Geoff is a shooting and reloading enthusiast who would rather be at the range, but is content to write about it. He is a member of Waiuku Pistol Club, and shoots rifle, pistol and shotgun in various disciplines, occasionally, managing to get out for a hunt.
If you’re heading down to the range to do a bit of practice or to shoot some really tight groups, you’re going to need something to aim at. Most ranges will have posts that you can staple targets to, but the targets themselves – where do you get them?
This can depend on what kind of shooting you want to do.
Low-magnification shooting
When shooting milsurp rifles without optics or with low-magnification scopes, it can be annoying heading downrange all the time to check where you’re landing. A good solution to this is the Shoot-N-C target from Birchwood Casey.
It’s a black target which comes in various sizes, and reveals a high-viz yellow impact mark when you strike it with a bullet. Easily visible at 50 yards, and pretty visible at 100 yards. At the longer ranges, you can get a pretty good idea of your shot placement through your scope, without needing a spotting scope.
Precision shooting
When it comes to having the exact target for the shooting that I want to do, having custom targets is great. I like using this website to create my own targets in PDF form, and then print them off in A3 size for the range.
They’re also great for air rifle targets at home, or whatever the case may be. You can do all sorts of customisation to get the ideal size of bull, number of rings etc. I like setting mine up as a 1 inch bull with 1 inch rings – this makes it easy to estimate MOA at a glance, before I get the calipers out.
No time to waste
If you’re after a target and don’t care what it is, or don’t have time to make your own, you can print off free targets from many corners of the web.
A lot of scope, ammo and rifle manufacturers will have printable targets on their websites. Otherwise, search for “print your own rifle targets” and you’re bound to come across some easy-to-use websites with stacks to choose from.
There are gun lovers all over New Zealand, and chances are you’re going to want to trade with them at some point. Whether it’s purchasing from a small engineering shop or gun importer on a different island, or buying a second-hand rifle off trademe, there’s always going to be an occasion when you need to buy something that your average courier doesn’t like shipping.
Rifles not powder
No, I’m not talking about explosives like powder or primers. Hazardous goods is a whole other story, and realistically you are better off going to your local retailer 9 times out of 10.
No, I’m talking about rifles and their parts. Accessories aren’t a problem, and usually parts like triggers or suppressors aren’t an issue. It’s the barrelled action that causes consternation.
It used to be that you could get your local Hunting & Fishing to transfer a rifle to the buyer’s local branch for a fee, but they no longer do this.
Who to choose
The only courier I have found that will consistently deliver rifles and parts is Fastway Couriers. The last time I had a rifle shipped with them it cost $27. If you have the bolt shipped separately, it will cost more. And of course there will be differences depending on the location of buyer and seller. I guess you could figure on spending between $25 and $50.
I have tried other couriers as well, but none have been as reliable and easy to deal with. Most of them just won’t ship your gun for you. I’m not paid by anyone to promote Fastway, just hoping to share the benefit of my experience.
Aside from that, I would always recommend getting a gun shipped signature only. I would also get it sent to your work in a nondescript box, so that you can be 100% sure it won’t be left lying around in your driveway.
Everybody has their personal references when it comes to cleaning their rifles. From the guys who wipe down with an oily rag to those that give their gun a thorough birthday every time it sees fresh air, everyone got the “perfect” cleaning method.
I’ll be honest. The way I clean my guns may not suit you, or it could be just what you like. So why bother going through the whole process? There are plenty of books, product manuals and nooks of the internet that will give you all the info you need to clean a weapon. And they’ll likely all be different. If you’re starting out in shooting, read a few of these, hop on the online forums and figure out your own path.
So, instead of running you through cleaning from start to finish (which you have your own ideas on), I’ll go over a few quick tips which you may not have encountered.
3 quick tips for cleaning your rifle faster
1. Roll-your-own
It’s annoying isn’t it? You run a patch through your bore and it comes out filthy, but only a tiny bit of it. So you end up going through a bunchy of patches (and time) trying to get as much gunk out of your rifle as possible.
Well, instead of threading your patch through, you can either use circular patches to make a swab (not my favourite – too much effort), or roll your patch around a Parker Hale style jag. Instead of having only the front tip of your cloth/jag picking up dirt, you create a cylinder that exposes the sides of the jag to the barrel. This way you use almost the entire patch, instead of about a quarter of it.
Here’s a great blog post on brush/jag types and different solvents. If you’re starting out and figuring your way around cleaning a rifle, it’s a good place to start from.
2. Go both ways
A lot of people will tell you to never run a brush both ways through the barrel. Why? Because they don’t want to damage the crisp edge of the crown – the very last surface contact a projectile has with your rifle’s barrel. While there is some merit to this thinking, the effects of a brass/bronze brush, or even a nylon brush, on hammer forged steel should be minimal.
