro-tating at the same rate on the Earth’s axis. As soon as the shot breaks and the projec-tile exits the muzzle, the bullet becomes independent of the Earth’s rotation, and as the Earth continues to rotate, the target in essence lowers slightly. Remember, the target is rotating on a sphere, from

last summer. He addressed the various aspects of ballistics in understandable language, supported with clear graphics, and more than one previously dim light in my brain lit up.

Spin DrifLet’s start with spin drift because it’s

arguably the easiest to understand. As a bullet travels downrange, it spins at an in-credible rate. As with the toy top you gave your kid for Christmas, spinning keeps it stable. However, this spin also causes some sideways drift in the bullet’s path.

How? Tink of it this way: As a bullet falls earthward, gravity causes the bottom side of the bullet to have more friction with air molecules than the top side. As a result, the bullet can be imagined to

“crawl” with the direction of the spin. Bul-lets fred from a barrel with a right-hand rifing twist will crawl to the right and vice versa. As most current barrels are built with a right-hand twist, for the most part we’ll speak in terms of spin drift to the right.

Additionally, a principle called the Magnus Efect reacts on a projectile’s center of pressure (diferent to and for-ward of the center of gravity) and causes a bullet to yaw slightly out of alignment. In windless conditions, the bullet will fnd equilibrium pointed ever so slightly to the right (from right-twist barrels), in what is called the “yaw of repose.” Te result of the right-pointing attitude is a slow but inexorable, additional departure from a straight fight path.

Interestingly, Magnus-induced spin drift is infuenced by the length of the projectile. Long, aerodynamic bullets with sleek ogives and generous boattails have their centers of gravity farther rear-ward in relation to their center of pressure than do shorter, blockier bullets. Being farther from it, the center of pressure has more leverage on the center of gravity, resulting in slightly greater yaw. However, sleek bullets hold velocity better and minimize fight time; all factors consid-ered, they have less spin drift.


AS THE WORLD TURNS

which the bullet’s path is detached. When the bullet impacts the target, it will do so slightly above the point of aim.

How much? Tat depends on the shooter’s latitude. Te Earth is a giant ball rotating on an axis. At the equator a bullet’s path is perfectly perpendicular to that axis, so the rotation is having maxi-mum efect. At the poles, the arc of a bul-let’s path is almost in line with the Earth’s axis, so vertical defection caused by the Earth’s rotation is negligible.

Shooting to the west, the dispersion is opposite. As the bullet travels toward the target, that target actually rises ever so slightly as the Earth rotates, causing the bullet to strike slightly low.

Where I live, around the 40-degree line, east and west vertical defection from Coriolis is about 2.8 inches per second of fight time. If your bullet takes 1.25 seconds (like the aerodynamic, fast 7mm Rem. Mag. load detailed in the sec-tion on spin drift) to reach a target 1,000 yards away, vertical defection is about 3.5 inches—not much. However, if your bullet takes longer—perhaps 1.70 seconds like the .308 load we examined earlier—

vertical defection is greater, to the tune 4.75 inches.

For hunting across the Lower 48 states, it’s useful to simply round the amount of the Coriolis Efect on vertical defection to four inches at 1,000 yards.

For practical purposes, it’s best to sight in, confrm and tweak your drop charts and related data on a range that runs north and south. As Davidson pointed out, shooters who zero their rifes, refne data based on actual impacts and prac-tice on a range facing directly east will develop data that include the east-aiming Coriolis defection from their local range. In the feld, if a shot directly to the west presents, they’ll experience double the vertical defection they should. Instead of hitting four inches high, they’ll hit double the amount high—eight inches—which is signifcant enough to cause a complete miss even on a sizable target.

Once data are confrmed on a north/south long-distance range, all the shooter needs to be aware of is that Coriolis will cause extremely long shots to impact slightly high when fring east and slightly low when fring west. If there’s no time to

calibrate and run a solution on a ballistic calculator, simply hedge a bit high or low to compensate.

While few of us are lucky enough to hunt near either of the poles, and I’m un-aware of any precision rife competitions

QUICK REFERENCE:CORIOLIS EFFECT

• At the equator, horizontal defection is zero and vertical defection is maximum

• Near the poles, vertical defection is zero and horizontal defection is maximum

• Vertical defection is dependent on direction of fre

• Shooting east, defection causes bullets to impact high

• Shooting west, defection causes bulletsto impact low

• Shooting north and south, vertical defec-tion is zero

• At the North Pole, horizontal defection is always to the right

• At the South Pole, horizontal defection is always to the left

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held in the Arctic, horizontal defection is worth a quick discussion. To be hon-est, I had a hard time wrapping my head around this one, and for months I studied the concept and the globe for months before I fnally grasped it. And once I understood it, I realized it’s simpler than it seems.

Te face of the sphere on which our target sits is basically rotates around its

axis almost like the surface of an old-fashioned turntable for vinyl records. Tus, instead of “bending” our bullet’s impact vertically, it does so laterally. In the north, defection is always to the right; in the south, it’s always to the left.

No matter where you stand, your bul-let exits the muzzle with a bit of lateral movement just because, well, you’re standing on the Earth and it is moving. If you’re near the North Pole aiming north, the lateral movement imparted to the projectile as it launches is more than the movement at the distant target, which is nearer the pole, and thus rotates slower on a smaller circumferential path. Your bullet—moving laterally faster than the target—impacts slightly to the right. (Keep in mind that when viewing the North Pole from above, the Earth rotates around it in a counterclockwise direc-tion.)

Conversely, when fring in a south-ward direction away from the pole, the target is farther away from the pole than you are, and it’s traveling faster on a

larger circumferential path. Being slower in rotational speed where you stand and launch the bullet, the projectile itself has less lateral movement than the target, which moves out from under the bullet and causes it to impact slightly right.

So, how about when fring east or west? Imagine you’re sitting on an enor-mous turntable, with the North Pole to your right, west straight ahead, and the rest of the world away somewhere to your left. Tere’s a target way out ahead of you, rotating as you are around and around the pole in a counterclockwise direction. As you fre at that target, it curves along its path—drifting to the left and causing the bullet to impact slightly right.

Turn around and face east. Now, the North Pole is on your left and the rest of the world on your right, but the whole is still rotating in a counterclockwise direction. As you fre at the target way of across the ice pack, it’s rotating in its circle, and yep, that rotation takes it to the left of your bullet’s path as the projec-tile free-fies through the atmosphere completely disconnected from the Earth’s rotation. Te result? When it impacts, it does so slightly to right of center.

Now, unless you’re one of the lucky few who manages a polar bear hunt, and unless you attempt a shot at ridiculously long range, you’ll never really have to worry about horizontal dispersion caused by the Coriolis Efect. As an advanced ballistic concept, it’s worth getting a grasp on, but simply put, don’t worry about it for practical shooting in the Lower 48.

As for implementing spin drift and vertical defection caused by the Coriolis Efect, the best way I’ve found is via the ballistic calculator on my iPhone. While the functions of various apps difer slightly, the good ones are all capable of being programmed with your data: bullet length, rife twist rate, compass azimuth for where your rife’s pointing and local latitude. It will incorporate all those ele-ments into a ballistic chart.

Understanding the correct use of a good wizard’s staf such as an app may seem easier, but grasping the concepts and being able to anticipate the fight-bending efects of advanced ballistics can make connecting at extreme range just a little easier.

1,000 YDS

To compensate for spin drift (right-hand twist), zero the rife slightly to the left instead of dead center.

AS THE WORLD TURNS

Spin imparted by a right-hand twist will cause the bullet to deviate to the right at extreme range.

Long, aerodynamic bullets have slightly great-er yaw, but their shorter time of fight tends to cancel out the drift.


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LINKLINK

The 7.62x39 is not just a cartridge. It is one of the most signifcant mili-tary rounds of the 20th

century. Mated to the RPD, SKS-45 and AK-47, it redrew boundaries around the globe, toppling old empires and creating new ones. However, as impor-tant as it has been to combatants from the days when the United States fought in the jungles of Vietnam to today’s battles in the Middle East and else-where, the 7.62x39 excels at nothing in particular. It was specifcally designed as a compromise (see the accompany-ing sidebar), and no one has ever raved

about its sterling accuracy or long-range capabilities.

So I felt a bit silly trying to judge the wind with a round of 7.62x39 full metal jacket sitting in the chamber. But the planets had aligned, and on this February day in Kansas, I had nearly perfect conditions. It was a sunny 50 degrees with almost no wind, and 730 yards away stood a single Action Target silhouette. Resting on the railing of my shooting tower was CMMG’s new Mk47 Mutant in 7.62x39. I was getting ready to call it a day when I decided to give this distant steel plate a go. Sheer folly, right?

Te rife in question is a new design from CMMG that blends East and West. In simplest terms, it is an AR-pattern rife in 7.62x39 that feeds from standard Kalashnikov AK-47/AK-M magazines. It’s not built on a straight-up AR-15 platform but rather one larger than an AR-15 but smaller than an AR-10. Hence the “Mutant” moniker; it is in between the two traditional AR sizes.

