Rimfire rifles are a fantastic training tool, and they're great fun besides. But they sometimes beg to stretch their legs a little and reach out beyond the 25 meter berm. Last weekend, they got their chance...
Weather called for a little rain but the weekend dawned sunny and splendid in the San Gabriel mountains, home of our fifth Rimfire KD Appleseed. Jerry at Burro Canyon had pulled some strings to get us a nice secluded bay with exactly 98.5 meters of space -- plenty for the little .22's to show what they could do. And so, off to work.
Eight folks stepped up to this, more serious Appleseed challenge, counting past 'Seeders, a few Hats, visitors from Nor Cal, and also a pair of brand new shooters who decided to dive right into the thick of it and drink from the firehose of Liberty! ^:)^ We were only too happy to oblige. David (BuckleNose) and myself started off the day with a thorough review of safety, covered the far more involved homework assignment that comes with the territory of KD, and it was game on...
Our opening Morgan's Target showed that we had a fair distance to cover. Nobody nicked the intrepid Continental volunteer holding up the target, but he got brushed back a few times, and none of our students made it past the Watch List. But we'd soon fix that.
Day 1 of the Rimfire KD is all about learning your rifle and ammunition, its capabilities, and how it's affected by environment. We spent a good 20 minutes clicking scopes, but after that we were solidly zeroed and ready to start taking data... 25 meters... 50... 75... &)
First big surprise of the day was nice grouping at 100 meters, from the whole class. Much of that I chalk up to SV ammunition, but there's skill there too. Sure, the groups might look terrible, with every mistake amplified four-fold, but mirage plays a part -- with that big ol' 4" square out there, our brain knows we can hit that target. And if our brain knows it, it gets done. It's all in your heads, the good and the bad. ;D
Our weary group tucked in at lunchtime and got to hear the tale of the Long Shadow of the Rifle. You take away these pivotal moments of our great nation's history -- the Siege of Boston, King's Mountain, and Cowpens -- and I really don't know where we'd be. Shooting billiards at 100 meters, maybe. $$-0 But happily we do have our heritage, and it inspires us to keep going.
By the end of Saturday we discovered a real rarity: Saturday KD Rifleman! Shooter Anthony put together a winning score on our first AQT of the class. Now don't take this the wrong way, but there wasn't any one stage where he got real lucky; instead, all four were just solid, and that gets it done. We were able to send him home with a nice Rifleman patch, and well done you!
Sunday the clouds were in and the wind was swirling. We were down to six now, but bolstered by local hotshot Dan (Whangdoodle) who had more than earned some trigger time. Sunday we played with the wind, or it played with us, mostly a fishtail wind at 5-10 MPH but occasionally gusting up and messing with us. However, patience carried the day, as on that crucial Stage 4 we could usually count on it settling down, and in the end nobody was particularly bothered by the wind. Some days you just get lucky. @)
Sunday afternoon we were introduced to a new party of patriots, men without whom figures like Paul Revere would have striven in vain -- we spoke with fearless Joseph Warren, capable Isaac Shelby, and of course the indomitable Daniel Morgan. I do think the Old Waggoner would have enjoyed this class. I hope so. We certainly enjoy his exploits, and the fruits of his monumental efforts in our Revolution.
As the day wore on and the AQTs started to pile up, we did get better. We sometimes forgot where we'd left our sights, and learned how to recover them. We sometimes dialed the wrong way and got quickly back on track. We even saw some ammunition gremlins, including one of the most startling examples of lot-to-lot variation I've ever seen. But before the day was out we had two reconfirmed KD Riflemen -- Dan and stalwart Del back for another crack at it -- and our 100 meter targets were a thing of beauty. On one Stage 4 the whole line cut nothing but black. :bow:
But eventually we got wore out. There's only so much you can pack into a single weekend. The Way of the Rifleman won't come to an end so quickly... but that's a good thing. Thanks to all who turned out for this one, our best Rimfire KD yet. Keep practicing, and keep learning. Post up on your findings and your questions. Liberty wasn't won in a day.
So, how was your weekend?
Picture time...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_morgans_zpscu0wmqtf.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_morgans_zpscu0wmqtf.jpg.html)
Everyone looking over their first target... at 50 meters. And there's another set of targets twice as far away...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_stage2_zps2f9jzrlk.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_stage2_zps2f9jzrlk.jpg.html)
Didn't take long to get our gear sorted, and stand ready for transition...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_stage3_zpsws2rlkr4.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_stage3_zpsws2rlkr4.jpg.html)
And here we are down in prone -- see the focus? I see the focus. Somebody on this line is about to make a Rifleman score, only he doesn't know it yet...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/twelve_clicks_up_zpsvt3adrwr.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/twelve_clicks_up_zpsvt3adrwr.jpg.html)
Figuring out our come-ups -- it's science, folks. It works!
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sun_determined_zpsn76doev0.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sun_determined_zpsn76doev0.jpg.html)
With the preliminaries out of the way, confident in our data, it's time to get serious
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sun_southpaw_zpsengqhumi.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sun_southpaw_zpsengqhumi.jpg.html)
Long-distance shooter and long-distance traveler Ron opted to shoot one AQT switch-handed... went pretty well, actually
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_rifleman_zps3h0fe38l.jpg) (http://s781.photobucket.com/user/as_rocketman/media/Azusa%2015-16%20October%202016/sat_rifleman_zps3h0fe38l.jpg.html)
Our new Rifleman! Congratulations, Anthony!
We've got two more KD's planned for next year, plus a host of other shoots, both one-day and two-day regular Appleseeds. See you all again soon!
Excellent, I love Rimfire KD!
Thanks Rocketman and Buckelnose for hosting a great weekend shoot. Having never shot a Rimfire KD, I wasn't sure what to expect. But after shooting one, I have to tell you that they are a hoot! For anyone who has not been to a Rimfire KD, you are missing out. They are great! Just like a Centerfire KD but without all the walking.
Did you have a guy there with an air rifle?
If so I would like to hear about what the caliber was and his bullet drop.
He is standing back to back with Ron, shooting left eye.
No air rifle. I've never had one on the line, though a couple of folks have suggested it. One of these days I'd like to get a heavy airgun and try it out...
Ron is shooting a Remington 597, and Hans has a highly customized AR-15 in .22LR. He is also shooting right-eyed, he's just at a sharp angle and likes to shoot High-Power style in standing, except for the over-the-shoulder sling.
The photo almost looks like the fore end is a canister and on closer inspection what I took for a barrel might be a full length picatinny rail on top.
Yeah, it was an unusual rig. Full-length rail, carbon fibre barrel. .22 so there's no gas block or anything. It ran pretty well over the weekend. @)