Road trip to NRA Junior Sectional Precision Air Rifle

This post is written for those wanting to learn more about youth precision shooting programs.  It is New Hampshire and rifle centric.  Good read and many links for the parent trying to lean more about what might be available for a young girl or boy interested in precision shooting.

For some time I have been wondering how to help create a true youth rifle team.  Team or individual.  I ask myself why?  In truth, because I guess if I were to do it again, I wish there had been such a program for me to join when I was a small-fry.  Even with all the video games, there is nothing like live fire to build discipline and mental toughness.  Plus, they learn how to interact with their peers and adults as an extra bonus!

My serious shooting days are about over and it would be good to pass down the little I do know to the next generation and their parents..  I also believe precision shooting and the mental control it requires is a great way for kids to develop self esteem.  Kids can't blame their goalie, their coach or the referee.  The buck stops with them.  Sure, I guess you can blame the equipment.  Nothing a quick bench test or parents' check book can't solve!  If a youth is able to "out shoot" their equipment, that is a what I call a "good problem to have".

As I research what is going on in the area of precision shooting sports, there are currently two hotbeds of activity in NH.  First and foremost, I think the Hudson Fish & Game Club in, no surprises here, Hudson, NH, has a very strong program.  I also am told and certainly witnessed the shooters who traveled from Keene, there is a strong program at the Cheshire County Fish and Game Gun Club.  Their team is called the Ferry Brook Junior Shooters.  Here are the results from the road trip.  It was an NRA regional event.

So what does strong mean?  First, it means kids.  There were 24 kids who preregistered for the NRA Jr. Sectional I visited Feb 23rd, just 40 miles from Concord.  I suspect if the range had more shooting positions, there would have been more shooters.  Second, fully engaged parents.  I would say there were more Moms than Dads there.  This sport is no different than hockey, swimming or skiing.  It takes equipment, special facilities and travel.  These parents see the value of this individual sport for their child and support their child's pursuit of it.  Better yet, unlike skis or skates or pads, quality shooting gear depreciates very little.  Over the past 10 years I would argue all of it appreciates!

Third, I would have to say the sponsoring club has to be supportive with range time and budget.  When I talked to a group of Moms, they said when they first started, they simply brought their child and the club provided coaches and entry level equipment.  Of course now the parents have purchased collegiate level equipment but at the start, the club set the hook as well as validated the child's interest with club resources.

Fourth, volunteers.  I was very impressed at how deep the volunteer pool was. One for stats, registration.  Two for scoring. One for calling the line and likely three floaters.  All were Hudson Gun club members with club sweatshirts.  Very well done.  I saw seven volunteers of which only two had kids shooting that day.  Yup, seven folks who never fired a shot and five of them did not even have a kid in the program.  Very impressive.



So what do I know?  The first step is to see what kind of interest lies out there in the local area.  There is no organized youth program with the objective being to provide a path toward collegiate level shooting and potential scholarships offered by Div I, II and III schools.  Shoulder to shoulder competition does exist in the North East.  Even in NH!  Precision shooting is 80% mental.  It is about putting it all together and executing each element perfectly 40 or 60 times in a 40 or 60 minute time period.

Second, identify those "seven" volunteers, preferably some with kids, to help start building a program.  What type of "Program" do you mean you ask?  In my humble opinion, it all should start with air rifle.  Optimally it should start with what is called "Sporter air" for which there is an NRA rule book and a range of approved guns.  These guns are not $2,000+ as you see pictured above.  Here is a pretty comprehensive electronic publication from the NRA.  If you read it, you will see a broad range of different levels of shooting. From the Winchester/NRA Marksmanship Qualification Program to full blown youth Olympics in Colorado Spring, CO sponsored by USAShooting.  USAShooting is the the Olympic Development organization for Olympic shooting sports in the US.

Third, create some awareness.  Host a Jr Sectional in Concord area and promote it to parents and youth so they can come see what it is all about.  As they like to say in Missouri, SHOW ME! Pioneer has an excellent facility that could provide these youth the chance to travel to an unfamiliar place and work on performing as well as they can at their home club.  An important component of training.  No doubt the club might learn a few things along the way as well.