Why would anyone want to do this? Why not stick with, say, a standard AR-15 in .300 BLK? Good question. One reason would be economy. Imported steel-case 7.62x39 ammunition is both plentiful and reasonably priced. It is dirt


MUTANT!CMMG’S MK47 MELDS AN EASTERN INTERMEDIATE CARTRIDGE WITH A WESTERN RIFLE PLATFORM.

by David Fortier

cheap compared to brass-case .300 BLK or 6.8mm SPC. Tere are certain things the Russians do well, and one of them is churning out economical ammunition by the shipping container.

Performance-wise the 7.62x39 has a slight advantage over the .300 BLK when it comes to case capacity and velocity. When loaded with modern expand-ing bullets, the terminal ballistics of the 7.62x39 is vastly improved over the old M43 steel-core ball load American troops encountered in Vietnam. Mod-ern bullets really wake up this cartridge, and it works well on deer and hogs inside 200 yards. It also penetrates inter-

mediate barriers well. Today there are a number of excellent loads available for this old Soviet cartridge. Plus, like the Blackout, it even works well when loaded to subsonic levels for suppressor use.

However, when it comes to AR-pat-tern rifes, the 7.62x39 has a problem. It has a pronounced case taper, which aids extraction but also dictates an equally pronounced curve in the magazine. Tis was not an issue for the AK-47, where the magazine well, bolt and magazine were all designed to work together. But if you try to drop the 7.62x39 into an AR-15, you run into problems with

the standard AR-15 magazine well. Te 7.62x39 cartridge stack wants to curve before the straight AR-15 magazine well will allow it. Yes, 7.62x39 magazines are available to ft standard AR-15 lower re-ceivers, but this solution is hardly ideal. Reliability is always suspect. Some guns run them all the time, some most of the time and others are problem children. Plus, the quality of these magazines of-ten leaves a bit to be desired, especially when it comes to durability.

Te obvious solution, then, is to sim-ply use AK-pattern magazines in your AR-15, right? Tis is not a new concept. Even the U.S. military took a great inter-


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MUTANT!

est in the possibilities. While it has been done—I own an MGI Hydra that ticks along nicely—all is not roses. While AR-15 magazines are thin, light and made to be disposable, AK magazines are thick, durable and capable of being used as an improvised impact weapon. So their sheer size, namely width, pre-sents a problem for both the AR lower and upper receiver. Plus, the AR-15 bolt was not designed to strip rounds from such a beefy magazine. Te bolt has to be able to reach far enough down inside

the magazine to reliably strip a cartridge from the feed lips and chamber it. Te AR-15 bolt’s design is not optimum for this.

Ten there is the issue of the bolt itself. An AR-15 bolt needs to be opened up to accommodate the larger diameter case head. Tis in turn weakens it, and it is not unheard of for bargain-basement 7.62x39 AR-15s to break bolts.

CMMG looked at the diferent issues various manufacturers had encountered with building a 7.62x39 AR-15 and de-

cided to do something diferent. Rather than trying to cram an AK-47/AK-M magazine into an AR-15-size upper and lower, the company decided to give it-self some room. At frst glance it appears engineers simply built the Mk47 Mutant on an AR-10-size platform, but they did not. Te Mk47 is noticeably larger than an AR-15 but quite a bit smaller than an AR-10. Te size relationship became clear to me when I laid out a stripped Mk47 next to a 7.62x39 MGI Hydra AR-15 and a Les Baer .308.

Te rife’s heavy-walled upper receiver is machined from 7075 T-6 and is based on CMMG’s own .308 Win. MK3 series. Tis fattop design features a dust cover and brass defector but no forward assist. Inside of this rides an AR-10-type bolt designed for this

A C C U R A C Y R E S U L T S

CMMG Mk47 MUTANT AKM

7.62X39 BulletWeight (gr.)

MuzzleVelocity (fps)

StandardDeviation

Avg.Group (in.)

WINCHESTER HOG POWER-POINT

123 2,309 39 1.9

WOLF FMJ 123 2,383 32 1.9

WINCHESTER PDX1 120 2,325 27 2.2

HORNADY SST 123 2,262 68 2.6

RED ARMY FMJ 123 2,324 14 2.9

MAGSAFE DEFENDER 50 3,694 41 4.5

NOTES: Accuracy results are the averages of four fve-shot groups fred from a rest at 100 yards. Velocities are averages of 10 shots measured 12 feet from the muzzle at an ambient temperature of 50 degrees 1,030 feet above sea level with an Oehler 35P. Abbreviation: FMJ, full metal jacket

The Mutant sports a traditional AR-style safety lever, but the magazine release is a paddle forward of the trigger guard. The grip is a Magpul MOE, and the rife is shown with a Chinese drum mag.

The CMMG Mk47’s bolt-carrier assembly (c.) in comparison to a Les Baer AR-10 (l.) and an MGI 7.62x39 AR-15. The Mk47’s carrier assembly works in conjunction with a specially marked buffer that weighs the same as an AR-15 H1.

A redesigned magazine is at the heart of the new Mutant. Of the three shown here—(from l.) the CMMG’s 7.62x39 AK magazine, a 7.62x39 AR-15 and a 5.56mm AR-15—the AK is by far the more reliable design.

MUTANT!


application. It dwarfs a standard AR-15 bolt when placed alongside. As such, it is overbuilt with strength to spare.

Te machined bolt carrier is notice-ably bigger and heavier than an AR-15’s but smaller and lighter than a standard AR-10 carrier. Te CMMG Mk47’s bolt carrier weighs 17.2 ounces, compared to carriers from the aforementioned MGI and Les Baer rifes, which weigh 11.2 and 18.75 ounces respectively. Te Mk47’s heavy bolt carrier assem-

bly works in conjunction with a

The fore-end is CMMG’s RKM15 Key Mod handguard system. This extends almost to the muzzle and features Key Mod slots at three, six and nine o’clock. The top optics rail is a MIL STD 1913.

S P E C I F I C A T I O N S

CMMG Mk47 MUTANT AKMTYPE direct-impingement rotat-

ing bolt semiauto

CALIBER 7.62x39

CAPACITY accepts AK magazines; 30-round PMag supplied, where legal

BARREL 16.1 in., 1:10 twist

OVERALL LENGTH 33.5–36.7 in.

RECEIVERS 7075 T6 billet, hardcoat anodized and manganese phosphate

WEIGHT 7.2 lb. w/out mag

TRIGGER single-stage with 7-lb. pull

SIGHTS none; 1913 optics rail

STOCK Magpul CTR collapsible, Magpul MOE pistol grip

PRICE $1,650

MANUFACTURER CMMG, CMMGinC.CoM

accept a variety of military and com-mercial magazines, as these vary in dimension.

Sifting through what I had kicking around the shop, I found the Mk47 eas-ily accepted European- and Chinese-pattern steel AK-47/AK-M magazines and Soviet Bakelite magazines, along with a 75-round Chinese-pattern drum. Soviet, Polish and Bulgarian pattern polymer mil-spec magazines were tighter but locked into place with some efort—as did commercial I.O. Inc. polymer magazines. Te only magazine that would not ft was a European-pat-tern 75-round drum.

Te Mk47 ships with Magpul maga-zines, and these worked fne. I did most of my bench testing using Hungarian 20-round steel magazines.

Next, I assembled six diferent 7.62x39 loads to see just how well CMMG’s Mk47 Mutant performed. In-cluded were both economical imported steel case and high-end domestic loads. For accuracy testing from the bench, I mounted a Hi-Lux 4-20x50mm Penta-Lux tactical scope I had in for a diferent project. I fgured the higher magnifca-tion would be an aid.

Using Hungarian 20-round steel magazines, I proceeded to fre four fve-shot groups with each load from a rest at 100 yards. While rounds fed smoothly and chambered without issue, I imme-diately noticed an oversized charging

specially marked bufer that weighs 3.9 ounces, about the same as an AR-15 H1 bufer.

Mated to the front of the upper receiver is a fairly light 16.1-inch barrel with a 1:10 twist. Tis is free-foated to enhance accuracy and features a tra-ditional AR carbine-length gas system with a low-profle gas block. Surround-ing the barrel and Stoner gas tube is a CMMG RKM15 Key Mod handguard system. Tis extends almost to the muzzle and features a 1913 rail at 12 o’clock and Key Mod slots at three, six and nine o’clock for easy mounting of accessories. An SV muzzle brake is ftted to reduce recoil and muzzle movement.

Te lower receiver is where things really get interesting. Gone is the con-ventional AR-15 magazine well and in its place is a piece redesigned to accept AK-47/AK-M magazines. Tis features a replaceable steel front engagement point and an oversize paddle release. Te release has been designed to al-low manipulation conventionally or using your trigger fnger. Tere is no bolt catch, and the bolt does not lock back on the last shot. Te rife sports standard AR-15 fring components and an AR-15 carbine receiver extension. A Magpul CTR stock and MOE pistol grip came on my review rife.

One of the downsides to my 7.62x39 MGI is it is picky when it comes to magazines. Only steel AK-47/AK-M magazines work, and not all of them. Te magazine well is too tight for polymer and Bakelite magazines. So I was interested to see if the Mk47 would

The muzzle is ftted with a short SV brake, which works fairly well—although the fash is quite bright in low-light conditions.

