DrMike
Ballistician
- Nov 8, 2006
- 36,922
- 5,112
I've been able to walk without a cane for about two weeks now. That means that I get a tad antsy at times and believe I should be shooting (or something). Moreover, the pain has been manageable for the past couple of days. I did preach without being seated on Sunday, and it hurt pretty badly by evening. However, Monday was relatively pain free and Tuesday was so free of pain that I questioned whether I might be dead or something since the knees were not hurting. (A dear lady from Barbados used to say to me, "Pastor, if it don't hurt, it don't work.") Since I was walking and going up and down stairs I knew that things were working; but sans pain, I was disoriented. I didn't want to waste the newfound freedom, so I seated myself at the bench on Monday and loaded up some rounds to pop off. Since the boys in the back were wondering if I was ever going to return the final rifle that I had, it was a good excuse to get to work.
Leaving home in the dark (at 8:15), I took several rifles to the range with me this morning. I knew it wouldn't be light enough to shoot for groups until at least nine, so I knew I would have time to get set up. The temperature was mild, but there was plenty of snow cover, so I anticipated that I would have the range to myself. I saw a cow and calf moose as I entered into the compound. As I was setting up, I noticed that numerous deer had traversed the range during the past several days. They had climbed the berms to graze on the grasses buried beneath the snow. That is always a pleasant knowledge that I am sharing with numerous animals, even when I don't necessarily see them. At 9 a.m., the temperature was -1 C. It was drop to -4.5 C by noon, and then rise to +4 by two in the afternoon. There was not a breeze for the entire day. It was perfect for shooting.
Here's a look at the rifles I had racked.
Yep! Only one would be for a client. They rest belong to me; and they needed to be shot. The shop rifle shoots exceptionally well. The right group and the left group were from this particular rifle. The customer requested 180 grain Berger VLDs, and this load was charged with H4831SC. The four-shot group on the right had one shot pulled. I called it, and the next three settled in quite nicely.
This is the rifle, built on a Defiance action, carbon fibre barrel and topped with a Nightforce 5.5-22X56 NXS scope.
The rifle is a pleasure to shoot. The boys in the back do build a nice rifle; and the rifles generally shoot quite well. I did another set of loads with this rifle, built with IMR7828SSC, and it shot just as well as the first set of loads. Here is a sample of that set of loads.
I did have a few of my own rifles, as well. For instance, I took by 7X57 topped with a 3-9X42 Kahles. This is a reasonably new rifle that I'm still working with.
The rifle has potential. I worked up a load built around 140 grain Partitions, but it didn't care for that particular load. However, when I fed it 120 grain Ballistic Tips, it showed some promise. The picture is not very good, but the group is reasonably satisfying (0.33 inches). I'll finish all measurements tomorrow. All the loads had very low standard deviations, giving me reason to believe that playing with seating depth will turn these pumpkins into coaches fit for a queen.
I also had my .284 Win along with me. It is topped with a Leupold VX6 3-18X44.
One group in particular has real promise. A load built around 140 grain E-Tips gave me a 0.71 inch grouping. Again, with three different load spectrums, all delivered excellent ballistic data, though the groups were not all that I wanted. Here is the 140 E-Tip load, however.
Lastly, I had my own 7WSM along for the ride. It is an old favourite, topped with a 2.5-10X42 Leica. It doesn't get shot nearly enough.
It does shoot quite well on occasion. I was working on a new load with 140 grain E-Tips. The right hand group gives an idea of what this bullet looks like it will do. That is a 0.53 inch group, which is promising.
On the whole, a satisfying day. Okay, it can snow again tonight. I have television editing to do for the next two days.
Leaving home in the dark (at 8:15), I took several rifles to the range with me this morning. I knew it wouldn't be light enough to shoot for groups until at least nine, so I knew I would have time to get set up. The temperature was mild, but there was plenty of snow cover, so I anticipated that I would have the range to myself. I saw a cow and calf moose as I entered into the compound. As I was setting up, I noticed that numerous deer had traversed the range during the past several days. They had climbed the berms to graze on the grasses buried beneath the snow. That is always a pleasant knowledge that I am sharing with numerous animals, even when I don't necessarily see them. At 9 a.m., the temperature was -1 C. It was drop to -4.5 C by noon, and then rise to +4 by two in the afternoon. There was not a breeze for the entire day. It was perfect for shooting.
Here's a look at the rifles I had racked.
Yep! Only one would be for a client. They rest belong to me; and they needed to be shot. The shop rifle shoots exceptionally well. The right group and the left group were from this particular rifle. The customer requested 180 grain Berger VLDs, and this load was charged with H4831SC. The four-shot group on the right had one shot pulled. I called it, and the next three settled in quite nicely.
This is the rifle, built on a Defiance action, carbon fibre barrel and topped with a Nightforce 5.5-22X56 NXS scope.
The rifle is a pleasure to shoot. The boys in the back do build a nice rifle; and the rifles generally shoot quite well. I did another set of loads with this rifle, built with IMR7828SSC, and it shot just as well as the first set of loads. Here is a sample of that set of loads.
I did have a few of my own rifles, as well. For instance, I took by 7X57 topped with a 3-9X42 Kahles. This is a reasonably new rifle that I'm still working with.
The rifle has potential. I worked up a load built around 140 grain Partitions, but it didn't care for that particular load. However, when I fed it 120 grain Ballistic Tips, it showed some promise. The picture is not very good, but the group is reasonably satisfying (0.33 inches). I'll finish all measurements tomorrow. All the loads had very low standard deviations, giving me reason to believe that playing with seating depth will turn these pumpkins into coaches fit for a queen.
I also had my .284 Win along with me. It is topped with a Leupold VX6 3-18X44.
One group in particular has real promise. A load built around 140 grain E-Tips gave me a 0.71 inch grouping. Again, with three different load spectrums, all delivered excellent ballistic data, though the groups were not all that I wanted. Here is the 140 E-Tip load, however.
Lastly, I had my own 7WSM along for the ride. It is an old favourite, topped with a 2.5-10X42 Leica. It doesn't get shot nearly enough.
It does shoot quite well on occasion. I was working on a new load with 140 grain E-Tips. The right hand group gives an idea of what this bullet looks like it will do. That is a 0.53 inch group, which is promising.
On the whole, a satisfying day. Okay, it can snow again tonight. I have television editing to do for the next two days.