So, bottom line, in some parts of the Country kids start off in earnest with the simple Daisy 499 BB gun and compete in the Daisy Nationals. They can then move on up to NRA, CMP, JROTC programs. If they love it and strive to do more, they can head to Colorado Springs, CO for the Junior Olympics.  Some of the kids I saw last weekend will be heading to the Junior Olympics.  Hats off to them! Even if they don't achieve Olympic level performance, they have a sport for life.  They know and respect the use of firearms and likely have learned one heck of a lot more about themselves.

To the right is a picture from 2011while in Texas for a silhouette match.  Shooting in Texas is no different than Little League.  Kids start with the Daisy 499 and if they have fun (note the pink gun with flames) they keep on shooting.  Click on picture to enlarge.  They are all the same gun.  Just some creative woodwork to make the butt of the stock longer or shorter.

Learn more about Daisy and their youth BB gun program go HERE.  Daisy is quite involved in the youth shooting arena and has a full line of competition youth guns under the Avanti line. Not the stuff you find in Walmart.

As always, click on pictures to enlarge for detail.

Interesting links.

CMP - Primer on youth shooting sports. For more look under Air Gun, Coach Resources for other good articles, manuals, powerpoints etc etc.  .

2013 Metallic Silhouette Schedule for New Hampshire

U P D A T E D     (April 30th)

Sam and George have stepped forward to lead Purgatory.
Tom C. has new Approved NRA Matches in Georgetown, MA!

See links in this post for details!

The major change is that we are pulling the Granite State Regional (GSR) up a month to July which has caused Purgatory to pull the State Pistol Championship up a week.  In short, see schedule..  The GSR change was mostly to avoid back to college/back to school dates which was a major problem last year.  It also can serve as one last warm up before the NRA Nationals!

This year the NRA nationals will be held in Ridgeway, PA.  It typically alternates between Raton, NM and Ridgeway, PA.  This year it is relatively close to us and all match directors are trying to keep those dates open so as many North East shooters can make the journey to PA.  It is a spectacular event, I encourage you to think about adding it to your schedule this year.

The silhouette clinic was a big success.  With enough volunteers we will try to put that on again the Saturday before the first match.  My goal this year, have a 40 shot match where the veteran shoots the first five and the rookie shoots the second five so new shooters can actually she how a match happens.

Tom's matches at Georgetown Fish and Game in Georgetown Massachusetts are new in that they are "Approved" this year which means they go in your book.  He will be shooting both NRA 1/5th and Cowboy 1/2 scale so bring your scoped .22 and your iron sight .22 cowboy gun!  No club rifle, no "shoot when you want".  This is squaded. See GF&G Match Program PDF.

For those that are interested in traveling, I included match information for other key matches.  Mostly so I could try to avoid scheduling a match on a date that another club had a match.  


2013 Schedule plus NY and Nationals.

And, for those who do not want all the extra information, I have a STRICTLY NH version.

FINAL 2013 Strictly NH/MA matches as of April 29th  F I N A L !

Last years post with schedule with useful extra links.

Notes about traveling to MA with firearms (long arms) for non MA residents.  Keep the guns in a locked case, preferably not in the passenger compartment but in the trunk or truck bed.  And, print the CG&G Match Program and carry with you.  Traveling to an organized match with a firearm and ammo is legal in Massachusetts.  Just have the program should anyone ask where you are traveling.

For details about the laws, go HERE and read up on the topic and learn about the Federal "safe passage" provision.

See you soon!

10 meter Air Rifle match #12 and #13

Just putting in an update.  The last two matches I have shot with a new hold.  I am leaving the split finger hold as it gets too tired by the end of the match.  I am trying a fist support like the rest of the world.  It feels very uncomfortable but it will take some getting used to.  I practiced before match #12 but did not get any practice before #13.  My interest waned a bit.  A solo sport is hard for sure.

I think long term the first support will help.  I need to work on tension.  I have the tendency to slide left or right when the shot breaks and I have not been able to determine what is "loose" that lets this happen.  

It is all about time commitment and dedication.  My lack of progress shows that.  Yet, a 93 at the end of the evening also shows the prior "match practice" helps and that the fist hold supports my observation that my stamina improves.