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MUTANT!

handle would be an asset on this piece. My review gun had a standard AR-15 trigger group, and it was heavy but us-able. Ejection was to three o’clock, and recoil was mild. All in all, it was a pleas-ant rife to shoot from the bench.

Accuracy was quite acceptable. Results are shown in the accompany-ing table. Best individual groups went to Wolf and Winchester Hog ammo at 1.7 inches, and the Mk47 Mutant shot respectably well across the board.

Te bad news is functioning was not 100 percent with two loads. Te Hornady 123-grain SST load posted an average velocity of just 2,262 fps, which is about 70 fps slower than I’d expect and which led to occasional short- stroking. Te Magsafe load’s pressure curve was all wrong for the Mk47 and would not cycle. Te rest of the loads ran fawlessly, and there were no maga-zine problems of any kind.

Moving from the bench, I shot all six loads from various feld positions on steel plates at 100 yards. Running drills here showed the Mk47 to handle well, but reloads are slower than a standard AR. Te magazine release works well enough, and its length provides plenty of leverage, but the lack of a bolt hold-open is a bit of a hindrance. Next I tried my hand at hitting 11x20-inch LaRues placed from 200 out to 330 yards. Here


the CMMG Mk47/Hi-Lux combo per-formed well. Te rife was comfortable to shoot, and no issues were encoun-tered. Practical accuracy shooting from the prone position was quite accept-able at the distances where one would use this cartridge. In my opinion, the 7.62x39 is at its best inside 300 yards.

As I wrote at the outset, I also shot the rife at a full-size silhouette at 730 yards. Tis is well beyond the distance one would normally use a 7.62x39, but I was having fun and had some ammuni-tion left. I had no spotter, but the dirt was dry enough to spot hits. It took me fve rounds to fgure out elevation and windage, and then I fred another 15 rounds at a leisurely pace. I was sur-prised by the amount of paint I could see being removed from the target, and when I drove down to the target I found 11 fresh impacts. It’s certainly no match gun, but you can do quite a bit with an honest two-minute rife.

CMMG’s Mk47 Mutant is an interest-ing solution to an old problem. Kalash-nikov magazines actually ft, and the bolt is overbuilt for the application and should live to a ripe old age. Practical ac-curacy proved acceptable and consis-tent. I’d prefer a slightly shorter hand-guard, a better trigger (which is available as an option) and an extended charging handle. All in all, though, the Mk47 Mutant would make a great plinker and short-range deer or hog gun. Currently, CMMG ofers three models with retail prices starting at $1,500. Te Mk47 Mu-tant AKM seen here is the middle model, which retails for $1,650.

Fortier thinks the Mk47 Mutant handles well, the stock is easy to adjust and the free-foating handguard is comfortable in the hand.

THE 7.62x39

The genesis of the 7.62x39 dates back to July 15, 1943, when the Soviet Union wanted a

cartridge to answer the German 7.92x33 Kurz. The 7.62x39 was intended from the outset to chamber the new cartridge in a complex of weapons rather than just a single rife. The Soviets considered 314 possible cartridge designs, eventually adopting the 7.62x39—a cartridge to bridge the gap between the 7.62x25 used in pistols/submachine guns and the full power 7.62x54R rife cartridge.

Because it was intended for use in automatic weapons, it features a short, aggressively tapered rimless bottleneck cartridge case that is 1.524 inches long with a base diameter of 0.447 inch. To aid reliability it has a relatively thick .059 inch rim. The case tapers to a shoulder diameter of .396 inch and has a capacity of 35.6 grains of water. Neck diameter is .339 inch, and .311-inch-diameter pro-jectiles weighing 123 grains were utilized. Overall length is 2.205 inches.

The new design provided a consider-able savings in material during the manu-facture of propellant, cartridge cases and projectiles compared to the 7.62x54R. It also facilitated a reduction in size and weight of weapon systems while cutting recoil. Exterior ballistics, while inferior to the 7.62x54R, were geared toward the realistic infantry ranges—inside 400 meters. As such, it offered an across the board increase in range, penetration and terminal performance over the hot 7.62x25 submachine gun loads. It was this practical balance of size and perfor-mance that would make it so success-ful.—DF

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I discovered the writings of Rob-ert Ruark as an impressionable teenager, shortly before his death in 1965. I devoured his

posthumous collection, Use Enough Gun, and I took his advice to heart and always went the more powerful route when choosing a rife cartridge. It wasn’t entirely Ruark’s fault. In the postwar years, a young zealot named

Roy Weatherby preached the gospel of velocity and proved extremely adept at making headlines in the sporting press of the day—kicking of what I call the First Magnum Craze, which started in the late 1950s. For the next decade virtually every new cartridge wore a belt, carried a magnum sufx and promised more velocity, more energy and more performance than

anything that had gone before.Tese promises weren’t altogether

true. In those innocent pre-chrono-graph days, there was the occasional glimmer of blue sky in published fg-ures, and little details such as overbore capacity were ignored. Many of us be-lieved the hype, and we bought into it. Even Jack O’Connor, already the most popular and infuential gun writer who

STOP TAKING A BEAT-ING! THERE ARE LOTS OF CAPABLE CARTRIDGES THAT WON’T KICK YOU INTO NEXT WEEK.

STEPPINGDOWN

by Craig Boddington


ever lived, couldn’t stem the tide. His was like a small voice in the wilder-ness when, in 1958, he opined that the hot, new .264 Win. Mag. couldn’t do anything his beloved .270 could not do; a few years later he said the same thing about the 7mm Rem. Mag. Of course, O’Connor was exactly right.

Many years passed before I grudg-ingly accepted that wisdom. Like so

many youngsters, I started hunting with a .243 Win., but by the mid-’60s I had a .264 Win. Mag. and thought it was magic. I had a .375 H&H before I was 20, and it accounted for my frst elk, my frst sheep, my frst moose and so forth.

In the early 1980s most of my guns were stolen, and for a time the only frearms I owned were a well-worn Model 12 skeet gun and a left-hand Weatherby Mark V in .300 Wby. Mag. I used that big Weatherby for everything for a couple of seasons. Later, I bought a Remington M700 in 7mm Rem. Mag. and a pre-’64 Model 70 .375, and both of those rifes saw a lot of service over the next few years. And since I did a lot of my early writing during that time, it’s no surprise people consider me a magnum maniac.

Te adage to “use enough gun” sug-gests there must also be such things as too much and too little. I do believe there are minimal requirements for our various classes of big game: Elk require more power and penetration than deer, and big bears and bufalo require even more of what my old friend Charlie Askins called “muzzle swoosh.”

Perhaps also implied in the “enough gun” admonition is there might be something out there “just right” for certain purposes. Maybe there is, but this seems an elusive for-mula. It appears to me there is almost always a bunch of cartridges that will work just fne for a given sporting pur-pose. We can all pick our favorites and make our campfre arguments, and we can also increase performance by choice of bullet. But, realistically, there are broad ranges of suitability, and the hairs we like to split are actually pretty fne.

For instance, given a reasonably suitable choice of bullet, I doubt there are many game animals that will notice the diference between a 6.5mm, a .270 and a 7mm. Given a bit of velocity and a decent bullet, all three calibers can certainly be used for game up to elk. I might argue that a .30 caliber is better for elk (because I think it is), but the window of suitability is wide, so an er-ror has to be pretty gross before fnger-

pointing starts. Te 6mms and .25s are unquestionably marginal for elk, but you need to go on up to the big bears before you can say one is foolishly under-gunned in choosing them.

“Over-gunned” is perhaps even more difcult to pin down. In Africa the .375 H&H is often used as a one-rife safari battery. Too much gun for small antelope? Sure, but it works and keeps on working throughout the spectrum. If, instead, one chose a .458 Lott, then one might be better armed for the larger stuf, but on the smaller plains game there might not be enough ranging ability and certainly no reason to get kicked into next week on a daily basis.

Obviously, velocity makes a difer-ence, not only in trajectory but also in terminal energy, but I strongly believe a .30 caliber hits harder than a 6.5, .270 or 7mm. I also believe a magnum .30 ofers some of the greatest fexibility across our entire spectrum of calibers and cartridges.

I don’t consider the .30-06 a big gun, but many people do. It is worth remembering that America’s darling .30-06 is actually the most powerful cartridge ever adopted as standard is-sue by a military power. During its long tenure as our service cartridge, the .30-06, in both Springfeld and Garand, was revered for its battlefeld perfor-mance, but recruits lacking previous shooting experience told horror stories of bruised shoulders and uncontrol-lable finches.

Te .30-06 is a powerful cartridge. It is too much gun for youngsters and people of smaller stature—and too much gun for any beginner. Well, what about the .308? Yes, it has a bit less recoil than the .30-06, but it’s usually built into lighter rifes, which increase recoil. Te .308 is also too much gun for a lot of people.

Te problem with recoil is we all have diferent thresholds, and you really don’t know how much is too much until you go well beyond what is comfortable. Once you cross that bridge, you will be immediately aware, but the damage may already be done. Te most normal physiological reac-tion to too much recoil is a finch,


STEPPING DOWN

which is easy to get but very hard to cure. Te only way I know to cure a rife-shooting finch is to go back to the basics and start over with several bricks of non-recoiling .22 rimfre. But that’s not going to bring down

your next big game animal. And even if finching isn’t your problem per se, many people as they age simply fnd shooting rifes with signifcant amounts of recoil—and here I count the .30-06 as I mentioned earlier—to

be a less-than-pleasant experience. Younger, smaller and newer shooters have the same problem. And if we’re not enjoying ourselves, we’re missing out on what hunting’s all about.

