Incredible article seen in 6mmBR.com

Goofycat, hate to hear that, I have tried out a few of the
$10 pasture ranges open to the public. Not a pleasant or
safe experience and will not go there again. I am fortunate
enough to have private land to shoot on and appreciate
every shot on it.
 
I'm no Don Geraci, Boyer or Tubb---not even close---but since I am only an occasional shooter, the article brought to my attention things I had either forgotten or not considered.
If you're referring to David Tubb, he's at the top of the high power match rifle game amongst a cluster of others who, together, have won more matches and set more records than any other group of five people. Mid Tompkins, his wife Nancy Gallagher, their daughters Sherri and Michelle make up the rest of this top-notch cluster.

Oh, almost forgot.... they all shoot full length resized fired cases with full bushing dies; been doing it for decades. I've known 'em all for years and shot a lot of matches with them. Even out scored them once in a (great) while.
 
Bart, I'm 74 and still feel I know nothing about the ins and outs of reloading. I feel honored to fantasize about just hanging around at a range where guys like you shoot...and do nothing but ask questions, hoping I wouldn't get kicked out for being a pest. While you folks are shooting in the 1s, 2s and 3s, I'm happy to shoot anywhere from the 5s to MOA.

I was lucky enough to learn basic reloading by some oldtimers at the old club I used to belong to. I remember that before I bought my first centerfire rifle, I had asked which caliber rifle I should look for to begin to learn the reloading art. Without hesitation, they all chimed in with ".222." I had never heard of the caliber, but I read about it and decided that they were right. The .223 had not yet become so popular, and the 6PPC was beyond my knowledge or reloading skills at the time.

I then bought a slightly used Remington 40XBBR with a 20" barrel and around a 12" length of pull from a guy from New Braunfels, Texas, named Bob Pease.I talked to Bob on the phone, thought he sounded honest, and bought the rifle sight-unseen. It was a lovely work of art, and I spent much time going back and forth to the range, asking questions as they popped up in my head, and finally entered a couple of club matches. It was a great time in my life, and I will always be indebted to the guys who so unselfishly guided me through the reloading process and gave me things to read. "Precision Shooting" was the first publication I subscribed to, other than "Shooting Times" and maybe "Guns & Ammo."

I purchased a .20 VarTarg about three years ago from Cooper in Montana and am having a lot of fun with that little caliber. It's difficult to choose between the VT and the old .222, but it's always nice to have choices like those. Naturally, these aren't long-range calibers, but still a lot of fun for the 250 yard shots.
 
Bart, I'm 74 and still feel I know nothing about the ins and outs of reloading. I feel honored to fantasize about just hanging around at a range where guys like you shoot...and do nothing but ask questions, hoping I wouldn't get kicked out for being a pest. While you folks are shooting in the 1s, 2s and 3s, I'm happy to shoot anywhere from the 5s to MOA.
Thanks for your comments. But us high power competitors don't shoot in the 1's, 2's and 3's during matches. We need rifles that'll shoot that well but there's no way we (nor anybody else) can shoot under the 3's hand holding a rifle against our shoulder with no support except our elbows on the ground while in prone.

Consider the following about the accuracy we shoot in matches with rifle and ammo that when fired from a machine rest will indeed shoot in the 3's or better at 200 yards, 5's or better at 600 and 7's or better at 1000. First off, we don't hold perfectly still. Chatting with other top long range shooters about the area their sights move about the target, they'll hold about 1/2 to 3/4ths MOA; in calm winds. They try to break shots inside 1/2 MOA about the target center. Then there's the non-repeatability of their position. Reloading after each shot means every part of your body has to go back into the exact same position for each shot. Otherwise, the recoil while the bullet's going down the barrel will move the bore axis around differently. Each shot leaves at a slightly different place 'cause we ain't perfect in positioning ourselves. And this adds 1/8 to 3/8 MOA to your holding area. Along comes the wind that we try to judge how much to correct for, make the correction on the sights then get back into position to shoot again. Even the best wind dopers ain't perfect so this adds another 1/4 to 1/2 MOA to the group on paper.

Totalling all this stuff up means that whatever the rifle and its ammo alone performs at long range, the shooter and the elements add another MOA or more to the group. So the best of us end up shooting about 1.6 MOA on paper at long range on a good day which will win most of the matches. When all goes perfect, we'll end up with all shots inside 1 MOA on paper and set a record putting all 19 shots in the 6 inch X ring at 600 yards. Or 19 shots in the 10 inch X ring at 1000. 1 shot barely leaked out in each discipline.

And from sitting and standing positions, it gets worse. In standing, the best of 'em hold about 3 to 4 MOA and 2 to 3 MOA in sitting.
 
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eddybo, on our WY hunt together, I enjoyed getting to know Tom who speaks highly of your knowledge and generosity.

Glad to hear Ol Tom got a good buck as did you. I understand yall had a great trip.

BTW Tom spoke highly of you also.
 
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