Relaxation Time at the Range

I spend a lot of time during the week looking forward to my range time on the weekends.  I managed to get out twice this weekend, which is very unusual for me.  It's been busy lately with the spring weather, but I've been able to get a bench, and touch off 50-60 rounds a day.

Here is the view down range...my targets are on the 50 yard board...you can also see the 25, 100 and 200 yard boards.

And here is my setup...

It was nice to get out and clear my mind.

Thumb Screws Loose

I guess part of blogging is sharing errors that you've made, as well as all the fun you've had.  As I was at the range today, it seemed that I was chasing the crosshairs trying to get a good zero.  I kept checking the torque on the screw that holds my scope to the carry handle, but didn't check the two thumb screws that hold the carry handle to the upper receiver.  Under recoil, the entire handle and scope would slide, and surely affected the point of aim.

Lesson of the day...tighten the thumb screws REALLY TIGHT!

All things considered, I still shot some nice groups once I was done chasing the 'zero' around (I remembered my sandbag front rest today).  My final shots are highlighted in yellow...

Target V2

I finally made it to the range with the new target I designed...things that seem good in theory are much different in practice, since at 50 yards, when I wasn't looking through the scope, I couldn't see a thing!  So, here is an updated version that should do the trick (hopefully!)...

As for my performance today...it was all right, but I have a long way to go to.  The shots in green are the last 5 shots of the day, fired seated and resting on both elbows (I called the one above center as high when I fired it).  The red ones are my 'off hand' attempts...all at 50 yards. 

I'm definitely a better shot when I have my sandbag rest with me...but practice will help.  I can definitely see the need for an aftermarket trigger too...I spend a lot of my time adding pressure to the trigger waiting for it to break.

Please see my update here => http://ar15shooter.blogspot.com/2011/05/target-v2c-and-v3c.html

Happy Birthday to the Model 1911

The Model 1911 pistol is an icon...the state gun of Utah...and a favorite of both my best man, and my father.  As with my other favorite firearms, the AR-15, and the Remington 700, the 1911 has seen use in our armed forces.  One day, I will own one.

Here is a nice writeup on the history of the 1911:  http://www.m1911.org/full_history.htm

Talking Point: Bolt Carrier Group

A couple of small points regarding cleaning the bolt carrier group.  I see some people who recommend removing the extractor and gas rings on the bolt with every cleaning.  I don't recommend this...the potential damage to the retaining pin of the extractor or to the gas rings is high.  The retaining pin in my opinion isn't designed to be removed frequently and could start to fit loose if removed too often.  As for the gas rings, they have to be flexed quite a bit to remove them, and could be ruined.  For cleaning these area's, I just saturate them with Hoppe's 9 and it does a great job...sometimes a little compressed air helps to move the junk out.

Proper lubrication of the bolt carrier group is essential to long life of the AR.  I've circled the areas in red where I apply a liberal amount of oil.  The bolt carrier rides on the 4 ridges that run along the front sides, I add a generous amount of oil here, and also along the side of the bolt key.  Coat the entire cam pin with oil.  On the bolt itself I add a couple drops of oil to the gas rings, and to the ridge in the middle and work it all the way around for even coverage (the bolt should slide smoothly once inside the bolt carrier).  I place a light coat of oil to the face of the bolt, the retaining pin, and the shaft of the charging handle.  As for the firing pin, that just needs a very light coat of oil on it.

Remember, keep the bolt carrier group well oiled and it will keep your gun happy!

An excellent blog on precision shooting

I stumbled across this blog last night, and spent a couple hours reading the excellent posts.  Check it out...

http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com/

Gun Rights, Mexico and Libya

I am troubled by our government trying to take away our 2nd amendment rights using the 'flood of US guns into Mexico' as one possible method to start our disarming...
http://www.nraila.org/legislation/read.aspx?id=4632

and then they turn around and consider giving guns to 'rebels' in Libya?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12902450


Libya BOMBED Pan-Am flight 103.  Gaddafi didn't put the bomb on that plane personally...it was an action by people of Libya.  Now we want to arm the 'good rebels' to overthrow Gaddafi?  We didn't take him out ourselves in 1988, or 1989...etc....  Instead, we are going to arm these people....willingly???

Am I missing something??  Is this OK because Libya isn't on our border? 

The US needs to STOP PUNISHING THE GOOD PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES, and THINK LONG AND HARD ABOUT WHO THEY WILLINGLY HAND WEAPONS TO OUTSIDE OF OUR COUNTRY.

Target

I have been looking for a target that fits my needs, but nothing was exactly what I was looking for, so I decided to make one.  The circles are sized to what I feel are the 'vitals' size for small game, coyote, and deer.  I have also placed a couple of boxes for defensive practice...the inner which I consider 'good hits' and the outter as 'acceptable'.  Tick marks are at 1" intervals.  (I can email the PDF on request.)

Please see my update here => http://ar15shooter.blogspot.com/2011/04/target-v2.html

Sight height to muzzle considerations

The sight height in relation to the muzzle will alter the impact point of a bullet in relation to the point of aim at distances away from the zero point. A high sight line does not however decrease precision, you just need to understand the effect of sight height to muzzle distance.

Remember that bullets fly in an arc as they move from the muzzle to target, which means that at a given distance, your bullet will impact at a different point than your point of aim. The bullet will pass the point of aim at 2 points, once as it passes the sight line heading up (your initial zero crossing), and then again as the bullet drops after apogee (your zero sighting distance). This can be seen in the following chart.

Consider an AR-15 with iron sights and a carry handle mounted scope. The iron sight sits 2.65 inches above the center of the bore, and the scope sits 3.65 inches above the center of the bore. The point of impact using a 55grain bullet, zeroed at 225 yards for both scope and iron sight, compared to the point of aim is given on this chart: You will notice that when using the scope, the bullet 'starts' at -3.65 inches below the sight line. This is an inch lower than the sight line used with the iron sights. When you zero both sights at the same distance, what you have in effect done is set your rifle to fire at a slightly higher angle for the scope (when mounted higher than the iron sights). The bullet still hits at the same point at 225 yards, but will take a slightly different path to get there.

Cleaning Kits

I've tried a few different systems for cleaning my rifles, and in my opinion there is only one worth spending $ on....the Otis Technology system.


http://www.otisgun.com/pc_product_detail.asp?key=A143AFCDD3F7420D971E1FCE78ACEFD7

Why I love this kit...

It's super compact, your always cleaning from chamber to muzzle (so your not pushing junk towards your trigger group), the kit works with all of my various caliber rifles, and it works really good!


After finding this kit, an article ran in the newspaper about the company that makes these things...I was happy to see that buying this product supports an Upstate NY company!
http://www.syracuse.com/progress/index.ssf/2011/02/otis_technology.html