I’m not as gung-ho about this as some people who will vigorously scrub with the brush completely exiting the bore, but I will happily pull my brush backwards and forwards through the barrel, without pushing the entire brush through. It just makes me feel better. I give the whole barrel a thorough going over and push the brush out at the end and remove the brush before pulling the rod back through.
And no, never clean from the muzzle end. There are too many reasons why you shouldn’t and none why you should. Aside from protecting the crown, you don’t want to push all the junk back into your action and magazine.
However, your solvent should be doing most of the work when it comes to cleaning, so you should only really be brushing if you are dealing with a heavily fouled barrel.
3. Leave it wet
Yup, that solvent should do most of the job. So why not leave it working? Once you’ve got your barrel to an acceptable level, I like to run another wet patch through.
For a rifle I shoot fairly regularly, I will run a patch of Hoppe No. 9 through and let the solvent work away. Before shooting I’ll put a dry patch through and be surprised (every time) at how much carbon and copper had been too stuck in there to come out the first time.
If I’m cleaning a rifle that will likely go back in the safe for a few months, the last patch I’ll run through will be soaked in lubricating oil. Not because I’m trying to lube anything up, but because it has a high viscosity and likes to cling to the inside of the barrel, instead of running out like regular oil. This will be a protective layer that will inhibit any rust formation. A rifle that is being stored in the safe for that long usually gets a wipe down all over the metal and wood with an oily rag, to keep everything from getting that thin layer of red that likes to pop up in safes in Auckland’s muggy climate.
Hope that’s clear as mud! Leave your own cleaning tips in the comments below.
Firstly, buying this scope was a mistake. But it’s a mistake I’m very glad I made. I intended to buy the adjustable objective version of the Vortex Diamondback 4-12 x 40 BDC, but ended up with the fixed-parallax type. I couldn’t return to the store and swap it, because I had just left the country where I purchased it.
With the AO version, my idea was to use it at its maximum zoom at a 25 yard range on a rimfire target rifle. However, without that AO bell, the scope just won’t focus at 25 yards at any magnification greater than 8 x or 9 x. So, I reluctantly told my wife we’d need to take this brand new scope off her rimfire rifle and put it on my 6.5 x 55 that was in need of some glass. This is the point where I’m glad this happened.
The technical specs
The parallax setting on this scope is 100 yards – perfect for getting sighted in at the range, and more than adequate for the average hunting shot in the New Zealand bush. The adjustments go out 60 MOA in elevation and windage. With my 6.5 x 55 it was pretty much bang-on at 100 yards, maybe a total of 7 clicks left and a few up or down, I can’t remember. If you’re aiming to shoot long distance (600 – 1000 yards) you’re probably going to want to mount this on a 20 MOA rail.
The Bullet Drop Compensation (BDC) points are graduated in MOA, and so is your turret adjustment. How many times have you bought a mildot scope and found out later it has MOA turrets? So, this is nice to know right off the bat.
The turret markings are easy to see from behind the gun.
The turrets are capped and resettable. This is nice, as now that I have my zero I can use the windage or elevation adjustments to my heart’s content without worrying about getting my 100 yard zero perfect again. The caps are nice and low and are easy to grip. Be careful when resetting the zero that you don’t damage the turrets, as I found them to be very tight and had to hold them in place with vice grips while I used a screwdriver to loosen the turret. Any extra pressure while doing this and you could have tool marks on your nice new scope. I covered the surface of my grips with masking tape to prevent teeth marks.
You have a total of 5 points of vertical aim, including the crosshairs and the top of the post. You also have 3 hash marks either side of the crosshairs horizontally, as well as the post edges. How to use the BDC? Check out this video from Vortex.
Quality and ease-of-use
The scope has the usual things that manufacturers claim, such as fog-proof, shock-proof and weather-proof everything. Except, this scope really does. I have mounted two scopes on this rifle – the other I won’t name. The unnamed piece-of-junk was used on one range trip for about 3 hours. Yes, there was wind, rain and sun. When I took it off to mount the Diamondback I noticed that the unnamed scope’s exterior coating was peeling off. After one trip!
Subjected to the same conditions, the Vortex scope still looks brand new. That’s probably why they provide an unlimited, unconditional warranty. Which, to be honest, is half the reason I bought it – that shows confidence!
The clarity was exceptional, and the lense coating wasn’t just for show. I had plenty of light, no glare and just a great shooting experience. The scope also features a fast focus adjustable eye-piece with a decent amount of range on it. This was perfect for when different shooters wanted to try it out. Also, the markings on the turret are easy to see without changing your shooting position much – which is not something I can say for every scope in my safe.
Adjustments on the range are done with ease.
Quality of manufacture is something that really shows when you shoot at an outdoor range. It’s also something that greatly determines how long a scope will last and whether you’ll enjoy shooting with it or not. In my humble opinion, the Vortex range is excellent. They are also reasonably priced. In the USA (where I bought mine) they were very affordable. In NZ, they are probably middle of the road. Either way, still worth it for the high-quality optic you’ll be getting. I would definitely purchase another scope from their range.