Tere are ways to mitigate recoil. Te easiest is probably gun weight, but in the feld you have to carry that weight. On the range, I customarily use a Caldwell Lead Sled, a wonder-ful device that, in efect, adds 25 or 50 pounds of weight to the rife and makes a pussycat out of almost any-thing.

Muzzle brakes are also extremely efective, but they’re noisy—especially for bystanders. Hunting partners and guides hate them, and I’m already deaf enough, so I prefer not to use them.

Tere is another option: Under-standing the broad range of suitability for most classes of game, think about downsizing. Especially with today’s wonderful hunting bullets, I don’t use the .33s nearly as much as I used to. Tere aren’t many things you can’t do with a .30 caliber and a good 180-grain bullet, and even the faster .30s kick a whole lot less than a .33 with a 250-grain bullet.

But most of us only occasion-ally must make a conscious choice between a .30 caliber and a .338, and here in North America, such a decision is typically limited to elk, bears and moose.

Te question becomes, how much gun do you really need for the big game most of us hunt most of the time? And here we’re talking primarily about deer, of course. My friend and our editor, Scott Rupp, loves the .25s, and indeed there is almost no deer hunting you can’t do with a .25-06 or, for that matter, a mild-mannered .257 Roberts.

I do not love the .25s. Instead, I pre-fer the 6.5s: old-timers like the 6.5x55, brash newcomers like the .260 Rem. and 6.5 Creedmoor. And I still have a soft spot for the faster .264 Win. Mag., lots of performance and relatively little recoil, although I will admit it’s not exactly a popular choice due to limited rifes and ammunition—and it’s also not exactly “stepping down.”

Beginners and younger shooters simply can’t handle cartridges such as the .30-06, and as we age, a lot of us can’t, either. That’s why rounds like the 7mm-08 make more sense for deer-size game.

You can mitigate recoil with kick-reducing rife rests or with muzzle brakes. Or you can simply decide to switch to a cartridge generating less recoil.

STEPPING DOWN

When Rupp needs a bigger gun than the .25-06, the .280 Rem. is one of his favorites. Tough more of a cult cartridge than a top seller, the .280 could well be the best cartridge based on the .30-06 case. I’ve used it now and again, most recently to fatten a big-bodied Kansas whitetail, but it’s not one of my personal favorites. Again, no real reason. Further, as Rupp will tell you, because it’s based on the ’06 case, the .280 is not a big step down in terms of recoil—except that it generally em-ploys lighter bullets than its .30 caliber

parent, with the 140-grain bullet the most prevalent.

Instead, I’m a big fan of the old 7x57 Mauser and the newer 7mm-08 Rem. Te former has nostalgia and class; the latter ofers incredible performance and is an ideal choice for beginning hunters. While the 7x57 is my “go-to” whitetail cartridge, I’ve outftted both daughters with 7mm-08s.

And then, of course, we have to get back to Professor O’Connor, who was right all along. His beloved .270 is hard to beat. When I was a beginning


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S T E P - D O W N P O S S I B I L I T I E S

Cartridge BulletWeight (gr.)

200-YardEnergy (ft.-lbs.)

RecoilFactor

.338 WIN. MAG. 250 2,950 2.93

.300 WIN. MAG. 180 2,675 2.39

7MM REM. MAG. 140 2,280 2.06

.270 WSM 130 2,250 2.00

.30-06 180 2,140 2.19

.280 REM. 140 2,080 1.95

.264 WIN. MAG. 140 2,030 1.91

.270 WIN. 130 1,985 1.82

.308 WIN. 150 1,890 1.95

6.5 CREEDMOOR 129 1,890 1.73

7MM-08 REM. 140 1,785 1.80

.25-06 REM. 117 1,720 1.57

.260 REM. 140 1,700 1.73

7x57 MAUSER 140 1,650 1.68

6.5x55 MAUSER 140 1,595 1.72

.243 WIN. 100 1,350 1.25

.257 ROBERTS 117 1,280 1.47

STEP-DOWN POSSIBILITIES

If you’re ready to stop taking a beating, you have a lot of choices to step down in recoil. I selected common bullet weights for cartridges mentioned in Boddington’s article and aver-aged 200-yard energy fgures for loads you’re likely to fnd on a dealer’s shelf—except the Creedmoor, fgures for which are based on a single load. I chose 200 yards because most shots occur at that distance or less. Conventional wisdom says it requires 2,000 ft.-lbs. of

energy to cleanly take elk-size game, 1,000 ft.-lbs. to cleanly take deer-size game—given proper bullet choice, of course. Cartridges are ranked by energy in descending order. Relative Recoil Factors, from Bob Forker’s Ammo & Ballistics 5 book, can help you determine what kind of recoil reduction you might expect from a rife you currently shoot to one you’re thinking of downsizing to. Just keep in mind these fgures—derived from muzzle momentum of the bullet and expelled powder gas for a typical loading—don’t necessarily match the bullet weights I used in the chart and that gun/scope weight plays a big role in felt recoil. Relative Recoil Factors are just another piece of information to consider. —J. Scott Rupp

writer, O’Connor was still active, so I couldn’t be so brash as to attempt to write about his cartridge, but even at the height of my magnum phase, I always had a .270, and I have used the cartridge a great deal.

My wife, Donna, has taken the vast majority of her game with a .270, and for me, it has worked perfectly on game up to elk. Bullet weight is a signifcant factor in recoil. Te .270 with a 130-grain bullet is mild-man-nered, and with the bullets we have today, it’s even more efective than in O’Connor’s time. And although the point of this story is stepping down, I do recommend the .270 WSM when you need a fat-shooting rife. It has amazing performance with surpris-ingly little recoil.

It’s also possible to downsize even more. I started hunting, with a Model 70 .243, and for years one of my fa-vorite combo varmint/deer rifes was a Ruger No. 1 in .243. As a big game cartridge the .243 is not a long-range number, but for stalking pronghorns and a whole lot of deer hunting it’s deadly—partly because it’s plenty powerful enough, and partly because it’s so easy to shoot well.

Just this year I realized that it’s been awhile since I’ve owned a .243, so I bought a Ruger American .243 in the new left-hand action. Maybe even I’m downsizing.

All these rounds are more than capable for taking deer at typical distances—without a lot of recoil (from l.): .257 Roberts, 7mm-08 Rem., 6.5 Creedmoor, .25-06 Rem.

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SPORTIN’SPRINGFIELDS

THE 1903 ACTION WAS FERTILE GROUND FOR CUSTOM RIFLES OWNED BY SOME OF THE GREAT HUNTERS OF OUR TIME.

by Layne Simpson

As future vice-president and later president Teodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders began

their assault on San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War of 1898, it soon became apparent that their slow-to-load Krag Jorgensen rifes were inferior to the Mausers used by the entrenched Span-ish troops facing them. Immediately after the war, the U.S. Chief of Ordnance ordered the development of a new and improved rife that would replace the Krag as well as the Lee Straight Pull rife in 6mm caliber being used by the U.S. Navy at the time. On June 19, 1903, a new rife designated “U.S. Magazine Rife, Model of 1903, Caliber .30” was ofcially adopted.

Te rimless cartridge developed for the rife was known as “Ball Cartridge, Caliber .30, Model of 1903,” and it was loaded with a 220-grain roundnose, full-metal-jacket bullet at a muzzle velocity of 2,300 fps. It was basically the same bullet as was being loaded in the .30-40 Krag. In 1906 a switch was made to a fatter-shooting, 150-grain spitzer at 2,700 fps, and that required shortening the neck of the case by 0.07 inch. Te military designation was changed to “Cartridge, Caliber .30, Model of 1906,” and we know it today as the .30-06 Springfeld.

Te throats of rifes chambered for the .30-03 version were a bit too long for best accuracy with the new bullet, so they were recalled to Springfeld Armory for rechambering. Tis was accomplished by removing the barrel, shortening its shank by two threads, rethreading the shank, reinstalling the barrel and then reaming its chamber to the new throat dimension.

In addition to serving alongside the 1917 Enfeld as America’s primary battle rife during World War I, the 1903 Spring-feld was recalled to duty during World War II when production of its replace-ment, the M1 Garand, could not meet demand. Te ’03 also saw limited service during the Korean War.

Bolt-action sporting rifes chambered for modern, high-intensity cartridges would not become available from major American manufacturers until the 1920s, so in 1910 the U.S. government made available for purchase by United States citizens “U.S. Rife, Caliber .30, Style NRA” (for National Rife Association).


SPORTIN’ SPRINGFIELDS

With the exception of a Lyman 48 sight on its receiver, the 1903 barreled action was not a lot diferent from military issue. More commonly known as the Spring-feld Sporter, sales were handled by the Director of Civilian Marksmanship—to-day, the Civilian Marksmanship Program.