2012-13 Season score log

#01 501 (81 81 84 85 82 88)
#02 515 (87 88 89 83 85 83) 11 7s or lower, 15 10x. previous practice 1x (3.6)
#03 485 (82 82 80 77 86 78) 19 7s or lower, 7 10x. Daisy pellets, reduced barrel weight.(3.6)
#04 494 (88 74 87 88 76 81) 14 7s or lower, 11 10x. JSB SCHaK pellets. First Tuesday night.(3.6)
#05 522 (89 88 90 88 82 88) 7 7s nothing lower, 11 10x. Many high value 9s! H&N + SCHaK (3.2)
#06 492 (75 85 76 84 86 86) 14 7s or lower, 6 10x. SCHaK (3.8)
#07 520 (88 84 90 86 87 85) 8 7s, 12 10x. SCHaK (3.8)
#08 490 (75 85 76 84 86 84) not worth noting. SCHaK (3.8)  Guest shooter.
#09 516 (91 87 86 82 86 84) 11 7s, 13 10x. SCHaK (3.8)  Must stamp out 7s!
#10 513 (88 85 89 85 86 80) 9 7s or worse, 9 10x. SCHaK (3.8)  Stock shorter
#11 518 (83 92 83 87 85 87) 8 7s, 1 6, 12 10x. H&N (3.8)
#12 502 (82 85 87 84 77 87) H&N (3.8) fist
#13 512 (91 83 84 78 83 93) H&N (3.8) fist. I shot a 3 on target 4.  ugh!

2011-12 Season score log

#1 515 (87 83 87 88 90 80)
#2 510 (85 89 85 86 82 83)
#3 532 (94 87 83 91 89 88) (season high, 94/100 tied best ever 10 shots)
#4 530 (87 90 90 93 89 81)
#5 524 (86 84 88 91 85 90)
#6 517 (88 85 88 87 90 79)
#7 524 (82 91 88 91 84 88)


Personal Top three 600 scores. Goal, 540.

539 (93 90 90 85 87 94). 11x 7 or lower, 22 10x. 11/??/08
532 (94 87 83 91 89 88) 3/??/12
530 (87 90 90 93 89 81) 3/??/12

Home or last post.

2013 Pellet Testing 10 meter air

Summary:


I set out to test the following pellets based on my inventory which is getting a bit more under control.


JSB SCHaK  (4500 in inventory. one lot, but when there gone there gone)
RWS Miesterkuglen  (4000 in inventory...mixed lots)  8.2g.
Vogel Sport (aka Orange)  10 test pellets from Tom.  They only sell one weight .53 grams and one size 4.5mm.
Daisy Precision (sighters....I use to make sure I'm close and then switch to the real pellets, they stink)
Crosman Wadcutters (2500 in inventory) Buy them at Walmart
Misc items not tested
(not tested) H&N vintage 1500.  Vogel Green 1500.  R10 1000.

New airgun shooter tip

If there is one thing I can encourage news shooters NOT to do.  Don't do what I do which is to have a "mix master" of pellets.  Pick one and buy extra and avoid the distraction of "mix and match pellets" like the above.  And this is after burning up 4 other small lots of just "stuff" I had accumulated over the years.  It's all a big distraction from the real task at hand.  Sure, testing value for accuracy is important for some.  If you do this, don't let the odd stuff collect in the corners as I did.

Methodology

Two 2002SSPs shot off the bench.  I put a 8-32x scope on which can focus to 10m.  Shot at a dot with pellet impacting below on heavy target stock.  Objective, use the pellet which after 5 shots leaves the smallest hole in the target paper.

Two desired outcomes.  As I work harder to improve my technique, I wanted to be double darn sure there were no equipment issues.  If nothing else, remove all doubt so I know all problems are related to the shooter.  I also find I'm going through pellets faster than usual.  I'm slowly cleaning out the random tins in an effort to make my core supply last longer.  I have emptied 6 tins so far this season.  Yea!  But messing with odd ball pellets has slowed my path to goal.

Results.

1)  Best pellets were the JSB SCHaKs. Still.  I was surprised to learn they are JSBs practice pellet.  Works for me.  Wish I had 25,000.  They are now $110/5000.

2) I only had 10 Vogel Sport (orange) to test and the first group of 5 was worse than the Daisy Precision which made NO SENSE.  I adjusted my "bench position" and had another go.  I made a second 5 which was as small as the JSB SCHakS.  It is possible that the Vogel Sport (Orange) are as good as the SCHaKs but due to the odd result, they come in second.  More testing required.

