Pachmayr Dominators on Steel and Hunting

xphunter

Handloader
Sep 15, 2005
1,042
1,780
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On Friday I went out to Mac's Gunworks to zero and get some drops out to 500 yards with my two Pachmayr Dominator's. These both have long eye pistol scopes on them with external turrets. It is very difficult to shoot accurately at distance with just holding over.
With a 1911 frame and trigger, and not being able to use a bi-pod, makes the Dominator system a little more challenging to use. I used a front rest and a Holland's small field bag under the pistol grip.
The Dominator on the left is a 6.5 Creedmoor with a 15" barrel. Scope is the Leupold 2.5-8 EER. The drops on the grip are for my 140 A-Max load, which I did not use yesterday.
The one on the right is a 25 Creedmoor, and it has a 14" barrel and a Harrel brake. The barrel is heavier also. Once new trigger/hammer parts were put in, the trigger pull is great for a 1911.
Initially, the trigger pull was quite heavy, and being the trigger snob that I am, I didn't like it-Now I love it!
It shoots the .257 110 grain Nosler Accubonds at 2726 fps.
I like the classic looks of the 6.5, but the 25 has become my favorite.
This is the first time I have used the new Weaver 2-6 pistol scope.
You can zero these turrets easily, and so far the adjustment have been spot on to meet me needs.
I like the eye relief better on the Weaver than the Leupold on the Dominator at least.
I knew the velocity with the 110's, so I stated with the 25 Creed.
I had to re-zero at 100 yards, since I had put a new scope on it.
I got lucky, and within 3-shots I was off to shooting steel.
I started at 300 yards on a 10" piece of steel, and I didn't hold or dial for wind. I shot right.
Either the wind was doing something weird then or I pushed the shot right with some bad fundamentals. I am not really sure.
With all the further shots, from that time forward, I had to deal with an ever increasing quartering tail wind to full value wind from right to left.
I was just checking to make sure my drops were solid.
300 yards

Then, I jumped out to 500 yards.
You don't have to have a lot of magnification to connect at distances further than 500 yards.
If I had my druthers though, I would like to have more than 6x, but I was happy with the shots at 500.
Took some pics, videos, and painted targets.
The wind continued to get faster with some gusting-Notice the swinging steel targets as an indicator!
Time to shoot the 6.5 Creed Dominator.
I tried some Hornady factory ammo that used the 120 grain GMX bullet that I traded for during WY-SHOT.

After a 100 yards zero, I went to the 10 inch plate at 300 yards, and kept subtracting my guesstimate on the velocity until the drops got close.Then, I went to 500 yards where there is a large target, so I could get my wind figured out and it be able to see if my vertical was close. I had to drop my MV more than I thought I would. Notice the swinging plates at 300 and 400 yards.
I shot at 300, 500, and then back to 400 yards
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The factory ammo shot pretty good.

When antelope season came around, the 25 Creed Dominator took care of this doe quickly.
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I was able to spend the first Saturday in October, hunting for antelope. I didn’t find any bucks I was looking for, so I took this doe in the afternoon.
Loving my BCG Dominator in 25 Creedmoor! 41.5 grains H-4350, Fed 210M primers, using the 110 AB’s for a muzzle velocity of 2726 fps.
It was a quartering shot at 227 yards, and you can see the impact point in the picture.
This customized 14" Dominator shoots so good. I am so pleased with the speed and accuracy of this Dominator.
This platform is quite a bit harder to shoot accurately compared to a XP-100, but every since Bob Milek wrote about these babies back in the 80's, I have always wanted one.

Because of the excessive time I spent trying to get my cow tag filled, I didn't even hunt for a muley buck. Dan and I went up to a favorite little spot outside of Story, WY to get some whitetail hunting in before the season ended. On the 29th of November I was able to get two tags filled, but Dan came up empty. On the following day, Dan shot a small buck and a doe.
We both brought two handguns a piece. We hunted the morning with nothing. We started hunting again after lunch, and we could tell that the deer were out and moving. We parted ways again and while I was slowly making my way to the place to where I would position myself for the afternoon, I saw movement through the high grass. I was able to take a hurried shot at short range from the double kneeling position. She went down so fast at the shot, that when I saw another deer run into cover, I questioned myself as to whether I had missed, but it didn’t make sense because this other one looked smaller. I walked to the place where I shot and there was the first doe was dead on the spot.
[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

I was using some 6.5 Creedmoor Hornady 120 grain GMX ammunition. After taking some pictures, and getting ready to gut her, I noticed out of my peripheral vision movement, it was another deer in the trees. It ended up being the yearling that had runoff to begin with. One more shot, and then I had the second one down. This doe, and the yearling are pictured where they laid.
[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