Without doubt, the most famous of all Springfeld Sporters were the two carried by Teodore Roosevelt and his son Ker-mit during their Smithsonian-sponsored expedition to eastern and central Africa. Te grand adventure began in March 1909 and lasted for about a year. More than 500 animals classifed as “big game” were taken with three rifes. In addi-tion to a Holland & Holland double in .500/450 Nitro Express, Teodore used a .405 caliber Winchester Model 1895 and a Model 1903 with serial number 6,000. He referred to it as “Little Springfeld.” Kermit also carried a 1903, its serial num-ber being 8,500.

Prior to the expedition, both rifes were modifed at Springfeld Armory as per Roosevelt’s directions. One might expect them to be quite fancy, but by today’s standards they are rather plain in appearance and with what appear to be only minor changes made to their actions and barrels.

Plagued by poor eyesight since child-hood, Roosevelt specifed that both rifes wear the same Winchester front and rear sights as on his Model 1895. With the exception of a checkered knob, the bolt handle remained unchanged. Te stock, checkered at its wrist and fore-end, had

a steel barrel band up front. Swivels held a leather carrying sling designed by Col. Townsend Whelen. Roosevelt claimed to have paid out of pocket for the two rifes, and he most likely did. Both now rest peacefully at the NRA National Firearms Museum.

Te Springfeld action also became a favorite of many private-sector custom stockmakers and rife builders, with perhaps the fnest turned out by one-man operations. Ranked among the best in their day, Ludwig Wundhammer and Alvin Linden were also among the frst. Other talented artisans followed: Eric Johnson, Fred Adolph, Frank Pachmayr, Fred Surkamer, Barney Worthen, Paul Jaeger and developer of the .35 Whelen cartridge, James V. Howe.

Tere were larger producers of Springfeld Sporters. Te New York frm of Grifn & Howe mostly specialized in high-grade rifes but also ofered a stan-dard version sold through the showroom of Abercrombie & Fitch. Chambering op-tions were whatever could be squeezed into the 1903 action—with the .250-3000 Savage, .257 Roberts, .270 Win., 7x57 Mauser and .30-06 the most popular.

Many rifes were ftted with the company’s famous side-attached scope mount and the latest in telescopic sights from Zielklein, Hensoldt, Oigee and a few others. Te bolt handle was heated and bent to clear the scope or replaced entirely. Other options included metal engraving and extra fancy walnut stocks with hand checkering.

Simpson’s 1930s- vintage Springfeld

Sporter in 7x57 Mauser was built by R.F.

Sedgley, Inc. This one probably cost around

$100 when it was built, and at some point in

its life the barrel was shortened to 22.5

inches, losing the front sight in the process.

Theodore Roosevelt and his son Kermit used a pair of Springfeld Armory-modifed sporters for their famous African safari. This one was used by Kermit; both are on display at the NRA National Firearms Museum.

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Pennsylvania-based R.F. Sedgley, Inc. turned out thousands of custom rifes, many priced for the workingman. While seldom as fancy as those from Grifn & Howe, they were still quite nice for the money. Many custom options were ofered. One was converting the Springfeld action to left-hand opera-tion. Another was shortening the action by sawing a section from the middle of the bolt, fring pin and receiver and then welding the front and rear pieces back together. A rife in .250-3000 Savage on the shortened action was priced at $140

in a 1932 catalog. A left-hand rife went for $125 in 7x57 or .30-06 and $10 more in .22 Hornet. Standard rifes usually ran $75 to $100. An additional $13 bought a “featherweight” version weighing seven pounds.

Te magazines of high-grade rifes usually had hinged foorplates. Re-shaping the military trigger guard to a thinner and more narrow profle was about the extent of it on less expensive rifes. Te better gunsmiths learned how to tune the military trigger to a very nice pull. Some shortened frst-stage travel,

a few eliminated it entirely. Te trigger on my Sedgley breaks crisply at three pounds, and while it is a two stage, it has never interfered with my shooting the rife.

It is important to note today that some of the 1903 actions used were said to be the early carbon steel type. Even though reheat-treating increased their strength some, the War Department considered doing so insufcient and declared them unsuitable for fring with loads generat-ing higher-than-normal pressures. In other words, less room for shooter error than with later, double-heat-treated receivers made of nickel steel. Terefore, it was recommended they be withdrawn from service and scrapped. Included were all receivers made at Springfeld Armory with serial numbers lower than 800,000 and those below 285,507 from Rock Island Arsenal.

Te list of famous people who hunted with Springfeld Sporters is far too lengthy to include in its entirety, but in addition to the Roosevelts, here are some of them: airpower advocate Gen. Billy Mitchell; novelist Ernest Heming-way; husband and wife team Martin and Osa Johnson, who pioneered the art of movie-making on the African continent; Col. Townsend Whelen, for whom the .35 Whelen was named; and Grancel Fitz of Boone & Crockett Club fame, who was frst to take all 25 species of American game.

On expeditions beginning around 1910 to what was then German East Af-rica, a Wundhammer-stocked Springfeld in .30-06 was used extensively by Western novelist Stewart Edward White. In his words: “Of 135 animals killed with the rife, 98 went down to one shot each. Te longest range was 421 paced yards with 196 yards the average on antelope.” Not a bad record considering White’s rife wore only a Lyman 48 sight, and he used military-issue ammunition loaded with full-metal-jacket bullets.

And there was college professor turned frearms writer Jack O’Connor. During the late 1940s, he wrote that more fne sporting rifes had been built in America around the 1903 Springfeld action than on any other. He went so far as to describe it as “Queen of the May”

Simpson’s Sedgley still has the original Lyman 48 receiver sight, but its elevation slide was replaced by a steel blank when a previous owner had a scope in a Buehler mount attached.

When the Springfeld Sporters were in their heyday, scopes weren’t in common use, and many hunters and shooters opted for the Lyman 48 receiver sight.

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among big game rifes. Trough the years O’Connor had several favorites, one built by Columbia Gun Company of Spokane, Washington. A .22-250 on a shortened Springfeld action, it was stocked by the great Al Biesen, who worked at CGC at the time.

Another favorite was a .30-06 built by R.G. Owen, who had previously headed the Winchester custom shop. Another .30-06 built by Grifn & Howe in 1925 is thought to have been a college graduation present from his uncle Jim O’Connor. But reading O’Connor’s work through the years, it is obvious that a 1903 wearing a barrel in .30-06 made by William Sukalle and stocked by Adolph Minar of Fountain, Colorado, was his favorite. Still regarded as one of the all-time greats at his craft, Minar is said to have made fewer than 40 stocks prior to his death in 1936. Sukalle was equally fa-mous for making some of the best barrels available at the time.

In those days, scopes were not as durable as they are today, so in addition to a German-made 2.75X Hensoldt in a quick-detachable mount, the rife wore the usual Lyman 48 receiver sight. Com-pleted in 1934, it was the frst custom rife personally commissioned by O’Connor. During the following decade or so, it ac-counted for 22 Coues deer, fve antelope, seven mule deer, two mountain sheep and his frst grizzly. Te rife was used to take O’Connor’s last desert bighorn in 1946.

It may have been the only rife he ever thoroughly wore out. In 1949 he wrote: “Te beaten up old Springfeld Sporter is scarred and battered. Te stock is badly cracked and held together with a bolt, the checkering is smooth, and its third barrel is so worn it won’t keep its bullets in a two foot circle at 200 yards. But I will always keep that rife.” Eventually chang-ing his mind, he gave his beloved Minar to friend and colleague John Jobson, who had been searching for one for many years.

Te Springfeld Sporter I have man-aged to hang onto through the years was built by Sedgley and is typical of his standard-grade rife. Its American walnut stock has enough contrasting fgure to put it a cut above factory rifes


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built in those days and today, and it has adequate 20-line checkering at the wrist and fore-end.

Te stock also has a checkered steel buttplate, a grip cap of bufalo horn and a schnabel-style fore-end. Te base of the front sling swivel extends through the fore-end of the stock and attaches to a steel barrel band. All metal was profes-sionally polished prior to being blued. Te barrel was stamped “R.F. Sedgley Inc. Phila. PA. U.S.A.” along with “7mm” to indicate 7x57 Mauser. Te barrel also has Sedgley’s proofmark, the letter “S” enclosed by a circle.

Te rife left the shop during the 1930s wearing the customary Lyman 48 receiv-er sight. Sometime later (probably during the 1950s), a previous owner had the receiver drilled and tapped for a Buehler one-piece mount, and since the elevation slide of the Lyman sight interfered with scope installation, it was replaced by a short steel blank. Te original front sight vanished when the barrel was shortened from 24 to 22.5 inches. When I bought the rife it still wore the mount but not the scope.

Total weight with a fairly light scope and a leather sling is two ounces over nine pounds. Rifes built back then are not supposed to be as accurate as those of today, but my Sedgley consistently shoots inside an inch at 100 yards with Federal Premium ammo loaded with the Nosler 140-grain Partition bullet. Some groups are as small as half an inch. Veloc-ity is low, but so is chamber pressure, and out of respect for such an old rife, I prefer to keep it that way.

Several years ago, I booked a hunt for Coues deer in Old Mexico. Jack and Eleanor O’Connor, along with their sons Jerry and Bradford, had hunted the same area several times many years before, and anyone who has read “We Shot the Tamales” knows about where that is.