3) Meisterkugeln 8.2g.  My first group of 5 from the the Blond gun was not that impressive.  Slightly larger than JSB and Vogel.  I decided it was me.  But, when it came time to shoot the laminated gun, again, the Meisters were kinda sloppy.  For me they are no longer the "defacto" pellet to go buy unless you are just buying tin to tin at local retail.  Let's face it.  In NH, there is not much to choose from.

4) Maybe I was tired.  But I tested my beloved Walmart Crossman Wadcutters at the end.  They were not as good as I remembered and not as good as prior tests.  Not good enough for competition and best used for holding drills.  Still, they deserve review for novice shooters as they are 7.9g (light) and for new shooters with a big wobble zone, they a good bang for the buck when you need to "cut" a target for score.

5) Daisy did better than expected.  Still, I hate these pellets.  Dirty black things, slag in the tin, made in China.  They chamber inconsistently.  I will be glad when they are gone.  I got them from CMP for $27/5000.  Almost gone and will never return.  Life is too short to go this cheap for adults.  Small fry, sure.  I think even CMP stopped selling them.  Their lowest price pellet is now $70/5000.

Learnings:

Bill said it and he was right.  My two guns are pretty much identical in that they would put good pellets in the same tiny hole all day long.  Any issues I am having are not the result of using an inaccurate gun.  It's all about my physical condition, my technique and my mental management. Buying the right gun or the right pellet won't solve these issues!  Showing up with a gun and some pellets is the most important first step.

Pellet buy:

So, I don't really need any pellets, so why am I searching?  Unclear.  HERE is the JSB offering.  I find it interesting the colors line up a bit with Vogel's green and orange.  I think I got my SCHaK pellets for $35/5000.  I thought that was expensive.  HA!  I did not realize even pellets have doubled in price over the past 10 years.  Still, cheaper than powder driven ammo.  It's likely that pellets will only cost more in the future.  If you play the game, there is no reason to not buy a few sleeves of what shoots well for you, they don't go bad.  I did 10 years ago and I am still living off of them.  Still, it may be time to restock.

Best pellet "bargain" for new shooters?  RWS Hobby for $52/5000 7.0g.  Airguns of Arizona. Plus freight I would think they would land for just under $6/500.  Hummm.  Based on how well the Miesterkuglens shot......would I want to save that kind of money on RWS Hobby in my gun?  I think I would go with the Vogel Merlins first. We are going to be placing an order for Vogel Merlins through CMP.  $70/5000 or $7/500.  We have to buy in 'sleeve' quantitiy so those wanting less know that we'll fiddle with the less than sleeve orders to hopefully make everyone happy.

10 meter air rifle match #10 and #11

Yea!  4th 90/100 and it was a 92!

I put in a concerted effort after reading some of the Ways of the Rifle book.  Ended up moving my trigger forward and taking all the spacers out of my stock.  I would like to get some sight risers but that is not in the budget.  My head should be more erect.

I like the shorter stock.  Still having some AD issues due to the light trigger.  I used to 'flutter' my finger to find the second stage.  This has led to an occasional AD.  My new method is to just slowly pull my finger back and that seems to work much better in reliably finding the second stage.

I hold too long.  Way too long.  But, I do know what it takes to make a 10.  Right now, it takes too long for me to get that sight picture and calm on the target.  As a result, my split finger gets tired and that is what contributes to the occasional 7 or worse. I need to return to the fist hold.  I may not have given this enough time.  I just felt I had no "micro" adjustment.  Steady yes, but when I was moving, they were big moves.  Split finger lets me stay closer to the bull.  Could be tension and position.

The good news.  I can walk up to a target and shoot a 10 80% of the time.  I know how to do it.  Long hold, resets, but I know what it takes.  My area of focus is how to do this 60 times in the time available. Get there sooner, execute the shot sooner.

