50y BR in heavy wind with slugs.

[thomasair]

Been working after hours on this for a while. The ultimate goal is to compete head to head with the unlimited Rimfire guns. Not there yet, but really happy with the current results.

Here is 3 cards at 50y shot in horrible conditions with gusts to 15mph.

This is my 40.2 gr 3s ogive boattail slug from a Muller 4 groove MI rimfire barrel.

Hopefuliy it will let me post the video of the conditions. They actually got worse on the last card...but the gun hung in there. 

740 29x

Mike

 

[thomasair]

Here is the video of the conditions. I was holding outside the black on the last card....but it was very predictable.

Mike

 

[Centercut]

Good shooting. Looks like the 100Y finals at TexTreme Benchrest 2020 a few weeks ago, except there was nothing predictable about it...

 

[Smitty8141]

Really nice shooting in that much wind. Beautiful gun. Looks like the card is flapping in the wind out there. Lol

 

[nomojo65]

What’s the velocity Mike? That’s crazy accurate in those conditions! Also looking at your cards I would’ve had to take 5x the sighters to have any confidence before pulling that trigger for record!

 

[thomasair]

Thanks...this was 850fps. Tried all the way up to 1000....850 is the best for me. 

Yes, despite having 8 pins on the target it blew off more than a couple times.

If i shoot a sighter and it goes close to where I thought it should ...I get moving before something changes.

If I get a shot that doesn’t go near where I expect...I’ll take another sighter and see if it does the same thing. I hate wasting a good shot on a sighter. Haha

I was smiling ear to ear shooting these.

Mike 

 

[Raden1942]

Wow dude that's really great. I could not do that good with my cz 455 American and premium ammo. That's some really good shooting. Very interesting gun you got there. What is it? I saw what barrel was on it but did you make that thing? I've never seen anything like it. I don't shoot competition so forgive my ignorance but that looks like a rail gun on a video game or something lol. 

 

[Odoyle]

That is excellent shooting in the wind!

 

[thomasair]

Thanks guys.

Raden....the rifle is a purpose built Thomas BR. Yes, I make them. Rail guns incorporate the guiding mechanism into the action. This is just a normal BR gun in a two piece rest setup.

Mike

 

[fe7565]

Mike, excellent shooting, especially considering the conditions! And a beatiful rifle! What does it weigh?

 

[nomojo65]

I must say Mike, when I first read your heading I just knew it was going to be your double DD monster! so was surprised when it was your “ semi-standard set up”!

 

[steve123]

That is a WOW 3 card'r you did there Mike! Congrats on the progress you've made with those slugs! Looks like you are breaking the code of slugs = how well they fit in the chamber, twists, rifling profiles, fps, etc!

BTW I love that thick match barrel, serious heavy metal there! Must of made a special receiver???

My Anschutz 1827F 22rf shot a 10 shot .87" group at 100M in the Lapua test facility and I'm sure I couldn't shoot that high of a score with the same ammo. 

 

[nomojo65]

Mike, one more question and I’ll stop bugging you, do use the seating probe to get the slug into the lands? or letting them jump in?

 

[thomasair]

Thanks again.

The rifle is about 15lbs with the .900” barrel....and yes it’s a special barrel block.

Joe...I tethered this rifle with no internal reg so I could make easier changes to velocity. I’m only shooting at 2350...so it could just as easily run on the internal reg dual plenum setup.

I’m pushing the slugs slightly into the lands. It does not like any jump.


Mike

 

[nomojo65]

Mike, you’re pushing the envelope again! continued success! Makes a guy think twice now you can shoot slugs In Usarb match’s?

 

[Centercut]

Impressive shooting and R&D Mike. 160 bar isn’t really that high for those heavy slugs. Shooting at that power with those slugs do you foresee an issue with shot count for 50Y BR if you need to shoot more than a few sighters?
Next thing you know you’ll be shooting 9mm shells at 400 yards...

 

[thomasair]

I can get 40 shots at this power without tethering....but I think allowing guys to tether can get a lot more participation because you won’t need as much specialized equipment.

Im proposing a simple 3300 psi burst disc block in between the tank and the gun to counter any tethering safety concerns due to accidentally dumping full bottle pressure into a gun not built for it. Would cost less than 20 bucks and would allow a lot more people to get into the game with simple rigs.

Yes, slugs are now legal for USARB unlimited class.

I’m interested in this because the unlimited class rimfire guys are king of the hill at 50y. Going head to head with the top guys and being competitive is a goal for me. I don’t care about long range...because air will never compete with centerfire on any real level, and there isn’t much interest in shooting Rimfire BR at ranges beyond 50y.


Mike 

 

[davelarson]

Thanks for sharing. That’s very impressive shooting in heavy wind. It almost seems like magic to be able to do that, but I know that it’s skill. I’ve tried informal shooting in wind and I find that reading the wind is very difficult. 

 

[thomasair]

Thanks Dave

Doing a decent job of reading the wind with a rifle that is very repeatable is not too bad. If the rifle is at all erratic its very tough to know what was the wind and what was the rifle....and the learning process becomes very confusing.

You gotta get your rifle 100% indoors to be able to begin to trust what happens outdoors.

Mike