Tat O’Connor story is a favorite of mine, so as a salute to old Cactus Jack, I hunted with the Sedgley. Te only really good buck spotted was far beyond reach of the rife, so I never fred a shot. A car-tridge case picked up on the last day was tarnished, bent, fattened and appeared to have been lying there for decades. No, it was not a .270 Win.

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ILLUMINATED OPTICS

FROM REFLEX SIGHTS AND TRITIUM SCOPES TO INFRARED SIGHTING SYS-TEMS, THE MODERN CROP OF ILLUMI-NATED OPTICS OFFERS A WIDE RANGE OF OPTIONS IN EVERY PRICE RANGE.

by Brad Fitzpatrick _____________

Today’s shooter has a wide variety of options that weren’t available a few decades ago. Some

of the most important advances have come in the optics market, and one of the most signifcant is the addition of illumination, which allows for more precise aiming in low-light conditions, better accuracy, a wider feld of view and faster shooting. Depending upon your needs and your budget, there are plenty of options that will work on your rife regardless of whether you’re a hunter, target shooter or use your rife for personal defense.

Here’s a look at the diferent options. Each design has its own merits, and deciding which one works for you is largely a matter of taste and budget. Te good news is that with so many diferent quality oferings you’re bound to fnd something that will help you achieve more as a shooter.

Red Dots, Refex Sights, Holographic Sights

One of the downsides to traditional magnifed optics is their relatively lim-ited feld of view. Tis can make them a little slower to employ, especially at closer ranges, and can cause shooters to miss critical information downrange. For instance, on a Texas cull hunt I

had my crosshairs on a buck my guide wanted removed from the property, but just as I was about to break the shot, the guide grabbed my shoulder and told me to stop. A trophy buck we hadn’t seen raced onto the scene and nearly caught a 180-grain spitzer in the shoulder as he ran in front of the target buck, and that would’ve created a major problem.

Magnifed optics also sufer from parallax, which essentially results in an aiming disparity due to the fact that the target and the reticle are on diferent planes but are viewed as a single image. If your scope’s parallax setting (some are adjustable, some are fxed at a cer-tain yardage) doesn’t match the target distance and your head is not perfectly centered behind the reticle, your shot may not be exactly where you intended.

On the other hand, red dots and holographic sights let you see every-thing because with most designs you’re shooting with both eyes open, and because of the way they produce an aiming point, there’s usually no parallax to worry about.

Tey’re great for close-in shooting and for engaging moving targets, and they’re quite capable of precision shoot-ing out to reasonable ranges. Some styles house their lenses in a tube simi-lar to a traditional rifescope while oth-ers—especially refex sights—employ a


Illuminated optics such as this Trijicon ACOG, which features a lighted reticle, can expand the conditions under which you can make an accurate shot.


ILLUMINATED OPTICS

single lens in a small, open housing.Most battery-powered red dot sights

and refex sights rely on an LED bulb illuminated via a battery. Te light from the LED is transferred through the lens or lenses to create the image seen on the screen, according to Bushnell’s Tim Tanker. In addition to Bushnell, mak-ers include Burris, TruGlo, Leupold, Aimpoint, Vortex, Trijicon, Weaver and more.

Holographic sights operate in similar fashion but rely on a laser diode to create a holographic image of a reticle. Tey ofer a clear, precise image, though battery life tends to be shorter than in battery-powered LED sights. Holo-graphic sight makers include EOTech and Bushnell.

Some red dots, particularly those at higher price points, ofer zero forward emission. Tat means the sight doesn’t project any light, a feature primarily of concern to the military and law enforce-

ment. According to Tanker, the lack of any forward emission is usually limited to higher-end sights with a chromium backing on the reticle.

“One of the great things about red dots is that they are available in a variety of confgurations at diferent price points,” Tanker says. “We ofer basic red dots as low as $99.”

Tanker says he has seen an increase in the number of specialized red dot confgurations, particularly with in-creased interest in tactical shooting.

“Our red dots are largely application-specifc,” he says. “Tactical sights have diferent reticles and a diferent look, and they often sit higher so they can be mounted on ARs with proper cheek weld. Red dots for hunting are often camo and are designed specifcally for that application. A growing number are quick-release sights so you can remove the optic easily, and when it is remount-ed, you are back to zero.”

Because of their simple and compact design, red dot sights are durable and aren’t as prone to hanging up on brush as larger optics can be. Tese water-proof, shockproof optics are gaining a following among dangerous game hunt-ers who value durability and fast target acquisition and stake their lives on that situational awareness.

In general, red dot sights are battery operated, but there are exceptions. Tri-jicon’s Sealed Refex Sight, which I used with great success on a Texas hog shoot, relies on a battery as well as a solar cell that captures light. Te large objective ofers plenty of feld of view, and I was never worried about battery life.

Even optics that run strictly on bat-teries have a very long life. Aimpoint optics have shown to run up to 80,000 hours continuously with some models, so your optic’s time between battery changes is measured in years even if it’s left on.

Illuminated ReticlesFor shooters who choose to use a tra-

ditional magnifed optic, a large number of scopes ofer illuminated reticles, and that number continues to grow. As with red dots, most scopes with illuminated reticles often rely on a battery to power LED illumination.

Others, like the Trijicon Accupoint and ACOG, employ diferent technol-ogy. Trijicon revolutionized the use of tritium-phosphor as a source of illumi-nation, a process by which tritium, an isotope of hydrogen, causes phosphor to fuoresce and creates a battery-free illumination option.

At their best, scopes with illuminated reticles allow for a clear sight picture in any lighting conditions. For some pur-suits, such as chasing hogs or varmints at night, the use of an illuminated optic is a great aid in target acquisition. But it’s possible to have too much of a good thing; you don’t want the illumination level to be too bright and “food” the sight picture. For these dark pursuits, an illuminated optic set on low power ofers just enough light for rapid target acquisition.

But as I learned on another Texas deer-cull hunt, illuminated reticles work

The Trijicon RMR is a small, durable refex sight that allows you to shoot with both eyes open, which is a big advantage—espe-cially on moving targets.

The popularity of refex sights has brought more companies into the fold, which has driven down prices. This Redfeld Accelera-tor, for example, sells for less than $200.

Bushnell’s Elite line offers an illuminated-reticle option, one of a growing number of scopes in all price ranges with this feature. They’re a terrifc aid to low-light shooting common in a lot of hunting.

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proven experience using these rifes while serving in the military, in law enforcement

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ILLUMINATED OPTICS

for just about everything. I used an illuminated Trijicon Accupoint scope throughout the hunt. We seldom recog-nize how much lighting conditions vary throughout the day, but the Accupoint’s green dot remained illuminated and provided a clear, precise aiming point in all conditions, and it contributed to

some of the best feld shooting I’ve ever done.

Scopes with this option range in price from a few hundred dollars into the thousands, and almost every major scope maker—Bushnell, Leupold, Nightforce, Zeiss, Nikon, Trijicon, Steiner, Weaver/Kaspa and others—of-fers an illuminated reticle option. Te simplest work just like traditional rifescopes with the advantage of having an illuminated reticle. More complex versions may have large illuminated reticles with vertical and horizontal bal-listic hashes or dots.

Most ofer some level of illumination adjustment, and the very best allow you

to shut the system of entirely or scroll through a number of intensity settings ranging from a light ficker of light to a brilliant glow so you can customize the illumination for conditions.

Lasers, Infrared, ThermalLasers have been used in conjunc-

tion with a magnifed optic to provide range-to-target data (such as the Burris Eliminator), and lasers are popular for target shooting and self-defense with handguns. But the use of lasers as the sole sighting system for hunting is a relatively new concept, and it’s not legal everywhere.

Lasers are most commonly used for hog hunting, but last year I traveled to Alberta with Crimson Trace to test out the efectiveness of lasers as a stand-alone sighting system for big game hunting. Te frst and most difcult step was to fnd a method for mount-ing a laser on the Ruger American rifes we were using. Warne helped solve

The great thing about today’s lighted reticles is they’re available for specifc needs, ranging from a tactical design, such as this Bushnell BTR2, to a simple but effective lighted dot at the center of a standard crosswire.

ILLUMINATED OPTICS

the problem by devising a mounting bracket that allowed a Crimson Trace Rail Master Laser to be mounted on a one-piece Warne scope base.

Te Rail Master locked to the side of the optic rail using custom mounts, and this left enough space on the top rail to mount a Redfeld scope, which we could use if a bear presented a shot at long range.

We sighted in the lasers at 25 yards, and when the bears approached the bait, it was easy to center the bounc-ing red dot on the vitals and make the shot. Te hunt proved lasers could be used efectively on big game at moder-ate ranges in most light conditions, and every hunter in camp successfully har-vested a bear using the Rail Master laser as their primary sighting system.

While infrared technology has served military and law enforcement professionals well for years. Infrared light has slightly longer wavelengths than red light and is therefore out of the

visible spectrum for humans. Te only means by which we can see infrared light is with the use of night vision equipment that allows infrared waves to be converted to visible light, hence its applications for military and law enforcement.