I had the intention to shoot the first one of the two tags I had with my 6.5 Creedmoor Pachmayr Dominator (the one pictured), and hopefully the second one with my 25 Creedmoor Dominator.
I never had time to even go get the other Dominator, as this yearling came back, and I was kind of hidden by a wood pile and they ultimately died about 40 yards from each other. Great time with a good friend.
Sometimes when things happen, they happen quickly.
These two doe kills were less than 50 yards from where I shot my doe last year, while slowly making my way to sit against a tree for an afternoon hunt.
[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

To date I have killed five does and one buck in this opening since I started hunting here...You could say it is a deer honey-hole
 
Wow! One would have to make a determined effort not to like that! Great videos showing the potential of the workmanship. Excellent!(y)
 
Old School Specialty Pistols...Since you guys are at least a little bit interested:)
These have been customized.
 
That is just flat cool. That is a beautiful buck at some pretty significant distance.(y)
 
That is just flat cool. That is a beautiful buck at some pretty significant distance.(y)
I was pleased, as it was a quick shot, from the double kneeling position using the Bog Gear.
The Dominator platform is much harder to shoot, that a specialty pistol like a Remington XP-100.
It has the stability or lack of it closer to a revolver, but with a flat trajectory of a rifle round.
 
Very interesting comments which I've enjoyed. I own a Competitor Arms Single shot specialty handgun in 30.06 with an extra 7MM--08 Barrel. It's got a cannon style breech (You turn the breech for open and closing) 15 inch barrel with a muzzle brake (definitely needed) wearing a Burris 2X7 Mid Barrel Scope. This particular gun shoots 1 1/2 inches with 165 grain bullets at 100 yards. The nice thing is Barrel switch is very easy and basically any caliber can be fired. It's taken a number of deer and rings steel quite nicely out to 300 yards so far. Competitor arms has since closed its doors and its a shame as the gun is quite an interesting and accurate piece.
 
That is certainly a neat picture. The young partner is sure proud to be holding your handgun.(y)
The man in the picture is not me, but a man who had a cow tag...High fence operation.
He was in our area, and he asked me to bring my MOA with me. I asked if it was okay if I brought my son with me? Sure!
Erik was 8 or 9 at the time. Back up several months previous and he hit a silhouette ram 15 times in a row with that MOA at 550 yards, when shooting from the bench. This man had heard about it, and he wanted Erik to shoot the cow elk. Erik was stunned.
Here was Erik's shooting position.
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The shot was right at 100 yards, and the 120 grain NBT right behind the shoulder put her down quickly-One and done.
The MOA had the 14" 260 Remington barrel on it.
I took this picture after the cow was down, which most of you had already assumed. Before the shot, I was right beside him.
I was beside him but he ran the MOA on his own
 
That is such a neat account of an event that must have made one young man very happy. And what a generous gesture that man made giving Erik the opportunity to tag the elk.
 
Great to see and hear from another Dominator enthusiast. I have one in 7-08 with a SSK brake permanently mounted to a Colt Stainless 1911 (Cerakote Elite Blackout) that I have spent some time on the range with. It also wears a nice Leupold 2.5 - 8. It propels 140 BTs at 2600 fps and off a rest I can put 3 shots into 1.5" at 200 yards. I adjusted the trigger so it breaks at 1.5 lbs, which helps a lot. Wish there was a holster maker that could put together a nice chest rig for it! It's with my Anschutz Exemplar 22 LR.

20220725_170626 Dominator and Exemplar.jpg
 
Got to love the specialty pistols. The Dominator was one I looked at hard till a TC contender came available at a local shop. I have .22lr, 7X30 Waters and .222 Rem barrels for mine and have killed my share of deer and groundhogs with it.
I love seeing your son shooting yours.
 
Great to see and hear from another Dominator enthusiast. I have one in 7-08 with a SSK brake permanently mounted to a Colt Stainless 1911 (Cerakote Elite Blackout) that I have spent some time on the range with. It also wears a nice Leupold 2.5 - 8. It propels 140 BTs at 2600 fps and off a rest I can put 3 shots into 1.5" at 200 yards. I adjusted the trigger so it breaks at 1.5 lbs, which helps a lot. Wish there was a holster maker that could put together a nice chest rig for it! It's with my Anschutz Exemplar 22 LR.

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Very Cool Indeed!
 
Got to love the specialty pistols. The Dominator was one I looked at hard till a TC contender came available at a local shop. I have .22lr, 7X30 Waters and .222 Rem barrels for mine and have killed my share of deer and groundhogs with it.
I love seeing your son shooting yours.
Glad to meet another specialty pistol shooter/hunter!
A 10” 222 was my first Contender barrel back in the day.
 
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