You also get some handy extras with your scope. There are the standard removable lense caps and a *really nice* cleaning cloth. I would suggest making use of Vortex’s incredibly intricate Long Range Ballistics Calculator. Not only will you be able to figure out your elevation and windage hold, but you’ll probably convince yourself to buy some new rifle while you check out all the ballistics tables you can produce for just about every calibre known to man.
You know the old addage of spend as much on your glass as you do on your rifle? Well, this is one scope that breaks that rule. I would happily mount Vortex optics on rifles that would generally be seen toting the latest Swarovski or Leupold glass.
Land in New Zealand is at a premium, especially in Auckland. Because of this and the high density of our cities, finding a place where you can comfortably shoot a centrefire rifle has become quite a challenge. Living in the suburbs, I get to shoot rimfire at the local range, and even pistol if the mood strikes me, but there aren’t any convenient locations to shoot high-powered rifles within less than a 45-minute drive.
When I do go to the range, I like to take a few rifles and boxes of ammo and really make a day of it. One of the best ranges for this is the NZDA range in Taupo.
My wife getting ready for a day of shooting at the Taupo Deerstalkers range.
Shooting in Taupo
From Auckland it’s about a two and a half hour drive to Taupo’s NZDA range. Given that you’re loaded up with firearms and ammunition, you can’t exactly stop and sight-see, so it’s pretty much straight driving.
Once you arrive at the range there’s a stainless steel honesty box attached to the fence, in which you drop the princely sum of $2 per shooter. Compared to Auckland ranges which will charge you between $15 and $30 per person, this is where you make up your petrol money.
There are a few clubs that operate from the same location, and they have some shorter ranges and other facilities. However, as a non-member, you have access to the open air 100m range. There are markers so you can set your target at different distances. For example, the black powder guys I was shooting next to last time set theirs at 25m, while I used my scoped hunting rifle at 100m. The guys sighting in their 7mm-08 to my right started at 25m and worked their way back to 100m.
The best part about shooting here is that you have the freedom to go up and check your target as often as you like or as little as you like, provided the range is clear and you aren’t bugging the other shooters. This is in contrast to going to a range where a called shoot is taking place and you have to wait for guys to empty three mags before you can check your 5-shot group.
Of course, how much you enjoy the range will probably depend on how busy it is, but if you use your head, you can plan it so there aren’t many people around. Worst comes to worst, you may have to just wait your turn. Generally speaking if you shoot semi-regularly in the North Island, you start bumping into the same people when you go out, and they’re a pretty decent bunch.
All-in-all you can while away a good amount of time and ammo at the Taupo Deerstalkers range at a very low cost and with very little interference. The drive isn’t too bad, and if you’re shooting with a mate, you can divvy up the driving to break it up a bit. The ability to take your own target and check it at will ranks highly in my books. The range is relatively sheltered from cross-wind too, so provided the weather plays its part – you’re in for a good day.
Any smallbore range across New Zealand will have a few CZ 452 magazines floating around. Whether they’re attached to a Brno Model 2 or Norinco JW-15, these magazines hold up to thousands and thousands of rounds being put through them. Occasionally – you might even think about cleaning them.
How often to clean your CZ 452 magazine
The spring-loaded button needs to be handled with care.
Simply put, not that often. There’s lots of discussion around how often you should clean a rimfire rifle. Some like to clean after every trip to the range, but I personally prefer not to clean that often.
I find that that once a rimfire barrel has been fouled it shoots more consistently. That’s my experience anyway. Cleaning every trip undoes this fouling and means wasting ammo before every shoot getting it fouled again. So, when do I clean? When accuracy drops off, or when feeding becomes slightly tougher. Usually, the latter strikes first.
I take the same approach to my magazines. I clean when feeding becomes an issue. I usually use multiple magazines and consequently they don’t get fouled that quickly. If I haven’t had any issues by the time I give my rifle a birthday, then they get a clean too. Might as well.
Disassembly and reassembly of the magazine
Pulling apart the CZ 452 magazine is very easy. They’re well made and there are no sharp parts or difficult processes involved.
At the base of the magazine there is a small dimple. Inside here is a spring loaded button. Press is down with a pen, nail or punch and slowly slide the base off the magazine. I say slowly because if you’re not careful, the spring will shoot that little steel button out. Good luck finding that again.
To get the spring and button out, cover them with your thumb while you slide the magazine floor off, and slowly release them into your hand. Next, pull the main magazine spring and the follower out. Take note of which way the follower is facing – it needs to go back the same way.
Cleaning is simply a matter of wiping everything down. You can dowse the spring and follower in Hoppes No. 9 if you like. A quick squirt of gun oil once everything is clean and dry isn’t the worst idea either.
Assembly is pretty easy, it’s the exact opposite. Again, be careful you don’t lose the spring or steel button.
Any questions? Post a comment.
Because CZ and Norinco mags are quite common, I marked mine with my wife’s red nail polish to make them easily identifiable.
