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100 yard shooting with Husqvarna M38

The benefits of shooting with your significant other

Geoff Leave a comment

There are a lot of guys who go out hunting or shooting to escape everyday life, and for some this means domestic bliss too. And fair enough. Everybody needs some downtime –  a hobby or pursuit where they can unwind. However, there are also distinct advantages to shooting with your significant other, whether you’re a man or woman. And I said shooting with. Not shooting.

Learn new skills

I go out shooting with my wife a fair bit. And since she has taken up shooting sports we have tried out several clubs and different guns, and we’ve both tried things we wouldn’t have otherwise. We’ve also both found different things that we are good at.

Where I like to technically analyse every part of my shoot, from my reloaded ammo to the wind dope and projectile weight, my wife is very good at reactionary shooting – such as trap shooting. Which, if I’m honest, I’m hopeless at. With a bit of practice, I’m sure I could get the hang of it, but it’s not for me.

Establish yourselves

Shooting is a great way to bond as a couple. I’m not about to give relationship advice on my firearms blog, but suffice it to say that picking up a hobby and spending time together certainly doesn’t hurt when it comes to getting to know each other a bit better.

My wife shooting her .22 at the NZDA Auckland 100 metre range.
My wife shooting her .22 at the NZDA Auckland 100 metre range.

Become competitive

Whether you like to compete against yourself, each other or other participants, shooting sports are competitive. And the great part is, you don’t need to be particularly athletic or gifted to be moderately competitive at a club level.

This is a great way to enjoy the thrill of and success of competition, and will enhance your enjoyment of your shooting. Get out and try local competitions and learn more about the kind of shooting you like. You’ll also meet some great people who have plenty of advice to give.

Spend more money

Having a buddy on the spotting scope or putting up targets is another advantage.
Having a buddy on the spotting scope or putting up targets is another advantage.

Let’s be honest, every time you try and justify the cost of some new rifle part or reloading accessory – the last one you’ll ever need, promise! – it doesn’t go down too well. I know people you hide their hobby expenditure from their partner, using cash jobs to pay for ammo and new toys.

If your husband or wife is just as into their shooting as you are, it’s easier for them to understand why that new shooting rest or a higher magnification scope is actually necessary.

Share the load

If you’re out hunting or setting up targets on the range, it’s great to have a buddy around to help lug things about or give their opinion when necessary. If you’re shooting partner is your spouse, well, you’ve pretty much always got someone you can count on to help you on the spotting scope or skinning a deer.

It’s not for everybody, but for some, taking your spouse to the range or teaching them how to reload could be a great way to enhance your enjoyment of the sport you love.

Spent shotgun shells at Waitemata Clay Target Club.

Where to shoot in NZ: Waitemata Clay Target Club

Geoff 1 Comment

As somebody who spends a fair bit of time behind a scoped rifle, let me say, aiming “without looking at the gun” is a real challenge. As my wife and I set up to try our hand at down the line (DTL) trap shooting, Andy – our supervisor/guide/instructor through this process – informed us that the way to successfully shoot clays moving at 45 kph is to not aim the gun. Yup, don’t aim he said, or you’ll stop moving in line with the target.

The Waitemata Clay Target Club

Firstly, let me put this out there, as far as gun clubs in New Zealand go, this is a sleek organisation. They have a nice website, excellent facilities and a club room that would make you think of a golf course, rather than a shooting club.

There are a few different positions to shoot from, a patterning board and even an Olympic trap facility. What’s the difference with the Olympic version of the sport? More than triple the speed – 140 kph, and a greater variety of directions the clay pigeon could shoot off into.

The impressive Olympic throwers of the Waitemata Clay Target Club.
The impressive Olympic throwers of the Waitemata Clay Target Club.

Back to the club. It’s about 25 or 30 minutes from the centre of Auckland, and took me around three-quarters of an hour from East Auckland. It’s conveniently close to the Hallertau Brewery, if you wanna grab a bite and a beer (after you shoot). If you’re familiar with the NZDA Auckland branch, it’s just round the corner from there.

There’s ample parking and you don’t need to trek through bush or anything. It’s a very accessible club all round.

The Beretta under and over shotguns were a treat to shoot.
The Beretta under and over shotguns were a treat to shoot.

Shooting DTL Trap

As I mentioned before, shotgun shooting apparently just doesn’t come naturally to me. Although, I’ve got to admit, it sure was fun. The five positions you shoot from all have a mic that picks up your command to “pull”, releasing a clay. Aiming at the top of the trap house or just above, you try and move your head (and the shotgun which is welded to your cheek) along with the clay as it appears – not aiming, but simply following the target. Pull the trigger when you’re ready, and that’s all she wrote.