Infrared is making inroads in hunt-ing as well, particularly nighttime hog and predator excursions. On a Texas hunt last year with the team from War-hawg Tactical, we pursued wild hogs that were decimating local rice felds but never showed themselves unless it was completely dark.

At night we listened as dozens of hogs sloshed and rooted through a farmer’s rice felds. With Crimson Trace infrared vertical fore-grips mounted on ARs, we slipped up to the edge of the feld, and through the green tunnel of our night vision equipment, we could see the pigs feeding in the rice.

Our night vision equipment allowed us to get close, our infrared optics

allowed us to make accurate shots on stationary and moving pigs, and we managed to help reduce the impact of the feral swine on the local agriculture. In total darkness the infrared technol-ogy made it possible to take accurate, safe shots at the feeding sounder.

An exciting and relatively new devel-opment in the civilian realm is thermal, which, as the name implies, uses heat signatures to create a digital image of a target. Tis is something that has hunting applications for critters such as hogs, coyotes and foxes in addition to tactical applications.

Te big player here right now is Flir, which is bringing a thermal sight series called the TermoSight to the hunting market, a six-sight line that ranges in price from $3,500 on up to $9,000. But like any other relatively new commer-cial product, one would expect that prices will fall and the technology will advance as competitors jump into the game.


Weatherby Mark V ULRC

RIFLEREPORT

byBrad Fitzpatrick

Roy Weatherby’s name-sake company celebrates its seventh decade in

business, and while Roy himself isn’t around any longer, his Mark V de-sign has remained, and it looks much the same today as it did when it was introduced it in 1958. One of the newest forms of the Mark V is the new Ultra Lightweight Range Certifed, which was introduced last year. It incorpo-rates the Mark V push-feed design with nine locking lugs (six for non-magnums and the .240 Wby.) that are the same diameter as the bolt body and are ar-ranged in three rows for strength and security. In addition, the locking lugs allow for a short, 54-degree bolt lift.

Safety was a primary concern when the Mark V was designed, so the rife features three rings of steel around the cartridge base: recessed bolt face, receiver and barrel. If a case ruptures,

a trio of gas vents in the bolt directs escaping gases away from the shooter’s face. Te bolt shroud fully encloses the bolt and sports a tab-style cocking in-dicator. Te bolt body is futed, and the oversized bolt and short lift make it one of the slickest bolt actions of all time.

Te Mark V trigger was light and crisp before good factory triggers became a real thing, and the current one is factory-tuned, fully adjustable and comes set at 3.5 pounds. Te Ultra Lightweight Range Certifed bears the classic Weatherby profle, with a high, Monte Carlo stock and sharply angled fore-end, but instead of the high-gloss California walnut and rosewood styling that’s synonymous with the original Mark V, the new ULRC has a hand-laid brown composite stock with epoxy spiderweb pattern and a light-weight aluminum bedding block.

Rife specifcations vary slightly depending upon caliber. Te .270 Win.,

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S

WEATHERBY MARK V ULTRA LIGHTWEIGHT RCTYPE bolt-action centerfre

CALIBER .240 Wby. Mag., .257 Wby. Mag. (tested), .270 Win., .270 Wby., 7mm Rem. Mag., 7mm Wby. Mag., .308 Win., .30-06, .300 Win. Mag., .300 Wby. Mag.

CAPACITY 3+1, internal box maga-zine w/hinged foorplate

BARREL 26 in. (as tested), futed

OVERALL LENGTH 46.625 in.

WEIGHT 6.75 lb.

STOCK brown Monte Carlo composite with epoxy spiderweb pattern

FINISH matte blue

TRIGGER adjsutable, 3.5 lb. pull (as received)

SIGHTS none

PRICE $2,400

MANUFACTURER Weatherby, weatherby.com

.308 and .30-06 variants of the rife have a 22-inch barrel; the .240 Wby. Mag., 7mm Rem. Mag. and .300 Win. Mag. come with a 24-inch pipe; and the rest of the Weatherby chamberings have a 26-inch barrel. Te .300 Wby. has a brake that adds two inches to the overall barrel length (and $300 to the price tag). Non-magnum rifes and the .240 Wby. Mag. version have a thin No. 1 contour barrel, while the rest of the guns in the lineup get a No. 2. All rifes, regardless of caliber, have futed barrels with target crowns, and all metalwork is matte blue.

Te overall weight of rifes with a No. 1 contour barrel (.240, .270 Win., .308 and .30-06) is just 5.75 pounds, while the rest of the magnum rifes from .257 on up weigh 6.75 pounds. Tat’s pretty good considering the average Mark V Magnum weighs eight pounds, and heavy-barreled rifes like the popular Accumark, Terramark and the new Arroyo weigh 8.75 sans scope in magnum calibers.

Interestingly, the drop at the heel and comb is less on the standard rifes (and the .240 Wby.) than on the magnums. Te Mark V’s length of pull is a tad longer than most rifes; 13.625 inches compared to the industry stan-dard 13.5 inches. Tat suits me well, and the raised Monte Carlo stock helps align the eye with the scope, in this case a Burris Veracity 2-10x42 on Talley mounts.

Te .257 Wby. produces tremendous muzzle blast, a byproduct of pushing big game bullets upwards of 3,500 fps, but the recoil isn’t unpleasant at all. Te thick Pachmayr Decelerator recoil pad helps, and the contour of the stock, which prevents the top of the comb from rising up into your cheek, also makes things more comfortable. I’ve also shot this rife in .270 Wby., and it isn’t abusive, but I sure wouldn’t want to head to the range without my mufs.

All Range Certifed rifes are test-fred to guarantee they shoot under one m.o.a., and the guarantee comes with a printout signed by either Adam or Ed Weatherby and a specially engraved foorplate. I found the ULRC managed sub-m.o.a. groups with two of the three


WEATHERBY MARK V ULTRA LIGHTWEIGHT RANGE CERTIFIED

.257 Wby. Mag. BulletWeight (gr.)


StandardDeviation

Avg.Group (in.)

WEATHERBY BARNES TSX 100 3,512 20.7 0.67

NOSLER ACCUBOND 110 3,376 18.6 0.98

WEATHERBY NOSLER PARTITION 120 3,271 17.3 1.15

Notes: Accuracy results are averages of three three-shot groups at 100 yards from a fxed rest. Velocities are 10-shot aver-ages recorded on a ProChrono digital chronograph placed 10 feet from the muzzle.


ammo types tested. Te best group of the day measured just 0.49 inch with the TSX load. It’s hard to say what a serious handloader could accomplish. Ten again, how much better than 0.49 inch can one realistically expect?

Te trigger is crisp, breaking right at the factory claim of 3.5 pounds, and the slick bolt makes follow-up shots with this rife fast. It’s doubtful you’ll need

follow-ups, though, with the ULRC’s accuracy capabilities. Tere’s a lot to like about the classic Mark V, and with the new ULRC package the only thing missing is a couple pounds of rife weight. Tere’s a simple reason that the Mark V has been around since 1958: build quality. Now, in its ULRC form, the Mark V is lighter, tougher and more accurate than ever before.

All Range Certifed rifes come with a spe-cially engraved foorplate. These guns are guaranteed to shoot sub-m.o.a. with speci-fed ammunition. The author’s test rife passed that test with two of three loads.

While the ULRC wears the familiar Weath-erby Monte Carlo style of stock, rather than high-gloss wood and rosewood accents it’s a synthetic brown with spiderweb pattern.

One of the hallmarks of the Mark V action is the lug design (either six or nine) and venting holes on the bolt body—both of which function as safeguards in event of a blown case.


Savage Model 93 FXP

RIFLEREPORT

byStan Trzoniec

While the common .22 rimfre, par-ticularly the Long

Rife, has been a mainstay in the American hunting scene, those in the know like to move up a bit to the higher horsepower .22 WMR. Savage has a new ofering to add to the list of rifes so chambered, and the Model 93 FXP seems to me to be one of the best value-added rifes on the market. Its $324 suggested retail price includes a Bushnell 3-9x40mm scope.

It has a heft most of us enjoy in a feld rife. Te black synthetic stock sports the normal 13.5-inch length of pull, and it has an ample amount of impressed checkering executed in a point pattern. It’s confgured in the popular classic style, with no high comb or shadow-line cheekpiece.

Te action is free-foated from the fore-end to the barrel/receiver

juncture with a ft around the action so close you would think they poured the stock material around this part of the gun. Te stock has the typical Savage pistol grip cap, sling swivels for feld use and a plastic buttplate.

Te bottom metal is actually metal, although the trigger guard is an integral, molded-in piece. Te fve-round magazine slides into the action with the help of a guiding strip of metal attached to the action, with the female part attached to the maga-zine allowing a quick and easy way of inserting or removing a magazine. Te magazine is metal for durability while the insert is plastic. Feeding is smooth and positive.

To disassemble the rife, simply remove the twin stock screws located forward of the foorplate and trigger guard. Tis allows access for cleaning or to adjust the excellent AccuTrigger. Adjustments are easily accomplished,

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S

SAVAGE MODEL 93 FXPTYPE bolt-action rimfre

CALIBER .22 WMR

CAPACITY 5-round detachable box magazine

BARREL 21 in.

OVERALL LENGTH 39.5 in.