2012-13 Season score log

#01 501 (81 81 84 85 82 88)
#02 515 (87 88 89 83 85 83) 11 7s or lower, 15 10x. previous practice 1x (3.6)
#03 485 (82 82 80 77 86 78) 19 7s or lower, 7 10x. Daisy pellets, reduced barrel weight.(3.6)
#04 494 (88 74 87 88 76 81) 14 7s or lower, 11 10x. JSB SCHaK pellets. First Tuesday night.(3.6)
#05 522 (89 88 90 88 82 88) 7 7s nothing lower, 11 10x. Many high value 9s! H&N + SCHaK (3.2)
#06 492 (75 85 76 84 86 86) 14 7s or lower, 6 10x. SCHaK (3.8)
#07 520 (88 84 90 86 87 85) 8 7s, 12 10x. SCHaK (3.8)
#08 490 (75 85 76 84 86 84) not worth noting. SCHaK (3.8)  Guest shooter.
#09 516 (91 87 86 82 86 84) 11 7s, 13 10x. SCHaK (3.8)  Must stamp out 7s!
#10 513 (88 85 89 85 86 80) 9 7s or worse, 9 10x. SCHaK (3.8)  Stock shorter
#11 518 (83 92 83 87 85 87) 8 7s, 1 6, 12 10x. H&N (3.8)

2011-12 Season score log

#1 515 (87 83 87 88 90 80)
#2 510 (85 89 85 86 82 83)
#3 532 (94 87 83 91 89 88) (season high, 94/100 tied best ever 10 shots)
#4 530 (87 90 90 93 89 81)
#5 524 (86 84 88 91 85 90)
#6 517 (88 85 88 87 90 79)
#7 524 (82 91 88 91 84 88)


Personal Top three 600 scores. Goal, 540.

539 (93 90 90 85 87 94). 11x 7 or lower, 22 10x. 11/??/08
532 (94 87 83 91 89 88) 3/??/12
530 (87 90 90 93 89 81) 3/??/12

Home or last post.

TPM #4

We had a light turn out.  I could blame the cause of the late post of TPM4 results due to the fact I was waiting for some folks to get their scores in.  But that would not be totally true.  I should have just kept by the rules of a strict cut off.  But, my leniency did let a new shooter get his scores in with his new 853!  Well done Mike!!

So, like so many things, a full head of steam at the bottom of the hill.  But as time passed, enthusiasm seems to have waned. Not sure why that is.  Can I do anything better?  Just three shooters made the true deadline.

Recall I started this as a scoped Silhouette game.  It was a way to get folks off the couch and get back to shooting in the months that are not friendly to those of us in the colder climate.  So, indoor shooting was a must.  The decision as to whether to scope or not to scope was the next call.  And lastly, what target to use.  I made some decisions and now it is time to change things up.

Now that everyone is familiar with how this works and in an effort to re kindle excitement, I am going to revert to making this a 10m Air Target rifle program.

TPM #5 will use a BULLSEYE target.  Specifically, the ISSF 10m Air Rifle target. This will be an aid to those with iron sights.  If you want or need to use a scope, no worries, just use it and tell us.

Targets:  You can use any ISSF 10m air rifle target.  For example, we use the AR-5/10 at the club.  There are variants to this as to how many bulls on one the target paper.  Or, go HERE and on page 4 (just print page 4 when you ask it to print).  As info, the AR-5/10 targets we buy are $8.85/100.  You can't inkjet them for that!  Then again, you may not want 100.  Check with your club, they are common and may be collecting dust somewhere.

Course fire:  To make it easier on some who said 40 shots was a lot of work, (you know who you are) we will take your best string of 20 shots.  A regular 10m ISSF match is 60 shots.  This will be just 1/3rd of that.  Shoot 20 shots and see what you get.  145/200?  Think you can improve?  Put up another target and shoot another 20.  Turn in your best "string of 20" for your score, time unlimited.  .177 cal pellets only, 10m (33 feet).  Not sure how score these targets, go HERE.

Aperture shooters will be very happy to see this change.  Scoped shooters....well....I have tried it and find the human eye is an amazing thing. I shoot apertures better than a scoped 10m gun.  So, get out that Daisy 853 or Anschutz 2002CA.  Get out that FWB 300S and be ready to challenge Niklas with his scoped FWB 601 RT.  With our luck he can put target sights on it.  But will he want to????

Submit the following with TPM #5 in subject line by midnight Feb 24th.  I will have results published by end of month, I promise!

Name:
State:
Air rifle model:
Scope details if used:
Power used:
Pellet used:
Score xxx/200
Number of 10x to break ties....if any

Send to with TPM#5 in subject.

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