The mic can be set off by the loud ‘clack’ of pump or semi-auto shotgun, or people nattering away about how their last shot went. Because there are a limited number of clays available to shoot, this can be a bit frustrating if some are wasted by chatter and loud actions.

There are five different shooting positions with a shooter on each. After a shooter takes their shot, they break open their gun (or open the action on semis or pumps), and the next person loads, ready to call for their clay. Usually after five rounds, the shooters rotate to the next position, although we didn’t go through all the rotations on our first go.

The Clever Mirage trap loads were light and easy on the shoulder.
The Clever Mirage trap loads were light and easy on the shoulder.

The guns provided to us were very nice looking Beretta under and overs, and they shot like a dream. There were no malfunctions of any kind, and they were smooth and easy to operate. The Clever Mirage trap loads were light and didn’t leave us feeling bruised and battered at the end of the day.

The overall cost was not too much, considering all that is provided. For $52.50 each we got range fees, gun hire, a box of ammo each (25 rounds), 25 clay targets and some ear plugs (we forgot our hearing protection at home – although even with ear plugs, it was absolutely fine). Considering it’s a good afternoon’s entertainment, it’s well worth it – especially if you haven’t tried it before. And, speaking to Andy, it’s apparently much cheaper to shoot once you become a member. However, there is the high cost of trap or skeet shotguns to consider. Although, for the beginner, a cheap semi-auto will get you going.

For those that are interested in a casual shoot, check out the Waitemata Clay Target Club range calendar and call ahead if the weather is foul. The club rooms are easy to find and there’s a nice big sign on the road – you’ll find it easy enough.

At the end of the day, if you’re into your shotguns – this is something you should definitely try. For those that haven’t ventured into other shooting sports, it’s worth giving it a go. You never know, like my wife you may have a natural ability for reactive shooting.

Regular target at HSSRC

Where to shoot in NZ: HSSRC

Geoff 5 Comments

If you’re new to shooting – perhaps you’ve never seen a rifle up close – learning more about the sport can be daunting. The best way to go about it is to find a local club where you can develop your knowledge and trial different equipment before buying your own. You can also get a feel for different shooting disciplines and even competition, to see what most piques your interest.

A great place to get started is the shooting range in Howick. If you’re in East Auckland it’s a convenient place to shoot, and it’s fully indoors which is great in winter. There are quite  a few different clubs operating out of this range, including a couple sporting smallbore clubs, a target shooting club, air rifles and a pistol shooting club as well.

My favourite organisation at this range (and I’ve tried almost all of the options on offer), is the Howick Smallbore Sporting Rifle Club (HSSRC). It’s an extremely friendly environment and has a wealth of experienced shooters willing to lend a hand. The range is great and the club equipment is very good – the shooting fees are cheap too. You can hire a rifle, pay your range fee and pay for your ammo for less than a movie ticket – not a bad way to spend a Friday evening. You’ll also be fully supervised (if you’re unlicensed) throughout the shoot with full instruction – easy as!

Moving on in the club, you can participate as a range officer or assistant range officer, or help new shooters as well. You can also participate in the inter-club tournament and the club fun shoots and end-of-year prize shoot. There are plenty of opportunities to get involved, which you’ll find out as you go along. You’ll also find most shooters here engage in a couple different disciplines, and can not only help you with your shooting technique, but can also point you towards other clubs and competitions you might enjoy.

If you’re looking for a good place to learn, or you’re new to the area and already a competent shooter, this could be the place for you.

The club shoots on Friday evenings from around 7 pm onwards, and has plenty of gear available. You can also purchase ammo at very reasonable rates. Once you become a member (which doesn’t cost much at all), your weekly shoots and ammo will be even cheaper. If you’d like more info, leave a question in the comments below, or head on over to the HSSRC facebook page.

 

Should I Loctite my scope bases?

Geoff Leave a comment

If you’re putting together a rifle for the first time, or you’ve just bought a package deal that was loosely thrown together, you may not be aware of the intricacies involved in proper scope mounting. One of the questions often debated in forums all over the internet is whether or not to apply Loctite to scope base screws, and if so, which colour to use?

Well, I made the rookie mistake of driving three and a half hours to do some target shooting after reassembling a rifle I had coated with a nice new finish. I completely forget to Loctite to the scope bases. I sent a few factory rounds down range to foul the barrel, and got a group size under 2 inches at 100 yards. Sounds about right.