WEIGHT 6.5 lb. (with scope)

STOCK black synthetic

FINISH matte black

TRIGGER AccuTrigger adjustable

SIGHTS none; Bushnell 3-9x40 mounted and bore-sighted

PRICE $324

MANUFACTURER Savage Arms, SavagearmS.com

and the gun comes with a tool to get the trigger pull the way you want it.

According to the manual, if the spring projects downward past the trigger guard you have reached the minimum pull it will allow. Te specs say it can be adjusted down

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to 2.5 pounds, but on my sample I couldn’t get the trigger pull any lower than three pounds even. Tere was just a hint of take-up before the sear released.

Te action is well designed and assembled, with the barrel pinned to the receiver. Te barrel is 21 inches long with a slight taper from the receiver to the muzzle; the barrel and the receiver have a matte black fnish. Tere are no open sights or holes to


SAVAGE MODEL 93 FXP

.22 WMR BulletWeight (gr.)


StandardDeviation

Avg.Group (in.)

HORNADY V-MAX 30 2,180 28 0.63

CCI GAMEPOINT JSP 40 1,871 10 0.81

REMINGTON JHP 40 1,834 22 0.71

Notes: Accuracy results are averages of three three-shot groups at 50 yards from a sandbag rest. Velocities are averages of fve shots recorded on an Oehler Model 35P chronograph. Abbreviations: JHP, jacketed hollowpoint; JSP, jacketed softpoint

mount same, but as mentioned it does come with a Bushnell scope—mount-ed in what looks like a variation of the old Tasco rings popular years back. Tese ft into Weaver-type bases.

While it’s not a top of the line scope, it does feature coated lenses, a smoothly operating variable power ring and rubber-coated eyepiece. Certainly it’s a far cry from the junky old scope I had on my Marlin 39, an optic that gave me headaches while waiting and watching for groundhogs to emerge from their holes.

Te receiver is milled from a tube-like billet, again straightforward, time saving and economical to make. Cuts are made for the ejection port, bolt opening, gas relief holes on the front receiver bridge then drilled and tapped for scope bases. Te safety le-ver is at the rear; pull it back for Safe, push forward for Fire.

Te bolt can almost be called a “fat bolt” design. It is round except on the

bottom where it follows the inside of the receiver. Looking at the bolt face, you have the fring pin top dead center with the traditional dual facing extractors at three and nine o’clock for a sure purchase on the.22 WMR’s shallow rim. To remove the bolt, en-sure the rife is unloaded and pull the trigger as you draw it rearward. You’ll also need to pull the trigger while sliding it back in.

Savage says the scope comes bore-sighted, and while the elevation was good right out of the box, it was of to the right about four inches at 25 yards. Once on paper, I moved to 50 yards for accuracy testing, and all the ammo tested averaged under an inch at that distance. Te Hornady V-Max, with its 30-grain bullet, had one of the smallest groups and also the highest velocity.

Te Savage handled well and fed without problems, and the trigger was great. Te gun’s weight is just right for a walking varminter, and slung on my shoulder, I hardly knew it was there. Scope clarity was excellent up to about 8X and then deteriorated as I approached the 9X max.

And best of all, accuracy was per-fect for the small critters the rife and cartridge are suited for. I recommend it highly.

The rife feeds from a fve-round magazine with an integral release. It’s a smooth system, and feeding was fawless.

The 93 FXP features Savage’s excellent AccuTrigger and a mounted and bore-sighted Bushnell 3-9X scope—all for a suggested retail price of $324.

As befts a Savage, the rife is accurate. This 50-yard group, fred with 30-grain Hornady V-Max, measured 0.44 inch.


RIFLEREPORT

Well, yes, they are “better” in terms of dramatic efect and more immediate gratifcation, but this does not suggest the .375 is inadequate.

In this I am at least partly to blame. As other hunters have, and many more will, I lost the frst bufalo I ever shot at with a .375. For some years I questioned its adequacy, but I should have been questioning my own.

I made not one mistake but two: I didn’t hit the bull correctly, and I failed to follow up my errant shot. In those days, expanding bullets were still dis-trusted, compounding the error of a frst shot too far forward. So I was loaded with solids, and I can still see the broad bum of that bufalo disappearing into dense bamboo. I was “admiring” my shot—perhaps a more critical error than the frst.

It took years to recognize this, so I used larger cartridges, and of course they work. But that isn’t the question. Is the .375 adequate for bufalo? It was judged so a century ago, and bufalo haven’t gotten bigger or tougher. With the great bullets we now have, I suggest it is more adequate today and also more versatile and much easier to shoot well than larger and more powerful rounds.

Today I know an animal as large and powerful as a Cape bufalo is likely to be lost if you hit it poorly with the frst shot—no matter what you hit it with. A bufalo hit properly just once with a good bullet from a .375 will be quickly recovered, but on this animal, follow-up shots are important when possible, and they are easier to make with a .375 because of its shootability.

I have lost count of the African buf-falo I’ve taken, and I’ve hunted bufalo with a dozen calibers larger than .375 and a half-dozen smaller, and I’ve taken more with the .375 than anything else. Sure, I’ve fubbed some and done some tracking, but never, ever was it the fault of cartridge or bullet. Te .375 is plenty adequate, especially if you shoot straight and, if you can, keep shooting.

What do you think about minimum calibers? Send us your comments at [email protected].

Continued from page 72


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Campfre arguments about ideal cartridges for various game animals are fun. We

all have our favorites and can champion them endlessly, but in most applications there are more right choices than wrong ones. Given today’s wide spectrum of sporting cartridges, there are plenty of good options for almost any situation. And despite our strident arguments for our own pet cartridges, are there game animals out there that really know the diference between, say, a 6.5mm, a .270 or a 7mm?

Tere are, however, some key fric-tion points that raise the decibel level around the campfre. One is the use of .22 centerfres for deer-size game. I think proper deer cartridges start with the 6mms. Before you start howling—and reach for the keyboard to write a letter to the editor—please allow me to explain myself.

I have taken a number of white-tails with both the .223 and .22-250. I’ve never lost a deer shot with either cartridge, and I recall only one that required tracking. Once, in Sonora, my rife didn’t arrive and the only camp gun available was a worn CZ in .222 Rem. Te rife accounted for a 30-inch mule deer buck, down in its tracks.

Te .22 centerfres are not only ac-curate but also easy to shoot well. Years ago, using 55-grain bullets not designed for deer, I had no trouble. Today we have heavier and tougher .223-inch bullets designed specifcally for deer-size game, and these work even better.

So, then, why am I not in favor of the .22s for deer? Well, actually, I am—but only in the hands of experienced hunt-ers who not only are willing to pick their shots but also think picking the shot is

more important than the kind of deer they take home.

Te .22 centerfres are great tools for meat hunters. Most of my use of them on deer has been in situations where my intent was to harvest a doe, preferably with a head or neck shot. Te behind-the-shoulder lung shot is also deadly with fast .22s, but there’s a big diference between a tender doe or a young buck for the freezer and an old mossyhorn, and ranges must be close enough to

ensure ideal shot placement. Terefore, the .22 centerfres are poor tools for beginners, or for the deer hunter who would like to take a big buck if one is encountered—and wants to be able to take any reasonable shot.

Now you can start writing letters.Another major friction point sur-

rounds a sensible minimum caliber for elk. Because of popularity and legend, the specifc argument often centers on the .270 Win. We all know many elk are taken with .243s and .25s, but I suspect most folks who use such cartridges un-derstand they’re a bit light. Tis makes them careful, and in many cases it’s the same as our whitetail discussion.

Tere’s a big diference between se-lecting a fat cow for meat and going out hoping to take a monstrous bull. I think elk are especially tough animals, har-dier than the much larger moose. Given a choice, I’d bypass the 6.5s, .270s and 7mms altogether. I think ideal choices for elk hunting start at .30 caliber and go up to the .33s and .35s.

Tis is not because of lack of experi-

ence or a bad experience. I am not an every-year elk hunter, but I took my frst bull in 1972 and have killed perhaps 20 since. I’ve never lost an elk, and I don’t recall having to track one. I haven’t used the .270 much, but it did account for the longest shot I’ve made on an elk, just over 400 yards. Shot through the heart with a 150-grain Partition, the bull went over backwards and never moved.

So why not the .270? Once more, I am not diametrically opposed. In careful

hands it will do the job, especially with the great bullets we have today. I would much rather see a hunter use a .270 (or 6.5mm or 7mm) than a larger cartridge that he or she is afraid of. However, based on the size and toughness of the animal and the difculty of getting a shot at a good bull, I think more bullet weight and frontal area are called for.

Te .308 Win. and .30-06 are good starting points, and the fast .30s ofer more ranging ability. Use 180-grain bullets across the board and you can’t go wrong. However, provided you can handle them, I continue to believe—as did Elmer Keith—that the .33s ofer the fnest elk medicine.

On my last friction point my position is actually opposite to the frst two. Here’s a question I see frequently: Is the .375 adequate for bufalo? In large part this has been caused by the amazing resurgence and proliferation of .416 and similar “over .40” cartridges. Since they exist they must be better, right?


THE LAST WORDby Craig Boddington

This Means War!

Continued on page 71

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