I then painstakingly went through shooting 3-shot groups with my reloaded ammo (I was working up a new load), and watched in absolute horror as my groups opened up to 3 or 4 inches. Thinking I may have overheated the barrel, I gave the old shooting iron a rest and threw some lead downrange with a few other toys while it cooled off.

Taking up the prone position again I looked forward to drilling some really expensive Sierra Matchkings into ragged little holes 100 yards away. No such luck. I was shooting groups that opened up to 7 inches. What the…? I could not figure out how I had screwed up this batch of reloads so badly. Until I adjusted the scope settings for a friend of mine to shoot at 50 yards. Wait – was that a bit of wiggle in the scope mounting? Indeed it was. I had managed to get about $50 worth of ammo down range with no particular success before I realised that my loads were fine – the scope bases had come loose.

Don’t make my mistake

Frustratingly, after driving home for three and a half hours I noticed the blue bottle of Loctite sitting on my gun bench, like a big fat “I told you so” from the universe.

In short, don’t make my mistake – Loctite your scope base screws. I took a perfectly good 1-inch shooter and turned it into a minute-of-dinner-plate loser by forgetting this simple step. And I’m sure my scope didn’t appreciate flopping around like that either.

Make sure your threads are completely clear of debris or grease when you do this. And while some people say red Loctite is okay to use, I prefer to use blue – I find it is much easier to remove. While you may not take your scope bases off regularly, if you want to upgrade or change to a 35 MOA rail, or whatever, you’ll wish you had used the blue variant.

SKS on bipod at the range.

SKS front sight tool

Geoff 1 Comment

The SKS is an immensely popular rifle in New Zealand. Whether it’s for budget-conscious hunting or recoil-reduced plinking, there are plenty of reasons to have one or two of these fun-makers in your gun safe. However, if you’ve picked up your favourite communist rifle and found that the grouping is out, you’re going to need to invest in a front sight tool – something I’ve recently done. Here are my do’s and don’t of this process.

This is what you should do when buying a front sight tool

SKS front sight tool
As you can see I have filed down the inside edge of the tool to fit around the hooded front sight.

You should definitely shop around. How much are they at the gun store – 50 bucks? Forget that. Go to Quartermaster Supplies and pick one up for $20. Most tack-on accessories for milsurp rifles can be found there for cheap. I paid $28, including all tax and couriered to my work. Sure beats paying almost twice as much at some of the big-name stores, and wasting time and petrol too.

You will probably need to file down one edge of the tool. I think these would fit an AK-style rifle without it (don’t have one on hand to check), but you’ll definitely need to shave off one of the inside edges of the U-shaped device, so that it can accommodate the round post-protector ring. This took me all of 5 minutes with a file, and a quick sand to debur. Just one edge is fine – you can flip it around to adjust the other way.

Sighting in should be done with the FORS principle in mind. That is Front Opposite, Rear Same. If you move the front sight to the left, the point of impact shifts to the right. If you raise the post, the POI will move down. If that just doesn’t make sense, check out the video below. This guy explains it fairly well – and it’ll save me repeating myself.

This is what you should not do when buying a front sight tool for the SKS

Do not try and drift the sight across with a hammer and punch. I have – naively – tried this, and not only is it frustrating, but you’ll soon end up with scuffs all over your bluing and you probably won’t move it much in the end. Spend the $28 – it’s worth it.

Don’t adjust your front sight while the gun is loaded. Seriously. Load one round at a time when sighting in if you have to, but don’t put your hand near the dangerous end of the rifle, and your body or face over the action when it’s loaded. Doesn’t that just sound like a recipe for disaster? The best safety is an empty chamber.

Don’t try and sight it in alone, unless you want a long and frustrating day at the range. Get someone on a spotting scope telling you where you’re impacting – it’s easier, and it’s always nice to have company.

You shouldn’t assume one shot is enough to determine where the rifle is shooting. I prefer to shoot a group of two or three before adjusting iron sights on a rifle like this at 100 or 200 yards. If it was a scoped target rifle on a bipod, with a more accurate round, then yes, one shot would be enough to figure out where to move your POA.

And lastly, don’t sight in with your plinking ammo and expect it to be spot-on with your good stuff. Sight in with the ammo you need to be most accurate with. The difference isn’t much, but the SKS can sometimes need all the help it can get when it comes to extracting every last bit of accuracy out of it. At least most bullets are of a similar weight and diameter when it comes to the SKS, so there won’t be a great deal of difference.

Three shot group on smallbore target

What are you shooting? Where to get targets for the range

Geoff 2 Comments

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.